Altered Books
AZ book featuring nature, related to my move. I wanted to use this slim turquoise volume I found but it is just not big enough to hold all I want to put in it! Today I found "Seasons in the Sun" and I think that would be perfect for it. I have a baker's dozen of Arizona Highways magazines (ranging from the 50s to the 80s) with great images to use, and a few miscellaneous Highroads and RV mags, plus brochures I'd picked up on my earlier travels. At the hardware store yesterday I was drawn to paint samples (some may remember I used them to decorate my room half my lifetime ago). I picked out a rainbow of nice wide samples that I may use for a chakra-theme something, someday. While doing that I grabbed a ton of Benjamin Moore samples with any paint name that related to AZ or the desert, to use as collage pieces in the book - examples tucson teal, adobe dust, sedona clay.
I also found the "Sunset and Evening Star" book which I would like to use for a sunset/sunrise themed book. I can use all those desert pictures in the magazines including and outside of AZ.
Bird song book. One of the AZ Highways mags featured birds of the state, and I would not have bought it if not for relating back to the turquoise book "Sing" (strangely authored by Singer). Yesterday I had also picked up a falling-apart book of hymnals, thinking the sheet music would be cool to use for something - and here it is. Did I mention most of the books I got yesterday were free?!
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| Yay Books! Bottom one is a dictionary...mmm...definitions. |
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| I like when the title is multicolor - guess which one in particular? |
I got some mosaic supplies today, black grout, a few tools, and glue. I had a really hard time finding a surface for them at the craft store, and hardware store, etc. I looked up some information on surfaces and it seems wood can warp and needs to be sealed (just more stuff to buy), cement would be too heavy for me to hang the piece, but glass seemed like a potential option. At the antique store I found a couple great garish-colored picture frames - but nice and flat and fairly sturdy; the glass/backing doesn't slide around in the frame. I'm going to repaint the frames, then seal the glass and backing to the frame, then tile the mosaic onto the glass. These frames seemed better than a flat board since it has a shallow height between frame and glass, just enough so the grout won't spill all over. I've never used it so it'll be an experiment.
Tessarae; learning the mosaic terms, this refers to the tile and other items that make up the mosaic. I have a bunch of pieces I've been wanting to use for something, an iridescent coated ceramic bird statue that I smashed. I bought it, headless, at an estate sale. Some of the edges are too curved to lay flat so I'll see if I can make some adjustments to those before the project begins. I got some great iridescent mineral chunks to go with it at one of the "junk stores" last week. I believe it is silicon carbide aka carborundum, it looks like this. While there I picked up some small assorted stones that would be a good addition to another mosaic piece.
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| Frames awaiting new paint |
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| Ridiculous self-portraits in above-mentioned bird, for 365 when I bought it - Jan 2010. |
The antique store I went to today, in addition to an excitable assortment of books and AZ Highways, also had old 45s for $1 each. I thought they would be great for painting mandalas on; you can do that with old CDs as well for a nice iridescent effect, however I haven't dug through my art supplies to see if I did in fact save any old computer data CDs, I may have broken and tossed them. :( Anyway, I could probably get records cheaper somewhere, but there aren't many places right around here and I made specific selections to incorporate into each design, to make it worth paying extra. I'll use the colors or image already on the 45 to guide what I add to it. Below, for example, the Doors record with the caterpillar - add butterflies; Donna Summer (my karaoke go-to) tropical beach scene - continue painting that scene, maybe even add some LHC sand to it! And the one with multicolor word "Epic" and rainbow right in the title? If you know me I think you know what's going to happen with that one!
Now I guess I better get to work on actually carrying out these projects! Staying busy :)
Some artists I've discovered recently, check 'em out:
Ceramics - Chad Gunderson
Tape - Sarah DiNardo
Photography - Steve Wall
Photography - Maianer (been a fan of these on Flickr for awhile)
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