I cannot say enough about the diligence of those who are involved in the Jackson, Michigan Art Scene.  Maggie Riggle and her husband own Art 634 which is in the Old Armory and Prison area.  These wonderful old warehouse-like buildings have been transformed into artist studios and classrooms and shops. 

 What a wealth of local culture and creativity this area is.  Next time I go, I will take photos of this area of Rennaisance  in the Jackson area.  You will be astonished to see the tranformation and you will feel the energy of the place. 

Please visit www.Art634.com for hours and directions, as well as a real neat and arty store there called Hazelle M. Designs at www.hazellem.com .

***********************************************************************

photo of actual jellyfish on the beach

Jellyfish Sketch

Found this Jellyfish on a beach.  Turned the photo around because it was easier to draw. The beauty of a journal is that one can date it, and write on it as a journal.  You will note there is writing on many of my works in the sketches.  Sketchbooks become a personal history and a collection of wonderful memories.

______________________________________________________________________

photo of beach houses

This watercolor was painted in my Moleskine Sketchbook while in St. Augustine this spring.  As I have stated in previous entries, I like to amplify color which, I think, gives more of the original feel to the scene.  It is also best in watercolor, in my opinion, to just let the watercolor paint do all the work (along with the water).  Watercolor cannot be forced if one wishes a natural look to the piece.  It is like the difference between sailing by harnessing the wind, or powerboating.  A watercolorist is a sailor!

Welcome to my new blog.  I hope you will feel free to interact, and enjoy this latest endeavor.  Make sure to visit the ”Meet Patti” tab as well as the workshop/classes tab.   My blog entries have been categorized under tags, so  if you want to peruse “watercolor” entries, for ex., click on the tag for that.

Let me know what you are doing as well.  I would be glad to include other group sites, as well as personal sites along the sidebar.  You only need to mention it. Networking on-line–the new normal.

Art has become as much about cyberspace as everything else, it seems.  Still nothing beats the actual making of the art.  Nor is it as satisfying as face-to- face interaction.  So let’s have coffee together too!

Here I am last Fall  on the porch at the lake.  When people see me they go awwww.  My specific breed is party cocker, and my grandfather, Pretty Boy Floyd, was a show dog.  When I walk, I prance.

So my question is this:  If they wanted me to make some money around here, why didn’t they leave me intact–so to speak.  I could’ve been a stud-muffin.  I don’t want to talk about it anymore.

________________________

Front of Bookmarks

Back of Bookmarks

Some of us just have to make things.  I’ve often said, if I’d been a Native American, I would’ve been the one sitting in the dirt making baskets.  I like to make things:  babies, dinners, paintings, soaps, homes.  You name it, I need to make stuff.

Do you remember when we  had school fundraisers and were supposed to go door to door selling magazines to our neighbors?  I wasn’t very good at it.  In fact, I was so bad, I used to knock on people’s doors and say, “You probably don’t want any magazines, do you.”

Well, so what I am saying here is that I make these bookmarks from scraps and bits and bobs.   There are many (many!)  of them; they make nice gifts, and they are only $5.00.  I really don’t want to ship them, but  would sell them to anyone who wanted one in person.  But then, you probably don’t want any bookmarks, do you.

______________________________________________________________

 This was a good article with a metaphor about travelling through life in a kayak, and not on a train:

 http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Life-Coach-Martha-Becks-Tips-for-Managing-Your-Tech-Life

Thought for the day:

“Be kinder than necessary, for  everyone is fighting some sort of battle.”

Variation on the Square

At the Ella Sharp Museum All State Competition opening, January 2010.

Some of my friends were there as well: Dee Overly, Barbara Goodsitt, and Lynda Schumacher–all colored pencilists.

Another friend I knew from Siena Heights’ art  school several years ago was there as well, Pam Bacon.

Pam won the Exceptional Merit Award for her large white on white piece entitled , “This is That”.  I am so proud of her dedication to her art.  My piece is one of my abstracts from my Variation on the Square series (see web www.patticasteel.com ).

_____________________________________________________________

A photo and a watercolor are two different things.  This painting is executed from a photo taken near our townhouse in Brighton.  It was just a simple ditty of an exercise done on an Arches Aquarelle tablet on my dining room table.

For me, anyway, the watercolor captures the flavor and the mood of the scene when I was there.  The feeling and the colors are more in line with what I experienced as opposed to the photo.

The watercolor has been simplified in detail and amplified color wise. Composition has been exaggerated.  There is movement in the painting–it seems less static to me.  I like a painting to be its own entity, rather than an attempt at duplicating a photo.

____________________________________________________________________