July Sgraffito Challenge (#3 of 4)

The Stick Person Challenge has Arrived!

And you thought it couldn't happen! 

Stick people can actually teach us a lot about how we view drawing humans.  When we're very young, we know what is 'essential' to the human body.  Head, Face, Arms, & Legs. 

As we grow older, we add things like the neck, hands, and feet, and from there we progress to adding knees, elbows, fingers, and toes...  

Beyond that, drawing people can get a little scary as we try to make our drawings look more realistic.  THIS is where a lot of us just give up and succumb to the idea that we 'can't draw anything better than a stick man.'  This week, we're going to 'Stick-it' to that thought and tackle some fear!

First, let's look at a few funny stick figures that have serious problems...

Pablo the Stickman is headed for disaster, and doesn't even have hands to catch himself...
At least he can still yell for help.  He definitely seems concerned and looks to be falling fast.

STAN

Poor Stan.  Things in the bathroom

were never easy with arms this short, but that's a 

secondary problem...

Stan's head would likely have fallen off into the toilet first, 

just from trying to look down without a neck!

STELLA


All Stella wanted from life was to dance the
'Macarena' with her friends, but alas...
No Hips, No Shoulders, No 'Macarena'.
 She can't even reach her head...
Rats.

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Next, let's learn some simple tips about PROPORTIONS of the human body, or, how the sizes of different parts line up and compare with other parts.

The average adult human is approximately 8 "head lengths" tall.  Children have much different proportions from adults, so this drawing can help you notice those differences.

By the way, these photos were taken from the book "Figure Drawing For Dummies", by Kensuke Okabayashi.  It's a great, inexpensive starter book for anyone who wants to learn more about drawing the human figure.

Some Easy Tips & Tricks to help you 'figure' it all out: 

In order, here is approximately where each head length hits from top to bottom...

1. Chin
2. Armpit/ Nipple
3. Navel
4. Crotch/Groin (this is also usually the 1/2 way point)
5. Fingertips
6. Just below knee
7. Just below center of shin
8. Where the feet hit the ground

Things that line up pretty closely to each other:

• Elbows and navel
• Wristbones and Crotch
• When seated, the distance from the top of the head to the seat is about the same distance as the back of the seat to the knees.

When drawn in proportion, these guys/gals can attend themselves in the bathroom, catch themselves when falling, AND can take on the 'Macarena' in style!

And finally, on to your challenge...  
The July Fused Glass Powder Sgraffito Drawing Challenge (#3 of 4), is to use what you've learned about proportion to create a series of sketches of human figures.  
You can start out with stick people if you like, and give them mass by adding powder in the appropriate places.  Picture it like you're working on a sculpture; starting with a wire armature and adding shape with the powder as you work.
 It may help to draw a sharpie stick person directly on your glass, and add powders over your sketch.
Avoid thinking about outlines if you can!

Things you can do to further challenge yourself:

• Make your figures 'do something'... Dance the Macarena, walk a dog, ice skate, run, shoot a basketball, eat a hotdog, or hold a yoga pose.
• Draw figures of different ages together.
• Draw figures with animals, or in scenes that give a sense of scale.
• Study figure drawings and paintings by other artists... Albrecht Durer, DaVinci, and Degas are some of my favorites.

 An InLinkz Link-up

*For those of you know me and are wondering... YES, I did laugh a lot while writing this blog post and I did very much enjoy using the words nipple, armpit, navel, groin, and crotch in a legitimate post.  :) 

An InLinkz Link-up

July Sgraffito Challenge (#2 of 4)

Week one went by really quickly, didn't it?

The crows are so very cool, keep posting them!  If you are like me, and haven't done your crow yet, don't worry.  There is plenty of time to catch up.

Onward we go!

Our next challenge (#2 of 4) is to create a glass powder sgraffito drawing of a lightbulb.  You can pick your own lightbulb and compose a drawing from it, or you can use the reference photo as a guide.

It can be a real challenge to capture shine and reflection, and to make things look 'round and real'  (remember the safety pins?)  you can do it!  Pay special attention to where a dark shape meets a light shape, and compare their values.  Talk to yourself if you get stuck!..."this shape is lighter than that one, but also darker than the one next to it." etc. 

If you're feeling like you need a little more challenge, try laying the lightbulb on a patterned background and see how you capture it shining through the glass, or include your hand holding the lightbulb.

Don't forget to link your photo here so we can all see what you've been doing, now you can use Instagram to post your photos.  YAY!

An InLinkz Link-up

Here's a little quote by Thomas Edison that should be an encouragement to you! 

An InLinkz Link-up

Natsukashii

I like words.   I am especially fond of Japanese words, because so much can be said in small 'pictures'.  "Natsu" is the first part of the word and the kanji looks difficult, but in that first little block there are symbols that mean heart, pocket, bosom, breast, yearn, miss (someone), become attached to, curious, eager to know, dear, missed, desired...  

The English translation would probably be 'nostalgic', but the English word leaves me without pictures.  Pictures within words make the Japanese language so seductive... I just want to learn more so I can unfold the beauty of how they fit together so perfectly.

I spent this weekend with a student, who has become a friend.  She was here to make a sgraffito style city in fused glass, and brought with her some photos from her childhood home in Iceland.  I truly enjoyed listening to her stories and learning about how life was while she was growing up. I'm interested in knowing about these things; the natsukashii memories that we all carry.

Here is a photo of a small section of her glass city, she mastered faces in a hurry!  Each part of her city was tied to those natsukashii memories, and I am feeling pretty lucky to have heard the stories behind the artwork that she created.  Life is short.  Every piece of artwork carries a memory of sorts.  Spend the time to look for it and you'll see...

And the Winner is...

Kenya Bowl

I'll get to the winners in just a moment, but please take the time to read…

Someone sent me a link on Facebook a few weeks ago about how first world problems sound when read by someone in a third world country.  My favorite one was read by a little boy. "I hate it when I order food and say no pickles, and still, they give me pickles." Another man read a complaint outside of his tiny hut.,"I hate when my house is so big, that I need to buy two wireless routers". His face was bright and his voice laughed as he spoke.

I couldn't stop thinking about all of the random silly complaints spoken within the walls of my own house.  "This stupid toilet isn't flushing right", "I'm hungry & there's nothing to eat",  followed by "I don't like (name anything that's in the refrigerator)", "Do I have to load/unload the dishwasher again?"  I am now sadly aware…

I asked for your complaints surrounding the topic of water, because that Facebook story  made me stop and think… My family and nearly every family I know has access to clean water. The water we give our dogs, wash our cars with, and even the water in our toilets is cleaner than the water many people have to drink each day.  We don't become ill from our water.  We don't walk miles carrying a jug home each day.   I want to remember this more often, but in the world we live in it's difficult thing to do.

My parents began a project last spring after they visited Kenya on vacation.  They found out about these amazing filters that can turn ANY water into clean, disease free, drinking water.  They raised money over several months, and were able to supply a small village with the filters, one for each household. The filters never need to be replaced, they can be backwashed and used over many years.  With these filters, waterborne illness could potentially be eliminated in many parts of the world.  They can also be used in situations of natural disaster when water becomes undrinkable. 

A filter kit is $95. 
This includes international shipping, training sessions with a translator to teach families how to use them, along with ways to  prevent waterborne disease.  Best of all, a family will have access to clean water for a lifetime.  

This spring and summer, I'll be making a special group of glass pieces to help fund the purchase of more filters.  I hope to involve some school groups, friends, students, and random people in the creation of these pieces. (are you interested in playing with some glass?)… If you'd like to be involved, keep watch,  I'll be posting more details soon :)

OK ON TO THE WINNER!!!
Thanks to all of you for your contributions to the discussion, and especially for reading about the project.  I let my kids draw the names, and since there were two kids here, there are two winners.

Congratulations to ANNA CURTH! and CRAIG SMITH!

Here is the link to the Facebook Story I watched:

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If you want to hear more, read on!


Below are photos from my parents' project.  The group arrived very early for the training session, and I think the women are smiling the most because it is their job to deal with providing water for their families.  The second photo is of Rose Wambua, who is doing the training, along with the chief elder of the village, who is translating.





In Africa, 387 million people lack access to clean water. 

3.1 million people die each year from preventable, waterborne illnesses. That is more than the entire population of Los Angeles.

Globally, an estimated 200 million hours are spent each day collecting water.  

Women and children are prohibited from accomplishing little more than survival.  Not because of a lack of ambition, or ability, but because of a lack of safe water and adequate sanitation. Millions of women and children in the developing world spend untold hours daily, collecting water from distant, often polluted sources, then return to their villages carrying their filled 40 pound jerry cans on their backs.

The lost productivity of people collecting water is greater than the number of hours worked in a week by employees of Wal-Mart, UPS, McDonald's, IBM, Target, and Kroger combined.

These statistics are from the World Health Organization.  (I didn't make this stuff up!)

Mixing Media…I Can't Help It.

Tree Study in Alcohol Ink

Purchase this painting at auction, starts at $15

My college advisor told me that if my art was ever going to be taken seriously I needed to settle down and pick one medium to work in.  He said 'concentrate on one thing, so that you may master it'.  In many ways he was right.  The problem is that I LIKE to work in so many different media.  While it was very good advice given by someone I respected, I am still at odds when I look back.I think it's important, especially for children to realize that artists don't just sit down and whip out masterpieces.  Even the old masters.  

In sixth grade my school had a program called 'Mini Art'.  A random mom would come in with plastic covered prints of a master's works, and tell us about the artist, their work, and their (normally sad) lives.  In my 11 year old mind I thought my desire to be an artist was out of reach, because I couldn't make a masterpiece at all. My hands were never able to create what my brain imagined, no matter how much time I spent or how hard I tried.The part they left out of the 'Mini Art' program and my art education in general, is that no artist gets anywhere without regular, concentrated practice.  Artists screw up every time they work.  That's how art is.  It's a series of practicing adjustments, and keeping the best ones.  As an adult artist I wish someone had told me this when I was very young.

My piece for the day is a sketch in alcohol ink.  It is an attempt to quickly study and work out the kinks before I have to make decisions about creating it in glass, which is my media of choice on most days.  I work in any media I can get my hands on to figure these things out. My college didn't offer glass in it's program, and my advisor has since passed away.  I wish I could tell him that I found the perfect media to claim as my love, but I need the other ones in order to make it work..

Something Old (sort of), and Something New

"As Luck Would Have It", Kiln-formed glass panel.  Kelly Alge ©2013.

This is my entry for Day 2 of Leslie Saeta's '30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge' … I made this 3 months ago, so it isn't exactly old, but it is definitely not something new I suppose.  To truly be in the spirit of this challenge I should have made it today, but life got in the way and I didn't make anything art related.  (boooooo!)  I'll make up for it in the end.

Anyway, in keeping day 2 of my resolution to learn something new everyday, I can tell you that I've learned several new things today…

I learned how many sorts of sutures surgeons have to learn and what each kind is good for the thing you need to suture.  I read about all the different filaments that are used, which ones are strongest in certain situations, and I learned that some of the self-dissolving ones are made from catgut or beef tendons. Interesting.  The patterns and technical knowledge, along with years of practice develop the suturing skills of the physician until he or she can do them perfectly.  Kind of like art, isn't it?  

Two weeks ago today I had hand surgery to correct a tendon problem.  It's healing nicely, and my sutures were actually pretty interesting to look at. Very precisely done, and surprisingly not like any stitches I'd ever seen.  I was supposed to schedule a followup to have them taken out, but instead I got busy with the holidays and such.  Deciding to try to remove them myself,  I found my tiny scissors and tweezers. When I couldn't figure out where the snips should be,  I resorted to the internet.  How many things do you think go wrong when consulting the internet?  This time things went well and I wasn't "left in a stitch".  

Another important lesson from today… as a new user of a smooth cooktop stove, of course I've been freaking out about ruining it somehow.  After I made dinner I carefully squirted the polish on, then put my teakettle on the back burner to heat.  Wrong burner.  When I turned around I noticed that my polish was boiling and the water was not, so in a dash from the sink I instinctively tried to quickly wipe it off with one of my orange dishtowels.  UMMMM… I won't be buying anything but cotton dishtowels from here on out.  That's all for tonight.

Wonderful News!

Student projects from last weekend's Fused Glass Sgraffito Drawing workshop~
Look at all this fantastic work!
This was a really fun group to work with, and their pieces are all extremely well done. Hats off to you ladies!
Artwork from left to right:  Shirley Cole, Laurie Mueller, Gail Stanforth, and on bottom, Gloria Moses.

Next workshop is scheduled for August 9, 10, & 11, and we'll be doing something a little different! We'll be designing colorful cityscapes by incorporating powder drawings into a larger work of art.  You can find out all the details and registration information on my website   HERE.

Wonderful News!!!

As many of you know, I have been given the incredible opportunity to work with other glass artists and teachers for a week in Portland at the Bullseye Glass Factory next month.  I have had many sleepless nights worrying about how I was going to pay for the travel expenses to be able to do this.  Lots of my artwork has sold, but with 4 kids and bills it has still been really hard to save for the trip. 

Then came a huge surprise...

I got a letter in the mail saying I had been selected to receive a Palmer Scholarship from the Toledo Museum of Art, which will pay for ALL of my travel expenses for the trip!!!  I am so thankful to the donor who sponsored it, and I can't wait to be able to tell them how much it means to me.  I feel a huge weight removed knowing I'm not going to have to sink into debt to make the trip, and I'm going to learn EVERYTHING I can possibly soak up while I'm there (without the added worries)!  Thank you, Thank you to everyone who has supported me, and to TMA for offering these opportunities to help artists grow in their discipline.

Want to help make a stranger's day?

"The Phoenix", Oil on Gessobord,   6"x 6"

Participate in this auction in my Daily Paintworks Gallery!

A friend and I went to this cafe for breakfast when I was teaching a glass class out of town.  A man came in while I was there, he was apparently mentally challenged and he looked cold and hungry.   I asked him if he was hungry and he said no but I could tell that he was.  He wanted a small cup of water.  

We secretly bought him a coffee and bagel and left without him knowing.

I think about this man often, wondering if he is cold and hungry a lot.

I want all of the proceeds from the auction sale of my painting to go to this coffee shop in Benton Harbor, Michigan, to start a sort of "kindness fund" in honor of that man. 

 It would be a great way to offer any random person the opportunity to have a free cup of coffee,  be warm, and feel cared about for awhile.  

Please, please share this story, and put in a bid if you're inclined.  You can do so by clicking the link under the photo.  You could get the painting and help a lot of people in the process! 

 It's going to be so great to surprise them...

Remember the Soup Nazi? Today's Landmark Painting Challenge: Wilson's Restaurant in Findlay, OH

Wilson's Sandwich Shop in Findlay, Ohio
Photo reference credit: Andrew Thomas Lee


  Well, today's painting challenge was to paint a local landmark, and I chose to paint Wilson's Hamburger Shop in my hometown of Findlay, Ohio.  My family came here a lot when I was a kid.  It was here before McDonald's, Burger King, or Wendy's, and popping in for a cup of coffee and a slice of pie is still a daily routine for many people here in Findlay.
What does this have to do with the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld?  Read on....

As a kid, we used to go sit down with Mom to 'hold the table' while my Dad went up to order.  I always got a 'special', which is a burger with lettuce, tomato, and mayo, and a malt or a 'frosted'.  It seemed like forever passed by while we waited for our food, and we would impatiently jump out of our seats at the table and go for a spin on one of these stools until we were dizzy.  Wilson's was always loaded with old people, and there weren't many kids around.

It wasn't until I was older that I realized that Dad didn't want us at the counter for a good reason.  The staff wasn't so patient with kids, especially the 'stool spinning' sort, and you had to order correctly to make them smile.  There is a certain way to do it, and you don't dare 'stray from the way'.  Ha!  So here is entertainment at it's best, a blog post with video!  You can check out the true scoop on Wilson's in Findlay by clicking this short video  link (starring my sister-in-law Angela), and then take a look at some of the Soup Nazi scenes, have a laugh and decide for yourself!

What about Wilson's? 
Seinfeld's Soup Nazi Scenes

 By the way, if you'd like to buy my painting of Wilson's Hamburger Shop, you can bid on it this week on Carol Marine's Daily Paintworks, bidding starts at $15!  

New Fused Glass Sgraffito Work in Progress Slideshow

Hey! I learned how to do a slideshow on my blog, this is great!  Now everyone can see what goes on while I'm working on a new piece.  Hopefully I can shed some light on the process for those who aren't able to attend a class:)  However, if you ARE thinking about taking a glass sgraffito class, don't be fooled by the photos~ it's not nearly as difficult as it might seem, and I can show you the tricks.  I will try to post sllideshows of works in progress more often if this works well.
 OK, short but sweet today, I'm off to visit the 3rd and 4th graders at Trinity Lutheran School for their weekly recorder lesson.  Love me those kids...

Freshening up in February, Here are some of the pieces I have available for sale

Monet Path, Fused Glass Frit Painting, $1495

 As I am freshening up around the studio, I wanted to post a few of the fused glass pieces I currently have available.  These are on display at Coffee Amici in Downtown Findlay during the month of February, and are available for purchase in my online gallery at Daily Paintworks.  If you are interested in learning about my process, you can check out my website or register for one of my upcoming classes in fused glass sgraffito drawing or "frit painting". 

Some really exciting news, (and words can't convey how excited I am!) 

PORTLAND!!  Bullseye Glass has invited me and 9 other glass artist/teachers to come to their factory's Research and Education Studio for a week in May for some in-depth training and collaboration.  More on that later.... But be prepared to hear about some fun specials I'll have coming up this month to help raise some money for a plane ticket and lodging:)  Planning to have some new work up by the end of the week!  Blessings to you...

Garden Party, Fused Glass Frit Painting $595 SOLD

Farm Storm, Fused Glass Collage $2300 SOLD

Paris Boat Dock, Fused Glass Powder Sgraffito Drawing $395

Sing Song City,  Fused Glass Collage $4295

Autumn Foliage (Unframed) $495

Paris Carousel $395

Starlight Boy

I finally got a decent photo of this glass sconce all nicely lit up~ and thought I'd share it with you.  Time to get back on track and in the mood to fire up the glass kilns again...

30 in 30 Painting Challenge is Finished... aw man.

This is my last painting of the challenge, and now I don't think I'll be able to walk away from painting entirely.

Well Rats... The Challenge I thought would be horrible is finishing up tonight.  30 Paintings in 30 Days    sounded like an insane thing to do, and I was so mad and frustrated when I began!  How on earth has it happened that I really don't want to stop?  I've learned a lot in these 30 days, watching the others involved in this challenge post their work each day has given me a new 'puzzle' to think about.  I wish I could watch each one in progress as I try to pick apart the way the piece came to completion.  I found that although I really don't know what I'm doing at all, it is becoming part of my day and like my coffee, I'm not sure how I'll be without it.  Just going out there and trying has been a really hard thing for me, as I expect perfection before practice.   I have learned a lot of what not to do, and am slowly getting a grasp on what 'TO" do.  The practice is becoming less painful all the time.  Hopefully some of the others in the group will want to continue at a more decent pace and still keep posting beautiful things for me to look at, and provide me with that much needed 'kick in the butt'.  Maybe the winter will go by faster this year...

Money on Trees and an Accidental Lemon Yellow incident involving a Dog with a Cone

Ok today was just silly, but read on, it's a good laugh.

I started out painting on Day #24 with the knowledge that I only had about 2 hours to fool around with this 30 paintings in 30 days challenge and the rest of the day needed to be productive since I have a show this weekend.  I had one canvas board left, and of course it was an 11x14, so it was going to take longer than I wanted.  I decided on something simple.  Money plants.  

I like money plants.  I remember my parents growing them.  For months they looked like a pile of weeds, and when the whole summer had passed, we got to help peel the leaves off to reveal the shiny insides.  I was about 5 years old and completely convinced that if I were careful enough, perhaps there might be some real money inside one of them.  Why else would my parents plant such a thing and spend so much time on them?  Looking back, I remember hearing someone say "Money doesn't grow on trees" and I was so disappointed for my parents, who kept trying to grow it.  Ha!  Anyway, I had a nice time reminiscing and painting along, thinking "dang, these things are HARD to paint, why did I pick this anyway"  when suddenly the front door of my studio flies open....

Now, just a wee bit of background here.  I have a little compulsion for musical instruments, and need to sell a few of them.  Mainly, 3 trombones.  My husband's friend, the high school band director was coming over and my husband decided it would be good to drag these trombones into the studio to see if he could tell us what they were worth.  My studio is set up for working in glass, not oil painting. I have no place set aside for paintings to dry, and as the end of this challenge draws near I have a pile of wet paintings lying about wherever I can find a place.  There are paper towels covered in turpentine and wet paint right outside my door so as not to cause a fire inside.  I have palette paper covered in paint from the last painting lying on a low table, and my cello is standing in it's case right near the front door. There is no room for these trombones.

Fast forward...

Mr. Honse comes in the door, which means the cello has to quickly be moved and I warn him (too late) about all the wet paint rags he just stepped in and now it's all over his shoes.  Then WHAM here comes my overly protective golden retriever in his CONE to see who is in the studio.  Cone drags through the palette paper, grabs a nice glob of lemon yellow all over, and in a matter of a second this poor guy has bright yellow oil paint all over his black coat and black dress pants.... aye...

So here's to today's painting effort, to all dogs who have been banished to cones, and to band directors everywhere.  Love you Buddy:)

Painting, Painting, Painting

Last night something finally clicked... I learned that I am supposed to wipe my brush clean after every stroke, and that oil paint is it's own bird.  I can't expect it to behave like watercolor or acrylic, and now I can understand how watercolor might be difficult for an oil painter.  Pressing on, I know I am behind, but I am looking at this challenge in a more excited state of mind.  Finally I can begin to grasp these little things that are helping me see what I am doing wrong so I can correct them...