Coming up for air...

The fog is finally lifting after the Journey retreat!  I'm still unpacking things, following up with the Center on some details, debriefing, and now planning for next year's event.  I'm SO excited to officially announce that the Journey will continue (just finalized the contract tonite!) next February, the 23rd - 27th, with another great group of instructors:  Albie Smith, DJ Pettitt, Tory Brokenshire, Flora Bowley and Katie Kendrick.  Each of them will be teaching a 3-day class within their genre, although the specific workshops have not been finalized yet.  But honestly, I don't know how attendees will be able to choose just one.  If you're unfamiliar with any of their work, just check out their blogs--amazing talents, each of them!!

Stay tuned for details in the coming months, with registration opening sometime in July.  I have a feeling it will fill up quickly, especially with the other fun things I have in mind.  I'm so fortunate to be able to hold these events--thanks to all for making my dreams come true!

So, back to the most recent event...I have lots more photos, but for now--feast your eyes, and mark your calendars to join us next year!

We had our meals together in the Dining Hall, which was such a great time to meet up with old friends, and new.

See the prayer flags hanging in the windows?  Attendees made over 50 of them, and each grouping was raffled off at the end of the retreat.  I'm thinking this is the beginning of an new tradition!

Journey returnees, Stella and Amy

This was taken during a short burst of blue skies--it rained most of the time, but it didn't seem to dampen the spirits!

Mother and daughter, Holly (r) and Kayla (l)

Erin and Kerri came from Washington to be with us--always smiling!

          Good friends, Carmen, Mikki and Diana, traveled from southern CA to attend the Journey

Raffling off the prayer flags.  (Love the ceilings in the dining hall!)

More prayer flags in the background

Stephanie Lee's workshop

 

The work they did in this class was really fantastic--how they got the plaster to dry in such wet weather is a bit of a mystery (ssshhh), but they did it!  Stephanie and Judy Wise are offering an online plaster class this summer, which is getting a lot of buzz.  I've signed up--have you?

 

 See DJ's blog for more photos!

Albie Smith's class

 

Albie will be teaching again next year, and the class size will be small--students were thrilled with how much info they received, and I expect next year's class to fill very quickly!

 

Amy's been to all the Journey retreats!

Nina Bagley's class

Lisa Ford

Love this pic that DJ took of me and Nina

 

 I coveted this fantastic box that Sharon used for her supplies!

 

 DJ has more photos of Nina's class on her recent blog post about the Journey, so be sure and check it out.  I love that I got this pic of Nina's tools!

Jesse Reno's Class

 Beth came all the way from England to attend Jesse's class.  She's putting on her own retreats in the beautiful  Yorkshire countryside.  Check it out here!

 Rene didn't know that I was looking over her shoulder!

Nellie admiring Danielle's  background

 Orly's daughter, Maya, was our youngest attendee; she was such a joy to have around!  Her art speaks for itself...

Stella, focused on her work

Orly Avineri's Class

 

Orly had a special challenge in her nature journaling class.  Because it was raining and snowing most of the time, she had to get creative on how to bring the outdoors in...without actually going out!

 I love pictures of work tables

 

Orly lives in southern CA and offers workshops down that way--you can check out her blog to get more information.  It's definitely something I would like to do if I find my way down there.

 

Creative Connections

 

Diana Britt sharing her jewelry

 I wish I had pictures of all of the tables, but here's a glimpse at some of the work that attendees brought from home to share.  It was great to see what they do in their 'real' lives!  This is something that I'd like to continue at future events, as it's all about 'sharing and connecting' with others.

 The fabulous Marilyn Thorne

 Danielle Fraser in the foreground, and Cindy Farris in the background

 The always cheerful Monica Moran

 

Lori Burek with her wonderful jewelry display

 Leah Virsik with her handmade books

Mindy with her paintings 

DJ demoed background techniques during the retreat--lots of interested folks!

They all look way too serious...lol!

Artist Sale

 Albie's papers and books were a big hit...as they always are!

 Stephanie had already sold quite a few pieces before this was taken

 Nina's table is always busy

Jesse had all kinds of work for sale, and 'tagged' each piece for the buyer.  I snagged a couple of things for gifts--don't tell my son!

 

Orly had the help of her daughter, Maya, at her sale table

There's a bit more to show--actually some of the Show & Tell photos!  I'll include those in the next post, along with a few of my favorite random shots taken during the event.  This has brought back so many memories for me; I wish the next one weren't so far off!  I'll be back soon....

Update from Max...

Hey, it's me, Max.  Cindy's busy preparing for the Journey retreat, so she asked if I would give a quick update.  Of course, she'll pay for it later I'm happy to step in.  (It took me forever to figure out how to re-size photos, but I think I've got it.)   Anyway, she's got the sewing machine going at all hours, and has lots of fabric piles laying around for me to play in.  I don't know what all the fuss is about, but she seems pretty happy about it. 

 She did want me to mention that registration closes on January 31, and that there are still a couple of spots in Orly's class if you'd like to join in--the other classes are filled, but there's still a little bit of room up at the Center.  Apparently, she's really looking forward to spending some time up in the redwoods with a bunch of people that like to do art.  (Great--who's gonna take care of ME?)  I don't know why she's so anxious to get out of here, but she's crossing the days off her calendar. 

 That's pretty much all she's been doing lately, except for when these annoying darling little creatures come over, and then everything stops and she turns into some lovey-dovey mush.  


















I'll never understand what the big deal is with them, but whatever.  Their arrival is my cue for running out the door and terrorizing wandering the neighborhood.  All I ask is for some peace and quiet; expensive special food; nice clothes to lay on; furniture to keep my claws sharpened; and some loving attention, especially in the middle of the night.  I don't think that's unreasonable, especially considering all the rats, mice, birds gifts that I bring her.  Geez.

I guess that's about it, except that I overheard her saying that she's got another retreat scheduled for February of 2012, and will be announcing the instructors soon.  She says it's going to be another great lineup, and that people should put it on their calendar.  I don't know any more about it, but she'll probably be in touch with you soon on the details   All this enthusiasm and 'happy happy' is really nauseating something. 

I've got to get back to my nap supervisory role; besides, my paws are killing me from all this typing.  I hope you enjoyed this immense sacrifice I made little update.  Just don't expect to hear from me anytime soon (she can do her own dang blog post next time; this is for the birds).

Holiday Tips, Part Two

Fortunately for you readers, I had yet another Sunday that resulted in even more holiday tips!  So here you go:

1)  Before you make not one, but two trips to the store to purchase tree lights, and then put them ALL on the tree, be sure and check the contents of the grocery bag that's been sitting all week in the corner with the ornaments.  You never know.
2)  Consider whether you really want flashing lights before you put the blinker bulbs on, string all 800 lights on your tree, and put up all the ornaments.  They just might be more irritating than listening to "Jingle Bells" over and over again.  It's true.
3)  When taking entire strings of lights off of the tree because, a) you can't find the one little bulb that causes the string to blink, or b) the whole string goes dead and you don't know why, it's much more satisfying to cut the darn thing off with clippers and just toss the all the pieces in the trash (after all, you have an entire grocery bag full of extra lights!)

4)  When you use clippers to cut the long strings off, be careful that you don't accidentally cut into another one that was meant to stay on the tree. 
5) When you attempt to add the new strings of lights to the already decorated tree, it's best to not have young children around, just in case a few choice words slip out.
6)  When picking up the shattered ornaments, be sure and use a broom and dustpan so as not to cut yourself.

7)  Keep that broom and dustpan handy as you admire your handiwork, just in case the dog's tail does a major sweep across the beautifully decorated tree.  Sigh...

This concludes my 2010 Holiday Tips segments (with any luck); I hope you enjoyed them and are able to put them to good use in your own preparations for the season.  May your holidays be full of blessings and stress-free gatherings with loved ones!

Just being real...

I was feeling a bit like this raven lunatic at times today, but I learned a few things, and that's always good. I thought I would share them with you, to possibly save you a little time and trouble.  I'm always wanting to help, you know.  Maybe you already know some of them, but just in case, here are a few of my learnings and (mostly) holiday tips:

1. If your mood is already 'iffy', going through the garage and pulling out all the holiday decorations is not going to help improve it.  Seriously.
2. If somebody (a grown son, let's say) offers to put up the outdoor lights, don't assume that just because he's an engineer, he'll actually think through where the cords will be plugged in.  You might just find yourself having to plug them in in three different places (one being the dark corner of the garage that requires the use of a flashlight); with a long extension cord hanging down the side of the house from the 2nd floor; and another thick cord coming in through a window on the 2nd floor so that you can't close it.  It could happen.
3. Before you go meandering through the neighborhood because there's a break in the rainy weather, turn off the homemade soup that's heating on the stove.
4. If something has not been displayed in years, count on it taking ten times longer to set up than it should.  (For example, a German wooden pyramid purchased 30 years ago when living in Hamburg.)  By the time you dust it using Q-tips to get in the tiny spaces, glue together the loose candle holders, take it apart to figure out why it's not spinning smoothly, put it back together again, glue loose candle holders together again and again and again, then finally get it going, you'll have lost a couple of hours and it'll be dark outside.                                 
5. It's a mathematical certainty that 80% of the glues you own are dried up (this isn't so much a tip, more like a fact.)  Count on it.                                    
6. Do not expect the cute little kitty to be as excited about the reindeer kitty hat as you are.
7. Always keep tissue handy for when in case kitty draws blood.

But the best tip of all?  When your frustration level reaches a peak, a good old-fashioned grilled cheese sandwich will change everything!  True!

Of course, it'll all be worth it when the grand-girlies lay their eyes on the magical twirling pyramid (just so long as we keep cute kitty's tail away from the flames).  Ahh, note to self:  keep the fire extinguisher within easy reach...

Getting to Know Orly...

I am SO very honored to have Orly Avineri joining us in February for An Artful Journey Winter Retreat.  I was fortunate to meet Orly at Journalfest last year, and I wanted you to meet her as well! She was gracious enough to answer a few questions that reveal who she is as an artist and as a person.  You would be giving yourself a great gift to spend time with her this winter.  (Honestly, I would pay to have her read the phone book, she's got such a presence about her.)  You just can't help but smile when you're around her, and come away knowing that everything will be fine, better than fine.

I know that you enjoy teaching in natural settings--can you tell us more about that?
Although I fully enjoy living in the proximity to urban settings and happenings, I crave closeness to nature. I yearn for a direct, sensorial, and tactile relationship with the soil in which plants grow. I long to see natural beauty, smell pines or eucalyptus, touch natural textures, and hear the rain through the stillness of the earth. It is through the stillness that my senses are filled up and strong urges to create emerge. I believe that others are looking to have the same sensations and to evoke similar urges in themselves. We all need a space to connect our inner landscapes with those around us.  An Artful Journey will provide such space.


How does your environment influence your art?
All the environments in me and those that surround me influence my art; material, time, geography, and my emotional world. Chaotic environments bring about raw and honest expressions. However, minimized noise, quieted inner and outer voices, reduced clutter and distraction, bring about art that is contemplative in nature. Art that is revelatory yet holds mystery.

When did art enter your life, and how did it manifest itself?
It entered when I did. As long as I remember. When all was inconstant and love did not seem to be readily available, a piece of paper and a pencil always were. Later on my doodles and drawings provided me with welcomed yet unexpected attention, attention I didn't seem to draw from just being me. Then my creativity was tremendously uplifted by a new spirited mother that appeared in the second half of my childhood years. Since the beginning and till today, art has provided me with the sweetest sense of identity. It is in art that I can lose myself and be found, all at the same time.

What recurring themes come up for you in your journaling?
My own, very special contradictions, fascinate me. Attempting to unify myself through the practice of art journaling seems to be keeping me creating. The interplay between opposing elements, paradoxes, inconsistencies of memories and views of my worlds are constantly expressed in my journals. Concepts of vibrancy and darkness, being prolific vs. having an artist block, innate creativity vs. learned, being outgoing vs. painfully shy, being benevolent vs. selfish, loving vs. holding back, being complex vs. simple...that sort of thing...the list goes on and on. The broad theme can be found throughout my work.

What sets your journaling workshops apart from others?
Art journaling for me is the most honest form of art. The most compelling element of it is that rather than create with beauty in mind, beauty comes into view through the process of creating. It's the ultimate form of expression and as such I have a holistic approach to it.  Interdependence, balance, and interplay between physical and spiritual aspects of the process are highly encouraged through thought and emotion provoking prompts, introduction of unconventional materials, and engagement in unfamiliar processes and techniques, personal explorations and discoveries.


Your work is so deep and thoughtful; what has been your greatest influence?
I believe my work was greatly shaped by a deep sense of lack. Absence of things that I greatly needed. It emerged from empty places. My voids influenced it. It is from the nothingness that my need to fill up blank pages came about, to create spaces that are self-sufficient, worlds that are rich. My work contains my world and those worlds I create for myself. It clearly defines my needs for me and fulfills them in a peculiar way.

 
What do you hope your students come away with, particularly when having the luxury of spending 3 uninterrupted days with you?
The rare opportunity of having a continuous and indulgent 3-day workshop will provide students with time to really shed layers of defenses and truly allow themselves to be in a beautiful natural flow of creativity. Students will come away with a grand sense of renewed joy and awareness of their powers to express themselves freely and abundantly. This will translate into a sense of health, both physically and spiritually. Beside it doesn't harm to go home with a stunning journal filled with natural and self made personal wonders.

What are you most looking forward to, as you prepare for An Artful Journey?
Driving up from Southern California to the enchanting mountains of Santa Cruz, with my 12 year old daughter, to take part in a most beautiful collaboration of nature and humanity to make art, is what I am immensely looking forward to. Absolutely the best way to celebrate one's birthday in my world.

For even more insight into Orly's creative spirit, check out these videos on her blog.  There are still a few spots open at the retreat—you can read all about Orly's 3-day Nature Journaling workshop here.

Thanks, Orly, for sharing your Self with us--can't wait to see you in February! (and maybe YOU too...) 

The great escape

A couple of weeks ago my friend, Robin, and I took off for the tiny town of Neskowin on the Oregon coast. We had nothing planned, nowhere we had to be—we packed up her car and left Portland behind as we meandered down the highway toward the coast. We stayed in a funky condo right on the water, and spent a blissful five days doing whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted.

                Robin's amazing fabric hearts

We stitched (well, mostly she stitched); we watched the ocean change moods almost hourly; we ate a whole lot of really good food; we walked a bit; we went rummaging through antique shops; we drove; we ate some more.

                            My little stitched 'no-things'

I took a good fall one morning when I ran outside and slipped in the mud, landing flat on my back. Check out the cool mud pattern on my sleep shirt (yes, I still had my jammies on--don't ask).  This is only a smidgen of the damage to my clothes; I completely ruined a brand-new sweatshirt.  Luckily, I was able to limp walk away with just a bruised tailbone and some neck/back pain for a few days.  I got off easy, that's for sure.  A good reminder for me to slow down...

Robin and I met some years back when we both attended Artfest and shared a rental car from Seattle to Port Townsend. I had already planned to stay over in downtown Seattle for a couple of days after the retreat, but Robin was due to head back to Sacramento. On the way to the airport, she turned to me and asked if she could use my phone.  She called her husband and told him she'd like to stay a couple more days...and the rest, as they say, is history. We don't get to see each other more than once or twice a year, but we just pick up where we left off.  Our friendship is easy, and solid, and true--and I'm very grateful for it.  It sure is comforting to know there's someone by your side just in case you take a little tumble from time to time.

And boy, was I in for a big surprise when I got back home.  Max had taught himself how to read while I was gone—take a look!

Hurry, hurry!

If you've been intending to sign up for the February Retreat, you might want to rush on over and register--most classes are almost filled, as is the Center! I'm thrilled with the response, and so pleased that there are so many returnees. It's going to be a really wonderful, creative respite after the hustle-bustle holiday season.
With the weather keeping me inside most of the past couple of days (crazy sun, rain, sun, hail, rain, sun, etc, etc. here in northern CA), I've been playing around with my Iphone photo app a little. Who knew?! (Probably everyone but me...) And aren't those cool ribbons? They just may end up somewhere in the gifties that I'm making for the journeyers. Hmmm....

This is my favorite corner in my family room, with flea-market dresser, vintage chair, and yes, that's one of Stephanie Lee's art pieces on the wall. LOVE her work! She'll be teaching here in February as well--lucky us!


Max is also using the weather as an excuse to hunker down and get cozy. Smart cat, that one!