Studio music

This song has been stuck in my head for a while now. Who knew that the video was so awesome. Particularly the background dancers. They have some moves.

Reflection

Murmuration from Sophie Windsor Clive on Vimeo.

My friend Lizz posted this last night and I couldn't stop thinking about it. It's such an amazing occurrence. I had something similar happen a few years ago when I was on campus. Thousands of birds flew overhead and the sky grew dark. It was so incredible.

We're been keeping a low profile since the shop opening. It was such a huge success and thank you so much to everyone who made it out and sent well wishes. I promise to post pictures soon!

Dream Cabin

The end of the semester is always crazy, but paired with prep for the stationery show and some very sick puppies I have been fantasizing about a vacation. A real vacation. With no phone, no internet, few people and several books. I also have a longtime dream of owning a small cottage or cabin. So, when my boss showed me his friend Michael's cabin I fell in love. LOVE. Such a quiet, perfect space to get away. I really think Jake and I might book as stay here - once in the summer to enjoy the creek and hiking and once in the winter because I've never gotten to vacation in snow. You can check out the rental listing here.

SGCI Recap No. 4

I think these etchings by Lucia Volker are just beautiful. The computer screen doesn't do them justice, either. They are so delicate and the subtlety is really wonderful.

Switching gears a little bit, here are some prints by Firecracker Press. We got to visit their shop and it was filled with letterpress goodness, posters, presses and a line out the door. I bought the Eat It poster for Jake. I love how they hand carve the blocks and the vintage aesthetic of each print. 

SGCI Recap No. 3

I had the pleasure of meeting Nicole Hand at the SGCI open portfolio. She makes beautiful multi-plate etchings (above) and I was really drawn to the contrast between the rich black areas and the more delicately drawn areas. I even got to add one of her small etching to my collection!

These prints were made by Emma Nishimura. The top two are etching/aquatints and the bottom two are photogravures. I'm particularly interested in how abstract these landscapes feel and the softness of the imagery.

SGCI Recap No. 2

As promised, more prints from the conference. The prints above are etchings from Janie Stamm. I love how awkward the creatures are and the patterning in them.

These prints by Lauren Blair Hirsch are super delicate. The jars were printed on a letterpress and the ephemeral abstract parts were hand painted afterward. I'm excited that I was able to add one of these to my collection!

SGCI Recap No. 1

I spent part of the past week in St. Louis for the annual SGC International conference. SGCI is the largest printmaking organization in the country and this conferences was awesome. Imagine 1600+ printmakers in one city, packed into hotel rooms, geeking out at the bar talking about art and the best way to pull a print. Then add workshops, demos, panel discussions and art openings. I know, it's mind-blowing! Over the next week I'm planning to post images from the conference and art from printmakers I got to meet.

One of my favorite parts of the conference is the open portfolios on the last day. During this time about 500 artists are allocated table-time to show their work. I figured I would show you some of the work that inspired me.

 

 

I bought a piece from Nguyet Nguyen. She works primarily in screenprint making monoprints (one-of-a-kinds) and then altering them with drawing and collage.

Macy Chadwick from In Cahoots Press had some stunning letterpress prints and books. The books were truly incredible and I wish the photos could show just how great they really were.

I heart mischief

This weekend is the annual Buffalo Small Press Book Fair. It's one of my favorite shows and sadly I often have to miss it! This year is no exception. I'll be in St. Louis for a printmaking conference and I'm so excited about that. If you happen to be near Buffalo, I suggest you take a trip to see the fair. You'll even get to see new work by my friend JoAnn, who makes gorgeous embroidered pieces from vintage ephemera. You can also see her work in her shop Vintage Refashioned.

Birthday wishes and a new project

Have you seen the new 20 in 20 project from Aesthetic Outburst yet? Well, if you haven't, make sure you check it out. Every day Abbey makes something fabulous (like the pieces above) and then posts it as a giveaway on her blog. I love how diverse the projects are and I'm especially enamored with the embroidery pieces.

Today is Abbey's birthday, too. A little background on my dear friend. I met Abbey 12 years ago when we were freshmen in college. We took intro to drawing together and bonded over our shared hatred of the class. I think we complained about it the entire semester and then promptly enrolled in printmaking together where my first etching was a mermaid and Abbey's was a seahorse (or possibly a sandcastle). I'm happy to say that after all these years, Abbey is still one of my closest, most talented friends. Happy Birthday Abbey!

MASS MoCA: Day 5 randomness

I'm just about out of work to show you from our trip to MASS MoCA, so I figured today was a good time to show you a few random shots. Icicles on the tin roof lined the buildings in the complex were beautiful. By the time we left, most had slid down and and were hanging at 45-degree angles. The entrance is lined with hanging trees, an ongoing installation by Natalie Jeremijenko. I wish we could have seen these blooming, I expect they are amazing.

Lastly, we were able to walk through Petah Coyne's beautiful exhibition. I've been in love with her work since I first saw it while helping to edit on a catalog for her work at the Albright Knox. Although the work in the show is gorgeous, I honestly thought the viewing experience was a little off-putting. Only four people at a time were allowed into the main exhibition space and there were two gallery guards watching those four people. Seriously? I get it to a certain extent - Coyne's work is incredibly delicate - mostly taxidermy birds and silk flowers covered with wax and much of it sits directly on the floor. But get close enough to actually see the intricacies and a guard reminds you to step back. Maybe I wouldn't have been so disappointed about this if Material World hadn't been so hands-on and encouraged interactivity.

MASS MoCA: Day 4

I've shown Katharina Grosse's work in my classes for the last few years and it was so nice to finally see it in person. The scale is just crazy and it was great to walk through the gallery. The contrast of stark white is so striking.

Old Spice Guy, enough said

Oops!

Well, in the chaos of the last few weeks I must have had some serious brain fade. I left off two amazing calendars from my round up! The top image is from Leah Duncan and the bottom is from Paper Boat Studios. They're both totally incredible!

Proceed and be Bold

If you're in/near Rochester this weekend you should check out the film Proceed and Be Bold. On Friday, January 14th there will be a 5pm screening of the film in the Gowan Room at U of R. The film is a documentary about Amos Kennedy and how he left his job to become a printer at age 40.

After-Party/Poster Sale/Meet and Greet with Amos
Time: 8:30 pm
Location: Boulder Coffee (Brooks Landing location, within walking distance from U of R campus)

Free Workshop
Saturday, Jan 15: Letterpress Workshop with Amos
Time: 10 am - 2 pm
Location: Printing & Book Arts Center at Genesee Center for the Arts
FREE: Call Mitchel Cohen at (585) 244-9312 to reserve your spot

Concepcioun Books

 

 

During Second Storie I got to sit next to Christine, owner of Concepcioun, and chat about making work as indie business owners. In addition to being a great person, Christine makes the most awesome felt notepads. There are six different notepad inserts available. My favorites are the web account log (to store passwords) and the checklist (of course). She also makes gorgeous and impeccably crafted custom guest books.

{all images from concepcioun}

Holiday ornaments, hooray!

My good friend Abbey from Aesthetic Outburst created an ornament challenge for herself. She's making 20 ornaments in 20 days and they're pretty awesome! You can check them out right here. It's totally inspiring me to make some new ornaments for my tree, which we got this weekend! Oh, and we also got about eight inches of snow over the last few days. It's beautiful outside and the lights from the tree makes the inside so much more cozy.

mad skills

Wow. I just saw this video on Pidge Pidge's blog and had to post it. So amazing to think about the work that goes into these rugs and how much skill the makers have.

Handmade for the holidays

Rochester's free weekly newspaper, City, just published a great piece on shopping local for the holidays. And although I'm biased because they interviewed me (yay!) I truly think that buying handmade and shopping locally is so important. It makes a difference in the economy, it's reassuring to know that the product wasn't made in poor labor conditions, and it's a gift that can be cherished for much longer than something mass produced. As someone who makes stationery, I love that people are starting to place more emphasis on handmade items, that they want to take time to hand write a note and not just send an email. Buying handmade shows the same sense of thoughtfulness and commitment to your commiunity.

Local Conditions: One Hundred Views of Mt. Rainier (At Least)

I wanted to share with you the most amazing letterpress printed artist book by Anagram Press:

"Artist book consisting of viewing box and 120 image flats, illustrated and compiled from data collected in person, on location, over the course of two years. Housed in a set of drawers with nested stab-bound book and Japanese-style outer wrapper."

As someone who prints and makes books, I can't begin to tell you how much work this must have been and how impressed and awed I am at the final piece. It's just stunning! To see more images or check out Chandler's blog, click here.