an artist's life in balance

winter games opening

sometimes my patriotism does not allow me to be humble enough to see the contributions of other countries...

so many Canadians...

Joni Mitchell?...

born Roberta Joan Anderson.

yea

deal with it.

born in western Canada.

...in ft Macleod.

yea.

I am humbled.

my husband's kin...

now I am an anderson.

right on.

a little press for my new ad-venture

The Gazette did a little Q & A on my work. Tomorrow the article comes out in the paper!

Here is the Q&A.

missing blogger

My blogging has been hit and miss of late, mostly because so much of it is now over here.

And I was recently convinced to become a twitter-er.

And there's that darned facebook thang that needs updating...

along with my other art website...

and my two business-es...

any wonder?

chili for a chilly day

Friday, after spending two hours on the freeway getting home with all the other poor saps that thought it was a good idea to leave early in preparation for the storm, I cooked a big pot of chili to take off the chill. The snow started to fall around nine pm and by saturday morning we had a foot. It snowed all day saturday and by late afternoon our deck looked like this:

The down side is that everything closes and no one moves. The upside is that everything closes and nothing moves. Happy to turn it into a party, Bryan and I read books, watched movies and football, and basically goofed off. Nice when mother nature forces you to take a "snow day".

grand opening of the studio

It was a great night and before I new it it was over. After preparing the space and setting out the food, people started to show up and at that point I didn't have the presence of mind to grab the camera to show how many people you can actually fit in an 8' x 30' space! It was cozy and a lot of fun. Thanks to all of our friends who attended and made the evening a huge success.

cubbies filled with artwork.

illustration of "Journey" in process.

food for the opening.

new signage

The new signage for my little corner of the park got put up right before my grand opening. Makes it seem more official somehow doesn't it?

playing hooky

It may be gushy and annoying, and maybe even unbelievable, but Bry and I do not do well when we are apart. We don't sleep well, we don't function well, and we just miss each other terribly. And recently he was assigned to do some traveling for work that required him to be gone for a few days and back a few and then gone again. Five of these trips all while I was setting up my new studio was pretty intense and stressful. When he came home sunday night only to leave agin monday we decided...

enough is enough.

And since this last trip was by train I jumped on with him.

Besides, I have been working non-stop and finished my first class on saturday. I have not taken a day off other than thanksgiving, and even that weekend was spent working.

time to play a little hooky.

in philly.

Turns out Amtrak is a wonderful thing. And it is stress free compared to all the wasted time spent preparing and going through security for the "time saver that is air travel". After buying a ticket on a whim, and boarding within minutes, luggage in hand without being scanned, puffed with air, or cavity searched, I am totally sold on train travel.

Stealing away a little time like dinner, breakfast, and maybe even a few hours sight seeing before his gig, Bryan and I are playing hooky.

a very cool market... a section just for cheese... need I say more?

dinner at the continental... yea.

first class first snow

Looking out the studio window this morning and watching the rain turn into the first snow of the season. I give my first class in the new space today.

a day of firsts.

morning after

It is really all you want the morning after turkey day, a nice french press.

And it wasn't our intention to do the traditional T-Day dinner this year, with Daniel absent and my schedule all askew. We haven't yet adjusted to the new normal. But like the call of the wild by five oclock I was craving poultry like a salmon needing to swim upstream. On the hunt for a last minute bird, just missing Safeway locking their doors, we managed to get into Giant just in time. Cooking at five thirty we were eating by 8:30 which I think constitutes making it just under the wire in Turkey time. And the great thing about doing it late, is the bird was half off.

A lovely french press morning.

last minute bird

The late night, last minute, poultry scramble.

bracelet day

It will take some getting used to, having folks come in and out as I work. I had some nice ladies from NY that took me quite literally when I said, "come on in, don't be shy". Before I knew it they were milling around the workshop area poking at all the work in process...

what a hoot.

I am so happy that people seem to be comfortable in the space. Today really was the first day that I was open to the public while wielding the torch. And it was interesting to have people watch and ask questions. It is what I would hope for if I was a visitor to an artist studio.

So between the visitors, I managed to get a little work done for the holiday sale at Glen Echo's Popcorn Gallery. (they call it the popcorn because it used to be the parks popcorn stand and has this giant deco sign "POPCORN"...very charming)

at the bench

Still pulling things together, but I actually managed to make some jewelry yesterday. New tools arrived for the students and I had to laugh at the fact that they are better than the ones I have been using all these years. Especially the pliers. I have used the tools that I originally bought when I was a student and it never occurred to me to buy something better.;-) After being at the studio most of the day, I cam home to finish
the new website for the studio. It was quick and basic but it gets the job done.

glen echo magic

I am posting this a few days after the fact because I haven't quite worked out the habits of what to take to the studio (camera cable) and what to leave on a daily basis. Today I am home working on some promo material and happen to have the stuff in one place.

I just have to say how grateful I am for the folks at Glen Echo Park for the system that they have set up for rolling out an artist. Having had to do the self promotion end of my craft for years (my least favorite part and for most artists that is true) it is really nice to have this amazing support system. Even though the park takes a wee percentage of class tuitions which means it makes sense that they promote their artists, still some studio settings just don't have that. And promotion is one of those things that some artists just never get around to doing. It is hard work, and most of us would rather be doing the art.

Pre-reception food set-up. Three unsung heros... Jennifer, Sharon, and Meredith. Jen and Shar are the promo gals, and Meredith holds the post of Education Program Manager which is like herding cats when you consider that all the instructors are artists. She manages to wrangle us all with a gentle grace and patience. A huge task. And she was my original gateway into the whole process that landed me in this amazing place. Thanks so much you guys!

the view out my studio window of the vintage carousel.

from inside the back of the studio

encouraging words over the student stations. Dream, Imagine, Live... and over my work bench..Keep it Simple(not shown)

my vintage treadle polishing machine finds an appropriate home here.

the new kid

I am almost completely moved into my new creative space minus incidentals that I keep forgetting to stick in the car when we leave each morning, coffee in hand. Yesterday was my first sort of official day as an artist-in-residence here at the park as I attended my first resident meeting. I was also fortunate enough to be visited by Glen Echo Park's governing board members last night at a little reception held in my studio and the lobby space outside it.

Wow.

I lost count of these esteemed folk that popped in to ooh and ahh at this newly transformed space and the promise of creative opportunities that it offers would be students.

I even met the mayor.

I have to admit to feeling a huge sense of pride watching jaws drop as folk entered the space to have a look around. I fielded numerous questions about the classes, silversmithing as an art form, my work specifically, and even... "what is in the crock pot"? (that would be a silver cleaning agent called 'pickle'".

A few of my fellow residents popped in too, and that was absolutely wonderful. My hopes were proven right that this is truly a vibrant art community where each artist seeks to build the other up. I was given some great tips for marketing to the local area, and lots of encouragement. As well as an insistent buyer of some of my cards.

Shades of what could be the soul of exnihilo.

I couldn't have asked for a warmer welcome.

studio home stretch

Well so much for reporting the day by day, instead it has fallen to the weekly interval. But, much was accomplished this week in spite of missing my hubby helper who has been an uber-busy business traveler.

Almost done, minus my office area (hence the ladder peeking through the curtains). The student stations are all done sans some wall embellishments like inspiring pictures of works in progress, or encouraging words. We got the anti-vibration rubber installed under all the cabinets so that the sound of hammering is transformed from a bang, bang, bang, to a tink, tink, tink. This will hopefully keep me endeared to my neighboring artists across the hall and on the first floor.

Much sawing and assemblage, nailing and painting... design and selection of things that will maximize the wee 8 foot width of this space. The thought put into the preliminary design has paid off ten fold as the room now actually feels much larger that it did originally. Contrary to popular belief, darker colors can actually expand the perception of a room.

Fortunately for this artist, there is a place called IKEA, and even more fortunate for some reason they have been over-stocking their AS-IS room. My visit there on an almost daily basis has paid off big time, from the discovery of a perfect workbench to nice wooden drawer pulls for 25cents a pair. Three places where I really splurged was the gallery flooring, the two beautiful glass cases, and the student seating. But at 250.00 for both, those glass cases bring the gallery to life, and they are lockable. And I have to admit being a little obsessive about the stools. I literally butt-tested a dozen different styles before selecting these (again, thank you Ikea) which came in a pack of two and are the most comfortable stool I have ever sat on.

Hey who can be creative with a sore butt?

And they add a wonderful zen sort of style to the space and fit perfectly in the little niches.

Yea... I am really obsessive about the student experience. But I have always been highly sensitive to how a space can help or hinder the creative process. The muse needs a happy and inspiring place to live, and that includes a lot of things...

functionality,
comfort,
beauty.

All of these things feed the muse, and my hope is in this new creative space that I can help other would-be artists to be inspired.

There is still much left to do in the next few weeks. Preparing for the classes that start Dec 2nd and are posted here and all the finishing touches and tests (like a torch test to make sure my flames don't set off the park's fire alarms;-) It is a wild ride, but already the studio feels like home with my tools and supplies mostly moved in.

My official grand opening will coincide the reception for the park's holiday show on Dec 12th from 7-9. So if you are in the area please stop by for a glass of wine and a peek at my new creative home.

view of gallery into office

view from gallery into workshop

student stations and very comfy stools

25 cent drawer pulls

before shot