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New Studio at Home

the move from my great studio in town was harder then I had anticipated.

although

working from home again has been lovely.

when I left for town 2 years ago, I gave my home studio space to my husband,

convinced him to move up from the basement.

and gave the unfinished basement to our adolescent boys.

I simply couldn't ask for it back.

so I took over the dinning room.

and if truth be told, I love it.

it is wide open and glorious.

during the day, it is all mine.

in the evening it is still all mine,

but I get to work in the company of my family.

as they walk back and forth between the kitchen and their rooms

they stop to say hi, converse and hug

the sewing area is in the basement with the boys.

they gave me a wall and shelf space.

this is all suppose to be temporary,

until we can build an out building later on in the year.

but if truth be told,

i am loving it just where i am.

Textile Paints 

Thread

Unpacking

A project for the book

writing

5,592 words later and the chapter on water soluble resists is done!

who knew i could talk so much.

been writing at my Dad's house lately

a great retreat with no distractions.


i do believe i can see the finish line now


will be so nice to make art again...
though the writing is lovely too




this is a page from an architectural, graduate student's thesis notebook.
very inspiring

sorry about the bad photography
i couldn't resist posting it

One more college info session to go!

Brook and Clem needed a little nap.

here are a few photos i took along the way.

good to be home again.

and back to work.

today, again

major lightening storm here in the woods,

loud, bright, and a crack that sounded like none other.

the smell of cap guns wafting in through the screen door as i write this book

child's play??

everything is okay.

still have power and the sun is shining. what more could i need?

time for a walk.

 feeling confident that

 i am going to know when to turn around

yesterday i decided to take pictures of leaf shapes as i walked,

a simple visual to calm my bursting brain!

here are a few

 herein lies the problem -

my brain is overloaded
 with words,

techniques, formulas and recipes,

the amazing work of other artists as i research for the book,

visuals,

my work - its visuals!

in the past, present and future,

ideas about the studio, teaching

and workshop descriptions for other locations,

family, kids and a couple of college tours in the very near future -

like tomorrow.

and boy, do my dogs need a bath!

walking and concentrating on leaf shapes
seems to be the only remedy, for now

how do you/i measure success?

i'd like to know

today

 had a bit of a revelation this morning. even without walking!! 

i'll post about it as soon as I finish (get started!) on today's deadline.

in the meantime i share with you Julian,

and the pleasures of being a cat on a sunday afternoon

Studio Closing

in 2 months - so much change and thought.

to the Maine coast with my guys and back again. many, many walks for reflection and soul searching.

my own personal form of walking meditation. no power walking,

but no strolling either. a good walk - sometimes for an hour or 2 even.

many questions. soul searching as they like to say

wish i could just keep walking, then call someone to come get me when i am done.

i am not always sure when to turn back

i am not always sure when the walking should be over

but it has been good

Dear friends, supporters and students,

After a great deal of thought, personal reflection, and numerous family discussions I have made the difficult decision to close the studio as of September 1 of this year. In all honesty, with most classes canceled due to lack of enrollment, I simply can’t sustain it. For those of you who did take classes with us, thank you! For those of you who had fantasies of taking one in the future, all of our instructors have plans to continue teaching in other locations. And for those of you who simply just loved that we were there, thank you to you as well! Your well wishes and visits were greatly appreciated!

Although I must say goodbye to the dream of a community based fiber studio, I no longer think of it as a loss or an ending, but rather a juncture. I am so grateful for all that has come my way over the past 18 months. So many new and wonderful people have come into my life, and touched me in ways I could not have foreseen when I began this venture. The studio has given me the opportunity to reconnect with people I had not seen or spoken with in years, while providing me with a wonderful and exciting venue to offer up my knowledge, guidance and skills as a teacher. A role I cherish.

For now, I will be returning to my home based studio to continue with my own personal artistic endeavors and to finish my technique book, which will be out by the winter of 2013, curtesy of Storey Publishing in North Adams, MA.

I will be teaching locally at Artspace in Greenfield, MA this coming fall, winter and spring. In CT, I will be teaching at the Creative Arts Workshop in New Haven beginning this winter and possibly the Brookfield Craft Center in Danbury. I am working on other locations as well. If you would like me to come to your area and know of a suitable venue, please be in touch. A custom workshop can be designed for your group’s needs. I hope to be offering on-line classes by the first of the year, as well as very small group workshops in my renovated studio at home, by the spring of 2012. 

I plan to continue to keep you posted of my progress and whereabouts. Please keep me posted of yours.

Hugs and love to all of you. 

Cher

still walking, asking questions

who am i as an artist?

how do i measure success? - now, today

not 10 years ago, not even 5 years ago

how do you measure success?

 i'd like to know.

Right Brain vs Left Brain

writing this book - definitely left brain. so technical! 

sometimes i just have to take a break from that part of my brain. 

still have lots of energy to write, but no left brain power left to process. such a weird experience. 

i have written before. i used to write a weekly art column for my local newspaper.

500 words every week for close to 4 years.

that was different. not as intense.

plus i had the visuals to write about. now i am writing about visuals that aren't there yet.

a dichotomy for sure. but i'm loving it!

yesterday, sat down at the dinning room table to contemplate my life as an artist.

and found the flowers my step-mom gave me because my son turned 18.

so sweet! 

and a beautiful visual when i needed one

i may just have to pick off these long waxy leaves to print with

Hot and steamy in Western MA

 the tractor's been down,

so everything is wonderfully wild and overgrown

 the woods are encroaching,

green and lush 

 summer at long last 

where's the ice cream??

please

Spring Rain

Another Rainy Day

after weeks of rain, and grey mist

cold and damp.

And yet, somehow

through the downpour, miraculously

all the leaves have emerged.

And the maples

my favorite in another season, now canopy over the deck

leaves heavy with rain,

bright green against

soft and somber grey, that

could almost be pink, if you squint your eyes.

The horse in the  meadow this morning, caught my eye

But was gone

when I climbed the fence with my camera.

In his wake,

he left me breathless.

He gave me 

the gift of the land

the view of the barn, deep red before the mist

and the familiar hills,

almost lost to the gentle, low lying clouds. 

One last time

before I headed off to the car

I searched for him.

Such gratitude, I can’t express

for his gift, 

of inspiration. And because, 

if I squint me eyes...