Structures #138
©2012 Lisa Call
8 x 8 inches
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
Mounted on stretched canvas
Sold

Trying to Start Something New

This week I thought I was ready to start another big new project, but I wasn’t able to make it happen. So I’ve been looking at why and am sharing my process here on the blog.

Earlier I wrote about the post show blues and my plan for not letting it stop me (yoga!) and also about being overwhelmed with a lot of loose ends.

Today I share a story of clarity and success, bringing me a bit closer to starting a big new project.

The Opportunity

About a month back I said yes to a project that sounded like fun even though I knew it wasn’t a perfect fit for my vision. It was going to generate a nice steady income, which would get me one step closer to quitting my job.

I was in the middle of my back to back solo shows so I delayed the start of the project a few times saying I was too busy to respond to emails.

Every time I thought about working on the opportunity I found myself trying to justify how it fit into my vision for my art career, telling myself the money was worth it.

I also found that every time I thought about working on a different project, ignoring this new time sensitive opportunity, I felt guilty. It made the stuff I loved to do feel bad because it meant I was ignoring something I had committed to.

Clarity

Last night I had dinner with a friend and without really thinking about it I told her “I have this opportunity to do this thing but it doesn’t fit into my long term vision so I’m going to tell them no.”

Wow! I said it. And it felt great.

I always knew this opportunity didn’t find into my goals and that it was a distraction but I got lured in by the money.

Yes, I need money to quit my job, but I need to create that income while also staying true to my vision, otherwise I’m just trading in one job I don’t want for another. That makes no sense.

Saying “No”

After my declaration, I immediately felt a huge weight lift. I felt inspired to jump into my other work without guilt.

This morning I sent off an email telling them “no” and thanking them. It really was an honor to be asked to participate in their vision, it just didn’t fit with mine.

I’m now pretty fired up for getting through my long list of tasks and moving on to something new very soon.

Clarity of vision is a fabulous thing.

Sometimes we have to say No to really good opportunities to say Yes to the greater plan we have envisioned.

Do you need to say No to something in your life?

Who is in charge of your vision?

Structures #138

The textile painting above is one of the 8×8 inch square pieces informed by Structures #136. You can see them all 4 of them here.

These works are mounted on 8×8 inch stretched canvas (with black painted edges) and are ready to hang on the wall.

They are attached to the canvas via stitching so the textile painting is unharmed in this process.

Structures #136
©2012 Lisa Call
25 x 26 inches
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$2100

PS – If you’d like to discuss a payment plan to purchase any of these textile paintings please email me and we can discuss options. Would 3 payments of $75 for the smaller pieces work for you?

Structures #137
©2012 Lisa Call
8 x 8 inches
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
Mounted on stretched canvas
$225

Overwhelmed

As I mentioned a few days ago, I’ve got a big chunk of time coming up to work on new projects for my art business.

I have dreams that are huge. I have a long list of big exciting projects and I want to do them all.

It’s like being a kid in the candy store – way too many tantalizing options. I’m having a hard time focusing and instead I’m just bouncing around from idea to idea, feeling rather scattered and doing very little.

I’m behaving exactly how I described at the beginning of this post on How to Multitask Intelligently.

It’s maddening!

Trying to Get Organized

I need to take my own advice from that blog post and

1. List out all the projects I have floating around in my brain
2. Prioritize them
3. Pick just 1 main project to work over the next month

Which sounds simple but I’m currently challenged by this proposition because I have a smattering of deadlines for long term projects that need attention and a whole bunch of little things I need to do also. And then there is the garden.

And it all just hurts my brain.

Which I find interesting because there is nothing new about this situation. I operate in this “way to much too do” state all the time, usually with clarity and purpose.

For some reason I’m currently unable to sort it all out into a workable plan.

Finding Peace

When I sat down to write this post I thought I’d list out a fabulous plan to solve the problem and then be ready to tackle my next big project.

But what I came to realize instead is that the list of little things I need to deal with is huge. Having spend the last 3-4 months focused on big projects (2 solo exhibits, creating a new workshop and taking a workshop) – I let a lot of little stuff slip through the cracks.

So I’m going to devote the next 2 weeks to getting back on top of the little stuff and then I’ll revisit the idea of starting a big new project.

I’ll be able to make better progress on a big new project if I’m not constantly having my attention pulled off into a million other directions.

It’s amazing how much more peaceful I feel after making this decision. It all seems so much more doable and sane.

Structures #137

The textile painting above is one of the four 8×8 inch square pieces informed by Structures #136.

These works are mounted on 8×8 inch stretched canvas (with black painted edges) and are ready to hang on the wall.

They are attached to the canvas via stitching so the textile painting is unharmed in this process.

Structures #136
©2012 Lisa Call
25 x 26 inches
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$2100

Structures #136
©2012 Lisa Call
25 x 26 inches
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$2100

Nothing But Time on My Hands

My back to back solo exhibits are winding down. It was an amazing start to 2012 as I create new work for both of these shows and then attended the openings.

Relationships at Bluestone was amazing – huge crowds, great conversations and good sales. I shared details here.

And then last week we had the opening here in Denver for Boundaries at Macspa. A beautiful night, good friends, amazing food and sales. Again a wonderful exhibit that you can still see through June 4th. (I’ll share photos soon.)

The first 4 months of this year I also taught 4 workshops – 3 online and 1 in Philadelphia. One of them brand new requiring a huge time investment to get it up and running.

I’m now a week away from my planned 6 week break teaching.

(I’ll be back in June with another session of Working in a Series and in August with Abstraction.)

Right now I see nothing but hours and hours of free time ahead of me for the next month.

Sure I have the day job but that’s just 40 hours a week. Account for sleeping (8 hours a day), life tasks (2 hours a day) and yoga (10 hours a week).

This leaves me with 288 hours over the next 6 weeks to do stuff. That is a lot of time.

Time but no Motivation

I have ideas for 5 or 6 really amazing projects I’d like to work on during this period. Website makeovers, new art, new workshops are on my mind in addition to a few secret projects I’m not yet ready to share.

Yet as I see my new freedom approaching, I detect a distinct lack of motivation on my part to commit to any of them and dig in.

This is part post show blues (times two) and part overwhelm. Today I’ll talk about the first and tomorrow I’ll tackle the second.

Post Show Blues

This is a common phenomenon for many artists after a big exhibit.

To be honest, it scares me. A few years back I slowly slid into depression after a big show and it was a struggle to climb back into my life and get going again.

So I’ve been super diligent about watching that it never happens again. That dark place is not somewhere I want to visit again.

It was easy after show #1 this year to keep going because I had a second huge deadline I couldn’t ignore. This time there is no looming deadline so I feel no sense of urgency.

I need something else to stay on the tracks.

Prevention is Better than a Cure

My plan for staying dialed into life: yoga, acupuncture and eating healthy.

They saved me before and they will be exactly the preventive medicine I need this time to keep going.

Last week I headed back to my yoga studio after a 9 month break. I’ve attended 5 yoga classes in the last 7 days.

I’m happy to report it’s doing it’s magic.

This blog post is the first writing I’ve done since the opening last week and I was excited to get started after an excellent Kinda Hot yoga class earlier this evening.

Prior to the class I was feeling pretty blah and planning on spending my evening in front of the computer watching back TV. Now after I finish writing I’m headed to the studio to work on Structures #143.

Yay!

Seriously. If you’ve been there – you understand.

Today, I win.

Tomorrow, I start over again.

Each day it all gets easier.

Structures #136

The above piece was created for my exhibit in Philadelphia at Bluestone and it is now also showing at the Macspa in Denver.

It’s one of most favorite pieces in a while and it informed several smaller pieces to go along with it. Many of them selling in Philadelphia. I’ll be sharing images of those smaller textile paintings over the next few weeks.

 
PS – If you’d like to discuss a payment plan to purchase Structures #136 please email me and we can discuss options.

It’s Spring Cleaning Time in the Yard

Planting and Growing

I come from a long line of farmers on both my mom and dad’s side of the family. Every spring I have a very distinct need to go outside and dig in the dirt.

Usually this urge hits around the end of April or mid May when things start warming up outside. This year the weather snuck up on me and it got warm at the end of March while I was in Philadelphia and buried in the studio preparing for my back to back solo exhibits.

It was much much too early to think dirt.

When I looked outside a few weeks ago I discovered the weeds weren’t fooled. They noticed the sun and are out in the yard having a party without me.

It’s time for yet another “let’s spend a week pulling weeds” party with the kids and then on to planting the garden and Phase 3 of my landscaping project.

The Yard

Long time readers will remember that 4 years ago (how can it have already been 4 years!), I sold my big suburban house and moved into the city of Denver. I bought myself a tiny fixer upper and then lived through a fun and drywall dust filled home remodel.

The most important feature was building my fabulous new studio. Unfortunately the result of all the building was the destruction of every growing thing (other than weeds) on my property.

Coupled with the crash of the economy the same year, this neatly coincided with the destruction of the money I had set aside to relandscape after the construction.

So landscaping has become a multi-year project. You can catch up with the Before, Phase 1 and Phase 2 photos. Mostly you’ll note I have some pretty cool sidewalks now.

But I desperately need something green that will last from year to year, and that is the focus for phase 3. Convert my front yard from the weed patch (with cool sidewalks) into something that doesn’t make the neighbors cringe.

I’ve uploaded the weed infested phase 3 “before” photos to smugmug with some notes on my plans here: Spring Clean Up 2012.

Where is the Art?

Yes – this my art blog. So how is my garden relevant you might ask?

Good question.

First, once I quit my day job, I’ll be living off of the things I grow in my yard (okay, just kidding, I also need ice cream and have no room for a cow). But seriously – I do grow a large percent of the food I eat and so it directly supports my art career. Next fall the talk will turn to canning.

Second, my garden is an inspiration. Last year I made a textile painting inspired by turnips. Plus look at these cool photos of corn toes.

To that end I have challenged myself to spend at least 4 days a week during the month of May sketching in my yard. So time to hop off the computer and grab the pencils and get outside.

PS – I talk about my garden more on facebook than here so if you love garden photos then friend me on facebook.

PPS – Don’t forget my solo exhibit reception is the Thursday from 6-9pm at Macspa in Denver. Please stop by for a few minutes if you are in town. Details.

Artwork ready to hang at the MacSpa

The Show is Up

Yesterday I helped hang the work for my second solo exhibit of the year. In 2 hours the curator and I were able to hang the 60 textile paintings selected for this exhibit.

This includes 50 brand new works created in the last few weeks (most of them 3×3″ mounted on a 5×5″ canvas as you can see on the right in the photo above).

Things are now ready for the reception on May 3rd from 6-9pm. If you are in the Denver area please stop in and say hello Thursday evening, exhibit details are at the end of this post.

Exhaling

So far 2012 has been packed full of activity with 2 solo exhibits and creating content for a brand new workshop (abstraction) along with the normal events of teaching my online workshops, blogging (or at least trying to), making art and the normal art business stuff.

To honor all of that hard work I spent the rest of the weekend not doing art things* and focusing on the garden and my friends and family. There are still a ton of weeds out there but I’m much closer to having a plant-able space than I was last weekend.

It was a nice break to not be chained to a to-do list all weekend but tomorrow I’ll be back on track getting things done.

My 3rd solo exhibit for the year doesn’t open until September so I’m looking forward to a bit more relaxed pace the next few months and intent to return to my usual practice of writing about my art more frequently.

Website Updated

*well almost – I did update all of the art pages of my website. Look for some new work on the Structures and Lines and Structures Small Works pages.

Exhibit Details

Boundaries: Textile Paintings by Lisa Call at MacSpa
April 29 – June 3, 2012
Opening reception: May 3, 6-9pm

1738 Wynkoop Street, Suite 103
Denver, CO 80202
across from Union Station
303.292.0049
Website

Business Hours: Mon – Thu: 9:30am-6:30pm, Fri: 9:30am-5:00pm, Sat: 9:00 am-12:00 pm

Make An Offer

A quick reminder that the April Make and Offer auction ends tomorrow, April 30th, over on ebay. This is your chance to own my original artwork at a price you name.

This month I’m featuring a piece created in 1996 bursting with loads of bright colors. Bid here.

Structures #134 and Structures #141
©2012 Lisa Call
12×12 inches each
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
Mounted on stretched canvas

First Thursdays at the MacSpa

As a software engineer by day, I’m excited to be showing my textile paintings at the MacSpa in Denver, Colorado during the month of May, 2012.

Please join me at the First Thursday opening reception on Thursday, May 3.

Stop by anytime between 6-9pm to enjoy the new art and have a bite of food (Eric, the curator, will be grilling up something yummy).

If you are in town for the Denver International Quilt Festival I’d love to meet you.

I look forward to seeing everyone downtown!

The Art

I will be showing a selection of artwork from my Structures series at MacSpa and the above works are a sneak peek at 2 of the brand new textile paintings that will be on exhibit.

I have a plan to create 48 addition new textile paintings for the show. As of this writing the first 16 are completed, the next 16 are in progress and the final 16 are a bit of a murky dream on the horizon.

But I want to use a lot of purple (my favorite color!) in the last set so must get back to the studio and get to work so I can turn this crazy idea into reality.

Stop by next Thursday to see if I was able to pull this off!

Exhibit Details

Boundaries: Textile Paintings by Lisa Call at MacSpa
April 29 – June 3, 2012
Opening reception: May 3, 6-9pm

1738 Wynkoop Street, Suite 103
Denver, CO 80202
across from Union Station
303.292.0049
Website

Business Hours: Mon – Thu: 9:30am-6:30pm, Fri: 9:30am-5:00pm, Sat: 9:00 am-12:00 pm

 
PS – My April Make and Offer artwork is up for auction now on ebay. This is your chance to own my original artwork at a price you name. This month I’m featuring a piece created in 1996 – lots of bright colors!

Auction ends April 30th – bid here.

Relationships at Bluestone Fine Art Gallery
Structures #115 with Structures #59 in the background

The Gallery was Gorgeous

These photos don’t do the exhibit justice. My gallerist, Pam, did an amazing job hanging the exhibit. When I walked in the door for the artist reception, I was speechless – my work has never looked so good. I can’t express my gratitude enough for all that Pam has done for me. Thank you thank you!

So – on to the show – this first set of photos walks you around the gallery to see most of the 65-70 textile paintings I had on exhibit.

Structures #55 in the center, to the left the big wall of art (Structures and Markings series), and in the back and right you can see some of the Home series.

 

Home #50 and Structures #114

 

Work from the Stillness series on the left and Home #26 on the right

 

The back of the gallery where Pam works with her assistant Jeanine
Structures #131, Markings #9, Markings #22

 

Markings #9, Markings #22, Structures #132

 

Several pieces from the Dream series.

 

Home #13 and 12×12″ textile paintings from the Home series by the back door.

 

Home #50 and Structures #114 (this photo was taken after my workshop completed – hence the tables in the gallery.)

 

Display in the cabinet – the smaller pieces are the Line series and the larger pieces are Structures.

 

A row of 12×12″ Structures textile paintings mounted on canvas near the big wall of art.

The Artist Reception

On March 31 the gallery held an artist reception, which I attended.

The event was held in conjunction with a bus tour that was part of Fiber Philadelphia 2012 the joint SAQA and SDA Conference.

Over 300 people came through the gallery that day and it was a treat to reconnect with old friends (some from high school and elementary school) and meet many new friends.

It was crowded most of the day and I wasn’t able to talk with everyone that came by – sorry about that! I wasn’t expecting such a crowd.

I do have to say that everyone I talked with was fabulous and very supportive and encouraging. Thank you for all of your kind words.

It was an incredible experience and one I won’t soon forget.

 

The reception

Successful Show

In addition to being the most beautifully hung show I’ve had, this was the most successful show I’ve had in terms of sales. A total of 15 pieces sold during the exhibit, from the small 3×3″ artworks mounted on 5×5″ canvas to larger free hanging textile paintings.

Philadelphia is certainly a fiber friendly town but I also appreciate all of you that came from out of town to support my art. Sometimes fiber is viewed as a huge draw for crowds but a slow seller, you all proved that to be untrue.

The exhibit is now down, although the gallery still has a selection of my work hanging in the gallery so please do stop by and check them out if you are in Philadelphia. There are still 6 of the smallest textile paintings for sale for only $55 (the ones in the cabinet) and I’ll share those photos soon so if you’d like to purchase one through the gallery you will be able to.

It’s now time to move on to the next exhibit, which opens on May 3rd in Denver – 2 weeks from today – yikes! Watch this space for details.

Additional Photos

You can see the complete set of photos from the exhibit on my smugmug account here: Relationships at Bluestone
 

Pam, the fabulous gallerist, and Me

 

My daughter and Me
I took her to New York City for 5 days for her sweet 16 birthday celebration after the show

Brick Wall in Philadelphia

Structures

I’m slowly sorting through the 1100 photos I took on my recent trip back east to Philadelphia and New York. In a few days I should have photos of my exhibit sorted out and ready to share.

In the meantime, I came across this photo that I snapped one morning when moving my car at the gallery in Philly during the exhibit opening.

(There was 2 hour parking near the gallery and they very diligent. I ended up getting a parking ticket the last day teaching at the gallery – I was over by 5 minutes. A $36 oops!)

Back to the photo above – when I started the Structures series in 2000 my initial inspiration was fences and stone walls.

I still love bricks – the roughness and uneven edges – the shape of the mortar between the bricks.

I still find myself taking photos of these Structures everywhere I go.

More Philly Stone Walls

 

Lots and Lots of Bricks (the Philadelphia Art Museum) – the van Gogh exhibit was fabulous.

Eastern State Penitentiary

The Ruins

My recent trip to the east coast included a visit to Eastern State Penitentiary with my family.

Eastern State Penitentiary was once the most famous and expensive prison in the world, but stands today in ruin, a haunting world of crumbling cellblocks and empty guard towers.

Known for its grand architecture and strict discipline, this was the world’s first true “penitentiary,” a prison designed to inspire penitence, or true regret, in the hearts of convicts.

Not only were all the cousins (ages 11, 12 and 16) entertained with towercam being one of the biggest hits, I could have spent hours photographing the ruins.

The prison, opened in 1829 and abandoned in 1971, is now open for tours. In addition to the interesting history, there are also many site specific art installations at the prison.

More Photos

I’m including just a handful of photos in this post. You can see my full collection of Eastern State photos on smugmug: Eastern State Penitentiary – April 2012

Relationships – an Exhibit

The main purpose for my visit out east was the artist reception for my solo exhibit Relationship at Bluestone Fine Art Gallery. I’ll write more about this experience and share photos next week.

A quick preview: it was incredible – over 300 people came through the gallery during the reception and it was wonderful to connect with old friends and meet new.

The exhibit closes tomorrow so if you want to see the entire thing you will need to hurray!

There will be a selection of my art at the gallery if you are attending Fiber Philadelphia later in the month so please stop by.

Exhibit Details

Relationships – Connection and Barriers : Textile Paintings by Lisa Call
Solo Exhibit
Bluestone Fine Art Gallery
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
March 16 – April 14, 2012

301 North 3rd St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106
Gallery Hours: Tue – Sat, 11am – 6pm 267-773-8114
Gallery Website

 

Peeling Paint at Eastern State Penitentiary

Relationships

The Gallery Wall

My solo exhibit at Bluestone Fine Art Gallery opens this Friday and the above photo is the first view of the show.

Exhibit Events:
Opening Reception: March 16th 4-6pm
Artist Reception/Open House: March 31st 12-5pm
First Friday: April 6th 5-9pm
Closing Reception: Saturday, April 14th 1-4pm

I will be in attendance for the artist reception/open house on March 31st and would love you meet you if you are in the area.

Bluestone Fine Art Gallery
301 North 3rd St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106
Gallery Hours: Tue – Sat, 11am – 6pm 267-773-8114

About the Art in the Show

The Structures series investigates the boundaries we use to divide our world. The work is informed by both human-made structures for containment, such as fences and stone walls, and psychological barriers used for emotional protection.

I believe humans are fundamentally wired for connection. Yet we constantly hide our true thoughts and feelings from each other and very often, ourselves. The work explores the implications of building up and tearing down of our internal walls and the impact these choices have on our relationships and our self-understanding.

Who do we let in? Who do we keep out?

Sign Ups Closing Soon

Are you tired of the raw edges of fusible applique? Are you looking for a more tailored finish for your quilts? Join me in Philadelphia for my latest new workshop, Cutting and Piecing without a Ruler, and learn the exact skills you need to turn your ideas into textile art that carries a clean crisp look… without using any rulers or patterns.

This art quilt workshop takes your work to the next level. Held at the Bluestone Fine Art Gallery in conjunction with my solo exhibit, you’ll be inspired by this unique setting as you learn new techniques.

Click here for course details and to sign up for this workshop. In just a few hours after signing up, you’ll receive a personal email with additional course information and directions to the gallery.

Then you’ll be on your way to creating the fearless textile art of your dreams as you learn how to tackle almost any straight line design with ease and confidence. Don’t you think it’s time to unshackle yourself from patterns and measuring and let your creativity run free?

PS – Signup ends on Tuesday March 20th and there are only 2 spots left in the class – don’t miss out on this event!