Hamline Commission

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DETAIL

Here's a little work in progress - I'm working on two collages commissioned by Hamline University. Hamline is located in St. Paul and has the distinct honor of being the very first university here in the Twin Cities and among the first coeducational institutions in the nation. I've been provided with some wonderful historical photographs to use in these collages. Here's the 1901 freshman class, floating on a letter written by a long ago student, whose many colorful and descriptive letters have been preserved in the archives. I love the many different personalities depicted in this group shot. How did the women (and the men, for that matter) manage to wear those tight high collars all day long?

The Writer

The Buckley sisters are going to have to wait - it seems I am preoccupied with finishing up a collage featuring this red-headed heroine. I often work on two or more collages at once so that I can let one "marinate" while I work on the other. Problems seem to solve themselves this way and interesting developments appear when I return to the work.

Bird-headed figures have been seen throughout history, and interestingly enough, they always seem to have a reference to writing or wisdom. So it seems appropriate that this hybrid creature be a vessel for the concept of writing and storytelling.

The Buckley Sisters

I just LOVE these ladies! Look at them, smiling (well, sort of) in their fancy scarves and ties. I've been saving this postcard until now, when I am finally ready to make a painting/collage to honor them. Their names were Mabel, May and Myrtle. They were known throughout Montana as the "Red Yearlings" because of their red-blond hair and horsemanship. They were so accomplished that they were sought for hire by the Wild West shows, which they declined. I wanna be a cowgirl.

YEE HAW!

More Sketches

Here are three more sketches that I submitted for my current job for Minnestota Medicine Magazine using a template background for the magazine. The one that was favored was the vintage clip art doctor holding the vintage encyclopedia brain - but I will be substituting the photo of an actual neurologist mentioned in the article as a key figure in the history of neurology within the state of Minnesota. This will be Photoshop fun!

P.S. In the second sketch, I utilized two preliminary comps (the metallic head and the very cute neurons) I downloaded from iStockphoto, a great source for photo and illustration stock at very reasonable prices.

Brainy Assignment

I'm on a brainy assignment, a cover for Minnesota Medicine that features an article about neurology and it's history relating to Minnesota. Here's one of the sketches I came up with, using the idea of the sense organs that neurology encompasses and an antique brain illustration. It's difficult to submit pencil sketches for a collage idea, so I sometimes just use the collage material in a loose fashion, if I can find it.

Out of the Cave

My old computer died on me. It did not go peacefully into the night. No, it stalled and balked and went bananas. It shut down when it wasn't supposed to and wouldn't shut down when I asked it politely to do so. It swore at me with all kinds of alien language that popped up at odd moments on my monitor. The turning point was when the monitor turned PINK. It has always been a calm navy blue. I felt sorry then, it was almost as if my poor computer was bleeding internally, even though a moment later it returned to the usual blue. Before it totally died on me, I rushed off to buy a new computer, something I had been putting off for way too long.

While transferring my old files to the new computer, the technician read the serial numbers on my first computer and declared that it was considered "vintage". Imagine - a six year old computer is considered vintage! This seems outrageous!

I not only have to learn a new operating system, but a new email program and several new graphics programs that I have also failed to update over the years. The technician said I was "leaving my cave and entering a space ship." I loved that - it describes my thoughts exactly!

I will never procrastinate again.

Mushroom Girl

She's a princess in her court. She's actually a work in progress, a collage that has been shuffled to the back of my studio because I can't figure out how to finish it. So I just played around with a Photoshop background for now, although the actual collage will be quite different when I am finished. But for now, I do like the mysterious feeling evoked with the sky.

July Cover - Thumbnails

Another cover for the Minnesota Medicine magazine, July issue - YAHOO! These are the 4 thumbnails that I submitted. The theme of the cover was to announce the winners and other entries of the annual writing contest. Once a year the magazine invites physicians to submit their essays reflecting their experiences in the field of medicine. This year's essays had such bleak (it seemed to me) subject matter: illness, death, abuse, violence, impact of war, difficult patients, aging, etc. But when you think about it, that's exactly what a physician deals with daily! Initially, I submitted thumbnails that were somewhat generic in outlook - just addressing the issue of a writing contest, or keeping the visuals to symbols or medical icons. That's the Pollyanna in me, I guess, the eternal optimist not wanting to face the dark side. But that was not what the editors wanted - they wanted specifics! And the thumbnail they chose was the most difficult for me to realize, the collage. (But I must say, my favorite of them). So I'll show you how I changed it around when I post the final tomorrow.

Sketch

Here are some things you may not know about me, and probably don't care but I'm going to tell you anyway: I used to smoke, but gave it up many years ago. I've never dated a man who owned a white suit. I own a dog, but she doesn't look like this. And I once saw a flying saucer, but I wasn't in Roswell, I was in Iowa. Same thing.

So I'm putting all this terribly fascinating information into a collage. Check back for an update!

Bird Girl

My next collage will feature this little lass. What struck me when I saw this photo in a a thrift store bin (without the bird and background) was the necklace. Some proud mama dressed her baby up in her finest clothes and jewelry so that that moment, nearly 100 years ago, would be captured and treasured in memory forever. And so it will be!

Lady Lobbyist

Here's the last transformed figure in the illustration I am working on.


She started out looking like this. I liked this blue suit. I liked this amiable-looking businesswoman, too, don't get me wrong, but I need an original figure.


Then I substituted this woman's hair...


And lastly, new eyes. And I have been staring at my computer monitor for so long, I too, could use some new eyes.

One More

Here's another figure in my ongoing illustration project. That side burn mark is a goofup, and doesn't appear in the final version. He didn't start out looking like this. Here's the progression:


First I found this photo. But he's dressed too casual, and needs new features.


Here's a suit that looks like it would fit him. (after I decapitated the original owner/wearer)



I borrowed this man's lips, eyebrows and moustache to create a totally original figure.....

After a bit of tweaking, I have a new figure for the soon to-be-done collage.

Brown Coat man

Here's a composite figure for the illustration that I am currently working on. I thought it would be fun to show the other faces that I used to create him.


Here's the original photo I started with, a model in a fashion magazine. But I don't want a model, I want a real person. No wait, I don't want a real person, because this is an illustration, and a surreal one at that! So with the magic of Photoshop, I added the following body parts of other men. Each photo had to be in the same position as the first, which was the tricky part.


I used this man's hair....


and this man's lips....


and nice eyes!

New Figure

Here is another element in the photo montage illustration that I am working on at the moment. This is the original photo.


Here is the same man, magically changed by adding features from another man. I was going to add that photo, too, but my work space is so cluttered now, I can't find it!

I'll be adding 3 more figures, so stay tuned!

Butterfly Man

This is one of several sketches I submitted to an art director yesterday. The assignment is to illustrate a feature story for a magazine, and the subject matter is "CSR", or corporate social responsibility. In a brief summary that doesn't do justice to the author's writing, the article suggests that big businesses that want to do charitable donations or philanthropic deeds need to think of the big picture rather than just dumping money into a cause so they look good. This means lobbying for social issues that are critical to society, being careful of the "footprints" they leave behind, and making improvements that benefit global concerns as well as their own. It's a win-win situation, and how we need that right now in our current situation!

This sketch came from the idea of the butterfly being a symbol of transformation, and relates to the effects of lobbying for beneficial changes. The money circling is representative of how the cash that is sent out by corporations will also return to them as well as make positive changes in the world.

I don't know if the art director will choose this sketch, but we shall see.....

Bonny

I have to tell you about my friend Bonny Belgum. She just wrote a glowing review of my work in her blog www.bonnysamerica.com and flattered the living daylights out of me. My head swelled up til my headband nearly popped off.

Now I'm going to tell you about how fabulous she is, because if you don't read her columns, articles and latest book, Cut the Woman Some Slacks you are missing out! Bonny is a writer who sees the humor and absurdity of everyday events and conveys her vision in a manner that is absolutely hilarious. I met Bonny when I read her article in the Opinion section of my home town paper, The Star Tribune. It was an article about Keith Richards and her reaction to seeing a photograph of him. The odd thing is, I had the identical experience and reaction several years ago. But she described it in a way that made me laugh so hard that I had to stop and blow my nose and dab my eyes not once but numerous times. She's that funny! Here's the article - Bonny Belgum: Sympathy for ...

So I emailed her my appreciation for her outlook on life and our friendship began. I think a collaboration is in the works. Stay tuned!

Accordion Players

I've always wanted to do a collage inspired by the following line: (a quote from the book "Love in the Time of Cholera") ---all he wanted to do was "play the accordion and drink beer with the sailors, finishing the evening at the transient hotel". Can't you just SEE that? Well, don't worry if you can't. I can, and I'll soon create a collage so you can see it too!

I have a been looking everywhere for an old photo of an accordion player, and have been unsuccessful until just a few days ago. I was rummaging through a bin of old photos in an antique store, and these two lads popped up. It was meant to be, hallelujah!

Class Photo Part 2

To continue from yesterday, here are more teenagers from the mid-1920's. Such sweet characters!

1926 Class Photo

I came across this family photo and was amazed by the expressions on the children's faces. Ordinarily I hunt for vintage photos in thrift stores, and the ones I see are of carefully posed people in frozen moments. They have an otherworldly beauty, as if the photographer used his camera to create the image as a reflection of his own artistry. But in this 1926 photograph of a high school class, there is no posing. Well, there seems to be a lot of hamming it up, but for the most part, every child stared at the camera with his or her own moment of personality. No photographer told them how to look, they just seized the moment. Some where having fun, and some weren't. I'm amazed at the expressions on their faces and also at the various fashions. It was a wild mix of class - kids from the farm wearing overalls, city kids in their Sunday Best complete with ruffles or costume jewelry or neck ties. I'll post a few more tomorrow.

Doctor's Bag

This is a component of the collage/illustration that I am working on. I couldn't find any photos or scraps of a doctor's bag that I could use, so I more or less made this up. If you look closely, you will see that it makes no sense at all - kind of like one of Escher's drawings that have steps going up when you look one moment, and then down when you look the next. How does this bag close? What is that strip at the top? Are they inside the bag or outside? But hey, I'm an artist and I have what's called "artistic license". Nobody will notice unless YOU blab. My favorite quote: "People notice only what you tell them to notice, and then only if you remind them". (Dr. Kornblum, renowned fictional magician in the novel, Kavalier and Clay.)