workshop with Rogene Manas

Art by Rogene Manas

Rogene Manas traveled to Portland from her home in Eugene, Oregon this month to open an exhibit of her work at the Guardino Gallery and teach a 2-day workshop at Collage on Alberta Street. Lucky us! Rogene was featured recently on the OPB program, "Oregon Art Beat" and you can view her segment here.

In class, we learned how to use paper clay to create dimensional artwork that resembles wood carving, a distinctive feature of Rogene's work. Starting with a sketch, I chose an image of a familiar figure in my yard as inspiration, a scrub jay.

After transferring the sketch to rolled-out paper clay, the piece was cut out with an exacto knife and attached to a board. The clay was "carved" while wet with the help of a wooden clay shaping tool.

After allowing the clay parts to air-dry overnight, we returned the next day to paint and finish our pieces. Rogene taught a "dark to light" painting technique, which gives her work a folk art look. Some of us added paper collage to our backgrounds; I used some torn dress pattern tissue.


I was happy with the final result and look forward to doing more with what I learned this weekend...so many possibilities come to mind!

new tricks

I've long admired the soldering projects done by my art friends, and recently took some instruction from one of those multi-talented friends, Jan Harris. Here, Jan is demonstrating how to begin assembling a tiny glass box to hold some teensy-tiny treasures...

My completed ornament, holding a frozen Charlotte doll and little key...all suspended by a chain with soldered charm...which led to more charms and ornaments later on at home...

As you can see, I've gotten a little carried away with my new skills. These pieces will be incorporated into jewelry and ornaments for the PAC holiday show in December.

Jan is an excellent teacher and frequently offers classes at the Collage store on Alberta in Portland. I'd highly recommend taking a workshop with Jan, and visiting this store!

otter bliss

Ahhhhh, it must be summer yet.

I spent some very enjoyable moments watching the sea otters at the Oregon Coast Aquarium over Memorial Day weekend. Really, it doesn't get any cuter than this. Next time you get out to the coast, don't miss the otters and other wonderful creatures at the aquarium in Newport.

gone fishin'

Mixed media piece by Alissa Clark from Alissa Clark Clayworks

Not really. But I will be away from here for a while...to work on projects around home, and to enjoy the sunshine that is trying to make its way into the Pacific Northwest. I'll be checking back in when the sawdust is swept up.

In the meantime...

"make everything with love"

works of heart

Cherri stitching a quilt binding in her studio.

I was supposed to be somewhere else last week, but a change of plans found me at one of the quilting bees for Quilts for Quake Survivors at Cherri's "Sew On" studio in North Portland. It was a real pleasure meeting Cherri, and other members of the Portland Modern Quilt Guild; including Susan and Daniela who are leading this effort.

Rachel, wearing red, at the helm of the quilting machine, worked her magic on several quilts.

Paula brought her photography equipment to record the quilts...this one is mine.

A yummy quilt being photographed. Some of the quilts will be sold on etsy for Mercy Corps, and others will go directly to Japan.

Monica took a few shots of her blocks up on the design board. I've been following Monica's awesome (and funny!) blog for some time so it was a nice surprise to meet her in person at the quilting bee.

It was a productive couple of days at Cherri's studio, and a very good time.

for the eyes...and taste buds

It's always satisfying to come away from a class with something you'll enjoy for some time to come. Such is the case with this "wood collage totem" I created in Karen Michel's workshop at Artfest this year. It was fun to put all these bits and pieces together...some from my stash and others from friends. Karen is a wonderful artist and teacher...I'd highly recommend that you check out her work, and take a class, if you have the chance.

And something tasty...Smoked Salmon Spread

1 8-oz. pkg. Philly cream cheese, softened
4-6 oz. smoked salmon (not lox)
2 Tablespoons Best Foods mayo
juice of half a lemon
1-1/2 teaspoons dried dill or 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill
2 teaspoons worchestershire sauce
Tabasco sauce, a few dashes, or more to taste
3-4 green onions, chopped

Put all in food processor and pulse til smooth. Garnish as desired with chopped green onions and lemon slice. Store in fridge a while to develop flavor. Yum!

signs of spring

One of the things we enjoyed most during the stay in our house at Artfest was the presence of these beautiful tulips on the kitchen table, provided by Tory and artfully arranged here by Dayna. Love, love all the color inspiration...

This is what was outside my own kitchen when returning home. There's nothing that looks more promising in the yard than the beginnings of lilacs.

I'll have things from Artfest to share soon...

"There are always flowers for those who want to see them"

--Henri Matisse