where are you?

collaged altered book journal entry by Kel

its a curious thing
others wondering
how I got from
where I was
to where I am
not because they
seek to understand
or even wish to take
a similar journey
not asking the meaningful questions
just the ones which allow them
to make a judgement call




its a continuation of the facebook phenomena
at least, that's what I blame it on
people want to surf into your space
then with the click of a mouse
move onto the next face
little commitment
no personal cost or investment

just click, look, leave

right here right now
I'm trying to connect
face to face
ask thoughtful questions
engage with their hopes and dreams

it scares some, I think
the feeling of intimacy
much easier to have a hundred friends
skimming the surface on facebook
than to have one friend
engaging deeply

so when they chastise me
for dropping my namesake profile
because they can't keep in touch with me anymore
i simply smile and say
"my email address hasn't changed in 12 years"

where are you?
I am here

have a cool yule

white xmas, montreal, canada, 2010

This time last year I was revelling in the experience of my first ever white xmas.

This year it's back to our usual stinking hot summer xmas. 

I know which one I prefer.

For my blog buddies in the northern hemisphere, I hope you get the snow so it 'feels like xmas'.

For my blog buddies in the southern hemisphere, I hope you have a cool yule, despite the heat.

My words of wisdom for how to survive the silly season....
don't take yourself, or the stress of it all too seriously
and just to prove I practice what I preach....
the above shot shows a xmas display in the street in Montreal
I clambered up into the garden bed to become part of the scene

and on the way back down to street level . . .

a family favourite memory making moment

kel's face plant in the knee-deep snow

:-)

may the festive season hold many memory making moments for you and yours

don't stop believing

 if you feel you don't belong

where you have been planted

the winds are blowing strong

and your growth is being slanted

perhaps the trick might be

to go back to your roots

for then you may just see

you have produced some fruit

it might not be what they think

is suitable for serving

but theirs is not the cup to drink

its for others more deserving

so put your face up to the sun

and try to keep believing

where you are is perfect

for what you'll be achieving

~ Kel  © 2011

fig-uring out navigable waters

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altered book journal entry by Kel © 2011

big sky dreaming

this is a sooc shot : meaning straight out of camera, no adjustments : yes,  it really looked just like this!

when the silly season crowds in

and blocks the big blue sky

may you manage to find beauty

as the clouds go rolling by

for if you look real carefully

there's something worth redeeming

even if its just the fact

that you are still breathing

so take a moment and look up

focus on those clouds

you never know what gift they bring

if only we allow.

 

~ Kel  © 2011

this is my creative contribution to skywatch

this week's music

 

I'm holding on to white balloons up against a sky of doom 
Tell me you see them 
Cause what's inside of me is invisible to most 
Even in clear view 
 . . .
The changes in me are likely to be like the weather 
Stormy and clear strength in to fear bound together 

But I’ll break my silence 
If I believe that you and me 
Could ever be more than just 
What’s been behind us

White Balloons, from Unplugged / Polar Opposite by The Sick Puppies [Aussie artists]

personal archaeology

After creating art for sometime, one begins to have a collection of works around the place. Large works on paper under the spare bed, experimental canvases piled against the wall in the shed, finished works hanging in the house, visual journals in various stages of completeness tucked away in drawers, 3D works scattered on shelves.

Or perhaps you're a writer, with a growing collection of typed pages, backup discs, handwritten journals, favourite pens, hand-crafted zines and books, published pieces of prose.

If you suddenly ceased to be, and someone came to clear out your studio or study, what might  the work you left behind tell them?

You're not an artist? Okay, what would the books on your shelves, the photos on your walls and the bills on your credit card statement say about you?

Your personal archaeology speaks volumes. Would you be happy for people to unearth it when you're gone? What do you think it would tell them about you?

on staying grounded

how to stay grounded while being an angel

While creating my altered book journal entry for the day a pair of boho earrings in a magazine caught my eye. I cut them out and started playing with how they wanted to sit on the page. Straight away an angel appeared :-)

That's two angels in as many weeks. While the first angel was very ethereal and way up there in the sky, this angel is very grounded. It seemed very important while sketching it, to add strong feet and solid ground under them.  While it might appear there is strong contrast between the two, the title for the first journal entry swiftly bought the ethereal image back to terra-firma.

I have a box of words, sentences, qoutes pre-cut from magazines that I rummage through when I create each page. If nothing there  wants to be included, I start flipping through magazines until a word or phrase jumps out. Very often it makes no sense at all (my rational brain tells me) but when pasted on the page with the image it tends to take on it's own life and present an unexpected message.

When complete, I sit with it a moment to see if the page suggests it's own title, other than the pasted words. Sometimes a title pops straight into mind, like the DIY wing kit from the first angel. Interestingly, that one sentence turned the whole image on its head and brought it back to earth. Then this boho angel wanted to have feet firmly planted on the ground. So I'm getting the message that its important to keep grounded in the silly season and one way of doing that is to maintain a sense of humour.

This is a process post. Where I share some of the process behind the image you see on the screen, I hope it also encourages you to consider process as a very important part of your own creative play. Technique is all well and good, and there's plenty of blogs where you'll find that kind of information. How you too can create something that looks just like that person's work. You won't find that here... cos I want you to disover the joy of being authentically you. Creating from your own soulspace. For that is where you'll find the magic.

up up & away

A ballooning adventure in the Yarra Valley

 

this week's creativity challenge

create a clever caption 

for the photo above

my creative contribution to skywatch

Tea Card swap

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All the way from Hawaii, the swap made for me by Fran.

where all the missing socks go

This month I took part in a Tea Swap organised by the lovely Fran in Hawaii. The concept is to create a card, and enclose two teabags for the person you swap with. I'm into tea, and all things creativity, so thought I'd give it a spin.

Jumped right in without doing my homework. Looks like they're all die-hard paper crafters with much experience making cards. I found my swap partner was Fran herself. Phew. That put the pressure on. She teaches cardmaking at a craft store and has her own crafting business selling through art fairs. Look at the clever creations up the top which she made for me, they look very professional, like they come from a shop. Poor Fran probably didn't realise I have no card-making experience.

handmade christmas card by Kel

Anyhow, I went down the path of 'use what you have', folding up some cardboard, re-using a gift ribbon and string, and drawing, painting and cutting out my own stocking 'embellishments'. Lined the inside of the card with black cardboard and another stocking peeping out from inside.

And there you have it. My very own handmade card. A fun way to stretch the creative wings and try something new.

So now I'm off to try something else new.

A brew of Mango Maui black tea from Hawaii.

Mmmmmmm.

Thanks Fran.

kangaroos coming through

.

Who needs garden gnomes  

when you have these hopping around on the front lawn

Sketchbook Project : cover

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My contribution to the Sketchbook Project 2012 is underway. It's a combo of rhyming story and illustrations using various techniques. My first step was to write the story. Now that's done, I've started illustrating. Mucho fearo. But facing the fear and doodling, sketching, painting, anyway! Here's a sneak peek at the cover.

book of secret treasures

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altered book, art journal by Kel

Whenever someone visits me at home for the first time, they are always curious to see inside my "studio". What is it about that word which turns two bays of a shed into some magical mysterious place!?!

I have all sorts of things going on in there, canvases, bead creations, art journals, giant wall doodles . . . plus, Mr X has his own table for model building. So it always interests me to see what catches people's attention when they step into the studio.

Nine times out of ten, the thing which everyone gravitates toward is my altered book journal. Amazing! What amounts to a strange jumble of collaged images, text and doodles fascinates them. I suspect its the outward appearance of the book which draws them in first. Kind of like a book of secret treasures. "...what might be hidden in there?"

This was today's entry . . .

I bought my wings at Bunnings,
altered book journal entry by Kel © 2011

at your wits' end?

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view from the breakfast table this morning

even rainbows 

have days 

when they lose 

their ends

in the clouds