It's a new year and a new daily challenge! Today is #1 of 365. What will you challenge yourself to do each day? I have joined a Flickr group called Brooch a Day 2013. Each of the members will be making an attachable adornment (brooch, pin, badge, stickpin, tie clasp, etc.), every day of 2013. We'll post pictures of our efforts on Flickr. You can follow my progress here. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mluwason/sets/72157632403865217/ You can follow the whole group here. http://www.flickr.com/groups/brooch-a-day2013/ Look for new photos every day. We are starting with a great group of jewelry artists. You can expect to be stunned and amazed daily! I know many of the members from the Ring a Day 2010 challenge. That was such a fun experience. It led to many great things including my work in a published book from Lark Publishing, a group exhibit in Seattle, my own local solo exhibit, tons of new designs and best of all, many lasting friendships. I am looking forward to this new online challenge. I hope you will join me. If you are a maker, please take up the challenge. If not, please stop by and leave comments for the participants. It will be a fun journey together!
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On this final day of 2012, I would just like to say, "Good Riddance!" Life here on the Jersey Shore has not been the same since Hurricane Sandy. For me, personally, one effect difficult to deal with is that many of our favorite beaches are still unaccessible. The place of my daily walks, Sandy Hook (Gateway National Park), may be closed until May 2013. The neighboring beach at Sea Bright, NJ is beautiful and open. Driving through town, though, is sobering. Barely any business or homes are inhabited. The recovery does go on though. In the daylight hours there is a constant buzz of construction workers rebuilding. So, it is time for all of us to rebuild! May 2013 be lucky, joyful and profitable to all! May we enjoy the beauty of the beach and sea once again!
Betrayed by a Beautiful Day...Never again to Love a September Sun.. This morning, while walking the beach I tried hard to think what to share on the blog today. Only bits of an unwritten poem came to me. But on returning home, I saw a message from my sweet (and beautiful and funny) sister-in-law, Ann Wason Moore. She is a writer at Thrifty Fashionista, an Australian publication full of great fashion tips and reviews. Today, she wrote a blog post, entitled Stars and Stripes, featuring my jewelry and her thoughts on this anniversary of September 11th. One of the positive things that I remember from 11 years ago, was the concern and support that came from all across the world. Thank you, Ann, for reminding me of that. On the beach this morning, I could see the rising tower of Freedom, finally replacing the hole in the skyline, slowly repairing the hole in our hearts.
Did you hear the recent story of the old lady in Italy who took it upon herself to redo an ancient Fresco in her local church? It turned out, the job wasn't as easy as she thought it would be! That happens to me sometimes, although with not quite as drastic results. I took wax working tools with me on my recent vacation. I hadn't worked with wax for 3 years, actually since I learned how to use it. At school I surprised myself with how quickly I "got it". My teachers were encouraging and I enjoyed the process. In the years that followed, I always thought, I've got to do wax again. It's so easy! Finally, one day at a peaceful spot at the edge of a clear water lake, I set the wax working tools on a marble slab table and began to carve. I had seen some Byzantine crosses at the Met and was inspired to try making my own version in a wax model (to later be cast in silver). I also started a ring, but knew I wouldn't be able to finish without my electric flexshaft. At the end of the day, I was hot, tired and covered in tiny flakes of green wax. The cross and ring models were sorry little things. I wasn't disappointed though, because I felt good that I had taken the first step to realize I need time to practice those skills. So, I am closer to creating what I've envisioned. Still, it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be! How about you? Have you had a recent experience where you found out it wasn't as easy as you thought it would be? Tell me in the comments, I'd love to know.
As some of you know, I'm a member of the TADA365 Art Jewelry Group.
Our website, www. TrueAddictsOfDailyArt.com was created to feature our group online exhibitions. Entries for our third show are open through Tuesday, May 1st 2012. Hurry and your work can be in it! Romance: The Artist Defines the Word Entries due May 1st - Show opening May 15th 2012 (changed from April) Entry form (max 3 entries): www.trueaddictsofdailyart.com/romanceshow.html We accept all media that is in the form of adornment - from jewelry to masks, both wearable and conceptual. To enter, all you have to do is 1 - join the Flickr group - tada365 www.flickr.com/groups/tada365 2 - upload up to two pictures of your work, plus artist statements, bios and links at www.trueaddictsofdailyart.com/romanceshow.html 3.We invite you to come back to Flickr and share more photos and comments through the year. We look forward to seeing your work. TADA stands for True Addicts of Daily Art. You can read about the history of the group here. www.trueaddictsofdailyart.com/about-us.html Here are links to our past two shows.. www.trueaddictsofdailyart.com/exhibit.html www.trueaddictsofdailyart.com/january-2012-exhibit.html My dear fellow jewelers and creatives - I have the perfect solution for your desire to find inspiration and focus with your work this year. Come join me in the TADA365 Art Jewelry Group on Flickr. The Group _TADA stands for True Addicts of Daily Art. You can read about the history of the group here. www.trueaddictsofdailyart.com/about-us.html _You can see our daily progress in pictures and comments on Flickr TADA365 Art Jewelry group. www.flickr.com/groups/tada365/ _For 2012 we are doing the following: * Hosting 4 online shows on our website * Sharing pictures of our art jewelry and adornments * Encouraging each other to try new techniques * Sponsoring challenges for motivation * Informing each other of shows, challenges and book submissions * Encouraging each other to use social media to gain exposure for our work And that's just a start! The Exhibitions _Our website, www.TrueAddictsOfDailyArt.com was created to feature our group online exhibitions. The first of our exhibitions, Letters of Adornment, opened on September 19th, 2011.
Hurry and you can be in our second show, One Year, One Piece : An Exhibit of work made in 2011 All you have to do is 1 - join the Flickr group - tada365 www.flickr.com/groups/tada365 2 - send a picture of your favorite work that you made in 2011 using this form. www.trueaddictsofdailyart.com/jan15show.html 3. Then come and share more photos and comments through the year. We no longer expect pictures every single day..we've realized that all creating doesn't always translate into something that can be shown in a photo. But, we do stop in several times a week and get inspired and in turn, inspire each other. We look forward to seeing your work. Happy New Year to all my friends! I wish you the best of all possible worlds in this new year of 2012. I woke up this morning, with a song in my head. New Morning by Bob Dylan. I hope you enjoy your new morning and new year! Someone asked me when I first realized I was an artist. I think it started when I realized I have an artist eye. Like some people can hear music and know if the key is off, I can look at a painting and know if it’s working. I’m not bragging. I worked hard to be able to see this way. I honed this skill when I was making my living selling art and antiques in NYC. Since I didn’t have a lot of capital, I had to buy the best art for the lowest price. This meant mostly, buying unknowns and unsigned works. Many dealers rely on the artist signature. They look it up to see the value of the artist’s previous sold works. If the artist is not listed, or there is no signature, they pass on the work.
I couldn’t afford to do that. I had to buy the work based solely on itself. Not the history, not the name, just the work before me. But only, of course, if it appealed to me. If it was looked “right”. I would see a painting at an auction and know it was right. I was always surprised when there was light bidding – sometimes no bidding at all against me. I remember once the auctioneer even making a joke about the painting. No one would dare bid on it then, except me. I knew it was good. I sold it a few days later for 10x what I paid. This happened so often that I finally realized, some people see it and some people don’t. That’s the way it is with all art. Good paintings aren’t made to match the sofa. And art jewelry isn’t made to match the dress. Some people can see that and some people just don’t. That’s just the way it is. We all see the world a little different. Isn’t that a great thing? I think it is a wonderful thing! I made a little thank you Treasury list on Etsy yesterday. Etsy Treasuries are fun to make and to browse. I haven't made or been in very many myself, but they always seem to generate lots of good vibes. So, I included some people who have given me good vibes too. Click on the pictures and you'll be taken to the listing for the item on Etsy. This week the TADA365 Art Jewelry Blog is featuring an interview that I did with Evelyn Markasky. Be sure to check it out. I talk about where I come from in metalwork and where I think we are all going.
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Mary Lu Wason
is a studio jeweler. Here she shares the inspirations, discoveries and process of creating her art jewelry collections. @PirateTides on InstagramSubscribe
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