EBOLA...IT'S A SCARY THING! SO WHAT CAN YOU AND I DO ABOUT IT?

This year's donation piece for the International MosaicAuction to benefit DWB / MSF

As my family, friends, colleagues and regular readers know, I am a fan of Doctors Without Borders / Médecins Sans Frontières — A HUGE FAN! Perhaps this is because it has been my joy and privilege to travel to many places throughout the world during my lifetime and I feel a connection with so many people and so many places, or perhaps it is because, at the impressionable age of 6 during an obsession with Africa, I became enamored with the work, fascinating life and thought provoking teachings of Dr. Albert Schweitzer, or perhaps it is because, after substantial internal struggle, I chose NOT to attend medical school and have, upon many occasions, wondered what I might be doing now if I had pursued a medical calling. Would I still be happily diving into dumpsters after discarded treasures...?! Regardless, I am in awe — and strongly in favor — of the work of DWB / MSF.

Years ago when I first began making the sorts of art works that anyone other than myself might be interested in, I picked DWB / MSF as my "chosen charity". I gladly donate mosaic art works, as well as a percentage of the proceeds from cards and prints I sell to this noble organization every year and although in the grand scheme of things it is not very much, I figure every little bit helps. So I was thrilled when an incredibly talented mosaic artist and a dedicated humanitarian colleague, Lin Schorr, came up with the idea — and the amazing energy — to organize an on-line International Mosaic Auction to benefit my chosen charity!

The International Mosaic Auction to Benefit Doctors Without Borders / Médecins Sans Frontières is now in it's third year and if this year's auction goes as well as the two previous auctions, we (the collective, but highly disparate and wide-flung group of mosaic artists from around the world who eagerly participate in this event, along with our generous bidders without whom there could be no auction) can hope to raise at least another $20,000 for DWB / MSF to help with the critical work they do. Not only is this is soooooo much more than I could ever hope to contribute as an individual, but I feel it gives me, and the other participating artists, an opportunity to spread the word about DWB / MSF and remind people just what an outstandingly courageous, hard-working, well organized and dedicated organization it is. Whether working in countries torn asunder by war, or regions devastated by natural disasters, or populations threatened by a truly scary communicable disease, DWB / MSF gets the job done effectively and efficiently. You see, DWB / MSF is one of THOSE charities — YES, the ones that are actually praised for using their funds primarily and directly for the benefit of those they serve rather than merely to perpetuate their organization, solicit for further funds or line the pockets of their CEOs. And while their work is never done in this world of nearly overwhelming need, now is a time of perhaps greater need than usual.

2012 mosaic art donation to DWB / MSF auction available as note cards. 

So, what can you and I do about Ebola? While I am NOT a doctor or medical professional with the skills to be helpful in the field, I can give my time through the creation and donation of my art to the annual auction — and I can continue to send some money through my long-standing relationship with DWB / MSF. You can bid on some of the interesting, unusual and outstanding pieces of mosaic artwork during the on-line International Mosaic Auction to benefit DWB / MSF, beginning on 22 November, 2014, that mosaic artists, famous and not so famous, from the world over have created just for this occasion and maybe you'll be the winning bidder...or you can simply send your money straight to DWB / MSF — either way, DWB / MSF will benefit, which means the people who need their help, as well as you and I, as part of the greater world community, all win!

 2013 

AVA GALLERY HOLIDAY SHOW AND SALE COMING RIGHT UP!

Along with dozens of other wonderful area artists, I will have a few small pieces on exhibit and available for sale at the 2013 AVA Gallery Holiday Show & Sale in Lebanon, NH. Because pieces are switched out as soon as they are sold the gallery is constantly changing, which makes this is a fun show to browse — often — and a great venue to purchase some truly unique Holiday Gifts from an interesting and eclectic group of artists. Please join us for the Opening Reception on Friday, November, 29th from 5 - 7 pm at the gallery!

November, 29th - December, 28th, 2013 at the Ava Gallery in Lebanon, NH

BURKE WINE & ART SNOWCASE

What do you get when you combine Wine, Art, Hors D' Oeuvres and Live Music with Local Community and Area Visitors at beautiful Burke Mountain Resort in Vermont's renowned Northeast Kingdom?

You get a very special evening full of good things and great people — and you have an opportunity to support The Burke Area Arts & Cultural Series with the inaugural event!

Please join us for an intimate evening of wine tasting with a knowledgeable sommelier, the chance to view a diversity of art and personally interact with a variety of area artists, dine on delicious hors d' oeuvres, listen to lovely live music — and enjoy each others' company.

Saturday, 26th January, 2013 at 7pm at the Burke Mountain Base Lodge, East Burke, VT.

Tickets, which can be purchased here, are limited!

10' TALL SUNFLOWERS TO BE PLANTED AT THE NORRIS COTTON CANCER CARE BOUTIQUE!

Rough concept of the final design choice.

I am delighted to announce that I have begun creating the mosaic mirror for installation in the new Circle of Care Boutique currently under construction at the Norris Cotton Cancer Center located on the campus of Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital in St. Johnsbury, VT. The underlying theme and logo involves sunflowers and the mirror needs to accommodate people of all shapes and sizes, including those in wheel chairs, within a 46" wide space between two doors. Below are the 4 design options submitted to the board back in October and at left is the final choice. Materials used will include recycled dishware and china, tile, mirror, salvaged tempered glass and other bits and baubles that I can scrounge up. The project, spearheaded by the NVRH Auxilliary will be the only American Cancer Society designated facility in Northern New England to provide a range of supplies, services and support to cancer patients during treatment. While construction was delayed somewhat, everyone is hoping for a Grand Opening on Valentine's Day so I will be very busy for the next month!

But is it BIG enough...?! Checking out size, perspective and installation requirements at the construction site with mock-ups. The group of about 7 - 9 sunflowers will range from 16" - 24" in diameter, have leaves 9" - 12" long and sit atop stems up to 8' tall.

The four designs originally submitted to the planning board. Two in consideration of construction plans calling for a 20' tall ceiling and two for a 10' tall ceiling.

TIS THE SEASON — HOLIDAY OPEN STUDIO AND GALLERY SHOWING DEC. 17th & 18th

In the spirit of the season, Studio Fresca will be hosting a Holiday Open Studio & Gallery Showing from 11am until 4pm on both Saturday and Sunday, December 17th & 18th, so stop by for a visit to see the art and meet the artist! The studio will have works in progress and demonstrations of various mosaic techniques while upstairs the Gallery at Heart Winds House will have completed works, prints and cards, and the latest jewelry pieces on display. Enjoy complimentary hot beverages and holiday treats prepared by Chef Dave from Hearty's, which tied for first place winner at the 2011 Chowder Cook-Off Contest at Burke Mountain Resort, will also have hot, homemade soup and fresh bread on the menu if you're looking for something a little "heartier" to eat!


To find us, look for the Studio Fresca signs posted along the road ways, or call ahead at 802-626-5105, or check us out on google places and tweet @heartysvt to find out what the soup of the day is.


Wishing you all the special joys of the season and hope to see you soon!

SOME GLASS IS BETTER TEMPERED THAN OTHERS...

I got the tempered glass, which I used to create the chilly looking sky for this piece, from old refrigerator shelves and learned that some glass is better tempered than others! Other materials used in this piece include quartz slag and resin tile bars on 'environmental' MDF with sanded and non-sanded grout. Size ~ 5.5" x 10" (click image to enlarge)

Because it is free, facet-nating, versatile and found in so many places I tend to frequent, I use a fair amount of Tempered Glass — or "TG" — in my work. I have mostly used auto glass salvaged from the auto wrecking yards and am familiar with it's wide range of peculiarities and challenges. It comes in a variety of shades of blue, gray, green and occasionally black. It is many different thicknesses and some brands shatter in different patterns than others. Front windshields tend to be tempered AND laminated, which is not generally conducive to mosaic-making, and it's best to avoid windows with metallic automatic defroster filaments embedded in them unless you plan on making them part of the overall "look" of the finished piece. I can tell you from first hand experience, nipping those filaments out of the glass bits is t-i-m-e consuming. Shower doors are not too hard to find and can give a nice effect depending on what type of surface treatment the glass was originally given as a matter of "privacy decor". A few times I've been lucky enough to end up with someone's fabulous old TG plate glass window: they are clear and nearly colorless, usually break cleanly, are all one thickness and almost always have the advantage of NOT being covered in dirt, grease or soap scum. 

Because they were there (being there is half the game) and they were colorless (and colorless is not always easy for me to come by) and they were free (my favorite kind) and I thought they would be fun (fun is the other half of the game), I scavenged a few shelves out abandoned refrigerators in the discarded appliance yard at the recycling center. Part of the fun of using tempered glass, if you are fortunate enough to be getting an entire intact piece (like I had just scored with those shelves), rather than scraping it up off the ground or out of the back seats of junked cars, is the act of breaking it. There is something delicious about setting everything up just the way you want it then ceremoniously and oh-so-gently tapping the side of the glass with a hammer and watching it start to crackle and then spread, with a subtly satisfying little sound, from one side to the other until what was once a solid piece of transparent material with a strong specular reflection develops into randomly shaped and sized gem-like bits of pure sparkling goodness.

However, this is NOT what happened with my refrigerator shelves. I tried tapping them gently, then harder, then even harder — then so hard that they flew across the studio floor and landed, intact, under the big work table. I tried wrapping the whole thing up in a towel, putting it on my concrete studio floor and whacking it with a sledge hammer — the hammer bounced! The harder I hit it with the hammer, the harder the hammer bounced. I was flummoxed, I was fascinated...and I was growing frustrated. I climbed on my table and dropped the shelves. Stil wrapped in the towel, they bounced. I climbed onto the counter (a whole foot higher) and threw the shelves. They bounced and skittered, although one lost a sharp sliver of the corner — and it did NOT resemble safety glass. I gave up at that point, set them aside and began working on the parts of the piece pictured above, PERCH ON A BIRCH, that did not involve TG. 

A couple of weeks passed (I am, by nature, slow, and it was a tedious piece!) and then I really needed clear, colorless TG in order to finish that little cardinal's snowy realm. So I got out the refrigerator shelves and considered: a.) trying to use my big, wet scary tile saw on them; b.) put them on the concrete garage floor and run over them with the car; and c.) call my husband. But first I wanted to have one more go. I was going to video the awesome bounce of this TG for posterity's sake — who would believe it? And then I was going to double check to make sure the shelves really were composed of TG and not some sort of modern miracle plasti-glass product. To get warmed up, I wrapped one of the shelves in a towel again, put it on the concrete studio floor, grabbed my sledge hammer, stabilized my cell phone, started the little video camera on it and swung half-heartedly. Suddenly, the glass gave way! I could hear and feel it, and sure enough when I opened the towel, it revealed that the fridge shelves had cracked into REALLY tiny, absolutely separate pieces. No clinging clumps or larger bits to be laid onto the mosaic in interesting patterns, just teensy, tiny, nearly microscopic little pieces fit only for tweezers and magnifying glasses.

As I started to put the bits into their containers, mentally counting the hours I would spend laying those bits down to create the mosaic, I realized that underneath the shelf had been an old wing nut (and what's a good story without a good wing nut?), about the same color gray as the concrete floor, but fairly good sized. I can only surmise that the wing nut, by keeping the shelf from being flat against the floor, provided the extra stress needed to finally fracture the glass. So I did the exact same thing with the other shelf, which for some reason broke into the most beautiful, long thin strands of glass, some up to 3 or 4 inches long and only an 1/8th - 1/4" wide — not necessarily my idea of "safety" glass, but it looks super cool and I'm going to have some fun with those! And the next time I see some lovely, clear, colorless refrigerator shelves gleaming in the sun at the dump, I'm going in for them!

FEELING FALL IN A BIG WAY...

12" x 36"; discarded dishware, salvaged tile bits and mirror scraps on leftover 1/4" Hardi-backer board with thinset and sanded grout. Prepped and sealed for outdoor use in temperatures above freezing. By R. F. De Lorme, ©2011 (click image to enlarge)

Fall is fabulous in Vermont, but all too short so I made a tall tree to celebrate the season. This piece stands 3' tall and the trunk makes use of the backs (with the manufacturers stamps) as well as the fronts, of various shades of white, cream and grey plates. The leaves are hand-cut rounds, to give the piece a sense of fullness and volume. There are also a few slivers and bits of mirror in the trunk to give it a bit of twinkle when the light catches it. This panel was created on hardi-backer board with thinset and specially sealed so that it can be displayed outdoors in temperatures above freezing — or in a shower stall — or as a kitchen backsplash.