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Vermont has a thing for the arts and one thing we do every year is open our studios up to the public for the annual Vermont State Open Studio Weekend.
I suspect it's partly the fact that we are finally reaching the end of our long winters that has us throwing open our doors and kicking up our heels — just like all those happy cows newly released from their barns in spring — that makes this event so welcome to both the artists and the visitors. I also think it's a peculiarly Vermont thing to be both resolutely independent and contentedly solitary while still maintaining a staunchly strong sentiment for the value of community and a consistent, but really rather inconspicuous, no-fuss, make yourself-right-at-home-we're-glad-to-see-you, warmth of hospitality. This attitudinal lifestyle makes a perfect fit for artisans, craftsmen — and farmers — who you'll find throwing open their doors, and maybe even kicking their heels up a bit, on Open Studio Weekend, Saturday 28th and Sunday, 29th of May throughout the entire state of Vermont.
You can download a booklet and map of the more than 200 artists participating here and consider this a personal invitation from me, to you, to stop by Studio Fresca to say hello, check out the works in progress, try out the tools yourself, enjoy fresh baked goods by Hearty's, hang out on the deck or stroll the paths on 5o lovely acres at Heart Winds House in East Burke, VT. We're definitely planning on kicking OUR heels up all in the name of art, community, visitors and spring and we'd be delighted to have you join us!
MOTHER LOVE - Mosaic jewlery piece created with love for my own wonderful mother. Recovered vintage china, scrap stained glass, italian millefiore, recycled metal findings, glass beads and faux pearls, silk wrapped wire cording on gold-plated pewter metal pendant blank with unsanded grout.
As a daughter, a mother and a "wanna be" grandmother, Mother's Day means something more to me than just another corporate created occasion to send a greeting card. Mother's Day has a somewhat convoluted history and owes it's inception to a number of women who, over several generations and in several geographic locations, originally established the concept of a "special day" for mothers everywhere to come together to variously remember their children, promote peace, work toward women's rights, fight family poverty, show appreciation and gratitude toward one's own mother and celebrate the timeless bonds of motherhood.
Although many of us may not recognize the original intentions of early Mother's Day concepts in today's commercialized version, we have only to look toward our own mothers — and mothers all around the world — to see that the real reasons for celebrating Mother's Day have not changed. Mothers provide constant care for their children, they work to support them, they fight to protect them, they delight in their accomplishments, they strive to provide a better world for them. And it is my experience and strong conviction that, by and large, they do this not only for their own children, but for all the children of the world and that one does not necessarily have ever to have given birth to provide the mothering the world so desperately needs.
The old adage has it that, "A Mother's Work is Never Done" and I believe this is true. We have such high ideals, expectations and hopes for what our mothers will provide. Once you are a mother, you are a mother forever. Given all they do for their individual children, and collectively for the world, mothers certainly do have a lot to answer for and for that reason I am delighted to take this opportunty to be grateful for, and appreciative of, all that my own mother, and mothers everywhere, have done for me. So in celebration of women yesterday, today and tomorrow, I wish everyone a Happy Mother's Day!
In recognition of Earth Day, a revisit of CHLOROPHYLIA, a piece created entirely from trash in celebration of chlorophyll — that magical, mystical material that works with sun, water and soil to make our planet green. Photosynthesis rocks my world!
CHLOROPHYLIA — Recycled slumped glass base with recovered dishware and vintage china with 22K gold trim; vintage recovered brooch; tempered glass salvaged from auto wrecking yard; fresh water pearls; iridescent glass paint; sanded and non-sanded grout.My inspiration was the green vintage flower brooch on the corner, which was found in a bag of old jewelry. Using that as a beginning, I set out to make a piece that would convey the magic of chlorophyll as the life blood of green plants. The flowing tempered glass (from broken automobile windows) represents water flowing through the system and the dyed freshwater pearls (gathered from a broken necklace I found at a garage sale) are meant suggest chloroplasts, the cells responsible for photosynthesis. The vintage china with 22K gold trim is a reminder of the value of plants to keeping our environment "green".
The International Auction of Mosaic Art to Benefit Doctors Without borders / Médecins Sans Frontières is currently underway! View 127 amazing and diverse works of art created and donated by more than 100 mosaic artists from around the world. DWB/MSF is a truly remarkable organization and well deserving of our support so if you love art, this is a great opportunity to own an original piece and "do good". Click here to go directly to the auction site and behold all the wonderful works created in honor of the wonderful work that DWB/MSF does. Thank you and happy bidding! 
A TREE FOR ALL SEASONS - my donation to the International Auction to Benefit Doctors Without Borders. For more details on the materials and meaning behind the design, please click here.
HEART IS TREE - my contribution to the community-created Heartistry Mosaic Mural on display in Providence Park Hospital in Novi, MI. Scrap stained glass, stainless steel spoon hilt, mirror and glass beads on mesh. To see the completed mural, please click here!
Romance is lovely, but to me Valentine's Day has always been more than that — it's an opportunity to share what’s in our hearts. My experience with mosaic artists has shown me they are full of heart, as well as art!Through this marvel we call the internet, it has been my pleasure and joy to connect with mosaic artists from around the world and they have shared with me — as they share with each other. They have shared photos of artwork, photos of travels and photos of family. They have shared tips, tricks and advice for mosaics, cooking and relationships. They have shared successes, failures and concerns, while cheering each other on, offering support, and commiserating with one another. And, they have shared so much laughter while sharing their lives.Through my connections with these wonderful people, who also happen to be wonderfully creative, I have been able to improve my skills in making mosaic art — if not cooking. Through them I have learned to look at art in different ways, been introduced to artists I had never heard of before, and visited places I never would otherwise have been able to go. They have generously offered me suggestions, thoughtfully provided well considered critiques of my work, and bravely put not only their own work out there, over and over again, but shared themselves in the process.Throughout that process they have also given to their communities by turning their love of mosaic art into a way to share with others. Mosaic art seems to be particularly well suited to community involvement and many mosaic artists do this individually on their own, or in combination with other members of the community by creating works of art that grace the halls of schools, fronts of public buildings and playgrounds in parks. Some mosaic artists have found it especially rewarding to come together and combine their work with that of other mosaic artists to create collaborative mosaic murals. While there are many, many of these murals and other mosaic projects in various places in various countries, there is one in particular that seems especially noteworthy on this Valentine’s Day.If you are a mosaic artist (and haven’t been living under a rock for the last two months) then you are undoubtedly aware of the amazing “HEARTISTRY” — a collaborative community mosaic mural, which consists of pieces separately created by mosaic artists from around the world, and conceived, coordinated and compiled by Lin Schorr. To me, this mural is a wonderful symbol of shared art, shared lives and shared hearts. Each different and unique, but each willing and able to come together to make a whole that is greater than simply the sum of it’s parts. At the center of this has been Lin, who has earned the unofficial title of "Queen of Hearts", by lending her talent and expertise, and spending her time and energy to make it all happen so beautifully, while making sure that each and every person involved enjoyed recognition for their own contribution.Ultimately, this love of mosaic art shared in common has taken on a life of its own and been transformed into something tangible that can be enjoyed by others, and in so doing we are able to transcend many of the boundaries, real and imaginary, that so often seem to confine us. Yes, it's ONLY art, but the beauty and value of art is that it so often comes directly from — and goes straight to — our hearts.
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN' -
Materials = salvaged glazed ceramic tile; Mexican smalti, natural stone; metallic glazed ceramic tile; on 1/4" environmental MDF; partially grouted with sanded grout.
Size = 8" x 8" I guess it's true what they say...you can take the girl out of California, but you can't take California out of the girl. I spent a major portion of my life in California and consider it one of my "home bases" so I visit friends and old haunts there whenever I get the chance. It's true that it's changed a lot since the years that I lived there, but it still has some lovely scenic places and a landscape that talks so sweetly to me. The rolling hills, rambling oaks and fields full of wildflowers never cease to thrill me. My favorite of those flowers is the California Poppy — also the official state flower. There is just something so cheery in seeing one or two of those bright orange flowers poking up amongst the weeds along the road sides and it is absolutely breathtaking to see an entire field carpeted in them. This piece is dear to my heart because it captures a bit of the magic I feel for California and because it is a gift for some very dear people who first gave me California.
Work in Progess - ENCHANTED FOREST - "Owed" to Surrealism created from scrap stained glass, salvaged stainless steel knife handles, ball chain, millefiore, on 1/2" environmental MDF
While trolling through the trash, digging deep in dumpsters and rummaging around in recycle yards, I encounter an amazing array of discarded items. Some are definitely one-of-a-kind, while others are one, or two — or ten — among millions. Stainless steel flatware pieces are among the latter.
Glass, china and tile have always had an allure for me, but in recent years I have developed an affinity for flatware. It comes in such a diversity of shapes, sizes, patterns and finishes that I take true delight in discovering the "new" and finding a few more of the familiar to carry back to my studio. To me, each of these pieces of sturdy stainless steel is a small work of art in and of itself and representative of a certain time and period in our cultural heritage. That's why I love to incorporate them into my work.
I also like they way they feel in my hands when I am cutting, buffing, bending and polishing them — they are smooth, solid and balanced. Metal feels different than glass, tile, stone and china and I like the contrast it brings to my work. I also like to think I am preserving a little something while giving these beautiful and once utilitarian discards new life as I send them dancing through a millefiore forest, tuck them into a snowy china field and suspend them in a misty glass night. And, it's a great way to feed my flatware fetish!
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