Atlanta Progressive Preschool’s Alternative Craft Fair & Bazaar

Atlanta Progressive Preschool’s Alternative Craft Fair & Bazaar is on December 4, 2010 from 10-2pm. I'll be selling a new round of journals there and am sharing a table with Atlanta's hottest beekeeper, Cassandra Lawson. We're going to have a blast!

These events at the school are always so much fun. Check out the other vendors there and come ready to eat, listen to live music and party.

Here are details:

Don’t buy your holiday gifts at the mall! Support local artists and eco-friendly crafters! Support APP!

The Fair is Saturday, December 4, 2010 from 10am-2pm. There will be: high quality alternative-style crafts for sale by local artists, craft projects for the kids, S&J’s Wood fired Pizza, face painting, marshmallow roasting, Charis books, Junk oracle readings, henna tattoos, a DJ, delicious homemade baked goods, the winter wonderland room, fair trade coffee & chocolate for sale and 2 bounce houses.

Inky Leaves

Here's some of my recent affair with FW inks. Thinking this might be a link towards pattern design for my books and boxes. Fun fun fun!

Being Sick

In the midst of all this glorious professional and spiritual re-birthing I've been experiencing lay a fair amount of old wounds in need of healing. They have come to the surface in a myriad of ways - through conversations, sessions with Debra, journaling and through my body. It's called a healing crisis and fuck, does this one hurt. Two weeks ago I got the beginning of Anton's latest cold and reached a point where I could not swallow without feeling like I had a cheese grater for a throat. Mark Strand calls the throat the "sleeve of my voice." My inner voice cracked open a wider path and this time I listened.

Shortly after, the real cold came and because my Neti Pot and I are such good friends, the infection abandoned my sinuses and decided to settle in my ear and in my eye. At this point I am laughing, it's so ridiculous!

NOT a good week. But it's good. But it feels bad. So, yes. It's movement and the only way over something is not really OVER it, but through it. I've moved with what feels comfortable and still am doing my work, but I take it slowly.

In honor of the voice that wants to scream, I've posted a prettier (but no less wittier) version of what I'm feeling.

To life! Fuckit!

PS: This was made with a round sable brush, liner brush and FW inks. Liquid love.

Jay Shapiro Arts Legacy Foundation Logo

Well, it has been a good weekend. I've been sick! And while healing, I finished up the logo I was working on for the Jay Shapiro Arts Legacy Foundation. I felt his presence every step of the way. He was the first person to nudge me toward nourishing an entrepreneurial spirit and he was a dear, dear man. I miss him.

Here is the mission of the Foundation: Removing barriers to those in the visual arts community in endeavors to explore and achieve their creative potential.

I was asked to consider incorporating one of Jay's most charming physical attributes (his mustache) into the logotype. I did and had SO much fun with it. The hand has serious nods to copperplate and italic and beneath his stache is his beautiful smile - his business savvy - the Arts Legacy Foundation.

When you walk into a place a business, it doesn't take long to feel what it must be like to work there. The entire staff treats its customers as they themselves are treated by their employers. It's why I choose Publix over Kroger, Fidelity Bank over Bank of America, and it's why I choose Binders over Sam Flax. Jay Shapiro and Howard Krinsky have created something fun and beautiful. I am lucky to be a part of it.

Anton's Fall 2010 Portrait

This one's a little truck-heavy, but nonetheless fun. :)

Emotive Typers Fall 2010

The Fall quarter class at Portfolio Center is usually the largest of the year. 2010 is no exception. I've got 12 students in Emotive Type and 13 in Production. Whoa! This class has so much fun energy with good balance for thoughtfulness and play all around.

Last Saturday we took our traditional Saturday morning field trip to Xpedx, Forsyth Fabrics and Atlanta Vintage Books. But first, we met up at the West Egg Café for breakfast. Here they are, awake and ready to inspire. :)

Artfolio 2010

This weekend I'm participating in Binder's Artfolio 2010 event where I'll be demoing FW inks and working with Lineco products in a Book and Container making lecture. Very exciting products. I've been using Lineco products for quite a while in my bookmaking classes.

The FW inks are new to me. So far, they are the most varied inks I've tried because they have both opaque and transparent properties, depending on how much you thin them. Not only are they great for calligraphy with a dip pen or brush, but work like gouache when used raw and mixed with a little white. I love them! They have a high permanence rating and look great on leather, paper and wood.

Here's an image of a box lid I painted this afternoon. I'm loving the flow. More to come!

Mail Truck Costume

My little boy Anton wanted to be a mail truck this year for Halloween. I jumped right in. Since moving to the little house, one of the advantages of having a short driveway is that you and your 4-year old little boy (who is obsessed with anything that has wheels) can now watch, feel and hear the mail truck drive to your mailbox. It takes us 10 seconds to get to the end of the driveway and say hello. We have gotten to know three of our mail carriers pretty well - but the one we see most of the time is named CC and we love him. He seems never in a hurry when he comes to our house and loves to talk to Anton about his truck, that funny rubber thing on his thumb and all the mail he's delivering.


We told CC that Anton's costume this year would be a mail truck and the next day he arrived with a white USPS warm-weather hat - the white one that keeps your head cool. It was brand new and a gift to Anton. SO NICE!!! He also loaned us his vintage mail carrier jacket with the old USPS logo patch.

Thank you CC! We love you!

Everything Is Different Now.

Dear Friends,

Friday night is the opening of FLASH at the Kai Lin Art Gallery. I will have three hand-bound journals on display.

Each page is different, hand lined and paginated with a mixture of solid, lined, vellum, mixed media and graphed papers and envelopes, stained and left to warp naturally, there are long and short sheets that invite the viewer to journal, write or sketch. Each come with their own button closure and nest within their own self-closing lidded box. The calligraphy on the covers all elude to the concept of change and the gift of change offered. Journaling can do that - and each of these books is a gentle nudge in a directional change, personal and otherwise. Every lovingly enhanced page inspires the user to write because each is imperfect, unfinished and special.


THESE ARE MEGA ULTRA SPECIAL. :)
Each can be yours at $250.00.


To view detailed photos of these pieces, follow this link:
http://gallery.me.com/annedavnes#100105&bgcolor=black&view=grid

Stay tuned for my next series of paintings during the exhibit JOY in December!

Yes. Chaos. Everything.

Working on a series of tree journals for the Flash exhibit coming up later this month. "Yes", "Chaos is nothing but good" and "Everything is different now" are coming alive. Each will sit in its own hinged lid box and each will have hand painted calligraphic titles on the cover.

I am immensely busy and this blog shows it. I can barely keep up the pace to record the stages all these new pieces are in. So this will have to do. :)

Burl Ives, Jr.

I was thinking this pict of Anton would be a great christmas card.

Flash Books

I'll be presenting this new series of Hand-Bound Journals at Kai Lin Art's next exhibit, FLASH.

My Journals are taking a deeper turn towards specialness. Is that a word? Every page will be lined or loved with paint or pencil. Short sheets, envelopes and other flat materials will be incorporated into every signature and paginated by hand. Windows, reveals, windows and doors will create a sense of gentle action. All pages will invite the user to interact in some way - by writing, drawing or pasting. These are not perfect, stark white, wrinkle free pages that intimidate the user. They are all unique, tempting to the user to carry them further. "Please draw on me. Tell me what you're feeling. Fill me up. USE ME."


The covers are all calligraphic with statements taking right out of my sessions with Debra. They are all about creating something new and the awareness that comes with claiming responsibility for all that presents itself to you. Loving it all. Allowing all to happen. All to touch me.


A journal that moves one to change it further is something I've never seen before. I'm creating these pieces and the energy used to create something real and honest and of great value, will be echoed in the price tag. Moving my books into a new market from craft fair to fine stationer is mt next goal. You get the preview at Flash. :)

Man! Am I excited.

Calligraphic Clouds

If I knew more about clouds, I'd create a series of envelope styles after each one. Maybe that's a direction I should carry my work towards. After looking deeply at the beautiful Bill Lily vlopes I blogged about recently, I tried on his hat and did some calligraphic cloud formations.... here are a couple. And MAN are they fun.

It remains to be seen whether my flourishes are best done quickly or slowly. I think both are possible, but my hand wants to go fast right now - so I am honoring that.

Anton's 4th Bday

Party a success! More pictures to follow!

October Weekend Workshops: Containers!

Hi Friends,

The second and third weekends in October I will be teaching two container-making workshops at Binders. The first is a keepsake box, the second a collapsable container. I have made many of these for myself and others and if you've taken my classes, you've seen me use them! They are fun to make, beautiful to use and highly functional.

Weekend workshops cost about the same as taking a 6-week class, only the 14 hours are all compacted into a full weekend of intense play and instruction, rather than divided into six short evenings.

Read on for more info below. Fun fun fun!


Button Closure Weekend Workshop: Oct. 9th & 10th
Sat. & Sun. Oct. 9-10, Sat. 10:30am-5:30pm, Sun. 11:30am-6pm
Sale price until Sept. 24: $140, After Sept. 24: $155 | Min 4/Max 15

This little box is perfect for a man or woman looking to hold their favorite trinkets, stationary items, craft supplies, card decks and scoring pads, buttons, jewelry or cufflinks. The button closure is optional, as are the inner dividers. Build little feet for the bottom of your box as high as you like and tie it closed with any kind of elastic, leather, clasp or button. This box is very versatile. All the supplies you need to make this structure can be purchased at Binders right before the workshop. Our workshops are fun and fast! We'll have 2 full days to create your project and time permitting; we'll create a circular paper ornament and a miniature origami holiday tree.

Collapsible Container Workshop: Oct. 16th & 17th
Sat. & Sun. Oct. 16-17, Sat. 10:30am-5:30pm, Sun. 11:30am-6pm
Open to all levels | Sale price until Oct. 1: $140, After Oct. 1: $155 | Min 4/Max 15

This container, designed by Lisa Ellerin, has six sides and a hinged base that enables it to fold flat. It's sturdy and lightweight and is made of 2-ply chipboard and covered in decorative Washi Paper. All the supplies you need can be purchased at Binders right before the workshop. Our workshops are fun and fast! Make a big one to hold pens/pencils, brushes or paper scraps. Make a tiny one for q-tips or hairpins! Make a set of 3 or more and nest them together on your work surface to make a "hive" of sorting containers. We'll have 2 full days to create your project and time permitting; we'll create a circular paper ornament and a miniature origami holiday tree.

I've been Buzzed!

Thank you to Bride Buzz for this awesome write-up!

Anne Elser Calligraphy

Some of the coolest calligraphy we've ever seen...

Every once in a while we feel our passion for calligraphy fading. After all, it’s so traditional and old-school (not too mention expensive), that sometimes we forget why we love it so much. Then one day we come across a calligrapher like Atlanta-based Anne Elser and we quickly remember just how special and stunning calligraphy can be. Honestly, her stuff is totally insane.

Elser does everything from basic requests like envelopes and place cards to more intricate jobs like invite design and save-the-date creation. And her style is amazing. She can do anything from modern to romantic to super-traditional. And everything is beautiful.

Though she’s based in Atlanta, more than half her clients are from out-of-state, and the process is totally simple: Just look through her site (obsessed!) and then let her know what you love. She will create a few pencil sketches and then send them to you to get your opinions. You and she can work together until everything is perfect, then she will “ink it up” and send you a final image to approve via email.

Her waiting list can be long, and the prices aren’t low, but honestly, if you can afford it, you should definitely get in touch and see what she can create for you. It’s like adding works of art to your wedding vision. Hard to top that.

Stone Sweaters

This is what I'm doing next! Thank you Margaret Oomen!

Pencil to Pixel Directions

These are the directions I pass out to my Production class at Portfolio Center where we turn a pencil drawing into a crisp marker drawing and then into an Illustrator vector file. The whole point of this exercise is to learn to maintain the original energy in work done by hand when moved into a digital environment.

I got the original idea from this fabulous blog at Instructables dot com.

Examples of work created from this process can be found here.

Intimacy

Anton turns four today! We're having a little party for him on Saturday. Doug's been away the first part of this week and so Bunny and I have had a lot of time together. We made a new and different kind of connection the other day that has me floored and wowed and in awe of our special relationship. Just when you think you can't get any deeper with your child, they do something amazing that pulls you in in a way you least expected.

Most of what he's been interested in has been cars and trains. But since the school year started, his interests have exploded. He's loving the idea of character play/role play. Every toy he loves has a voice, and it's my job to get into character when he says "Hiro? Where are we going today?" It's loads of fun. He also loves playing store or kitchen. I think for his birthday we are getting him a pretend grill. Mom and Dad are getting him a red guitar. :)

We are going on day 7 of visiting the koi pond and outdoor train set at Hastings. Six visits in a row!

Tuesday we were at Michaels and he asked to get these two paper houses. We took them home and I brought out my good acrylics and good brushes. I put wax paper down on the counter and took his shirt off and watched him go. He was SO intense. Carefully considering which side or surface to paint which color. He was thorough and thoughtful. When they dried he picked out two cars to go with each house. He slept with them that very night. He loves to drive the cars up to the front doors and say "I'm home!" This makes me melt.

Sharing my greatest creative gift with him has been so enchanting. Here we are, making art together. It's an amazing feeling.

I've learned something. Give your kids the good paints and good brushes. Kids soft brushes are terrible and don't give you any control. Their work is better when they use better quality materials. Acrylics can be brushed off your hands easily with a nail brush and soap and water. They can also be scraped off the counter. They don't really stain. It's all plastic paint.

I hate tempera (kids quality) paints. Messy and weak bases that give you much every time and crack on the paper when you roll it up to transport. Acrylics dry quickly. So you can layer colors nicely. And they can thin colors with water that give a really beautiful layering effect.

I am happy!

Happy, Happy Birthday my beautiful boy. You are strong, creative, thoughtful, kind and generous. You are energetic, powerful, passionate and empathetic. Everything about you is a gift.

Opacity

Hi. My name's Gunther. I am Anne's oldest cat. I will be TWENTY in January. Just like Olaf, I'm not allowed in Anne's bed. But I have been a very good cat for so many years and it's time I lived a little. So here I am with my furry white ass hangin out for all to see. If you don't like it, Anne, you can kiss it.

I still love to snuggle and love to howl in the middle of the night whilst killing pens and sterling silver napkin ring holders. I leave them on the floor for Doug to step on and crush. (He wears a size 13 shoe.) Anne's napkin ring holder has been hammered back into a circle twice now. She finally gave in and threw it in a drawer.

And I love her. And she me.