2nd Place

The reception for Summer on the Summit at Arts Alive was an enjoyable evening. This wall piece, Aerial Roots, won 2nd place - hooray! It was intended to be hung on nails on a wall. Fortunately, s-hooks on a mesh screen work as well, although the top really rotates forward without the wall support.



Study in Textiles I & II.

Helpful people and forward momentum

I've been working on tumblers and plates for Magical Scraps, a fabulous Boutique & Studio on Main Street in Breckenridge. These pieces are a joy to make, since they involve stamps and lively colors. Unfortunately, I haven't stepped foot in my studio today. I'm working on administrative details instead: my logo and website.

James at Summit Creations turned my Sharpie logo drawing into the real thing when I opened Wild Iris Studio & Gallery (I'm proud to be listed as a client at summitcreations.com). Now we need to alter it to Wild Iris Productions LLC and make new business cards. I love imagining designs and playing with fonts and colors! My best friend Eric experiments with ideas and layouts on Photoshop. I don't know what I'd do without his encouragement, or without James for the professional end product.

I'm working with my longtime friend Nate Zander at Mountain Porcupine Design for my website. We finished a design for the gallery, but were only halfway through the legwork when I decided to close up shop, and now it's a relief to alter the format for what I want to do now, rather than starting from scratch again. I've sent off some ideas to Nate, and I hope the site will be ready to launch before September. Details to follow.

Finally, I emailed my friend Syma some photos I took of her work while she was a guest artist in the Arts District of Breckenridge. (See her blog for mountain photos of the Arts District.) She will have some of her works on display at Teal Gallery in late August, which means she'll come back for a visit! I find her enthusiasm inspiring, and it reminds me that I'm an optimist as well, when I forget.

I have a small Bottomless Vessel to Hold Change that she made last spring during another residency in Breckenridge. It is soothing to me, a gentle reminder to laugh off frustration about life in flux; if I know change is constant and inevitable, don't I see it coming? Don't I expect it to happen again?

A year ago, Piers and I were working hard on the gallery. It is remarkable how far we've come since then. The helpful and supportive people we have encountered along the way have helped transform our life. We work just as hard as we did then, but are becoming more peaceful and calm. Thanks to all who read this blog - and stay with us for exciting things to come!

Summer is here at last!

The weather through mid-June had been rainy and cool: gorgeous mist but not good for bare arms. Even last night, watching fireworks, I wore a sweater and Piers wore his winter coat! Finally, though, the days are becoming sunny and warmer. I love lazy summertime naps outside! A week ago, Piers and I visited Salida for the annual Art Walk and enjoyed the hot, hot weather - now I want more! We toured several lovely galleries, and I have some inspiration for new pieces. It was nice to get away from some of Breckenridge's "tourist shots" - saleable landscape/wildflower scenes. Don't misunderstand me, I love the gorgeous landscape here; it's the countless paintings and photographs depicting classic mining and mountain scenes that lose my attention.

Yesterday afternoon, Piers and I drove to his favorite fishing spot a mile or so down the road. I worked on a new clay piece, sitting on my sweatshirt by the stream - how I love the sound of rushing water - while Piers wandered along the shore hoping for a bite. His hook has no barbs, so he immediately releases the fish. If the fish looks like it's hurt, he brings it home and pan fries it for a tasty snack!


This photo is from last weekend, at Meet the Artists - open to artists in the Summit County Arts Council. I was present on sunny Saturday, but Sunday brought an afternoon flat tire, and I changed plans.

This week I hung a wall piece in a small juried show at Arts Alive in Breckenridge. The opening is Saturday, July 11. I posted photos of the wall piece ("Aerial Shoots") in an April post. You'll see it as greenware - next week I'll post photos of the finished work. I'm also showing two button pieces that I like a lot.

I've been pursuing two directions in my hand-built pit fired pieces: one is inspired by plants, and the other by textiles (with buttons). I started my first button piece in the beginning of 2008, and Piers constructed a handle and a base for it sometime this past winter. (Maybe that's why I like Holly Stein's jewelry so much - she uses vintage and antique buttons!) I'll post pictures of both styles as I complete the pieces.