Art Cards and Artful Arranging
February 28th, 2008
Above is a set of 6 art cards, each is 4"x6", that I'll be sending off to the very patient recipients of the giveaway I did back in early December in honor of my 200th post on this blog. Eeks! I'm not sure why it took so long. I wasn't sure what I wanted to give away and probably doing a giveaway right before Christmas wasn't a great idea. But, bottom line, I figured out what I wanted to do and had some fun being playful with them. I collaged the cards last month then put them under some heavy books to get them extra flat. I then got caught up prepping for some art shows and didn't take them out again until this week.
Yesterday, I looked at each piece individually and let my intuition guide me as to what to paint. In one of them, I'd already used a part of a print of a painting and then I collaged some definitions (for the words light and guide) on top of that. So I didn't do much to that one except to embellish it with paint and some sparkly bits. I rarely add sparkly doo-dads to my art, but since I was experimenting I took out a little box of sparkly goodies I got in a swap last year and played with adding three dimensional items to each piece. In the peacock one, I added sparkly sequins to its tail; in the all red one, I added a piece of an old watch; to the dancing figure, I added a sparkly flower to the end of her necklace; and to the pale girl, I added a small metal piece that says "Artist" on it to complete the sentence "You Are An Artist." These were so much fun to do! I finished them up today and they're drying now and I'll send them off to their owners soon.
It's good to play. Everyone needs more play in their life. For the base of these cards I used old postcards. They're wonderfully sturdy and make a great (and free) base for collaging or painting. You could put gesso on the cards and paint or draw onto it or collage over the whole surface. You could make your own art flashcards with reminders to do things like: Play!, Be Creative Every Day, or "What are You going to do with Your one Wild and Precious Life?"
I've been expressing my creativity by moving art around the house the past couple days. I put a lot of it up at a local coffee house on Monday, which meant that I had some empty space on my own walls and so I shifted things around. I had put a couple pieces up on the wall in my studio and noticed that I had a bird theme going, so with a combination of my art and art of others I made a great little arrangement. I'm totally digging it!
The top piece is my painting, Flying South and below that from left to right is an adorable painting from Amy Ruppel, a gorgeous teacup painting (the teacup has two birds on it) from my dear friend Jessie, and another of my paintings, The Key to These Roots. It can be wonderfully inspiring to switch things up now and again. Changing the color of your bed sheets, putting fresh flowers around the house, changing the arrangement of family photos on the wall, re-arranging your furniture, changing the items on display on your mantle, or putting a bunch of bright oranges in a blue bowl out on the kitchen counter are all small ways to create inspiring sparks. Finding everyday ways to bring creativity into your life is a beautiful thing. Happy creating!
15 Responses
stunning cards.
Posted by: tessa | Feb 28, 2008 at 10:18 pm |
sweet cards!
Posted by: kelly | Feb 28, 2008 at 10:22 pm |
What absolutely fabulous work your play is!
And I love your Flying South picture too – it has a great sense of direction in it.
Like you, I’ve been wondering about changes to this place recently – and the best thing is that after a very long time looking we’ve finally found a comfortable settee – which will be a great focus for reorganising around… And it really is time I put some of my own pictures up on the walls… I really don’t know why I have so few visible… thanks for the encouragement in this post!
Posted by: Caroline | Feb 29, 2008 at 3:23 am |
Perfectly fabulous. I love the artcards and really like your art arrangement. Smashing I say, completely smashing!
You’re a peach. Can’t wait to see you.
Posted by: tammigirl | Feb 29, 2008 at 7:41 am |
I’m sure anyone would be willing to wait for some of your fantastic art! Those postcards are gorgeous!
Posted by: Janet | Feb 29, 2008 at 9:34 am |
Play is fantastic! I am with you there! These cards are also wonderful…I Love the compositions and colors. I hope you are feeling better, if not you are fooling us. Have a beautiful and creative weekend.
Posted by: Kim | Feb 29, 2008 at 9:36 am |
This is a very inspiring post. I too have been thinking about hanging art in the house. Mostly mine!
Posted by: becky aka theRAV | Feb 29, 2008 at 10:05 am |
Oh, I really really like these art cards!
Have a God Blessed Creative Healthy Year!!!
Posted by: Flassie | Feb 29, 2008 at 1:46 pm |
The cards are wonderful. Really really wonderful. I want to be independently wealthy so I can buy everything you make. sigh.
Posted by: Tammy Vitale | Feb 29, 2008 at 2:43 pm |
Leah, you’ve been super busy! These art cards are lovely. And the idea to paint inspiring messages on old postcards is truly kewl. I’m so happy you’re showing your work every chance you get, your talent is a gift to all of us. Thank you! *hugs*
Posted by: Sare-Bear | Feb 29, 2008 at 3:00 pm |
I love your art cards and the idea of sending them to people in honor of your 200th post. The painting Flying South is just beautiful. Wow!
Posted by: Marcella | Feb 29, 2008 at 6:54 pm |
I love your art cards and the idea of sending them to people in honor of your 200th post. The painting Flying South is just beautiful. Wow!
Posted by: Marcella Paliekara | Feb 29, 2008 at 6:55 pm |
I love your art cards and the idea of sending them to people in honor of your 200th post. The painting Flying South is just beautiful. Wow!
Posted by: Marcella Paliekara | Feb 29, 2008 at 6:55 pm |
Sorry about the double post. It was a little mistake. I wonder if the art cards are cards like greeting cards or cards like postcards? What are they made on? Do you mount them on anything? Well, I guess it is obvious that I don’t know much about them , so any information you would like to share would be great. Thanks for sharing your beautiful art.
Posted by: Marcella Paliekara | Mar 1, 2008 at 8:59 am |
I emailed Marcella this answer, but I thought I’d share it here too in case anyone else was curious.
No problem about the double post, Marcella. That happens sometimes!
For the art cards, I used old postcards (from an art gallery I showed art at a long time ago). They’re made from a stiff, shiny paper and make a good surface for collaging on. I collaged directly onto the postcards to make those pieces and then painted on top of the collage. In the past, I’ve matted and framed small collages like this or mounted them onto a greeting card. But in this case they aren’t mounted onto anything. I hope that helps! I’d be happy to answer any other questions you have.
Posted by: leah | Mar 2, 2008 at 12:07 pm |