clarity

The title of this piece is Clarity, something I'm lacking at the moment. It is painted on a wood panel and has loads of depth, almost luminescent. This is a piece I just stare at, waiting for it to tell me what to do, I need to be told the next step, but even though the silence is deafening, I'm studying what clarity looks like so I'll know it when I see it.

cool event!

Performances by:Steve Brown - National Yo-Yo Master

Mark Hayward - Letterman Guest and World Juggling Champion

Aaron Bonk - Jack of all Trades, Smooth Operator

Only $2, and that gets you into the Ballroom for the Happy Hour Heroes,

and the Tavern to see Cobra Verde, The Dreadful Yawns, and The Twilight!

Beachland Ballroom & Tavern - Cleveland, Ohio 216-383-1124

moved...again...

this is a definite theme in my life, moving, moving back, moving forward, packing, unpacking, sorting, resorting, losing things, tossing things, starting over.

i like to move it move it, she likes to move it move it, we like to move it move it...okay, i'll stop.

Seriously I blogged about moving my studio over to waterloo, was very excited, took pictures, set up shop, took friends on little tours, enjoyed the freedom and space...and yet...i moved again. A part of me was sad at first, a little frustrated about the wasted time.....but last night, after the Indians game, i was able to wander into the former studio/living room/new studio and paint in my jammies. It was nice.

i'm even painting differently now, not quite as creepy, the scaries in my life have gone back into hiding and i'm able to use brighter colors and let the sillies out to play. My newest canvas has lovely piranhas with big sharp fangs swimming about....hmmm, okay, still a little creepy, but in a happy to be alive sort of way.

no pictures of this studio space, the furniture is all askew and the easel and tables are plopped dead center in front of the picture window, drafting table takes up a nice corner and the boxes are an abstract art form in themselves. whew, back to normal. Some people have pretty living rooms, white carpeting, beautifully upolstered furniture, lovely knickedy knacks... we have something in common, living rooms that can't be lived in...enter at your own risk!

SHOPAROONI !!!!

Shoparooni has a few words to share about itself......."I'm a store. A pretty rad store, opening October 19th, 2007 in Cleveland, Ohio. I'll be in the Waterloo area, just a few doors down from the Beachland Ballroom and Music Saves! Inside me you'll find a delightful assortment of shoes, handbags, accessories, clothing, stationary, trinkets, jewelry, baubles, knick-knacks, and more sass than you can shake a stick at! Store opening will be October 19th, so keep an eye on us! Grand Opening Party will be just down the street at the Beachland Tavern on November 18th...doors at 7 pm! We'll have all kinds of badass entertainment, giveaways, and you can ask my owners all the questions you want! Or just buy them a drink. They'd like that. Marlee likes Vodka & Tonic, and Steve likes Pabst Blue Ribbon. Odd couple, I know, but they've done right by me so far so I'm not complaining. ;) "

( this taken from their myspace page, check em out, pictures of some of their very awesome merchandise is posted as well) http://www.myspace.com/shoparooni
I'm not much of a shopper, avoid malls and most stores....but this one has my attention and I'm strangely excited about throwing some money at Shoparooni!

Autumn Awakening Art Show

Autumn Awakening Art Show....Friday, September 28th from 7-9 pm
Saturday, September 29th from 11-7 pm....with an
party afterwards in the Sculpture Garden, we've hired a band, "Miles Beyond" and I, for one, am looking forward to chilling out in the garden after all the hoopla!

There is a certain sort of insanity that is required for putting on art shows, there are no guarantees anyone will show, will like what they see, will have the disposable income to support our habit....I like the whole process though, something new to look forward to, like extra holidays, extra birthdays, an excuse to get together with friends and strangers.
It really does feel like an extra holiday, with no rules to break, or customs to trample with my irreverent sense of fun.

Getting ready for this show is a little tougher than the last, the space is a whole lot messier to get ready ( the building is under construction still) and a lot of my pieces need to be finished...( just finished Sparx and sold some...)
No complaints though, I love holidays! Autumn Awakening..come celebrate with me!

Sparx in the City

Ohio's Largest Art Walk!




September 15 - 16, 2007
Saturday, 11am - 7 pm and Sunday 12pm - 5 pm

The weekend of September 15-16 marks the fifth annual Sparx Gallery Hop where the work of more than 500 artists will be accessible to the public from inside galleries, studios, major festivals, and art institutions. It's considered Ohio's largest art walk because of it's geographic size and large number of featured venues across the City Center, Tremont, Superior Corridor, University Circle and Little Italy neighborhoods.



I have an area inside the Galleria for my work and that of Jerry Schmidt's the sculpture artist.
Stop in, say hi, this is going be a huge event, lots to see and do in Cleveland!



Here is the link for more info on Sparx in the City

http://www.cleveland.com/sparx/

My fine art america site and Jerry's fine art america site

http://www.fineartamerica.com/profiles/shannon-marie.html

http://www.fineartamerica.com/profiles/jerry-schmidt.html

Autumn Awakening Art Show

Art Show at the studio, corner of East 160th and Waterloo,

Cleveland, Ohio
September 28th and September 29th
Friday 7-9 Saturday 11-7 with an event in the sculpture garden following

featuring the work of area artists
Jerry Schmidt, metal sculpturer
Tyler Schmidt, metal sculptuer
Rita DiCello, fine artist, abstracts

Leslie Cohen Jeffries, fine artist, abstracts
Meat, contemporary artist
Ray, realistic artist
and ME, Shannon Marie....mulitmedia artist

The Sculpture Garden will also be open all weekend
check out the sculptures, enjoy the zen garden and relax in our little oasis!

moved

My new studio space!
I spent the last week moving all my stuff, once again, but now it's decidedly more permanent....at least for this month. :) All that room and what do I instinctively do? push everything to the walls....it took a moment to realize how unnecessary this was, so I spread out and used the eaves for shelves and the hooks on the walls to hang frames...next I'll start hanging some art.
This building is currently being remodeled, to be turned into some really neat apartments, 3 story, two bedrooms, with a working studio space downstairs...I love what they are doing to this building.
My studio is fairly immune from all this, I'm in the back attic space, I don't need much to work, lights, music, action!

studio...moved again

Changes, everything changes, all the time....crashing waves describe my life the best. My studio has been moved, again. I no longer have my spacious, four walled, actual room to myself. Now I am in the garage, one wall, that's it. This could be frustrating, but seeing as though I tend to go with the flow, regardless of how far those flowing waves decide to throw me, I'm okay with this move. In fact, as I was painting today in my new space, I realized a definite perk. Instead of having four walls, I now have one that opens wide to the outdoors. I suspect many brain cells will be saved due to this move.

My lastest project involves quite a bit of mess too....the close proximity to the utility tub is going to helpful, although nothing is really that far away in my little house, I won't be tempted to just wash up in the kitchen sink, just this once, anymore. ( then spend far too long cleaning the stains out of it!)

Plus I can easily move my paintings, easels and table along to the car for shows, and won't have to even leave the studio to shellac...just push a button and open the door. How convienent.

There is a pollyanna lurking inside of me, she's good to have around on occasions such as this.

after parties

Come up to 'Enter', the enchanted garden art show and stick around for all the festivities in the streets...there will be plenty for the kids to do and see as well as fun for the grown-ups during and after......

Fun for the Grown-ups at the Waterloo Arts Fest

Saturday July 28th

Rock n' Roll Flea Market 11-4 vendors selling vinyl, clothing, collectibles, etc.
Agape Stage Sculpture Garden, Pad and Second Saturday Coffee House, an eclectic lineup of performance art, dance and music throughout the day

Music
Main Stage * Waterloo and E. 156
3pm Passport project global dance and music collective
4pm Mifune ( afro beat/drum and bass/pop)
5pm Hayshaker Jones ( country /roots music/americana)
6pm Living Stereo ( garage rock/punk)

Bloggapalooza * Beachland Tavern 12-7pm $5
Meet the Bloggers and enjoy a full day of live music. More info at http://www.bloggapalloza.net/

AFTER PARTIES.......7pm till........

Cafe Marika full bar and menu and DJ Vitruvius from lethargic records
Beachland Ballroom and Tavern The Numbers Band and the Smokiing Popes
Music Saves ice cream social
Agape Cafe family movies, refreshments
Sculpture Garden, poetry, live music, refreshments
Guerilla Alternative Film Fest projected on sound wall , starts at 9pm

Enter, the enchanted garden art show runs from
11-7 Saturday and 12-5 on Sunday July 28th and 29th.

look ma, i made it myself! I am just about as giddy as a 7 year old bringing home her first art project from school. This is my latest welding project, the disks start out grungy and gross and they get sanded down and then fixed together with the....welder....fun! It's a candle holder, the small disks are level and get a tea light candle a piece. It's heavy, quite sturdy and simply beautiful when lit....i'll take a pic later.
Jerry Schmidt, the metal sculpturer, is teaching me the ropes and letting me play in his studio....thanks!
He said he was impressed by my lack of fear....interesting.....it wasn't until he told me some horror stories that I realized what exactly I should fear...stupidity can take you quite far.
ENTER...the enchanted garden art show is a couple weeks away, I have projects from one end of my studio to the next to finish up...and what am I doing with my spare time....learning to weld. ? Ah, well, who knows where this winding road called my art career will lead me to next!

FYI.....I have a real website for my business now...http://imagine-studios.org/ typing that makes me smile! It's still a little rough and needs some tweaking, but it's up, come see.

and now back to our regularly scheduled programing...

Rock, paper, scissors....this is a very common theme to my paintings. Not sure what my obsession is with this game, people seem to like them, they sell quickly....so i keep on making them. just like the obnoxious little kid who keeps snorting... cuz everyone is laughing......stop encouraging this behavior.....well, i don't really mean that...go on laugh, snort, play rock, paper, scissors all the day long.....

this blog took a detour....a little side vacation into melancholy land....it's back. Back to the art, the writing, the poetry....the secrets about secrets......imagine studios....

class pic

a few of my writing buddies...incredibly talented, fun to hang out with, and the source of my income. :)

love these guys!

broke out

I gave fair warning that my life changes rapid fire, and bam, it's all different again. I broke out of the cubicle life...feel a little like Paris Hilton, I'M FREE! I did my time, served my sentence, gave it a shot...knowing full well I didn't belong. What got into me, thinking I could go to work everyday in clean pressed clothes, with clean hands and no opportunity to sit on the floor or sing out of tune to music too loud. Yeah, what was I thinking?

Just like school, I looked forward to recess, and watched a clock and schemed how to make it through intensly boring meetings...pinching my arm to keep awake, pounding too much caffeine, doodling on the legal pads.

I took this job to please someone in my life, wrong reason.

Here's a little truth, I love having 15 plus different projects spinning around me at once, i love the crazy life of meeting deadlines and jumping through hoops and making a mess into something interesting. So....I took not one, but two new jobs, just cuz they sound really fun.
I am now a Mad Scientist....my job is to go into schools and get kids jazzed up on science, by doing wild hands on experiments with them. Workshops, birthday parties, summer camp, after school science clubs. Slime, dry ice, mud, magnets, rockets....cool, very cool.

And, i also started waitressing at the Improv in the flats last night. It's insanely fast paced and pitch black in there, but fun and i get to see some cool acts.

I also took on a couple 'out of my league' art projects with unrealistic deadlines, to stress out about and stay up too late trying to figure out how i'll ever pull this off....

To top it all off I still have my regular job of teaching creative writing and poetry, painting and getting ready for art shows and pushing my creations onto the general public.....

..... my life is back to normal, and i love every second of it.

Enter the Enchanted Garden, an article for the Jewish News

ENTER THE ENCHANTED SCULPTURE GARDEN

By Leslie Cohen Jeffreys

Inside a wall of honeysuckle, at the corner of 160th and Waterloo, you will find a secret sculpture garden, an enchanted setting for an upcoming art show. This magical place is the home of a pink elephant abstracted in steel, and a variety of welded steel geometric or organic forms. Some intensely colored, others in grey and black, rest beneath sloping trees. Jerry Schmidt is the creator of the metal sculptures and the designer of the garden. An iron worker by trade, Jerry Schmidt had a built-in mentor, his father, Fred Schmidt. The legacy to manipulate steel into elegant, sweeping sculptures, which his father passed down to him, the younger Schmidt is now teaching his own son, Tyler Schmidt. See Jerry Schmidt’s work at http://schmidtsculpture.com/.

Enter "The Enchanted Sculpture Garden" for a gateway to a multi-media experience. In addition to the metal sculptures of Jerry and Tyler Schmidt, the intriguing work of several local artists will be featured.

Rita DiCello will be showing her beautiful, abstracted flower paintings for the first time. Rita DiCello spent her youth on the outskirts of Rome, Italy, where she soaked up her heritage of the great masters by osmosis. Visiting Florence and adoring the work of Michaelangelo, she later received her BA in Art History and MA in Italian Baroque Art. Besides her love for painting, she is also an art appraiser. Her young daughter, Maria DiCello, helps her choose her colors in the studio. Mother and daughter will show their paintings together. View Rita DiCello’s work at http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/rita-dicello.html.

Through his travels, self-taught photographer, Chris Dixon captures breathtaking moments of natural beauty. A mechanical designer by trade, Chris Dixon uses EOS Series cameras, both digital and analog, to savor a precious point in time and reflect upon it. The fluttering of a butterfly’s wings, an insect crawling on a sunflower, a row of thick clouds framing the backdrop to a mountain range are transformed into art by the artist’s eye and his camera. With an artistic mother, Chris Dixon was inspired in his youth to choose a creative path. Chris Dixon’s photographs urge us to cultivate our sense of wonder about life. Enjoy Chris Dixon’s website at
http://jinker42.deviantart.com/.

Russian-born Alice Kiderman is a Cleveland sculptor, who has an MA in linguistics. She has received many awards in juried shows for her stone and bronze sculptures. Her exquisite forms have a variety of hues and textures, depending on the material used. Often she uses soapstone, sandstone, Portuguese pink marble or Carrara marble. The colors of the stone flow with the form. The bronzes often appear to have an exotic green patina. Alice Kiderman studied sculpture with Bruce Bilek, raku with Sarah Clague, and stone carving with Lothar Jobczyk. The sculptor’s goal is to express her deepest emotions in her work. Visit Alice Kiderman’s website at http://sculpturedimension.com/.

Sylvie a full time professional artist, has the soul of a poet. She teaches creative writing and poetry to small children and the elderly. The bare essentials of a tree, which Sylvie believes reflect the human essence, are a major theme in her paintings. Passionate Pursuits is her line of dance, yoga, and running related whimsical paintings. She celebrates the deep meaning behind fairy tales by creating altered art, magic wands, shrines, and jewelry about them. This multi-talented artist pushes her ideas about trees into three dimensional wire sculpture paintings. Sylvie's enchanting work can be seen at http://secretsaboutsecrets.blogspot.com/

Leslie Cohen Jeffreys was inspired by her mother, Shirley Skloff Shapiro, a portrait painter, who introduced her to modern art. Living by the ocean in the U.S. and France caused the artist to flow, pool, and glaze her abstract paintings, to offer a connection to beauty, healing, and harmony. It was a joy for her to study painting at the Cleveland Institute of Art, BFA, and Kent State University, MFA. Because of her fascination with color, she became a Master Teacher in The Michael Wilcox School of Color. Her themes include the Hebrew alphabet, womanhood, and nature. Currently, she is teaching painting at Ursuline College. The work of Leslie Cohen Jeffreys can be viewed at http://www.fineartamerica.com/profiles/leslie-cohen-jeffreys.html

Enter The Enchanted Garden promises to be a fascinating variety of local creativity. Saturday, 7/28/07, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., and Sunday, 7/29/07, 11a.m.-5 p.m. Corner of 160th and Waterloo.

( this article will be appearing in The Jewish News...Thank You Leslie! )

Shine

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small doesn't serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

~Marianne Williamson

In memory of David Lytle, who never played small.
He pulled me out of the shadows with his bright light and made believe in myself.
Thank you Dave. You are my north star.

This quote was spoken at his funeral by Brian Jupina, it perfectly sums up the mandate I feel Dave left us all....shine.

Super Dave

Super Dave is gone, and he will be deeply missed.
David died suddenly Saturday night.
I wouldn't be where I am today if he didn't see me when I was invisible,

he pulled me out of the shadows

and pushed me into the light.
He connected so many of us

and the connections go on and on....

thank you David, I love you.

Enter Blog

There's a new blog in town, http://secretsculpturegarden.blogspot.com/
it highlights each of the artists involved in the Enter show July 27th through the 29th
( a few more to be added shortly )
stop by, check out, get a tiny taste of what's in store for the show!

ENTER

Enter

the enchanted secret sculpture garden

July 28th and 29th

at the corner of 160th and Waterloo

featuring the intriguing artwork of;

Rita DiCello, paintings
Maria DiCello, paintings
Chris Dixon, photography
Alice Kiderman, stone sculpture
Leslie Jeffreys, paintings
Shannon Marie, 3D paintings
Jerry Schmidt, metal sculpture
Tyler Schmidt, metal sculpture

the flier is still in the works, hidden away in my computer for now, as soon as it's done and all of us agree, I'll post the real deal. But for NOW, mark this date in your calendar, tell all your friends, put a sticky note on your mirror, scribble it out and hang it on the fridge...this is a going to be a great event, guaranteed. See, it's in writing, but it'll only be great...IF you attend!

Okay, now I have to go back to watching the Cavs game!

Today is a good day to do happy art, all of Cleveland seems to be sporting smiles...happy Clevelanders, that's something to write home about. There's so much anticipation in the air, so much energy and good wishes going on..."rise up" they shout to each other in the streets. So many people of all different stripes wearing the same t-shirts, speaking the same language...basketball. There's nothing 'basketball' about this piece, I know that, you know that....but the swirls and the flowers, the clear colors...good energy, just like I feel walking down East 9th.....

I'm working full time now, in an office. The BBB, right across from Jacobs field. Never before worked in an office, have very little marketable skills and honestly am quite shocked to have been offered this job. But absolutely love being downtown at such a time is this, it's exciting and with a whole hour of free time to explore the city...I can't complain. ( I have though, and to all of you that had to hear my whiney whines, I do apologize, jobs are few and far between around here it seems and this is a good one, so I have to admit how very blessed I am)

Regardless of the outcome of this series, and regardless of how long I stay at this job, for the moment, well, I am really enjoying the moment, each and every one. Life is short, let your soul swing.

Go FIsh

Publishing another weird piece of poetry that I wrote last year.

"......I've accepted your "Go Fish" piece for the summer issue....." ~Debris Magazine

this is fun.


Go Fish

when the prayer to be rescued is answered by a hook and a lacerated cheek
when the grand escape is nothing more than a suicide stunt for all to see
when you look down and declare yourself 'too small' and jump back into the poisoned pond
when being fillet, sauteed and even chowder sounds like a viable option
when the fish story .... is your story
the fishy is mired in the muck
not well
the cesspool has distorted her vision
played havoc with her hearing
corroded her looks
and yet the dreams are not disabled
the visions clear
she harbors a secret......
.......once it grows.....
she'll never be thrown back again.

If you can't stand up, STAND OUT

Little story ....my friend Dave, a quadrapalegic coined the phrase...


If You Can't Stand Up...STAND OUT...


....and lives it everyday. He was injured in a car accident in his early 20's. After a brief transitional period, transformed into the amazing dynamic man he is now.


Dave works a full time job, has skiied in British Columbia, sky dived, parasailed, kayaked, traveled to Europe and all over the U.S. He has been on the Today Show and raised money for charity, not spinal cord injury mind you, but Lupus. The essay he wrote got the attention of the Today Show and and the National Lupus Foundation and he was able to direct peoples hearts and checks to this cause.
http://www.lupus.org/webmodules/articles/anmviewer.asp?a=366&z=14

Last year Metro asked him to be the key note speaker at a spinal cord event, he's an incredible communicator and touched lives that day..as always. He has such a calm encouraging demeanor, it touches everyone he meets. Friends, friends of friends from years ago, waitresses, business owners, hospital staff and the easy way he connects, networks and intertwines us all.

I started selling these t-shirts and hats with his phrase on them at my shop http://cafepress.com/imaginestudios with the intent for the proceeds to go toward the care and feeding of his van, his source of freedom. The van is currently running on prayer alone and needs some help.


Sooooo....If you know of anyone in a wheelchair who could use a little encouragement to BE who they were meant to be...or know of any organization that may be interested in carrying these items please direct them my way.


Thanks so much!

Big Party. June 2nd Downtown. Be there.

JUNE ART REVIEW The “JAR”
1301 E. 9th St., Cleveland, OH 44114 216-771-0900

A.R.T. Home We’re Blowing the Lid Off the Art and Talent of Greater Cleveland!

June 2nd-17th, 2007Over 17,000 Square Feet to Showcase the Wealth of Art in Our Area

In the Galleria at Erieview

Best of Show Prize

My piece "treasures in darkness" is a contender. It's a 3D collaged piece, wood, paper, wire, rocks, paint, a key.....loads of symbolism and words.....a tad dark, dare i say creepy, but I'm happy with it.

Got my tickets in the mail last week.....MY ticket is number 127......that's MY number, my email address, the crazy number I use for everything, so in my twisted thinking it's my golden ticket from the wonka bar. A coincidence, I think not.

Come out and vote for me....$15, gets you in to the event, live bands, food, a couple drink tickets and the chance to check out some interesting art and the interesting people who created them.

cleveland email list

Ah, yes, spread the word, thanks for the reminder...
I joined this cool blog group...stop over, check em out. It's new and i'm not sure what to do there yet, not to worry though, I write constantly. There are fitness tips, and things for sale and in general what's happening in the Cleveland area info. (i'll figure out my niche soon and get busy too)

http://clevelandemaillist.blogspot.com/

Pay Attention

Opened my email this morning to this happy surprise.......

Congratulations!

Your piece "Pay Attention" has been accepted for publication in the Summer 2007 premiere issue of {32klx}, Central Ohio's newest independent literary journal.
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask! Thank you for your submission, and for participating in our exciting premiere issue!

Sincerely,
the Editors

It's a little something I wrote months ago, and included in my submission at the last second...

pay attention

Love the calm before a storm, the eerie silence, heavy air, the smell, the quickly shifting clouds, darkening sky....I stand out on the porch to see it roll in, and stay there as long as possible. I can hear the thunder, watch the clouds form, see the weird green haze, uncertainty is palpable, and i'm standing still, waiting. I can already see the lightening and it's headed straight for me, this one isn't blowing over.
Change set up camp, started little fires and never bothered to put them out. This storm should douse the embers once and for all. Maybe I should do something, batten down the hatches....whatever that means, move to safety, put the lawn chairs away at least.....no, I'll just wait. Things are set to blow about and I'm going to let them.
Curious, but detached. Normally I navigate this life with my feelings, a person turned inside out. But so much depends on outside circumstances right now, it hardly matters what I want. Contingencies, if/then, limbo, everything is connected, blah, blah, blah.....
I wish I knew what I wanted to see happen but even if I knew what that was exactly, it wouldn't matter. Maybe it's better this way, I can't be disapointed if I'm just waiting. Besides, I've taken self sabatoge and turned it into an art form, like synchronized swimming. Always trying to one up karma. Good things happen and *pow* got to go and even the scales. Ought to send a memo, clue myself in to this stupidity .....no, who reads memos anyway.

reposting this as a reminder....my favorite local band is playing FRIDAY night in Medina, (my original stomping ground)

Skinny Moo, check them out here.....http://www.skinnymoo.com/. they have downloadable songs and all sorts of cool stuff on their site, but you have to see them in person. Check em out...and you too, can become a groupie....er, moopie!

This will be the first rally in the alley of the season, a must experience event.
Rally in the Alley -
Main Street Cafe
Date:Fri May 25, 2007
Time:7:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Where:17 Public SquareMedina, OH 44256(click for map)

The Traveling Art Carnival, BIG ART SHOW, is coming to Cleveland!
Sunday, June 10th @ Pat's in the Flats 2233 w 3rd
registration for artists to show and sell your work is free.

Art! Music! a couple local bands are still needed for the Cleveland show. For more information and registration please visit- bigartshow.com or email info@bigartshow.com

Spread the Word!

(Copying and pasting this bit of info, I don't know all that much about it....just an fyi.)

"seen one tree, seen them all..." i've heard that phrase more than i care to admit in the past couple months, after about the 4th rendition, i had to wonder....hmmm, i wondered.....are my paintings really that boring, were clevelanders really so anti-tree hugging, or could there be another explanation....thankfully, there was a 'kind man' (hmpf) who let me in on the whole rude drive-by bashing that had been happening....it's a quote, by President Reagan...ohhhhh I see.....but it's still rude. I like my trees, especially now that I'm phasing out of the canvas and deciding to salvage old pieces of solid wood from one of my many insane remodeling projects.....feel so much more wholesome, real, like everything to this point has been like fake plastic flowers vs silk, pretty well made silk vs the real deal, cut flowers vs potted, potted vs in the earth.....seedlings to the compost.....and back again.....

the actual quote, in context, is a bit less biting... http://www.snopes.com/quotes/reagan/redwoods.asp

Mayfest Berea

MAYFEST 2007 Fine Arts Show, Saturday, May 19th, 2007
10-5pm held at Coe Lake in Berea

http://bereaarts.org/coelake_map.htm ( note, the map is from last years event...ignore the date and time info!)

The almighty "they" are calling for a beautiful day tomorrow, come on out!...I believe there are nearly 40 artists exhibiting, plus food vendors ..... and it also coincides with the All Berea Garage Sale....but check us out first! : )

Skinny Moo Crew

....since we are getting personal here....my favorite local band is playing next weekend in Medina, (my original stomping ground)
Skinny Moo, check them out here.....http://www.skinnymoo.com/. they have downloadable songs and all sorts of cool stuff on their site, but you have to see them in person. Check em out...and you too, can become a groupie....er, moopie! This will be the first rally in the alley of the season, a must experience event.


Rally in the Alley - Main Street Cafe
Date:
Fri May 25, 2007
Time:
7:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Where:
17 Public SquareMedina, OH 44256(click for map)

Okay, I'm It

Valerie, i.e. art addict, tagged me to share 10 interesting and relatively unknow facts about me/ opinions of mine/ habits etc...

1....can’t sing a lick…but use that sing song voice and make up crazy songs when I’m really tired…it’s like my own personal alarm for ‘Shannon needs a nap’

2...listen to NPR or the BBC for my news…and love independent college radio stations, not just for the off the beaten track music, but for the off the beaten track DJ’s, their views, and sometimes rough presentations....um's, ah's, just a sec's...

3...fancy, expensive, rich…does nothing for me. I’m not impressed by big bank accounts, jewelry shop jewelry, fancy cars, big houses, designer clothes or purses, *shrug*, I like simple, unique, handmade, interesting, things with a story….

4...I love soccer…but hate being called a soccer mom, won’t wear a “I love soccer” t-shirt, or any of the stuff the incessant marketing machine generates, don't drive a mini van.…I play the game, love the cleats, the team, the competition, I watch, ( won’t coach or ref though, many of my teammates do, but I don’t like being “in charge”)

5... I’m not one to go all googly over a kitten or puppy, never feel the urge to run up to a new mom and grab her infant child, don’t speak baby talk…..not that I don’t like these creatures, I’d rather observe than entertain, I suppose.

6... Have the annoying habit of personifying everything, or coming up with a metaphor or weird simile's, connect dots that don't exist, think in spirals, circles, curly-q's…helps in my creative writing classes…social situations…not so much. ;)

7... Avoid shopping ( as my cupboards and children can attest) ….but love exploring new places, outdoor markets, stuff like that…

8... My dream home is either a floor of an old factory downtown, or an old church/school that I can remodel and open most to the public….live and work space together…..currently I live/work in a bag of wonder bread in the suburbs, not awful, not complaining, it is easier to maintain.

9... I have never balanced a checkbook, have no math sense whatsoever…yet love numbers and old clocks, attach my own significance to numbers, dates, times….won’t explain….you’re welcome.

10... I keep a magic 8 ball on my desk…sometimes will even ask it a question or two…..maybe I need more friends….unfortunately I don’t think this list will help in my quest.

and now I need to tag people...um, i don't know....hey, got an idea, if you read this, "Gotcha, your it!" go ahead and post your list in the comments...or your own blog of course.

" to know what you prefer instead of humbly saying Amen to what the world tells you you ought to prefer is to have kept your soul alive" ~Robert Louis Stevenson

"treasures in darkness" this is another 3D collaged piece..the details are hard to capture in a photograph. There are 7 'doors' with key holes in each, the wire tree is attached to the canvas board and there is a key under it, with a tiny copper plaque that says wisdom. This built itself, i had planned on going a whole other direction, but ended up tearing off and adding on, and oila, this is what i ended up with.

This painting is sitting up at the artists review today gallery, awaiting it's debut at the JAR. ( june artists review ) June 1st is the opening reception, come one, come all....live bands, food, drink, fun....all for $15 at the Galleria door.

Hey Mr. Postman....

Even with the postage rate hike..again...I'd mail a letter in R2D2.... I used to have the little robot R2D2 that walked throughout my house, beeping and spinning, a little stuffed one , and all the other action figures and whatnot...but in 'my version' of star wars, R2 always saved the day. :) love the robots.

( shot on East 9th street downtown....haven't seen them anywhere else...)

tears tears and more tears.....

this set of trees will be seen at the pop shops 2nd anniversary show May 19th, Pop, Drop and Roll. ( and available for sale )

These were painted in the height of some disastrous events last year, hence the title, 'tears, tears and more tears' I was determined not to go under, somehow trees helped put things into perspective for me. Walking through the forests, watching the trees in my yard change and painting them.

They are without leaves, without any covering....just like I felt without any covering, my raw emotions set out for the world to examine and judge. The changing colors represent emotions.... yes, Elizabeth Kubler Ross definitely knew what she was talking about.

"LOVE EXPLOSION!"

A friend sent me a picture of zen like painting he saw in his neighborhood coffee shop. A few branches with pretty paper circles glued onto to plain wood board. Thought maybe I could add something like that to my creepy trees, give them some spunk. The coffee shop painting was simple, unique, yet playful.....well, I took that idea and went a bit overboard ( yes, me, ha) cut many, many circles out of scraps of dyed paper I had in the cupboard, and plastered them over a painting that was giving me problems, it just wasn't happy enough.....now though, now it's estatic and it's exploding in love all over the place. : )

A new painting, Pure Energy, in a four panel frame. Love lightening storms and was treated to one a few days ago....this painting was born directly from that night, sitting in the garage watching the flashes.

I love this painting, it's hanging in the hall right now, looks like a window and at night, it glows just enough to make me grin.

An art looker asked yesterday if I was influenced by Edgar Allen Poe, hmm, maybe I'm leaning a bit too far in the macabre realm....

I do believe in spooks, I do believe in spooks, I do! I do! I do! I do believe in spooks, I do believe in spooks, I do! I do! I do!

"You'll believe in more than that before I'm finished with you"

Wicked witch, flying monkeys, salvaged painting.....messy fun.
With so much painting 'for' shows and 'for' events and 'for' fundraisers and school plays....it's fun to just be creative just cuz.
I saw a pic of someones studio once, she had a sign above her doorway..."No one gets in to see the wizard, not no one, not no how." I like that. My studio is perfectly trashed at the moment, my hands a pretty awful shade of greenish blue, wild wild hair, ( it felt like being curly today) and clothes that could double as painting rags....doubt if anyone would want to come see me today..with or without a warning sign.

Salvaged another piece destined for the gesso brush with an Alice in Wonderland inspired collage, still working on the details and 5 others to round out the series. I'd like to have 'background stories' to go with them. Or some odd original poetry.....again, still working out the details. Collage is fun to play with and keep the gears moving upstairs. :)

Rereading Alice in Wonderland...fell right into the story, amazingly not one of my students in any of my writing classes had EVER read or even had the story read to them! The Disney version does not count in my book. To have never heard Jaborwocky, to not have any inkling of the catepillar or the Cheshire cat.....in the 4 short weeks before class lets out for the summer, I will remedy this travesty.

Medina County Visual Artists Studio Tour

Sunday May 6th, 2007 1-4pm
The tour starts at the Grace Drake Center for the Arts
222 S.Broadway Street Medina, Ohio
tickets available at the door or from Buehler's in Medina

Participating artists at the Grace Drake Center for the Arts;

Sharon Borror ( watercolor, pen & ink )
Henry Edinger ( acrylics & mixed media )
Barbara Johns ( watercolor)
David Lowry ( photography)
Shannon Marie ( acrylics, mixed media)
Judy Totts ( Ukranian egg painting)

Participants at their open studios;

Charles Basham ( pastels, oils)
Marita Bitans ( medical illustration, photography)
Char Klimko ( acrylics)
Elaine Lamb ( ceramics )
Marge Otley ( watercolor, prima pencil)

come check it out!
FYI...the AI Root candle company is also having it's herb sale on Sunday......

a view from behind the screen, this is where i spent my week, there was a massage therapist...a garden center, a jewelry maker ( absoutely beautiful stuff), a photographer, some clothing artists and more....a fun group of people. This is really not my favorite way to spend a day, used to running around like a chicken with her head cut off, hard to supress those chicken-like urges....but I did get all the editing and grading done for my writing classes, planned out the rest of the semester, painted some, worked on a freelance job, read a little...drank coffeeeeeeeee and talked to interesting individuals. Plus, I love downtown, even love the crazy drive, it's a challenge with all the unending construction, but I can't help loving the city, flaws and all.



May 6th is the studio tour in Medina, have very pretty invitations to send out, they remind me of wedding invites. I'm excited about it, even with the whole animal in a zoo analogy I keep imagining..... ( people walking through, observing me 'at work' ) joked about liking peanuts far too many times. I'm done now. There will be 5 artist studios open to the public and 6 artists set up at the Grace Drake Center for the Arts. tickets on sale now!

inside...........outside.......

all in all a beautiful week downtown. showed at the Galleria, if you have to be inside on such a pretty day, that's the place to be. sunglasses and tank tops were a prerequisite, freckly nose is just a wee bit frecklier.

open the next door

"open the next door" The words in this collage read, 'when one door of happiness closes it's time to open the next one, but so often we spend so much time looking at the closed door we fail to see the one that has been opened for us ' it's done on a 2 inch thick gallery wrapped canvas. There is a so much truth to that statement. I'm naively walking into the unknown, opening doors and walking into situations completely unprepared. Not unprepared in the sense that I didn't try to anticipate the possibilities and prepare. I did....the best as I knew how.
The clock keeps moving forward and I need to do the same, try all the keys that I've been given and see where they take me.

Currently I'm showing my work at the Galleria downtown, it's been an interesting couple of days. Standing there in front of pieces of my soul, while people comment on this or that, or walk on by without a word. It takes a new character trait, one I haven't tried on lately, Audacity. And alot of it. This is a new door...and my feet haven't quite found level floor yet.

love the crazies

Goodbye 'I spy'. This tree is going to the Pop Shop tonight, to be donated to the Butterfly Effect benefit show. A happy accident, believe it or not this painting started out to be a very large coffee cup with swirly steam...gave up and went back to what i know.....trees, well, i do know coffee, we are very close in fact...hmmm

In the midst of the crazies right now, the few short days until a big event throws me into a beautiful state of high energy creativity....ideas hit me like wild and i'm scribbling them down, writing weird poetry, playing music too loud and loving every minute of it.

Driving home from teaching the other day an idea hit me that I can't wait to get started on.....but i have to.....there are so many last minute details to attend to. Ugh, details. details = reality = responsibilities = stress.....but i love it!

Again, check out the Pop Shop, custom framing, art gallery, very cool artists, the real deal.

The Butterfly Effect benefit show

( copied from The Pop Shop promotional material.....)

The Pop Shop Gallery is proud to present it’s first benefit show entitled The Butterfly Effect. This show in part with the Debra foundation (www.debra.org) will house many donated pieces by many up and coming artists to raise money for families dealing with epidermolysis bullosa.

The name of the show is inspired by the nickname of the disease which is known as the butterfly disease The Debra foundation is dedicated in finding a cure for Epidermolysis bullosa. Epidermolysis bullosa (EB) is a rare genetic disease characterized by the presence of extremely fragile skin and recurrent blister formation, resulting from minor mechanical friction or trauma. This condition is not contagious. An estimated 1 out of every 50,000 live births are affected with some type of EB. The disorder occurs in every racial and ethnic group throughout the world and affects both sexes equally.

This is a one night only show opening and closing on April 21st from 6-9pm. There will be many raffles, silent auctions, and great art work available to raise awareness for EB. An after party will follow this event held at Mullen’s (located next to the gallery).

Again.....
When: Saturday Apr 21, 2007 at 6:00 PM
Where: The Pop Shop
17020 Madison
Lakewood, OH 44107

magic wishing wands

The first pic is the box i make to put my little creations in, it's handpainted, embellished and lined with pretty fabric....the perfect home for my magic wishing wands.....they just make me smile. Looking at them reminds me of sitting in my tree reading fairy tales .... visiting places that understood how very important wishes are, how very important dreams are, those books knew that thoughts and feelings have incredible weight.

Alice in Wonderland, The Ugly Duckling, The Little Match Girl, The Handless Maiden, The Red Shoes.....the brothers Grimm, myths, fairy tales from other countries, fairy tales from other cultures.....they all expose the true nature of a person, the deepest part. While in our everyday everydayness we normalize the abnormal, and hide the parts of us that are wild and untamed. In a fairy tale all that is brought into the open and magically what you wish for, does come true.

There's a magic in everyday life though too....the magic of a true friendship, the magic moment when your child begins to read, the magic of fresh food from your own garden, the magic of a rainstorm, the magic of waking up and starting fresh.....

By the way, I have these up for sale on my Etsy site...the first link on your right.....

i know you

'i know you' .....this painting survived indifference, a couple of challenging moves and was threatened to be gessoed out numerous times, erased from existence. BUT....i sort of always liked it....sort of...but, 'something' was missing, there wasn't any oomph, no soul, no prescense, no purpose. Until i realized that her faults were mine too....i knew her...like the back of my hand, (like the collaged words say on the trunk.) I love meeting people you just 'know' too....when there's that comfortable, barely have to try connection between two souls.....

She got new life with a couple of birds in her branches whispering sweet nothings, some metal leaves and a whole lot of beads on the forest floor where she lives. I got new life too, added some comfortable new friends and a new direction to my work and to be honest, a whole lot of beads on my studio floor!.....we're both happy now.

hippie flowers

This is a piece from my 'hippie flower' collection.....i like the contrasting colors and their 'here i am, what you see is what you get' attitude.....it's painted on a thick gallery wrapped canvas, so it doesn't need framing, easy going, will hang out where ever......
this line is going to the garden show with me next week, along with some of the trees.....i'm taking inventory right now, things are in a serious state of disarray around the studio....the more i try to organize and get it all together...the worse it gets. Since taking over the living room, I do have more space...but no storage, that's a problem...maybe i should have taken over the kitchen, there are lots of cupboards in there.........

tree painting

Sold! This painting was called "Not Alone" and it was showing at Marie's Cafe in Medina.
The owner of this cafe has area artists hang their works for a month or so at a time ( and the best coffee in the area!)....i was more than a little nervous to drop off my oddities for display next to the pretty little still lifes and perfect watercolors....but i'm learning different isn't bad.....just different.....
baby steps, baby

This is the sort of custom piece i do....go into customers homes, measure the space they want the art for, and help decide on the color scheme.....yes, I match sofas. :) *gasp* the horror, please don't send the art police on me....

thunder, lightening, it's so exciting!

This was a hard piece to photograph...well, for me anyways...it looks much better in person. The tree is made of wire...that's lightening in the corner...it's part of the group that's going to Put in Bay May 1st. I'm excited about this series, have 17 more laying about in the studio waiting for layers or framing or whatnot....there's more lightening, crashing waves, eery tornado looking weather, a blizzard....and, lest you think I'm all doom and gloom, a sunrise, cherry trees in spring, a tree house......

My Art schedule

Here's the rundown of some current shows and events i'll be working...

April 14th i'll have a piece at the Pop Shop in Lakewood for their show, " The Butterfly Effect", it's a benefit for people who suffer from a skin condition nicknamed the butterfly disease which causes severly fragile skin. Area artists are donating works to this to raise money for research.

April 16th to the 22nd "Gardens Under Glass" at the Galleria in downtown Cleveland....this is obviously a garden show, landscapers and garden shops will be setting up their pretty displays for everyone to ooo and ahh over after a long cleveland winter.....and then they'll be me, with my barren trees...... *shrug*
The Galleria is a nice place to spend the day anyways, the roof is all glass ( hence, gardens under glass...) and i can watch the clouds move and the weather change...very nice and the people are a great mix. Last time i showed down there that was the highlight, getting to talk to so many different folks....and hearing their very different reactions.

Then sometimes near the end of April I'll have a piece auctioned during the WVIZ/PBS auction..

May 1st, I send 20 pieces off to a Put in Bay gallery.

May 6th, is the Studio Tour in Medina, I'll have a pseudo studio set up in the Grace Drake building, people will be buying tickets and going from studio to studio to watch artists at work....like animals in a zoo!
fun, I like peanuts by the way.

June 2-16th is JAR, June Artists Review, put on by Artists Review magazine, the opening reception will have live bands, food, drink, all good, I entered one piece called "Treasures in Darkness" I'll post a picture soon.

July 20th to the 21 is a New Age festival in downtown Cleveland, all my hippie flowers and yoga chicks and weird little sculpture pieces are going to that one.....

August 12th is the Affair on the Square in Medina.....only the wire trees and wired collages will be attending.

Every other friday starting May 11th, I'll also be the artist in the "Friday with the Artist" program at the Galleria.....

November 10th and 11th a christmas show at the John S. Knight center in Akron....Holiday Extravaganza

two fun new images...'hear no' and 'see no' aren't quite ready for their debut...

not my favorite in the tree series, but it photographed better than the rest....so it gets a spot on the ol blog. This wednesday i get to set up for another show...the aquarius exhibition....in accepting me into this gallery i hope they realize what they are getting, a dyed in the wool pisces, the textbook definition

mural image

this is a teeny part of a giant mural i'm getting ready to do, lots more vines and flowers, bright, bright, bright.

drink this

work in progress...
my studio space went from 20 some feet by 20 some feet to a nice cozy little 6x4 ....no problem....less space to heat, clean, and everything is within arms reach now....even the stereo..... not completely set up still....staring at a blank wall... for now.

howling wind

one of my tree paintings, this one isn't as lonely as my others, he has a couple buddies to hang with as the wind howls through their empty branches. Heavily textured background, acrylic paints mostly.