artings

Metro Elves...Santa's Helpers...a Holiday reposting.

2009-12-19T17:13:00.000-08:00

One year I painted an "Elves Shop Here" sign for the local gallery/art supply shop
MetropolitanArt, which, sadly, no longer is.
The TownPeople were not believers and challenged such a statement....
so, I took pictures.
These are my "photographs" of the actual Elves that annually came from the North
to use the gallery as their workshop.
No one said another word.

"Jeb is pleased to see Elves use white gloves...leaving no finger prints on paper."

"These elves lost their shopping list...."

"Elves love cookies."

"Mega, (studio dog)........................................is a handy mode of transportation."

"Some Elves are too short."

"After a successful shopping spree...
Elves carry the last of their supplies out to the sleigh....(parked around the corner)."

Sardine Tin #16

2009-11-29T17:12:00.000-08:00

It's smaller than the others..

I forgot to measure it...

but, will post it's size next time I come back from the studio.

After the Fall Art Tour

2009-11-02T06:26:00.000-08:00

A slow computer on a dial-up/land-line connection
has been preventing more regular posts...
but, here's a quick update:
Victoria Lansford is including my spoon efforts in her new DVD about Eastern Repousse...
I'll announce when it's available.
Mary Machare wrote a wonderful piece about her visit to my studio during the Fall Art Tour...
If you missed the Fall Art Tour................
you can still "wander" through my studio...

I did finally make a proof of the woodblock in progress....

and will be posting it soon...

along with the wood prints done so far

in Booger's 40 day and 40 Night disappearance...

and I'm ever so slowly opening up an ETSY account....

SardineTins #13, #14, #15

2009-09-20T10:21:00.001-07:00

Sardine Tin #13...6" high x 5"wide

Sardine Tin #14....4.75"high x 5" wide

Sardine Tin #15...7"long x 5" high

Art for Documentary

2009-08-15T07:09:00.000-07:00

This is my latest project:

For Dave Erickson's documentary about the Lower Wisconsin River
the Paddlefish is one of the features...
the event and documentary for which this is being done is called
Rhythm of the River...
right now, my concern is this fish.............................................................................................................

"Dave Erickson...
award winning filmmaker...
starting with his first...Raising Crane,
which he made at the International
Crane Foundation
has won several national awards...
(you've probably seen it.. it's about the saving of the Sandhill Cranes...
it's a very cool...very wonderful film)
Dave has produced 40-50 films since...
Many of his films are funded by the Wisconsin Arts Board and the Wisconsin Humanities Council.
"He's excited about he $10,000 Humanities grant he's received for his current river project.

"It's my seed money."
He's trying to raise $30,000 more from corporations, businesses and private donations.
The Humanities Grant is from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).
He's partnering with Wisconsin Public TV.
His films are picked up for airing all over the United States on public TV networks. "

Paoli Artisan Gallery Art Show

2009-07-19T05:10:00.000-07:00

These were my auction offerings....
Sardine Tins #14, #11, and #10...
they have been sold.

SardineTin#14...sardine tin, copper, hand forged copper

SardineTin#11...(the Fishermen and the Serra), sardine tin, copper, leather, a little paint.

SardineTin #10....sardine tin, copper, aluminum

a Juried show,
"Featuring Art made with Found Objects, Construction Materials, or otherwise Re-Used Things"....

This is a month long silent auction...
bidding will happen throughout the month in the gallery, or on line...
at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore Website.

watercolor #2

2009-06-18T18:49:00.001-07:00

It might be done...
needs flattening...
but, I photographed it anyway.

Wedding Procession 22"X30"

Drawing for watercolor #1...

WakeMaker...(drawing)...7.5"X8"

chased/repoussed copper spoon #3

2009-06-09T20:04:00.000-07:00

I forgot to get its measurements...

I think no more than 5.75" long...

I'll get exacts and post them later on...

I'll tell it's story later...

right now I'm just wanting to get it up to keep going with a conversation.

more later..

Copper Spoon

2009-06-01T06:34:00.000-07:00

I have made a functional item!

~My First Spoon~

chased/repoussed copper,5.75"long spoon on wall hook

The Fibulas

2009-05-29T19:18:00.000-07:00

You can see all 8 of the pieces that were in the Mercury show:
Fibulas at the Mercury!

Quadrupedal 2009, Bike through S.W.Wisconsin

2009-04-27T05:33:00.000-07:00

Here's information about the 2009 ICHS QuadruPedal Spring Century...
an excellent charity bike ride through the hills of SW Wisconsin...
35-100 miles...routes climbing from between 1500-9000 feet.
All proceeds from this ride benefit the animals at the Iowa County Humane Society.

................and the Quadrupedal t-shirt has CATS!

I wired up a couple pins..........
(cat on left: 4.5"high by 3.75" wide, copper and other wire, aluminum flashing, etching ink and archival varnish........ SOLD
cat on right: 5.25"wide by 4" high, glass eyes, copper and other wire, aluminum flashing, etching ink, archival varnish...SOLD.
The handmade velvet wall support is about 2.5" thick, and each with hook...SOLD)

Watercolor #1

2009-04-23T15:14:00.001-07:00

It's done...

(WakeMaker...22"x30" on TwinRocker Handmade Paper )

watercolor, chasing/repousse in progress

2009-04-11T10:18:00.001-07:00

Haven't posted in a long time...
this is some of what I've been up to.

(22"x30" watercolor...WakeMaker)

There'll be better photos when they are completed.

(various incompleted small poundings)

I never looked at a watercolor with the poundings like this....they feel good together...guess it does make sense...same mind....same world...so these must be some of the remnants of the world I'm always arting...like an historian collecting things from the places he goes to document.

Fibulas...at the Mercury! Madison, Wisconsin

2009-03-14T08:25:00.000-07:00

Here are the Fibulas I brought to the Mercury show...

in the order I made them:

copper wire, sardine tins

Copper wire, aluminum flashingcopper wire, eyes, coke can copper wire, eyes
unknown wire, copper, eyes

steel wire, copper, eyes

steel wire, copper wire, glass eye, some kind of jaw with teeth
copper, chased/repoussed aluminum flashing, printing ink, glass eyes

Convent Gallery Show Gang is Back!! - by L. Kelen

2009-03-10T19:12:00.001-07:00

absolutearts.com Portfolio

WATCH YOUR HEAD! a silly little art show

One Night Only....
MARCH 14th, 2009 6-9PM

The Mercury Cafe & Lounge
117 E. Mifflin Street
Madison, Wisconsin

featuring works by:
Adrienne Applegate
Mark Cullen
Linda Kelen
Edwin Maguire
Rebecca Sadler
Dan Schuknecht
Linda Takaha

absolutearts.com Portfolio

Watercolor in Progress

2009-02-16T07:29:00.000-08:00

I was trying to decide between turning this into a multiple color woodblock print
or just stick to one color...but, it needed to get out fast....

(WakeMaker...in progress)

this is the first watercolor I've done since before the house burned down....(it's laying in a flat-file drawer)
it is interesting that I used to think 22x30 was a huge piece of paper....
now I'm wondering why I started on something so small.
It's not done...

SardineTins for Woman Made Gallery

2009-01-05T19:07:00.000-08:00

Pounded (chasing/repousse) sardine tins...

re-assembled with necessary materials: which might be copper, steel, aluminum, leather, a paperclip or two...sometimes glass eyes...and a little paint....

They will be in the
Woman Made Gallery's "and You Think That's Funny?" show...
January 23rd-February 26th

SardineTin#10...7"wide, 4"high, 1.5"deep ($1200)

SardineTin#11...5"wide, 5"high, 1.15"deep ($900)

SardineTin#12...3.25"wide, 7"high, 1.15"deep ($1000)

Artist Statement: "My arting has to do with whatever is in front of me,
although, I do seem to have an on/off relationship with fish...RedHerrings in particular...
which I've never been able to see as stinky fish to avoid, but beginnings of fit and beautiful and humourous visions.
Sardines, a relative of the herring, travel in wonderful containers."
Written for the show, but was lost.

Sardine Tins in Progress!

2009-01-01T09:40:00.000-08:00

A perfect day:
13 hours in the studio on the last day of the year
preparing SardineTins for a show in Chicago....
almost done....I'll post official photos in a few days...

Altered "Camper Birdhouse"

2008-12-27T08:50:00.000-08:00

A friend found this at a local variety store called Nina's in Spring Green, Wisconsin...

(made in China)

bought it...
handed it to me, saying something like...
"Here, maybe you can do something with this for Tony's Christmas present...don't you think?"

That was three weeks ago.

8.25" long, 5.5" high, 4.5"wide, some kind of poured resin...
now with wood, 2-part epoxy, paint and acrylic (glass) windows

$9.00 Trailer

2008-12-15T18:02:00.001-08:00

"Here...maybe you can doctor this up for Tony..."
or words like that got this up and running.
(Tony never looks at this blog...
so if you see this, and know him...please don't mention you saw what I'm up to.)
It's a $9.00 birdhouse....
and he's been collecting trailers...
so......
Tomorrow I'll varnish the "paintings"...and finish the wheels...next day the "glass" goes in.....
I'll post it when it's completely done.

Metro Elves

2008-12-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

(I've gotten a lot of encouragement to repost this....so here are they are....Happy Holidays!
oh, these are photographs that I actually painted on...wish you could see the originals, which look way cooler in person than anything photoshop or digital manipulation could do.)

I just found my "photographs" of the Elves that annually moved into
the local gallery/art supply shop...
MetropolitanArt, which, sadly, no long is.

(special photographs of actual Elves in Santa's Dodgeville workshop, made by Linda Kelen)

I painted a sign for the gallery-art supply store, which said, "Elves Shop Here"....
and to PROVE it....(because some "town people" were not believers)
I made these pictures.

No one said another word.

"Jeb is pleased to see Elves use white gloves...leaving no finger prints on paper."

"These elves lost their shopping list...."

"Elves love cookies."

"Mega, (studio dog)........................................is a handy mode of transportation."

"Some Elves are too short."

"After a successful shopping spree...
Elves carry the last of their supplies out to the sleigh....(parked around the corner)."

Uneventful Tuesday before Thanksgiving

2008-12-02T07:50:00.002-08:00

(Uneventful Tuesday before Thanksgiving)

5"x7" artist proof, original print, drypoint with mezzotint on plate of aluminum flashing...

printed on Mulberry paper....2008

Drypoint-Diogenes

2008-11-18T13:02:00.001-08:00

4.5"x6" drypoint on 6"x8.5"Arches BFK, artist proof...printed with Renaissance Black Ink

Sick today

2008-11-11T10:28:00.000-08:00

nope, don't like this...although, the Nurse Dogs have been excellent as bed warmers and worried companions....but, I'm suited up...taking a thermos of hot ginger tea and one of these kleenex-eating mentholated-curs with me...heading to the studio........it's a better place to be sick.

Fall Art Tour Fish

2008-11-05T07:42:00.002-08:00

I hand colored a print of the plate I was working on during the Fall Art Tour...

4"x6" , printed on Rives BFK

Because I can't leave well enough alone
there are no two plates which are the same....
I think the official term for this is "Edition Variation #2"...
$80.00
yes, there is a #1....