Archive for the laelia e. mitchell Category

what happens to me when I’m away from the studio

Posted in digital, Drawing, laelia e. mitchell, Work in Progress with tags , , , , on February 20, 2012 by laelia e. mitchell

for long periods is that I forget I’m an artist. I forget I have a creative language and I forget to articulate this language, as evidenced by my lack of anything to share. this is quite alarming. plus I leave tomorrow for a mini vacation …. I also know there’s an element of laziness involved. I’ve made mention of the need to do something everyday … advice I need to be more in line with, clearly. all this said, at least there’s a phone picture to post!

I am taking a sketch book and my oil sticks/graphite case with me. I’m intend (operative word “intend”) to sketch. I hope to forget that I’ve forgotten how to be an artist. I hope to forget that I’ve not practiced my creative language and I hope that this time next week, I’ll have a sketch to share. til then … bon voyage

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fun and struggles in the studio

Posted in Art, art on paper, laelia e. mitchell, Work in Progress, work on paper with tags , , , on February 13, 2012 by laelia e. mitchell

that’s the sum total of my experiences in the studio as of late.  i go … i draw … i have fun.  i go … i draw … i struggle.  and it’s like that, all the time.  some days the ideas flow with grace and fluidity like it’s a gift from the ether.  other days (like saturday) i draw and i might as well be dumping the cat box on the paper it’s so horrendous.  there seems to be no way i can gauge the day or my temperament.

the drawing below is from one of the studio days that left me feeling like i know wtf i’m doing.  my mark making is developing into some weird language of repetition and movement and it seems to make sense to me.  i used a charcoal pencil then smudged.  i made 4 pages of this.  one page i added a gel medium to each mark and topped it with some oil stick.  i’ll photograph it and share next time.

a late post

Posted in Art, art on paper, Drawing, laelia e. mitchell, mixed media, Work in Progress, work on paper with tags , , , on January 30, 2012 by laelia e. mitchell

spending a couple days in the studio this week has refreshed my soul.  even though i didn’t really make any art on one of those days, i was able to putz around and feel that creative movement is steadily chugging along.  it’s really about the little movements towards making work that eventually end up with work getting made.   huh?  well … you know what i mean.  just something everyday eventually gets a big pile of art made.   i have a few drawings done and some canvas on the wall in the studio with a first pass of mars black … where it’s going?  not effing clue

ink, graphite, acrylic and oil stick on paper

shite … I almost forgot to post!

Posted in digital, Drawing, laelia e. mitchell with tags , , on January 23, 2012 by laelia e. mitchell

jeesus … it’s the end of the day and I’m finally posting. I don’t have access to the Internet in the green mountain state of vermont, but I’m back in the fair city of boston so here we go. as you know, I’ve embarked on a project of drawing something everyday. often it’s on the phone, yet I do actually take pencil, oil stick and ink to paper, it’s just that it’s a bit easier to post the digital drawings. I highly recommend this as a way to stay in the game … to make sure your studio practice goes with you so you’re never able to say ” I couldn’t draw because …..”. the notion of the artist block starts to recede when you do something everyday …. it really does make a difference to keep moving along. so here’s my daily drawing ->

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drawing on iphone

Posted in digital, laelia e. mitchell with tags , on January 16, 2012 by laelia e. mitchell

so I’ve recently begun using my iphone and ipad to draw. it’s quite different than paper (obviously) and lends itself to casual, free mark making. unlike a pencil to paper, a digital mark is more easily deleted which makes the whole thing less precious. I like it quite but. I also love to make marks on paper as the sound/feel is deeply resonant. right now I’m enjoying the act of drawing something each day. as woody allen – and many many others say – “showing up is 80% of success”.

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i’m back with a new project

Posted in Art, art on paper, digital, laelia e. mitchell, Photography with tags , , , on January 9, 2012 by laelia e. mitchell

as I started the new year, i felt it important that i  have a disciplined small project to keep me on track.   I bought a new sketchbook and commanded myself to draw something everyday.   as the new year approached, i was excited and kinda nervous.  drawing was out of my comfort zone.   i’m a photographer.  maybe my self imposed limits needed to be stretched.  my good fortune came through twitter where @stelth opined “should I do a drawing a day?”  to which I replied  ”yes and I’ll join you”

i am using the iphone and paper based drawings in this project.  it’s a terrific exercise for me to open up and play.  it’s helping to be part of a group … accountability.

todays sketch has yet to materialize, however here’s a link to the project and yesterday’s sketch

drawing a day

 

in the green mountain state

Posted in laelia e. mitchell, landscape, Photography with tags , on December 26, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

just found out I’m in a little show in boston in January. if you’re in town let me know. I’m gonna try to make some art this week … not sure the vacation mode is conducive :) aviary gallery

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taking a break

Posted in art on paper, laelia e. mitchell, Work in Progress with tags , , on December 19, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

so … i’m in the studio today and will be packing up some supplies to take with me for the holiday break. i’ll be in the southern vermont area with very limited internet service so I’ll likely pass on next monday’s post. in the meantime, i’m thinking about my practice and how i’m moving away from photography and how it feels. if one has spent 30+ years in one discipline, how do you move through the discomfort of transition?

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today’s studio play

Posted in art on paper, Drawing, laelia e. mitchell with tags , , on December 12, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

messing around with watercolors today

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in some sort of transition …

Posted in Art, Drawing, laelia e. mitchell, mixed media with tags , , , on December 5, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

i’ve concluded that there’s a substantial part of me that has always wanted to be a painter/printmaker.  the move to a studio has allowed me to open up to other mediums … and i’m eager to investigate.  the generative process of printmaking is especially appealing as it requires me to fiddle around with a mechanical component (which i love) and it provides multiples (which i also love).  drawing is also calling to me as it enables me to play and be spontaneous.  it’s all very unnerving having spent so many years as a photographer.  what is apparent, however, is that i’m still working within a frame.  that’s the photographer in me and that’s ok as it provides some sort of platform.

this is acrylic on paper and ink.  image is approx 7″ x 7″ .

monday

Posted in laelia e. mitchell, monotype, printmaking with tags , , on November 28, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

this is an example of the prints I’ve been playing with. the handcrafted experience as opposed to photography seems to resonate these days. all play in the studio is good! (this post is being written on an iphone…. ahhhh technological gadgetry)

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new work … no pics, yet

Posted in Art, art on paper, laelia e. mitchell, monotype with tags , , , on November 21, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

i’ve been working with the monotype as a means for creative development and i’m finding the process to be a great way to both have fun AND mine some deeper ideas.  i’m not a trained printmaker and my forays into the plastic arts in college were abysmal.  yet, this time, i’m finding a real draw to printmaking in particular.  i can only guess it’s my inner finger painting child screaming for more attention …  yet, it might be a bit more.  my drive to pick up my camera has dropped to  all time lows and i spend more time drawing and playing with paints and papers than ever before.  additionally, i find little interest in looking a contemporary photography.  it all seems so contrived and well .. i dunno.  i’m sure to find my way back sometime.

so… while i’ve samples of this new direction, they’re all at my studio and i’ve not had a moment to foto them for this entry ( i know … what a loser)  i’ll be sure to post some soon

in the meantime …. this is a detail of an ink scroll 4″ x 48″

still feel like s#*t …

Posted in Art, banksy, laelia e. mitchell with tags on November 14, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

it’s been 3 days since i returned from an overseas trip that involved 18+ hours of travel each way and spanned 9 time zones and i still am flummoxed.  during my trip however, i had the great fortune of seeing a bunch of films; “exit through the gift shop” , “the world according to anish kapoor”, “looking for lowry” and “basquiat: a life”.  all were really interesting art films and i highly recommend them.  additionally i viewed “chasing madoff” and the hilarious “greatest movie ever sold”.  all good and all worth seeing.

as far as making art … well i’m still in a cycle of experimenting with different mediums.  i did take my camera on my travels, however, the ONLY picture i took was at the hotel as i was leaving – pathetic.  i’m heading to the studio today and hopefully a bit of my “art self” will appear.  until then below are a couple of phone fotos …

only pic from my travels

iphone picture during the daily dog stroll

nyc

this is all i have today …

Posted in laelia e. mitchell, monotype, printmaking, work on paper with tags , , , on November 7, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

new ways to think about art

Posted in Art, art on paper, block print, laelia e. mitchell, printmaking, rice paper, work on paper with tags , , , on October 17, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

i’ve been able to spend a fair amount of time in the studio this past week and what has been organically emerging is a distinct move towards other ways of expressing myself besides photography.  while making images using light (the camera) will always form the foundation of HOW i see, how i EXPRESS what i see is shifting.  the fun of exploring block printing with my “networks we love” series or my obsessively relaxing dots using sumi ink of japanese rice paper …these activities seem to provide a much needed re-jiggering to my studio practice.  now, WHERE this is going is unimportant.  i decided that the “studio practice” is what i’ll focus on instead of the hustle to show, however, the need to have a direction will emerge.  WHEN  … i don’t know, and HOW this will take shape … i have not the faintest idea.  all i know is … i keep making dots, printing words using inks on paper wondering wtf it’s all about.

below is the 7th in the series “networks we love”  a collection of wifi networks names gathered from my travels and from asking twitter, google+ and facebook connections.  block prints : image is 4×6 printed on 9×12″rice paper.  edition 5

columbus day …

Posted in Art, digital, laelia e. mitchell, Photo-Impressionism, Photography, Work in Progress with tags , , , , , on October 10, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

so this is the day that good ole chris columbus invaded the native peoples lands, brought all manner of disease and claimed ownership of said property.  sounds like our financial industry!  so in honor of that, i’m going to close my bank of america account and find a credit union, get outside and embrace my liberation … and not celebrate columbus’s rapacious ways.

still in the moving stages

Posted in "But Is It Art?", Art, digital, laelia e. mitchell, Work in Progress with tags , , , , on September 26, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

yes.  it’s a lot more energy consuming than i thought.  while i’ve been going to my new studio digs, getting in a groove is proving to be a wee bit tricky.  not that i’d imagined it to be a seamlessly scripted tv show kinda event.  y’know what i mean … show opens, something happens and by the 22nd minute (excluding commercial breaks) everything is resolved and folks live happily ever after.  not so fast little girl….

what i have been consistiently doing is taking pictures with my phone, then over-proceesing the shit out of them and having some fun.  it’s my one consistent attempt at staying in the game.  the camera phone has proven to be a worthy sketching device.  a handy tool to use when all you wanna do is keep your head in your art.  i’ve even found a few worthy of printing and sharing.

so, let me start again…  good day fair folk.  here are some pics i made while waiting for the other artist side of me to get her studio shit together .

nuthin made, nuthin to show

Posted in Art, current events, laelia e. mitchell, Photography on September 19, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

that’s right … last week was work for pay.  nuthin more, nuthin less and nuthin to show.  i promise this time next week, there will be something worth reading and seeing.  until then … here’s a picture of one of my images in a show curated by brian dupont opening october 6 in new york.  here’s a link for more info extra gallery

monday, monday la la la lala la

Posted in Art, laelia e. mitchell, landscape, Photo-Impressionism, Photography, Work in Progress on September 12, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

as i’ve been moving my studio, i’ve come to realize just how much energy is infused into the space in which an artist works.  my home studio enabled easy access and provided me with comfort and a sense of security.  it also doubled as a guest room, so when friends and family arrived for extended stays, i quickly gathered my essential art tools and left my little room.   i would peer in when our guests were out sightseeing to make sure my packed away materials were safe and no dog or small child had eviscerated anything.

when the opportunity to move into a shared space with a old dear friend presented itself, i jumped.  i also did my homework.   i looked at other studios in the city carefully measuring the distance/time component traversed on bike and whether there was public transport nearby.  i factored in rent which needed to be within a budget that i could reasonably afford.  after lots of visits and bike rides the original opportunity seemed perfect.

now for the move … what i didn’t know, nor could i have forseen, was the internal struggle.  that struggle being the need to redefine who i am as an artist, how i make work, and the essential need for time management and discipline.  i no longer have the luxury of “hanging out” in my home studio for an hour or so.  i must place my studio practice into the arena of commitment.  yes folks, commitment.  it’s been an easy ride for these last years and now i’ve challenged myself to shit or get off the pot.  i certainly have enjoyed the lazy jaunt to this place in my life.

i must now engage a new set of skills and inject my studio space with the energy of an artist ready to begin a new chapter … a deepening challenge and a commitment to break of out of the comfort and dive into that place where the best of my vision awaits.  it’s kinda hard, yet i’ve paid my september rent and most of my stuff is there.

i guess this means no more going in to the studio with my pajamas on.

in this transitive period the iphone comes in handy:

post irene : pre studio move

Posted in Art, art on paper, block print, laelia e. mitchell, printmaking on August 29, 2011 by laelia e. mitchell

well, this past week was full one …the first part spent visiting my new studio (i receive keys sept.1) and chatting with studio mate as to how we were going to build some wall stuff.  the second part of the week i worked for money (thankfully) and the weekend was spent preparing for the storm.  this entailed a day trip to vermont to put stuff in the barn and talking with neighbors up there about the impending potential disaster.  vermont has been hit badly with flooding recently and irene could potentially be disastrous for many folks up there.  mama nature has a mind of her own. * update: vermont was hit hard.  many towns under water lots of devastation and a couple of deaths.  irene took a path unexpected and left destruction in her wake.

i did, however, buy some art supplies to start lino cut printing.  it’s such a basic form of the print, that exploring it is relatively easy.  i’m anticipating having some samples for next weeks post.  for now, here’s a picture of the current state of my desk along with the new supplies. be well

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