ART Give-away! Free Art Featured in Dusty Diablos....Holy Frijoles!

Thought I'd fill you in on a chance to win a piece of art featured in my latest book, Dusty Diablos.  Borders is doing a sweepstakes to promote the book and the winner receives an original piece of art.  Here's the piece.  it is from the Anima Sola (Lonely Soul) chapter of the book, which is a common image you see in Mexico, representing the soul in purgatory.

Here is the version I did for the book

and a detail

it was based on this nicho built into the side of the Catedral in Mexico City

so if you want to win the Anima Sola piece featured in the book this is the skinny:

Pretty much go to the following link...fill it out and you are in the running.  Of course it wouldn't break my heart if you bought the book too!

Follow this Link to sign up:

http://www.borders.com/dustydiablos

What do you have to lose?  Free art is free art!

See you in Santa Monica

For more info go here

I'll be there Thursday April 15th and Friday April 16th

Book-signing Friday April 16th

Heard it from the grapevine... Happy HalloVine

Okay I know it is a bit early for Halloween but....

I'm excited about a new little project.  Sue Bartolucci at Madonna Estate Winery

has invited me to create there annual "Hallovine" wine label.  I met her last year when I taught at Tangerine in the Bay area.    We're  planning some wine tasting/booksigning events at the winery in late Sept. when I'm back in the Bay Area. Who am I to turn down a wine-tasting?  Maybe I can even stomp on some grapes.

Not really sure what I'm going to do for the label yet...but I have some ideas fermenting. 

Sue said she wanted something nice and dark and deMeng-ish....well that's right up my alley.

Here are some of the Hallovine labels from past years:

This one is by Jack Roads

and this is by Sharon Bloom

and this is by Iva Wilcox...who I met last year in the Bay Area.

Should be fun...especially the drinking part.

If you missed it...no worries....OnLine Class now available for download

Putting it All Together is  available for download now at www.craftcast.com
Don't worry if you missed class, you can purchase all class recordings here. Each 90 minute class recording is packed with images and instructions on "how-to" from some of your favorite workshop instructors. Watch at your own pace, stop, repeat, or look at the images frame by frame.

Czech it out!

N. O. spells: The Big Easy - Feb 9-13, 2011

Its official!  My New Orleans workshop is a go.  Over the last 6 months or so Kathy Malkasian of Valley Ridge Art Studio have been working on the idea of a New Orleans workshop, We are still working out some of the finer details but it definitely is a go!

A Place for Notions and Potions: An Apothecary Kit

The dates are going to be February 9-16 of 2011.  

I wanted to come up with a workshop that suited the mysterious nature of the place, so here is what I came up with a workshop "A Place for Notions and Potions: An Apothecary Kit".  I'll have a full class description later.

Kathy and I wanted to create an amazing environment for students to work on art as well as to be exhilarated by the amazing place.  I have always loved the idea of teaching in places where the location inspires the art, and the art inspires the student to explore the area.    So we picked New Orleans because, after all it is one of most fascinating places in the world, rich with history, food, music, strange ghost stories, etc. etc. etc.

The class will consist of three days of workshop with me and two days of city tours to unusual places interspersed.  Not to mention there will be plenty of time to explore the city on your own, or perhaps leisurely sit back and enjoy a Pimm's Cup at the historic Napoleon House (one of my favorite haunts...been around for 200 years).

Sounds pretty nifty doesn't it?

More info on the way!

The Secret Keeper

Getting ready for my West Coast tour...but that doesn't mean I forgot you guys on the East Coast.  I just finished a piece for a class I'm doing in Bristol, Rhode Island a the Bead House, June 18th and 19th.

The Secret Keeper

I call this workshop the Secret Keeper.  I’ve always liked the idea of a place where secrets are kept.  

Of course most people thing of Pandora and her box (which, as an aside was actually a large jar in the original story…I think I prefer to think of it as a small box for some reason), or there is Alice going down the rabbit hole.  In both cases the there is potential danger inside those sacred places, but also potential enlightenment.  

In this piece I have made it so that the little "Secret" can be taken out when necessary and then replaced in its home...for safekeeping.  Safe from others...and perhaps others safe from it...depending on the secret.

I'll actually have this piece at the Bead House for the next couple months.  I shipped it out today so it should be there soon.   Stop in and see it.

Click hear if you're interested in the taking the workshop

Workshop Season is here!

So the time of me lounging around, eating potato chips, and watching reruns of Bewitched is over.  I'm hitting the road real real soon...at a venue near you!  So here's whats lurking around the bend...

Upstart Crow: Vancouver B.C. March 20th -21st

First workshop of the season is up in the land of the Olympics.

Thats right I'm heading to The Upstart Crow in Vancouver B.C. (Delta more specifically)

A book-signing of Dusty Diablos on Friday March 19th and then I'll be teaching a two day Maskmaking workshop Sat and Sun March 20th and 21st.  I know Canadians are still a celebrating from the hockey win so perhaps we can modify hockey masks in class....believe it or not back in 1959 hockey masks looked like this:

ArtFest 3/24-3/28

Next up is the ever-popular ArtFest in Port Townsend.

Get ready for the extravaganza!  Fun fun as usual.

Next stop

Southern California...two venues in April.  Count them...one...two.....teaching venues

Ah..ah..ah...ah...ah...ah...ah...!

Urban Craft Center:  Santa Monica 4/15 - 4/16

Then I head south to the little blue star of Santa Monica and the Urban Craft Center

I'm friends with the owner Angharad but have never seen her space...stylin'.  

I'm also going to be doing a book-signing there as well.  Can't wait.

Zinnia: South Pasadena 4/17 - 4/18

Next..the lovely pink star on the map above...to match my toes

My old stomping ground...my grandparents had a business not far from here...brings back memories everytime I go down there.

Tamara has a new store...can't wait to see it!

Okay thats it for now....

Oh one last thing

...Jenny Doh has a new project called:

CRESCENDOh

that is an inspirational art site that emphasizes the healing power of art.  I'm guest curator this week so stop over...I'll be adding new links all week to inspire you.

Okay...wait...maybe just one more thing

Dusty Diablos is now in the warehouse...there are gonna start shipping Amazon pre-orders!   You're local bookstores should be seeing them soon.

see everyone somewhere!

The Big Oaxaca Secret....REVEALED!

Oaxaca 2010...

as I a mentioned in a previous post, I am returning to Oaxaca for yet another Day of the Dead teaching extravaganza.   Up until now I have been keeping the class project a bit of a secret while I worked out some details with my organizer and Mexico guru Colleen...I don't know how I'd pronounce all those indigenous names without her....i.e. huitlacoche (which is a corn fungus by the way).

So...now I reveal the secret....

the classes title:

Altar-ed Faces:  

Nicho Masks and Paint-Making

In this class we are going to create masks that also function as shrines...."Head Cases" or "Altar'ed Faces"...take your pick.  Using assemblage techniques students will create reliquaries that could potentially be worn as well as hang on the wall.

Now for the really exciting part: 

WE ARE MAKING OUR OWN PAINT!!!!!!!

 We are also going to explore a variety of paint-making methods, ranging from indigenous Mexican techniques to contemporary processes.  There are some really unusual and fascinating indigenous techniques that Mexicans use to create paints....very weird science.  Using these techniques we will create paints and colors the old fashioned way....the really old fashioned way. 

 We will also use learn t make textures and colors from some of the materials we find along the way.  I will also incorporate some modern paint technologies in the paint making process...just to keep things interesting.

This workshop will also include a variety of Day of the Dead activities, as well as excursions throughout the artistically rich Oaxacan Valley.  More information on those tours as they get worked out.  Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

for more info contact Colleen Darling:  805-688-1221 colleen950@gmail.com

I've also started a blog about the Oaxaca trip....not much on there yet, but as we get things figured out like specific tours and itineraries I'll post them there.  I'll also be putting up photos from years past....so all you deMeng de los Muertos veterans from the last three years.  Let me know if you want to post any photos and I'll be glad to do so.

The blog address is:  http://demengdelosmuertos.blogspot.com/

Remember the class size is limited.

hope to see some of you there!