A Bit of Whimsy

A while back I submitted some artwork for a cd jacket to a musician - Annie J Dahlgren  - looking for said art for a soon to be released cd.  The process of making this piece was a bit different in that  the image was conjured up form the lyrics of a song which is to be the title track of the cd.  My interpretation may be a bit literal but I saw some analogies between the cat and her cigarettes and I couldn't resist.   Below are a few snaps of the original layout and the finished product.  If you are interested in the lyrics, they may be found here :  http://alleycatcd.com/lyrics/ 

I believe the cd has not as yet been released but I am curious to know which of the artwork submitted was chosen for the cover.  There were some great entries !!

~LW

 

Showing progress so far of my 2012 Art Prize Entry

Another Nameless Face

I have come to feel as if I know these children whose images I am creating out of snippets of fabric.  As their features develop so does their character.  My soft life has not prepared me for such adversity as they see daily.  May we who have so much never lose sight of our responsibility to the rest of the world.
Here are some of the latest additions to my Art Prize piece.

And a bit of progress on the "other side" of things.  This piece is meant to focus on the plight of millions of children around the world whose "reality" is a daily struggle to survive - contrasted to my life - our lives - which by comparison almost seems "cartoon-ish"  because of the comfort and over-abundance of "stuff" we have.

Given my self-imposed deadline of August 15th ,  I see a few late nights ahead.
Much is yet to be finished.
Better keep cuttin' up !
LW
 

Art Prize

Somehow I managed to delete the post from Sat, June 2.  Clever of me, eh?  Thank goodness for that backwards arrow.  So I am copying and pasting and then adding a new image I have been working on today for the Art Prize collage.

(previous post)


Art Prize is a large local open art competition held in Grand Rapids, MI.  Last year artists from 39 different countries entered the exhibition which is held from mid-September to early October.  It took me a long time to decide about doing this, but, I have finally committed to enter this year.
 Over the past year or more I have been repeatedly confronted with the fact that even though I am not a rich person by usual standards,  I have great wealth compared to so many around the world. The piece I am working on for Art Prize focuses on the children of the world who for a variety of reasons barely have subsistence and struggle daily to survive.  Their living conditions are deplorable and many are orphans left to care for younger siblings.  It also focuses on our part in this scenario as those who have so much ! . Here is a part of the much larger piece I am working on  ( 8 feet wide x 4 feet high).

still tweaking these but wanted to show progress so far

 

Come back to check on my progress as I will be posting updates to this project periodically.

Thanks for stopping by :) ~ LW

 

“We can ask no greater joy, than to go gently through this place that has been given to us, and make something out of it. Not necessarily to fully understand it, for that might be an impossible task, but to honor it in our own way.” – Robert Genn, painter and author of The Painter Keys.

It's official...life is too busy !  But, for me, in a good way.  I have managed to finish 2 commissions and a birthday gift in the last couple of months !  Here are the results...

The Path # 1,1   by Lynette Williams - fabric collage on panel

I have been concentrating on developing depth in most of my work lately.
 Life is traveling into the unknown and this piece suggests to me the idea of choosing a path in life and how important it is which  path we choose to take.

Home  by Lynette Williams  -  fabric collage on panel

A commissioned work depicting a family farm that is no longer there.  The trick was to piece together from a couple of family photos a semblance of what was once there.  Again, trying to achieve a sense of depth and include all of the elements the family remembers from the farm.

The Path   # 1, 2 by Lynette Williams  -  fabric collage on panel

Living near Lake Michigan,  I am privileged to see it often and enjoy the inspiration it provides.  It has been a favorite place to be for most of my life and continues to be a favorite subject for my art.
This piece was commissioned by someone who lives nearer the lake than me and walks the beach almost daily.




Can't wait to start "cuttin up" my next project.
LW

And now..for something completely different !

I have been exploring something a little different.  I know I have a lot of UFOs (UnFinishedObjects) that were in previous posts, but when inspiration hits, you have to run with it.  You never know what may come of it.  Besides, those projects aren't going anywhere.  They will still be there when I am ready to pick them up and finish them. And I am confident they will be even better for having some space to  "grow".
  I have been intrigued with the monochromatic of late.  My fabric hunt for these resulted in some interesting combinations.  This series will be called "Monochrome Garden" or "What my flower garden might look like at midnight".  Some will have a hint of color like this one.

More to come in future !
LW

American Avocet

This fabric collage was commissioned to co-ordinate with a particular room, so the colors were chosen accordingly. "American Avocet "  was inspired by a photo of this bird seen locally and it will reside in the home of an avid bird lover.  It is a mid-western and Pacific coastal migratory bird that inhabits marshland, beaches and ponds during its breeding season.  It turns gray in the winter.  Its bill, very long and thin, is used in a side to side motion in the shallow water to search for crustacea and insects.

"American Avocet"    by Lynette Williams

                                                              Fabric Collage    14" x 11" on cradled board

Being a mother, I cannot warm to this bird.  It does not feed its young!  They fend for themselves.  But incubation is shared by both parents  -  a very redeeming quality :) and it is a very stately looking bird. 
More birds are in my "collaging " future.  I like this version of being in touch with nature....especially in the dead of winter.
Till next time
LW