Sue Clancy's Blog, page 53

feeding the beast

A problem I’ve had as a professional artist who does fine art commissions – is that often the project is a secret. Which means even though my day (and mind) is filled with drawings, paper patterns and colors related to my commission I can’t talk about it online. No posting “in progress” photos because it’d spoil the surprise for somebody.

But still the Social Media Beast must be fed.

I’ve solved this problem – in hopefully an amusing way – by posting my short-narrative work (see my last post as an example), or something about one of my artist books…Here’s a page I particularly like today from my book Dr. Bob’s Emotional Repair Program First Aid Kit:

page from “Dr. Bob’s Emotional Repair Program First Aid Kit” https://store.bookbaby.com/book/dr-bobs-emotional-repair-program-first-aid-kit

Or posting a page from my sketchbook – like this one – which also happens to be an ebook page from my Coffee Table Book – (by the way, it is also a very good recipe for lunch):

page from “Coffee, Table, Book” https://store.bookbaby.com/book/coffee-table-book

Or posting something about one of my pattern designs: The art apparel with my pattern designs that I do for VIDA really do have my signature on them!  You can see my entire signature collection here: http://shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy

Sue Clancy’s “signature collection” of art apparel really does have a signature!  See the whole collection here: http://shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy

And now that I’ve told you my secret – and fed the Beast a bit – I’ll get back to work on my art commission.

card times

Here’s some more short narrative practice, or poetry practice, or words plus pictures practice or if you want to be really accurate you could call it “Sue’s playing around again”.  Whatever you want to call it – here’s the poem and illustration:

Card Times by Sue Clancy

A sly old dog named Muffin

Sat on a cushion of stuffin’

While playing cards

And sweating hard

He said firmly “I aint bluffin’”

Card Times – words and illustration by Sue Clancy (the pen and ink on handmade paper artwork is titled “Aint Bluffin”)

keeping it creative

One question I get asked; “how do you stay inspired creatively” especially when you spend 8 or more hours a day working on art projects? My short answer is “make time to artistically play, everyday”.

I try to draw every day something that “catches my eye” – something that at the time I’m drawing it has no relation to any art project I’m currently working on, it’s not being done for money or for any purpose. It’s just for fun – and that qualifies it as “play”. These are quickie drawings that take no more than a few minutes, accuracy, neatness are not concerns. Having fun, being observant and responsive to the world around me are the main things.

Sometimes what catches my eye is my lunch. Or some product seen in a store –  like the eye shades intended as a sleep aid that actually looked like small bra’s. Sometimes it’s something someone said that gets “illustrated”. Here’s a sketchbook page example of these 3 kinds of “play-times”:

 

page from “Coffee, Table, Book” https://store.bookbaby.com/book/coffee-table-book

chic chicory pattern design

Recently, end of September or early October my wife and I went on one of our wander-walks – I had my sketchbook in hand. On Officer’s Row in Vancouver WA I walked through a field full of blue-purple flowers… here are some of the sketches I did that day.

Sue Clancy’s sketchbook page of the overall view of the field on Officers Row.

Sue Clancy’s sketchbook page – details of flowers seen on Officers Row

The field was full of flowers; a patch here was full of blue ones, a patch there was white, another one there was magenta….it reminded me of curling up under/on a color-block quilt having a hot chocolate and reading a good book with a comforting lap cat/dog.

Then my work and life in general went on at a very busy pace and all the while in the back of my mind I was remembering that cozy quilt-like pattern of flowers seen on our walk…and thinking of how best to re-create that comfy feeling within pattern design and how that could be used in my fine art, or as a scarf or…???

Probably after the last chicory flower had faded from the real-life field I finally found time to create a pattern. In my studio I played around, designing several patterns using the chicory flower as a motif. As I worked I thought of several of our friends who garden, who like to go for walks/hikes and the upcoming winter season so I decided to make my pattern design into a scarf. I’m thinking it might be cozy to be able wear “end of summer” flowers during winter.

I used some paper I’d previously dyed and cut out the flower shape with an Xacto knife and glued it together. Then I cut up that just-created flower and re-glued it together in such a way that my finished design will digitally replicate as an overall pattern on fabric.  The last step is to do a bit of detail here and there on the flower petals with my color pencils. Here are photos of two of my multi-step process of pattern design creation:

Here’s what the finished scarf design looks like -and it is available via this link http://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy :

Scarf pattern design “Chic Chicory” by Sue Clancy http://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy

The pattern seems a bit lighter on the fabric – but that is because it is on a white/sheer type of fabric and the fabric type affects the “look” of the design. I do my best to keep in mind that this will happen when I’m creating my pattern design.

My Chic Chicory pattern turned out nicely … what do you think?

 

 

coffee book featured in Colorado

My artist book “Coffee Beans Plus H2o” is featured at the Abecedarian Gallery in Colorado!  I’ve loved it that the gallery owner and some other artist’s who’ve commented privately  have “gotten it” that in this book I was playing with a concept of time! I’d worried about whether that was getting across so I can’t tell you how much it feeds my artist soul to hear supportive “I understand this” comments from people – and from people in the book-arts-field too! Wahoo!! I’m happy dancing around my art studio today!!  Thank you thank you everyone!!!

Check out the gallery website here: http://abecedariangallery.com/store/product-category/new-and-featured-inventory/ – scroll down where they list the “new and featured inventory” – and lookee there’s my work among some other really awesome book-arts work! Wow! Pinch me – am I dreaming? Look at the other artist’s work – Wow impressive!

And here’s the specific gallery page about my book: http://abecedariangallery.com/store/shop/sue-clancy-coffee-beans-plus-h20/

Coffee Beans Plus H2o by Sue Clancy – an artist book handmade with hand carved printing blocks and printmaking techniques applied on used coffee filters as a way of artistically exploring the concept of time. 

You can also find additional info about this book on my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTz7Wzr-bj2RbePAsbrHmLw

Friday Fudge Judge

Earlier today I did a blog post called “Friday Fun In Progress” about a short narrative poem I was in the process of writing and illustrating. Then I took a lunch break. Thanks for waiting so patiently…. and without further ado here’s what I came up with:

The Fudge Judge – By Sue Clancy

A strict, stiff, sober Judge

was asked to jury some fudge.

With unusual glee

he shouted “For me?”

then ran off with the very best fudge.

The Fudge Judge – illustration and poem by Sue Clancy

 

Friday fun in progress

I’m working on my short narrative practice again; aka writing a quickie poem/story plus creating an illustration for it. I’m thinking of fudge, fudge competitions, and the process of asking people to judge something so subjective as what something tastes like… and what could happen.

Anyway, here’s what my desk looks like right now… more progress to come later, after lunch. All this thinking about fudge and I’ve realized that I’m hungry. Back in a bit…

Sue Clancy’s work-in-progress; writing a short narrative poem and creating an illustration for it.

 

artichoke music sketches

I sketch in order to find out what I want to say. I make fine art, artist books etc. in order to say it clearly. This means I sketch a lot. What I’m looking for when I go walking about with my sketchbook in hand is whatever “catches my eye”.  Often when I do sketchbook work I don’t know at that time what I’ll use it for. I’m just stocking my mental pantry. Other times I go out in the world looking for a particular thing to make sketches of for a project I’m working on.  Whichever it is, later, during a studio work-day I’ll flip back through a filled sketchbook for ideas or resource-images – much like a cook uses a collection of recipes.

Anyway, recently I was on a street in Portland Oregon and I was delighting in all of the dogs with their people. I drew this, first with pencil and then with an ink pen:

Sue Clancy’s sketchbook street scene; people with dogs

As I walked further I passed a store called Artichoke Music which had gorgeous musical instruments that I could see from the window.  I went inside and asked if I could stay a while and sketch. “Why would we say ‘no’ to that? That’d be awesome!” said the guys working at Artichoke Music. So I sketched this (in pencil, then in ink pen):

Sue Clancy’s sketches from Artichoke Music in Portland Oregon

Then I showed the guys at the counter what I’d sketched. “Oh that’s such fun!” they said and then they pointed out another delightful area in the store – so I drew this:

More of Sue’s sketches in Artichoke Music

I promised them that I’d post my sketches to their Facebook and Twitter pages – so I’m doing that now. Thanks again Artichoke Music for letting me hang out and draw!!! You guys are awesome!!!

Followers of this blog, and my artwork in general, will probably not be surprised to hear that I’m now thinking a lot about dogs, and musical instruments…

 

 

 

 

Lettuce Peas

Was contacted this morning by one of my gallery owners, Barney, of Downtown Art & Frame, in Oklahoma to tell me that my work “Lettuce Peas” had sold! This work was a highly experimental piece, different from the “typical” work I do. For this project I worked with Judy Sullens, a writer, and created this words+art piece inspired by and based on her word-play.  Judy’s original poem was titled “Gardener’s Prayer”.  I took Judy’s words and created an original cut-paper illustration in my style and wrote out her poem by hand using pen and ink calligraphy.

Technically this piece is an original “broadside” as it would be called in the book-arts world.  And normally I might have submitted it for exhibit in a book-arts kind of gallery like the 23 Sandy Gallery.  But, Barney, who runs a frame-shop-gallery in Oklahoma saw the piece in my studio here on the West Coast, liked it and wanted to frame it and exhibit it along with the other artwork of mine he was selecting for delivery to his gallery.

I do my best to keep my gallery-owners happy so I agreed. All the art he requested got shipped – including “Gardener’s Prayer”. He was happy. I was happy. Judy was happy.  Then life went on. 

When he told me today that the work had sold he also said of this piece “it’s a gem”.  He talked of how much attention this particular piece had gotten, how the client who ended up buying it had come to ‘visit’ it multiple times before buying. He went on to say that he thought it might be a good idea for me to do more such things, maybe make a book of such poetic-artistic-meditations-on-daily-life.

So now I’m thinking about doing that. Over the many years I’ve worked with Barney he’s had a number of great suggestions for my art/career… so I take his suggestions seriously. And I think Judy will play poetry+art again with me … and I write poems sometimes myself… and I’m also flirting with thoughts of collecting some other poet/writers very short thoughts (ideally word-play) about some aspect of daily life.

My question is how to go about it?  Must ruminate more on this topic… Please share your comment/thoughts too.

Anyway here is the “Gardener’s Prayer”:

Poem by Judy Sullens. Art (cut handmade paper) and Calligraphy by Sue Clancy.

my book art in Nebraska

Tonight’s the night! Some time back I’d posted about artwork that I was sending to the Constellation Studio Gallery in Nebraska… and tonight is the opening party!! This exhibit and project is a big-deal-international-book-arts-collaboration of artistic “interpretations of urbanity”! So when I say “party” I mean world-wide PARTY!!!

Here, for the curious, is the link to my post about the artwork I’d sent to Nebraska an eon ago https://sueclancy.com/2016/09/15/more-star-stuff/  Yes, Virginia, you can see my actual artwork in that link above.

And here is a photo of the exhibit sent to me via the gallery director! (Thanks Karen!)  My artwork is in there… somewhere.

Installation view of the exhibit at Constellation Studio Gallery in Nebraska (work by Sue Clancy is in this photo… somewhere)

Here is an image with the details about the party tonight… and about the exhibit in general. Did I mention that this is a big-deal-international-collaboration?!

And I’m proud and honored to be a part of it!!  Going to go happy dance around my studio!

Details about “Invisible Cities” at Constellation Studio in Nebraska