St. Patrick's Day Parade


A few friends and I went out to draw the St. Patrick's Day Parade yesterday, despite the unwelcome return of winter. Even with the wind, it was great to be outside drawing. It was my first time seeing the parade, partially because of its discriminatory policies against gay groups, and partially because of my fear of the drunken masses, but I ended up enjoying myself very much. I am part Irish, after all! My favorite part, though was seeing all the people who came out to march and watch. (Also, I genuinely like the sound of bagpipe music).


The marchers were often very stoic and soldierly...


...while the onlookers were more boisterous.


I loved how excited everyone was to be there and show their Irish pride. We were uptown near the Metropolitan Museum, so it was a bit more of a classy affair than what happens down in Midtown.


There were too many bagpipes to count, but I still feel as though I have no idea what the actual shape of a bagpipe is. Maybe next year!


I love the way that immigrant communities in New York often retain their distinctness amidst the melting pot of the city. The people, even if they've been here for generations, often feel like they have retained a lot of that old world spirit. My favorite of the day was the lady in the upper right, determined and undeterred by the cold.

Cubic Greco-Romans


I had the chance to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the first time in a while yesterday! I got to check out the new 65 million dollar entrance (meh) and the new Cubism show (yay!). It was a quick trip, but I got to spend a little time drawing around the Greco-Roman galleries afterwards.


It is always a nice palate-cleanser to go to such an amazing museum after working on projects for a while. It helps to scramble your brain a bit, and point it in new directions.


Can't wait to go back next week!

Magnolias and Mosaics



Recently, my boyfriend Chris and I took our first mosaic class with Yakov and Angele Hanansen at Unicorn Art Studio. The two have been doing large scale mosaics for over 30 years, and were kind, insightful, and extremely knowledgeable teachers. Both Chris and I have become addicted and can't wait to do more!


This piece was based on a drawing I did this spring (above) at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens when the magnolia trees were in full bloom, dropping their thick, fleshy petals onto the newly sprouting grass. Behind them, hillsides of daffodils glittered in the distance. It felt like a big quilt of different patterns, colors, and textures. I then turned that drawing into the design for the mosaic, below.


The process of translating a drawing into hundreds of cut pieces of stained glass is extremely meditative.


It forced my mind to think in new ways about drawing, because in a mosaic, everything must be considered. The color, size, shape, and direction of every piece and pattern is important. Intention is everything.




I had a lot of fun creating different patterns, and layering and weaving different marks and colors throughout the image.


Finally, the act of grouting was a very nerve-wracking, but exciting, and transformational experience. After working on putting the pieces together for many, many hours over 2 months, you have to smear the dark grout over all of your hard work. Then you wipe it off and see how everything has been transformed by filling in the gaps. I was surprised by how much the image changed!



Above is a little video I put together of all of the progress shots, showing the growth of the mosaic.

 

And now, finally, it is home, hanging proudly in our living room. I can't wait to start the next one!

Happy New Year!


Happy New Year! I'm a few days late, but I found this drawing and it felt like a good first post of the New Year. Pine trees are symbolic of strength in adversity, fertility, creativity, regeneration, and good luck. All good hopes for 2013!

I drew this at Kissena Park in Queens during the nice warm summer, and now that the holiday season is over, the weather is officially allowed to skip straight ahead to spring.

Seasons Changing


This past week we had some spectacular weather in New York, where it already started to feel like fall. I took one crisp, sunny day to go out in Central Park and look at the colors as summer comes to an end. Fall always seems to come and go so quickly, so I always feel much more at ease when I have days I can sit out and appreciate the beautiful change.