A Tour Through

My friend and talented colleague, Liz Zunon, invited me to a blog tour, which I am very excited to hop on... It's wonderful to participate with the artistic/illustrative community in this way, and to be considered by my fellow artists. 

It has been quite a while since I have posted, mostly due to the fact that lately I have been spending my non-desk job hours creating new work, rather than going to markets this year.  In fact, I have only participated in one market/festival this summer--Troy River Fest.  I have found that refraining from doing markets limits the amount of time I have to be "on," in a sense, selling something (my desk job is very customer service oriented).  Not adding a sixth "on" day has greatly contributed to my ability to reserve energy and sanity.  I have also provided myself with self-evaluative time, to let the creative process work. 

I've been very interested in birds lately-- colors, meanings, songs... I have been noticing the cardinals flitting about, and am excited every time I hear a "pretty bird" warble in the distance, or see a glimpse of red flutter in the green.  I've begun a triptych, three 4"x4" wooden panels, each with a different bird of a primary color (yes, indeed, a cardinal is one), to create a complete piece about happiness, self-worth, and abundant creativity.  It is the most commercialized I've been able to make my artwork, and still maintain my convictions about the work I do.



So what are those convictions?  How is my work different than any other artist out there working in the field?  A lot of it has to do with the material I use.  I take fashion magazines like Glamour and Vogue, as well as pop gossip magazines like People and US Weekly, and cut them up to use their color and texture like paint.  By doing this, I differ from other artists in a few ways.  The first is that I choose these magazines for the very fact that they are exploitative-- not just of women, but of people.  They promote an idealized, consumerist, wasteful, over-sexualized approach to life, economics, and social interaction, that is devoid of love, connection, and humanity.  Some of this is through the articles, especially in the case of the gossip magazines, but most of this approach is conveyed through advertising.  So I cut it up and turn it into something else.  The second way I differ from other artists through my use of materials, is that many collage artists will reappropriate images in their work, which I do not do (although most illustrators who use collage do create their own images).  The third way I differ from other collage artists is the scale of the work and the exclusive use of magazine paper -- the tiny cuts, without paint or other media to layer or fit them together.

So what is it that I illustrate?  What is the new content of these colors and textures?  All of my artwork contains the four natural elements in some respect-- earth, air, fire and water.  This is the backdrop for all my work.  All of these elements exist in the world in which we live, all working together, and we can view this cooperation as a model for ourselves.  Although, like in the game rock, paper, scissors, one element could trump another in some way, this natural intertwining is not how the elements play.  Rather, new phenomena are created-- storms, smoke, creatures... and rather than any force winning, these phenomena add layers to our world.  The foreground of my work focuses on totem animals.  I cull meanings for animals from various Native American cultures, choosing the ones that best fit the piece and the meaning I want to convey (occasionally I will draw from other cultures, i.e., African, East Asian, when an animal I want to use is not native to the Americas).  Sometimes I will juxtapose two animals together, or have their meanings run alongside one another.  For example, in the piece "To Know Bounds," I wanted elements that represent not only relationships and the deepening of them, but also elements that work together to suggest an intuition about boundaries and knowing one's limits within a relationship-- when to move forward, to prod, and when to sit back and let things go on their own.  The moth and rabbit were perfect for this. 

Progression for Keeper of Secrets © 2013.

To create a piece, I first start with a sketch.  I use many reference photos before I get a sketch I'm really psyched about.  Then I start cutting.  First I go through magazine after magazine to form a little bank of colors and textures I want to use.  If I'm lucky, I may already have a pretty good bank from the last few pieces I've worked on.  Then I choose an element (usually the animal in the foreground) and start with the tiny cuts.  I paste them together with acrylic medium.  Once the animal elements are done, I start with the background.  This part is difficult.  If not done correctly, it can fall flat, or be too chaotic.  And oftentimes, the paper can get bubbly and crinkly, which doesn't lend itself well to reproductions, so those pieces don't get printed.  Once I've completed the piece, I go over the surface with an acrylic varnish, to protect the paper and keep all the little bits together.  Then I scan the piece into the computer, for later use in reproduction, and just to have a record of the work.

So... to further this blog tour, I invite you to take a look next week at the work of Ali Herrmann.  Although not an illustrator of books, she is another artist who is illustrating our world.

"For The Nest"

I recently completed the following collage, which is inspired by a good friend of my loved one.  At a friend's wedding this past fall, he talked to me for hours about his spirit animal: the osprey.  I so admired his conviction that the osprey is the best, most stately and graceful animal on the planet, and I had already been thinking of doing a piece on an osprey.  So, after several months of letting my mind work with that inspiration, here is the art!

This piece is about commitment: to the pursuit of one's own goals and desires, to holding onto those achievements once they're attained, to others (particularly family), and also the commitment of others to oneself.

"For The Nest"
5"x7" cut paper on wood panel
© Nicolette Callaway 2014

I also currently have a piece in a juried group show, "Small Works," at the Shirt Factory Gallery in Glens Falls, NY through the month of April.  If you're around, check it out, but otherwise, please feel free to view online.

"One"
5"x5" cut paper on canvas
© Nicolette Callaway 2013

The Measure of the Artist

The question of artistic success is one that has plagued artists for centuries, and often weighs heavily on me as an artist.  I wonder whether what I'm doing makes a difference in the world, or whether the simple creation of a piece of art is valuable absent a monetary amount that someone is willing to pay for it.  Of course, pricing one's work is a whole other animal that is similarly problematic, and I recently faced this when I created a commissioned piece for a fellow Albany-dweller. 

We had spoken of the piece and I produced a rough sketch along with a discussion of the work's meaning, as well as a ballpark price.  Once I had completed the work, I realized it did not take me as long as I had projected, and, having used an hourly rate as a basis for pricing my work for a number of years now, I quoted a lower price.  My commissioner (and artistic supporter) immediately let me know how foolish this was, and told me to leave the hourly rate for my "survival job," stating that as far as the artistic work goes, if I can do it, I can, whether it takes me 15 minutes or 15 years.  Quite encouraging, I'd have to say. 

So back on to success -- certainly, having had a piece of art commissioned and sold, I felt momentarily more successful as an artist.  But does this mean that if several months pass from this point without another commission or original piece sold, that I will feel less successful?  Possibly.  Or will I feel successful as long as I am creating work?

In 2012 I completed two pieces.  For this, there were a number of factors.  In 2013, I created 12, one of which spanned three large canvas panels.  I figured that as long as I am creating one piece a month, with a full-time job that is unrelated to my artwork, I'm doing pretty well.   It is now March of the next year, and I have created three pieces, one of which I am not completely sure is finished.  This is my first experience of having to put a piece away in hopes to come back to it later with fresh and clearer perspective.  Does this mean I have reached the depths of what it is to be an artist?  Or does it mean I am working at too surface a level?  I don't know.  But I do know that in 2009, when I was not working full time, I created 20 pieces of art, and none were as sophisticated as the work I am doing now.

And I guess the biggest measure of personal success is really only individual feeling, anyway.  I just keep reminding myself: art is slow. 

And I do feel successful.

"The Time Is Almost", 4"x4", cut paper on wood panel

 

"Song Springs Devotion", 6"x6", cut paper on wood panel

Daily Grind, new Website

I have artwork currently on display through the month of August at The Daily Grind in Troy, NY. Definitely check it out if you're over that way.

Also, I have launched my new website: www.nicolettecallaway.com. Woohoo! Take a look! 

Troy Night Out, Delmar

It's that time again! Troy Night out tomorrow night-- my piece, "Keeper of Secrets," depicting a lynx, will be exhibited in the Fence Select show at the Arts Center. 

Then on Saturday, from 9am to 1pm, I'll be at the Delmar Farmers Market at Bethlehem Central Middle School, selling prints, cards, stickers, and original collages. 

As a reminder, you can purchase my prints and cards online at Etsy.com, or at The Cheese Traveler in Albany or T and J Soaps in Troy. Or just email me.

Upcoming: First Friday in Albany (7/5), I'll have collages exhibited at The Cheese Traveler, at Mingle restaurant, and at the Upstate Artists Guild gallery on Lark Street, in their "Midsummer Night's Dream" show. Don't miss it!

Troy River Fest

It's tomorrow! Saturday, June 15th, 10-5. Come check it out! Art, crafts, food, music, and other fun!

New Illustrations

I'm focusing time this year on moving into the children's book market.  One step I've taken is to create collage pieces that clearly move through a known story: Aesop's "The Crow and the Pitcher."  I've added a snipe to the story in a reenvisioning of the classic fable, and for an element of competition.  In keeping with my M.O., each piece contains the four natural elements in some form, and the birds are totem animals.  I'd be interested to hear your thoughts and comments, if you'd like to post them.

Overcoming Obstacles I - © 2013 Nicolette Callaway
5"x5" cut paper on canvas

 

 

 

Overcoming Obstacles II - © 2013 Nicolette Callaway
5"x5" cut paper on canvas

Overcoming Obstacles III - © 2013 Nicolette Callaway
5"x5" cut paper on canvas

Art on Lark

Don't forget Art on Lark this Saturday! There will be tons of art, music, and food vendors. I'll be there selling prints, cards and stickers! Come on out!

Also, remember 1st Friday this Friday. I've got new work up at Mingle (540 Delaware Ave) for the month. Yes, it is my work, not artwork by Nicolette Sheridan, as the 1st Friday printed maps incorrectly indicate. 

Look forward to seeing you there!

The Path

My most recent piece, The Path, is a triptych, spanning three 8"x10" canvasses.  It is on display for just a few more days at Stage 1 of the Albany Barn, and I recommend checking it out in person if you can.

The Path I began while I was recently in Austin, TX.  Vultures and hawks are commonplace on roads and in the air, about as common as falcons and hawks are in the northeast.  The interesting thing about vultures is that they are about purification, of moving through one part of the life cycle (death) into the next (birth; sustainability).  The deer is about innocence, of politeness, beauty, grace.  Hawk is a messenger, a protector of the air, and is associated with temperance.  The gryphon, while a mythological creature, is a guardian, a conduit, on the path toward spiritual enlightenment.  As the viewer moves his or her eyes from left to right across these three canvasses, he/she can read this path.  It is not a death of innocence, but a movement out of -- the innocence sustains the vultures, which purify and move it forward into something else, something weightier, from land, through fire and water, and into air.  The hawks watch over and protect during this transition, and the gryphon is present at the end to urge and guide, representing ultimate spiritual enlightenment, a self-awakening.

I welcome any and all thoughts on what you as a viewer may have read from this piece.  Artist intention is only one part of the artistic process.

"Seeing Green: Environmentally Conscious Art" - New Exhibit

May's 1st Friday is a big one.

Just last evening I hung a show at the Stage 1 Gallery of the Albany Barn (46-48 N. Swan St., Albany).  "Seeing Green: Environmentally Conscious Art" will feature seven pieces of mine, as well as works by four other artists.  As you may know, all of my artwork is created from very small pieces of paper cut from celebrity gossip and fashion magazines, transforming the magazines into collages focused on the four natural elements and totem animals, that make a larger statement about how we live in our natural world and how we connect with each other.  My art is dually environmentally conscious.

Three of my new pieces are on display; one is a triptych I created when I was away in Austin, TX for three weeks.  The piece is called "The Path" and features five vultures, two hawks and a gryphon.  Really, it's about purification, a movement away from a stage of innocence, through a self-awakening and on toward spiritual enlightenment.  (A picture is below, but unfortunately it came out a bit blurry, so you'll really just have to get on out to the show.)

As I said in my last post, about fifteen of my pieces are currently on display at Mingle (540 Delaware Ave., Albany).  Though I do not have new pieces there, likely there are pieces you have not seen, so I recommend getting out there, having drinks/dinner, and checking out some artwork.  Support local business and local artists at the same time!

"The Path"
8"x10" (triptych)
cut paper
© Nicolette Callaway 2013

Show at Mingle

Many of my collages are currently on display at Mingle, a fantastic restaurant at 540 Delaware Ave in Albany, and will be up throughout the month of May. Definitely go have dinner or a drink there and check it out!

To Know Bounds

Though I have not posted for a while, I have not been absent from art.  As many changes have taken place for me in the new year, so too have things been taking shape with collaging.

Below is the piece I completed in February.  The moth is a totem you may remember from one of my posts on reading signs and spirit guides a few months back.  As you may recall, the moth is about relationships, about following your senses, observation and intuition to know whether a relationship, of any type, with a particular person, is right for you.  The rabbit I recently came to discover is one of my totem animals.  I had wondered over the last few years, in creating pieces with totem animals, when I would discover which animals represent me.  Though I know I do not yet have all of them, the rabbit is indeed one.  Rabbit is about boundaries.  It is about knowing which boundaries are appropriate to keep and maintain strong, and which ones to leap beyond, to risk venturing outside of them in order to grow and change.

When these two totems come together, they suggest that we must all be aware of what boundaries are necessary for particular relationships to thrive.  How far to push?  How far to be pushed?  Where do you begin and I end?  We do not have to sacrifice our boundaries to achieve closeness.  We get to protect ourselves and hold ourselves sacred, and still be loved.

To Know Bounds
cut paper on canvas panel, 8"x10"
© 2013 Nicolette Callaway

Lynx

Amazing what one can get done when focused.  My most recent piece, below, depicts a lynx.

Lynx guards secrets.  Those with lynx power can see others' fears, lies, and self-deceptions.  Practice strength through silence.  Keep confidences.  Choose words carefully.

© 2013 Nicolette Callaway

"Keeper of Secrets"

magazine paper with acrylic glaze

Craft fairs

It looks as though until the summer I will be presenting my wares once a month at the Albany JCC monthly craft fair. Today it's 11-3, and you should definitely come check it out.

Additionally, please note that I have cards, prints, originals, and tote bags at The Cheese Traveler shop on Delaware Ave. in Albany, and cards at T&J Soaps on River St. in Troy. You may go buy them anytime the shops are open!

Stickers! Now on Etsy!

Stickers have arrived!  Whoohoo!

Fox, Wolf, Owl and Turtle are all available in sticker form on Esty and at markets and craft fairs.  Each measures 2"x2" and are printed on vinyl for longer use!

Each animal is from an original collage, and has a special Totem meaning, too!

Fox represents magic, shapeshifting, invisibility, and family relationships. (From original artwork, When The Time Is Right, 2009)
Wolf represents intuition, learning and spirit, and reminds us not to waste our natural resources. (From original artwork, The Spirit Awakens Us, 2009)
Owl represents wisdom, prophecy, and listening to oneself. (From original artwork, Transformation of Knowledge, 2011)
Turtle represents the earth, grounding, nurturing, protection, boundaries, self-reliance and balance. (From original artwork, The Depth of Joyful Timelessness, 2010)

(I'm not sure why some photos are upside down.)

All designs and artwork © Nicolette Callaway. Artist retains all reproduction rights.

New Collage - "Let the Spirit Take You"

I began my most recent piece in April.  I finished it last week.  Five months may seem like a long time, but sometimes art requires that an artist let a piece simmer while doing and experiencing other things.  In the last five months, much has happened.  Lessons have been learned.  Time has moved both quickly and slowly, things have been gained and lost, and hearts have been broken and mended.  This piece speaks to all of that.

The animal totems that appear in "Let the Spirit Take You" (2012) are hummingbird, tortoise, and dog (Golden Retriever).  The hummingbird is a symbol for accomplishing the impossible, and finding joy in all things.  The tortoise represents longevity, persistence, patience, slowing down enough to identify what's really important, and finding the abundance in simplicity.  The dog generally represents faithfulness and protection, and the ability to love.  The Golden Retriever in particular holds qualities of confidence, patience, friendliness and domesticity.

In this piece, all of these totems surround a woman.  She is relaxed, yet vulnerable.  And with vulnerability comes fear.  The hummingbirds are flying at her head, sort of kamikaze-style.  Perhaps they are trying to make most apparent that she can accomplish anything, and that she doesn't have to think about the how but rather just feel the joy of wherever the Spirit takes her.  The tortoise provides stability for her to recline, but it is in her face, talking to her, making a point.  Perhaps it is telling her to slow down and, again, not think so much, but rather watch, be patient, make it through.  The retriever is lying on her feet.  It doesn't worry.  It loves.

Recently I had a conversation with someone about the nature of love.  It is immutable, flexible, infinite, expandable, and unoppressive -- and solid.  Love isn't fleeting, contrary to what many may think.  Love allows us to break, and allows us to mend.  It helps us complete the cycles we experience throughout life.  Where would we be without it?  Likewise, Love's friends -- Patience and Persistence, among many -- are also our helpers.  They all work together to help us accomplish what we never thought possible.  And when we let them help us out, things like how and time -- well, how shows up, and time moves without us even realizing.  Perhaps that's part of the key -- don't think so much.  Let the Spirit take you.

"Let the Spirit Take You"
2012
paper and acrylic medium

Market Saturdays

Just a reminder - I'm at the Delmar Farmer's Market every Saturday morning, 9am-1pm, at Bethlehem Central Middle School.  I will be missing the next two weekends, but I will be back on September 22nd.  Please feel free to email me in the meantime about any artwork, prints, cards, sock monsters, or jewelry -- I can always arrange to meet you during the week for an exchange!

This past Saturday, three small butterflies flew in or through my tent -- two white ones, and the third one was brown.  Any hazards at a guess for the meaning on that series of encounters?

Below is an image from market.  Thanks so much to the customer who snapped this photo!

Shifting

Things are shifting.  All signs point in that direction. 

When this seems to be the case for me, I watch the animals around me.  These are the animals that eventually show up in my artwork.  What do they have to say to me?  What is their message?  Sometimes I am distracted and can't hear them.  So I research them -- find out their totem meanings.  Then I single out the one or few meanings that fit for me in that moment the animal and I shared.

Recently I experienced four (five) totem animals all in a row.  While I relate this story, I will admit that I am a bit trepidatious to reveal parts of my personal life.  How can a set of experiences so personal to me mean anything to someone else?  By example.  Hopefully, my story will show others how to examine the encounters they have in their own lives.

So I recently started seeing a man.  And while we were on his back porch, a large moth (we're talking near-bat, here) flew at my head kamikaze-style, and into his house.  It landed on his wall.  It was a mottled grey moth, but when it flew, the underside was a brilliant red, making it look almost like a monarch butterfly when in flight.  After studying the moth for a few moments, we did a trap-and-release maneuver for the moth, letting it back outside, to fly at someone else's head.

Now, I have created pieces with moths in them before, but it has been a little while, and if I am not currently working with a particular totem, I will tend to lose track of its entire meaning.  Moth, I was thinking, is transformation.  And while it does symbolize that, as far as totems go, transformation is more the meaning for a butterfly than a moth.  Turns out, moth is a messenger, and a symbol for relationships. Moth will reveal true feelings that are hidden, and trust you to know whether the person you are with is right for you.  Well, this moth nearly hit me in the head.

The next totem animal in this series is the black ant.  They are crawling, one by one, all throughout the man's house.  Black ant also has appeared in my artwork before.  Industriousness, discipline, patience, persistence.  To show us how we can be the architects of our own lives, and can build all of our dreams in time.

The next day, I sat under a tree.  Not to sound too much like Buddah here, I was on my lunch break, having a sort of crisis of fear.  A squirrel ran over, climbed the tree, sat on a limb, and stared me down.  Distracted by the workday and the fear, I could not hear what it was saying to me.  But squirrel (also having appeared in my artwork), while symbolizing gathering and preparedness, also seeks to show us when to unburden ourselves. When is the point where we have collected too much, and are storing burdens of thought that make us inactive?  I believe that squirrel was telling me to drop those fears and move forward.

As I was trying to listen to the squirrel, I had been noticing that my hand kept getting tickled by something.  Without looking, I tried to brush it away.  It came back.  After the squirrel stopped staring me down, I looked at my hand.  A little yellow bee was buzzing around it, as though my hand had a dusting of pollen on it.  Reminding the bee that I was not a flower, I moved from my spot.  The bee probably would not have stung me, though.  As all of these animals were, the bee too was a messenger.  It has been a few years since I created a piece with a bee in it, and that piece hangs on my wall.  Bee is a symbol of fertility and accomplishment, and the bee reminds me to strive for my dreams, to work with others as well as alone, and to work in such a way that I always have time for myself.

These four totem animals in such rapid succession suggest to me that I am on the right path, and will have what I seek in time, as long as I keep watching and listening, moving with steadfastness and patience, being true to myself.  And these totems will likely show up in a new piece of artwork within the coming few months.

While I am not going to bring this post back full-circle, and discuss how all of these encounters relate to a new relationship, I will say that any reader may feel free to analyze if they so choose.  I will also note that these four totems may show up in the new piece along with rabbit, who jumped out at me a few days later.  Rabbit, the keeper of fertility and new life, also reveals the need for planning, and often suggests that success and movement ahead will come in leaps and bounds.  Leaps and bounds.

 

Art on Lark

Come check out Art on Lark 2012 this Saturday, June 9th, 10am-5pm (tomorrow!).  There will be music, food, and of course, lots of art!  I'll be hawking my wares closer to Madison Ave, offering fine art prints, card prints, original artwork, handmade jewelry, hand sewn fabric bags, and, of course, sock monsters! 

I'm looking forward to the weather getting rain completely out of its system today so that tomorrow is bright and calm and balmy, with nonexistent wind action.  Let's see the power of positive thinking!

Prints are up on Etsy

The images you may have seen before, but the items are new.  All prints are on 8.5"x11" archival museum paper, with the image centered at a size slightly smaller than 5"x7".  They're ready to go in a frame, or if you want to get fancy, you could stick them behind an acid-free matte.  Most are limited edition runs, but my signature piece, "When The Time Is Right" (fox and owl), is an open run.  They're really quite a nice addition to any wall, mantle or buffet.  Check 'em out.  www.nicolettecallaway.etsy.com