Lisa Call

Home #59
©2010 Lisa Call
3.5" x 2.5"
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed and painted by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$40 + shipping
Purchase Here

Studio

Today has been a fabulous studio day, designing 2 new large textile paintings in my Structures series (these will be #113 and #114). They feel like the first step forward in this series in a while so it was very exciting.

I can’t show images of them as I might enter them into Quilt National (a big juried art quilt show) and they have a zillion rules about pre-publication of the artwork. It’s easier to just not show the artwork than to read and understand the rules.

Last week I made a few new black and white mini textile paintings with my hand stamped and painted fabric to include in my July studio newsletter. The above piece is one of them. I’ve got some wonderful ideas on where to take these black and white pieces in the future.

In fact I have a zillion ideas of directions to go, my brain is over flowing with inspiration. Making art kinda does this – it inspires more art.

Newsletter

As I mentioned, I emailed my July studio newsletter yesterday. It was a lot of fun to write and pull together.

The topic of my essay was transition – as there is a lot of that at my house these days with my son heading off to college any minute now (although please please, can he finish cleaning his room before he goes).

If you aren’t a subscriber you can view it online here: Lisa Call’s July Studio Newsletter.

If you want to subscribe go here.

Color Improvisations Catalog

The first 10 catalogs from Color Improvisations arrived from Germany this week and I’ve packaged them up and will take them to the post office on monday. I’ve sold 40 catalogs this week and of this writing there are only 10 remaining for sale.

This could be the end of them. It’s a lot of work to track the orders and pack them up. It’s been a labor of love to share this beautiful art with everyone. If there is still a huge demand after these last 10 are gone, I might reconsider. Or not – I want to make art!

Anyway, if you don’t have one yet but want one – the webpage to order is here: Color Improvisation Catalogs

A few images of the packaging event earlier today:

The catalogs. The colors of the books aren’t exactly in this photo (the orange is the most off on my screen) – but it gives you an idea. The hardcover book is 10″x10″.

 

The boxes. I spent some time investigating how best to package the books so they were 1) cheap to mail and 2) wouldn’t get ruined in the process. In the end boxes were the best option – they cost a bit more but I think the books will survive their travels through the US mail better this way. I order 50 boxes from uline and they arrived in just 2 days. With shipping I think they cost around $1 each.

 

The packaging. I’m reusing bubble wrap from my past. Good thing I’m a packrat and never through this stuff out. I am likely to run out so I will put an email in at work tomorrow and hope some coworkers have some in their basement they want to share. Plan B is the use all those plastic grocery bags in my closet. They make for good cheap packaging all crinkled up.

A couple of quick notes:

1) The response has been quite overwhelming for the Color Improvisation catalogs. It’s so exciting to see the enthusiasm people have for this exhibit and the catalog. Thanks to all of you for that support.

I was able to get a second batch and set up a webpage for people to purchase them as all the blog comments were a lot to keep track of. Paypal is much simpler. (If you can’t do paypal I will take a check).

If you want to buy one of the remaining catalogs go here: Color Improvisation Catalogs

Here’s an interesting note – the orange ones always sell out first, followed by blue. We’ll see how the race goes between green, purple and yellow in the next few days.

2) My incomplete projects list is just about done – so a post on that will be coming soon.

3) I have a final design on my landscape and I’m getting bids this week for the work. Someone should be out there moving dirt around pretty soon – woohoo!

4) I’m working on artwork for the Quilt National (a big juried art quilt show) deadline in September. I can’t show the work in progress online so I’ll have to think of something else to blog about over the next few weeks.

5) The Artful Home studio sale ends on July 29th. After that date you are unlikely to see any of this art work for sale again (well except a few of the Chairs pieces). It’s time to get rid of the old and move forward with the new.

If you have your eye on any of the next few days are your last chance to buy them. (here)

If you just want to see images of the work and by pass Artful Home – I wrote a blog post about them here .

If you are interested in a piece but would prefer to make payments over time, I can arrange that also.

6) I’m working on my July studio newsletter and will be emailing it by the end of the month. If you aren’t a subscriber you can do that here: Lisa Call’s Studio Newsletter

6) It’s bedtime. Sleep well everyone!

Home #55
©2010 Lisa Call
6″ x 6″
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
Mounted on stretched canvas
$190 + shipping

Purchase Home #55 with a single payment:

Purchase Home #55 with 3 monthly payments of $64 each

New Art

I’m excited about Home #55 above, as in addition to sporting my newly rediscovered old hand painted fabrics, I did some free motion quilting on the textile painting. Something I haven’t done in years.

The free motion quilting I’ve done is called stipple quilting. You can’t see it in the photo above as it’s black thread on black (in the background) and the light in my studio isn’t very good in the evening for photos – so I’ll add a detail shot to my blog tomorrow when I have better light.

Stipple quilting is an organic line that meanders about the space, never crossing itself. I felt the organic quilt line in the back ground would compliment the print in the fabric nicely and it does look great.

What fun to revisit old techniques I haven’t used in years.

And chartreuse with black and white. What could be better than that?

I just finished this little piece and I also just finished quilting Dream #40 (photo of completed textile painting coming soon) so now it’s back to Structures #112 in the studio tomorrow.

Landscaping

Today I met with the landscape architect and we talk about a final revision I want in the plan. With this change (well – depending on what he does to the drawing) I think it will finally feel right.

I’m looking forward to moving on to phase 2 of this project – ie actually doing the work. Can you imagine? Getting to go outside of your house and sit down and enjoy the outdoors.

I’ve felt fairly trapped in my house because I have no landscaping. It’s not bad in the winter but during the summer it drives me a bit mad.

It’s help that this year I’m running – so I’m outside more. But I do need to get out and hike to enjoy more of the glorious Colorado summer. Maybe this weekend.

Home #54
©2010 Lisa Call
8″ x 8″
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
Mounted on stretched canvas
Purchase Here

Hand Painted Fabrics

In 1998 I took a class from Natasha Kempers-Cullen to learn her techniques for painting and printing with Profab textile paints.

For a few years after the class, I spent hours and hours painting, stamping and eventually screen printing fabric with these textile paints. It was incredibly fun and the paints are non-toxic so I enjoyed this activity with my kids.

Our process evolved from that which Natasha taught, mostly in the direction of being very messy as I had a 4 year old helping out.

It was great fun.

It is also a very slow process, so I never did produce very much fabric. I eventually turned to dyeing vs. painting and this era of my surface design came to an end.

Black and White

Last night I was perusing the internet looking at art on blogs and came across some black and white artwork.

I thought now that I’ve completed my purple and orange exercise, it was time to make a black and white Home textile painting.

Solid black and white wasn’t calling to me so in the back of my mind I recalled I might have painted some black and white fabrics. And sure enough – I did:

It’s not much, probably about 1/2 yard total at most, but enough to make a few small textile paintings.

Home #54

So off to my studio I went. Last night and this morning I created the above quilt.

It was fun to use heavily patterned fabrics in my artwork and definitely new, as I’ve used exclusively solids for nearly 10 years now.

The pattern inside the house is from a rubber stamp I made. I never did know what I’d do with it but it makes for a lovely house.

I’m looking forward to make a few more of these before the fabric runs out.

Checking In

I haven’t written lately about how things are going as I move passed the depression I was dealing with a few months back.

I’m still going to acupuncture once a week. This week I didn’t have the familiar “glad I’m here as it’s time” feelings, which I consider big progress. I think I have definitely turned a corner the last few weeks and probably will start cutting down on the acuputure.

Not that I don’t’ love it but I still am not best friends with the needles.

I had a cold 4 weeks ago and just today I finally stopped coughing enough that I felt I could get back to running.

I had just reached a point in June, after 2 really good weeks of running, that I wasn’t struggling with the idea of booting myself out the door to run.

I figure the cold was just the universe’s way to test me – did I really want to do this? The answer is yes. The physical exertion is good for me. So I tied on my shoes this morning and hit the pavement.

Feels great to feel like me again.

Home #53
©2010 Lisa Call
6″ x 6″
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
Mounted on stretched canvas
Purchase Here

Completion Quest

I’ve decided I have too many incomplete projects. Time to clear some up. So I’m on a completion quest – which you can read about in my new post over on my other blog makebigart .

The article is here: A Quest for Completion.

What to join me?

New Art

Above is some brand new art, hot off the iron/sewing machine/cutting table today.

I mentioned in my last studio newsletter that I was going to making some 8″, 6″ and 4″ Home textile paintings. This is the first.

A few days ago on twitter Nemo (I featured his art in my last newsletter – see the above link for more details) asked for someone to name 3 colors.

I suggested purple, lavender and yellowish-orange. He went with green.

So I went to my studio and made Home #53 with those colors.

Speaking of completion, clearly I’m not done making artwork in the Home series – I’m still very much enjoying the process. I’m still thinking about my home, especially with the landscape project in progress.

The outside of the house weighs into the same questions about What makes a house a home?

Misc Notes

My inspiration journal is going well and I have a custom URL for it: inspiration.lisacall.com . You can subscribe in an rss reader if you use one, or you can “like” my facebook art page as the images appear there also.

The first photos from Color Improvisations, which opened last weekend in Germany, are posted. Check them out here. The show looks fabulous and I feel like I’m about the only artist participating that didn’t show up for the opening. Bummer. Looks like a great party. Next time!

Details are still being worked out on how one can purchase a catalog from the show. I hear it is amazing – can’t wait to get mine.

Letting Go

The Artful Home studio sale began yesterday. My artwork for sale here.

I always have mixed feelings about selling my older artwork. Part of me thinks “better keep this around for when I’m famous and need examples of my early work” and part of me thinks “who would want this” and part of me is worried that there are a bunch of art rules about selling older artwork and I better figure them out and follow them.

And then the part of me that likes uncluttered and spare spaces says it’s time to clear the way for the new by cleaning out some of my older artwork. And so I select a few of my older works and offer them for sale at artfulhome during their studio sale.

This time I’m offering this art at significantly lower prices than I might normally. Probably has to do with the state of my mind at the moment – a real desire to make way for something new by letting go of something old. The upcoming college tuition bills that will start rolling in this fall might have something to do with it also.

Whatever the reason, I am prepared to sell some older artwork at the moment. Although not for long, as the sale ends July 29.

Older Work

Some of this artwork isn’t necessarily recognizable as my artwork. Although the Chairs series is clearly a precursor to my structures series.

Smiley faces – hm. Not exactly me anymore. It was made for a group challenge. We were to make a face. I wasn’t going there, so I went with smileys. I was never good at rules.

Lots of beads on some of this work. I still like working with beads. I have a piece almost finished that is encrusted with beads, but this type of work is pretty rare these days.

All of this work is part of my growth as an artist. And for that this is an interesting look at history if nothing else.

The Art

El Nino
© Lisa Call
19″ x 19″
Textile Painting (fabric, netting, batting, rayon and metallic thread, beads, buttons)
$395 (purchase here)

 
 

Smile
© Lisa Call
18″ x 18″
Textile Painting (fabric, batting, thread, buttons)
$175 (purchase here)

 
 

Chicken Quartet #1
© Lisa Call
12.5″ x 13.5″
Textile Painting (vintage fabric, fabric hand dyed by the artist, batting, thread, beads, buttons)
$295 (purchase here)

 
 

Chairs #11:Spring
©2000 Lisa Call
29″ x 46″
Textile Painting (fabric hand painted by the artist, cotton batting, cotton and rayon thread)
$960 (purchase here)

 
 

Chairs #8: Yellow and Blue
©2000 Lisa Call
32″ x 32″
Textile Painting (fabric hand painted by the artist, cotton fabric, cotton batting, cotton and rayon thread)
$840 (purchase here)

 
 

Chairs #6
©2000 Lisa Call
18″ x 18″
Textile Painting (Fabric, cotton batting, rayon thread)
$195 (purchase here)

 
 

Chairs #15: Cerro Grande – Canyons Burning
©2002 Lisa Call
29″ x 40″
Textile Painting (Fabric hand painted and dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$960 (purchase here)

 
 

Insalada Caprese
©2002 Lisa Call
24″ x 24″
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$395 (purchase here)

 
 

Fractured Flies
© Lisa Call
23″ x 44″
Textile Painting (Fabric, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$195 (purchase here)

Chairs #15: Cerro Grande – Canyons Burning
©2002 Lisa Call
29″ x 40″
Textile Painting (Fabric hand painted by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$1600 $960 + shipping

Artful Home Studio Sale

This weekend is the perfect summer weekend. Yoga, hiking, cooking, relaxing with a friend, hiking, hacking large weeds out of my yard to prepare for my upcoming landscape project. And of course studio time and making progress on art biz stuff.

Today’s project is processing images of older artwork to be included in the Artful Home Studio sale. I’m adding 5 new – older pieces to the sale this round.

I’m including 3 pieces from my Chairs series. Including the one above.

The sale will run July 13 thru 29 at the artful home website.

Cerro Grande

I hand painted/dyed the fabric in this textile painting in a workshop with Ann Johnston in the Spring of 2000 in Colorado.

This was during the Cerro Grande fire, a devastating fire in New Mexico that destroyed homes and many trees in and near Los Alamos, my home town. A very sad event.

Days after dyeing the fabric, I completed the design for the textile painting but didn’t add the quilting until a few years later.

This is the last of the large quilts in the Chairs series, as not long after completing this piece, I started on my Structures series, which now numbers over 100 pieces.

 
If you can’t wait for the studio sale, let me know and you can buy this piece from my website (I’ll send you a paypal invoice or you can pay by check, or you can even pay in 3 installments of $325, whatever works for you).

Home #51 (informed by Home #13)
©2010 Lisa Call
3.5" x 2.5"
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
$40 + shipping

Moving Forward

The last few weeks I’ve been moving my art career forward in a variety of ways. I haven’t written out a plan for what I want to accomplish, but I have some general ideas about what I want to do, and so I tackle the jobs as I feel like it.

Once I feel on solid ground again with my artwork, I will get more into a routine with a more defined and structured todo list.

New Art

First I wrapped up some mini textile paintings, like the one above, and added them to my website. You can see the entire group here: mini textile paintings. Home#36 and Home #35 are new, so scroll down for a while to see them all.

I also completed Dream #41, which I mentioned a few posts ago.

I’ve selected fabric for a new Structures textile painting and am working on it slowly.

New Prices

I also revisited my prices. There were a bunch of reasons for this, some related to the economy but most related to the fact I haven’t had much time to market my artwork the past year and half since I raised the prices.

For now I’ve lowered them, and over the next few years as my marketing ramps back up I will raise the prices back to where I set them last February.

You can see the new prices on these pages:

• Collectible Small Art – small affordable artwork, mostly under $500, quite a bit under $100.
• Dwelling - the artwork from my solo show in February
• Dream – the artwork inspired by my trip to Africa
• Large Art - much of my available large art, from the Markings and Structures series
• Artful Home (search for my name for my artwork) – they are offering a 15% discount through June 30 – use code SUMMERX to get the discount when you check out

If you have any questions about prices or paypal isn’t bringing up the price you think it should please let me know.

New Website

I’ve been saying for years I was going to build a new website, entirely on wordpress. I’ve now started in in earnest and it’s going really well.

I’ve decided to use the Thesis theme for wordpress as they will do the work to keep it up to date with the newest versions of wordpress and they have good basic design. I can then focus more on the content.

Although first I am writing a custom plugin for displaying my artwork. I’m learning php and mysql and it’s great fun. Since I do project management at work and no longer do “real” software work, it’s a treat to do a bit of coding once in a while.

New Outlook

I’m still working on my new outlook on life after struggling through depression the last few months. Weekly acupuncture, yoga, massages, time with friends, talk therapy, and running are all still helping.

I mostly have good days but haven’t run in about a week and can tell I need to get out there and exercise hard. It’s a key component to feeling upbeat and postive.

Home #50 (informed by Home #13)
©2010 Lisa Call
3.5" x 2.5"
Textile Painting (Fabric hand dyed by the artist, cotton batting, cotton thread)
Sold

Adventures in Oil

I just had a fabulous weekend.

Although I intended to make much art, I didn’t. I intended to do much work on my art business, I didn’t do that either.

Instead I connected with several amazing female friends through out the weekend. I’ll be writing a blog post about connections and friends in my removing obstacle’s series soon, but this isn’t that. Just a quick weekend update, as it was fabulous to talk, walk, paint, eat and laugh with these women.

Above is a mini textile painting recently completed.

And below is a 6″ oil painting I made this weekend – similar colors and motif, different medium.

This was my second attempt at painting with oils with my fabulous friend Amy. [this is our first oil adventure a few years back]

I still know nothing about painting with oils, other than we need paint, oil and brushes. Beyond that we just went for it again. Although this time on much smaller canvases.

I found I enjoyed it much much more, instead of trying to cover a big old canvas with paint I could think more about what I was painting as I only had a small space to fill in.

Some day I might learn something about painting, but in the mean time we plan on having fun.

This was about having a joyful afternoon with a friend.

Untitled
©2010 Lisa Call
6" x 6"
Oil paint on canvas

To Houston!

As I mentioned in my studio newsletter a few months ago, I’m rewarding myself for the hard work I put into Dwelling: An exhibit of textile paintings by Lisa Call, by taking a vacation to see some art.

I’m headed to Houston for the weekend to see art, most specifically the Rothko Chapel but I’ll be viewing a lot of other art also. And getting a massage and indulging in room service. It’s going to be a fabulous break from life.

To that end I’m not bringing technology with me, no cell phone, no lap top, no nothing. No interruptions – my intention is to devote this time to relaxing and exhaling.

(okay – I admit – I’m bringing a DVD of Bones as its a rare treat to have a TV about – I intend to spend more time reading than watching but a bit of brainless relaxation is also nice).

Letting go any residual stress from the show preparation because when I get back on monday it’ll be time to ramp up on the next project and get moving.

I’ll also post the photos from my opening.

Happy weekend everyone!

Small Art

There are currently only 3 small textile paintings remaining with the house theme – they are listed on my artist card page.

A while back I wrote some articles about how to display these small works of art – you can see them here and here. And check out this cool idea also.