Lisa Call

Beaded ACEO #1
©2007 Lisa Call
3.5" x 2.5"
Beaded ACEO – textiles, beaded, thread
Purchase Here

Huh?

When organizing my new studio I came across the above ACEO* that I made a few years back. It was the very first ACEO I made and clearly not my normal type of art.

Shiny non cotton fabric, lots of beads – not trademarkl Lisa Call. Definitely one of those fun playing days in the studio.

In the big studio reorg all of these types of fabrics have been pulled to the side as I have no plans to do anything with them again so this is definitely a unique one of a kind sort of thing.

I do think I’ll make more beaded aceos (hence the name), as I love beading, but they’ll be quite different. More on that another day when I finish a small beaded piece I’ve been working on for years.

Nearing the Finish Line

I have a big studio deadline on Tuesday. Images of the 2 textile paintings for the secret show have to be in the mail (fed ex) by the end of the day. So – where am I?

I’ve put in 100 hours since June 10th finishing the quilting on these 2 pieces. Tonight I finished the first half of the second quilt, leaving me about 35 hours of quilting to do in the next 4 days. That is a lot of work, especially with a full day of work on fri and mon. I can see some serious focus will be called into play this weekend.

Please send lots of good vibes my way! I’m sure I can do it -because I want to! I’m loving all this studio time and some extra positive energy is always great also.

 
* ACEO stands for “art cards, editions and originals”. Originally known as ATC, Artist Trading Card, and are traded between artists. When sold to the public they are referred to as ACEOs. The primary rule for an ACEO or ATC is they be 3 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ – the size of a trading card. They are created in many different mediums and are collectible, trade able and affordable art for everyone.

I’m still not feeling 100% so not up to doing another post about my lighting just yet. So as you wait, please check out my brilliant bead artist friend Julie’s brand new website (textile inspired jewelry from seed beads – it’s amazing).

Julie Powell’s Website

 
Big congrats to Julie for being accepted into this year’s Cherry Creek Arts Festival in July. She’s going to be a hit.

Square Dance #1    ©1999    14"x 14"

Miscellaneous Stuff in Random Order

• This week I received Alyson Stanfield’s new book in the mail – I’d Rather be in the studio! It’s beautifully designed and full of tons of useful promotion ideas and strategies for artists. I definitely recommend this book, and not just because I’m quoted. I helped Alyson by looking over the chapter about having an online presence and she turned one of my comments into a quote. Okay she had me write a quote in relationship to something I said about blogging. Check out page 112 for my brilliant comment.
• Super talented artist Deidre Adams has started a blog. She photographed some artwork for me and in exchange I showed her how easy wordpress is to use. So now we can all enjoy Deidre’s Blog.
• Today the last of my 450 postcards to promote my solo show Markings: Repetition and Pattern arrived. I order from Vistaprint – in several small orders (it’s the cheapest way) so they’ve been trickling in the last week. Tomorrow I’ll print out labels and stamp them and get them in the mail. I’m very happy we now have self adhesive stamps.

Making Room for the New

I’ve been listening to Cheryl Richardson on CD recently and she reinforces something that Christine Kane talks about in her retreats and eseminars. That of getting rid of things to make way for creativity and passion. I made a detailed list (what a surprise) of all the clutter in my house and I’m slowly tackling each corner, ruthlessly purging piles of stuff that I no longer need or want or that drains my energy.

One thing I’ve decided to do is sell most my older artwork. Much of it is hidden in a closet and serving no purpose. I’d love for it to find a home in this world if it speaks to someone. I hadn’t hit upon how to go about doing this but the other day when photographing artwork for some reason I grabbed this piece and added it in. I think the universe was telling me to just do it and stop thinking I had to have the perfect plan.

Beads

I love all of the work I’ve made in my path as an artist. I used to not feel this way, and hence it’s hiding in the closet. Sure some is better than others but all of it shows my growth,choices and progress. There is nothing to be ashamed of and there are some really cool pieces lurking in there.

I went through a phase where I was obsessed with beads. Bought tons of them. Thought I’d sew them on all my quilts. Instead I made just 2 or 3 embellished pieces. I then moved to the next thing in my development

[side note - the last year or so I got back into some beading work and when I finish the piece I'll post it. I still love the beading - I just love the type of work I do now more. That's a topic for another day - why I choose to narrowly define my focus with my artwork.]

The piece here, Square Dance #1, was started in a workshop with David Walker many years ago. I quilted it and added the beads later, completing the piece in 1999.

Detail of beading:

 
I’ve thought about listing these pieces on ebay or etsy but decided to list them on my website for now. As I work on the redesign to incorporate them I’ll list a few here on the blog.

This artwork is for sale and is $50 Sold. It’s signed Lisa Leutenegger on the front (as are all pieces made before 2001) and I’ve resigned it on the back with my birth name (Lisa Call).