I’ve got some lovely new prints up on my shop on Etsy. Do go and have a look!
I also want to thank everyone who has visited and/or took home prints from me during this winter season. I appreciate the inquiries as to where else (besides the unpredictable Union Square appearances) my prints are available. This has been an inspiration and motivation to pursue wider distribution, mainly in stores, to make it easier for people to find the work that they are looking for!
So, many thanks for the kind words and encouragement. Hope to have an update for you soon…
The other afternoon, I am on the train back to Brooklyn reading a magazine, iPod in my ears. The guy in front of me is also engrossed in his reading, iPod on as well. He’s reading from what looks like a Moleskine, which I notice because while people are always reading on the train it’s not common to see people reading from their own hand-written notebooks. Upon closer inspection I see it is not in fact a Moleskine but an e-book. I don’t know why this is startling to me but it is, maybe because I was expecting to see the off-white lined pages covered in handwriting inside. (I confess to a little spying on people’s reading on the subway).
I finger the slick, thin pages of my New York magazine and wonder: In a few years, will anyone read from actual books? Will we hold paper in our hands, feel it between our skin? Newspapers have already begun their downward slide — and this from a former newspaperwoman. I wonder what will happen when we no longer see paper as utilitarian, something to write on or read from.
It makes me want to create work on paper that is tactile and physical. I love peeling away the paper from an inked up plate after running it through a press. There’s something beautiful about a thick layer of ink on a creamy, toothy piece of hand-cut paper. Paper itself is beautiful, it begs to be touched. I hope that paper in all its utilitarian forms — books, notebooks, newspapers — does not completely go by the wayside. But if it does perhaps it will make creating work on paper more meaningful, more real.
I am loving this slideshow of “snow crystals” (via Andy Crouch’s Culture Making blog) about snowflakes. We have yet to see the first real snowfall of the winter in New York this year, although several days (including today) qualified as being cold enough, and last week the frigid rain was threatening to turn into snow one night. But some friends just 50 miles to the north have already had piles of the white stuff, and it seems it is on everybody’s mind…
It’s no secret that I draw much of my inspiration for making art from the things we find in nature. Things like the spreading branches of a tree, dozens of delicate leaves clinging on for dear life, or the stark blueness of a bright, clear sky strike me with so much beauty, sometimes I want to cry. This quote from the slideshow captions seems to capture well a similar sentiment of wonder and awe:
“They say that every snowflake is different. If that were true, how could the world go on? How could we ever get up off our knees? How could we ever recover from the wonder of it?”
The holidays are finally upon us. It seems incomprehensible that there are no more than four weekends left before Christmas Day. I’ve been busily at work in my studio making work to show and sell at holiday markets throughout December. And, I will be exhibiting my work at a cafe in Fort Greene, Brooklyn — my own neighborhood just a few blocks from my home — for the month of December. I’m very excited about this first solo exhibition of work and will let you know when it is up!
For now here is my schedule of holiday markets for December:
People often ask me whether they can buy my work online. I’ve had a little online shop on Etsy, a great online marketplace for art and handmade goods, for a while but only recently started listing more items.
I’ve finally given my Etsy shop a little makeover and have been slowly listing many of the woodcut and linocut prints I sell at Union Square. Please have a look, and feel free to provide me with feedback in the comments below!
It seems too early to be thinking about the holidays but preparations for the holiday season have been well under way. You can find me again this December at Brooklyn Lyceum’s second annual holiday craft market, a wonderful option for finding unique, creative and handmade gifts by local artists and crafts people. Look forward to seeing you there!
Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 19 – 20
11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Brooklyn Lyceum
227 4th Avenue, Brooklyn (Park Slope)
R/M train to Union Street www.bkcraftcentral.com
Halloween festivities, volunteering at the New York City Marathon (won by an American for the first time in 27 years), the awe-inspiring colors of fall, and this amazing video (paired with the beautiful Barcelona song) have been providing ample stimuli to get the creative juices flowing this weekend (not to mention the Yankees are winning….)
I never cease to feel lucky to live in the great city of New York…
… As in, missed a perfectly good day of selling this week (warm & sunny). Chalk it up to recovering from a full and hectic previous week/ weekend. Or as in, my camera, at the moment (completely, mysteriously broken. time for a new one?)
Alas, I stayed busy indoors printing and carving a new block out of wood. And finally got around to making a name card stamp. I honestly hate to waste beautiful materials when I’m making things, so having a little name card stamp makes use of not only leftover scraps of gorgeous paper, but the leftover ink I’ve used for a print run, which is hard to save. Now when people ask for my card I can give them a true mini-relief print. Sweet!
I’m delighted to have a tree print as part of a silent auction to raise funds for YKASEC, a Queens-based organization that seeks to empower the Korean American community by providing services and programs in the areas of education, civic participation, immigration, social services and culture. The organization is celebrating its 25th anniversary with fundraising gala this Thursday. Thanks Jackie, for the opportunity to contribute…
