The Heart of the Matter

Why I Art Journal
I had an idea that I would like to use some old ledger pages for collaging and decided to add a new ledger page that would tally all the things that I use and use up on a daily basis. Since it was on ledger paper I added up the new tally and came to a grand total of $37.00 give or take a few pennies. On a side note, I thought of several things that I did not add to the list that I use on a daily basis. Like I did not add in the daily amount of utilities and phone costs and car gasoline consumed just to make it through my day. So back to the $37.00. I was mucking about looking for a focal point and thought this bag with a gold Sacajawea dollar in it would look good on the page and was busily attaching it when my eye fell on the image of the little African child licking a minute amount of food from his/er fingers so as not to miss a single bit of meal.
Feed this child for $5.00 a month.
According to this my daily consumption - DAILY - would feed this child for seven months or seven children for a month...What will it take for me to lower my consumption by $5.00 a day? Could I do it and sponsor one child a day for a year? The thought is staggering.

Keep an Art Journal in the Great Outdoors!

Here is the story and accompanying picture from the camping trip - different from my 'at home' work, but still quite fun.

Keep an Art Journal Plein Air

Camping is a way for me to reconnect
with the universe and the natural world. Normally I only take my writing journal and wait until I'm home to let the art out.

It seemed such a shame to let the long unscheduled hours to drift by without any art journaling at all that I decided that I could at least do a little bit, at least prep a few pages. I forgot about such things as wind, no running water, ants and drifting leaves and blowing dust.

Even though I didn't attempt anything using my normal acrylic paints and collaging, I was able to make a couple of satisfying pages with the water color pencils and Sharpie water-based poster paint pens. I never have enough
good reading material when I go off into the mountains I so have to make up snippets of my own, something I would love to find in
a book at the library.

I am having trouble uploading another picture so I will fool this
software and get it in another way...hope it doesn't look too out
of order.


Here is the happy camper journaling away bundled up for pre-breakfast coffee in the cool mountain air.

I think everyone would benefit from getting away from the everydayness of life and get a little uncomfortable and inconvenient in order to be in a place that's beauty is so big that it expands any mortal wishing to rise.

Keep An Art Journal - the Green Way Part II

Click on image to enlarge.

Grocery Sack Art

The pervasive plastic grocery sack is becoming an obsession with me. I have reusable grocery sacks in each car and even carry one clipped to my purse – and we still accumulate the obsequious plastic sacks by the dozens! To find a fun and creative use for them makes my heart sing.

Art Journaling

Art (art) n. 1. The ability of man to arrange or adapt natural things or conditions to his own uses. 2. The creation of works that are, in form, content, and execution, esthetically pleasing and meaningful, as in music, painting, sculpture, literature, architecture, dance, etc. 3. The principles and techniques governing the creation of such works. 4. The works so created, esp. paintings, drawings, and sculpture. 5. Skilled workmanship; craft. 6. Any skill, craft, trade or profession: the art of cooking: a teacher’s art. 7. Printing Any illustrative or decorative material that accompanies the text….

Jour-nal (jur’ nel) n. 1. A record of daily occurrences, as a diary. 2. A record of the proceedings of a legislature, club etc. 3. A daily newspaper. 4. Any periodical or magazine. 5. Naut. A logbook …

Diary (di’ e-ree) n. pl. –ries 1. A written, daily record of the writer’s experiences, feelings, activities, etc. 2. A book for keeping such a record. [diarium >L dies a day]

As you can read in the above, Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary has a lot to say about art, more than I was willing to type. The three dots mean that there were more meanings mostly to do with artifice etc. And then Mr. Webster defines Journal and in the definition used the word diary – which he also defines. The highlighting is my own.

There are as many different expressions of ‘Art Journaling” out there as there are ‘Art Journalers.’ I have taken a few (art journal) classes where there is nothing written or only one word (usually dream or believe) that is then illustrated. Then I have taken classes where there were only words, with funny fonts or embellishments. My art journaling has words, illustrations, collaging and paint! My definition – my name is close to Webster – comes down to:

Art Journaling v. The act of making a daily record of the artist’s experiences, feelings, lessons and expressions.

Art Journal n. A book for keeping a daily record of the artist’s experiences, feelings, lessons and expressions.

Art Journaling fits my life like a glove and I love it. I have book after book of pages. Pages that are the art itself and pages that have spaces left just for writing in at some other date. Being self-taught I am always experimenting with techniques I have read about. Often I don’t care for the result. When I try something out on a page-sized paper and it doesn’t do what I think it should, I can just turn the page and try again.

Another thing about art journaling is that it can be done in ten-minute (or 20, 30 etc) increments and be very satisfying. No matter what the reason, we usually do not have hours and hours to sit around with a pen or a paint brush. When I have a few minutes, even if I am not feeling artistic, I can always do a little something to a page. I always have more than one set of pages in the works.

As the pages add up the growth of the skill is obvious and progress can be seen. Progress more as progression…