Just call me Ms. M.A.L.S. May 24, 2009

Done. YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY! Thank you Robin Price, Marie Clark and Stephanie Weiner.
Could not have done it without their diligent help.
Final project/essay = A,
I was nominated for an essay prize, but lost
to two professional writers, so not too bummed.
My art exhibition is up.
Opening reception is this coming Bloomsday,
June 16, 2009 from 2:30 'til 4:30 at the
Baker Library Gallery 1st and 2nd floors
Norwalk Community College
188 Richards Ave. Norwalk, CT 06854
Artist's talk @ 3:30 and Tea @ 4:00 p.m.
Come one, come all! It should be fun.
More info @ 203/857-7264

Another Delay - Yay!

I spent one day maybe it was Thursday April 16, focused on laying out a one of a kind book called "Big Number." It's my distillation of the character Leopold Bloom. I decided that his knowledge of a big number, "9 to the power of 9 to the power of 9," was the essence of his rationalism. So the book has pockets, each pocket holds a card with an image on one side and the number 9 on the other. This book is finished now. I am posting photos of my planning process here. I'll post the finished work later.

Dealines shifted--"A" on Thesis paper

I have some more time to finish the books.
And I am really in a fix with them. Maybe juggling too much all at once.
Altered book is working out best so far.
Mental block about lettering Stephen book.
Don't want to ruin it. Maybe found a way to do it, this afternoon.
Hate having to wait for about three hour block of time.
I am not a very disciplined artist, STILL ...
well- a frustrating full time job is partially responsible.
I guess accepting that I have to inch along is the best attitude to take.
Not much choice to do anything else.
Oh I sound pessimistic, and I am hopeful.

New Deadline April 2

Just working on my fourth book this evening.
Finally committed to gluing on covers.
I think it came out pretty well. Photo tomorrow.
I just decided to make it be the trial version,
so psychologically I feel okay about messing it up and
can get some momentum on making the thing.
Finally sewed in apocket after thinking about it for two years.
God.
Also had good luck with final drawing last night.
A really good chance mark occurred.
Maybe a tiny bit of skill involved, but the color is
what really worked for me.
More tomorrow.

Deadline looms: Thesis is written and delivered

Here a photos of the drawings I've done so far.

Seven Days Till First Major Deadline

Well, I've been writing like a fiend. Not doing much drawing or sculpting, but I did find my angle for the Bloom book. In Ithaca Bloom mentions, well, it is mentioned that he knows of a number, 9 to the power of 9 to the power of 9 that would fill 50 volumes of multiple-page notebooks, A HUGE number. I decided to use this idea to create a background for the whole eight-page accordion fold book. I used a rubber stamp of numbers.

I also started a drawing of Bloom's cat which is posted here somewhere------>>>>

So--I am inching my way along.
My altered book is really coming along too.
Maybe I'll take a few photos and post again later tonight.

Counting down to March 15 - 26 daysto deadline

I am trying to make the (4) objects for my project, at right is a moly.
So far I have the plums, from Parable of the Plums completed, and this moly, which I completed on Sunday.
I have two more moly-ies, molies? not sure how the plural should be spelled.
Hermes/Mercury gave Odysseus moly to protect him from the spell of Circe.
Circe turned Odysseus's men into swine, but when she saw he was not effected, she mellowed and seduced him. He held out until she tuned his men back into humans. When she did they were younger and stronger.
ANYWAY, Leopold Bloom carries a shrivelled potato given to him by his mother. I decide to make the Hermes version of the moly, here I've combined the idea with the Bloom version in that it's like a sort of potato.
The original moly had black roots and white flowers. Supposedly the roots were so tenacious that no human could pull them from the ground. I used the roots of a plant I've been keeping for some reason, and artificial white flowers. I've never used artificial flowers before. I think it works pretty well.

Four days and counting

This is an attempt at the shattered chandelier in Circe.
I decided not to put the ashplant in. I took a photo of the Chandelier in the
stairway of the Joyce Center in Dublin, and this is the resulting drawing.
I need to really get going, Really really, on the books.
So far I'm very much limping along.Still. Had a talk with friend Gretchen last night which gave me some momentum. Very helpful.
"
I found the section in Cyclops where Bloom declares that "Love is what life is all about, and the Citizen (i think) retorts that "Love loves to love love. Nurse so-and-so loves- (someone), Mr' Vermuscle (?) with the ear trumpet loves Mrs Vermuscle with the turned-in eye. I really want to draw them. Esp. turned-in eye and Ear trumpet, etc...
This made me laugh out loud. Joyce can be so funny.

So my altered book will be based on the Citizen's mocking statement: "Love loves to love love." Why, yes it does, and thank goodness for that.

The relationship between Leopold and Molly, and my own playing around with the idea of relationship in a marriage.

I read an interesting article about Molly Bloom several nights ago,
"Molly Bloom: Acting Natural," found in Project Muse.
Freed me from the guilt of liking Molly a lot and not feeling that Joyce used the character as a ventriloquist's dummy to enforce the idea of Woman as Nature, incapable of following grammatical forms, etc, and therefore bad. A new area of feminist critical theory was identified in the article, Will try to post later, but in spite of feminist qualms, I love the Penelope chapter.
I find new stuff in that chapter everyday. It has 8 "hearts" in it. I was thinking somehow Joyce might have crafted a "heart" in each of the 8 sentences. But sentence 5, the short (hah) sentence has no heart.

Eight Days and Counting

Somehow having more time on weekends doesn't always mean more work gets done.

This weekend I did start and maybe finished a new drawing.
Bloom's hat and a potato. I think I want to draw another potato,
this will be a more stylized, more of a "moly" potato.
I will post all five drawings.
The covers for the Bloom book were a bust.
Literally. They won't lie flat, so it can't work,
so I tore apart one copy of Ulysses,
the one that arrived with a broken spine,
and I'm going to use those boards for the Bloom book.

I hope to do a few things tonight,
get to bed early and get going really early tomorrow.
I guess I should stop drinking tea right now.So I don't stay up until all hours and start off dog-tired tomorrow morning.

I want to see if I can "set" rhinestones into cardboard. Weird idea about Ulysses being full of gems. Also a bit tacky, hi=low-like the novel.

I push a lot of different parts of my project forward this week.
I'm in serious count down mode now. Feb 8 and I have 8 days get stuff
very pulled together.

I have to keep reminding myself that this is a fun project.
Every time I read the novel, I find something new and great or funny or that leads me off in a new direction. This weekend I searched the word heart, there are 200 uses, in some cases heart is part of a word, so it's not 200 of "heart" alone. "Heartfelt," for example, was included. Anyway, I found a reference to "The Tempest's" Prospero using a staff/or stick, like Stephen's ashplant, and drowning his book. I like the image of a drowned book.So maybe that's why an arm appeared under the ship drawing, the hand holding a plum.
I'll photograph and publish.

And this is from the book that I have to re-do entirely very shortly.
I think it's kind of funny. Drawers were a popular topic for Bloom
(note how close to Bloomers) and Molly.
Joyce apparently had a thing about drawers.
What a guy, WAG.

Image above is new this morning, too. I finally got the nerve to draw the three master ship. This relates to several settings, the opening chapter, Telemachus, when they're out at the Forty Foot, and two men are discussing a drowned man who's been missing for (9) days? The drowned man will be under the ship. "Here I am," will be the title of this drawing.

Drawing at near left is changing and either I wrecked it this morning, or "I'm Done," with it.

It's based on the word "cloud" which appears 13 times int he text. In Ithica, Bloom and Stephen both observe the cloud matitutdinal cloud that was in the shape of a woman's hand. In this instance all three main characters are united, Stephen , bloom and Molly. Not sure if this works but , it is what it is. I'd like there to be a shot of bright color it somewhere.

Above right is the drawing of the day. Made this evening. I don't know. I liked it a minute ago now I hate it.
It's about how Joyce used words as a painter uses colors. The materiality of the text.. Clouds are an area where Bloom, Stephen and Molly all intersect. Also Bloom likes or ponders insects for their ability to fly over oceans. Have to put in Bloom book. Enough it's almost Wednesday and I have to go to bed.

Here it is Feb 3, 2009. Hope I can get something done today, first have to clean up for the cleaning ladies.Cleanliness is a creativity killer somehow. But Necessary. Cat is honking for her breakfast. Setting a good intention for the day.

Cloud, matitudinal cloud shaped like a woman's hand- now that hits the spot.
Drawing this image. Well, trying to.
Maybe that's enough for today. Also looks a bit like a drowning person. Fits.

This is the self portrait for the day. It is Monday after all. I wonder what day of the week Ulysses takes place. Thursday. I should do a "Frequently Asked Questions" thing about the novel. My own "Exagmination."


This is a hat that I made out of shredded Ulysses. It's a little too much like Van Gogh's hat, I wanted it to be more of a derby shape.
Not sure if I should make another attempt at a derby. I am waiting for two more Ulysses to arrive to shred.


This is the Title page of the altered book, I'm going to try my wet paint theory this morning. Also will work on a new word drawing. Just uncertain which word to use.

This morning I made a new cat. She's drying. I'd like to make a whole fleet of them but only need 37. And I want to paint them somehow. Waffling about covering the stuff they're made of, or leaving as is and not painting. So many things to think about.

Today I want to make a new word drawing, but what word? Plums, clouds, cats, potato, pins?
And what else, want to quote from "Our Exagmination."
And post a few pictures taken.

Lots to do running out of time. It's Feb 1 and I have to get things together by Feb 16. Need photos of good sailing ships. Got a new copy of Ulysses to shred.

Made covers for the Bloom book.
I want to work with the notion of diaphane, transparencies.

Have to really get focused.

Altered book ready to go

Here's a photo of the book and also a photo of the re-drawn "26 Ashplants" drawing.
I saw a couple of drawings by Ray Pettibon, and I think mine is sort of in that vein.
Hope to make a series of these. Hopefully moving forward on it tomorrow.
Also just looked at the work of "Swoon" a young Brooklyn street artist. Her stuff is really good. So onward. Also--Gwen is pretty cool. Hope this transition works out.
And just for fun my "studio" space. Really just the kitchen. But ya works with what ya gots.

Jan 30 -Woke up on time but just got up now-6:30 Franny is purring her head off. I'm going to finish the pages of my altered book and see what else the cat can drag in. Have an appointment with "Gwen" my father's new aid, hopefully, at Starbucks in New Canaan at 9:30 so I need to get it together and get going. Franny is scratching at my side right now What up with that?
New photo to keep me inspired or horrified not sure which.

Today I had a hard time waking up, even though I was lights off at eleven. Earliest yet. I want to get going but decided to start here. What am I thinking of doing this morning? Not sure. Might try the wet paint theory, or better yet, I decided to use EKG paper to hold together the pages of my altered book. So I can get going on that. I also have More glue, so I could try to make the covers of the bloom book. SO there's stuff to do. I wanted to post a photo of how I look just for laughs. More later....
Got a great email through the Ulysses Yahoo group this morning,pertaining to the Plumtree theme = the Tree of the World, and the ladies spitting plum seeds are really spitting aeroliths or meteorites from the top of Nelson's Pillar.
I found a great illustration of Yggdrasil, the worldtree. So here it is and I hope I can keep momentum going. Today is going to be hairy!!

Well, hope I used time wisely today.

I made some decisions I wouldn't have had time to consider,
got some materials---
Have to keep moving forward.
I find having wet paint to deal with forces me to "do Something"
This is good.

Today I enjoyed reading the book.
Feel more in touch with what the project is actually about.

Want to hang onto the idea that as a reader
I sort of play a little movie in my head as I read.
Some of the stuff I read, I can grab and pull
into my own visual field. As a drawn image. OR as an object.

I want to find the reason the text, as an image,
is so attractive to me?

Asking lots of questions at this point is a good idea.
I am finding new materials, as I work with the materiality of this text.
Idea of facets, mosaic, threads of interwoven themes.
Etc. Still loving the book.
Everyday I find a line or two that just blows my socks off.

Woke at 5, hoping snow would cause school closing. Drat! Only an hour delay, so I must get going. HOLD ON: They closed for the day so Hooray! Precious time is mine today.

Want to fix hand in first drawing. Took iphoto of my own hand, I drew first hand backwards. Off to mend. Later this morning: Husband navigates home through blizzard. Cat pees on front of sofa. Big freakout, but all cleaned-up and better now.
Hand re-drawn. I think this direction for drawing is solid and will work. Looking for an image of a schooner now. But first want to search text. I think schooner is in there.

Worked on several drawings this morning. Had a breakthrough with the inking of my word searches. I'm posting two photos one of an older drawing that just wasn't working, based on the "Parable of the Plums" story. I think the scaling was all wrong on it so I sanded it down this morning and it looks a lot better.
Then I did the "break through" ink drawing. I hope to get to bed early tonight. So I can have two hours tomorrow morning to move further.

Want to keep moving.Momentum is helping.