Paintings for Lizzy

I have had the pleasure of working on a series of paintings for a couple who is having their first child (a baby girl); the mother happens to be one of the most patient people on Earth, and has provided the most loving daycare for my Bella Boo for a few months. This job gave me a chance to further develop some sketches of animals derived from my elephant drawings from months ago and an excuse to hang out in my cave (basement studio area) for many hours. So here they are, finally done!

I hope you like them! I am pretty proud of the way they turned out and hope that Lizzy will enjoy them too :)
Thanks for reading!
beijos
allypye.

This is my newest piece. I worked on a different painting project yesterday for 7 hours, and even though I was exhausted after that, I still wanted to make something just for fun. This little painting has a bit of collage, some thread and acrylic paint. 

It is starting to combine some elements that have been a part of my sketches for months now, so it feels like I am developing some sort of recognizable pattern. Although I realize that I might be overusing this color palette, its just too much fun to stop...

I hope you like it!

Thanks for reading!

beijos

allypye

new painting

Quick post to share this new one. I working on drawing a bunch of these whimsical fairy type girls. Today I just needed to paint something... It was a lot of fun!!!

Thanks for stopping by! There wasn't much "reading" this time!
beijos
allypye

Little Paintings...

Well, I don't have to say that I am having a little affair with fabric lately right? 

It just so happens that I am working on a series of children's paintings for a new bundle of joy who is to arrive later this year- my first COMMISSIONED set of paintings, if I may say so humbly!

But before I painted the series, I've decided to get some practice with actually painting on a canvas again. The combination of needing to paint for practice and not being able to let go of my new found love of fabric gave birth to these little OwLs...

I like them. not sure yet about the metallic blue background, but who can resist a request from a angel faced 7 year old?



NoT Me :)

Thanks for reading!

beijos

allypye

The gift of a Painting

Last year I attended a house warming party for some friends of mine who had just purchased a new house. Instead of bringing a gift, I promised them an original painting, which they were thrilled about. Of course as the story of my life always goes, there were a few road blocks and the painting was delivered 5 months later! YIKES! That is a LONG time...
I am however, very happy with the result and so are my friends! I decided to paint on a birch wood board, using some drawing, wood burning, acrylics and some paper cut outs. Some areas were also enriched with colored pencils and pastels.
Making art as a gift is so different than planning an exhibit; it is liberating in a way because you don't have to worry about maintaining homogeneity, or flow, conceptualizing themes and etc...
It becomes more about the person who is to receive the painting, their taste, personality and the colors in their home. So this was definitely refreshing!

pencil drawing and wood burning

adding wood cut out with decoupage

almost done

painting the birds

 The gift that enriches both the giver and the receiver, is a gift worth giving!

Thanks for reading!

beijos

allypye

paper bag crafts

I was looking through a book of Holiday crafts with the 6 year old, and we came across this penguin potato print idea! Since we are all quite fond of penguins around here, I took the idea and tried to incorporate it with some found materials: sticks, paper bag, some yarn- plus acrylic paint and brushes to add the finishing details. We made 5 penguins, each representing a member of our family and tied them through holes we made with a hole punch! It looks really cute hanging on the wall in the living room and it was super easy to do:)

Keep creating!

Thanks for reading

beijos

allypye

this week's art

This is a short one, just some pics of two things I worked on this week... A mixed media piece for my living room and a book mark. I also painted a portrait of my daughter but you guys already saw that... So tired this week, I am glad it is over!!!

Have a good weekend!

beijos

allypye

Dreams of Ballet

"Waiting Backstage"- by Ally Pye

Amongst many hopes and desires, a longing for dance remains constant in my heart. As a child dance was a big part of my life, and like so many things, it too got put aside and forgotten, overshadowed by everything else.

Every once in a while, I revisit that dream and wish that I hadn't given it up so quickly. I have no problem admitting that I regret quitting dance, and will not try to justify the decision just to make myself feel better. I loved it, I should have stayed-period.

Now that I am ready to enroll my own daughter in dance lessons, I am doing my best to keep in mind that this is her life, and that she may very well not want to pursue dance the way I did. I must admit that I am thrilled that this moment has finally arrived, so I celebrated it with a painting (above).

I wonder if others too, wish that they had another go at something they missed out in life... I imagine I am not alone in this, so is it that ridiculous to believe that I may get another shot at it? Maybe I can someday hear the sounds of my slippers brushing against the wood floors of a dance studio and hold the barre as I practice developes and plies...

Maybe?

Ann Arbor Art Fair

Julie Fremuth

Kim Crow

Ruth Marks

John Petrey

Check out the above artists and more @: http://artfair.org/tools/artist/directory.jsp

So, yesterday was an awesome day! I finally got to go back to my favorite city in Michigan: Ann Arbor! Even though this is a CRAZY week for those who live there (sorry locals!) it is heaven for those of us who are "art junkies". Going with Jenn and Margaret made it that much better since they too share my love of Art and good food! This time, we ate jumbo hot dogs for lunch (I know, but they were SOOO good), drank huge buckets of freshly squeezed lemonade and iced tea while cruising the fair; then we had some Zingerman's for dinner: my sandwich was a true representation of the chaotic madness of that place, with tons of flavor, charm and excitement: such good food!!!http://www.zingermansdeli.com/content/pages/home.php
The highlight of the whole day for me, was meeting Nicario Jimenez in person. I have been in love with his retablos for many years now, but was never able to talk with him and tell him how much I admire his work! It is amazing how someone can create such intense work and yet be so gentle and tender like I found him to be. I was so humbled to meet him that my Spanish came out horrible, but I was able to get a signed shirt and a hug! Couldn't get much better than that! If you want to see some really good images of his work visit the minkay gallery @: http://www.minkay.com/retablos.htm

if you want to learn more about retablos visit Nicario's own website @:http://www.retablosnicario.com/

Anyway, the plans are to go back next year and stay the night! After all there is too much to soak in and not enough time to do it in one day!

LOVE THE GIFT OF CREATIVITY

Thanks for reading,

allypye

One more thing

This week I go back to school for the summer semester! I am anxious, because anytime I take time off (1 month and a half in this case), I feel like i am not as sharp and not as ready for the intensity of grad school. There are some pretty bright people in that little mix, and many of them approach graduate school in a way very different from mine, who has to take classes at a a slow pace in order to be able to somewhat manage the other areas of my life. But I have come to terms with this, and I know someday I will be writing to you about my graduation day, even if it takes another year or so!

I know that becoming a therapist is not only my desire, but mostly something planted in my heart by the big guy (I mean GOD)! A few years back, I could not have imagined applying for this program, but when i started praying about my future and looking deep within my self to make sense of the gifts given to me, the doors began to open in this direction.

So for now,the main objective is to become a Marriage and Family Therapist, who applies holistic approaches to healing the mind and the soul and utilizes Art as a vehicle for gaining access and sorting out emotions that may exist within a person. I also want to be an advocate for my clients, someone who is not only multiculturally competent but also able to look at someone's life as a combination of individual, family, work, faith realms.

Sounds good , but it is indeed a long road for me; a road not without sacrifices, not without doubt, but full of hope that HIS desire will materialize into reality and that I could make a difference in the lives of others!

Thanks for reading

Beijos:)

Playing around

LITTLE OWL BAG

I've always wanted my designs on little bags, so I played around at home with t-shirt transfers just to see what happens...So, here is what I took from it:

• I like the look


• I need to practice sewing (A LOT)


• I need to NOT burn my t-shirt transfer next time!


• Maybe I should look into screenprinting...

Thanks for checking it out!

Little drawings

Really liking the color here...

Having a "thing" for owls lately!

Here are some of my latest little excursions...Still need to work on more owls (brighter colors) + more elephants+ more birds and we'll see what happens...

Where to now?

Little bitty sketch

I thought I was done with Art for a while. At least that's what I told everyone after my last show 6 months ago. I told my professors, co-workers, family members, my HUSBAND- that was it for a while, and I would solely focus on finishing my Master's, working part time and tend to the matters of my home life. All of the above mentioned people were affected in some way by the demands that making Art had put on my life. Late papers, late for work, not enough down time, not enough couple time-

"Just until the show is over" I would say to them. I was so relieved to take the pieces down, hang them on my walls and just enjoy them for a while. But the truth is, even though the process and the deadline pressures of putting together an exhibit are exhausting, I LOVE making Art, and it is really the one thing that makes sense to me these days.


Somehow its soothing effect shields me from worry when we are broke, pain when friends are crappy, anxiety when I am overloaded and guilt when I feel inadequate. We wear so many hats in life, but it seems when you finally find the one that makes you feel like YOU, it interferes with all the other hats you're supposed to be wearing (at the same time, may I add).


So here I am again, going through a tough time in my life, missing art like crazy because it fulfills all the empty spaces left open by what could have been.


Going back into it is tough, there is so much good stuff being made out there, I feel intimidated.

I tried to open an ESTY shop just to get myself going, even though I have nothing new to show, I am excited about it, it has promise it seems like...



Now, I just need to find the mojo to create again...

Because when I don't, the knots inside, the pain, the shame, the crap, all of it, it just has nowhere to go.

Thanks for reading!

Arte Natural

"Canoe" 2008

One of my favorite indoor places in the world is Barnes and Noble. No I am not getting paid to talk them up or anything, but man, do I have fun there! This week's trip led me to bring a pile of 15 books and magazines to my table at the coffee shop area, but of course I only got to 2 of them... I will share one with you this time:

In an effort to live a greener life our family has made several adjustments; you know, the stuff you hear about everywhere like recycling your trash, turning off lights, unplugging appliances, not flushing when you pee (this one is not yet under full compliance, yuk!!) organic gardening, safe cleaning supplies, green shopping bags, etc;

http://www.epa.gov/ to get started, also, links for kids of all ages to learn about environment awareness:)

(we have not yet changed all of our light bulbs to energy efficient ones, or put together a compost bin, but we'll get to that...) There is SO MUCH more we can do, eventually, but unless someone wants to donate to the "fund for greening my entire house" we are gonna have to take baby steps... And that's cool, all good!

However, I am not sure that my role as an artist and this environmental consciousness had made a true connection yet. Sure, living a frugal lifestyle almost forces you to reuse and recycle, I rarely ever have to buy art supplies, and just kind'a deal with what I have around the basement. But to make a statement towards environmental awareness through art? Now that's some good stuff... So, this book I came across is called "Green Guide for Artists- Nontoxic Recipes, green art ideas & Resources for the Eco-Conscious Artist" by author Karen Mitchel.

http://www.amazon.com/Green-Guide-Artists-Resources-Eco-Conscious/dp/1592535186

So fun! Full of ideas, and ways to create responsibly, beautifully made and wonderfully informative. For experienced painters, it provides them an opportunity to learn about substituting toxic materials such as adhesives, canvas and paint for better, greener alternatives. For me, (NOT an experienced painter), it just sort of revived the idea of using found objects, sharing supplies, and continuing to pursue a mixed media avenue in my own work.

This beautiful quote by William Blake is in one of the first pages...

"The tree which moves some to tears of joy, is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity...and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself."

Locally, here are some places to check out:

http://www.artsandscraps.org/ (Detroit)

http://www.scrapbox.org/ (Ann Arbor)

Possible trips with the kiddos

http://bostonchildrensmuseum.org/exhibits/recycle.html at the Boston Children's Museum

http://www.wonderscope.org/rmc.php at the Children's Museum of Kansas