• A recent article in Eco-Artwear Notes featuring our recycled pieces  reminded me that I need to start making mailboxes again.  

With the advent of  email and texting in addition to postal rate hikes and less "snail mail", I was questioning if we even need mailboxes anymore. 

But after some thought on the matter, I realize we do.  Ever since I was a kid the sound of the postman coming up to the door meant the possibility of something just "for me".

As a resident of a neighborhood with older homes, we have the luxury of a mailbox mounted on our porch.  I know the sound of the lid being closed, signaling that the postman "cometh" and among the (albeit fewer) pieces of junk mail, bills and pizza coupons there may be some correspondence of the old fashioned personal kind.  

So, I am going to re-visit my stash of "orphan mailboxes" I have acquired over the years and start tiling!  Maybe the "build it, they will come" idea will work.  A beautiful mosaic mailbox with a real handwritten letter tucked inside waiting for the recipient.  Nothing better! 

New pieces for the Deja Vu show!

I love this show!  It's not a huge art fair, you don't have to pay to park or get in, and if offers original, fun work from twenty three artist who creatively recycle and reinvent.  Work includes collage, mosaics, assemblage, jewelry, metal sculpture, furniture, leather goods, woodworking, and fiber arts.
It's always fun to discover new uses for old "stuff".  'Hope you can join us this Saturday at the Yes Cinema in downtown Columbus, IN.  The show runs from 10 a.m to 4p.m.

We're putting the finishing touches on some "upcycled" animal sculptures like "Rabbit Redux" pictured here.  'Hoping to finish a few assemblage clocks and mirrors using recycled and found objects if I can ever get off the computer, and back in the studio.

                                                       Tutti Fruiti Rooster Clock  ©2010

Tropical Paradise Show Is A Go!

It's been a wild month preparing for the Queeney Park Art Fair this weekend in Saint Louis, as well as finishing and delivering work to the Orchard Gallery in Fort Wayne for the "Tropical Paradise" show opening today. My friend, talented fiber artist, and coconspirator, Martina had this say about the show:

Bloomington artists Cappi Phillips and Martina Celerin have collaborated to create a vibrant art exhibit, “Tropical Paradise.”
The collection of works is on display at The Orchard Gallery, 6312 Covington Road, Ft. Wayne, Indiana.
The Galley is open 10 a.m. – 5 p.m Monday through Saturday with extended hours to 7 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday.
The show will be up from April 2 to 30, 2009.

“Even though our media are completely opposite, I work with hard objects, glass, stone, metal, plastics, and Martina works with soft materials, yarns, wool, cotton, fleece, we both share a whimsical side and create pieces that encourage smiles as well as tactile responses. Patrons discover the unexpected when viewing (or touching!) our work,” said Phillips, of Moe's Ache's studio. “When the gallery invited us to participate, it was the cold dreary days of December. The thought of starting on pieces for a ‘Tropical Paradise’ show seemed like such a warm, happy way to be working!” recalls Phillips.

“Cappi and I both use reclaimed and recycled materials to create our art. We’re always on a treasure hunt. As I was making the piece ‘Sangria!’ I realized that I needed plastic ice cubes to complement (and contrast with) the needle felted fruit. Of course the first and only person that I had to called was Cappi!” recalls Celerin.

The artists encourage people who can’t attend the show to visit their web sites to get a little sparkle in their smile (www.MartinaCelerin.com and www.moesache.blogspot.com)