You ain’t seen nothing ‘til you’ve seen murrine

A glass dish using the murrine technique.

Glass Artwork has been around for centuries. But murrine is a 4000-year-old glass technique that dates back to the ancient Middle East. 

According to Visual News: “Using long rods of glass cane, intricate patterns can be built into a loaf like form, only revealing the hidden details when a slice is cut off. While you’ve probably seen the technique used in patterned glass work at your local art gallery, you’ve never seen the astounding level of detail achieved in these reinterpreted paintings from Loren Stump."

I was so impressed with his work; I decided to feature him in my blog. Amazing was my first reaction. When I finally saw the incredible detail in each piece, I could only say “Wow!” Stump’s work truly has that wow factor.

Read more on the Visual News site:  http://www.visualnews.com/2014/06/10/slice-incredible-glass-artworks/#QozWlcJfC8DtTPWe.99

As a native of Sacramento, California, Loren Stump’s career began over 41 years ago as a stained glass artist. In 1993 Loren discovered his natural talents with glass in molten form. Self-taught, he quickly mastered advanced shaded murrine, intricate sculpture, and paperweight encasement. One innovative technique Loren is known for is the manipulation of a two dimensional murrine sliced into a three dimensional form.

Mr. Stump is also showcased for his large scale lamp work, sculptures made of soft glass, and masks. Loren’s progressive methods and expertise, along with the use of his own inventive tools, keep him in demand as a remarkable glass artist and instructor. Traveling throughout the United States and abroad, Loren is known for sharing his wisdom openly as an entertaining, patient, and tireless instructor and demonstrator.

Loren’s incredible artwork has been displayed or is currently on display at the Corning Museum of Glass, The Ertz Israel Museum, and the Kyokei Fujita Glass Museum.

Link to view Loren Stump’s incredible glass artwork:

Loren Stump

Another master glass blower Davide Salvadore can be seen at work here:

The Corning Glass Museum has a series of videos not only on murrine, but on glass blowing in general that are both interesting and educational. Here is their link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=iG1LnlccCmM&list=PL05E3768228E2B5C4&feature=share&index=36

Strike a Match, Burn a Candle, Light up the World

"Para Sailing Spoonbill"

Ideas are fragile. They come and go. If you don’t lock them down, they can disappear forever.

I used to keep a small notebook in my car for jotting down ideas driving to and from work. The only problem was, I could only write while I was sitting at a stoplight. So I thought I’d get a recorder and verbalize my thoughts, but I’m not a verbal person. I have to digest ideas and chew on them before I write them down in order to give them expression.

Fleeting thoughts are sometimes incoherent, nonsensical gibberish, but the gems within may grow and multiply whereas the losers fester for awhile and then dead-end into Never Never Land.

"Flamenco Flamingo"

When I lived alone, I burned candles in the bath, in my bedroom, and anywhere else I needed a glimmer of hope and light. Even with dinner, I’d fix myself something special and light a candle to make the dining experience last. Then one day, I became dangerous. I struck a match in the bathroom and the tip of it broke off landing on my nightgown. The flames were frightening. Luckily the sink was near enough to douse myself with water and put the flames out.

I decided that either I was getting flighty or the matches were being manufactured differently from before. A few days later, I struck a match in the bedroom to light my bedtime candle, and again the match tip broke off landing on my dresser scarf. The flames ignited instantly, swallowing up everything in sight before I could smother it with a wet towel.

From that point on, I eliminated candles and matches from my bath and boudoir routine. Whether it was the cheapness of the match sticks or my own clumsiness made no difference. I couldn’t afford to burn myself up over anything as silly as a candle.

Poster created from the book: "Inez Ibis Flies Again"

That experience has come back to haunt me again and again. How powerful and unpredictable that tiny light became once it was ignited. Ideas are like that. They shine but for a moment and then like gossamer wings they fly away unless we kindle the flames that brought them in the first place.

Where do my ideas come from? Some are inspired by past experiences. Others by books I’ve read or movies I’ve seen, or simply by the way light shines on a certain object in a new way.

Nature also inspires me. I have a vivid imagination and always think I see something different in my ordinary surroundings: an ugly face created by the stub of a limb or the bark of a tree, a small bush that looks like a huge spider; I’m weird, I know.

(The following illustrations are also from the book: "Inez Ibis Flies Again")

Artists do see things differently. We see shapes and color and because of this, the ordinary turns into the grotesque, the scary, or the fantastic in a blink.

Some of my ideas are so clear I can see them come to life in my mind. Others are mere hints or suggestions that require coaxing and fuel to keep them going. Like the end of a lighted match, I never know where my ideas will end up.

The cartoon illustrations in this blog came from seeing the humor in the way certain creatures move or behave. (Note, this is a repeat of a blog in 2010.)

Catchy Tunes and Titles become the Springboard for Ideas

Father and daughter welcome new baby

Artists, Small business owners and entrepreneurs are getting hoarse trying to hawk their wares in an overcrowded marketplace. As they vie for attention, their petulance is showing up in ads, and in their names.

“Angry Orchard” is a new brand of apple juice “with a bite!” If that isn’t feisty and in your face, I don’t know what is? Let’s hope their bark is as good as their bite.

“Wild Dolphin” is a start up company that is capitalizing on the sugar and citrus products grown nearby to make rum. It’s a perfect fit. Tours and samples lure customers to taste and see if this isn’t the best rum made anywhere!

"Does this hat make me look fat?" 11 x 14 pencil drawing

“The Purple Dragon” capitalizes on Mahjongg lovers in the area who want to make new friends and play the game they love. Of course, Chinese Dragon’s, especially purple ones, create a fun environment where winning is not only based on skill, but the luck of the draw.

Names do make a difference. The title of a book certainly attracts attention. And yet fine artists seem reticent to name their paintings preferring that the viewer draw their own conclusions. The thinking is that the artist doesn’t want to influence a viewer’s perception or imagination. Whether this is a good practice or not is still being debated on social media.

Personally, I enjoy knowing what an artist has used as a title. I try to envision what he or she had in mind when they created the piece. Sometimes I see their vision and sometimes I don’t, but it doesn’t stop me from looking and wondering.

"I Stand on the Brink" 8 x 10 pencil drawing

I also enjoy letting my own fantasy run wild through the forms, shapes, and colors on a canvas. If done well, the painting will lead me through a labyrinth of contrast and values that are interesting and exciting. In my opinion, a title just gives the viewer a nudge and a head start.

Search engines find your blog titles much easier if they have some length and substance to them. Understanding “catch words” and trends can help bolster your topics. Words in headings that have fire, sex, red, wild, or sizzle seem to attract readers. Hit songs with fire in their title have become instant hits. However, overuse of any hot word or phrase becomes old and tired in a twinkling on the web.

It’s fun to create catchy titles. Sometimes the titles I create actually give me an idea for a future painting or a themed series. In your spare time write down those catchy titles and save them. See if they don’t become a springboard for creation.

"Guess Whoooo?" 8 x 10 pencil drawing

When you feel “Used Up,” Reach out -- Look up

"Swamp Angel" 16 x 20 oil on canvas

That’s exactly how I’ve been feeling of late: used up. I can blame the flu that bogged me down and left me in a puddle of self-pity, or I could take the advice of Julia Cameron, the author of “The Artist’s Way” and “Heart Steps; Prayers and Declarations for a Creative Life.”

According to Julia’s publisher: “Heart Steps is Cameron’s key to open the door to a more creative world; grounded in her personal methods of inspiration . . . this book is a powerful, practical, and intimate guide to ever-expanding productivity.”

In Julia’s own words, she discovered that “God, or “Mind,” was deeply, personally interested and interactive in our lives – if we would just speak the word that opened the door that opens the heart.”

"Leap of Faith" 16 x 20 mixed media on canvas

So begins her step by step book of prayers and inspiration. Some people prefer to call their inspiration a “muse;” others the “Universal Spirit.” Practical people simply call it God. Whatever works for you, Cameron’s guide to inspiration is sure to motivate you to get in touch with a power greater than yourself.

She begins by quoting Sonia Choquette: “The Power of the word is real whether or not you are conscious of it.  Your own words are the bricks and mortar of the dreams you want to realize. Behind every word flows energy.”

Self declarations and positive statements said aloud to motivate the brain and in turn modify attitudes and actions is not new. This type of “behavior modification” has been around since the 60s and 70s. What is new is Cameron’s attempt at using it to enrich what she deems “the creative life.”

"Robin Hood" 16 x 20 acrylic on canvas

There is much to be gained from her book. My only objection is that she skirts timidly around the premise that there is an actual God, who is our creator, and cares enough about us to want our success and happiness. Our belief hangs on a thread of fear and doubt that if removed can open our minds to the endless possibilities that the universe holds. If we can tap into that, who can stand against us or hold us back?

Julia Cameron is a teacher, a poet, a playwright, fiction writer, and essayist; she has extensive credits in film, television, theater, and she is an award-winning journalist. If anyone could tell us how to tap into creative powers she could.

“The refusal to be creative is an act of self-will,” Cameron says, “and is counter to our true nature. When we open to our creativity, we are opening to God’s good, orderly direction. As we pursue our creative fulfillment, all elements of our life move toward harmony.

“As we strengthen our creativity, we strengthen our connection to the Creator within. Artists love other artists. Our relationship to God is co-creative, artist to artist. It is God’s will for us to live in creative abundance.”

Link to Cameron's Home Page: http://juliacameronlive.com/ 

"Vikeholmen Lighthouse" Skudeneshavn Norway 16 x 20 acrylic on canvas $300

Virtual Reality can’t Touch us or Taint us. Or can it?

"A Joyful Heart" 9 x 12 pastel on Bristol

Public Broadcasting recently aired a delightful British Comedy called “Last Tango in Halifax.” I enjoyed the feature immensely. The story revolved around an older couple who met, fell in love, and planned to be married. The catch? They each had their own complex past, their own children and spouses and grandchildren each with their own unique problems, quirks, differences, and weaknesses.

What impressed me at stories' end was that Halifax was a lonely and harsh environment that isolated people from each other. The characters, in spite of all their flaws, were lovable, sometimes desperate, and always unpredictable yet supportive of each other, at least in the beginning.

I wept along with the characters. I felt their pain and their weakness as they bungled their lives simply by being human. As a person of faith, I couldn’t help wondering if the absence of faith was a character flaw and the reason for their downfall. They struggled against life without any spiritual structure or foundation to guide them or hold them together.

"Tansy's Pride" 9 x 12 pastel on Bristol

And yet they survived. In the end, they even triumphed as they overcame their shallow self absorbed inclinations to reach out and embrace those they loved. Rising above their petty and sometimes jarring differences, they brought their bouquets of forgiveness to the simple table that life had dealt them.

What matters most in life usually triumphs, if we let it. We can rise above the cheap and tawdry leavings of this clumsy imperfect existence and replace our shallowness with humility, hard fought forgiveness, and hope.

People in the end are worth the effort. There is dignity and hidden gold even in the worst of us, and surely in the best of us. Pure evil does exist, but at what point is the soul condemned or the door closed? The eleventh hour? The twelfth?

"Broken" 11 x 14 mixed media SOLD

What binds us is our humanity; our need for love and companionship. This alone is the Godly part of our nature and must be nurtured and acted upon if humanity is to survive. Without it, we will incinerate ourselves in a global frenzy.

Keep the candle burning, friends. If the light of love and goodness goes out, our world will be very dark, indeed.

"With these Hands -- Hope"  16 x 20 mixed media on canvas

Strike a Match, Burn a Candle, Light up the World

"Moonshines" 18x24 mixed media on canvas

Ideas are fragile. They come and go. If you don’t lock them down, they can disappear forever.

I used to keep a small notebook in my car for jotting down ideas driving to and from work. The only problem was, I could only write while I was sitting at a stoplight. So I thought I’d get a recorder and verbalize my thoughts, only I’m not a verbal person. I have to digest ideas and chew on them before writing them down in order to give them expression.

Fleeting thoughts are sometimes incoherent, nonsensical gibberish; but the gems within may grow and multiply, whereas the losers fester for awhile and then dead-end into Never Never Land.

"First Daffodil" 16x20 acrylic on canvas

When I lived alone, I burned candles in the bath, in my bedroom, and anywhere else I needed a glimmer of hope and light. Even with dinner, I’d fix myself something special and light a candle to make the dining experience last. 

Then one day, I became dangerous. I struck a match in the bathroom and the tip of it broke off landing on my nightgown. The flames were frightening. Luckily the sink was near enough to douse myself with water and put the flames out.

I decided either I was getting flighty or the matches were being manufactured differently from before. A few days later, I struck a match in the bedroom to light my bedtime candle, and again the match tip broke off landing on my dresser scarf. The flames ignited instantly, swallowing up everything in sight before I could smother it with a wet towel.

From that point on, I eliminated candles and matches from my bath and boudoir routine. Whether it was the cheapness of the match sticks or my own clumsiness made no difference. I couldn’t afford to burn myself up over anything as silly as a candle.

That experience has come back to haunt me again and again. How fragile and unpredictable that tiny light became once it was ignited. Ideas are like that. They shine but for a moment and then like gossamer wings they fly away unless we kindle the flames that brought them in the first place.

Where do my ideas come from? Some are inspired by past experiences. Others by books I’ve read or movies I’ve seen, or simply by the way light shines on a certain object in a new way.

Nature also inspires me. When a roseate spoonbill comes in for a landing, it looks like it's almost sitting. I couldn't resist the humor of putting one in harness in a parasail; hence, "parasailing spoonbill!"

I have a vivid imagination and always think I see something different in my ordinary surroundings: an ugly face created by the scar of a cut limb or the bark of a tree, a small bush that looks like a huge spider; I’m weird, I know. Artists do see things differently. We see in shapes and color and because of this, the ordinary turns into the grotesque, the scary, or the fantastic in a blink.

Some of my ideas are so clear I can see them come to life in my mind. Others are mere hints or suggestions that require coaxing and fuel to keep them going. Like the end of a lighted match, I never know where my ideas will end up.

Dreams Light a Fire Beneath us – Reality Grounds us

Exercising imagination is critical to the artist’s life. Whether you write, perform, paint or draw, working from research and knowledge is not enough. An artist must interpret, design, and create. An artist’s work must represent his unique perspective on the world.

Artists need buyers, teachers, supporters, lovers, friends, and constant inspiration for their work. Knowing who you are and what you think about issues is critical. Having opinions and knowing why you have them brings clarity and purpose to your work. Everything an artist sees, hears, and learns becomes a stepping stone that leads to creation.

In order to grow, we must have our feet grounded in reality. We must make logical and conscious decisions every day concerning our finances, our basic needs, and the people we interact with. Constantly flowing between a living reality and a fantasy land or a dream world of our own making definitely poses problems.

"Raccoons at Sunrise"

I don’t know about you, but when I’m in creative mode, my friends and loved ones may literally have to drag me away. They may have to repeat themselves often as I escape into la la land. I may seem moody and aloof at times. I may appear distant and detached from their needs and wants.

Finding a balance between these two worlds is critical to an artist’s survival. Supportive people who share our dreams, or at least understand them, can make all the difference. Knowing us, caring about us requires effort, patience, and maturity.

The artist must also learn to compartmentalize his life in order to find balance between the realities of the here and now, and the need to make a living; between living within your means, and recognizing that others have important needs, too.

“No man is an island,” said John Donne (1572-1631). Writing a series of devotionals for Christians, he spoke about a bell that rings not only to call the preacher to come, but the congregation. The importance of Donne’s concept is also expressed in other religions, particularly Buddhism.

“…No man is an island, entire of itself…any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”

"Sand Crane Dreams" 

And it tolls for me. It tolls for you. We’re all involved with mankind. As artists our greatest joy is in giving back to humanity, to the world we love, our personal take and interpretation of it.