red leaf leap
egads…..I kinda fell off the blog horse for awhile. I look forward to the fall, thinking it will be more sane, slow, and organized than summer. With less mosquitos. But it never fails: autumn is downright frenetic. I am: back at MECA. where I have my largest class ever, 23 students in Illustration 1. Their first project involved doing a personal logo, some icon that symbolizes them, their aesthetic. A good ice-breaker. I learn a lot about them in one small image. So, what does my logo say about me? All you need to know: I love red, strong shapes, autumn, falling leaves, and the sense...
Read MoreCirque de Synchronicity
It’s that time of year again: mud season in Maine and the circus is in town. In memory of my dad, William Hogan, a Shriner, I take my daughter and friends to the annual Kora Shrine Circus from Lewiston, Maine. It’s the cheapest trick in town and remains entertaining after 7 years in a row. There’s something nostalgic for me, wandering amongst the men in their burgundy blazers and fez, ever accomodating. I know I went to circuses as a kid, but not one of them stands out. Maybe that’s why I’m drawn to them as an adult. I went to an early Cirque de Soleil show in...
Read MoreBim, BEM, Bum: Bergey!
About four years ago I met Joshua Bergey, who told me he was working on a book about his illustrator grandfather, Earle K. Bergey. I honestly couldn’t conjur up an image of his work at the time. Recently, I assigned a project to my illustration class to draw the future. This prompted bringing in some books, Infinite Worlds by Vincent di Fate and Science Fiction of the 20th Century, an Illustrated History by Frank M. Robinson, both borrowed from my neighbor/illustrator, Doug Smith. Doug is both a fan and collector of pulp fiction art and science fiction illustration. Earle...
Read MoreArt fuels my fires
Say what you want about a never-ending winter, life here has been pretty colorful. I attended the recent Celesoiree at the Portland Company one slushy Friday night. Having donated a piece of art, I scored a comp ticket and checked out this lively ILAP fundraiser to benefit Maine’s immigrant communities. Great food, African drumming and dance, and wonderful lighting by Pandora LaCasse made the whole place jump. As silent art auctions go (and I’ve done my share) this one was spacious, well-lit, and displayed quite a diversity of local art, with my fellow Peaks Islanders showing...
Read MoreRespect my peeps
It’s that time of year: bunnies, candy, and hope trying to pop up through the crusty snowbanks. For some reason, Easter seemed ridiculously early around here. It was pointed out more than once that it is tied to Passover, which falls after the first full moon after the spring equinox. I had lunacy in mind anyway, working on my annual contribution to the lunar calendar from Luna Press. The calendar is full of poetry, art, and moonrise and moonset times. Living on an island, I’ve become more in tune to these daily cycles. I dashed out during the cooking of dinner last Friday to see...
Read MoreCircles of influence
Time to give credit where credit is due. I haven’t bought the Blogging for Dummies book yet. But my loyal and patient husband, Marty Braun, was able to get my uploads all copacetic, with proper linkage. He’s the tech support in this household. Thanks, Martini! It’s back to Maine College of Art this week, where I have been teaching for the last 5 years. Before the spring break, my students worked on a silkscreen project. They warmed up first with a simple gocco exercise. A gocco kit is like the Easy Bake oven of silkscreen. Small, portable, no-mess, and voila…fun...
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