So there I was one day scrolling through instagram when I happened to notice a post by The Print Shop in Holyoke and I thought to myself "Hmmmmm - now, that's an interesting concept. I can make my own prints and not have to carry a huge inventory or wait weeks to get them from someone else." I went down to check out the shop within the next week and found SO much more. The possibilities were very exciting and included printing on fabric through two different methods, large oversize printing on a variety of materials including stickers as well as the fine art printing capability that had first attracted me. Oh, and there is a 3D printer too! I got some expert help and guidance after signing up for classes led by Orlando and have had help every step of the way from Jeff and Heather who are seemingly always there and always ready to help solve problems. I'm a forgetful 60-something year old :) and Jeff is incredibly patient explaining the same thing to me over and over, and reminding me what the print settings should be - Sorry Jeff ! This is your public apology. The Print Shop Space and Equipment I've been a member of the Print Shop for one full year now and here is what I have to show for it: a full line of prints on paper - any size I want up to 17x22. I buy my own archival hot press natural paper and just pay an ink charge for the printing. I've got a line of high quality stickers that they print for me, cause I've never gotten comfortable with Adobe Illustrator or the really big Roland machine - but if I had the time and inclination I could most likely learn to do both. I've also printed my brains on canvas bags, cloth for necklaces and oh so much more.... The very biggest change in my process has come from my new capability of instantly creating a design on my iPad using Procreate or Adobe Sketch apps and then transferring that design to canvas and using it as a stitch guide using sublimation printing. It takes the guess work out of transferring the image and it has allowed me to be much more consistent in my art production. I think knowing that I can transfer any image at any time has increased my creativity ten-fold AND I feel like I'm just getting started. Below are pics of the last two pieces completed from iPad image to completed embroidered piece: Think Spring and Lines and Dots. PS - Sometimes I make mistakes (see below for a good one) and it costs me, but the learning curve has not been too steep and it has literally changed the way I make art. Stay tuned to see what else comes out of this place and my studio. I'm about ready to sign up for my second year of membership. Come and join me! Click on the membership info below to get to their Facebook page or give them a call at (413) 532-0465 to arrange a tour. PS: there is a big but friendly dog on premises most of the time :) and his name is Casper - He has his own instagram account too @printshopdog.
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Back in 2014, I was invited to participate in a fiber art invitational called 'Common Threads' at the Foe Store and Gallery, then located on Main Street in Northampton, MA. I had been going to their gallery openings for a long time and was delighted to be invited to the show. So excited that I wanted to make some new work with a new focus. After lamenting to my partner, improv aficionado Izzy Gesell, that I didn’t know what to do, he suggested that I think about doing brains. WELL….that was a brilliant idea….and, I immediately started researching. The first two pieces came to life as Neurofiberosis 1 & 2. I imagined what you would call it when someone always has fiber on the brain. #1 is built from crazy quilt techniques, while #2 is all hand embroidery and beadwork. Below is the source photo for the information I used to map the different parts of the brain.And then... something kind of magical happened. A colleague at my office saw those first two pieces and commissioned this third piece. Her daughter had a hemispherectomy at the age of 11 and she wanted a right facing brain piece, and so I created 'Starry Night' shown below. You can meet Monica in my blog post here.I wasn't really planning on doing more brains but I became so intrigued with the subject matter I just kept going and now, in my 4th year, I am thoroughly entranced. I was further encouraged by friends who saw the work and also by the neuroscience faculty that I support in the day job (which you can read about here .) |
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Next, we headed to Montreal where I got to meet my Instagram friend and fellow brain project artist Monica Brinkman at the solo show of another artist, Tina Struthers. I’m in love with both these women’s art work and they’ve been a wonderful source of information and support about the Brain Project, having both participated last year. Heaps of gratitude to them for their generosity of spirit. Their Brain project brains pictured below along with a photo of Monica in front of Tina’s work.
Below are just a few of my favorite brains I snapped along the way, including me with Mei Chan-Long – another generous spirit who came and met me at her fabulous metal brain sculpture. Yes, we do have our feet in the water!
This is the 2nd year of the Brain Project an awareness building and fundraising effort launched by the Baycrest Foundation. 100 artists were selected to design a brain sculpture for the project and their work is now displayed on the streets of Toronto through the end of August. In September, the brains go on sale to benefit Baycrest programs.
I could not be more thrilled to be participating this year. Photos of my completed brain sculpture - both sides - are below. Read on to find out more about my stepmother Elaine who was the inspiration behind my involvement.
Elaine was a fearless explorer and traveler and below are some photos that are just a snapshot of her intrepid spirit. They were taken in 1986 when she embarked on an around-the-world trip with her best friend Sandra, stopping off in Pakistan to see me and my husband where we were living for two years. During the visit we traveled up the rugged Karakorum Highway to the mountainous town of Gilgit. A trip that not many western women in their 60s would have taken. Did I say fearless? I can't think of a better word for her.
I once asked her what made her so brave and she told me that after she lost my father suddenly in a plane crash she realized the worst thing she could imagine had already happened to her, and to be afraid of anything after that was pointless.
Visit my piece on the Brain Project, vote for your favorite artist brain and donate too, if you can, to this important work.
And, thanks for being here and sharing in my journey. If you're not already in my Inner Circle you can join here! - I send out a newsy email about once a month.
Here are my most important takeaways:
- Alzheimer's disproportionately affects women. Two thirds of all Alzheimer's patients in the U.S. are women and the research hasn't told us why yet. Is it because women live longer? Is it hormonal? Ongoing studies seek to find the answers. If you are at risk or have already been diagnosed, think about signing up for a clinical trial.
- Women who have a mother with Alzheimer's are more likely to get it themselves. If this is you, it's time to get proactively interested in your brain health. You CAN take preventive measures!
- Our brains never stop growing and learning. You CAN teach an old dog new tricks. The best brain-training activity is to do something that combines physical activity, social activity and learning something new. Dr. Reisa Sperling, Director of the Massachusetts Alzheimer's Research Center at Harvard, suggests taking up ballroom dancing, for instance! Now that sounds like something I could get behind.
- "Best diet for our brains is the Mediterranean Diet", says Dr. Marie Pasinski, Harvard Neuorologist, Author and Brain Health Expert. Fat is good for the brain because our brains are two-thirds fat. Here is a link to MediterraneanLiving.com for a terrific free cookbook you can download! I've got my copy and am ready to roll. (PS - I know the author, Bill Bradley, and he is local to Western Mass.)
- Exercise can actually increase your brain volume. Recent studies have shown a visible thickness in the cortex after a regular exercise program has been adopted.
There is of course so much more to learn and know about brain health but these were my big takeaways and now I am heading off to the gym, planning to shop for all the right foods on my way home, and signing up for that dance class soon!!
For more information visit The Women's Alzheimer's Movement founded by Maria Shriver, a force committed to finding out why Alzheimer’s discriminates against women.
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Chronicling my adventures as a Neuro Artist. I love to make work centered on our magnificent brains and learn about how it all works in the process..
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