Creative Pursuits

Over the Christmas break, I chanced upon this book "Inner Excavation: Explore Yourself Through Photography, Poetry and Mixed Media" by Liz Lamoreaux. Together with another book, "How to Be An Explorer of the World" by Keri Smith, I have been working on several exercises to give my creative muscles a workout.

Work-in-progress assemblage

I started this assemblage months ago and I am stuck. I salvaged this paper from our office, it has great texture and I thought I could use it for a project. I have been experimenting with textures using other found objects- woven abaca placemats I no longer use, tags from clothes, packaging materials...

Details of the salvaged paper

I am using string to hold them together

What are your hopes and dreams for 2011?

The beginning of a new year offers us opportunities to set new goals or renew our commitment to goals we have not fully accomplished the past year. It's a good practice to reflect on the lessons we learned from the past and apply them on our strategies for the new year.

So, what are your hopes and dreams for the new year 2011?

In my case, I have several. The following 3 are worth sharing with you all.

1. I want to grow artistically so I will commit to a regular studio time, 3 hours a week on my art projects.

A page on my art journal

2.  I volunteer for a statewide organization called Infant Development Association (IDA, please visit us at www.idaofcal.org) and there is a lot to be done to meet the challenges of diminished resources facing many non-profit organizations. I want to devote extra time to assist our organization.

At a training event sponsored by IDA River Valley Chapter

3. I want to be more prudent with my active travel expenses this year by keeping my running events in northern California. 

Napa Valley Marathon on March 6, 2011 is my next full marathon event

Handcrafted Christmas

Merry Christmas to all! Whether you are wrapping a store-bought gift, baking a sweet Christmas treat from scratch or frozen cookie dough, or cooking a traditional dish, if you do it with love and gratitude, you have made it very special for Christmas!

Here are some photos of handcrafted Christmas, some from this morning when I made some baked goodies and others from the mercato in Sant' Ambrogio in Florence, Italy.

Cranberry Bread

Snickerdoodles and Roasted Pecans

Cartapesta or Papier Mache Christmas Ornaments

More handmade Christmas ornaments

Children applying strips of old newspaper on the molds

Looks like a lot of fun!

Lady demonstrates the technique

Look up their website to learn more about the Cooperative

Bike Images in Italy

Lucca, Italy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My visual memory of Lucca, Siena and Florence is filled with these charming bike images- bikes propped on sidewalks or in front of a window store with a lovely display. Some have rustic feel, others, more sophisticated.

near Piazza San Martino, Lucca

near Piazza della Signoria, Florence, Italy

Pisa, Italy

The Art and Craft behind Italian Leather

I have hundreds of photos from our recent trip to Italy and I want to share them on our blog.

My second installment of photos is a set from our visit to two leather shops in the Santa Croce area.

Scuola del Cuoio
Piazza Santa Croce, 16 e Via San Giuseppe
(or you can also enter through the Santa Croce church)

After admiring Giotto's Early Renaissance frescoes inside the chapels of Chiesa di Santa Croce, it was time for some modern day leather appreciation at the Scuola del Cuoio! This was founded to teach orphans of World War II a type of craft that will earn them a living. They have a great website which you must visit to learn more about it and perhaps order from it. It's pretty high-end because pieces are one-of-a-kind and not mass-produced. The website link is: http://www.scuoladelcuoio.com/scuola-del-cuoio-about-us.html

We met the amiable Signor Vito (right) who greeted us with interest! There were no visitors other than me and my daughter during that time so we actually received a first-class visit! He showed us around, talked about how the leather was crafted by artisans into wearable items and he allowed my daughter to try on an expensive leather jacket "just for fun"!

 This hallway  (left photo) displays the Scuola's leather purses and accessories that are practically works of art that you can wear. Various objects, from glass beads, gems, animal horns are sewn into the leather to embellish it.

Signor Vito assisted my daughter to try on this luxuriously soft lamb skin jacket. He picked this for her to coordinate with the leather boots Maddie was wearing.

Inside courtyard of the Chiesa di Santa Croce. You exit the church by way of this courtyard. The Scuola di Cuoio can be accessed from the church (which charges a small fee of 5 Euro) or from Via San Giuseppe

Gothic facade of Chiesa di Santa Croce across the Piazza

Vivaldi Firenze
Piazza Santa Croce 13/R
Tel. 055/242935
http://www.vivaldifirenze.com

Another leather shop we visited at Piazza Santa Croce and got a leather tutorial from was Vivaldi Firenze. They were actually moving their shop to another location and had some items on sale.
Our hostess was so hospitable and very friendly. She showed us how raw leather hide that has been dyed is waxed and embellished with design using tools. Everything was made by hand. Each piece is uniquely made.

This is an embellished leather-bound photo album. The design is created from a mold then waxed to make it shine and then colors are applied.

WATCH THIS VIDEO SHOWING THE ART AND CRAFT OF LEATHER DESIGN
http://www.scuoladelcuoio.com/scuola-del-cuoio-photo-video.html

Wine Bars on the streets of Florence, Italy

Florence, Italy is a lovely city to be discovered on foot. That is exactly what I will do- I am scheduled to run the Firenze Marathon on Sunday, November 28, 2010!
We arrived yesterday, Wednesday from California via Frankfurt, Germany.

For the past one and a half days, we have walked around the center city and enjoyed every minute of it! I tried to capture interesting sights in the past 36 hours in Florence and share them on our blog. Here are the first group of photos...

Wine Bar off Via dei Calzaiuoli

Rack for the wine glasses used by consumers who buy a drink! What a clever idea!

Italians enjoying their drink at the outdoor wine stand or bar

Socializing while drinking on the street!

Another stop on our New England Tour: Exeter, New Hampshire!

Every town's got to have a Main Street (with a capital "M"), here it is in Exeter, New Hampshire...

Main Street, Exeter, NH

We had a soup and panini lunch at a cozy bakery cum cafe called "Me and Ollie" that's located on a street corner that has a view of the Main Street (pictured above). The cafe sells delicious pastries (we bought the granola and oats cookie and raspberry pie to-go). The cafe is family-friendly with a kids' corner and set of lounging chairs.

I love those photographs that you can now have enlarged to put on walls as artwork! I wish to have one done to put in my house.

Maddie and I took a walk, not only on the main road but on alleys and corners that most visitors would not normally take (unless they are lost!). I think this gives a visitor a different and interesting view of a place.

My inspiration here is Alfred Hitchcock's voyeuristic approach! Coming out from the narrow alley and peeking into the main street, I got a shot of a sidewalk activity (woman walking her dog) with a backdrop of the old buildings.

I took picture of Maddie walking out of the alley, a shot I've seen a lot in many fashion catalogues.