3rd place – Chittenango Lions Club Peace Poster contest 2021 – “We Are All Connected”
My 8th grade accelerated Studio in Art students completed an intense nine weeks of creating these peace posters for the Chittenango Lions Club. The Lions sponsor an international peace poster competition for middle school aged children with a grand prize of $5,000.
It is an illustration lesson/editorial design project with some limitations – no words or characters of any kind, no trademarked items or advertisements. We used 16″ x 20″ white tagboard and Prismacolor colored pencils. The Lions Club generously donated enough sets so that my students could each have their own 48 color set. Thirty-eight students competed this year.
Students spent additional hours on these posters at home on the weekends to complete them in time for the contest deadline. The winning poster will go on to the regional competition and possibly the state one as well. The theme for this year is “We Are All Connected”. Now that we are all back in school full-time, this sentiment is truly apropos. <3
2nd place – Chittenango Lions Club Peace Poster contest 2021- “We Are All Connected”1st place – Chittenango Lions Club Peace Poster contest 2021 – “We Are All Connected”
The AmeriCu Arts & Crafts Festival is celebrating its 50th year in downtown Syracuse, New York. Located on the streets surrounding Columbus Circle, there are about 150 artisans and crafters represented in this three-day event. It ends around 4pm today, July 25, 2021, so there is still time to check it out!
There’s food trucks, drinks and music too. My sister and I were there for two hours yesterday. So fun!
This is a juried exhibition. Lula Castillo’s booth at the festival won an honorable mention award. Her work is incredible. She uses plants, nuts, seeds and organic dyes to create exquisite pieces of jewelry. I’ve never seen anything like this!
The colors are so vibrant and fun. I loved everything about her sustainable materials collection.
She comes to us from Long Island, New York (formerly Columbia!)
I thought Erin Primerano’s presentation of her handwoven fine art clothing was wonderful. Her tent looked like a real store! The pieces are one-of-a-kind looks, using a mix of fibers from silk to cotton, to wool and can be hand-washed.
Her company is called Haute Made and you can find her on Etsy! She lives in Syracuse, New York.
Booth A4
I met Ted Greenfield from Chittenango, New York, last week at his City Market booth. These wood charcuterie boards are gorgeous! His company is called Bayside Wood Products.
It’s always a pleasure to see the effervescent Barbara Conte-Gaugel (Syracuse, New York) and her mixed-media handbags and satchels. Everything is handmade from recycled fabrics (including leather and old flour sacks). The larger bags are among my favorites with whimsical patterns that inspire positivity. She is selling these bags at the festival but she is also a fine artist – paintings and assemblages.
Devin Mack from Baltimore, Maryland, creates these fun wire sculptures of animals. He was in the process as I photographed him, said he does not use photographs, just whimsy, and the results are stunning!
Kathleen Scranton from Coventry, Connecticut, creates vintage book purses under the logo BeeZ. She comes to us from the business and marketing world. A chance rendezvous with a library eliminating old books sparked this plan to turn their covers into handbags. Purses come with a paperback version of the book.
Michelle DaRin, Pompey, New York, is a rock star around here. Her face is on billboards, as she is currently represented by Cazenovia Jewelry! I noticed that everyone who walked by Montgomery Street was a customer, including me (I was wearing three of her bracelets!).
Michelle DaRin Jewelry is a one person operation – she is the face of the brand. She selects the stones, cuts the metal, does all the metal-smithing and strings the leather.
The look is upscale Bohemian-chic/’70s vibe meets the new millennium.
Wildflowers Armory is a co-op – artisans who share in the responsibility of selling their wares in their store in downtown Syracuse (217 S. Salina Street). Co-owner Michael Heagerty posed for a few pictures with Kathy and me. He is an amazing person who has single-handedly changed the view of the local art scene in Syracuse – a beautiful person inside and out! <3
They have a double tent set-up on Montgomery Street at the festival with an eclectic mix of items for sale.
Merchandise includes clothing (like the awesome Everson is for Lovers shirt!), soaps, notecards, crafts, and artwork.
Finally, I want my Superintendent to buy these metal bear sculptures for our school (We are the Chittenango Bears!). And I want the cardinal sculpture for my back yard.
OMG, Dale Rogers! His work is exceptional. The sculptures are crafted from stainless steel in his studio in Massachusetts.
Here are my #ootd Instagram pictures from the last few days. Elaine and I were all over the place – Clay & Cicero, New York for a concert and ice cream, Watkins Glen and Hammondsport, New York for a state park hike and a winery visit, Camillus, New York for a shopping experience and lunch, Jamesville, New York for trivia and a sunset view on a farm/restaurant…
It was so much fun to discover places together. I dropped her off at the airport yesterday morning. She lives in Florida. We have been friends since the sixth grade. I was maid of honor at her wedding. We go long stretches without texting or calling then just pick up where we left off and catch up on our lives. I am so lucky. So grateful for our friendship. Grateful for the new memories we created this past week. Thank you, Elaine!!! <3
I bought this dress (above) to wear on my birthday two years ago. It is a BCBGMaxAzria with keyhole top and cutout at the waist. I’ve only worn it twice, so, I decided to wear it to work by pairing it with a matching cashmere sweater, as well as leather pants. Next time, I will lose the pants – it was an experiment – details to follow.
BCBGMaxAzria dress and sandals, Michelle DaRin jewelry bracelets#kesnyc @bcbgmaxazria #ragandbone
Elaine is coming to visit in July. We were talking about the way airlines charge – luggage is extra these days, so, is it less expensive to ship your clothes UPS? Lol – I said, why not just wear all your clothes on top of each other?
That is sort of what these recent outfits represent. I wore the above look on Thursday. We had a two-hour delay/freak snow-storm thingy and it was cold. I dressed in my BCBGMaxAzria turtleneck dress with the uneven hemline then decided to throw on cropped pants and the matching cropped wrap sweater. It was strangely comfortable/oddly satisfying. I think I look like a Punky Brewster-esque monk and yet, I got a lot of compliments that day. Fashion is perplexing when a miss becomes a hit.
These next two looks (above) are adding a skirt and leather pants to my AllSaints leather dress. The skirt look felt genius until I went on errands after school that day. I came home with six inches of rain wetness on the hem of the maxi! Still, I felt fabulous in it. The leather on the dress and pants is lamb – very soft and stretchy.
I’ve tried to get this Rebecca Taylor denim dress into circulation by pairing it with pants and sweaters, but I don’t think it works or at least it doesn’t photograph well. 🙁
Tashkovski bracelet, Theory sweater, Rebecca Taylor dress, Marc Jacobs bootiesRebecca Taylor dress, BCBGeneration sandals, Marc Jacobs sunglasses#kesnyc #bcbgmaxazria
I bought this BCBGMaxAzria dress (above) three years ago to wear to my 55th birthday party. I like using it as a tunic paired with more BCBG stuff – sweater, pants, sandals.
BCBGMaxAzria dress, Marc Jacobs booties#kesnyc #joie #bcbgmaxazria #joesjeans #rebeccaminkoff
I love this Joie leather dress, but it is one of those pieces where you think people will say – oh there’s that dress again. I experimented with it as a jacket and with a top underneath with moderate success. I mean – it is such a beautiful piece, it can’t look bad no matter what you wear with it! Yes, finally! The perfect item. Think I will wear it again next week. 🙂
#kesnyc #joie #bcbgmaxazria #marcjacobsJoie dress, Marc Jacobs booties
I am currently in a post St. Valentine’s Day love affair with the home goods/home decorating/interior design firm and store Fringed Benefits. It is a manifestation of clever, inspirational design and good taste.
The brainchild of Interior Designer Amy Burns, who has established herself in the business locally for over twenty-years, and her partners Michelle O’Connor (business) and Kate Burns (designer), this venture is a stunning array of home decoration brilliance.
The store is located in the plaza adjacent to Wegman’s DeWitt (6825 E. Genesee Street, Fayetteville, New York 13066). It is closed on Sundays but operates every other day of the week. (Check their website for more information)
The venue is set up like a one-bedroom studio apartment with living-room, bedroom, office and dining-room decor supplemented by areas of small accessories, art, floral arrangements, gifts, candles and plenty of pillow options.
Retailer Glory took me on a tour including the back room, which is Burns’ design studio and offers personal assistance in home decorating including selecting fabrics and wallpapers. Glory’s enthusiasm for the products and budding business acumen made me want to make a purchase. It was a wooden heart ornament (pictured below) that I will cherish.
I had been a Facebook “Top Fan” of this place, but had never wandered in until today. It is an amazing store! You must go to there. Bonus if you tell them I sent you. <3
We are doing an art lesson called “my favorite things”, which is a small drawing illustrating items using pictograms and some graffiti. I see a lot of pizza, video games, pets, and sports teams represented. Yes, there were clothes and shoes in my sample, but I tried not to be so one-dimensional. I also added…other stuff (I can’t really remember, off the cuff).
Many of these clothing items are among my favorite things/newest things – the Theory sweaters, the Coach leather skirts, the Rag & Bone boots…. Pretty much everything!
I had to change my wardrobe this year because it just feels so cold at school. I used to live in cardigans over short sleeve or sleeveless tops – layering to peel them off as the day progressed. I guess I used to get too hot, lol. Oh, and it was also because when I prepped the painting lessons and/or washed the paint brushes I didn’t want my sleeves to get wet or dirty. So there’s currently none of that.
We decided to give each student individual supplies. We are focusing on principles of art captured through sketch book assignments, as well as smaller colored pencil drawings on tagboard or Strathmore drawing paper. We just started second semester.
I was a V-neck girl before Zoom. Now I think crew necks look better for sitting in front of that screen all day. Saks Fifth Avenue to the rescue – they had a mega sale of cashmere sweaters for only $39.99! Craziness!!!
Here (above and below) are examples of the double sweater look. I know. I have a lot of sweaters. I will get them dry cleaned over mid-winter break, That starts in T-minus nineteen hours.
I will probably live in pjs and work-out gear during break. And possibly my art smock? I have several art projects that require my attention. I must take inventory of my Tashkovski jewelry collection – I recently acquired more vintage butterfly pins! I’d like to do more writing. And organize my closet. Maybe I should do that first.
#amicale #kesnyc #theory #coach #ragandboneKaren Tashkovski, Princess, 2017, encaustic on masonite, 8″ x 10″ (mounted on chalkboard), $111#kesnyc #tashkovski #allsaints #joesjeans #ragandbone
Although I was in all black yesterday (above), I’m making a conscious decision to add color to my wardrobe. Color looks better in #ootd pictures. Color is just fun. I color coordinate my walk-in closet – this makes it easier to notice items bought separately and even years apart that end up looking amazing together.
This Black Brown 1826 cashmere sweater (above) is something I often wear around the house over my pajamas. It is a thick 4-ply cashmere – very cozy and soft. The sleeves had frayed but I loved it so much, I didn’t want to get rid of it. I brought it to DeWitt Cleaners, recently, because I spilled yogurt on it and when I picked it up, it was not only pristine, but someone had magically mended it as well! The yarns of the sleeves were somehow stitched together (crochet hook?) and now it looks great with the most expensive skirt in my wardrobe!
This outfit (above) was inspired by one of my encaustic angel paintings, currently located on my bedroom dresser. I have had these silk velvet pants for a while. Paired with Marc Jacobs combat-style boots and the double sweater look, it felt super comfy on that cold day. We are in school on Wednesdays while the students are at home. #officehours
Confidante, 2017, encaustic on masonite, 8″ x 10″ (mounted on 11″ x 14″ chalkboard), $111#amicale #kesnyc #warnerbros #anntaylor #coach #ragandbone
I rarely wear red – then this Coach leather skirt came along and now I’m singing red’s praises! Absolutely in love with the length. I paired it with an old Ann Taylor cashmere sweater from when the Ann Taylor store was on the second floor of the mall. (Does that store still exist? – IDK)
Royal Gamer, 18″ x 15″, 2012, encaustic, $125#kesnyc #bcbgmaxazria #sorelKaren Tashkovski, “Geisha”, 2019, 8″ x 8″, encaustic & collage, $250#kesnyc #tashkovski #saksfifthavenue #rebeccataylor #frame #rebeccaminkoff
The monochromatic look was the rage at the 2021 Inauguration. It looked a bit like a circa 1980s rainbow wedding to me but fashion instagrammers didn’t agree. They loved that parade. I am not a purple head-to-toe fan either, lol. But blue? Yes!
One color works best when it is a blend of textures while allowing the hues to vary. Here (above) a new cashmere sweater with my tissue thin Rebecca Taylor summer denim dress, a navy silk mask and Frame cropped jeans. Boots, kind of, match my hair.
Sometimes I throw on my hat or earmuffs for the #ootd picture and sometimes I wear them most of the day when I am not in the classrooms. There is a lot less moving around these days due to all the Covid restrictions and such, and it just feels a lot colder at work. Hence the double sweater business too.
“SECRET”, 2008, mixed-media, 18″ x 24″#aquacashmere #talithacollection #tashkovski #joesjeans #rebeccaminkoff
The fist time I wore this silk Talitha Collection top (above), I was at the Doobie Brothers/Steely Dan concert at the Ampitheater. It was something like ninety degrees in the shade that July day! For a January school day, I threw it on over a thick cashmere turtleneck.
And, P.S., every color in the rainbow looks great paired with these lambskin leather jeans (Joe’s Jeans!)
Finally and full circle, dresses over pants is a fun look – the dresses become tunics/jackets and I get to wear them through the winter and still manage to stay warm. Thank you, Joie and AllSaints, for the leathaaaaaaaa! <3
Debbie Grifka, Ann Arbor, MI, Notre Dame, 2019, Textile, $8,500
Victoria Findlay Wolfe, New York, NY, A Year of Moments, 2018, Fiber, quilt, $15,000
Jeanne Hewell-Chambers, Cashiers, NC, Playground of Her Soul, 2018, Fabric, batting, embroidery floss, and discarded dress, $3,800
Kerri Green, Dallas, TX, Eyes On You, 2020, Cotton fabric hand-dyed by the artist, and cotton batting, $2,500
Susan Lapham, Vienna, VA, Playland #2, 2020, Pieced, hand-dyed cotton, and machine quilted, $8,000
Kerri Green, Dallas, TX, Eyes On You, 2020, Cotton fabric hand-dyed by the artist, and cotton batting, $2,500Diana Fox, Ellen Blalock, Judy Kirpich
The Quilts = Art = Quilts exhibition at the Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center is up until January 10, 2021, so you have plenty of time to see it. It is only the second installation since the mandatory Covid-19 shutdowns. The Made in New York show was their toe-in-water – they have upped their safety and security measures to include weekend visits.
Margaret Abramshe, Shinhee ChinVictoria Findlay Wolfe, New York, NY, A Year of Moments, 2018, Fiber, quilt, $15,000
Not sure if a lot of people know the museum is open. It is – and it is BEAUTIFUL. A wonderful experience, especially when you practically have the place to yourself and you can enjoy that intimate discovery of art elements – line, shape, color, texture and size, while appearing incognito.
#coach #marcjacobs #kesnyc #theory #joesjeans #calvinkleinDebbie Grifka, Ann Arbor, MI, Notre Dame, 2019, Textile, $8,500Jeanne Hewell-Chambers, Cashiers, NC, Playground of Her Soul, 2018, Fabric, batting, embroidery floss, and discarded dress, $3,800
Only some of these quilts are standard sizes – the rest are meant as wall decoration. Iconography runs the gamut from portraits and landscapes to the abstract. Traditional quilting techniques offer a stepping stone to what is and what can be.
This is a juried exhibition cultivated from a nationwide call for entries. Seventy-one quilts were selected.
Susan Lapham, Vienna, VA, Playland #2, 2020, Pieced, hand-dyed cotton, and machine quilted, $8,000
Valerie S. Goodwin is a mixed media fiber artist and architect whose works of fine art are included in museum and private collections. Most of her work is inspired by a love of aerial views of landscapes and cities. Many of her quilts are based on maps.
Goodwin’s art has moved through various stages from traditional quilting to an interest in abstract expressionism and, currently it is inspired by real and imaginary landscapes and cities. In some cases, her work shows an architectural sense of space with an archaeological perspective. In others, the network of the city and its built form is more prominent. These compositions work on several levels, from close up and far away as if one was looking at it from above.
She received degrees in architecture from Washington University and Yale University. Her award-winning work has been widely published and exhibited. She also lectures and gives workshops nationally and internationally. Currently she teaches architectural design at Florida A&M University.
Fiber artist Mary Lou Alexander’s two great passions are art and nature. She grew up in Northeast Ohio playing along the streams and paths of a nearby forest, drawing, and stitching together fabric scraps in her Godmother’s sewing room. She studied art and art history in college, but spent much of her adult life as a biologist, examining the ecology and reproductive behavior of small South American monkeys. She earned a PhD from Kent State University in Biological Anthropology, and holds an international Diploma from the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in London. She taught at Northeastern Ohio College of Medicine and in the Department of Biological Sciences at Kent State University.
In mid-career she resigned her tenured professorship to return to art and stitching full time. Over the year she had mounted 5 solo exhibitions in museums and galleries, and she has been represented in many juried exhibitions in the US and Europe including Artist as Quiltmaker, Quilt National, Quilts=Art=Quilts, Best of Ohio, Form Not Function, Focus Fiber, and others. Her work was invited to be included in Color Improvisations, which toured Europe in 2010 through 2013 in the Inaugural Exhibition at Edison Price Gallery in New York City and Material Pulses, which is touring the Us through 2023. Her quilts are part of many private and public collections including Marbaum Collection at the San Joe Museum of Quilts and Textiles. She has curated several exhibitions for the Butler Institute of American Art and written reviews for Fiber Arts Magazine. Natural phenomena remain a major inspiration for her work.
Carolyn Skei, Karen Schulz
The exhibiting artists are as follows:
Margaret Abramshe, Geneviève Attinger, Bobbi Baugh, Deb Berkebile, Margaret Black, Ellen Blalock, Holly Brackmann, Peggy Brown, Betty Busby, Libby Cerullo, Shinhee Chin, Gregory Climer, Tyrus Clutter, Holly Cole, Shannon Conley, Petra Fallaux, Victoria Findlay Wolfe, Diana Fox, Kerri Green, Debbie Grifka, Carol Grotrian, Betty Hahn, Barbara Oliver Hartman, Jeanne Hewell-Chambers, Virginia Holloway, Judy Hooworth, Beth Porter Johnson, Noel Keith, Natalya Khorover, Judy Kirpich, Elke Klein, Karen Krieger, Denise Labadie, Judy Langille, Susan Lapham, Niraja Lorenz, Valerie Maser-Flanagan, Alicia Merrett, Kestrel Michaud, Susie Monday, Kathy Nida, Frauke Palmer, Julia Pfaff, Heather Pregger, Wen Redmond, Denise Roberts, Irene Roderick, Barbara Schulman, Karen Schulz, Candace Hackett Shively, Carolyn Skei, Brenda Gael Smith, Gerri Spilka, Lee Sproul, Victoria van der Laan, Cynthia Vogt
Candace Hackett Shively, Libby Cerullo
The Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center is located at 205 Genesee Street, Auburn, New York 13021. They are open Tuesdays-Saturdays from 10AM – 5PM and Sundays from 1PM – 5PM. Call (315) 255-1553 for more information or email at mail@schweinfurthartcenter.org.
