LilianaBead: 2011

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Great news which includes a visit to Montreal

I'm sitting in Sabine's kitchen...
My ears are serenaded by Vincent Delerm and my eyes are following a naughty and free squirrel whose purpose, it seems, is to carefully jump from one branch to another of grape and kiwi vines which hold Sabine's porch in a bold embrace.

I'm in Montreal, visiting and enjoying the much welcome imminence of Spring.
Yesterday, in the city of Montreal, I saw a gallery of Inuit Art the doors of which had already been closed by the late hour but the promise of tomorrow was born by the wings of a beautiful owl staring right at me. Most of the bird was comprised of whale bones including her body - a very large whale vertebra. Today, if it doesn't rain too badly, I will head out to the gallery in hope of meeting the sculpture in person and looking for more.

This vacation feels like a nice reward for a very busy few months. 2011 has brought much vivacity into my mostly quiet studio routine.

Several of the LilianaBead Collections are available for sale at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston in conjunction with the Chihuly Exhibit. It's been about a month and I've already filled 3 large orders! My hands are begging me to take a break while my spirit is thriving. I enjoy the fact that customers enjoy the work I make and choose to adorn their body with it!

Berry Extraordinnaire Collection

Water is a part of the 10x10x10 Small Works Show at Pittsburgh Glass Center. Consider going by the center as it is a wonderful oasis for anyone who loves glass or is contemplating whether to fall for it perpetually.

Water

Pennaceous will travel for the next 12 months as part of the ISGB Convergence III Exhibit.

Pennaceous

What now?

Well, I'll enjoy the rest of my stay in Montreal. My host and dear friend not only has a beautiful home and a happening porch, but she's also got a brilliant mind and a loving heart. Thank you, Sabine...

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Consider a stronger democracy and please make your voice heard.

Dear all,

I don't usually write to ask for political help, but I am now.

I am really worried about the serious assault being made on a number of government programs that to me are at the core of a fair, just, and democratic society.

Here are items the US House has voted to eliminate entirely or cut deeply:

NPR and PBS
Public financing for presidential elections
AmeriCorps
the Corporation for National Service
civic and history education programs
immigrant civic integration grants
enforcement of net neutrality regulations
election reform grants from the Election Assistance Commission
Fulbright and cultural exchange programs
Head Start
block grants for jobs for inner city youth
Environmental Protection Agency
mass transit

I'm sure I'm leaving out some items.

THESE CUTS ARE NOT ABOUT BALANCING THE BUDGET; THEY ARE ABOUT A RADICAL RESHAPING OF U.S. PRIORITIES.
The wealthiest Americans have had their tax cuts extended. No one dares touch the military budget. If you'd like a particularly egregious example, the House voted to continue funding $28 million per year for the US military to advertise at NASCAR events!

Please write to your senators and congressperson.

Better yet, call their offices.

Tell them you want these programs (and others you believe in) saved.

Tell them to reduce military spending.

Tell them to tax fairly.

Write to your newspapers.
Write to your friends.
Donate to progressive causes if you wish.

This is serious.

Thank you for considering this message and call to action.

Liliana

see: www.strongerdemocracy.org

Monday, February 7, 2011

Come and visit with Phil and I on February 20th.

Join us

Phillip Glenn

Liliana

for the event

hosted by

Miriam Gallery

and

organized by

Experimental Art & Business Club

Sunday

February 20, 2011

6:30 pm

(click on the link above to learn more about the event)

Hope to see you there

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Congratulations to Fountain Street Fine Art (FSFA) Gallery ... and me :)

Any time a new local gallery opens, the artists rush enthusiastically to support its founders and to showcase their work in a new venue when given the opportunity. And that's exactly what happened.

The Fountain Street Fine Art Gallery received its first visitors in December, 2010 and is now getting ready to open its first show Unscripted on January 27, 2011. Artists from all around this area and, possibly beyond, specializing in a variety of media and subjects, have been juried in by Katherine French, director of The Danforth Museum.

Grand Opening Bash- February 5^th, 5-8PM

at Fountain Street Studios Building in Framingham,MA on the 1st floor

I was among the artists to apply for the first FSFA show. I decided to submit a piece that's been in my mind for some time. My sculpture, Untitled , measuring about 24" long (see photo below), was juried in. This blog entry is about the creative/manufacturing process behind this piece

I've had a fascination with seeds and pods long enough to have created a few abstract collections in glass. I've long been attracted by the magic of pods and the engineering behind their most important functions of protecting, transporting and disseminating.

In the meantime, while dedicating more than ten years to glass and its artistic properties, I've considered beads to be like seeds. Beads are elements of a larger concept; their function is to propagate an impregnate the world with visions executed in glass. To me, glass is one of the most interesting, evolving and alive media in that it continuously interacts with its environment, light in particular. Glass renders itself to be imagined and transformed.

Before I take you through the manufacturing process, you may want to consider what some others have expressed before us.
Out of dozens of websites and resources, here are four:
1. http://theseedsite.co.uk/allpodsfam1.html
2. google search: seeds and pods
3. laura f. bennett / painter
4. art propelled

I made my sketches with pencil & paper and then made the beads. In between bead days, I went to a couple of fabric stores and decided to go with a felted material made of recycled plastic bottles from Sewfisticated. I decided on a solution for my form after spending a few hours at Blick - two cones of styrofoam linked together with wire and glue (weldbond-universal-adhesive). Got my sewing machine out - all ready to go.
Are you ready to see the photos?
Here they come whatever your answer is :)