Art Spark Tutorial Tsunami (part 4)

More by the creative Artspark Crowd!

Alisa Burke

Little Monsters Tutorial

http://alisaburke.blogspot.com/2010/10/little-monsters-tutorial.html

Tracie Lyn Huskamp

Covered Button Corsage

http://thereddoor-studio.blogspot.com/

Art Spark Tutorial Tsunami (part 3)

Couldn't resist including a few more sweet Halloween tutorials.
And guess what - my Halloween playlist is waaaay cool now. (I'll list it in a minute.)

Jane LaFazio

Papier Mache Skulls

Janeville.blogspot.com

Alisa Burke

Pretty Painted Pumpkins

AlisaBurke.Blogspot.com


OK. Here is what has been added to the playlist I told you about here.
Bach's "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor"
Nightmare Before Christmas "This is Halloween" and "Oogie Boogie's Song"
Humpback whales singing (the real thing)
The theme from "The Adams Family"
Wagner "Ride of the Valkyries"
Theme song from "Ghostbusters"
Sha Na Na "Witch Doctor"
Micheal Jackson "Thriller"
Theme song from "Dr. Who"
From Harry Potter "It's Halloween" "Double Trouble"
Star Wars Episode V "The Imperial March"
The Sorcerer's Apprentice""
"Dance Macabre"

Artist Spotlight part 3: Canvas Remix GIVEAWAY!

Do you remember way back at the beginning of the month when I promised you more about the wonderful artists Alisa Burke? I hope you have been following her adventures on her blog - she is fresh and creative and her photography and whimsical nature lifts my soul.

Today I'd like to introduce you to two of her wonderful creations - a book titled Canvas Remix and her on-line classes.

Canvas Remix is a delightful primer on how to create a number of projects with Alisa's signature layered graffiti and messy paint on canvas style. I absolutely love the way she uses canvas with abandon as a beginning for her art, rather than the end in itself. She begins the book with a great cheerleading "you can do it!" essay then digs right into the nitty gritty of how to apply the paint to the canvas. The pictures are easy to follow for those of us who seem unable to pay attention long enough to follow written instructions. The written instructions are also well done and clearly explained.

But that is just the beginning! With Alisa, a painted canvas is not a sacred thing. She's not afraid to rip, layer, encrust, sew, and restructure her paintings into many a delightful object d'Art! She shows you how to create magnets, cards, monsters, and memoirs. She'll lead you through the construction of art to wear jewelry, totes, and show you how to create boxes, pillows and tapestries.

My two favorites are the MESSY MONSTERS and the BITS and PIECES ORNAMENTS.

From now until Friday, if you leave a comment on this post or the first Artist Spotlight I wrote to introduce you to Alisa, you will have a chance to WIN a copy of this deliciously charming book. 

Now, I had the great pleasure of taking a couple of Alisa's on-line workshops. I'm always curious about how other people run their on-line courses in comparison to how things work over at QuiltUniversity.com where I teach. There things are structured and follow a simple format that hasn't changed in a long time. It's easy to follow and use. (Can you tell I like it?)

Guess what? I LOVED the way Alisa has things set up. She has great introductions to her work on her website so that you can clearly see what you will be learning in class. You can register any time and then have access to the course materials for pretty much as long as you need it. Unless it is a brand new course, in which she gives you one set of lessons per week, you have access to the entire course immediately through a password protected blog. You cannot download the videos or material but there is no need to - you can see it any time.

boards are collaged and paint is applied

This is the part I love - the lessons are written out, but the main teaching method is a long, long, list of video clips where you can SEE exactly how she does what she does. The prices are reasonable and I feel you get a plethora of information for what you pay. I took a class called Graffiti Chic. It did cover some of the same basics as her book but because of the video format I felt it was able to delve more deeply into the subject matter. It teaches you some of the same basics of applying paint to canvas. And knowing me, who chooses not to follow instructions too closely, I immediately pulled out artists boards instead.

words are written

Yes I'm a textile artist but there are times when I long for the almost instant gratification of applying paint to a surface and seeing a thing bloom into being in a fast and furious fraction of the time it takes to meditatively hand stitch my usual work. (boy am I into run-on sentences this morning or what!?) Anyway - Alisa gives you the feeling of permissive freedom to experiment with absolutely anything.

hand carved stamps and drippy paint were my next layer of choice

Alisa is so enthusiastic in her videos that it encourages you to simply play and experiment. My favorite thing to do. With paint, the fun thing is that you can just cover it up with yet another layer of paint if you don't like exactly how things are turning out.

a toothbrush adds a splattering of black paint

So the fun thing about this project is - that this is just the background. You can keep going as far as you'd like to go. Alisa teaches you how to adhere embellishments to your painting, how to write graffiti letters, how to add photographs, etc. I've set this project aside for the moment as I ruminate on where to go next. I'm thinking of adding photographs of my ancestors and some vintage lace bits I have laying about. You can see that compared to Alisa's work mine is monochromatic and practically subdued - but that's one of the fun things. I don't have to make my work look just like hers to learn these techniques. You can keep your own voice and learn from other artists. 

So - I encourage you to head over to Alisa Burke's site to check out the classes she has to offer. Perhaps stop by her blog to follow her many creative adventures. Be sure to leave a comment here for a chance to win a copy of Canvas Remixa. Please do check back on Friday to see if you've won - or make sure that I have a way to contact you.

Artist Spotlight part 1: Alisa Burke

Happy April friends! What a lovely month. With the arrival of exuberant swaths of color to my local landscape I'd like to introduce you to an artist that is also exuberant in her use of color.

ALISA BURKE

I've been following her blog for a little while now, have read her book (more on that next week) and am in love with her wild and whimsical take on the world. I know you'll enjoy her work as much as I do.

Lyric: We have something fun in common. My mother was a potter, as were your parents. My father taught high school art classes. What are some of your favorite memories of growing up with artists as parents. 

Alisa: Growing up my life was full of creativity. Because my parents were potters who were running a business from home, my brother and I always had access to crafts, supplies, projects, and an understanding and appreciation of art. Both my mom and dad incorporated creativity into everything we did- dressing up and hiking into the forest for tea parties, making and selling our own crafts, playing with clay and learning how to throw pots on a wheel, having the freedom and supplies to draw and paint whenever I wanted, letting us draw all over wall before they repainted the living room and so much more.  My own desire and love for drawing and art was nurtured at a very young age and while it seems many people find art later in life, I am grateful that my passion was recognized and supported throughout my entire life! 

L: Tell me about your transition to being a full-time artist.

Alisa: All I ever wanted was to be a full time artist and I really feel like I have been working toward that dream since high school. I knew declaring painting and printmaking as my major in college meant I probably would have to work a "normal" job while pursuing my art on the side and this is exactly what I have been doing since college.  I landed in a marketing position that enabled me to be creative but it still did not satisfy my craving to work for myself as an artist. I decided to get serious and I finally made a plan, set goals and with my husband's support began working as hard as I could to build a  creative business that could pay my share of the bills- just like my "normal job".  This process took me five years to get to a place where I could walk away from my job.  Honestly it was really difficult but I wanted it BAD and I never gave up and finally last spring I quit my job- truly one of the best days of my life! While things often don't live up to my expectations this transition has succeeded them.  I have never worked this hard but it is so rewarding to be doing what I love every day, challenging myself, making my own rules, setting my own goals and making art for a living.  Now I cannot imagine things going any other way- the long wait, the working by day and making art by night, the years of creating, learning and growing as an artist have all made this transition so worth it all. 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/alisaburke

L: Why graffiti - and why turn your work into functional objects such as your very cool clutches? 

Alisa: Since college painting classes, I have always loved creating layers of color, texture and text. I used to create messy backgrounds and then paint my assignments on top of them. Because I am drawn to the concept of layers or messy paint, I think moving towards graffiti inspired techniques was a natural progression for me.  I have never been traditional with the things that I create and was always looking for unique ways to redefine my art. When I needed a purse for a wedding I cut up one of my canvas paintings and sewed it into a purse which sparked a whole new way of looking at canvas paintings.  

L: I find it interesting that your environment, the pictures you've posted of your home - white, clean, colorful yet your art is exuberantly messy.  My art tends to be very controlled while my environment is out of control messy.

A: This is such a great question!  My art is messy, colorful and wild, my studio is organized but every inch is covered in images, inspiration and art. At the end of the day I actually need a visual break from it all! Keeping our home decorated in lots of white, clean and organized helps me feel like I can relax and escape from my creative chaos. 

L: Do you have any fears or inhibitions about your art? How do you work through them? 

Alisa: Honestly, I would have to say that art might be the one and only area in my life that I am fearless about. I am REALLY cautious, hesitant and often fearful in my everyday life (typically about silly things) but when I paint and create, all my worries, my inhibitions and my fear melts away.  I have felt grounded and solid in my creative passions for so long (likely because my upbringing) that I have very few inhibitions making, selling and promoting my art. Even when I run into rejection, dead end opportunities and financial challenges, there is this peace and confidence in knowing that being an artist is who I am and nothing will ever change that.

Are you as delighted as I am with Alisa and her work? Next week I'll review her book and yes, I'll be having another giveaway at the end of the month so leave a comment for a chance to win.