2021 Wisconsin State Fair Photography Contest

Like many things, the 2020 Wisconsin State Fair was cancelled so there was no photography contest last year. But...there was one in 2021 and the judging was July 6th.

The day started with the five amigos (Denice and I, Bob Crocker and Chris and Lynn Prober) getting together for breakfast before heading over to the Fair for photo judging day.

The results are now in and Lynn Prober walked away with a Judge's Favorite ribbon, 5 1st place ribbons, 1 second place, 2 thirds and 2 fourth place ribbons. Bob received 3 1sts, 2 2nds, 1 3rd and 4 4ths. Chris got 2 1sts, 1, 2nd and a 3rd.

Here are my award winners:

1069. Signs, street, etc.—New Orleans street art

1071. New! Textiles, silk—New Orleans shopping

1068. New! Shoes—Abandoned shoes

1107. New! Door County lavender—Irishfest band shirt

Here are the photographs that were entered but did not place, or as I like to say, 5th place. 

1003. Animals, baby—State Fair calf

1004. Animals, birds, game birds, waterfowl—Caged Goose

1008. Animals, dogs—Oaxaca guard dog

1009. Animals, farm--Rooster

1011. Animals, insects, not butterflies or moths—Tanzanian dragon fly

1013. Animals, reptiles, amphibians—Louisiana alligator

1014. Animals, zoo--Flamingos

1016. Beach—Irish beach shells

1017. Books, book shelves—Trinity College

1019. Botanical, flowers close up, tropical flowers—Tropical blossom

1021. Botanical, fungi/mushrooms—Horicon Marsh fungi

1024. Building/architectural – urban—New Orleans drug store

1029. Chairs, benches—Dallas art museum

1030. New! Clouds—Tanzanian sunset

1033. Daydreaming—New Orleans street photography

1034. Doors—Frenchman Street, New Orleans

1035. Eyes—Dallas wall art

1036. Famously Wisconsin—Harley Davidson on Bourbon Street, New Orleans

1040. Geometric shapes—Tanzanian trash

1043. Heirlooms, antiques—Ball jar on a tractor

1049. Leaves—Garden District, New Orleans

1053. Night scenes—French Quarter, New Orleans

1056. Product displays—Haas Moto Museum, Dallas

1057. New! Railroads—Jim Adams

1059. Rest and relaxation—Irishfest partier

1063. Rust—Ireland boatyard

1066. Seasonal, winter—Snow on the hostas

1067. Shadows—Haas Moto Museum, Dallas

1073. Transportation, air, land—Fourth of July car show

1076. Water—Tanzanian water hole

1079. Weather, fog, mist—Foggy wayside

2021 06 Scroll Sketching with Laura Lein-Svencner at Shake Rag Alley

I would like to always remember that other people have suffered during this pandemic and some have had great loss. So it is with an understanding that my problem in comparison is small but I have really missed taking in person classes and being at Shake Rag Alley. The last class I took there was in August of 2019 and so it was with great pleasure that I packed my bags and went to Shake Rag for this class. 

Scroll Sketching

June 11-13, 2021

Instructor: Laura Lein-Svencner

Here is the course description: "A different style of sketching organically brings more awareness of process and aesthetics, compared to the usual way of working. Creating and joining a series of mixed media sections into a scroll format will result in one long drawing that honors the journey of its making. The scrolls will be made from watercolor paper, which can handle the variety of techniques that creative inspiration brings to the paper’s surface. Students will first explore a session of mark making with India inks and black walnut dyes, along with teas and rust. These resulting papers will be combined with objects gathered from nature on a daily walk. Sections may be torn and reassembled, then connected using hand sewing and/or machine stitching. Strings, threads, fabric, and fun buttons may be added. By altering the piece even more with gesso, acrylic paints and mixed mediums, a beautiful sculptural scroll is finally created."

The class was in the Lynd Pavilion on the Shake Rag campus. It was great to reunite with two of my best art buddies: Lynn Ovenden and Kelley Clarke. 

Kelley doing a demo for the class

Every morning Laura began class with a centering around a drum circle. 

Laura taught a zillion different techniques of mixed media and I really fell in love with the different methods. I had to try them all, often more than once, and then tried to incorporate all of them into my version of the scroll we were creating.

The brushes we made to paint

Below is the sheet of paper I painted with them.

I decided that my scroll was going to be made up of pieces of paper of difference compositions. This first one is one sheet of paper. The piece is hanging from a pants hanger I picked up when we were resale shopping on Thursday

The next scroll is made from two sheets of paper. One of the skills Laura taught me was how to use a sewing machine--something I had never done before. To say that I was a trial to Laura would be an understatement and nothing we did makes me feel like I could sew it on my own.

As I made this piece I came to realize that I was making it about gun violence. The rifle cleaning bag on the scroll I bought at the Crazy Frank's Flea Market combines with the text phrase, "In these case," which I believe is both cases of ammo and cases of murder. 

The third scroll, made up of three pages, turned out to be about foot binding. If you had told me that I would find a consistent story of women's bad heath treatment in a vintage book, images of geishas and some Asian artwork, I would have bet money against it. 

For the last scroll of four pages, I used a map Laura had given us and a piece of paper from Denice's grandfather's slide trays. This piece did not get done and maybe I will be adding some image transfer vacation photos on to. 

One of my favorite techniques that Laura taught was rust printing. I could have done this for three days it was so cool. I added one piece that I did in this style to the work.

All along I had this idea that each scroll of increasing pages would hang on the hanger in front of the other. However, I pretty much knew at the workshop that this was really spinning out of my control and when I got home, I still feel that way. I think each page has its own weight and the stories are cool but not necessarily as a group. Time will tell what I will do with these scrolls or the techniques I learned but one this is for sure, this was a rock and roll class that has filled my head with all sorts of ideas. 

Schrader the Air Hog

Here is my next robot in the Michael deMeng online workshop, Ramshackle Robots and Antiquated Androids. 

This robot began with a Listerine plastic bottle. I have worked with plastic bottles as bases before and I find it best to fill the bottle with Great Stuff in order to have some firmness to the whole thing before I start adding on other bits. 

After that part was done I auditioned the rest of the parts to be used. I had picked up the Air Hogs walkie-talkie at an estate sale specifically for this class. 

I managed to get all the stuff stuck on without falling off which is not as easy as it sounds.

After much painting, the robot is finished. 

Thus we have, Schrader the Air Hog, a Ramshackle Robot. 

 

The Messiah of My Unhappiness

My friend Robin Larson stopped by for a driveway gathering in these Covid-19 times and brought me a gift she could not pass up at a flea market. I love masks and this little mask was so intriguing and painted so colorful that I immediately decided to make a piece based on it.

Last year when I was making paper in the driveway I made two things: an old tin pan full of paper pulp that I intended to use as a substrate and a baking mold of a heart that I used to make a pulp heart.

I decided also to take the plunge on another thing I wanted to try: resin.

So I painted the heart. The substrate got painted and stamped to my satisfaction. Then after laying a bed of nails, I poured the resin into the tin and let it sit. 

I also painted the mask, highlighting the colors it was already painted. I added two chair back posts and some shredded cardboard into the mix as well.

At this point I thought the piece was done...but something still bothered me about it. I found some wood trim in the basement along with another chair post and added them to the tin. This was much more the direction I wanted this piece to go. 

Thus we have The Messiah of My Unhappiness. It is 20"H X 24"W X 5"D and weighs a ton! The title is from the poem Wrong Question by Tony Hoagland.