Scribble Town (ST): Clark Sorensen is a man of his heart, many trades and talents! He grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Sculpture from the University of Utah.  Before settling in California he lived in France for a couple of years.  Clark has been a costume designer, illustrator, and computer animator, working primarily on video games.  He probably has had a hand in one of your favorite video games!  Clark’s playful attitude has led him back to sculpting and painting where for the past 10 years he has devoted his full attention to creating art.  His unique series of urinal sculptures has given him worldwide recognition and now he has caught Scribble Blog’s eye!

Clark, where are you and what are you up to these days?

Clark Sorensen (CS): I am living and working in San Francisco.  I’ve been a full time artist for about 10 years working primarily in porcelain.

Portrait of Clark Sorensen

ST: How did you discover working with ceramic and was there somebody that encouraged you?

CS: My first try at clay was a wheel throwing class when I was a youth, maybe 8 or 10 years old. There was a small art center near my house and I took some kind of art class every summer. In college I pursued a fine art degree in sculpture and ended up gravitating to ceramic sculpture, largely because I liked the teaching style of a professor named David Pendell. He wasn’t one of those teachers who wants you to copy his style or ideas but encouraged individuality.

Urinal Group by Clark Sorensen

ST: I hope everybody gets the opportunity to find such an encouraging teacher such as David Pendell!  When did you start creating handcrafted urinals and sinks?

CS: About 13 years ago I was hit with the idea to try to make a urinal. The more I thought the more I liked the notion. My first pieces were duds and it took me several years of trying to produce a successful, working urinal.

ST: The best ideas really do just hit you on the head!  I love on your website where it says, “Answering Nature’s Call!”  Please tell us more about your motivation and technique.

Venus Fly Trap Urinal by Clark Sorensen goes for $11,500. "It is the most recent addition to Sorensen's line up of whimsical urinal. This carnivorous plant comes with a full set of spikes. They look dangerous but are made of friendly silicone rubber. Pedestal is included." Read more about it on http://www.clarkmade.com/urinals.htm.

CS: I have always loved making things – anything. As a child I remember wishing I could be marooned on Gilligan’s Island because they got to make everything from scratch. I like to think I harness that spirit as I’ve had to experiment with my clay and glaze techniques in order to succeed. Some problems have taken me many years to solve. Even though I am an artist, part of the time I feel more like a scientist. I’m often glad that I learned algebra and geometry and chemistry.

ST: One may not think, but math and science really does come in handy when making art.  Where do you find yourself feeling really inspired to create?

CS: I am always thinking and evaluating. I have many sketchbooks full of future ideas. If you’ve ever been to a great art exhibit, concert or museum and found yourself looking at even a garbage can as if it were art then you know the mind-set I try to have all the time.

ST: I wonder what is the last forest or place of nature you walked through and thought, “this would make a great urinal.”  If you have a story, please share.

CS: I am thinking that all the time. Whether it’s in a garden, the hardware store or the grocery store. I don’t only think of urinals really. I have lots of ideas for sculptures and projects but only so much time. If I could only clone myself I think I could realize all these ideas.

ST: What are some tools you like to use?

CS: I always say that if you can’t find the tool you need then make it. I have a growing array of tools that help me make more tools. I am always carving a stick into the tool I need.

These 2 orange poppy sinks by Clark Sorensen were installed in a software company bathroom in Alameda California in 2008

ST: What kind of music do you like? Is there something you are listening to at the moment while you make art?

CS: I listen to music all day long. When I tire of my music then I turn to Pandora and mix it up. Sometimes I’m in the mood for old 80’s tunes and sometimes I need a little jazz or classical. I’m all over the map and love to have new music introduced to me.

ST: Clark, what is a good piece of advice for our Scribblers?  Coming from somebody who really thinks out of the box I think you are big inspiration to many!

CS: I would say that there are so many more careers out there than the traditional ones, especially in the arts. Don’t be afraid to encourage yourself or your kids to dream outside the box. You will be surprised at the opportunities out there to animate, design parties, make monster movies, design flowers for famous weddings, carve ice sculptures for Oscar parties, design dresses for celebrities, on and on and on. not everyone will or should be a doctor or a lawyer. Dream dream dream!

I would recommend your readers seek out a film called: “Between the folds” a documentary about working with paper made for PBS. I have never seen a more exciting view of creativity and what some people are doing with paper. I also love to watch modern dance because it often makes me stay up all night thinking about art and expression.

ST: Keep on dreaming!  You heard him!  Let’s all continue on that path!  Thanks Clark for being with us today

Calla Lily Top View Urinal by Clark Sorensen. Calla lily water free urinal using the URIMAT insert for a garden center in Germany.

Share

Scribble Town (ST): With us on the Scribble Blog is Timothy Young! Timothy has a long, creative career as an illustrator, graphic designer, toy designer, animator, puppet builder and sculptor and continues to surprise us with his imagination.

Timothy Young with Barney!

Timothy Young (TY): Hi! I live in Maryland with my family on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. My first book, I’m Looking For A Monster!, came out in 2008 and my 4th book, I Hate Picture Books!, has just come out from Schiffer Publishing.

ST: Where are you and what are you up to these days? I’m sure very excited about your book ‘I Hate Picture Books!’ reaching people everywhere! Please tell us a bit about your book. A little sneak peak please

TY: I Hate Picture Books! is about a boy named Max who is having a bit of a temper tantrum and is throwing away his picture books. Throughout the book Max describes how picture books have gotten him in trouble and all the while we see him either pictured in these books or showing what he is describing in the style of many classic children’s books that the reader will recognize. I really enjoyed poking fun at many of the books I have loved through the years.

I Hate Picture Books by Timothy Young

ST: Throughout your years of experience have you found a favorite place to write and draw?

TY: I have a home office where I do most of my drawing. I write in many places, including when I’m mowing the lawn or driving in my car. That is, I think up a lot of ideas and write them down later on.

ST: I think writing while mowing the lawn is it’s own art form! What other kinds of art do you practice?

TY: I have done a lot of different types of art. I draw, I sculpt, I use the computer to design graphics and advertising. I use Photoshop to finish most of my illustrations.

A few character designs by Timothy Young

I design toys and I have a new toy line coming out soon called HEDZZ™. I designed them and sculpted the prototypes. I’ll let you know more soon about where to get them. You can see more of my artwork at http://www.creaturesandcharacters.com.

ST: All of your characters whether they are in books or in the shape of a toy have such different personalities. What do you hope to communicate with your stories?

Timothy Young's Books

TY: I don’t start out with any specific message, I usually think of a character and a situation they find themselves in. If some kind of lesson sneaks in there, that’s a plus. Mostly I write books for myself and I hope other people like them too.

ST:What was your favorite storybook growing up? Or is there a character that you connected with especially?

Max Eating Green Ham by Timothy Young

TY: I loved Dr Seuss and P. D. Eastman’s books along with many others. Two of my favorites are no longer in print. I especially liked The Ice-Cream Cone Coot by Arnold Lobel and GWOT! Horribly Funny Hairticklers by Steven Kellogg.

ST: I can see your love for Dr. Seuss in your picture of Max eating green ham (look to your right). Dr. Seuss would have loved that! Your designs and inventions inspire us to go to adventure lands! Where do you get your inspiration from?

TY: Everywhere! I can’t stop these characters and ideas from running around in my brain.

Often times I just doodle things until they become a creature or a character who’s story needs to be told. These days I like drawing on really cheap tracing pads I buy at the supermarket. The paper is rough and I like the line quality I get with my drawing pencils. My favorite pencils are Creatacolor Nero extra soft #1s. Once I have a sketch I like I take another piece of paper and trace over my first to get cleaner lines. Then I scan it into my MacBook Pro and do all of my color work in Photoshop.

I wanted to let everyone know about my contest. If you can name 40 books of the over 250 that are referred to in I Hate Picture Books!, you can enter to win over a dozen autographed books by authors whose books are in my book. You can find all of the details at http://www.ihatepicturebooks.com/contest.html.

ST: Thanks Tim for the challenge! I’m up for it. On your mark, get set, go!

The cover of I Hate Picture Books by Timothy Young

Share

Scribble Town (ST): The first time I spotted Adrienne Moumin’s photo collages I was stunned by their design and beauty.  And then curiosity hit!  How did she do that?  Where are these images coming from and how is it so that from one concrete image it is perfectly cut and spliced and then re-contextualized all to have it’s meaning turned upside down.  Adrienne is here with us to share with us her creative story!

Adrienne Moumin (AM): I was born in 1961 in Brooklyn, NY. I work in film-based, hand-printed, B&W photography, and hand-cut-and-assembled, mixed-media photo collage.

Sculpture Garden Hirshhorn; 33” x 33” Hand-Cut-and- Assembled Gelatin Silver Photo Collage; 2009 by Adrienne Moumin

I am best known for my Architextures series of handmade photo collages.  My favorite photographic subjects are NYC architecture and urban landscapes, and store window mannequins.

This is me (with a selection of my Architextures photo collages) in my booth at the Architectural Digest Home Design Show, Pier 94 in NYC, March 21-24, 2013. I made a great many contacts in the architecture and interior design fields, as well as directly with people who buy art for their homes and offices.

My photography and collage have been exhibited in New York, and nationwide, for over fifteen years.  My work is in private collections in the US and internationally.

ST: Your photographs and collages have been on the move for quite a while now!  Where are you and what are you up to these days?

AM: I am based in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD. I split my time between the two cities: showroom in NYC, and studio and darkroom in MD. I am continuing to work on my Architextures series, as well as coming back to the surrealist mixed-media collage style that I have dabbled in for years. I recently sold one of those pieces to someone who is wildly enthusiastic, and has encouraged me to produce more work in that genre.

ST: I like the name of your series, Architextures.  It gives a tangible feeling to the photo collages, but also a sense of having a strong structure to the series.  When did you start making collages and taking photographs? Was there somebody that encouraged you?

AM: I began working in cut-paper collage starting at about 8 years of age, using magazines and catalogs that would come to the house, to decorate whatever I could find.  A major project in childhood was decorating the top of a castoff bookcase with hand-cut magazine pictures. I began photographing seriously, and studying film and darkroom processes, in my ‘20’s. I have been completely self-propelled in my artistic endeavors.

Snippetree; 19" x 13 ¼" x 1 ½” Deep Hand-Cut-and- Assembled 3-D Gelatin Silver Photo Collage; Made from over 300 pieces cut from 10 duplicate prints; 2011 by Adrienne Moumin

ST: That’s great to hear that you have been making collages since your were 8 years old!  Where do you find yourself feeling really inspired to create?  I really like your stories on your website especially the one under Architectural Detail.  You write, “Someone told me once that I was an architect in another life. I love the curves and the lines, the reflections and the tonalities, the solidity and transparency, and the man-made striving for esthetic and functional perfection, of architectural forms.”  To read more of Adrienne’s stories please go to http://www.picturexhibit.com/index.html.

AM: So many things inspire me!: Walking around the city, looking at architecture and urban landscapes; fashions worn by passersby; and store window displays.  And, of course, looking at the art of others, in galleries, museums, and online.

ST: Inspiration is one thing, but skill is another.  How do you hand print silver gelatin photographs?  What is the process?  I’m sure we are all interested in the magic of the dark room.

AM: I use an enlarger, which is a device that shines a light through the photographic negative, and projects it below onto the light-sensitive paper that I place there.  Then I put the paper through a series of chemicals in trays, to develop and fix that latent image. This is all done under a reddish-orange “safelight,” which provides just enough light for me to see what I am doing, yet does not affect the paper.

ST: What forms of art do you include in your mixed media photo collages?  What are some tools you like to use?

AM: I always start with the photograph, and what it suggests to me in terms of feeling and mood.  There is no limit to what I will attach to the surface of a photograph. Paper cutouts, glass or plastic beads, sequins, Swarovski crystals, metal stampings…the list never ends!

ST: What kind of music do you like?  Is there something you are listening to at the moment while you make art?

AM: Music is very important to me when I am printing in the darkroom.  In keeping with the analog nature of my work (and my refusal to replace a perfectly functioning technology simply because something new comes out), I have a little boombox in there which plays cassettes and CDs! Two of the CDs I nearly always listen to during printing sessions are the first album from Counting Crows, “August and Everything After,” and The Band’s “Greatest Hits.”

The Victory Arpeggios; 25½” x 25¾” x 3/8” deep Hand-Cut-and- Assembled 3-D Gelatin Silver Photo Collage; 2012 by Adrienne Moumin

ST: Adrienne, you have given us a great start to create and how to look at things differently!  What is a piece of advice for parents and their little scribblers?

AM: For the parents: Look at some collage sites on the internet, and google different search terms, to find age-approriate project ideas for children; many require little or no money.  Talk to your children about what they would enjoy; you never know when an idea will spark a fire that lasts a lifetime.

For scribblers: Just do what you feel. Because art has no rules.

I found this on Pinterest, and followed the link to this ingenious project, posted by art teacher Sherri Schultz.  It is simply using our imaginations to expand on an image.
http://artmommie.blogspot.com/2012/03/young-explorers-class_10.html

ST: You are right- art has no rules and now is the time to explore and create!  Thank you, Adrienne!

To find the tools to get started on your own collage please have a look at Adrienne’s suggested art activity that expands your image  http://www.scribbleshop.com/content/exploring-expansion-your-image-and-imagination

Share

Irra Verbitsky is an award winning artist, animator and independent filmmaker living and working in NYC.  She has so many talents and accomplishments that it is hard to name them all!  She was also my storyboard teacher at the School of Visual Arts where she still teaches in the animation department.

"Viking Voyage" by Irra Verbitsky

Currently, Irra is the President and Creative Director at Polestar Animation.  She is involved in many things such as designing storyboards, background designs and animation.  Her independent animated films have been screened internationally and at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York City as well as at festivals here in the U.S.A. and abroad.

Original Storyboard for "Owen"

Irra has directed and animated children’s films for Scholastic.   On the animation “Owen” (1995) Irra was
background painter and color animator while Sara Jessica Parker narrated the animation.

Irra is a very accomplished storyboard artist.  As a storyboard artist she sketches the stories, so that the scenes in the movies or animations can be visualized.  Here you can get an idea of how she sketches out her storyboards to create her award winning ‘Owen’.

I wasn’t the only one who thought ‘Owen’ was a great animation!  Others thought it was such a talented piece of art that ‘Owen’ won the prestigious Carnegie Medal for Best Children’s Film of the Year and an ASIFA EAST Award!  Those are two biggies

So far Irra has created over one hundred one minute spots for Sesame Street.

Do you recognize any of these animation stills?  Here’s one from the animation titled ‘The Story of Princess Twelvia’ and another one titled ‘Moving’.  From the picture below, where do you think Princess Twelvia is going?  How many steps are there on the staircase?  Hmm…maybe there’s a connection!

Sesame Street's 'Twelvia' Original Production Cel & Background by Irra Verbitsky

Sesame Street's "Moving" Original Production Cel & Background by Irra Verbitsky

The Last Unicorn movie poster

Irra provided the design work on the title sequence well as the story boards for the feature film, ‘The Last Unicorn’.  The animation is an adaptation from the American author Peter S. Beagle’s class tale ‘The Last Unicorn,’ which was written in 1968.

“The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. She was very old, though she did not know it, and she was no longer the careless color of sea foam but rather the color of snow falling on a moonlit night. But her eyes were still clear and unwearied, and she still moved like a shadow on the sea.” – Peter S. Beagle ‘The Last Unicorn’

From that short paragraph of the book’s prose-poetry you can get an idea of how the story is very tender and beautiful.  In the movie the unicorn is told by a butterfly that she is supposedly the last of her kind because all the others have been herded away by the Red Bull.  With that in mind, the unicorn sets out to discover the truth behind the butterfly’s words.  On her quest, the unicorn is eventually accompanied by Schmendrick, a trying magician, and Molly Grue, a woman who has dreamed all her life to see a unicorn. Their journey leads them further and further away from home. They travel so far, all the way to the castle of King Haggard.

Irra Verbitsky shares her talent as an animation teacher at the School of Visual Arts in New York City.  Her excitement for the arts shines through her teaching and encourages her students to be as playful and thoughtful when creating moving pictures!

Flashbacks From My Past: "Departure" by Irra Verbitsky

Share

Scribble Town (ST): Hi Elisa! I can’t wait to show everybody your artwork that is based on videogames!  But first can you please let us know a bit about yourself.

Okamiden by Elisa Di Fiore

Elisa Di Fiore (EDF): My name is Elisa and I’m originally from Italy. I moved to the US in 2006, then recently moved back to Europe. I live in Finland now, but I’m always visiting new places. I can do this because I work from home –I work in videogame localization, translating games from English into Italian.

ST: When did you start getting into the game industry and how has that made an impact on your knits?

EDF: I’ve always liked videogames, but being a child in Italy I was supposed to play with dolls. My grandma wanted me to be a “proper” young lady, so she tought me to cross-stitch when I was about ten years old. I loved it, but I eventually grew tired of stitching endless flowers and kittens, which were the only patterns I could find at the time. A few years ago, when I was already working in the videogame industry, I had the brilliant idea of cross-stitching Super Mario characters from the old 8-bit games. After all, pixels look a lot like stitches, right? Well, the result was amazing and I haven’t stopped since.

Baby Peach Bib by Elisa Di Fiore

ST:  I bet you were always really talented when it comes to working with your hands!  Is there a certain place you like to be in when you are creating?

EDF: Home is the best place, of course, especially when it’s snowing outside and I can cozy up with a cup of tea and Doctor Who on TV. But I also enjoy meeting up with fellow knitters at one of the quaint cafés here in Helsinki –there’s an entire community of Americans knitting all over the city!

ST: What other forms of art do you practice?  What are your favorite tools you use to create?

EDF: I started knitting a couple of years ago and I’m enjoying it immensely here in Finland, where I can actually wear what I make. Before, when I lived in California, it was too warm to wear any wool! I also like sewing, quilting and perler beading, but really the best thing for me is just using my needle and embroidery floss anywhere I am. They’re practical and don’t take up any space.

ST: It does make a difference when you can use the art you make! That’s one motivation to create.  Are there any others?

Mario Bookmark by Elisa Di Fiore

EDF: I’m an active member of an online community called SpriteStitch.com. There’s a blog with inspiring craft ideas and a forum where we share patterns, tips and accomplishments. We also collaborate every year to put together a videogame-themed quilt that gets auctioned to fund Child’s Play, a charity that helps kids in hospitals all over the world.

I’ve included a simple cross-stitch pattern I designed some time ago, based on the cat Jiji from the animated movie Kiki’s Delivery Service. It should be easy enough to try for any wannabe cross-stitcher!

ST: Thanks Elisa!  From games to knits you really know how to make things come alive.  Already you have given so many pieces of inspiration- from bookmarks to bibs, anything is possible! For more information on Elisa’s Jiji cross-stitch pattern please go to

Mario Sampler by Elisa Di Fiore

Share

Scribble Town (ST): Hi Ernest! To me, your work is very playful so I wonder how do you describe your own artwork.  Especially in the portrait of you I can see the play oozing out of you as you play at work on your One Cloud painting (see below)!

Ernest Concepcion (EC): Hi! My name is Ernest Concepcion. I’m a Filipino visual artist and currently live in Brooklyn, NY. My works usually depict opposing forces engaged in ridiculous battle based on the nostalgic references of childhood and adolescence.

One Cloud, work in progress by Ernest Concepcion

ST: From the Philippines all the way to Brooklyn, where are you and what are you up to these days?

EC: I still live in Brooklyn, and have been here since moving from the Philippines in 2002. I do go back often to my home city of Manila and was just there for 6 months last year. It was probably my most productive trip so far. I was only scheduled for 1 solo show and then when my friends found out I was coming home, they invited me over to participate for more shows. In half a year, from February till August 2012, I ended up having 2 solo shows and 4 group shows, including exhibiting at a prominent museum in Manila. It was pretty crazy.

Gerana (The Wrath Of), ink, acrylic and colored pencil on paper by Ernest Concepcion

All the works were made there. For the first three months I was cranking it up doing 6 x 4 feet paintings. My sleeping habits changed. I started doing the UBERMAN cycle. Have you ever heard of that? You’re basically awake and work for 4 hours then take powernaps for 30 minutes to an hour and then work again for 4 hours and so forth. I tried it – I wasn’t exactly successful. Haha. Nah, I took it easy and still hung out with friends. I found out it’s better that way. But when I do work at the studio, I’m like an unstoppable freight train. I’m going back this year on August 2013 for more art projects.

ST: Your friends sound so great! So supportive of you and your art. I’m sure they were also just so happy to have you back home. When did you start drawing?

EC: I would say I started drawing when I was real young mostly because I was inspired by my older brother. He would draw these fantastic cars based on the 80’s movie Mad Max and I totally got into and started copying him. Later on I started drawing my own little stories with pictures on notebooks similar to the CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURES books. Comicbooks and Saturday morning cartoons have been a major influence as well. Come to think of it, my drawing style has not changed much at all. It probably has changed technique-wise in terms of perspective, anatomy, linework – but I would say it has retained its childlike qualities that harkens back to young Ernest. I was trying to think if art school changed my drawing style at all, but I think not that much. Undergrad in the Philippines was more about theory for me and my drawing process went into a dormant state because I got heavily into conceptual art and video. But when I moved to New York, it almost seems like that hibernating child-general woke up all of a sudden ready for action.

Life In A Hidden Valley by Ernest Concepcion

ST: Between all the traveling, is there a favorite place you like to create?

EC: Well, I currently work from home and do my oil paintings in my own apartment. Oftentimes I couldn’t believe how I managed to do this but I guess I was able to adapt and develop my organizational skills in paintings. So I would say this is my favorite place right now. I did have a studio in Gowanus, Brooklyn for 3 years and that used to be my favorite place to work. I would spend countless hours there and was able to produce a ton of work. But alas, I had to move out in 2009. However, when I fly back to Manila I work at Mom’s house and she has prepared a space for me to work there, which I would say is probably the best. Its right beside her garden and there’s a sense of calm and serenity in the studio – a perfect contrast to my conflict-ridden works. I’m not exactly the type who draws in the subway, in a café, etc. I don’t usually carry a sketchpad at all even. Just a notebook to jot down ideas and that’s it. I make art at the studio. When I’m at a café, I drink coffee.

Queens 2020, Ernest Concepcion

ST: What other forms of art do you practice? What are your favorite tools you use to create?

EC: I also practice installation art and I collaborate murals with my friend Mike Estabrook as the Shining Mantis. I’ve been getting more and more into comicbook making and that’s definitely something I would like to develop soon. I was a big fan of the Sharpie for my drawings, I still am! But I’m totally getting into drawing with a brush these days and India ink tends to stay longer and seem more vibrant in the long run. Also, I could make entire fields of black with an ink-filled brush and that saves a lot of time.

ST: I’m seeing and hearing a theme of childhood in your artwork, but is there something in particular you want to say with your art?

EC: In my works, I would like to express what it’s like to be a kid again. The joy of expressing relentlessly.

ST: Is there a piece of art that speaks to you?

EC: There are so much art that speaks to me, but the ones I really appreciate are the works that I could feel express a certain vibe of ferocious expression – I don’t know, I can’t explain it too well.

Pajama People vs. Apparitions, ink on acetate, watercolor on paper by Ernest Concepcion

ST: Where do you get your inspiration from and who inspires you?

EC: Right now I’m getting a lot of inspiration from independent game designers. Haha. Seriously. I’m an avid gamer and seeing the works of most indie game developers and feel the years they spent on coding, designing, beta testing and perfecting these games via patches and downloadable content never fail to inspire me. I recently attended a festival about Andy Kaufman and it ran for 2 weeks. I was there almost every day! It was amazing. For me he’s a real inspiration, and he’s true to his craft. And when I mean ‘true’, I meant he doesn’t care what he was doing really, he was totally just having so much fun at the moment. And to me that’s awesome.

Kangarok 1 and 10th, Ernest Concepcion

ST: Your work does look fun and Ernest, you have done so much!  Any tips for us?

EC: I would advice to everyone to just keep making work and expressing without boundaries. I am also an art teacher myself to kids and I have always been open in encouraging my students to constantly experiment and explore. Breaking rules are great, but it will be futile if you don’t know the rules first. So learn the basics, the parameters, the limitations, the rules, and then transcend them.

ST: Thank you Ernest for sharing so much with us!  And don’t forget to play Ernest’s Shooting Stars game, http://www.scribbleshop.com/content/play-shooting-stars-game-ernest-concepcion

Kangarok III

Share

Scribble Town (ST): From afar and up close, Erin Schmidt’s cross stitching is magnificent!  Erin is drawing with needle and thread!  Erin lives in Hudson, OH, which is outside of Akron/Cleveland.   Her family moved here from the St. Louis suburbs back in 2011.  Not only is she a cross stitching extraordinaire, she is also an attorney.  Erin, what is your favorite thing to create?

The Fairy Moon by Erin Schmidt

Erin Schmidt (ES): I think my favorite thing to create is a little bit of magic and the emotions that surround the work.  It is capturing something beautiful and preserving it for time.  Sometimes it is the picture as a whole that catches my interest, and sometimes it is just a color.  But often it is the emotional response.  Not only does this come from the finished project, but also all the work that goes into it.

The Fairy Moon (close up) by Erin Schmidt

ST: I like how you create magic  What other forms of art do you practice?

ES: Besides cross stitching, I also do crocheting and some photography.

ST: Both are very expressive mediums in very different ways.  Is there something you want to say with your art?

ES:It depends on the form.  My cross stitch evokes a lot of emotion for me.  It can be used to memorialize events in your life, which I have done.  But I tend to lean towards patterns that invoke a more elegant or magical age.  Which is why  you will see lots of ball gowns, faeries, and a lot of detailed use of specialty threads and beads.  I love the artwork of Nene Thomas and I have several of her prints in my house and have started gathering others in the form of cross stitch patterns.

The Fairy Queen (in progress) by Erin Schmidt

When it comes to crochet, it is all about home and comfort.  These are much more for everyday usage, and a daily reminder of the person who made it for them.

Photography, like cross stitching, I like to capture a simplistic beauty.  I live near a National Park so I do a lot of scenery and wildlife pictures.

All of these activities I find rather relaxing, even when I mess them up or become frustrated with them.

ST: It’s great when we can relax even when we mess up.  Thanks for reminding us about that!  Where do you get your inspiration from and who inspires you?

ES:Part of my inspiration is just a need to relax and allow myself to drift off to another place.    With Cross Stitch, we get the luxury of being able to do just about any drawing, painting, or picture that catches your eye to recreate into multi textural work.  The best part of the art I like to do is that anyone can do them, even younger kids.   Cross stitch patterns come in many sizes, from projects with very few stitches to the ones I do with 60,000-100,000 stitches.  I started cross stitching at age 7 with simple Christmas ornaments that I gave to relatives.

ST: Thank you Erin for sharing you artwork with us.  We all need to relax and let ourselves get swooped up by the activities we enjoy.  You have found your magic!  To start your own magic you can go to Scribble Shop Blog and see the Box Stitch activity Erin has created for you:
http://www.scribbleshop.com/content/box-stitching-erin-schmidt

Sabrina by Erin Schmidt

Share

Scribble Town (ST): From the looks of Chris Reed’s self portrait I think it’s safe to say he’s a very talented illustrator and designer.  Chris, I like your portrait!  Where are you and what are you up to these days?

Portrait of Chris Reed

Chris Reed (CR):  I work from my home studio in New Jersey and I love creating art every single day! I have been a professional Artist for about 25 years so I have had a chance to work on lots of different types of projects.

ST: It’s amazing when you find something you love to do and it just never gets old!  In fact, that’s when it gets more exciting  How old were you when you first started making art and who encouraged you to create?

CR: I was always interested in drawing pictures, and I got lots of encouragement from my family and my teachers. Drawing was always just a hobby until I finally realized that there were actually people whose job it was to design and draw pictures. I wanted to be one of those people, so I moved to New York City and went to art school.

Chris Reed's Illustrative Samples

CR: My advice to kids who like to create art is to find a way make it fun. Make your own comic strip, paint a crazy swirly picture, or create a character for your favorite video game. The more you paint or draw or whatever, the better you will get!

ST: Thank you Chris!  Your passion for art and drawing shine even through your words.  Many smiles have formed from looking at your pictures so I think you are doing what you should be!  I smile every time I look at this sledding penguin Weeeee.

Penguin Sledder by Chris Reed

Share