Jaime Lyerly Art

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Gatherings - Oil Pastel drawings by Jaime Lyerly

Obsession comes in many forms.

I have many obsessions, here are five that are intricately tied to this post.

I am obsessed with psychological color.
I am obsessed with the abstracted figure.
I am obsessed with learning.
I am obsessed with exploring my interior space.
I am obsessed with new experiences.

Rather than show you the encaustic paintings and fiber/wax sculptures that I am in the process of making (those pictures to come soon), I want to share with you an obsession that I had from November 2009 to January 2010 - A series of drawings in oil pastel and pencil that have taken on a life of their own.

I started doing drawing of bulbous figurative forms to describe a Family Constellation (energy healing) workshop that I participated in November 2009. I wanted to find a way to document the experience without the words that seemed so inadequate.

I was fascinated by the abstract and yet recognizable quality of the forms, and started intuitively drawing them. And draw them, and draw them, again and again. They have spilled out onto drawings on board, shapes in fabric, encaustic paintings, and embroideries, but I come back to the Moleskine to continue to work out my obsession with them.

Now that I have been embroidering and knitting forms at night instead of using the oil pastels, I thought it was time to share these creations.

The sketchbook drawings are not "finished" art work, but rather a process that I enjoy exploring. They inspire more finished work in other forms that live outside of the sketchbook.

These are not exactly in chronological order but more of a general order of what came first. Here are the sketchbook pages:

Sometimes the figures are so obscured that they are no longer visible...

Gatherings 17, oil pastel and pencil on 8X5" Moleskine sketchbook © 20Jaime Lyerly

Remember those acrylic paintings I did in a frenzy of painting on claybord in August 2009? I covered some of them with paper a month later and still felt that they were not living up to their potential.

I felt it was time to bring these out of the sketchbook so I used the boards I had on hand. And now they have a new life by being part of this series. These feel more "finished" than the sketchbooks just because they are on something more suitable for public viewing.

Gatherings continued on board...

I have plans for these....
Some of these I have printed out onto cotton fabric and am embroidering on top of them.
Some of them may get covered in encaustic wax.
Some of them may never go anywhere outside of this blog post.
But all of them get to gather here now and have a presence.

I would love to hear your comments, and as always thank you for sharing your artistic journey with me.

~Jaime Lyerly

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Miya Hannan - Connectivity at Hyde Gallery

I just got back from seeing the Miya Hannan art show "Connectivity" at the Hyde Gallery, Grossmont Community College and it is AMAZING!

The show is open until February 25, 2010, and it is free.

My friend Starry came to see the show with me, and Grossmont Art Professor Jim Wilsterman stopped by to give us some more insight on the show.

The artist statement from Miya Hannan does a great job of putting these ethereal pieces into context. Here is the statement, which is slightly different from her Artist Statement on her website:

I have nothing but great things to say about this show, but for time purposes, I will leave you with her images. Please do go see it if you are in the area and let me know what you think. Seeing art in person is so much more inspiring than online, but this is for the time crunched or distance-challenged artists!

Happy Art Making! ~ Jaime Lyerly

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Addicted to Philanthropy

Can you be addicted to Philanthropy? I think I am.

Donations? Sure, where do I send the money or stuff?

Promotion of a good cause? Even easier - I'll post it on my blog, Facebook and Twitter.

Volunteering my time? Yes, of course I...wait. Maybe not. But I will try anyway!

As I strive for BALANCE in my life, it is really difficult to turn down chances to help others. I say "YES!" before I think or even check my schedule. But is it really that bad? I'm not sure.

Let's look what volunteer activities I have scheduled or participated in the last week and upcoming.

Sunday - San Diego Women's Caucus for Art Board meeting. (I am the President this year, so I cannot skip these monthly meetings, and all the assignments that go with them).

Wednesday - Hillsdale Middle School Builder's Club - Teaching kids to use the Knifty Knitter to knit hats for babies which are given out all over the world. Helping each week for the rest of the semester.

Thursday - Drumming up HOPE, Fundraising for Haiti. One time event.

Saturday - SDSU Mortar Board Senior Honor Society's Backpack Stuffing of school supplies to give to under privileged children. One time event.

This is in addition to my college schedule, work schedule, art making, scholarship applying, show entering, personal obligations, study time and dare I even say it...social/personal life?

I did say that I was giving up overachieving this year. But am I really?

It is hard to maintain this Superwoman lifestyle, but each week I schedule more and more into my packed life. So it must be my Addiction to Philanthropy.

I am hooked on helping others, even when sometimes I would rather play video games than to go help.

The first step to addiction is to admit you have a problem. So here is my confession.

Anyone else addicted to helping? ~ Jaime Lyerly

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Drumming Up HOPE for Haiti - 2/11/2010 at the World Beat Center in Balboa Park, San Diego

Just had to share this event, which mixes my love for the drum and giving to others. If you are in the San Diego area, come check it out. Some members of the San Diego Women's Drum Circle will drumming it up at this event!

Drumming Up HOPE
Dear Drumming Spirits,

Please join me at this event in San Diego

Drumming Up HOPE led by Christine Stevens, Frank Lazarro,
Kat Fulton, and Sundiata Kata.

Raising Money and Energy through Sacred Drumming for Haiti

Please wear RED

Thurs Feb 11, 2010 8-930pm

World Beat Cultural Center
2100 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA
619-230-1190
Suggested donation $10.00

________________________________________________________
Rev. Bonnie Devlin, an initiated Haitian drum minister has provided this You Tube educational clip to prepare you to participate in Drumming UP HOPE!

Wear RED and learn this beat together as we send our support to Haiti.

YouTube Video Part 2

For more information, check out Upbeat Drum Circles and learn more about the healing power of the drum.

Happy drumming! ~ Jaime Lyerly

Monday, February 8, 2010

Artist Question: Learn new skills or improve old ones

I have this undying need to ask questions of artists.

Their process, their inspiration, their art marketing, their concepts, their education, their techniques, their opinions on the art world, their ability to balance, their artistic path and anything else that they will let me bother them with.

So it only seems reasonable that I should be asking these same questions to my blogging and social networking audience. Therefore, I am going to start posing more questions and hope that some kind soul will take pity on me and answer them.

With each answer, we all learn more about the artist and how they tick. So here is my first official Artist Question:

As artists, is it better to learn new skills or improve old ones?

With our limited time, how to you best utilize it? Is it better spent working in your chosen medium, or spent learning something new that you can connect later?

My example here, of course, comes from my own experience now. As a college art student, we are required (usually) to take studio courses outside of our chosen field. This is challenging and rewarding because it can show you a world outside of what you are already making and expose you to different instructors with new ways of working. You have a semester to learn these new skills, and even if it is painful, you can make it through.

This semester, I am taking Fiber Surface Design this semester and it includes embroidery. It is definitely not painful, and can be connected to most of my current work.

Learning traditional skills is rewarding, but I love how it can be applied to contemporary art issues. If you haven't seen this exhibit "Pricked: Extreme Embroidery" you must check it out. This is not your grandma's sampler.

But for me, embroidery is a new skill. It is time consuming.

Encaustic painting and beeswax sculptures are my chosen medium. It is also time consuming.

Three hours on a Saturday free. What do I do?

So artists, which do you chose? Learn new skills or improve existing ones?

Eagerly awaiting your response! ~ Jaime Lyerly

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Missing art submission deadlines - Confessions of a Super Procrastinator

Feburary already? What happened here? Who stole my month of January? I want it back.

I haven't been blogging recently. Not for lack of want or even lack of time. It is all about not wanting to be in front of a computer any longer than I already am. My job involves the computer. School work involves a computer. My bills are mostly paid via computer. I am always searching for interesting art and artists online, or researching projects. I cannot get away!

So when I have been choosing my free time recently, it has been away from the computer and bend over an embroidery frame or a griddle full of wax. I will go on more about my new fiber class soon, because I have come to fall in love with embroidery. Ah, embroidery...

Okay focus! Here is what I need your help on - Missing Art Submission Deadlines.

Even though I am still developing a solid body of work, I have begun to show my work in local exhibitions. I have more work that I want to show. The experience of applying is as important to me as getting into the shows. But there are a few snags.

Here are my 12 Steps to Miss Art Deadlines

1. See my artwork on the wall. Think to myself "I need to show my work more."
2. Search Art Deadline or look at emails for opportunities.
3. Find a show that fits my work.
4. Get Excited!
5. Check the dates. Sigh if it is past, and smile if it is upcoming.
6. Print out the info and/or post it to Facebook.
7. Place it in my direct view at work, or in a school binder so I see it.
8. COMPLETELY FORGET ABOUT IT.
9. Memory is triggered by something else, go find opprotunity again.
10. See the missed deadline.
11. Kick myself. Vow to find more shows that fit.
12. Repeat the process, repeatedly without the pattern changing.

See my problem? Me too, but I don't change my ways.

I admit there may be a little adult ADHD in me, but I know for sure that there is a lot more Procrastination than anything else. And I identify myself with this.

This is the dirty little secret of procrastinators everywhere. We procrasticate because we want it to be perfect, so we wait until there are better pictures, time to write a better statement, a better oppronity. Deadline missed. Procrastinator Sad. Pattern Repeats.

Procrastinators also want be organized, but we wait until we have "time" to organize, and that means NEVER. Or we get organized for a week and then lose interest in up-keeping it.

My favorite thing to say is "I don't want to deal with this now. I'll handle it later." Later never comes.

So then other than hiring someone to organize me or spending years in behavioral therapy, I turn to you.

You are artists (creatives, writers and more).

You get into shows.

You make your deadlines.

Your work is seen by others (and maybe even sold).

So how do you do it?

I concede that your way may not work for me, but I am desperate for some advice here. Please leave a comment here, and share with everyone how you make it work.

Yours, in all her Procrastinating glory, ~ Jaime Lyerly