I love illustration techniques.  It beings to mind vintage, days gone by, and a classical appreciation for time crafted skills.  This is what the art of Irina Vinnik makes me feel when I look at it.  I love her style.  A lot of art I look at and know I could do easily, so I [...]

I am constantly trying to get my students to think of ways to revamp everyday objects or re-purpose them into artworks. In class, we have discussed how Louise Nevelson and others have used “trash” or “construction” materials to create sculpture. I love how Philadelphia artist Stacey Lee Webber creates her unique metal sculptures, creative jewelry [...]

Big, conceptual art is a topic I am always trying to get my students to understand.  As a teacher, I have always believed that the best artwork comes from big ideas and the soul.  Angela Ellsworth has those two combinations in spades with her Seer Bonnets series. Angela Ellsworth is a multidisciplinary artist whose paintings, [...]

In support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Saint Agatha’s Grief : St. Agatha was born into a wealthy family, and consecrated to God at an early age. She was a lovely girl who attracted the attention of a judge, Quintianus, who wanted both her body and her money. When she refused him, he had her arrested [...]

I recently took my National Art Honor Society students to the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.  While there, they feel in love with some of the textile artist’s work.  Since then I have been combing the web for more textile artists to show them. I found Toronto artist Amanda McCavour.  She produces intricate fiber-based sculpture (which [...]

London based photographer Zena Holloway traveled the globe working as a SCUBA instructor and developed a passion for underwater photography. Completely self-taught Zena’s images are striking. She delivers a remarkable combination of the highly technical aspects of underwater photography with superb design, resulting in a sense of magical or fantasy imagery. Even though most of her [...]

Every year I try to incorporate a paper sculpture into my advanced class.  Mainly because paper is cheap and inexpensive to work with.  I usually do a unit focusing on Origami and the traditional and aesthetics of Japanese culture.  However, after seeing the work of Mia Pearlman, I think I am going to try to [...]

I usually try to get my students to avoid trite artwork, which I explain to them as, ”hearts, unicorns, rainbows, daisy’s, etc.”  This artwork even though sweet, literally and figuratively, is fun and a brilliant use of media. Brooklyn artist Julia Chiang uses a wide variety of materials in her sculpture and installation based work, including [...]

I feel that some people are just inately born with the talent to reporduce something realistic.  While I am an artist, I am more of a designer.  I say this because I have never been able to do “photorealism” in art.  My students love and expect that they should be able to do this and [...]

My sculpture II students do an assemblage sculpture that has similarities to the work of Louise Nevelson.  There is no special rhyme or reason to the way they need to place pieces of recycled “trash” but to use it in a way that creates movement and rhythm.  Then they unify it by spraypainting it one [...]

The work of Leigh Pennebaker is great for sculpture students learning to create with wire. Leigh Pennebaker WIRE Sculpting with wire is an excellent way to create a three-dimensional work from a two-dimensional drawing. Indeed, a contour line drawing already looks like a wire sculpture and so is easily translated into a three-dimensional form. Wire [...]

Laurinda Bedingfield is a print maker and book artist living in Somerville, Massachusetts. She has exhibited locally, nationally, and internationally. With early roots as an engineer, Laurinda has combined her printing and photography skills with basic building techniques to develop 3-D constructions in the form of unique artist’s books and limited editions. She creates three [...]