wondercabinet

Shop update! New paintings.

In my process of working on designs for patterns and textiles I have been doing little gouache paintings on pages from an old Milkman's Journal, working out colors and exploring forms. I love how many old textiles seem so conventional and traditional, but when you look closely you find such strange and fantastic flowers and other forms. Mine are inspired from some of those, and usually changed a bit too.

Just listed these 3 in my shop. You get a significant discount if you buy all three together...I think they are siblings so to separate them would be sad - but if you want just one or two, I will of course oblige!

Here's one closer-up..

Found to-do list.

I love this to-do list, found in the streets of Philly. Feelings!

art and nature: magic gardens

My family was in town last week, and Korben and I took them to Isaiah Zagar's Magic Gardens - an incredible city block built of the gorgeous, ornate, shimmering mosaic world of Isaiah Zagar. The photos here show only a tiny glimpse of what is absolutely monumental and has to be experienced physically to be appreciated.

Many of the surfaces include thousands of fragments of broken mirrors as well as openings to the spaces behind and between, so walls become reflecting and disappearing skins of color and pattern.

I love this space because while it is made almost entirely of fragments of human-made things, the effect is being immersed in wild nature.

The nature photos from another favorite artist, my buddy Korben... I like the relationships between these images.

Other news:

Art Star Craft Bazaar was a success and loads of fun. 

I just signed up to be a coop artist member at the Mew Gallery, a great handmade space in the Italian Market of Philly. Lots of great work there, and I will be inhabiting a space along the back wall for my specimens, and new work on a regular basis.

The baby is big enough now to kick my ribs and whole body parts can be seen moving across my belly landscape. Not long now...6 weeks or so, we think.

Off to work on new pattern designs...

Art Star!

Many any thanks to all who stopped by and said hello to me at the Art Star Craft Bazaar this weekend. The weather was gorgeous, the crowds friendly and fun, the music great... all in all, an excellent craft fair experience! I will say more once I have recovered completely...it was a bit tiring for this mama-to-be. But I look forward to hopefully doing it again next year with my new line, and a little baby on my hip.

Rabbits and hand-drawn patterns.

I am so loving these new reprints. Yesterday I finished reprinting Specimen 10, above. Yay!

And, I finally made wondercabinet gift certificates. They are gocco prints of a hand-drawn pattern of mine, on really nice heavy cards with red envelopes. Yum.

I am having a blast getting my puppet show ready and making prints for Art Star.

Maddeningly, however, I had to walk all over West Philly to find my morning Mighty Muffin today, and never was successful. I usually hit the Green Line Cafe near my house, but alas, they are shooting a film there and I wasn't even allowed to walk near the place. So I walked all the way to the other Green Line, and they had no Mighties. So I got some other gross muffin and threw it away after 2 bites. It had jam in it, which is a huge sin. We pregnant women have specific needs, and tempers. ARg!

Art Star, Reprints, Spring, Sneak Peeks and more!

So much going on! For one thing, my belly is getting HUGE and the little acrobat inside is getting quite vigorous! The teaching semester is over and I am devoting my long days to art and design. Wahoo!

I love the new reprint of Specimen No. 4, (above)...I think its my favorite print run of this beastie (a cross between a bat-eared fox and a squirrel monkey) since I first drew him 2 years ago! I also got a nice print run of Specimen 3, also posted in my shop.

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This coming weekend I am selling my work at Art Star Craft Bazaar. I'm honored to be displaying my prints amongst such amazing artists and crafters (check out these people!)

I will be SNEAK PREVIEWING some stuff from my new line of patterns and block-printed fabrics, and giving away iron-on transfers of my drawings (while they last). Come see me in booth 112!

When: Saturday, May 30th from 11-6pm & Sunday, May 31st from 11-6pm 

Where: Philadelphia, PA @ Penn's Landing Great Plaza - on Columbus Boulevard between Walnut Street and Chestnut Street (click here for directions) 

In progress drawing.

not sure where to go next with it.

Crafters I like.

Just got home form the goofy Fishtown Shad Fest and saw some of my favorite local crafters: 

Sara of girlscantell:

and Gretchen of BirdQueen:

 2 other highlights: The Black Spot Books, with their beautiful handmade (from found objects) books and an amazing necklace with a silver pelvis on it, and these necklaces of miniature books:

and Leah Mackin, for more beautiful handmade books from recycled things:

Yay for crafty ladies.

Free shipping today

At my Etsy shop, in honor of EtsyDay. Go ahead and make your purchase, and I will instantly refund your shipping costs via Paypal.

Love,

Amy

New print at my shop!

I finished my little trio celebrating organs/systems of the body. This one is based on the womb, of course, and celebrates my 28-week in-utero child's newfound ability to dream. But I think it can be about the creative process at any stage of life.

The other two are based on the lungs (Breathe Cry Sing) and the Heart (Laugh Fight Kiss).

All are available at wondercabinet.