"Surprise!" 11"x14" on canvas board, framed, 2010, $130
On exhibit at Pop Shop Gallery in Lakewood September 4-25
This piece made me think of two things as I created it. One, someone being caught off guard (especially when he or she isn’t looking one’s best, and worse, when it ends captured on film). Because this piece is in a kind of ornate frame, it also reminds me of people who put unflattering photos of you in their home (or now, on the Web) -- not caring whether you don’t want that photo to be seen by others.

 
"Baby Elephant Walk," 8"x10" on stretched canvas, 2010, $65
I named this after the Henry Mancini song of the ‘60s. I remember my dad playing the song on an album in the living room while my best friend and I laughed so hard we were crying. Hey, we were 12; girls that age can find even the most random things hilarious.


"King," 11"x14" on stretched canvas, 2010, $85
My oldest daughter loves loves loves lions, so I made this with her in mind. My first attempts looked nothing like a lion. Nothing. Then I looked for cartoon images of lions on the Internet to see what I was doing wrong. Very helpful! I still struggled a bit, especially on the eyes. And the tail; I didn’t want it to take all the attention. After all, it’s just a tail. Funny thing: originally I thought the lion would be just a face, placed horizontally in front of the green and brown vertical stripes (the stripes were supposed to symbolize trees and jungle). I had to turn the piece vertically (and it ended up being a whole lion, albeit with a very small body!) so the stripes are now just a design element.


"No Worries," 20"x24" on stretched canvas, 2010, $100
This piece is the smiling face of someone concealing their worries and thoughts. I covered the words and phrases with a semi-opaque paint to show that one can’t completely block that stuff out. And the smiley face is made of beer bottle caps. Does alcohol make it easier to try to ignore the stuff rumbling around in one’s head? Or does it increase the number of problems? As Homer Simpson once said, “To alcohol: the cause of, and solution to, all of life’s problems.”

"That Girl," 8"x10" on stretched canvas, 2010, $65
It’s not easy being “different” whether it’s because of your hair or face or likes or dislikes. You’re often talked about behind your back: “That girl over there in the glasses. “That girl, the one with the funky hair” or “That girl, you know the one I’m talking about.” But is this “that girl” feeling ostracized, or is she content in her uniqueness?

     "A Friend of Mine," 14"x18" on stretched canvas, 2010, $85
What a mishmash of pieces parts “Pal” is: old Candyland game pieces, beads, puzzle picture frames, wire, a bone from a Mardis Gras-type necklace, a buttonhole cover and a soccer charm. A true mutt! At one point he had a collar and a leash. Then I decided he didn’t want to spend eternity being chained up.

 "Heading Home", 11"x14" on stretched canvas, 2010, $85
I think jellyfish are such beautiful creatures. I originally was going to create two out of puzzle pieces, but that just wasn’t working. Then I decided the jellyfish should be alone in the deep ocean, where the colors of the sea change from light to dark, green to blue to purple. But this jellyfish has a destination: the bright gem, far away but within sight and within reach. Home.

   
"In the shelter of a mother's arms", 5"x7" on canvas panel, framed, 2010, SOLD
How safe, how loved a child feels beneath the shelter of his or her mother’s arms.

Love in the Time of ChOLerA, 8"x8" on stretched canvas, 2010, $65
Couple things. First, I grew up a Pepsi lover. My husband converted me to Coca-Cola. It didn’t take long for me to become a lifelong fan of both – shown by the heart, the play of the Coke logo, and all the tabs from my daily cans of Coke. I was going to call the piece Love in the Time of Cola, a play on the book, Love in the Time of Cholera, which is often referred to but I never knew what it was about. Then I picked up a red ribbon lying nearby, and added that to the piece. It made me think of someone hurt or dying, maybe of cholera. I went to the Internet to find out what the heck that book was about anyway. It actually had to do with a woman’s “true love” (not the man she married, who was a man of medicine dedicated to the eradication of cholera). It seemed to me a perfect tie-in, especially since an invisible red thread or ribbon is also believed in some cultures to tie people together forever.

Missed Again!, 16"x20" on stretched canvas, 2010, $120
On exhibit at Studio M in the Massillon Museum through September 19
No good game pieces go unused, that’s what I always say. This piece was inspired solely on the fact that this was the only good net left over from our “Elefun” game. I had just finished the piece “Under the Sea” and thought it would be fun to use the same boy trying to catch butterflies (do kids even do that anymore?). As I had the pieces laid out on the canvas, one of my daughters suggested I have a butterfly in the net. At first I thought it would be cute, then I realized that like the dog in A Friend of Mine I didn’t want this poor butterfly forever caught in a net.

Prick, 8"x8" on stretched canvas, 2010, $80
I had bought a huge grab bag of nearly useless “stuff” which included lots and lots and lots of leather-making supplies. I asked around; no one wanted them. I thought there had to be something I could think of to do with them. Then I had it: a porcupine! And don’t we all know a person who’s like that -- you know, a bit, well, prickly?

Guardians of the Night, 16"x20" on stretched canvas, 2010, $120
On exhibit at Studio M in the Massillon Museum through September 19
This piece was inspired, simply enough, by looking at two old CDs and thinking they looked like the eyes of an owl.