A little ditty from the ditty bops

Halloween and beyond I am in the mood for tartan

Gorgeous outfits from Alexander McQueens fall fashion show from last year. The combination of the red tartan with black lace is striking. I wanted them last year and I want them now! for more fashion extravaganza go here.

Halloween Art Gallery 2: Charles Krafft

Dark Art part 2: Charles Krafft visited Sarajevo in 1998 and upon his return set out to produce porcelain replicas of the weapons used in the Balkan conflict. He borrowed weapons from black market arms dealers and created slip-molds and then cast them in white porcelain. Then he decorated the porcelain weapons with the beautiful and classical Delft ornaments. He exhibited them at the Slovenian Ministry of Defense under the title: "The porcelain war museum project" in 1999. Krafft said:"My aim is to produce a delicate arsenal of life-size ceramic weaponry so gorgeous and patently functionless that they will bedazzle and confound everyone who sees them."

I don't like guns and have a hard time with the concept, that here in America anybody has the right to bear arms (maybe , because I am European!?). Krafft's porcelain guns are the best statement of political criticism towards guns and violence. It is so poetic and therefore reaches me on a deep level. A gun out of porcelain is an object of utmost vulnerability. You have to handle it with care, because if you drop it , it will break - just like a real gun can break life...

The enchanted enchanting Cathedral Car

This is the most amazing and my favorite art car "The cathedral". It's creator Rebecca is definitely crafty and beautiful! check out her site

Memento Mori : Remember that you are mortal

Diamond Skull by Damien Hirst


1930's Swiss watch


1810 skull pocket watch


Mary Queen of Scots skull watch


Heads up to one of my favorite sites/blogs BoingBoing ! They had this fabulous post about Mary Queen of Scotts skull watch and I followed the link and came to Watchismo Times , a watch collectors blog that showed also the ivory skull watch. This got me going and I added the Damien Hirst Skull. I saw a picture of Hirts Memento Mori (latin for "Rememeber that you are mortal) this summer and was totally fascinated and appalled by it. Hearst contracted a jeweler to create this piece for him. It took 18 month until completion, 8,601 diamonds were used and it costs now 50 million British pounds. I love skulls, I love jewelry. I have always been a fan of Memento Mori. But was this necessary? If the message of Memento Mori is to humble us and show that death is always present, than doesn't this message gets diluted by adding an obscene amount of diamonds to it. Isn't it actually misleading the viewer, because it is so breath taking dazzling? My greedy little it is enthralled with this piece, while my alter ego knows that the money would be better spent on food and medicine in a place where it's needed. Disgust and Delight can sometimes be close companions! Happy Halloween...

My Halloween Gallery: Mark Ryden

Mark Ryden in his studio






I have first encountered Mark Ryden's art in the art magazine Juxtapoz in the late 90's and have been following his work since. The top 3 paintings are from his "Blood" series, more creepy than usual , but perfect for my Halloween gallery. The image of the lone girl in the big, puffy skirt is called "The Debutant" and we own this print by him. It is one of my favorite paintings and one day I'll make myself a costume like that. All these bizarre items, that are attached to her skirt, are icons of some sort or another, but jumbled together their meaning is put out of its original context. As a child my parents used to have one of these drawers with little compartments for type setting. They hung it on the wall and displayed little meaningful objects in the different compartments: a little Buddha statue, a silver dollar, my baby tooth, a sea shell, a plastic toy soldier... a collage of objects that each have memories and meaning attached to them, but together they have no relationship.
I also love the last image, which is from his latest exhibition, "the tree show" and it is called "Allegory and the four elements".

Weird, unusual, and strange music animation video

The color palette of my recent inspiration

I am playing around, looking for inspiration. it often just starts out with looking at the different materials , shapes and colors. I lay them out in a padded tray and move things around, wondering what will fit and go together. My daughter looked over my shoulder and commented how much she liked the look of my messy tray and urged me to take a picture. It looks like a mermaid's treasure...

Fun at Liza and Todd's wedding

Valentina and the bride Liza



Me, Scott and Ron


Valentina and Sean


Scott and Ron


Scott and Alan


Last weekend we had a blast at our friend's wedding. It was an elegant, but relaxed occasion. The bride looked gorgeous and unconventional in red and we enjoyed seeing some old friends.

The Red Display

I have a sideboard in my dinning room and always set up different objects and flowers. I change these displays every couple month or whenever I feel the need for change. This red display features 2 beautiful beaded boxes that my dad gave me, knowing that I am such a fan of everything beaded. They are real treasure boxes and I am actually keeping some lovely pieces of lace ribbon in the bigger box. Also on the table is a book about trompe l'oeil paintings borrowed from my mom and a strawberry plant, that did carry some little berries until recently.

I like my cardigan

I bought this cotton cable wrap cardigan this summer and it has become my favorite.
Also a favorite is the man's hat I had bought in Oaxaca, Mexico 3 years ago.
The pictures were taken on my patio.

Hille passed away

Two weeks ago an old family friend, Hille died. Here is a picture of the last time I saw him in Goa, India. I also enclose a picture of my dad and Hille on my dad's Royal Enfield motorcycle, exploring Southern India. Hille was the epitome of the German Hippy: always breaking rules, traveling to exotic places, particularly India and selling incense, pipes and scarves at rock concerts.
I composed a little text about him in German , which was put up with other memories during his wake at my dad's house.

"In meinen Kindheits-Erinnerungen sehe ich Hille mit einem Stirnband , wie ein Pirat, der eine exotische Insel umsegelt, oder als Anfuehrer der Zigeuner Karawanne, oder er sitzt in der Wueste unter funkeldem Sternenhimmel am Lagerfeuer der Beduienen und trinkt Wein aus einem Lederbeutel oder faehrt wie ein Henker mit seinem Motorrad auf den Marktplatz und unterhaelt die Einheimischen mit Stunt-tricks. Immer wieder begibt er sich auf Abenteuer in die Natur oder in ferne Kulturen, ob auf einem Floss den Rhein entlang paddelnd oder Sued-Indien mit dem Motorrad erkundend. All diese Expeditionen gaben ihm reichlich Stoff fuer seine Geschichten, die er immer so witzig zu erzaehlen wusste.

Jetzt viele Jahre spaeter denke ich an Hille und sehe einen Abenteurer, Geschichten-Erzaehler, Fliegenden Haendler und Edel-Gammler und frage mich voller Faszination woher kam seine Abenteuer Lust? Warum dieser Drang ewig die Welt zu bewandern? Was glaubte er zu finden, was hat er gesucht und hat er es auf seinen Reisen gefunden?

Aber im gleichen Moment, wo ich mir diese Fragen stelle, verstehe ich auch etwas ganz Fundamentales, das Hille uns zeigte: Nicht das Ziel der Reise ist von Wichtigkeit, sondern die Reise selbst ist das Ziel. Keep on Truckin' , Hille, wie die Freak Brothers so schoen sagen.

Deine
Elisabeth"

Women in Art

This is my favorite art video on YouTube. Check out this artist other stuff here.

Shoe Shrines

I am intrigued by this mixed media art. I like the idea of recycling an everyday object into an art piece. Melanie, the artist who makes them is a self-taught artist and musician. She painted for many years decorations for the House of Blues. Her shoe shrines are a homage to the Musicians and Artists she likes.

Strange creatures for the altar

Art Toys for adults is the new rage. Mostly these toys are designed by young artists from the Comic, Japanese and Low Brow Art Scene. Kid Robot is one of the hot places to get these toys. They have a store at Haight/Ashbury, but are now also on-line.

I just recently came across these Art Toys and bought the one featured in the top picture. These strange, surreal creatures are the brain child of an artist long gone: Hieronymus Bosch (1450 - 1516), who painted visions of heaven and hell. The 3 creatures in the pictures above, no doubt escaped from hell and can be seen in his triptych " The temptation of Saint Anthony".

The company who made them offers also other toys created after masterpieces of art history. From Dali to Edgar Degas , from Klimt to Modigliani check out their toys. I do like the Bosch the best though.

Recent Jewelry Creations

I made this necklace for my friend Jovita. I learned this technique a while ago from a wonderful jewelry teacher, Lisa Claxton at Baubles and Beads. Spool-knitting with sterling silver wire is not so difficult, but more a matter of getting into a rhythm, so that the loops are regular and even. You also add a handful of different beads and mix them up, so they are random. I chose faceted onyx, gray pearls, faceted hematite and tiny faceted sterling silver beads. I also made Jovita a pair of earrings to go with it.

This necklace was a creation for my friend Georgette's mother in law. Tiny fresh water pearls hand knotted on yellow silk and as a stunning centerpiece 3 round cushion-cut champagne citrines.

Silver Ginkgo Leaves

I have been making these Ginkgo leaves for a while now. They are made of PMC (Precious Metal Clay). This is pulverized fine silver made into a clay-like substance. It has a higher silver content than Sterling Silver, which is 999, (meaning it is 99.9% pure) while Sterling is an alloy silver , containing 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other metals, usually copper . It is stamped as 925.

PMC is just as pliable as clay and therefore ideal for impressions of textures. I paint 15 - 20 layers of PMC slip onto the Ginkgo leaves. Once the PMC is bone dry I fire it in the kiln at around 1650 F. The extreme heat burns of the binding agent and compresses the silver molecules. The piece shrinks a little bit. Also the Ginkgo leaf burns away. What is left is its impression in silver. Since each jewelry piece is made from a real leaf and each leaf is unique, each pendant is different. The texture of the veins on the leaf are as individual as our finger prints. The Ginkgo tree is prehistoric and its leaves have medicinal qualities.