Dots, Dots and more Dots - Squiggle Project #3

Project #3 (Day 54) was to make something only using dots.  Ideas included stippling from a pen, the circles cut from paper using a hole punch or even small round price stickers.

After some time I decided to use paint pens/markers and 12"x12" acrylic canvas paper for this project.  I started by creating my squiggle line design using black dots.  Once the line of the dots was complete - I then went back and filled in around the "line" with multi-colored dots - filling in the page.

The final piece is pretty cool but this was a very tedious process.  When I started I did not draw out the initial line first - I only used the dots as I went.  If I try this again - I would change that step and draw out the line in pencil first in order to have a clear idea of where to fill in  the background color(s) or at make the line dots a different size from those in the background.



This project brought back memories of doing pointillism & stippling projects in Jr. High/High School.    Pointillism is a painting technique where small dots of color are applied to create an image/design.  Two well known artists who used this technique were Georges Seurat - most well known for Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jette found at the Art Institute of Chicago and Paul Signac, who was influenced by Seurat, painted the Grand Canal which can be found at the Toledo Museum of Art.  Stippling is the process of shading using small dots of the same color to create images... the projects I created were primarily black & white designs... black dots on white paper but they were pretty great when they were done.

My eyes were a bit glazed over by the time I was finished, to say the least.

Paper and Only Paper- Squiggle Project #2

Well, Project #2 (Day 3) ends up being an extension of the first project.  This was to make something out of paper, but I was not able to use scissors or glue and couldn't draw on it.  So... since I wanted to explore the torn paper idea more - I tried the same technique from Project #1 only I used an 8"x10" sheet of paper.

Paper - Squiggle Project #2

It was reinforced through this project that the type of paper and the fibers in the paper make a difference on the ease or difficulty in tearing the paper while keeping to the nature of the squiggles.  It also effects the final look of the project.

As I finished this project, I was reminded of my love of the work created by one of my favorite artists, Henri Matisse - specifically his paper cut outs.  I love the way he used color and organic shapes to create amazing pieces of abstract art.  Matisse called this paper cut-out process "painting with scissors".  He would cut out designs from paper, saving the cut outs and the scraps, and then pinning them to the wall. Once the design was complete it was then glued to paper, canvas or board to create the finished piece.

As I mentioned on the previous post - I may need to explore this more.  Possibly with larger paper or multiple pieces of paper (different colors) linked together and maybe even using scissors instead of tearing the paper.

Starting Small - Squiggle Project #1

As I mentioned in my second post - I picked up a copy of 365 - A Daily Creative Journal by Noah Scalin.  And since I was intrigued enough to actually buy the book I figured I should actually use it to keep the creative process moving.  Again, I know for a fact I won't be able to keep up with the "make something every day" but I'm using the book as a tool to think outside of my box a bit - therefore it won't be every day and I'll be jumping around the book.  I do intend to keep with the theme of my signature 'squiggle' designs as I work my way through the book - I even went as far as to put sticky notes on the days/projects that I felt were feasible based on my personality, time & space. :-) 
So... here we go.

My first project (Day 1), was to start small - literally.
The project for was to make something that fits in the palm of my hand and use only materials in my immediate environment.

Starting Small - Squiggle Project #1 (Day 1)

At the time I started this I was sitting upstairs at Zingerman's Deli in Ann Arbor & out for an afternoon with my husband.  So, needless to say the materials in my environment were limited.  but luckily Zingerman's leaves their half page ads on the tables.  For this project I actually used half of the half page ad to create a torn paper squiggle design (4"x5" piece of paper) - that fits in the palm of my hand.

This was a very different way to think about my squiggle design process.  It forced me to not only think about the positive space, the line, but also the negative space and technically the two lines that create that space - and do both at the same time.  It's very different from my normal single line process.

I think I will be trying this technique again - stay tuned.

A Photographic Adventure

The creative adventure continues... through the lens of the camera!

Happy Hearts

So, there are many coffee shops to be found in Ann Arbor, MI, as some of you may know.  That being said - there are a few that my husband and I frequent more than others and one of them is Espresso Royale Cafe located on Main Street in downtown Ann Arbor.  It's a great little coffee shop with lots of character and great outside seating, for those warm months, to watch the world go by.  All that being said.. one of the other great things they offer is an opportunity for local artists to showcase their art work on a monthly basis.

So, one day when I was in for my usual, white chocolate mocha, I asked about the selection process for the artists.  I was told an artist just needed to let them know they were interested, what type of art they create and talk with the manager.  I inquired a bit further only to find out that the month of May was open (it was the first part of April by the way).  OMG went through my head!  When I initially asked I was thinking like six months down the road because I really wanted to showcase my paintings - which was going to take some time.  So, after some contemplation, I thought - why not hang my photographs?!

Black-Eyed Susans

Photography has been a long time passion, more than 25 years and I love spending time outdoors, so much of my subject matter you will find to be nature related.  Specifically over the past few years I have been taking a pretty extensive collection of photos of flowers and in the past couple I have been creating an annual calendar (using iPhoto) for myself along with family and friends.  So, why not print, frame and showcase some of my favorite and best flower and nature related photographs?  I then confirmed that they were still looking for an artist for the month of May and I decided I was in... so I started the process of narrowing down the collection to 26 prints to fill the allotted space.

I knew this would be an undertaking - including both time and money but said "I'm going to do it".  So, I started researching framing and matting options and was quickly reminded of the number of options available.  I decided in the end to go with archival quality materials and aluminum frames from Frames Destination.  Based on the space I chose to use 8x10 prints framed to 11x14 along with two 16x20's.   When selecting the prints, they needed to be eye-catching and look great enlarged.  I also needed a selection of horizontal and vertical prints and a variety of colors and flowers represented.

So, approximately three weeks later and three hours of hanging prints (with the help of my wonderful husband)... 26 beautiful spring flower/nature photos are now hanging on the wall of Espresso Royale Cafe in Ann Arbor, MI.  If you happen to be in the area during the month of May - stop by for a coffee and check out my photographs.  They can also be found on my website.

Welcome to spring - summer is just around the corner!

A Hybrid Design

Ok, so this is why I wasn't sure about creating a blog... I actually have to post regularly.

Well anyway - the irregularity of this blog is very similar to my creative process... but here I am and here's what I've got... :-)

So, about a month ago I ran across an opportunity to enter a design contest.  Note - I haven't entered any sort of contest/competition... probably since I was in college.

The design contest I found is coordinated by Talenthouse & SIGG for the annual SIGG bottle design contest.  Every year SIGG asks artists from around the world to submit their best design to be entered for a chance to have their design printed on a SIGG water bottle as part of the 2012 design series.  I thought... 'How cool would it be to have one of my designs printed on SIGG bottles to be sold throughout the country?!?!'

I've always thought my signature "squiggle" line designs look good on many different surfaces,   So, I set out to come up with a design - but I only had 17 days and I of course wanted it to be "perfect".  And as always that is also what slows the creative process - the perfectionist.  I then found myself, two days before the deadline, finally putting the base design together.  And because of the format requirements I found that the only way to make this work was going to be figuring out how to transform my hand-drawn design into an appropriate digital format.  This ultimately meant several hours in front on the computer screen... and a very tedious process.  My entire hand-drawn design had to be scanned and traced into a digital format and then filled in to meet the color format requirements.  This was not a place I ever expected to be with my "squiggle" designs!  They've always been hand-drawn, painted, etched, etc...  These designs have never been in a digital format - and I'm not sure I'll do it again, but who knows!?  This process was very frustrating - mostly by the fact that I had to use a digital art format with this specific design in order to be eligible for this contest.  I understand why from a print process, but as someone who started in acrylics and canvas... it's a challenging transition.


All that said - I didn't let the road block stop me.  I pushed through, finished the design and met the deadline.  Ten days of voting have since occurred and now we wait for the winner to be announced on April 23 - I'm keeping my fingers crossed!  I can't thank all of my friends and family enough.  I appreciate the fact that so many of you voted for my design and helped spread the word and gather additional votes for me - it means the world to have so many people take an interest.

The Creative Side

So, when it comes to that creative side -  I love the simple 'artsy craftsy' projects just as much as the more complex art projects. I love working with my hands and learning a new skill which is what lead me my current business approx. 9 years ago when I started exploring the world of glass painting.  I quickly discovered I was able to take what I was doing with acrylics and canvas and create something fun and truly functional for myself.  This slowly progressed into a small business - Contemporary Complements. My clientele has grown from friends and family to now include the public through a variety of arts shows, retail stores and galleries. My audience is growing, and so are my creations. My goal is for each piece is truly functional for everyday life.

My ultimate dream is to have my own brick and mortar gallery & studio with classroom space.  I want to create and sell my art, sell art created by others and provide a space for others to explore and expand their own creative side through a variety of workshops.  This would bring all of my skills and passions together.

I also love music and movies... I especially love a good 80's mix or watching a good comedy any day!! 

As for books... I don't read a lot but when I do, it usually occurs when I'm in need of a new idea or project or I'm in need of inspiration - which is actually what lead me to this part of my creative process.  I started reading Make Your Creative Dreams Real by SARK and then I picked up 365 - A Daily Creative Journal by Noah Scalin.  After getting into SARK's book and reading the first 25 pages of Noah's book... I determined I needed to do something to get back in touch with the child who started creating with crayons and plain paper and always wanted to be an artist "when I grew up."  I know for a fact I won't be able to keep up with the "make something every day" but I'm using Noah's 365 book as a tool to think outside of my box a bit.  We'll see where it takes me... let the journey begin!!   

The Process Begins...

I've been contemplating and delaying this step for several weeks now because I wasn't sure where to start and there is always this fear when "putting yourself out there" in a new way.  But here I am because I have to start somewhere and we'll just see where it goes from here.


My plan for this blog is to share my creative journey as an artist.  So, as part of that journey I plan on sharing past and present artwork along with some of the stories and processes behind the art.  This may include anything from my painted or etched glassware designs to paintings, sketches, clay work, jewelry projects, photographs, etc...  or it may simply include my inspiration or road blocks for the day.  I hope you will join me on this creative journey.

I'll start by introducing myself... my name is Julie Yeager (as you may have guessed from the blog title) and I'm an artist.  I've always been an artist (since I was old enough to hold a crayon) but it hasn't always been something that I've had a lot of time to focus on due to the "real job".   I took many art and photography classes throughout school and completed my Associate’s Degree in Fine Art from Siena Heights College with photography as my area of focus.  I then changed my area of focus, my mother freaked out, and I attended Bowling Green State University for three years working on my Recreation Programming degree which led me to working for the Girl Scouts for over 20 years where I worked in a variety positions focusing on providing quality camp and program experiences for girls.  In these positions I was able to bring creative programs to thousands of girls in non-traditional learning environments, helping them become well-rounded young women.  These jobs combined my love of the out-of-doors, teaching, the arts and mentoring so perfectly (except for the long hours).   After my position was eliminated 7 months ago,  I found myself coming full circle and realizing my true passion is teaching and creating art - to, with and for others. 


I consider myself creative, caring, sensitive, a bit of an introvert (until I get to know you), and I love having fun and laughing!  I love spending time with friends and family - especially my husband who is the best man I could have found in this world!!  I love being outdoors... there's something about being in nature that creates such freeing experience. When it comes to my photography... much of it is people and nature, two things I really love that feed my energy and creative side.


Ok, so that's a little bit about me. If you want to know more - you know where to find me. :-)  I hope you will join me in this process of exploring a dream and the journey behind the process.