Holly’s Blog
Cutting Linos
I had some friends over recently to make and play with silk screens. The daughter of Toni, Tarika, had never printed before. So while Toni and Peter were out making photocopies, I started playing with Diane Ericson son’s foam core and lino material. Which then led me...
Dorothy Caldwell: Human Marks at Shakerag
Back in September at the Eco dyeing class with Pia Best, my Santa Cruz friends told me they were signed up for a class in Tennessee from a woman whose work I admire: Dorothy Caldwell. I often find out about work and artists through Pinterest, or my art group. And I have long “pinned” Dorothy’s work. I love her sensibility, colors and simple forms.
The Wheels are Turning
A deadline always helps! The Mountain View show is coming up-only 16 more days. What that means for me is a lot of production. But what it really means right now is having fun and doing my process in a different way. A-real-one-of-a-kind-way. It means being moved...
One more September thing…Stockton!
The Haute Couture Societé invited me to show and teach at the end of September. I drove the back way through the Delta region. Stockton was an important part of the shipping industry back in the old days. There is a revival happening around the port.
Re-Sorting
It is fitting that in the new year we review what nurtures us and what blocks us. It is a great time for looking within. And so my studio lays fallow while I turn my attention to my home space. A three car garage that has never seen a car inside. I share this...
September Madness…
The Haute Couture Societé invited me to show and teach at the end of September. I drove the back way through the Delta region. Stockton was an important part of the shipping industry back in the old days. There is a revival happening around the port.
45 Women at the Studio
A good excuse to clean and organize one’s studio is to have invited 45 women to come over! Back in April at the Style ’16 Show, Mary Ann Behrens asked if her group, the Haute Couture Societiè, could come for a studio visit. Yes! Of course. And after we would go to the...
Museum of Fine Art Houston: Yayoi Kusama
I went to Houston on my way to a wedding in Austin this summer. Two dear friends from different parts of my life had just moved there and didn’t know each other yet. One, Pam Barry, my jeweler designer friend, had suggested we go see an installation by Yayoi Kusama at...
The Magic of Ashland! DOL with Diane Ericson
The large room was decorated in an arabesque style, white trim and Naples yellow walls. It became the warren of busy women, all eager to move forward in their work and creativity. This second DOL I participated in was in Ashland, Diane’s hometown. It convened in the...
It’s all in the details: Oscar de la Renta
My knowledge of Oscar de la Renta stems from the Sunday Chronicle society pages featuring the high society mavens. One in particular sported his designs faithfully with all the ruffles and frills. I was not drawn to pieces, feeling like they might be “matronly”. My...
Style 2016 in Palo Alto/ Mountain View
This year’s Style show went smoothly in spite of the rain. And we were happy about that. Attendance was high, I loved my neighbors. On one side was Slice lab, a couple of guys using a 3-d printer to create jewelry. Fun pieces, some necklaces looking like they were...
Playing with the Finger Paints!
I paint my fabrics flat on thin sheets of formica. I had a special table made that can hold 6 of these sheets to create more storage and let the fabric cure more slowly. When I clean these sheets sometimes there is a denser layer of paint when the fabric I have...
Mood Fabrics!
The Haute Couture Societé invited me to show and teach at the end of September. I drove the back way through the Delta region. Stockton was an important part of the shipping industry back in the old days. There is a revival happening around the port. The Hauties, as...
The Ampersand Vessel Challenge
My art group called Ampersand or Amps meets every two weeks. At a recent meeting my friend Juline Beier presented her solvy pieces- cylinders made of solvy and stitched newspaper dipped in wax. She is always pushing herself towards more volumetric shapes like her...
Making yardage for Catherine Bacon’s art kimonos!
I make fabric for Catherine Bacon about twice a year. When I was doing yardage for her a couple of years ago, it became more full-time than I wanted. I liked having a steady paycheck, but I missed out selling at other venues ie: the Santa Fe Weaving Gallery, and at...
An informal teaching day with Peter and Toni
Peter Linenthal, a friend I have known since I was 14, is an artist and book illustrator. He has also been involved in the Potrero Hill Historical Society, organizing fundraisers and gathering history of the Hill. A number of years ago he became interested in...