Tumblers inspired by the 2012 Seed Savers catalogue.

Pedestal bowl inspired by dragon fruit from my uncle Peter, moon cycles, watermelon, bottle brush flowers, pansies, and lace texture.  Dragon fruit was pink before firing, purple after.

Book III, secret project, Santa Barbara Central Library. Shelf no. 759.4 M433

James Ensor was born in Ostend, a small seaside town in Belgium, popular during the tourist seasons in the summer and the month preceding Lent.  His grandparents had a shop selling sea shells, lace, rare stuffed fish, old books, jams and an assortment of things that were constantly being knocked over by cats, deafening parrots, and a monkey..The subjects that populate Ensor's paintings- portraits, skulls, sea life and masked "figures", often a broomstick wrapped in fabric, create the illusion for telling the tale, such as here in The Despair of Pierrot,1892. 

Henri Matisse and J.D. Salinger

Matisse expressed a "joi de vivre" quality in all aspects of his artwrork and life style.  Above is the second installment of my secret donation to the Santa Barbara Central Library.   Under the Matisse book is the cover of the J.D. Salinger box set which I made for Kate and Laura of Rodarte (2008).  It was a commission, however I chose a collage by Matisse for the cover.  An intuitive choice, maybe if you have read J.D. Salinger you can feel it;)    

Frida Kahlo

Best known for her self-portraits, Frida Kahlo is celebrated in Mexico as emblematic of national and indigenous tradition, and by feminists for her depiction of the female experience.  She contracted polio as a child and was badly injured in a steet car accident as a teenager, which often kept her in bed where she painted.     

David Alfaro Siqueiros

A soldier and political activist, Siqueiros (1896-1974) is also considered one of the artistic masters of the 20th century, a member of the great Mexican school of mural painting that includes Jose Clemente Orozco and Diego Rivera. 
The city of Los Angeles and the Getty will soon be unveiling "America Tropical".  It is the only mural by Siqueiros in its original location.  A controversial work when it was completed in 1932, the mural depicts a Mexican Indian bound to a cross under an American eagle.  Damaged by whitewashing and the sun, the Getty Research Institute has recreated his original materials to preserve the mural's authenticity.  

Pierre Bonnard

I am making an anonymous donation of my hand painted book covers to the Santa Barbara Central Library..shhh:)  This is my first one, Pierre Bonard.  I replaced the shelf tags and barcode, returned it and it was reshelved. 
Bonnard often painted his wife in the bathroom, as she suffered from depression and baths were a remedy.  He brought something special to his subject and her surroundings in the act of everyday life.