Pirate Arrrrrrt!
Today, Kathy and I took a class from Tim Holtz. We signed up just yesterday, without knowing much about the class. All I knew was that a shadowbox and a skeleton was involved, and I thought, "I'm there!"
Now, when I've taken project classes in the past (as opposed to technique classes, where you aren't completing a project) I've been very disappointed with my results. A lot of it as to do with the supplies provided. I am not, and probably never will be, an entirely spontaneous artist. I'm a planner and a thinker, and while there is a point where I go with the flow as I create something, the initial spark of my idea is born long before I face the pile of art materials. Asking me to work in reverse doesn't expand my mind; it just makes me cranky.
So, to stave off potential disappointment, this time I decided to go in with a plan. I knew we'd have a skeleton and a box. That, to me, suggests one of my favorite art themes: pirates! And so, at midnight the night before, I found myself touring my art studio, gathering up all things piratey. I pulled out bits of old jewelry that could become pirate treasure (especially when treated with alcohol inks), a miniature Toledo sword that I hoped would be in scale with the skeleton, Swarovski crystals to act as gemstones, a fancy compass charm, a small bottle that looked perfect for rum, and more.
I also grabbed the black paint, because when I took a class from Tim a year or two before, he had every color of paint but black. I just don't work without black, so this time, I brought my own. I also brought some unusual items, like pieces of carved wood (originally for putting on fireplaces) for adding depth to the scene, and a collection of cool bits and bobs that Kathy might like to use for her project.
Yesterday, when we registered for the class, I asked the staff what color hair they thought I should wear. I try not to repeat my wigs too often, just to keep things interesting. When they found out that I had that pink 60s flip, that's the one they chose. Now, I do not have the proper wardrobe for this wig, and so anything I tried on to wear with it looked silly. But I promised, so this morning that's what I wore.
I realized that the rest of the students must have thought I was some insane attention-seeker when I showed up with pink hair, but after a while I really do I forget I'm wearing anything unusual. I then wonder why people are looking at me oddly, of course!
The class turned out to be a lot of fun. Tim always teaches interesting techniques in his project classes and he gives students a lot of leeway for exploring their own vision. That makes it especially funny to see the response from the groupies. Maybe it's because he's a guy, but Tim definitely has groupies. These women probably take all his classes when he's in town, and whatever way Tim does things, that's the way they must do it, too. And if Tim finds something cool in the store that he wants to use for his work, I promise you it will sell out that day, because everyone else must have one for their project. It gets a bit crazy. I can't help but wonder what Tim thinks of the phenomenon.
Most of the excited swooning and murmuring stayed in the background for us, as Kathy and I were heads down, deep at work on our projects. I was thrilled to have so much of my own stuff on hand – I kept hopping from idea to idea without having to stop. Kathy was being quite creative with her box, tying a noose around the neck of her skeleton and wrapping it's body around a bottle of poison. I want to put her box on our mantel; it's just so cool.
For mine, I seated a red gemstone in the eye of the pirate, filled the little bottle I brought with faux rum and wired it to his hand, and proceeded to create a scene from a booty cave. With all I brought, I still didn't have everything I wanted, so I bought some Lumiere Crimson iridescent paint and painted the outside of the box just the right shade. Hey, it's good to be anal-retentive!
I hope to post photos of the pirate shadowbox soon. It needs some more work that I hope to get done before my next chemo infusion. All in all, though, I think this is one of the most successful project classes I've taken. It just goes to show, sometimes it's worth your while to work with your natural style.
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