NEW FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Title: "Glorious Love"

Medium: Mixed Media

Size/Substrate: 4"x4"/Canvas

Genre: Abstract

Artist: Sue Marrazzo, ISAP, NCS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/SueMarrazzoArt

Instagram: www.instagram.com/SueMarrazzoArt

Now Showing at Art & Soul Gallery, Lemoyne, PA

The NCS 2018 Calendar

I am published in the new 2018 National Collage Society's Calendar. 

My collage is featured on the June 2018 page.

The calendars are available at www.nationalcollage.com

The sales support this national art organization, and the ARTS.

"Home Sweet Home" by Sue Marrazzo, ISAP, NCS

FB: www.facebook.com/SueMarrazzoArt

Instagram @SueMarrazzoArt

Blog: www.suemarrazzoart.blogspot.com

Art By Sue Marrazzo

"Go With The Flow"

A Mixed Media Abstract on Canvas

by Sue Marrazzo, ISAP, NCS

My Blog: www.suemarrazzo.blogspot.com

My FB page: www.facebook.com/SueMarrazzoArt

Also on Instagram: SueMarrazzoArt@Instagram

NEW ART

This is part of a new body of work that is being shown currently 

at Gallery At Second, www.galleryatsecond.com

Title: "Sowing the Seeds"

Medium: Mixed Media

Substrate: 18" x 24" Canvas

Artist: Sue Marrazzo, ISAP, NCS

FB: www.facebook.com/SueMarrazzoArt

Blog: www.suemarrazzo.blogspot.com

A Colorful Abstract by Sue Marrazzo

"A Colorful Abstract"

A Mixed Media Painting

by Sue Marrazzo, ISAP, NCS

Artist and Art Instructor

www.suemarrazzo.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/SueMarrazzoArt

Up For Auction

This painting is up for auction at The 24th Annual Art Auction to benefit 

The Carlisle Arts Learning Center's Martini Art Auction. 

For More Info: www.carlislearts.org

"As Time Goes By"

A 20" x 20" mixed media abstract painting

by Sue Marrazzo, ISAP, NCS

www.facebook.com/SueMarrazzoArt

Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'. Shelby Pizzarro. Collage

For those of you who live near the Quinlan Visual Arts Center in Gainesville, Georgia you are in for a treat!

The Center is hosting this year's National Collage Society 19th Annual Postcard Show. Comprised of small works, the exhibit features art no larger or smaller than 4" x 6" in size. The theme for the show is: "Expansive Art can be Found in a Small Format."

The opening reception is Thursday, April 14th at 5:30 pm. The exhibit runs through Saturday, June 4th, 2016.

My entry this year is "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'". Using a weaving technique, I brought together art paper, hand-made paper, an ad from a trade magazine and husks...which I acquired from a local cornfield.

As with all NCS exhibits, the show promises to be a visual smörgåsbord with something to delight everyone's palate.

To view the exhibition opening, gallery photos and more please visit the Quinlan Visual Arts Center online.

The show certainly supports the axiom "Good things come in small packages"!

Sisterhood of the Muse

Simply Be...

I saw my first crocus a few days ago.  The thin green striped shoots pushing through the earth was a joyful sight. Although we had a relatively benign winter, seeing the crocus renewed my trust in the natural energy of the seasons. It is wonderful to just simply be.

Inspired by the Artistcellar Pocket Stencils I chose to work with the Crown stencil from the Chakras series. The Crown Chakra is the center of consciousness and spiritual awakening. It is the place where we connect not only with our deepest self, but with our higher power and are able to appreciate the bigger picture of life. When our Crown chakra is open we are filled with trust, faith and devotion. Inspiration has a place to ripen. We are mindful.

Like most collage artists, I have an envelope of bits and pieces…torn paper, postcards, tissue paper and the like. Working intuitively, I pulled out whatever came to hand and started gluing the papers to my illustration board substrate using matte medium. I worked quickly and allowed the shape and colour of the papers to find their own space on the board.

Once dried, I sponged on a selection of metallic acrylic paints. I chose several shades of violet acrylic for the Crown stencil, the colour related to this chakra.

I love the Pocket Stencils series. The size is perfect and I always find just what I need to enhance my work. Creating this collage was no exception. There it was, the word “trust”. It is the embodiment of the chakra. Using Lapis Blue Dina Wakely Acrylics, I sponged the word on a piece of gold tissue paper. As with all Artistcellar products, clean-up is quick leaving the stencil in pristine condition, allowing me to focus on creating new work.

Faith and trust frees our spirit. We move in harmony with the wisdom of the universe.  Once we find our mindful, quiet space inspiration is unrestricted.  And we can simply be.

---------------------------------

Materials Used:

Assorted papers: newsprint, Russian passport, Tissue, Magazine paper, Wax infused paper, Citra Solv paper, postcard, tea stained wax infused paper, coffee stained paper, library card

Artistcellar Stencils: Pocket Stencils – CHAKRAS – Crown; TRUST  & SEEK stencil

Hand cut Stencils

Liquitex: Matte Medium

Deco Art Metallic Acrylics: Splendid Gold, Berry

Plaid Metallic Acrylics: Amethyst, Plumb, Blue Topaz, Champagne, Aquamarine

Dina Wakely Acrylics: Lapis Blue

Daler Rowney Pearlescent Liquid Acrylic: Moon Violet, Waterfall Green, Galactic Blue, Velvet Violet

Sisterhood of the Muse

LIFE, NOTHING MORE. Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

LIFE, NOTHING MORE. Collage

Hard to believe the year is drawing to a close. Although a cliché, it does seem like only yesterday that I was hanging up a new calendar and wondering what the year would bring. From the astonishing to the zany, 2015 didn't disappoint.

And this year I was part of an incredibly creative group of women in a Journal exchange round-robin. Each person chose a theme. The interpretation was totally your own. I'd like to share my contribution to the monochromatic "Faces" journal.

While wondering which direction to take, I looked through a few magazines I had on my work table. And that's when my Muse directed me to a headline that seemed perfect: LIFE, NOTHING MORE. Everything fell into place when I found a photo of a group of people celebrating the end of World War II. Their faces held the hope of a new tomorrow. They were celebrating Life. In that moment. They were fully present. Mindful.

We hurry through our days...with Life happening around us. And as I tear each month off the calendar I wonder...where did the time go? Did I have a hand in creating my life? And did I make time for what really matters?

The substrate for the spread is heavy watercolour paper. I rubber stamped the background with a variety of stamps I had at hand.  I tore the vintage War photo into strips, and layered it between an article printed in the Art section of our local newspaper. The headline: "LIFE, NOTHING MORE" is also from a locally published magazine. My face doodle on a scrap of tracing paper and printed tissue paper completed the work.  

As the Holiday Season and the year draws to a close, this is the perfect time to stop. To be mindful. To create your Life. Nothing more.

Sisterhood of the Muse

Exhibit: Oyster Mill Playhouse, Camp Hill. Shelby Pizzarro

The Four Sisters - Collage

Did you ever wonder what sisters get up to when they visit with each other?

Many years ago I purchased a lot of old photos on Ebay. In the group was the photo of the four women. On the back in pencil was scribbled "We sisters have fun!" It was such a lovely photo and sentiment I couldn't resist incorporating it into a collage. But how?

 Again my Muse guided me to an assortment of experimental papers. I've been trying new techniques with wax and inks. And there it was. In a page torn from a book was this passage: "the four sisters knitting away in the twilight". Perfect, especially for a very enthusiastic amateur knitter like myself.

  

I primed two canvases for the diptych with acrylic paint and inks. The papers I used all seemed to just fall into place...CitraSolv, tissue, pattern, art, handmade, and even Braille paper went into the mix. Next was the photo...I wanted the sisters to be in the thick of things...surrounded with warmth and the fun of knitting. I completed the collage with a vintage knitting pattern and stenciled acrylic paint.

  

The Sisterhood. It can encompass close friends or family. It's the place where we feel safe and at ease with the people we knit into our lives.

  

The work will be one of twenty-eight pieces on display as part of my solo show at the Oyster Mill Playhouse in Camp Hill, PA. The exhibit will run from September 25th to October 11th, 2015 during the performance run of  the play "Next To Normal". I hope if you are in the area you will take in the show and view the exhibit.

 

Sisterhood of the Muse

Le Chanson de la Mer. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

Le Chanson de la Mer

Did you ever stand at the edge of the ocean silently hoping to hear the call of Mermaids?

With Summer officially ending for us in the U.S. this weekend, I thought it was the perfect time for the latest Lunagirl Moonbeams challenge: Mermaids. All of the images in the Lunagirl catalogue are beautiful, but I finally decided to use the wistful maiden who appeared deep in thought.

I have always loved the elusive quality that surrounds Mermaids. Like a moon beam slipping across crystal, there is something beautiful and intangible about them. To me they are the all-knowing creatures sensitive to the Moon and the ebb and flow of the tides. In my heart Mermaids dive to the part of my soul waiting to be unrestrained...to be free to explore and discover all that life, and Art, has to offer. They are my guides, my Muse, and I happily follow.

The digital collage incorporates the Lunagirl Mermaid as the focal point. Images, purchased and from my collection, are layered to complete the background.

Do you believe in Mermaids? Or are "Mermaids" just the echo of the distant part of our souls, yet to be discovered?

Sisterhood of the Muse

WHAT WE CENSOR. Shelby Pizzarro. Collage

WHAT WE CENSOR, WHAT WE DON'T

With numerous magazine spread out before me, I searched the pages fruitlessly for the sentiment expressed in the words of Edgar Allan Poe: “There is no exquisite beauty… without some strangeness in the proportion.”

I have searched through quite a few vintage magazines lately. Seventy-seven years have yellowed the pages, but the ads have a message that today still ring out loud and clear. As women so much of our worth is tied to our appearance. The ads confirm this, marketing one product or another to make us thinner, younger, beautiful, and ultimately happier. And over seven decades, nothing has changed.

While I have no qualms with anyone trying to look their best, where does the obsession for unattainable perfection become just that...an obsession...splitting us into fragments of ourselves.

As artists, we are visual beings. Do you find yourself contemplating the message sent in these types of ads? Do they influence your work, or your life? Is the search for beauty and perfection tempered with self censorship?

The substrate for my collage is a stretched canvas. It is covered in metallic gold acrylic paint. I built the collage from a fashion photo from the 1950's, vintage magazine ads, excerpts from a 1938 diary, and handmade paper.

What do you censor...even to yourself?

Sisterhood of the Muse

Marie Antoinette. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

Marie Antoinette Digital Collage

Is anything ever entirely virtuous or corrupt?

I viewed the Lunagirl Moonbeam Upcoming Challenge List with  a bit of apprehension. We were to take inspiration from Marie Antoinette. Oh no...Marie Antoinette! As I am anything but a Royalist, I feared this would truly be a "challenge" for me.

I knew of the clichés attached to her legacy: she was the teen-age Queen with a penchant for extravagant fashion and entertainment; of her flippant "Let them eat cake!" comment which according to sources she never did say; and the belief that she single-handedly caused the French Revolution culminating in her execution by her own subjects at the guillotine. Although she represented everything I found loathsome, I wanted to keep an open mind and began my investigation.

As I research her life, the caricature fell away and slowly I saw her as a flawed ruler cloistered in her world of wealth and privilege.  She saw her subjects simply as fictional characters in a performance.

The digital collage began with Lunagirl's portrait of Marie. My heart was inspired by the October 1789 Women's March on Versailles, and I knew I had to give them equal prominence in my work. The balance of the collage drew from digital ephemera in my collection.

As I completed the work I gained a new understanding of Marie. Looking at her life allowed me to view my own with a measure of objectively. How often do clichés replace facts making it easy to view a person or situation as wholly one thing or the other? As artists isn't it our duty to search for the truth? And more often than not, isn't the truth shades of both sides?

Sisterhood of the Muse

Outgrow Your Shoes - Digital Collage - Shelby Pizzarro

Outgrow Your Shoes - Digital Collage

If you allowed yourself...just once...to dream with wild abandon...where would your dreams take you? Would you be on a wistful journey, meandering through experiences at your own cadence? Or would you rather give up all control and fly unrestrained towards a destination that only Fate can dictate?

The focus of the latest Lunagirl Moonbeam Design Team Challenge is "Shoes".  This challenge is shared with Vicki Romaine's Blog, The Cheerful Stamp Pad.

Thinking about shoes brought me to one of my favourite sayings by Japanese writer and poet, Ryunosuke Satoro: "Let Your Dreams Outgrow the Shoes of Your Expectations". Lunagirl's images are inspiring as always. I chose a shoe and eagerly began my work.

Travel is my sanctuary and the act of my putting on my shoes was always the prelude to a great adventure. I never knew what to expect, but I wandered, ever hopeful that I would experience something different and wonderful.

By allowing my dreams to outgrow my shoes my life, and art, grew in directions I never thought possible. I wouldn't trade those experiences, the great and the not so wonderful, for anything!

So, fellow Artists and Dreamers...the call to outgrow your shoes is beckoning you. Will you take the dare?

Sisterhood of the Muse

Why We Stand Up Straight. Shelby Pizzarro. Digital Collage

Why We Stand Up Straight Digital Collage   

There is just something about images...still and moving...in black and white that lifts my soul. I guess I'll always be a "Turner Classic Movies" kind of gal at heart. The drama and the romance the absence of colour brings intrigued me in the past as I am certain it will in the future.

The current Lunagirl Moonbeams challenge is Black & White. This time, the challenge is shared with Vicki Romaine's challenge Blog, The Cheerful Stamp Pad. The selection of images from Lunagirl's collection are always inspiring. Looking through the collage sheets my eye was drawn to the women in beautiful dress.

What struck me was their posture...straight, proud, elegant. I loved the smile of the woman wearing the cape. Who was the recipient of her cheeky grin? Did she have a secret? I built the collage around this woman. From my own digital ephemera collection I chose a landscape I thought would have a mysterious feel when converted into black and white. And then I found my air ship! Perfect. I love the concept of the lighter-than-air ships, gracefully floating while hiding a metal frame. And why did the women stand so straight? I couldn't resist adding the corsets...just a peek into the private lives of our ladies. Like the airship, they are visible sophistication covering a solid foundation. And often times, the way women balance the explosive and the tranquil aspects of life is a secret only they know.

But isn't this the story of so many women? We are grace, cleverness, and power in equal measure. What is your secret?

Sisterhood of the Muse

HUGO'S XYZ. Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

HUGO'S XYZ

I love returning to Art History. It is a comforting place...like a warm sweater on a cold night...nurturing, enveloping, familiar. And every time I return I discover something new and inspiring.

The National Collage Society hosts a Postcard Exhibit annually. April 2, 2015 to May 12, 2015 marks the 18th Annual Exhibit. The entries, all 4" x 6" postcard size, are on show at the Tucson Jewish Community Center Art Gallery in Tuscon, Arizona.

Lately I have read a lot of Art History books and articles. They have influenced my thinking while awake and asleep. And oh the dreams! One night I found myself at the Cabaret Voltaire in Zürich, listening to Hugo Ball reciting a Sound Poem. Like most dreams, images juxtaposed themselves without thought of cohesion...just random images shooting through the kaleidoscope of my nocturnal mind.

I felt my Muse was encouraging me to return to the world of the Sound Poem. And so began my entry for the show.

The substrate for the collage is a canvas board. The photo of Hugo in his shaman's hat and Cubist costume took center stage. I paid homage to his poem by incorporating the title KARAWANE. I added metallic acrylic paint sponged on to canvas. It was finished by with a Swiss postage stamp, and a Dada inspired pointing finger and the word Cacodylic.

The Society chose sixteen winners from the entries. I am delighted and honoured to be among them. You can view the collage work chosen here.

Musings by day and night shape our world as artists. How do your dreams influence your Art?

Sisterhood of the Muse

STRONG WOMEN. Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

Strong Women - Collage

On March 8th every year we celebrate International Women's Day. With this event in mind, the March Tag Swap I joined was a celebration of women...in all our glory!

"Make it Happen" is the 2015 theme, encouraging effective action for the advancement and recognition women in all walks of life. I am delighted to see that purple is the official colour used in commemoration of the Women's Suffrage Movement, for which I have a deep appreciation.

In my life, the strongest women I know are the ones who elevate other women to be the best they can be.  They are the supportive, nurturing souls who are there to catch you when you fall and lift you up to even greater heights in celebration of your victories. I am sure you have them in your life as well.

As I started working on the Tag I came across a photo of two women seated together. I wondered...could they have been as enamoured of the Suffragettes as I am?

The substrate I used for the Tag is illustration board. The background is Citra-Solv paper from a magazine article about women. I added the vintage photo, a doily, a blossoming flower, wax infused paper, text clipped from a magazine, and finished off with sponged and stencilled metallic acrylic paint in various colours. The Tag is now on its way to a new home in California.

As artists, we can "make it happen"...not only through our work, but by being that strong woman we adore having in our lives. So, my question is...Are you "that" woman?

JOURNEY. Collage. Shelby Pizzarro.

JOURNEY - Carpe Diem

I recently joined a group of very talented women in a circle round-robin Journal exchange.

Each of us assigned a theme to a Journal and sent it to a person on our list. By the end of the year, our Journal should return to us packed to the brim with the thoughts and art of the women taking part.

The first Journal to arrive to me was from Australia. The theme was "Journey". It thrilled me to open the box and see all the beautiful papers and art. But where to begin!

Looking through my folders I spotted the portrait of a young girl holding a seashell to her ear. What could she be hearing? And how often have we all mimicked her during our youth? What a romantic notion...our future whispering to us from the curved surfaces of a shell. Are we listening to the Ocean..or more?

Our Journey, I feel, is best experienced when we are still and mindful of this moment. Working on the Journal allowed me the time to enjoy the stillness, to pluck the ripeness of the day, to be fully aware.

The substrate for the page is heavy white paper. I covered the background with Distress Ink, fluid and metallic acrylics. In addition to the Victorian girl with the seashell, I added maps, wax infused paper, and telephone book paper. Stenciling completed the page. The pocket on the front is the perfect place for the supplied tag I decorated. I continued the collage on the back of the piece as well.

I hope when the Journal box comes home again its owner will be pleased. I loved working on the page knowing that the Journey continues with each and every moment.

Is your stillness enfolding you?  Are you able to hear the gentle whispers of your future?

Sisterhood of the Muse

PARIS SEWED UP. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

PARIS SEWED UP - Digital Collage

Ah...Paris in the Springtime. And Spring is such a dreamy season. It is when we finally are able to shake off this icyWinter weather. It won't be long before the season of warm sweet breezes caresses us. I am ever hopeful.

The next challenge for the Lunagirl Moonbeam Design Team is "Sewing".  I do appreciate the talent of anyone who can sew. Although my Mom is an excellent seamstress, it was a skill I never mastered.

When looking through the beautiful Lunagirl images, the woman with the wistful smile appealed to me.  When I think about sewing, this is how I feel. As I hope for Spring, I am ever hopeful that someday I will go beyond my very skillful button replacement sewing and hem stitching upping. So when I think of sewing my thoughts run to Fashion and Fashion comes home to Paris.

I wanted the woman to take center stage in the work. From my own digital ephemera collection I started the piece with a postcard of the Eiffel Tower with postage stamp. I added pattern paper complete with directions. And a dream isn't a dream unless you have a limitless sky surrounding you. I finished the collage with the joyfully optimistic yellow roses...perhaps a symbol of her future in Fashion Design!

I guess my sewing dreams, like thoughts of Spring, will continue. Is there a skill you are ever hopefully wanting to master?

Sisterhood of the Muse

A Nile Journey. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

A Nile Journey - Digital Collage

Although February is so cold and blustery here in the Eastern United States, there is a convivial, scarlet heart that beats the rhythm of love in this dead of Winter month.

With this in mind, Lunagirl Moonbeam's next challenge is...RED. Looking through her incredible collection of images my eye kept coming back to a woman pensively looking over her shoulder. What could she be looking for...or thinking about?

I then spotted the beautiful frame in Lunagirl's collection. It was just what I was looking for...gold, crimson, and beautiful.

As I travelled to the world of the "Lady in Red" the collage quickly fell into place. I could imagine her "World Tour", when  voyaging was a real adventure. With her felucca sailing away, there she is, having her photo taken as she disembarked on the banks of the Nile. And the memento of the occasion, safely enclosed in the frame, is her gift to her beloved.

From my own digital ephemera collection I started the piece with a nebula background...a fitting base for the star-crossed lovers. I added the postcard and stamp, because a "World Tour" just isn't the same without correspondence to mark the journey. I finished the piece with a romantic full red rose.

Today - February 5th, fellow Collage Artists, is the anniversary of the birth of Dada. In 1916 the Cabaret Voltaire in Zürich opened to a standing room only crowd. Do you think the Cabaret Voltaire would be our Lady's next port of call?

As we all take our own "World Tour", where will it lead you and who will join you on your voyage?

Sisterhood of the Muse