WHEN I GROW UP. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

When was the last time you let your nocturnal imagination drift, allowing it to go anywhere it pleased? As a child, the night and the Moon enchanted me. Looking out of my bedroom window in Brooklyn, the sounds of the day segued into a hushed, almost reverent, atmosphere conducive to thinking, to dreaming.

And times like this I wondered where my life would take me. I knew the path I wanted to follow...but would it happen? My parents encouraged me to always listen to my Muse and to find the best in any situation. Their New York values of  tolerance, generosity, and having an open mind always willing to learn, set me on the right course.

The Lunagirl Moonbeam challenge for January is to design using images from her lovely collection of Babies & Children. Although I'm not especially maternal, I drew from the memories of my childhood for the challenge.

The final image is a digital collage. It was easy for me to pick a photo to work with. I loved the way the two girls looked, as if they were sharing a secret. I added images of famous actresses to their skirts and a Verdi libretto to the bodice. What young girl doesn't want to be an actress when she grows up? I couldn't resist adding a benevolent face smiling down at the girls from the Moon.

Childhood can be a magical time of wonder. But it doesn't have to end there. Each day is another chance to capture the effervescence of discovery. What will you be when you grow up?

Sisterhood of the Muse

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

Giving Thanks in the 50's

Didn't life seem vibrant in the 1950's?

On the surface, the country had a decidedly optimistic vibe. Popular culture was in its heyday. Televisions were now in many homes. The flickering black and white screens televised  a range of viewing options from the hilarious antics of Lucy and Ethel to the wisdom of Fulton J. Sheen. The art, fashion, music, and automotive industries all pushed the boundaries of what was previously accepted behaviour. After the stark War years, Americans were grateful. They were thankful for the new and ever-changing opportunities now with their reach. It seemed as if there were no boundaries. The sky was the limit.

Embraced by these emotions I embarked on the next Lunagirl Moonbeam challenge. The Theme for November  is Thanksgiving/Harvest/ Gratitude. There are always so many choices to be had from Lunagirl's collage sheets. I chose a woman delightfully showing off  her new space age refrigerator from the Lunagirl Retro 1950's collection. 

The work is a digital collage. I kept the Mid-Century Modern ambiance by incorporating various 1950' s patterns as a background and on the woman's apron. And nothing says happiness and thanks to me better than sunflowers. But I do have to ask...did we really clean the house in heels, pearls, and a twinset?

As we Americans celebrate this Thanksgiving Day, my wish is that you find your sky-is-the-limit vibe. And may you share it with the people who support your attitude of gratitude.

Sisterhood of the Muse 

THE LETTER. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

THE LETTER Digital Collage

What warms your heart on a blustery wet weekend? 

The weather here in the Eastern part of the US certainly is reminding us that a seasonal change has taken place. The leaves are slowly adding vivid hues of gold and orange to their pallet. The constant rain of the last several days has added a bone chilling dampness that is difficult to shake off.

This feeling of restlessness and foreboding was just what I needed for our next Lunagirl Moonbeam Challenge: Gothic. The selection of images available are bewitching...dark, moody, and brooding. It was hard to choose, but I decided on a lovely woman wrapped in a cloak clutching letters close to her heart.

Instantly I was transported back to "The Dark Arches" of Granary Wharf in Leeds, England when eclectic shops and restaurants were part of the underground life in the Victorian tunnels beneath the Leeds railway station.

In a small shop window I saw a magnificent black hooded cloak...with a story even more fantastic. A man had it made to order for his wife as a surprise gift. The lining was a deep violet satin embossed with roses, her favourite flower. Near the hem of the lining was hand embroidery intertwining their initials caressing a single rose. The cloak fastened with an antique silver rose clasp and a single silver rose bead graced the tassel. The ardent gent was going to bring his wife down to the Arches later than evening and casually stroll past the window, knowing her heart would do back flips when she saw it. His plan was to get her to try it on and then say..."It's yours!” She was his universe.

I often wonder about the couple and their life after the cloak. Seeing the Lunagirl image made all the romance of their story warm my heart.

The collage used several Lunagirl images: the woman, the background, and the letter I added to the papers in her hands. The remaining images are from my conventional and digital collection.

What does warm your heart? Is it a letter, a gift, a kind word, or knowing that you are the Universe in someone's life?

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

We Are Who They Were. Digital Collage. ShelbyPizzarro

We Are Who They Were

Life has an interesting way of weaving the stories of our ancestors into the fabric of who we have become.

The current Lunagirl Moonbeams challenge is "Mother". The Images sent to work with were beautiful as always. I chose the Mother and daughter engrossed in music and instrument playing.

Seeing the two sitting together got me thinking about the conversation they could be sharing. Perhaps the melody was its inspiration.

Many times a piece of music reminds me of someone in my life...be it my parents, or other relatives and friends. The notes of the song draw me in, and once again I am transported to a particular place and time. Could the Mother and Daughter not only be sharing memories, but making new ones of their own?

The collage is a digital work. The principal image is from the Lunagirl Collection. The surrounding images are from a variety of sources.

In the end, we are who are ancestors were. We learn from their triumphs and tragedies. We continue the story of their lives through our own. We can find the nurturing guidance we seek not only in the women in our lives but also in those who care to encourage us to be the best we can be.

Happy Mother's Day to you all...and to all those who support and embolden our authentic selves.

Sisterhood of the Muse

Why She Is Fascinating. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

Why She Is Fascinating

As women, and especially as women artists, our lives are wrapped in layers. For me, it is layers of paper, fabric, inks, and words that make up my life. And when I am dancing or creating a collage, the layers unwrap slowly to allow me to express a part of who I am.

As a member of the Lunagirl Moonbeam Design Team, I feel as if I have stepped into a Garden of Image Delights. There are so many wonderful pieces of Art in the catalogue that it is sometimes so hard to choose just one.

But this time, it was different. Our challenge is "Fascinating Faces". When Lunagirl sent the selection from which we were to make our choice...it was simple for me. There she was...Jaroslava...Alphonse Mucha's daughter. Her gaze, her pose...it was faultless.

I admit it..I have great affection for the work of Alphonse Mucha. Everything about his style, his colours, his composition in my eyes are flawless. The painting of Jaroslava is no exception. She often sat for her father and is in many of his works. In this painting, the incredibly tied scarf is thought to represent her Slav ancestry...a topic Mucha extensively explored.

Looking at the scarf made me think of my ancestry and my life within the Arts. How often have we wrapped ourselves in scarves made of image and words? Jaroslava's intense gaze calls the viewer to meet her eyes, and go beyond..to see who she is and meet the Muse who inspires her.

And that to me is what makes women fascinating.

The collage is digital using the image from the Lunagirl Moonbeam collection. I am a lover of scarves.Words twist and turn following the folds of the fabric. The background is a piece of scarf material from my collection.

And isn't part of the fascination persevering to see through the layers?

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

Life Is A Flower. Digital Collage. Shelby Pizzarro

Life Is A Flower - Digital Collage

Has anyone ever called you a Dreamer and do you wear the badge with honour? Are you proud that others recognise the dreamer quality in you?

I, too, have been "accused". I suppose I will always have the soul of a romantic and a dreamer. And that pleases me.

As a member of the Lunagirl Moonbeam Design Team. Our latest challenge is to explore the world of "Honeybees". And what a wonderful challenge for this time of year! As I sit looking out of my window at the snow that fell overnight,  I long for warm Spring sunshine and earthy scented breezes.

It's been quite a while since I worked digitally, and I thought this would be a great opportunity to take a dip back into the digital pool. And I was so glad I did. I forgot how much I do enjoy it!

I started gathering my collage ephemera with a quote from Victor Hugo. I believe Life is like a flower...each petal, each day, opening to something new...sometimes joyous...sometimes not...but nonetheless an adventure. And isn't love...in all her aspects...the sweetness, the honey, in your life?

Hugo's quote made me think of the beautiful Waterhouse painting "The Soul of the Rose" and the poem of inspiration by Alfred Lord Tennyson.  In my collection is the Lunagirl  Pre-Raphaelite Art CD. And there she was...encouraged by my Muse...I was ready to begin.

I incorporated into the design the Waterhouse woman, Lunagirl flowers from the Busy Bees Collage sheet and art, guaranteeing the honey to be pure, from the Honeybee Tag Set. I finished the piece with other scraps I have in a collection of my own digital ephemera, including a romantic morning Moon.

So, fellow Dreamers...what brings sweetness to your life? And who...or what...is the honeybee?

Sisterhood of the Muse