Artists In The Garden XIII: Judy Beck Lobos of The Adventures of a Gardening Artist

Today's interview will be with Judy Beck Lobos of Judybec.
"The Adventures of a Gardening Artist - my oobos" at http://oobos.blogspot.com/

1. What is your art, hobby or craft? How did you come to creating it?

My art centers around my garden and nature in general.
I started painting with watercolor because I love to sketch and watercolor is a non-toxic way for me to quickly add color to my drawings. I've become a fan of sumi-e painting -- the Asian brush stroke that captures a moment in time appeals to me.

"Birds and Bamboo" 11"x15" watercolor on paper
copyright 2009 by Judy Beck Lobos

2. Where do you find your inspiration?

I love watching the birds. I took this photo through my kitchen window this summer. It's a great spot to take pictures because the birds don't even know I'm there. I've put up a feeder this fall so I can watch them all year long. I thrive on watching things grow and change.

3. How does your garden or nature influence your art?

The changing of the seasons are a huge influence on my art. I tend to notice the passage of time more poignantly during the autumn. I like this quote by Andrew Wyeth about winter:

"Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn't show. "

In winter, the idea that we don't see everything is appealing. Although, personally I am much more a fan of springtime!

4. Will you share a picture of your garden with us?

Sure! My garden is on a south facing hill. I used to get loads of sun but, the pine tree at the bottom of the hill is getting larger - It's been shading more and more of my garden every year. Everything changes doesn't it --
These photos were taken in early summer from our 2nd floor deck.

5. Will you share a picture or pictures of your favorite plant?

It's so difficult to pick just one special plant but, my Golden Willow tree (pictured below) -- the one I cut back every spring, is definitely a favorite.



I use these branches, along with my Concord Grapevine and Red Twig Dogwood to weave the twig ball sculptures I display in my garden. The cutting of the branches is called "Pollarding" and it allows this wonderful golden color in the new growth each year.

6. Do you have any photos of your art in the garden to share?

Here is "Tumblewood" , one of my twig sculptures. I make them in all sizes from 1" to this large one measuring 36" across. I'm thrilled to find a use for my trimmings and I'm thinking of experimenting with other shapes in the spring.

"Tumblewood" in the Summer

"Tumblewood" in the Winter

7. Do you have a favorite public garden to recommend?

Longwood Gardens, near Philadelphia, is a favorite of mine! They have a wonderful gift shop too.

http://www.longwoodgardens.org/

8. What is the best lesson you have learned from the garden or nature?

The lesson I've learned from my garden is that there is a place for everything and I enjoy trying to find the best place for each plant to thrive. I've expanded my garden by taking castoff plants from neighbors. One of my neighbors admired a bush that I recently moved to the end of our driveway. I loved telling her that she had been planning to throw that bush away several years ago! All I did was trim it up and give it room to grow.

9. Do you have a gardening tip to share with fellow gardeners?

Compost everything you can! I've always had a compost pile for garden waste but I've recently begun composting all the organic waste from our kitchen - coffee grounds, egg shells, fruit and veggie waste, even cardboard. It's amazing to see all the earthworms living in the pile everytime I turn the soil.

10. Are you creating anything new that you'd like to share with us?

I've put a container of lettuce on our south facing deck this fall -- it's almost December and I've got a delicious, crisp salad right outside my door.

11. Show us your favorite item in your etsy shop.

I recently opened an etsy shop for my Asian brush bird paintings. Here's one of my favorites:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=35133409

12. Show a favorite garden or nature related item from another etsy shop.

I really love this beautiful bird's nest necklace from Aunt Batty's Closet!

Nest of hope pendant with fresh water pearl eggs:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=34819180

Judy, Thank you for sharing your art, inspiration and garden with us today!

Artists In The Garden XI: Sandy of PunkyJane

Today's interview will be with Sandy of PunkyJane.

http://www.punkyjane.com/

http://www.punkyjane.etsy.com/

http://punkyjane.blogspot.com/

1. What is your art, hobby or craft? How did you come to creating it?

I create hand stamped and personalized jewelry and accessories. I was in search of a necklace for myself with my daughters' names on it after seeing a friend wearing one. I was never able to decide what to order... and decided to start making them myself. I have such a love of typography...I've been a graphic designer for over 20 years. This was a perfect way to use one of my passions in a new and different way.

Click on photo for more info.

2. What is your inspiration?

Making people smile. One of the best things about creating this jewelry is doing custom orders and working with my customers to create their vision to honor, celebrate, remember... creating something meaningful to them. And hearing back how much they love it gives me such a boost!

3. How does your garden or nature influence your art?

My garden helps keep me calm and helps me remember that beauty doesn't mean perfection. I tend to be a very literal and symmetric type. I think it helps be loosen up!

4. Will you share a few pictures of your garden with us?

5. Will you share a picture of your favorite plant?

No question that lavender is my favorite. Any variety.

6. Do you have any photos of your art in the garden to share?

Click on photo for more info.

7. What is the best lesson you have learned from the garden or nature?
Patience. There is nothing instant about a beautiful garden. You work hard, wait, and enjoy all the little phases. And embrace what is presented to you. Don't force it. What will thrive in your garden might not work for someone else. I believe that's true in life as well.

8. Do you have a gardening tip to share with fellow gardeners?
I like the idea of having meaningful plants in my garden. Might be a favorite from my childhood, or something my grandma grew. I want to ‘feel' my garden and have it be a place filled with memories.

9. Are you creating anything new that you'd like to share with us?
I am currently working on personalized garden markers. Customers can order these markers handstamped with special sayings, names, plant names...just about anything.
Garden markers: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=27504439

10. Show us your favorite item in your etsy shop.

I wear my Just Breathe ring everyday as a constant reminder to slow down and breath. Sometimes that's hard to do balancing family (I have two young girls) and work. I catch a glimpse of my ring and exhale.

Click on photo for more info.

11. Please share a favorite garden or nature related item from another Etsy shop.

I recently found http://www.herbanlifestyle.etsy.com/. While everything in this shop looks wonderful, the Lavender Chamomile Facial Masque makes me relax just looking at it! I hope to order some soon!

Click on photo for more info.

Sandy, thank you for sharing your garden and inspiration with us today!

Artists In The Garden IX: Val Littlewood of Pencil and Leaf, observations and inspirations from nature.

Welcome to the Artists in the Garden interview series. Today's interview will be with botanical painter, Val Littlewood at Pencil and Leaf.
http://www.pencilandleaf.blogspot.com/

1. What is your art, hobby or craft? How did you come to creating it?

I’m an artist, relocated with my partner just over a year ago, from Europe to Florida. Without a work permit, and unwilling to spend all my time in the Magic Kingdom I decided to take a distance learning course in Botanical Painting to keep me out of trouble. Looking round for some suitable models I found Harry P Leu Gardens, http://www.leugardens.org/ a gorgeous 55 acres of Botanical Gardens here in Orlando and just a bike ride away from where we live. So for over a year now I have kept a blog at http://www.pencilandleaf.blogspot.com/ which has recorded the fascinating plants I have found there. I sketch, draw and paint, mostly watercolour, and then write about the histories, botany and uses of the many varied species.

Pima Cotton, bol, flower and leaf.

Pima cotton posts link http://pencilandleaf.blogspot.com/search/label/pima%20cotton

2. What is your inspiration?

My inspiration comes from natural forms their ingenious design and endless variety. Not so much just flowers but the seedpods, the roots and shoots and particularly the leaves, the backroom boys who do all the work.

Bauhinia pod





Farfugium leaf

3. How does your garden or nature influence your art?

Leu Gardens has become my second home, I visit 2 or three times most weeks. There is a wonderful mixture of plants and trees, most of them new to me, so this past year has been a real voyage of discovery. My encounter with the plants there is entirely random and every time I go I find something new. I draw and research what I find and can get lost in wonderful stories of medicine, good and bad, discovery and adventure. The histories of plants have so much to tell us. For instance, the wonderful native Yaupon Holly and the Black Tea drink.


Yaupon Holly posts link, http://pencilandleaf.blogspot.com/search/label/yaupon%20holly

4. Will you share a picture or pictures of your garden with us?

There are so many views to choose from, from formal Rose Garden, to Rainforest Jungle, from Vegetable Plot to Butterfly Garden. But a quiet walk in woods with the towering oaks is wonderful. I sometimes make quick sketches, this is the pavilion in the South Woods.


5. Will you share a picture or pictures of your favorite plant?

I have just revisited a few earlier discoveries and went back to look at the fascinating Bixa Orellana, the lipstick tree, which gives us the coloured dye annatto. These are the drawings.

Bixa pods




Bixa leaf and flower.

Bixa posts link. http://pencilandleaf.blogspot.com/search/label/bixa

6. Do you have a favorite public garden to recommend?

I only have experience of Harry Leu Gardens here in the USA, but of course Kew in the UK is wonderful too. I do hope to get to the Fairchild Garden in Miami very soon.
7. Do you have any photos of your art in the garden to share?
One of my favourite trees is the Soapberry tree. I have written about it and drawn it many times now. Back in October I set up my drawing board and sketched it in situ, recording how the light changed over a few hours.



Link to Soapberry posts . http://pencilandleaf.blogspot.com/search/label/soapberry

8. What is the best lesson you have learned from the garden or nature?

A walk in the Gardens with time to really observe the beauty and ingenuity of nature, clears my mind, lessens my worries and makes me see our human lives in perspective. We are small and insignificant in comparison to the great and ancient continuity of “life” and a walk amongst the great Live Oaks and Pines is a humbling experience. And, to dispel any danger of becoming too introspective, the antics of the squirrels, lizards and woodpeckers are endlessly amusing. We do all have time to look, sometimes it’s just making the effort, but taking that time brings rewards, many fold.

9. Do you have a gardening tip to share with fellow gardeners?

My garden guru here at Leu Gardens is Pedro one of the gardeners. He is from the Philippines and has a real affinity with nature. He loves natural ways of growing and caring for things and sometimes his philosophy is to let nature take its course. He sows seeds by just throwing them in the air and allowing nature to dictate their positioning. He is very successful.

10. Are you creating anything new that you'd like to share with us?

I am currently preparing for an exhibition about the blog at the Leu Gardens, which will be a small selection of the now over 400 drawings and paintings I have made in the last Year. Alongside the images will be the relevant blog posts, which will make it a little different from the usual exhibitions. The exhibition will run from April to June. I hope people will enjoy seeing and reading about some of the fascinating plants in the Gardens and discover some of the details and stories that would otherwise have passed them by!


Magnolia Burrs

Val, I thank you for sharing your observations, inspirations and botanical paintings with us today! I hope to see your exhibit on my next trip to Orlando, Fl. May you have much success at the Leu Gardens exhibition!


Thanks for visiting! Please leave a comment if you'd like and stay tuned for the next "Artists in the Garden" interview.

Artists In The Garden VII: Strawberry Curls of Sol Y Sombra

Welcome to the 'Artists in the Garden' interview series. Today's interview will be with Strawberry Curls of Sol Y Sombra and Rivermoonblossom, a ceramic tile illustrator.

1. What is your art, hobby or craft? How did you come to creating it?

My main craft is painting on red clay bisque tiles. I do this by first drawing out the image with wax resist, then painting with glaze then firing in a kiln and at low fire temperatures to make the colors bright and vibrant rather than muted and earth tone like high fire temps. I also like to make beaded jewelry and collage and painting. I came to tiles 13 years ago, I took a tile making workshop in New Mexico and loved it. I've taken other pottery classes and tile classes, but I have mostly stuck with the first technique I learned which is distinctive to the southwest.

2. What is your inspiration?

I have many inspirations...mostly world myths and religions, especially goddess myths. I have a local show coming up in May that will be all about the magic that surrounds us everyday.

3. How does your garden or nature influence your art?

Where would we be without nature? We are nature. Nature teaches me to be still, to listen, to realize that the relationship between chaos and stillness is a symbiotic one. It teaches me to accept things as they are, to not try to force a different outcome other than the one that is. One of my favorite meditations is to sit outside and to just listen. Watch my thoughts come into my mind and let them go...come back to listening. It is very powerful and centering. I try to bring this to my artwork and creative process...to just listen to what my heart wants to say and let my hand be the vehicle.

4. Will you share a picture or pictures of your garden with us?


At the moment my garden is covered with several inches of snow and dried up thistle. In Spring I will plant veggies, mostly and some morning glories.

5. Will you share a picture or pictures of your favorite plant?

It's hard to have a favorite plant, since each one is special and necessary. I do love quaking aspen trees. All aspens typically grow in large clonal colonies derived from a single seedling, and spreading by means of root suckers; new stems in the colony may appear at up to 30–40 meters from the parent tree. Each individual tree can live for 40–150 years above ground, but the root system of the colony is long-lived. In some cases, this is for thousands of years, sending up new trunks as the older trunks die off above ground. For this reason it is considered to be an indicator of ancient woodlands.

6. Do you have a favorite public garden to recommend?

I love Kubota Japanese Garden in South Seattle

http://www.kubota.org

It is unique because it's in the middle of this huge bustling metropolis and when you visit it's so quiet and peaceful, you feel like you are the only person around for miles. Often when I would go to Kubota, I was the only person there..which is so rare for a public city park.

7. What is the best lesson you have learned from the garden or nature?

Antoinette Brown Blackwell:

"Nature is just enough; but men and women must comprehend and accept her suggestions"

8. Do you have a gardening tip to share with fellow gardeners?

My gardening tip is to talk to your plants--hahaha---I love to think that they are listening to me even if it's just a little flower gossip that I am spreading.

9. Are you creating anything new that you'd like to share with us?

I am working on some spirit collages that I hope to share in my Etsy shop soon.

10. Show us your favorite item in your Etsy shop Rivermoonblossom.

Right now I am loving the dark/bright contrast and of The Sirens Flight

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18730866

11. Show a favorite item from another Etsy shop.



Glow by This Years Girl

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15550175

I've always loved photography and collage and she invokes such beautiful moods with her digital collage. This one is so uplifting and joyful.

Strawberry, I thank you for sharing your creative spirit, inspiration and garden with us! The tiles you create bring magic and beauty to the world.



Thanks for visiting! Please leave a comment if you'd like and stay tuned for the next 'Artists in the Garden' interview.

Artists In The Garden VI: Karen Hall of An Artist's Garden

Welcome to the sixth of a series of interviews about artists who garden. Today's interview will be with Karen Hall of An Artist's Garden, a textile artist and fellow Blotanical member.

1. What is your art, how did you come to creating it?

I am a professional embroiderer and artist and I have been stitching for as long as I can remember. I work on a variety of medium, including:- felt, paper, silk and organza. Often “found objects” leaves, petals, wood or metal are incorporated into my work. Free machine embroidery and hand stitching are my paint brushes.


2. What is your inspiration?

I draw inspiration from journeys – although usually journeys of the soul, or life journeys. More recently my inspiration has come from journeys around my garden or the local area. Traveling and paths feature often in my textile work.


3. How does your garden or nature influence your art?

I think that my garden has only really started influencing my art in the last couple of years – with the move to this house. I notice that my “goddesses” now seem to have flowers round them.
I have always enjoyed including animals in my textiles in a naive way.



4. Will you share a picture or two of your garden with us?



5. A picture of your favorite plant?

I don’t think that I have a favourite plant – this garden is very much work in progress. Since starting The Artist’s Garden, I think that the plant I am actually photographing is my favourite plant. Getting close up and personal with plants really helps me see them.


This is one of my favourite garden photos of a cosmos after some heavy rain.

6. Any photos of your art in the garden?

The textiles I create don’t really go in the garden, but this is “The Artist’s Garden-Studio” and more than enough art goes on in here for any garden!


7. What is the best lesson you have learned from the garden or nature?

Work with Nature -
I have gardened on sand and gravel,
I have gardened on clay,
Here I am gardening on stony wet soil. It really is important to try and pick plants that will be happy with the conditions in your garden.
From nature I learn about cycles, birth, life, death, re-birth. I think this is something else thing is prevalent in my art work.

8. Do you have a gardening tip to share with fellow gardeners?

I think that the best thing I have read this year is from Gail who gardens at Clay and Limestone in her post titled,
"I’m Looking at the Garden with Your Eyes."
"They are kinder, gentler than mine."

http://clayandlimestone.blogspot.com/2009/02/im-looking-at-garden-with-your-eyes.html

Compassionate Eyes is what I need to remember when I look at my garden.

9. Show us your favorite item in your Etsy shop.

Currently my Etsy shop is rather neglected – and does not have much in it. I think of the things that are there – I rather like the giclee print “Oasis” – my camel with attitude!


http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9148593

10. Show a favorite item from another Etsy shop.

There are so many fabulous artists now on ETSY – it is very hard to pick.
I really like the work of Seth Apter, a New York Artist.


Particularly this image, “Solstice Fifteen” his ETSY shop is
The Altered Page.





Karen, I thank you for sharing your creative inspiration and textile creations with us! I really enjoyed this opportunity to learn more about you, your garden and your art!


Thanks for visiting! Please leave a comment if you'd like and stay tuned for the next "Artists in the Garden" interview.