well, dear hearts,
this month marks my blog anniversary
after thousands of posts...
and we have been through so much together ...
you and I...
5
years ago
I started writing this blog...
and it was shortly thereafter that my brother committed suicide..
that kind of experience can stop you in your footsteps...
but I decided to continue...
because my dear friend Sarah urged me on and though I had great resistance...
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| detail from Hymns and Tunes, Mixed Media 30 x 40 |
with hesitation, I decided to try it..
if you have blogged, then you know that when you first start, you wonder if you are just
yammering endlessly to yourself
... and does it really matter?
But...
what I found was a whole community of like minded people, artists and creatives that became friends... some of whom, I have actually met in person!
and been privileged to appear in collaborative shows..
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| Hymns and Tunes, in the private collection of Brett and Robin Pavel, paper wing made from hymn pages which were gilded. |
If you are a blogger, or have been a blogger, then you know what a commitment it is.. when I began blogging there were so many blogs... and sadly some of my favorites have left the blog world...
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| Encaustic texture a detail from The Flower Girl series |
many artists find it difficult to create art and try to document what they they are creating.. keeping a visual online journal can be a struggle..
there are many times when I simply
would rather be in the studio..
it was why I gave up teaching..
I just want to work..
Many of you have been blogging a lot longer than I have and
and I have to tell you now
how I appreciate what you do, and how I love stopping by your blogs to see what you
have posted...
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| Encaustic detail. Sweet Mona, from the Flower Girl Series |
it takes a while to find your stride as a blogger, and at first I blogged constantly..
now I feel comfortable with a couple posts each week
enough to allow plenty of studio time...
and time to photograph
my work and the world around me...
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| Two Graces Gallery, Taos NM, my gallery representation from 2004-2011 |
I named my blog
La Dolce Vita, The Sweet Life... to honor my heritage and my grandparents who were immigrants from Italy and to describe my outlook...
Life is truly good..
and if you have followed me, you know that I have been through
deaths and difficulties in the last five years..
but I truly believe that Life is Good
and I have tried pessimism and
optimism feels so much better...
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| Post card for my Solo show at Two Graces |
this 5 year old has however decided to change her name...
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| one of the pieces from the Age of Sincerity Show |
and if you have noticed...
the header on my blog is changed
to
caterinagiglio
contemporary mixed media artist..
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| Heartening, Mixed Media Assemblage, from the Sacred Hearts Show at EsScentuals |
and I am going to be cleaning up the blog
and making room for more changes...
I still have a weakness for shrines
and assemblage...
but lacking the space in a temporary dwelling, I must create
with what I have...
soon we will be in a permanent location..
complete with gardens...
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| Monarch, Mixed Media painting on canvas with embedded nicho when I began creating shrines, I fell in love with the color blue... with the verdigris that I made to age metal.. and I created several pieces that were figurative |
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| Lahksmi, private collection of Sarah Fishburn |
and landscapes of New Mexico...
one of my favorite muses...
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| Chiesa De San Francisco, Acrylic and Mixed Media on canvas |
I tried creating figurative sculpture, for a doll show at
Two Graces...
which gave me infinite respect and
appreciation for sculptors...
and I quickly decided that it was sadly not my forte..
the wire work alone was daunting...
the tiny clothes and stitching was exacting and the molding, sanding and
painting was tedious..
but I loved the santos that I created...
and then I created
Italian Collage...
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| Gentle Flow, Italian Collage, mixed media painting |
and adored the texture that I could
compress with the pasta machine...
it is still my favorite thing to do..
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| Mysterieux, Italian Collage, Mixed Media Painting, in The Pulse of Mixed Media |
when I moved to Michigan,
I found representation with
The Artisan's Bench...
and
mark making with stitches was something I was doing
long ago, and I am delighted
that I was published in the very first issue
of
Sew Somerset...
I missed one issue due to illness
but enjoyed making the bird quilts below...
It is good to look back..
to see where you have been..
if you don't ...
then how do you know where you are going?
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| The Sparrow House, Mixed Media collage |
book making
is a passion..
my Fly Journal is in a private collection
I hand stitched a crumbling antique album
and created pages
that reflected the uplifting nature
of the title..
and as you know, I have
a weakness for travel journals..
especially brown paper bag journals that
I love stitiching..
the one below was covered in
tyvek and painted and stained to look like leather...
you can view the pages of this journal on my Pinterest Page
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| The French Paper Series Show at EsScentuals, current representation |
all of my representation has been been supportive...
I have loved my collaboration with
all my galleries..
and am so happy to continue work
with Meg DeWeese
at EsScentuals..
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| La Loire, Italian Collage and Mixed Media |
it is time for a change...
this little blog is in my name only now,
but the sweet life will remain...
I have no intention of abandoning it ...
or
you..
Thank you for keeping up with me
for the past 5 years...
for lurking and following, hovering and friending...
for your readership at a time
when blogs seem to be struggling..
for your kind words in difficult times and celebrations,
I am most appreciative of your kind support
and I hope you will continue to
stop by the
Sweet Life...
