How Do I Choose?

Working with paper vendors has been an enlightening experience for me. I get showered with samples and have the daunting task of choosing what material will work best for each job we send to the printer. For our compare and contrast show and tell, I chose a paper swatch book containing "paper with personality" from the Neenah Paper Company. They prides themselves on providing the client with distinctive, classic options, adding a personal warmth to communication. It begins to get a bit overwhelming when you start to compare the different colors, weights, and textures, but I like learning about the available options. Small differences in finish or texture can make a huge difference to the overall look and feel of your piece. If anyone is interested in taking a look at any sample books, I have plenty!!!

Take Me Away

As I think about the geographical locations I would like to compare and contrast, this type of setting comes to mind. How could anything compare to this? The waves lapping at the shore, the sun warming your skin, the water giving you a refreshing burst of energy...this would be the perfect getaway. I am looking forward to the end of cold weather and the beginning of another relaxing summer.

Young Artists

Working at a school has given me the invaluable opportunity to be surrounded by children whose brains are racing around the clock. I often stop in their art class to see the latest creations and am consistently amazed by their creativity and their project execution. The students influence my own work and encourage me to think simply. Some of the best work comes from the simplest idea. It is all in how the children choose to execute their thoughts. Even those students who are not "naturals" come up with some brilliant work. I have to admit: the children are my favorite source of inspiration.

Show & Tell #1

For the description show and tell, I chose a Robert Frost poem titled, "Stars":

How countlessly they congregate
O'er our tumultuous snow,
Which flows in shapes as tall as trees
When wintry winds do blow!-

As if with keeness for our fate,
Our faltering few steps on
To white rest, and a place of rest
Invisible at dawn,-

And yet with neither love nor hate,
Those stars like some snow-white
Minerva's snow-white marble eyes
Without the gift of sight.

This poem brings crisp images to mind: a cold winter night with a clear sky, a blanket of white on the hillsides, the perfect conditions for star-gazing. Frost compares the stars to the eyes of Minerva, the goddess of wisdom. But these "eyes" do not have the gift of sight. The powerful imagery suggests that even stars are a bit vulnerable.