How Bizarre, How Bizarre....

Check out this year's Bizarre Market located in the upstairs gallery of Chop Suey Tuey in Carytown. It will be a great show with over 50 vendors and all hand made art and crafts, perfect for your holiday gift list. Of course Face Metal Design will be representing and many other local artists. So after you are done with the stuffing head out to Tuey for the first pick. Happy Thanksgiving.

Goulash and GallowLily's

For those of you that don't know, GallowLily's is the small gallery located upstairs in Gallery5 next to their main gallery. Team 8 is having an all members show and planning to set up their screen printing equipment to help passersby pull prints all night, so don't miss the opening. Friday November 6th. 7pm. I have an amazing new piece there that I made in collaboration with Team 8 member (and new Husband!) Spencer Hansen. It's very Carra and titled Bird sans Bicycle. Come and Check it out!

Think Small!

I know it's been a while but I do still have a pulse and new work even! I am proud to announce that I have work in Think Small 5 at Artspace and ART 6 on Broad Street. ( My work will actually be at ART 6.)

There are a lot of talented artists that are entering this year. A couple of my favorites are

Tere Hernandez-Bonet

and

Karen Mullins

check it out "ultimate cosmic power......itty bitty living space."

re-emergence

"All things appear and disappear because of the concurrence of causes and conditions. Nothing ever exists entirely alone; everything is in relation to everything else." - Buddha

I am slowly coming out of my "shell" so to speak. I have had one hell of a summer and I am looking forward to the quiet self reflection and self imposed down time that fall provides.

I will say that I am ending the summer on an up note both personally and in my work. Having just seen several of my pieces at the WORK show at the Visual Arts Center and now some pieces are moving on to visit the gallery at Capital One in the west end of Richmond. (More on this as I receive information.)

Broad-en your Horizons

Come check out the good food and cool cool art that will be at the Broad Appetit Festival this Sunday, June 7th. Local restaurants and artists come together to bring out the best of RVA.

Spring Bada-bing

Check out this Richmond Favorite Springtime tradition this weekend

Sunday April 19, 2009 11am - 4pm Plant Zero

I will not be there, This Time, but several great Richmond Crafters will, including

My Precious Studio Only one of Richmond's Greatest Jewelers!

Bada-boom! The 2009 Spring Bada-bing: The BOSS of all craft shows is here! Come join la famiglia for our 4th installment of the largest indie craft show in VA. The show will be at Plant Zero in Richmond's southside and, as always, will showcase artists and designers from across the country selling high quality, original handmade goods.

So, come check it out and have a great weekend!!

Spring Cleaning: out with the old, help someone new!

Ahhhhh, as we welcome the change in seasons with longer daylight and warmer weather, it is a somewhat honored tradition to sweep away the old dust and blahs of winter with a good old fashioned spring cleaning. With the tossing of the old, you should take a moment to help someone new, well, at least new to you! The Visual Arts Center is in need of donations to help run it's programs. I know times are tight right now, and that's why I am sending a shout out. The Vis Arts is in need of the following:

Brayers

Screen printing screen/frames

Mat scraps

Phone books

Tarletans

Scissors

Plastic rulers

Metal tear bar (40”)

Etching needles

Squeegees

Soy inks

Welder’s curtain plus/minus 42” x 30” x 30”

Soldering irons

Stand-up easels

dress forms

white boards (the “new” chalk board – or even chalk boards)

drawing materials

paints (oil, acrylic)

papers

fabric

sewing machines in good working order

ironing boards

brayers for printmaking

anvils

wire

brushes

USB cords for cameras

Digital cameras

Stuff for still lives (Colored glass stuff, patterned fabrics, etc)

So if in your cleaning frenzy you you come across any of these objects, help a new friend out and send your love their way!

The Visual Arts Center of Richmond, ART 180, and Friends Association for Children are collaborating on a unique project called SOHO Space of Her Own, where 12 girls from the Gilpin Court area are working with a mentor to build life skills and create beautiful living spaces through a variety of creative projects. The 20-week program culminates with a weekend this April when the girls will transform their bedrooms using the art works they have created in SOHO alongside other renovations.

In conjunction with the room renovation project, we are seeking donations that will help the girls assemble more organized living and study spaces. The following new or gently used items are needed. Items should be appropriate for the bedrooms of girls aged 9-13:

Desks and desk chairs (small and lightweight)
Small bookshelves
Small dressers (tall preferred to wide)
Storage bins
Shoe organizers
Colorful, plastic coat hangers
Bunk bed frames or twin headboards (no mattresses, please)

We've arranged a drop off day for all donations:

date: Saturday, March 7 from 9 am - 1 pm

location: Paradise Garage, located off of Allen between Main and Cary Streets - across the street from the Visual Arts Center.



For more information, please call Betsy Kelly at ART 180 at 233-4180, or Sally Kemp at the Visual Arts Center at 353-0094 x 223.

Thank you for supporting SOHO!

Take a moment....

and hug someone that you love.

Have the COURAGE to stand up for LOVE!

Please check out this video from The Courage Campaign and forward it on to friends and family (esp. those who live in California). Just a reminder that you should always fight for LOVE!

Ken Starr, who led the campaign to impeach President Bill Clinton, filed a legal brief last month -- on behalf of the "Yes on 8" campaign -- that would forcibly divorce 18,000 same-sex couples that were married in California last year before the passage of Prop 8.

Watch "Fidelity" and sign our letter to the state Supreme Court before they hear oral arguments in the case on March 5. Tell the Supreme Court to invalidate Prop 8, reject Ken Starr's case, and let loving, committed couples marry. DEADLINE EXTENDED: March 2.

332,172 people have signed this letter (as of Monday, February 23). Our new Courage Campaign community goal is 350,000 signers.

Help Save Gallery 5

For the past four years, Gallery5 has introduced to Richmond an entirely new concept in the presentation of cutting-edge art and creative live performances. From the critically acclaimed “Disrobed” and “Disrobed 2” - the highest-attended art openings in Virginia history; to the “Carnival of Five Fires” - three nights of art, entertainment, and ribald revelry; and hundreds of unequaled exhibits, performances, and socially-conscious presentations, programs and campaigns throughout the years, Gallery5 has been the beacon of hope and creativity for thousands of emerging artists and entertainers.

Gallery5, housed in a 160 year-old, National Historic Landmark building, now finds itself in a very precarious position. The tens of thousands of loyal volunteers, artists, performers and guests who have combined to make Gallery5 one of the most popular art destinations in Richmond, have also been responsible for the wear and tear to the building that now must be addressed, without the necessary funding to do the work.


Without an immediate influx of adequate funding to address this serious situation, Richmond will lose this valuable historic resource. As most of you already know, Gallery5 has always been a labor of love, operated and maintained entirely by volunteers. It is our hope that the thousands of visitors who have been treated to a cacophony of unique sights and sounds each and every month will now come to our aid so that Gallery5 can continue to provide quality, innovative and enriching art, entertainment and exhibits to patrons for years to come.

The goal is to raise $175,000 to maintain both the historic building and Gallery5, we need your support. All donations, monetary or in-kind, are tax deductible. Even the smallest donations are appreciated.


A few of Gallery 5's critical needs:
-Roof repairs
-Exterior repairs
-Interior Water Damage
-Replacement awnings
-Electrical upgrade
-Heat and Air Upgrade
-Floor Repairs (Sanding, Repainting, Refinishing)
-Painting (Interior and Exterior)
-Equipment Repair and Upgrade
-Cleaning Services
-Gas Line Repair
-Mac Computer for Office and Internship Program
-Musical Equipment

Gallery5 currently pays over $4, 000 a month for its utilities, mortgage and insurance.
This does not include monthly licensing, taxes, maintenance and other professional services.

We are now placing Gallery5’s future in the hands of our loyal supporters and friends. If you are in a position to assist us, all of our faithful volunteers will be eternally grateful for your unselfish support for this Richmond icon.

How do I donate:?
You can make a donation via check, money order, credit card or paypal. If you would like to make an in-kind contribution, please email gallery5@gallery5arts.org

Our paypal link is listed below. Please enter what you would like to see your donation go towards.

Pay Pal

or

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=2986253

Checks can be made payable to “Gallery5” and mailed to:

Gallery5
200 West Marshall Street
Richmond Virginia, 23220

If you would like to make a donation over the phone with a credit or debit card, please call 804 644 0005 or email gallery5@gallery5arts.org


Please Help Keep this Richmond Landmark Alive!!

Arrrrrggghhh, me maties!

A good time was had by all this past weekend at the Gasparilla Festival in Tampa Florida. I went down to hang out with my awesome crew and get some much needed R & R and inspiration for my new line of jewelry. (Yes, you will see, soon, very soon.) Over a weekend of pillaging, looting and drunkenness I managed to find inspiration in the beautiful city. There were so many urban gardens and beautiful, cascading Spanish moss was hanging from almost every tree! The weather was amazing to boot! So, all rested, I will start work on a very organic spring line of jewelry for FMD. I can't wait!

Cabin Fever Anyone??

It is about this time of year, when winter drags on to what seems like eternity, that we long for a hint of summer. Anything to let us know that it will be warm again! I know this feeling well and I am heading to Florida for some inspiration and seashells! As you know, I love found objects, especially shells and beach glass. It is these objects that evoke longtime childhood memories of fun in the sand and sun!! Check out what I have in my ETSY store now and I will let you know what I found in Fla and was inspired to create!

Love is in the Air....

That's right, the season of love is upon us and Valentine's Day is creeping up fast. Check out Face Metal Design for unique, all handmade and one-of-a-kind pieces for your special someone. Face Metal Design is now on ETSY!! Coming very soon, more ETSY pictures and pieces! I have a small selection of beautiful pieces up for the approaching holiday so you can check it out and shop. I will let you know as soon as I spread the love around with more great jewelry!

Happy New Year!!!

2008 was a great success due in large part to all of my awesome clients, the rest was just sheer luck! I want to thank everyone who has made Face Metal Design a part of their fashion world. Best wishes this year and I am looking forward to 2009!!