Little Alters: Mad March & Why I Never Thought I'd Be Making Eiffel Towers

It's alter art time again!  Yep, moon is full.  Tomorrow to be exact. And, as the Native American's called it, the Worm Moon.  

Full Worm Moon  
At the time of this spring Moon, the ground begins to soften and earthworm casts reappear, inviting the return of robins. This is also known as the Sap Moon, as it marks the time when maple sap begins to flow and the annual tapping of maple trees begins. -- source: The Old Farmer's Almenac

Well, let's just say this month I tried to PLAN. That's right, I had really cool ideas.  I was SO inspired.  I've taken up rollerskating again and am fascinated by what people are doing on skates.  I thought it was a lost art. But, people are dancing as fluidly on roller skates or more so, than with their feet on the ground.  Blows my mind. And there's this amazing phenomenon where a whole group of people skate in a single file line really fast practically dancing. It's fascinating to watch and scary if you're skating too slow and they come racing through the crowd.  So, you learn to stay toward the center and just watch. 

How does that fit with my alter project this month? Well, I thought I'd be sketching skaters, doing some cool 3-D art.  Spent hours looking at skaters, watching videos and out skating. But, I don't have enough time under my belt drawing bodies, observing the skating movements I want to convey, nor enough experience skating to intuitively know how those movements should feel or look.  And queue melt down. The harder I tried, the more frustrated I got.  I even went outside and had myself a good cry.  You've got to let go of the emotions so you can get on with making the art!  Ok, ok. I surrender. This is not what I should be making right now. Too early. 

I went back inside and just started working on making the background or inner box with samples of water color paper I had messed around spritzing and daubing alcohol inks and dylusions sprays.  I knew I needed a background. Didn't know where I was going, what it would be.  That was cathartic.  I made something I knew would be needed and work.  I even got to try my new perforator tool. Cool tool, that. Voila. A beginning.  I made another, and tried to put the roller skaters back in and hit another wall.  OK. yeah, got it. No skaters this time. I'm moving on universe.  Message received.

Mom took me out to her studio (a place of wonder) and started pulling out all the bits and bobs, doo dads and whirly gigs she's collected and stored from the you-never-know-when-you-might-need-this pile.  And my Parisian Dream began to take form. We found wheels, skulls, mini light bulbs, and so much more.  There were a few stencils - an Eiffel tower, a hot air balloon, an old Model T, and a guy riding a 1910 big wheel tricycle. First, I tried to reduce them on the copy machine to check fit.  Then drew a few Eiffel towers on shrinky-dink with colored pencils.  FUN!  The first was so fun I did another. Then, remembered how cool things look en masse and made 2 more.  Each is a little different.  Added a hot air balloon and shrank them all in the oven. Oh they became so wee!  When they finally landed on the background, they ended up circling one another like going down the rabbit hole or the view from a kaleidoscope. 

While each piece (background, shrinky-dinks, etc) was made independantely and I had no intention of creating "Oz", I discovered that the balloon & a spot on the background paper worked out to be just that.  So, I let myself be inspired by Disney's Oz and I let the balloon act as though it were The Great & Powerful Oz floating his way way to Paris by night.  All while a French bulldog barks at the crazy multiplying Eiffel towers.  

I'm SO happy.  But if you'd asked me when I  started if this is what I'd have ended up with - I'd have told you entirely different.  Not at all what I planned or imagined, but better.  Reminds me of phrases in many of Summer McStravick's flowdreams.