Monsters! Myth and Magic

My newest assemblage was created for the next TVAA show.
The title of the show is Monsters! Myth and Magic. The prospectus asked us to create our inner anxiety driven fear. I chose to focus on time and how I never seem to have enough. The piece is titled "Time for Work."  It could mean going to work or not having enough time to get your work done. The monster could also represent technology and how it is supposed to make our lives easier yet somehow it feels like one (blog, facebook, twitter, linkedln, pinterest, tumblr, Flickr, etc.) more thing to get done.  

I've had this metal cage like thing hanging around my studio for so long I do not remember where it came from. The real alligator head was brought to me as a souvenir from Florida from my daughter. 

The before photo.

Attaching carpet tacks

The cage and doll were painted using techniques I learned from Micael DeMeng's classes and books.

On the top row of the cage are upside down carpet tacks with red beads that look like blood. 

 This is by no means a pretty piece but I am definitely feeling the monster these days as I am doing a lot of traveling but also trying to keep up with entering art shows and public art projects. 

A BMX Assemblage

I got a message the other day asking if I would be interested in creating one of my original bike collages as a gift for a BMX racer in Texas. Of course I said yes.
First I looked up Anna Johnson whom at age 13 has made a name for herself as a National BMX Champion, has her own website and has already been racing for 7 years! I cut out a few pictures of her racing along with logos of her sponsor.
Then I took a bicycle chain and printed it with ink on paper to make a pattern and found other words and ephemera to complete the background.

I found an old rustic frame and used bike parts to make it 3D.

The last step is 2 pour 2 part resin over the whole piece and then lay the pieces in the resin. I changed up the chain to make a heart around the 3 cyclists near the center.

I hope she likes it. This is a thank you gift from her art teacher for being a great art assistant.