Susanna's Sketchbook

February 27, 2008

It's amazing how quickly a thoughtful gesture can banish the blues away and usher in a brighter day. Yesterday I was feeling glum with a sore throat and a foggy head. The dreary weather outside my window cast my entire apartment into shades of grey and I fought off the desire to spend the entire day under the bedcovers by downing vitamins, drinking herbal tea and by I working on objects for a new photograph. A phone conversation with Constance made me smile. She's a happy spirit. And then I received a parcel in the mail from the lovely Maddie. Inside were a collection of gorgeous photographs, including this one:

Isn't it beeeaaauuutiful?!  I love the feelings of adventure, freedom and travel it invokes. I want to pack my bags and go somewhere just looking at it! And that green, my favourite...and oh, how I love to be by water! Maddie's photograph looks absolutely perfect in my home, among my collection of encaustic paintings of the ocean and of mermaids, next to photographs of family members swimming in the lake and of J and me walking along the NJ shore. Shoeboxes of seashells will soon be taken out of storage and lined up along the windowsil. And I have other gifts that look so perfect next to Maddie's photograph...a grey pearl bracelet from my sister, a little bar of Italian wine soap, packaged so perfectly, from Karen, a little clay hand with a design painted on its palm and a pair of earrings from Swamp Girl. Beautiful gifts that I treasure. 

December 18, 2007

Fa la la la laaa! Look what Maddie sent me! Isn't the camera so cute?! It's so tiny! And yes, it's real - it has a small shutter, a little film winder and even a tiny film spool inside. And the photograph on the card is by Maddie, too. I think her images are so pretty and they reflect her writing - welcoming and serene. If you haven't met Maddie before, you can visit her blog and if you have yet to see her beautiful photography, check out her etsy shop. Thank you, Maddie, you are a sweetiepie!

And continuing with good news... my mom is coming out of the hospital today and apparently everything - her heart and the additions that help it tick - are working well.  The doctors don't know why she has been having chest pains and shortness of breath so there will be further tests in the New Year but in the meantime, I'm thankful that she is OK today. She'll be surrounded by family members over the holidays (thank you, J & S, M & P) and then J and I will be driving up north in the New Year to see her.

I feel lighter today.

December 14, 2007

J woke me up this morning and said, "It's foggy outside. Do you want to go take some photos?" He knows me well. I love the fog - well, except when I'm driving, when it looks like spirits hovering over the road. My sister, M, and I used to freak each other out when we drove home together on such foggy nights. Oooowooooooo! Stop it! Oooowoooo! Shut up! You get the picture. I can remember sneaking out of bed when I was a kid and seeing a movie trailer about a fog rolling into a maritime town. Spirits of a shipwreck wreaked havoc on the townies whenever that fog rolled in. I had nightmares just watching the trailer. Anyway, this was not that sort of spooky fog. It was actually morning and the sun was slowly emerging from behind its white misty covers and casting a soft, flattering light onto rush hour traffic.

I put on my boots and coat, grabbed my point-and-shoot digital camera, jumped in the jeep and headed over to the park. Oh look, someone left little hearts in the snow...

By the time I got there, most of the fog had lifted and the trees and bushes were removing their evening crystals. Nevertheless, I still found some pretty sights that brought "chandeliers" to mind:

Doesn't this look like something sexy domestic goddess, Nigella Lawson, would throw into a tart and present to her guests? All sticky and sugary...

October 5, 2007

Cafe, Princeton, 2007.

October 3, 2007

I am a lucky girl, oh yes I am. This afternoon, I met up with four talented women for a picnic in Princeton. We spread white sheets across the grass in the backyard of my friend Rena's home and then laid out a feast of culinary delights - Constance's spinach, olive and sundried tomato quiche, beer bread, apples and oranges sprinkled with cinnamon, cinnamon biscotti, Rena's spicy soup and middle eastern dip with pita bread, Mo'a's spinach, olive and feta salad, and Karen's oh so good-in-the-middle-of-the-afternoon-red-wine...mmmmm!

Now, I've known Rena for years (she was my first friend in the States) and thanks to blogging, Constance and I have met and talked on the phone with one another for several months now. This was the first time I had ever met Mo'a and Karen, both who are lovely and talented bloggergals. We chatted about our lives and our artwork and it seemed like the time flew by too quickly as there is still so much to say and to hear...ah well, we'll have to meet up again, won't we?

We had a bit of a show and tell during our picnic and I thought that I'd share a few photographs...

This is a card that Karen made for me...

Isn't it beautiful? She makes amazing collages and she's currently collaborating on an art book project. It's interesting to see what and how another person creates. I tend to work small and within certain self-made parameters (although I've been stepping outside the box this last year and that's a good thing). Karen's work is personal and free-spirited - just like her.

This is Mo'a's incredible felted dolls bursting with personality...

Both these little guys are Icelandic Santas. Mo'a, I should mention, is from Iceland. Now according to Mo'a and my not-so-perfect memory, there are thirteen Icelandic Santas and they all tend to dress shabby and are grouchy. And they are married to hideously ugly women. And there's a cat that eats children. Now you'd think that Icelandic children would dread Christmas if that's who would be showing up for the holidays but apparently not. Those Icelandic kiddies are tough cookies. And Mo'a is a delight. She's lived and traveled abroad and creates these little characters in her home studio. And she's about to open her new online store!

The Santa below is surrounded by Constance's pretty floralinas - lucky fellow! Bet he didn't want to leave those ladies and return home to the hideous wife (although she might have a terrific personality and alluring assets herself).

Constance is a former caterer extraordinaire and creator of the prettiest dolls and floralinas and of handbags and ponchettes. She also has the biggest heart and generous spirit. A real light in the world. And she gave me this beautiful gift at our picnic...

Isn't she gorgeous???! I am so lucky!

Thank you, bloggergals, for the fabulous afternoon. I had such a great time with you all and I look forward to getting together with you again soon.

August 14, 2007

Photo: A blue bowl that my friend Jodi gave me after this past weekend's garage sale. Pretty, isn't it? I'm thinking of what I could put into it...maybe a big flower bloom? Or maybe a jello dessert with suspended fruit and whipped cream? A bunch of luscious light green grapes? Or how about a bowl full of bath balls - you know, the kind that dissolve in the tub? I used to love bathing with those as a kid. Any ideas?

Vogue Inspirations

As I flipped through the pages of the May issue of Vogue Magazine during an extra long scan today, I came upon a stunning fashion spread inspired by the late designer, Poiret. I had written about the Metropolitan Museum of Art's terrific Poiret window display at Bergdorf Goodman's in a post here but I hadn't realized that Vogue had also decided to get into the Poiret spirit with their own take on the designer's clothes.

I was wowed by the incredible shapes and details in the haute couture clothing by such designers as Dior and Lacroix. Layers of silk, sculpted and folded organza, lush organdy and feather flowers - such beauty! Set designer Mary Howard did an incredible job with setting the mood for the entire shoot. I love the large, handpainted graphics on the walls! I'd like to do something like that on my own walls. The settings look like giant Fauve paintings. All the photographs are by Stephen Meisel, one of my favourite photographers. I have a file folder filled with images by Meisel, torn from magazines over the last ten years. Hamish Bowles's sketch of Poiret's life is an interesting read, too. These pages are destined for my collection of favourite images:

July 6, 2007

Photo: Locked door in NYC, 2007

Arboretum Windows

Arboretum windows, part of a page from my sketchbook. 

Poiret at Bergdorf's

I recently walked by a Paul Poiret window display at Bergdorf Goodman in NYC. The fashions and illustrations reminded me of the two years I studied fashion design. I was eighteen then, dressed entirely in black, and dreaming of living the glamorous, fashionable life in New York City.  However, due to my own lack of patience with a sewing machine (I acquired a more colourful vocabulary during this time) I soon switched from studying fashion design to studying art and photography at another college. I still enjoy seeing what fashion designers come up with each season, though! The Poiret: King of Fashion exhibition will be on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art until August 5, 2007.

The Paul Poiret window display at Bergdorf Goodman in NYC.