Cyrosurgery and Cabin Fever

Cassie was one happy dog when she found her way out from under the tablecloth at Christmas dinner! What you can't see in the photo, thanks to PhotoShop, is the large Meibomian gland tumor under her eye - not malignant, but a real nuisance! I've spent so much time in research on the best solution for this problem that not much art is getting made, but boy have I learned a lot! Best finds along the way: Preparation H facials, Visine for red spots, tincture of cannabis for tumors (debatable, but my vet and I had a good laugh over that one). Best solution: freezing it off with a cryogenic probe. Unfortunately, it's not that easy to find a hospital close enough that has the equipment. Still working on it.

Life has to go on, in spite of distractions. My friend David Sandum in Norway is doing another Twitter Art Exhibit this year (read more about it at David Sandum Art ) , so I am working on a postcard-sized painting to be included in the show. It's PiCassieO-inspired, of course, and is a tiny piece of Cabin Fever, which is a print from last February. Seems appropriate - lately it's either rainy and damp or cold and damp, or just DAMP; cabin fever is really getting to me! Cassie is quite happy to spend the day feet-in-the-air on the couch, but I need a little more outdoor time.

Cabin Fever © Beth Stafford 2011

"What - me worry?"

Fun Stuff from PiCassieO!

Ever stopped by our Zazzle store? I have had so much fun creating shoes and gadget cases and other neat stuff there with PiCassieO art all over it! There is a 15% off sale going today, and I'm sure there will be other great deals in the next few weeks. Here's a sample of what you'll find:

make custom gifts at Zazzle

Have fun browsing and drop by often! Merry Christmas from Beth and Cassie!

"Singin' in the Rain"

Singin' in the Rain © Beth Stafford 2011

Cassie is now off her meds and getting her hair back after getting a few bald spots from the months on prednisone, but her joints are too creaky to let her jump in her chairs to paint the windows, so the front storm door is her only "canvas" now. When I got ready to photograph her latest work, there were a bunch of parallel wavy lines that didn't look like my dog's usual style. Upon closer inspection, I realized that they were on the outside of the door. We've had a lot of rain lately, and Cassie has a "raincoat" made out of a large trash bag (she hates to get wet!). When we get back to the porch, I take it off, shake it, and hang it on the door handle. The bag must have blown around a little and created lines that look like music bars. Cassie had added her own wild notes and lines, so I used the stylus to "write" Singin' in the Rain - a symphony in primary colors. Fun!

Thank goodness we finally got some sunshine - Cassie likes to lie at the door during the brief time it comes in, this time of year. She's either contemplating her next stroke of genius, or thinking about a nap!

Back to Work!

As you can see, Cassie is hard at work again after being sick most of the summer (she's dreaming up new art, I'm sure). Actually she stayed quite active at the front door, which is the only place she can really see what's going on out there since she can't jump on the furniture anymore.

Both these photos came out dark online, but I think the energy in "Crossing Off" comes through anyway. The marks reminded me of someone counting days; maybe she's counting down until she's totally off the meds - me too!

Crossing Off ©Beth Stafford 2011

Lost in "LOST"

Blame it all on Cassie - she started me on this evolutionary journey into "LOST" art. From her original door markings, I created the print below as the series was nearing the end and titled it "Lost: Going Home", reason being that all the mysterious marks seemed to be heading upward toward the light spot in the upper left. Eventually I zeroed in on that location and did a tiny abstract for a pendant, liked it so much that I enlarged it to a 7" x 5" panel size, painted it, and then applied gold leaf to the marks for a more metaphysical quality.

Lost: Going Home

Pendant Abstract

7 x 5" panel with gold leaf

Next Phase: when I tried to photograph the panel, one photo was blurry but interesting, so of course that sent me on another tangent, and I got three more "Lost" prints with a totally new look.

Lost Abstract No. 1

Lost Abstract No. 2

Lost Abstract No. 3

THEN I just had to put one of the prints behind the old glass brick, and got four more interesting and increasingly metaphysical prints in the "Lost" series!

Lost: Black Hole

Lost: All That Remains

Lost: Redemption

Lost: Through Time and Space

About the time I finished the last ones, Cassie injured her back and got sick simultaneously, so I've been her intensive care nurse for the past month. Happy to report, she's getting better, though still not well, and is still making art! All these prints are available, though not listed anywhere but here. Interested? Contact me in a comment!

"Captive"

Captive , Version 2 ©Beth Stafford 2011

These are color trials for the latest PiCassieO. I titled it "Captive" because it came from a larger print in which the linear forms resembled a bird or butterfly caught between two vertical strips of color. My pictures loaded out of sequence (whatever can go wrong, usually does!). Version 1 has lots of cool color with my favorite black lines; in the second one I decided to switch over to a much warmer version that is a little more subdued than other recent work. Version 3 is totally changed: I inverted the image, changed the palette, and then used a filter to "paint" it. Looks like summer to me! Got a favorite? Let me know - I welcome your feedback!

Captive, Version 1 ©Beth Stafford 2011

Captive, Version 3 © Beth Stafford 2011

Of course, there's always the possibility that one or more of these will show up on Keds and other cool stuff at our Zazzle store, so drop by and have a look! Prints are always available on request if they aren't yet listed in my Etsy store or website- contact me.

The Ears Have It!

Our PiCassieO art is so colorful and unique that it lends itself to all kinds of decorative possibilities. The latest venture is earrings for the "bold of 'art" - great colors and interesting designs at a great price ($15 + 2.95 S&H). I only had four pairs made to see if the colors would be true - and the answer is YES! Unfortunately, the company is in Hong Kong (didn't know when I ordered) and unless I can find a stateside source there probably won't be anymore. One pair which featured my "Confetti" print (last post) is already sold - the other three are available at my website (click "Earrings") They are 1" button earrings with wires, and will make a great artsy fashion statement! Get 'em while they last!

Storm Door 3 Earrings by PiCassieO

Storm Door 2 Earrings by PicassieO

Under Water Earring by PiCassieO