Avocado-pit Birds and Such
While making sushi the other day, I opened up an avocado to reveal the pit, which suddenly triggered an old dusty memory of something I had seen somewhere— a puppet-maker who carved avocado pits to create the heads of his figures. So, I started saving the pits and did some research to find that, indeed, avocado-pit-carving is a thing.
Full story & more photos on my Patreon page.
Rubbermaid Planter
A couple weeks ago we ran short of places to plant our more-numerous-than-originally-intended vegetable starts. So, we had to get creative...
Full story & more photos on my Patreon page.
Easter '20 ~ Pysanky and Batik: Experiments
Back when I lived in Halifax several years ago, my neighbours would invite their friends over every Easter to eat snacks and make pysanky, or Ukrainian Easter-eggs. I loved this tradition, and missed it so much that I bought myself a kit last year at the cute Ukrainian Cultural Centre gift shop. This time, after making my pysanky, I decided to use the materials while they were still out and improvise making some batik squares, which has a similar process.
Full details of the process & lots more photos on the original Patreon post!
Flicker Tango
I wrote this ditty a couple years ago as a procrastination technique, to avoid working on an art commission. Funny how one art form can sometimes feel like work, while another feels like play:
Full story on the original Patreon post.Dark-eyed Juncos ABC
Earlier this month, the Metchosin Art Pod and the Rocky Point Bird Observatory put a call out inviting local artists and bird-lovers to collaborate on their new “Arty Bird Card” project. One side of each card will have an artists' representation of one of the 35 most commonly observed birds in the area, and the flip-side will have identification notes and facts about the bird. Here's the one we* submitted:
*My partner Seán painted the background :)
Update: you can now get your hands on your very own pack of 36 local artist-made bird cards here!
Full story & process photos on the original Patreon post.
I started this instrumental piano piece about a year and a half ago, after receiving news that my friend & fellow musician Vic Horvath passed away suddenly at the age of 26. The simple & repetitive chord structure helped me deal with the numbness. I played it at full volume, letting the notes ring out and wash over me, soothing some of the confusion and sadness:
This is one of my first recordings with my newly-acquired recording gear! A nice simple setup: a single, large-diaphragm condenser tube mic, an audio interface and a laptop.
Full story on my Patreon page.
Freshly Painted Shoes!
This is the 5th pair of shoes I've painted for fun, using paint markers. I went a little crazier than usual with this pair 'cause I gifted myself a new set of fancy POSCA paint markers and was so excited by all the new colour possibilities that I ended up using all 8 colours.
Full story & more photos on my Patreon page.
Accrowdion: Part I
Here's a process shot from my first attempt at making a sculpture using Sculpey (Original) polymer clay:
There were a few learning curves in the making of this musical bird, all of which I write about & provide pictures of in the original post, as well as the painting process of the sculpture, which is described in Part II!
Heart & Hands Clinic Portrait
A couple months ago I was commissioned by Heart & Hands Health Collective (an amazing community acupuncture & holistic health clinic in Victoria) to create a portrait of their cute yellow clinic, to help with a fundraiser.
Full story, process photos & final piece on my Patreon page.
Tufted Titmice
I was recently commissioned to make a Tufted Titmouse the other day, and I thought, “while I'm at it, why not make 4?”. It's difficult to do this cute bird justice, so it was a bit intimidating.
Full story & more photos on my Patreon page.