Chartreuse Muse

quiz show fun....

Sonora — 2008-02-05T13:16:49-08:00

I J F M F B

Take a wild guess at what that acronym spells. First one who gets it, get's a prize! Oh Boy!

(except for Carol Parks -- who already knows what it means)

Hint: Big project behind. Mountain of laundry and other sorely neglected domestic duties ahead.

You know what Jack Kornfield says: After the esctasy, the laundry.

try this at home: color safari

Sonora — 2007-10-03T23:11:31-07:00

Do you have a favorite color? How about a palette of colors that just turn you on? I am crazy about the combination of red and turquoise. To keep your imagination awake, try going on a color safari. The aim (sorry, couldn't resist that pun) is to shoot your color, or color combo of choice.

Here are a few examples from a red/turquoise color safari. Some of the colors look a little washed out on my monitor. But I'm too lazy to adjust these right now.

Where is Sonora?

Sonora — 2007-09-17T16:26:09-07:00

If you're reading this, you probably know who I am. But where am I? Clearly, not blogging.
Well, no good excuses except a crazy kind of busy-ness.
I miss my blog. I miss the community that writing a blog creates.

This photo is from the last issue of ArtFreak 'Zine, by Carol Parks. I am a subcriber, and I must admit it was quite startling to come upon this page, all about here experiences at my workshop in Puerto Vallarta last April, The Artist's Business Journal.

ArtFreak is is bursting with color, ephemera, creativity and inspiration. If you are in need of any of the above, then please do yourself a favor and go buy all four issues now.

But be warned: CP is the queen of cool, artsy merch! You are at risk of spending your whole allowance here. Personal fav's are her Gone Postal Mail Art Kit and the Joss Pack. The Joss Pack is like a trip to Chinatown in bag.

It's good to be back! S

RE: Kelly Kilmer's Classes at Sanctuary Studio

de — 2007-07-11T11:25:54-07:00

Love your site! That looks fabulous and fun!

RE: Kelly Kilmer's Classes at Sanctuary Studio

deb — 2007-07-05T11:30:46-07:00

That looks amazing!! Love your site too.. I just found you through another blog. So inspiring!

RE: The Devil (or some say God) is in the details...

Suz — 2007-07-05T08:13:14-07:00

Sonora, I had to laugh -- I share your electrical woes and more. My house was built in 1940 and belonged to the same family for nearly all of that time. There's no outlet in the bathroom, and only one outlet in every other room except the kitchen. The space for the washing machine hookup is not nearly large enough to accommodate today's behemoths, and I wasn't even able to locate a newfangled cooktop that would fit in the existing space (the old one was a safety hazard). I ended up having to have the cooktop's supporting cabinets torn out and I found an old-fashioned stove (pre-1960 I'd guess) that suits the narrow space. No luck yet finding a washing machine that will fit both the available space AND my budget. But maybe it's just around the next corner. Perhaps a darling little 1940s stove will show up for you one of these days...

Kelly Kilmer's Classes at Sanctuary Studio

Sonora — 2007-07-03T13:02:37-07:00

Kelly Kilmer shows us what's inside her magic pink suitcase.
Paper. Paper. And more paper.

Kelly makes awesome paper collage packs. And will even swap paper in the mail.

Gathered around the art table. Even with 11 of us in the studio, there were long stretches of time where all you heard was the sound of ripping paper, paint brushes scrubbing through rainbows of paint, and laughter. Lot's of laughter.

Kelly brings huge garbage bags and baskets of paper for us to dig through and use in our work. Wow! We were all excited about that.

This is the front of one of the postcards I made in Kelly's mail art class. I haven't put my supplies away yet. I'm addicted to this process of making miniature works of art to share.

A huge thank you to Kelly! We can't wait to see you back here, same time, same Bat Station, the last weekend of September. Yahoo!

RE: 1000 Journals -- Finally Found Catherine Witherell

dori — 2007-07-03T12:13:41-07:00

and what a great mark she does make in this world! We had so much fun at the sanctuary being inspired by Kelly and everyone in class.

RE: 1000 Journals -- We Heart You

dori — 2007-07-03T12:07:46-07:00

I loved sitting next to her soaking up her lovely energy. It was such an inspiring weekend for me. Thanks again Sonora for creating a sanctuary. I look forward to spending more time in it.

1000 Journals -- We Heart You

Sonora — 2007-07-02T18:43:03-07:00

Artist and super tech software engineer BaLadiNe joined us from Paris -- well, she lives in San Francisco now, but you should have been here just to hear her exclaim her good fortune in her lovely French accent. She keeps a blog and makes gorgeous travel journals.

1000 Journals -- Finally Found Catherine Witherell

Sonora — 2007-07-02T18:37:25-07:00

Artist Catherine Witherall at Sanctuary Studio this weekend making her mark in 1000 Journals -- book #912.

1000 Journals Project on ABC news

Sonora — 2007-06-28T18:14:11-07:00

View the ABC News story aired last week about the 1000 Journals project (you'll have to watch a little commercial first, be patient, it's worth it).

Sharing Your Journal With Millions
http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=3302543

If you don't yet have the book, buy it now. Seriously, this is a must-have book for any artist, writer, poet, teacher, lover of creative fire, human being (that includes you).

Visit the 1000 journals website for a link to buy on Amazon and see more images from the journals.

Special treat for folks coming to Sanctuary Studio for workshops with Kelly Kilmer and Traci Bunkers: we will have for your expressive glee one of the original journals, courtesy of Someguy. Yep. If you are here, you get to read, revel and work in the journal. How cool is that?

If you're not here, well, we'll make sure to take photos and post on the blog.

RE: Putting the LIVE back into Live/Work

longbone — 2007-06-23T09:35:40-07:00

Dear Teacher, Wild Woman, Mentor;

I love seeing the changes in your blog and especially enjoyed reading about your workshop with Sark. Your technocology fast ritual is awesome and sounds like it is serving you well to refuel your well.

Have a peek at my "new" and improved site. I feel even better about this one. I still have to figure out shipping, the mailing list, how to code/number my pieces, and push my site out into the world. I am still cogitating on how to sell my work on the web. My book keeper has me nearly caught up and set up. What a process. I am working with trust to hang in there, believing this is the right place for me to be in my life, but man is it scary!

I had cataract surgery last week. I thought I needed a prescription change but alas, I have cataracts in both eyes. They only worked on one last week. Growing old is a shocker!

I would love to travel to SF and attend a class at your studio. After I generate income I can make that happen.

You are an awesome woman Sonora. I cannot wait to read your first book, and attend another of your workshops.

Blessings and I welcome your site feedback.

Love,

Leav

Bold, Daring & Succulent: My weekend with SARK

Sonora — 2007-06-18T23:49:40-07:00

It seems every single one of my chakras was blown open (a good thing, in case that's never happened to you) at the writer's workshop I attended this weekend, facilitated by SARK�prolific, best-selling author, artist and weaver of magic spells.

You may know SARK's books: A Creative Companion, Succulent Wild Woman, Eat Mangos Naked, Inspiration Sandwich. Don't be fooled by the whimsical drawings in primary colors decorating her hand-drawn pages. SARK and her work have tremendous depth, wisdom and authenticy. In person, it is all amplified exponentially.

SARK asked us, "Do you want to decide to write, or not? If not, there are an endless supply of reasons."

If you're willing to raise your hand and admit embarrassing stuff out loud (I was) about why you're not writing, or doing your creative work, SARK was willing to dish the truth out straight, no chaser.

"We create situations that reinforce our belief system. So we need to change our belief system." She asked us to consider what we have decided is true, and then question it. This workshop seemed much like a dharma talk given by a fiercely loving spiritual master. The type of master who will whack you with a stick when you drift off in meditation. It was like that. We took a break after SARK did some "artistic interventions" with us. She came up to me and said, "You're great! I was hard on you, but you took it well. You're sturdy."

Throughout the weekend she would offer some tidbit of advice or idea for us to try out to get us writing our "real" writing and we would all be nodding our heads up and down in agreement, and she would punctuate her suggestion with, "I Dare You". Suddenly, we had a command. A dare. A double dare.

"Daring to let loose the wonders inside of us is what it's all about."

Got fear about writing? About saying yes to your creative dream? So what. "It's so SCARY to be alive! I get scared everytime I do anything", SARK told us.

That reminded me how Georgia O'Keeffe responded when asked if she was afraid of rattlesnakes when she was out painting in the desert:

�I've been absolutely terrified every moment of my life -- and I've never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.�

SARK read to us from her manuscript in process for her book on this subject (due out next April), Juicy Pens, Thirsty Paper.

Another takeaway from this weekend: The people who show up at a SARK writing workshop are astounding creative souls, and many are already published writers. What I learned from listening to their stories and working with them in the studio is equal to what SARK presented. I made some lifelong friends there, I feel certain of it.

Where can our creative dreams take us? It can take us places that get us hanging out with other kindred artists (in gorgeous natural settings, it is worth mentioning). Doing creative work means you work alone a lot. It's good to have company sometimes. Thanks, SARK! I'll be coming back for more whacks.

p.s. It is also worth mentioning that SARK gave us all permission to get help with our creative process. Something I worked with was how I can't facilitate my own breakthroughs the way I can for others. That always felt like a flaw (until I got whacked). SARK shared that she (who writes and has published a book a year for 15 years) gets creative coaching from many sources, and that Tiger Woods has eleven (11!) different coaches for different aspects of his work.

Putting the LIVE back into Live/Work

Sonora — 2007-06-01T17:22:14-07:00

more beauty � visual journal page by sonora beam

I am grateful to have an fantastic live/work space. And grateful to do work that feels like play most of the time. This lovely confluence can lead me to work work work without taking much in the way of breaks or time off.

Over the past two weeks, I have practiced "technology fasts" for several days in a row. This involves being totally unplugged from computers, tv's, email, blogging etc. I even stayed away from the phone.

I spent time visiting with friends, being in nature, making art, meditating and even hiked down our local mountain. My calves are still hurting five days later.

Being around my close girlfriends, and getting to talk, talk, talk was the most meaningful thing. It brought me back to something essential --- I guess you could call it Life. I felt alive and rejuvenated. (During my fasts from technology I also slept a lot, so that probably helped too.)

The purpose of Sanctuary Studio is to provide a place to unplug and gather in the company of kindred art-friends and experience in the rejuvenating powers of creative expression.

We have some tremendous teachers travelling from afar to offer their insight, passion and processes at workshops here this summer.

I hope you'll join us for a class!

For the Love of Trees

Sonora — 2007-05-16T18:18:40-07:00

A paradox I live with: I love trees. I love paper, and books - the raw materials of which do grow on trees. So, healthy forests is a pet cause for me. As a book artist, paper junkie and tree lover (yup. I hug trees, too), I hope you won't mind if I use my blog as an occasional platform.

Here's what's new today from Rainforest Action Network:

ArborGen, a U.S.-based forestry company, is attempting to extend a field test of invasive, genetically engineered (GE) eucalyptus trees in the southeastern United States, and more forests could be in danger soon.

By planting genetically engineered tree plantations and monoculture crops, companies like ArborGen are driving the destruction of forests around the world. The genetically engineered trees are a part of a field trial that, if completed, would set a precedent for agro-forestry and monoculture tree farms across the United States.

Scientists and environmentalists in Alabama are opposing this large scale tree farm, but they need our help. Click here to sign our petition to stop this field test and keep dangerous GE trees out of our forests.

Your help is critical for several key reasons:

ArborGen's genetically altered species of eucalyptus is able to flower and invade nearby ecosystems.
ArborGen refuses to confirm the genetically engineered traits of these trees and is blocking scientists from fully evaluating the "confidential" threats they pose.
The US Department of Agriculture (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or APHIS) has failed to complete an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to fully address all relevant concerns regarding the eucalyptus field trials.

You can help stop genetically engineered crops from invading our forests. Sign the petition to oppose ArborGen's field trials of GE eucalyptus trees in Alabama.

Thank you for all you do to protect our forests!

Brant Olson
Old Growth Campaign Director
Rainforest Action Network

The Devil (or some say God) is in the details...

Sonora — 2007-05-04T10:48:51-07:00

In this instance, probably the devil, because I did curse out loud when I realized that:

after MONTHS of construction/chaos/high burn rate of cash/and probably high blood pressure,

I have no ****ing electrical outlet in my bathroom.

So, there I was, readying for a client meeting, in my tiny kitchen drying my hair (without the benefit or a mirror. the tea pot reflection helped, but lack of sleep made me not in the mood for seing myself so distorted-looking).

Not that that my dilemma is a huge issue at all compared to actual problems people all around the world are having.

Mostly, I wanted to plug in my festive tiki globes in the bathroom for some atmosphere.

File this one under: Left hand talking to the right hand.

Translated nice note to Electrician: I love the fact that the wiring is sound, but how could that detail have been missed?

Actually...this bathroom has occupied the same corner of this warehouse for probably 50 years. Has no one ever needed to plug in anything?

Of Kettles and Chaos

sanctuar — 2007-05-02T11:41:37-07:00

Big lesson lately is how much I underestimate the effort/time/impact of things in my life. Namely: moving my studio. Now, I am "just" moving next door. It was easier than your typical move. But no less chaotic. Especially since I changed plans for the kitchen space midway and so I don't have kitchen cabinets installed yet. Everything is spread out everywhere.

As a tea junkie, I brought my own electric kettle with me down to Mexico. That way I can boil water for tea at the crack of dawn (a time retreatants are not wanting to hear me rattling around in the kitchen) and write, paint, meditate until a few hours of have passed and I am ready for prime time.

Sam needed a kettle at the Hacienda, so I happily left mine behind -- a trusted companion for many years, but I was ready for an upgrade to a cordless model.

Did I mention that I opted not to have a stove in my kitchen? Admitting this may say too much about my domestic habits at the moment. But when you're measuring your kitchen space in inches, why waste thirty on a stove that gets used only on special occasions?

Well, in all of the tumult of moving, travelling, teaching two graduate marketing classes, oh -- and let's not forget client work, I failed to order the hotplate I wanted, and to look for a kettle. I had been boiling water in a pot on the stove in my old place -- until yesterday, May 1.

After many hours of internet research, I finally found a kettle made of stainless, that also has a stainless lid. (A Cuisinart model). I cannot stand the taste of boiled plastic, and it's not a great substance to imbibe. Ever hear of body burden?

Today I was able to boil hot water -- for tea and oatmeal, in my very own few inches of kitchen. When you buy new stainless steel stuff, it always looks so shiny. I stood there marvelling at the finish, wondering how long it would take before it looks dull and water-spotted, and noticed the utter chaos of the studio in the kettle's for-now mirror finish.

It all seemed metaphoric somehow.

Visualizing My Expatriate Life

Sonora — 2007-04-23T19:16:05-07:00

So, one of my big goals is to buy a building abroad where I can teach art classes and do my own painting and writing. Somewhere like Mexico.

Recent discoveries in the Colonia Versailles area of Puerto Vallarta, where Hacienda Mosaico is located, included a lovely taqueria painted pink on the inside. The food is all cooked outside on the sidewalk, and you point to what ingredients you want. I discovered the most sublime posole there, and had it like three nights in a row.

I wasn't trying to take a picture of the interior. See the Beetle outside? The guy pulled up to the sidewalk and ordered. So Carol and I had a big laugh over this being the drive through.

Down the block from the pink place, as we began calling it, is an empty building advertising painting classes. Maybe my future building?

It was only after I saw the photo that I noticed the red roof tiles against the turquoise building next door.

Beetles in Vallarta

Sonora — 2007-04-23T18:53:04-07:00

Beetles (the originals) abound in Mexico.

Some joke about Coke being the national beverage of Mexico. One day I passed what looked like a fire alarm box, with the glass broken, and in it was an empty coke bottle.

An emergency beverage?

By the way, the coke sold in the little glass bottles in Mexico is still made with sugar, not corn syrup. So it tastes way better. Like it used to when those of us of a certain age were kids.

So...these are some of my not-so-touristy photos from Puerto Vallarta. Just got back last night and am jetlagged, disorganized and, I think, perhaps still feeling the effects of the Valium I took for flight anxiety. I am kind of a lightweight in that regard.

I like to take photos of the "ordinary". That's mostly what catches my eye. Observing "real life" is so much more interesting than, you know, the posed.

I feel I am blathering on about nothing and really need many hours of sleep. Dove right in to the deep end of work today at 6am, and the entire week is looking steep. But some very fine projects are on the front burner here at the Hive.