Baltimore Sonnets

finding beauty Yellow Renaissance , handmade paper  new forms new shapes new life from the discarded, from the unwanted from the used

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Handmade pulp and paper from salvaged magazines, junk mail, and paper bags. Black Moon #3 by Suzanne Coley String was embedded into the pulp and then attached to hand painted cardboard .

Opening Night  Baltimore Salvage Art Exhibition at the Public Works Museum I wonder what she sees? Black Moons #3 It was wonderful being surrounded by so many inspiring art pieces. All made from recycled materials! This is a YouTube video of some  of the artists, especially drums that light up when played, by Jenn Figg and Matthew McCormack  Artist Adrianna Morgan  And when the show was over I went back to my studio and worked. experimenting with paper 

Back in the studio  carving the images for Monster Series Finished carving her yesterday at 2 am.   I like sketching images in my notebook before making an outline on the  linoleum block. For me, the process is very organic  and my final carving doesn't exactly look like my sketch. A few of my carving tools. Marke Kirschen aka "the two cherries"  carving tools are great.  They are easy to hold and fit perfectly in my palm.

Experimenting with different  ways to embed  string into handmade papers for my new series Monsters. Made paper purposely two-toned.  White areas still have remnants of former life,  (deconstructed letters and text can still be seen). Baltimore has great water for  making paper and I don't have to do much on that end.    Neutral pH level! I have been separating the initial salvaged papers in recycle bins and playing around with combining the really high end papers with samples of  glossy, highly processed ones. Violet papers rest on  handmade deckles and moulds. Overall, I love the quality of the papers. However, as a printmaker I have always used England's Somerset France's Arches China's Red Star Xuan papers Japan's Kitakata (love it for book binding) which makes me want to really test the papers I have been making.  I have inquired about working with a local chemist/s...

before Photoshop  all my manipulations  were done by hand in the darkroom under a dim red light handprinted b/w silver gelatin photo on fiber paper today when I was  making handmade paper and manipulating the textures with hand carved molds I was reminded of the  experiments I performed  in the darkroom with C-41 & E-6 films and fiber papers some of the handmade papers feel like skin and are as soft and durable as suede I am looking forward to  posting these experiments   in the upcoming weeks

Livre d' artiste   & Department of State Art in Embassies Program Invisible by Suzanne Coley I love book arts because the tactile nature of  handmade books invokes  exploration and interaction  by inviting the  viewer to turn each page and explore the images, textures, and words of a  visually narrative world orchestrated by the life of an artist.  Invisible was one of three artist's books selected When I was selected for the program one of the first questions the curators had was, Can they be touched? Absolutely , was my response. I  wanted my books to be read, the pages touched,  and viewed in the palm of the reader's hand. I created sturdy, durable matching clamshell boxes to house the books and  allow personal handling  without gloves.  I also began to create more durable covers to allow for  natural wear and tear.   Detail...

22nd hour by Suzanne Coley 45 dollar a night hotel on the corner next to Hell a fee she can't afford with her monthly award 22nd hour of her life entangled in discord and strife running from herself

                            Remembering a Journalist Rapid rise in pressure Internal sonic booms In a makeshift media room A dim light bulb hangs from above, illuminating a tiny space for Truth Deafening sonic booms False pressure waves Boom, boom, boom No time to glance out the peephole Rapid rise in pressure an internal sonic doom One last thought before waves of compressed air hit her, knocking her into silence Truth is dead   handmade accordion book with  silver leaf cover and matching  clamshell box with custom protective pouch silver leaf cover of book and matching box

Center page of Metro by Suzanne Coley on the metro she met him on the metro she left him

Working as a visiting artist to a few  New York City high schools I like to create projects that combine current events and art. Eleanor Roosevelt High School students One project students loved was the Map Project.  I asked each student where she or he came  from and to find a map of their hometown. Eleanor Roosevelt H.S. teacher Ms. Ettenheim had boxes of maps This led to very interesting conversations because, surprisingly, half the students were not from New York.   And, some were from other continents.   If there wasn't a map of the city the student was from, we would make one. Two students were from Michigan, and knew people who lost homes from the horrific tornados. One student was from Japan and discussed the  Tsunami.  Students from Asia and Africa discussed recent events in their countries. But enough of my thoughts,  here is what they had to say about  the experience: ...

The Russian word Life was  printed on many of the  postcards that I mailed. Life  postcard by Suzanne Coley I really like working with  lithographs and silkscreens, however with this project, I didn't have a lot of space or time for those processes. With linoleum and wood, I can take the little blocks everywhere, cut anywhere, and print anytime. My handwriting and some cuts I  began the text by writing the mirror images of  Russian and German words on the linoleum block. The final plate with red Charbonnel ink I removed all of the background, leaving only the lettering. sc

looking through the telescope this is what I see: Documenta 13, Germany who will make it shouts old Boreas as he blows studio doors open revealing the souls of penniless artists to hungry Universe Eurynome, disguised as  eternal Spring, dances to heavy drum beats crushing weak hearts beneath her green stilettoed feet Hesiod steps aside, letting artists write new endings to ancient tales  Documenta 13, Kassel creation begins sc

Recycled Art Exhibition  handmade paper and pulp from recycled papers and fibers by Suzanne Coley Background Salvage: A Waste of Materials, A Wealth of Art, headed by the Bureau of Solid Waste’s Office of Recycling is a recycled art show featuring various mediums of art from established and arising local artists. Salvage will be presented as part of the Drive to 35: Baltimore’s Race to Reach a 35% Recycling Rate campaign. Venue Baltimore Public Works Museum  751 Eastern Avenue Baltimore, MD 21202 Dates Opening Night  March 22, 2013 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. Exhibit Run March 23 – May 18, 2013  Artist Contribution/Submission   Local and regional artists have created 2D and 3D artworks made out of curbside recycling materials like plastic bottles, glass and cardboard.  The following is a full list of artists participating in the show.  Amanda Nelson Brian Baker Diana L. Spencer       Donald Edwards Emily C-D...

in search of beauty  Moon Reflections, MMXIII (handmade paper) collected bags of discarded memories in yellow, blue, and black on white i reach into your center to feel the hands that touched you before me latest bags of recycled paper in my studio from where do you come? what eyes have read your words? how many hands have unwrapped you? handmade paper by Suzanne Coley to know your history  is to understand your essence i must deconstruct you  to a pulp sc

I had an idea to mail  handmade postcards   through the  U.S. Postal Service, but fear prevented me from doing it for years. 2nd postcard mailed I was afraid to send such delicate, beautiful, handprinted (some with real 22K gold)  without envelopes through the mail. What if the recipients never received them? What if the cards were damaged along the way? What if they were lost? What if the recipients threw them in the trash? Photo from Smithsoniam Postal Museum   In the autumn of 2012, I read how real babies (yes, infants and toddlers) were sent through the   United States Postal Service in the early 1900's.

as a child I loved writing letters  and I was sure I'd be a Lady of letters Front of 1st postcard mailed computers, Internet, and modern technology  made me re-think how  I could send handwritten  correspondence through the mail. My typewriter and a few epistolary novels from 1800's I decided to create  high quality  handprinted postcards Detail of Kunst postcard Some handprinted cards drying from Aug - Dec 2012 I created over two hundred handprinted postcards and I began mailing them. Mailing a postcard in Germany

handmade paper from junk mail and old books kaleidoscope dreams cascading down Niagara Falls taking me to Lake Victoria memories of my Ob' flowing into the Arctic sc