Friday, May 28, 2010

June happenings.

Art shows and exhibitions scheduled for late May and June 2010:

May 29-31 – Northern New Mexico Fine Arts and Crafts Guild Show in Cathedral Park, Santa Fe, NM, 10am to 5pm each day. Showing paper cutouts/collage and photography.

June 5-6 - Old Church Artfest in Old San Isidro Church, Corrales, NM , 10am to 5pm each day. Showing paper cutouts/collage.

June 20, 10am to 5pm - Art in the Park (Corrales Society of Artists Show), La Entrada Park, at Corrales Road, Corrales, NM. Showing paper cutouts and photography.

June 16-25 - Corrales Society of Artists – a group show. Wooden Cow Gallery, 7400 Montgomery Blvd, NE, Albuquerque, NM. Opening reception: June 18, 5-8 pm.

June 25-27 - New Mexico Arts and Crafts Fair, New Mexico State Fairgrounds, Manuel Lujan Bld., BOOTH # 82. Friday and Saturday - 10am to 7pm; Sunday - 10am to 5pm. Showing paper cutouts/collage.

I hope to see you during one of these events.

The posted image looks like my garden now. The original paper cutout is sold but reproductions and greeting cards are available.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

We've Joined Facebook!

I now have a facebook page: Elzbieta Kaleta Art! Stay tuned for upcoming shows and an online store!

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!


2010 is starting with two shows in Arizona:

#1. “17th Annual Carefree Fine Art and Wine Festival”.
Time: January 15, 16, and 17, 2010,10 to 5 daily.

Location: Show sets up on Easy, Ho, Hum, and HoHum streets in the
center
of Carefree town in Arizona.

Showing paper cutouts, collage and mixed media.

#2. “Tubac Festival of the Arts”
Time: February 4 – 8, 2010, 10 to 5 daily.

Location: Tubac, AZ (from Tucson take I-19 South, to Exit 34, follow signs).

Showing paper cutouts, collage, mixed media.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Upcoming Events

Dear Visitors,

It has been a while. Too much to do with my regular art work, art shows, staffing the galleries and organizing my trip (paper cutouts exhibition) in China. Below I am listing the art shows (for June and July) where you can visit my booth and view my artwork:

June 21st - Art in the Park (La Entrada Park, next to the Corrales Library, hours 10 to 4, Corrales, New Mexico, showing paper art and photography).

June 26 - 28 - New Mexico Arts and Crafts Fair (New Mexico State Fairgrounds, in Manual Lujan Bld., Albuquerque, New Mexico; hours: Friday 10-9, Saturday 10-8, Sunday 10-5, showing paper art and photography, together with my husband- artist Celestyn Brożek).


July 4 - 5 – Santa Fe Wine Festival at El Rancho de las Golondrinas, (New Mexico, hours: Saturday 12-6, Sunday 12-6, showing paper art.

July 18 – 19 – Summerfest Arts Festival (Evergreen, Colorado, hours: Saturday and Sunday 10-5, more information: www.evergreenarts.org). Showing paper art.

I hope to see some of you soon.

ELŻBIETA AND CELESTYN

Friday, March 13, 2009

GOOD LUCK ROOSTER



In many countries the rooster is a symbol of good luck, prosperity, strength and fertility. It is believed to chase bad spirits away, crowing when most people are still sleeping. Many stories and legends support these beliefs, but my favorite one comes fromSpain.
In the 14th century, a man, his wife and their son were making thepilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. They stopped for the night at an inn in Santo Domingo, where the innkeeper’s daughter tooka fancy to the young man, who virtuously resisted her advances. Hurt, she plotted revenge. She hid a silver goblet in boy’s baggage and in the morning denounced him as a thief. The boy was arrested and hanged.

As his parents were preparing to depart they heard their son’s voice telling them that he was still alive, as Saint Dominic was holding him up by the feet. They ran to the house of the judge, who was just sitting down to dine on a pair of roast chickens, a cock and a hen, and told him the extraordinary news. The judge retorted that the boy was no more alive then the cock and hen on his plate. At that, the birds jumped out of the plate, grew feathers again and began to cackle and crow, thus demonstrating the hanged boy’s innocence.
To commemorate this miracle a carved niche with a Renaissance grille, known as the chicken coop was build in the cathedral in Santo Domingo de la Calzada. It contains a pair of live white chickens, a cockerel and a hen. Naturally, if a pilgrim hears the cock crow it means good luck!














How not to love a rooster? With his beautiful tail and a red comb it is fierce and bold, takes care of his flock, watching for predators and giving laud warnings, often offering found, tasty food to hens or little chicks.
All images of roosters shown in this post were created with the scissors by the artist Elżbieta Kaleta in the medium of paper cutout. Multilayered designs are mounted on a museum board. All shown originals or their reproductions are available. If interested in purchasing call, or email me, please, for more details and prices.

I hope to see some of you during RIO GRANDE ARTS & CRAFTS FESTIVAL in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Location: EXPO NM FAIRGROUNDS
Time: March 13, 14, 15, 2009; open 10 am – 5 pm Friday, Saturday & Sunday.
Booth #: A10 (showing paper cutouts and photography).


ELŻBIETA

Friday, January 30, 2009

Happy Valentine's Day!

Dear Friends,

Welcome back in 2009 and big thanks for your support and encouragement in 2008.
January is a month to organize and gather strength for the whole year of art shows and exhibitions.

Here are two art shows coming up very soon:

1. TUBAC, AZ – February 4-8, 2009; daily 10 am to 5 pm. showing paper cutouts and collage.
Tubac is located south of Tucson, off I-19, exit 34 (signs will be posted).


2. FOUNTAIN HILLS, AZ – February 20-22, 2009; 10 am to 5 pm Fri. & Sat, 8 am to 5 pm Sun. Showing photography. Location: Avenue of the Fountains at Verde River Dr.


Please, look at these examples of my work (scissor paper cutouts) with a Valentine’s Day theme:

“I Love You” – 11”x11”
“Sheltered Love” – 19”x19”
“Love Garden” – 19”x19”









Happy Valentine Day!

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

ORNAMENTS FROM MOTHER GOOSE (For everybody, especially farmers)









Dear Friends,
Does your Christmas tree already adorn your home? If you like unusual ornaments I have them for you: goose eggs decorated with scissor paper cutouts! I make them following a beautiful tradition from my native country Poland. This is only one of many ways of decorating eggs in Poland but for an artist working with paper, like me, (paper cutouts/collage) it is an obvious choice.


When you hold one of these in your hand think how much work is involved in creating each ornament. First you have to find a nice farmer who will save them for you. Then you drive to the farm, buy and bring them home. Next they must be washed (they are stained with dirt, grass, mud, and I won’t tell what else). After drilling two holes, a thin stick is inserted to puncture membranes and mix the whites and yolk.

Everything is then blown out with a plastic straw (you can save it for baking, my dog loves it scrambled). To do it you have to have the lungs of a hippo.
Having suffered of severe asthma for years, one day, in desperation, I tried to employ my old nebulizer (a pump for asthma medication) to that effect.
EUREKA! Please, don’t be envious - enjoy your healthy lungs!

After blowing out the insides it is necessary to wash the eggs again. After drying they must be sterilized in high temperature in the oven (the shells cannot crack or get discolored). In the meantime I cut hundreds of tiny decorations, free hand, using scissors and art paper (acid free and colorfast).Then I glue them over the eggs’ surface. This is the step everybody simply dreads.

Finally I insert ribbons, so the eggs can be used as hanging ornaments. I don’t like to coat them with sealers because they lose (in my opinion) that great, natural look.

The egg, with its perfect shape, makes such a beautiful symbol: the promise and the gift of new life, new beginning, the most precious gift we have. I like to put on them tiny tree of life designs and often roosters –symbols of good luck, prosperity, strength, and fertility.

What a wonderful ornament for Christmas, Easter, for somebody blessed with a child or just recovered from illness.




Speaking of people who raise or care for animals, especially those who love them, I created, some time ago two images: “Blessing for the Forest” and “Blessing for the Farm”.


The original cutouts are sold, but I used them to print an edition of silk-screens on archival, marble paper (each one printed individually, by hand and signed).The whole image has a sepia/burgundy tone.

“Blessing for the Forest” is sold out – I have only one left, framed under glass (sorry for the reflections in the included photo). “Blessing for the Farm” is still available (framed or unframed). In both images, in the tree, you see Kokopelli (the Native American entity, believed to bring good crops and fertility among other powers).

I am closing this post showing another paper cutout from the group called generally “Stars”. This one’s title is “House Blessing”.

It was a pleasure to see many of you during my shows. Thank you very much for buying my art. My last show this year will be in Tucson, Arizona (details –my previous post).
If you have any questions, email me, please.
Wishing you all the best,

ELŻBIETA