New mØsAi© workshop in the high desert… a®t, ßeauty, yOga..

A new workshop and a new look at RAVEN moSai©s Please click it and SEE more about a ßeaµtiƒul get-a-way to wOnder valley for yOga, mOsai©s and gOOd ƒood. Speaking of ƒood there has been a lot on my plate… HWY 62 Art Tours and new mosai©S, nEw pOst©ards, new photographs, new ceramics…  and I will be exhibiting at Casa Magazine on ƒirst Thursday in October in Santa ßarabara… and did I say mOsai© wOrkShop ?!?!? Makes my head spin. But I look ƒorward to seeing you all !!! somEpla©e and sOme†ime…

Stµpa Dhøøpa †®aVel †emPle

The travel temple took it’s maiden voyage and all I can say is, “©osmic wheels” Doug and I have been wO®king hAr∂ on ge††ing the t®Avel †emple rea∂ie∂ fO® ßµ®ning mAn. We’®e hoping to pA®k on Lineage at 8′O©lo©k.

Mosaic Altars

Cactus Buddha Altar

A peek at the new mosaic altars I have been doing. To see more of the NEW altar mosaics …, go NOW ravenMosaics.
size 18″x25″ ©2009 pErryhOffman magentaRaven.com ™

saving an insect

New photographs today. The raven is from last week in Neveda. The Sphinx Moth is from this morning. I saw the moth in a spider web, but it was not moving. Assuming he had been in this still position for some time (dead) I got my camera, at which time he moved and of course I had to release this living being into the wild … flying off with one antenna … As for the raven. it will be turned into a rubber stamp.

Workshop and new mosaic tile work

First of all a huge THANK YOU to Diana from Native Tile for gifting me so many tiles… it’s an unfathomable gift to a mosaic artist. I have shared with my students and a few friends but will use the rest to finish my desert house and the beach/oak house as well. Thank you to husband for cooking the meals at the workshop.. yum yum !!

The workshop over the weekend was non-stop intensive with eager students and high energy. Walked in the park as the moon rose after a LONG day of working the pieces to completion. Cathy made a large piece to take home and grout and her friend Marsha did her first piece ever, taking it apart at dinner time and re-gluing some new pieces on to her creation. Emma Jane and Rich of IYSSB yoga studio, created their first ever table top… “gorgeous!” I say! Dana, local, framer from 29 Palms came back to participate in her second workshop, continues making amazing table tops and counters and frames everyone’s art in the desert!!! at Bowden Frame Shop on HWY 62

Pictures of the weekend and my finished piece back in Santa Barbara… couldn’t get pics of the finished work of the others as the morning ensued with grout and much frantic goings on in the bright, hot, sun. Waiting for pictures from Cathy and the rest of the bunch. Here’s mine for now and a few pics from the iPhone during creation mode…

my Ganesh incense alter

One of my buddha heads ended up in Cathy's piece, as she just HAD to have it!

Dana's work in progress.

Rich and Emma's table top in progress...

Rich "third eye wide open in a yoga pose / you show us how to focus so the lotus unfolds / in deep concentration with breath control / returning to the source now you feel the force flow / when Jiva meets Shiva opposites become whole / singing Om Namah Shivaya Shivaya Namah Om /" - mc yogi

Mosaic Portal

Newly grouted mosaic portal, with ganesh and buddha with birds. Handmade ceramic birds and buddhas, smalti, glass and tile.

 

Incense on fire.

Grouted the magic mosaic portal today..

Elephant power.

The ancient ways of blogging

SO, is blogging a thing of the past? I’m not sure as facebook has absorbed the better half of my time. I realized I hadn’t written anything here in quite sometime and perhaps many of my readers have lost interest… I do not know. What I do see is a social revolution taking place via facebook. It’s a huge factor in how Obama got elected and it’s certainly a barometer for people to see what issues affect the world and the numbers that care about the various issues. I have found it utterly fascinating that a group I started on facebook for Watts Towers has members from Italy and everywhere else now. There are peace groups and whale watchers, global warming groups and bring peace to the middle east groups. The most fascinating and amazing thing to me was watching the President speak and watch this live feed through CNN in conjunction with facebook. One side of the screen was the live video and the other part of the screen was the world chatting, live, leaving their comments as he spoke. This is the revolution. The revolution will not be televised but it my be on computer monitors.
Aside from all this amazing technology, I have a new studio in Santa Barbara that is warm and almost ready to work in, thanks to my industrious husband who is incredibly handy with electric saws and sewing machines, nail guns and more!!! and willing to share the talents and energies to assist me!!! Lucky me!

Planted a new crop of vegetables in my garden this week, watermelons, squash, tomatoes, peppers and basil. Pulled a million weeds and put a lot of snails in the green waste container so they can eat and thrive as they travel to wherever it is green waste goes. The succulents are thriving and our orange tree is covered in perfumed blossoms that intoxicate as they deliver the scent to your nose.
Off to the desert to give a mosaic workshop, then San Diego for a mosaic conference and then back to the desert for three art openings. I have a mosaic piece in the jack rabbit homestead festival which should be an amazing show thanks to Chris Carraher and Kim Stringfellow. Go Jack go!!!

See you there!!! and remember to “Be the change that you want to see” – Gandhi
One more note on facebook. The group IUOMA (International Union of Mail Artists) just gave me the position of Center of the Universe. I did request it, as Middle of Nowhere was already taken but it PLEASES me to have this title… I can already feel the whirlwind…PEACE

Birds, buddhas, wars and artists, health insurance and same sex marriage…

Today, the raven leaping into flight from the telephone pole in front of our house in Santa Barbara. Relevance?! Yesterday I had health insurance for one afternoon, or the promise of it coming February first. Today my husband’s employer says NO. Yesterday I received an email from another country that made me sad… because people don’t GET IT !?! I am so bloody tired of justification for mass genocide on this planet. It’s NOT about your little country or your little religion or your big country or your big religion it’s about the world coming together in peace, to share it’s LIMITED resources, feed everyone and live happily ever after like all the REST of the animals do on the planet. Oh yes some of the animals may kill each other to eat, but NO lion or dolphin in a fish feeding frenzy or tiger or dog or rabbit or rattlesnake EVER organized genocide like the human animal. We need to stop justifying murder of ourselves. We are such idiots. We speak of god. We don’t know g_d. If we knew g_d, we’d shut our cake holes and put our weapons down and stop killing each other. The insane planet… if you believe there is g_d ?!?! Did he speak to you? Did he come to you in a dream? Did he whisper in your ear to pick up weapons? tell you to kill people that are just as afraid as you are??? just as insecure??? hungry? Now California is jam-packed with EVERY different person you can imagine. and we’re not without our problems, but we’re not all killing each other because of our god-damned religions! If we can get along, so can YOU. Your leaders are screwed up in the head… just like ours… just like theirs. I appoint Canada to make peace in the world, the only civilized country that knows how to NOT do stupid things! 

So that leads me to a video I spied on Youtube that blew me away… an event curated by non other than dAviDbOwie, here’s Laurie Anderson singing Only An Expert.

Only An Expert

Now only an expert can deal with the problem
Because half the problem is seeing the problem
And only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

So if there’s no expert dealing with the problem
It’s really actually twice the problem
Cause only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

Now in America we like solutions
We like solutions to problems
And there’s so many companies that offer solutions
Companies with names like Pet Solution
The Hair Solution. The Debt Solution. The World Solution. The Sushi Solution.
Companies with experts ready to solve the problems.
Cause only an expert can see there’s a problem
And only an expert can deal with the problem
Only and expert can deal with the problem

Now let’s say you’re invited to be on Oprah
And you don’t have a problem
But you want to go on the show, so you need a problem
So you invent a problem
But if you’re not an expert in problems
You’re probably not going to invent a very plausible problem
And so you’re probably going to get nailed
You’re going to get exposed
You’re going to have to bow down and apologize
And beg for the public’s forgiveness.
Cause only an expert can see there’s a problem
And only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

Now on these shows, the shows that try to solve your problems
The big question is always “How can I get control?
How can I take control?”
But don’t forget this is a question for the regular viewer
The person who’s barely getting by.
The person who’s watching shows about people with problems
The person who’s part of the 60% of the U.S. population
1.3 weeks away, 1.3 pay checks away from homelessness.
In other words, a person with problems.
So when experts say, “Let’s get to the root of the problem
Let’s take control of the problem
So if you take control of the problem you can solve the problem.”
Now often this doesn’t work at all because the situation is completely out of control.
Cause only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

So who are these experts?
Experts are usually self-appointed people or elected officials
Or people skilled in sales techniques, trained or self-taught
To focus on things that might be identified as problems.
Now sometimes these things are not actually problems.
But the expert is someone who studies the problem
And tries to solve the problem.
The expert is someone who carries malpractice insurance.
Because often the solution becomes the problem.
Cause only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

Now sometimes experts look for weapons.
And sometimes they look everywhere for weapons.
And sometimes when they don’t find any weapons
Sometimes other experts say, “If you haven’t found any weapons
It doesn’t mean there are no weapons.”
And other experts looking for weapons find things like cleaning fluids.
And refrigerator rods. And small magnets. And they say,
“These things may look like common objects to you
But in our opinion, they could be weapons.
Or they could be used to make weapons.
Or they could be used to ship weapons.
Or to store weapons.”
Cause only an expert can see they might be weapons
And only an expert can see they might be problems.
Cause only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

And sometimes, if it’s really really really hot.
And it’s July in January.
And there’s no more snow and huge waves are wiping out cities.
And hurricanes are everywhere.
And everyone knows it’s a problem.
But if some of the experts say it’s no problem
And other experts claim it’s no problem
Or explain why it’s no problem
Then it’s simply not a problem.
But when an expert says it’s a problem
And makes a movie and wins an Oscar about the problem
Then all the other experts have to agree that it is most likely a problem.
Cause only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

And even though a county can invade another country.
And flatten it. And ruin it. And create havoc and civil war in that other country
If the experts say that it’s not a problem
And everyone agrees that they’re experts good at seeing problems
Then invading that country is simply not a problem.
And if a country tortures people
And holds citizens without cause or trial and sets up military tribunals
This is also not a problem.
Unless there’s an expert who says it’s the beginning of a problem.
Cause only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

Only an expert can see there’s a problem
And see the problem is half the problem
And only an expert can deal with the problem
Only an expert can deal with the problem

Mosaic Workshops in the desert

Come learn mosaics from a multi-media artist in an inspirational environment. A place of magic. Perry has been giving mosaic workshops for 5 years in the Mojave desert and Santa Barbara. He has been working in clay and tile and mosaics with his home for over 10 years now and it is a living evolving piece of work. Color and pattern take the eye on a visual adventure at Perry’s desert retreat. Inside/out.   You can also bring your own tent and camp on the land at the Tile House and still enjoy the civilized mosaic shower and hot tub.

We begin with dinner on Friday at 5 – followed by an introduction into the world of mosaics, the materials and tools then with goggles over eyes we proceed to BREAK tile… music on… QUESTions  !?!?!?
Get up early Saturday for breakfast and good strong coffee and continue projects. We break for a picnic lunch.  Saturday evening before sunset, if we’ve finished our piece, we head up to Joshua Tree for a short hike, return for dinner and a bonfire at the Tile House! We grout and finish our projects on Sunday, enjoy a last lunch together and you’re on the road by 2pm. All weekend workshops include meals and basic materials for a variety of projects.

Staying in Tile House, meals included and all materials is $350
Staying in your own tent meals and hot tub amenities included and all materials $250

Not staying with us? Not eating with us? JUST the WORKSHOP $150

$75 non-refundable deposit, (except towards another workshop date)

HOLIDAY pARTy and art Sale in Santa Barbara

Saturday Dec. 20th from 12 til 5.
Hot cocoa and marshmallows too.