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…

aµGµSt wO®ksHop pE®ƒe©t †emPe®Atu®es

Toda¥s wo®kshop wAs an aMazing ∂a¥’s eƒƒort by 15 riSk tAking s†µ∂ents… Ever¥One crea†e∂ incredible and fun works !!! TOmmO®o∑ pi©†µ®es will ƒollow. I lit oNe oƒ m¥ al†e®s wHi©h you sEE he®e to ∂emonSt®ate it’s ƒun©tiOnalit¥. More to ©Ome. ©Li©k pi©ture to enLa®ge.
pE®®¥ hOƒƒmAn ©2009 løøk A† ravenMOsAi©s for the uploaded student work.

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 ™

New Buddhas and Bowls

This weekends kiln, full of buddhas and bowls. The buddhas will be going into future mosaics.

Santa Barbara MOSAIC workshop

Join Perry in his Santa Barbara garden and learn the art of mosaics. Using tile and pottery, broken ceramics and special bits from his ocean bone yard. You will create a piece of work that you can finish and take home. Day one, August 8, 2009 we will start at 10 am to design and adhere our broken tiles to backer board, a steeping stone or flower pot, breaking for a wonderful garden lunch and on the following day, we will convene again to grout and finish our beautiful pieces. Leaving plenty of time for a beach walk on Sunday afternoon!!! If you have any broken ceramic items that you’d like to use in your piece be sure to bring them along. Sign up early as space is limited. Only $150 includes all your materials and lunch. What a deal!!! There are a lot of great deals on Craigslist for vacation rentals in Santa Barbara at reasonable prices.

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

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)

Number 9

Whew!!! The last few weeks have been incredibly non-stop. Beautiful, happy new year party in the desert with The Sibley’s rocking us into the new year with Sophia Loren and Rubber Soul Rock n Roll not to mention I Don’t Smile if I Don’t Want To. A small intimate ROCKING party. I cannot thank the Sibley’s enough for there energy and songs. Met new friends and made new connections. The desert always helps connect the dots, unless of course it’s dragging you down a dirt road behind a grader. No don’t worry, that didn’t happen… What with Leslie Thornberg and Randy Polumbo having parties I had a  lot of competition this year. Next year will be different HA!

So on to number 9, number 9… oh the Revolution number 9… love those Beatles. READY for three amazing Mosaic Workshops coming this year to the desert. Breaking tile while breaking open new ways of working creatively. Turning it into something else.