Angela Cartwright
December 31, 2008
August 09, 2008
what summer means to me...(by Angela Cartwright)
Better late than never right? It's been a crazy summer...full of changes...from my daughter moving into her new home...to making art...and picking flowers and veggies from my garden...There's a new Pasticcio Quartz Issue 4...and finishing up our new book which will be out in Spring 2009...
Here are a few pix to show what this summer meant to me...
May 10, 2008
Challenge #1 The Fine Art of Being Unruly by Angela Cartwright
I make unruly art…why? Because art to me is an expression of myself…it is meditation, it is discovery. I like the feeling I can do whatever my spirit moves me to do. There are no rules…if there are some…I break them. Not consciously maybe…but I throw all “the right ways to do something” out the window. I don’t listen to the little voices, I get in the zone and I just do it…
I color outside the lines…I use water on paper that will ruin it…I use paints on papers that won’t move but stick there…and then I work over it and around it. I use snips of this…and pieces of that… I cut up my photographs and make mosaics…I layer over writing, I don’t second guess myself. I stick glue where it should not go…I rub molding paste around and use gesso to make squiggles and ridges…I find my inner child…with no one looking over my shoulder. …that is making unruly art, and that is the art I make.
The definition of unruly is this….
adj. un·ru·ly 
not submissive or conforming to rule; ungovernable; turbulent; intractable; refractory; lawless:
adj. un·ru·li·er, un·ru·li·est
Difficult or impossible to discipline, control, or rule.
Are there laws to making art? Is it possible to discipline art? I want my art to be difficult, ungovernable, turbulent. I won’t be submissive or conform to rule…I listen, I learn, and then I reach inside and let it happen. I don’t make art a certain way for others…I make art…because I have to…for me.
My favorite definition in the dictionary of unruly?
"the little boy's parents think he is spirited, but his teacher finds him unruly”
I am spirited… and my word to describe myself is unruly....can you find it in my art piece?
April 23, 2008
bringing unruliness to Asilomar...by Angela Cartwright
Here I am at Asilomers Art & Soul Retreat, draped with my camera and enjoying the brisk clean air of Pacific Grove near Monterey. Though brisk...I function well in this kind of weather...clears out my head. Must be my British roots that surface when surrounded by the fresh air of the sea. 
Upon arriving, as we unloaded our suitcases...we saw deer...several of them...spurting past us on our way into the woods....You don't see that very often in LA....and it was kinda magical...
My husband and I went to the nearby Trader Joes and stocked up our fridge so at night we could light our woodburning fireplace and enjoy the peace and quiet of being away from home...
Right from the beginning I felt this Art and Soul venue was more laid back then the events at the hotels. Probably the intoxicating fresh air and not a hotel desk in sight. I was looking forward to the two classes I would be teaching.
My first class began with a group of eager, kind hearted, lovely artists and we began by making an explosion of different backgrounds of all sorts...gessoed, painted, notched, saran wrapped, we covered alot of bases that can be used in future projects...After lunch the artists cut up their papers and created small pieces of artwork with an array of images placed mosaic style. We then embossed them onto our 6x6 canvases.
We worked hard...moved fast...acted unruly...Everyone was immersed in their own creations...I love it when there is such creative energy and you see the wheels turning....
Tuesday night was vendor night and it was busier than I ever imagined...
Wednesday I taught 'Simpatico', my hand painting with oils and other things class...It's about learning all sorts of fun and cool things one can do with their photographs.
It was a blast...and I loved the results. Each image different and an extension of the artist that created it. Looks like I'll be teaching this class up in Fort Collins, Colorado come June.
It was great to get away to such a beautiful place and indulge in art...We used the time I wasn't teaching to drive around and enjoy some of the sights...nice break and I needed it. Now back to the zillionth thing I need to get done...
cheers ac
