Art Of Living as an Artist

Scenes from the n*Studio & New Class at The Ink Pad, NYC

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A little peek into my studio this month:

top row: Close up of Texture for a project for my book, Filming Rule of 3, Favorite color combination at the moment in my art journal

middle row: Playing with new things to come *wink, Underpainting done for a new piece

bottom row: Remains of a Day- Palette pull-off, RIP my trusted Video Camera


I am super excited to teach

October 8-9, 2016 in NYC at The Ink Pad  in NYC, NY

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Let’s explore several master artists and get inspired by their artwork and techniques to create wonderful and unique art journal pages. Whether it be the Impressionist’s amazing color combinations or some of the Surrealist’s fun collage techniques, there are many different Master Artists whose skills can serve as a starting point for your own artwork. Find out what you like and what works for you. Learn about opacity and layering, colors, troubleshooting, mixing materials, making your own tools, creating backgrounds and patterns. We will work with acrylic paints, inks, markers, wax bars and other paint media to create dimension and texture. We will make the most of stencils, stamps, mono printing plates and generic tools to make our own mark. Get ready to Rule Your Art Journal!

Registration open now


Hope you enjoyed the peek – wishing you an amazing day!

Comments (2)

  • sherri scott

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    I was the first person to sign for your class at the Ink Pad!

    Reply

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Scenes from the n*Studio and Demo at The InkPad

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A little peek into my studio

top row: Berlin Tacheles Painting, Embroidery Sampler, Beginning of a new Flatiron Building Painting

middle row: gathering and sorting the supplies for my book photo shoot, playing with paint and stamps and deli paper

bottom row: 4th July card with a hand carved stamp, packing up my artwork for my book for the photoshoot


And I hope you will join us either in person or on facebook !

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Come on down to The Ink Pad in New York City to meet me on
Tuesday July 19, 2016 from 4pm – 7 pm
I will do a free demo with my Rubber & Foam “Stamp and Stencil Sets” from Stampendous!. And I will sign my new DVD’s with ArtistsNetwork.com. And …if you cannot make it to the shop, join us for a Live Facebook Peek into the fun around 5pm from my Nathalie Kalbach n*Studio facebook page !

Have a wonderful day

Comments (2)

  • Joi@RR

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    Loved seeing the ‘scenes’ from your studio Nat. The paintings look wonderful – love your city paintings – always! Congratulations on the fun things you are doing ie: book, dvd etc. Sooooo excited for you and so enjoy watching you climbing towards your dreams. XXj.

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      Awe- thank you Joi – you always write the sweetest and encouraging comments. Thank you for your support <3

      Reply

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Art Stroll: Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney, Australia

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A couple of months ago, I was in Australia and visited a couple museums but I wanted to spread out the posts for you a bit- so finally I would like to take you on an art stroll through the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney, Australia.

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Isn’t this an amazing piece? It was quite big – Noah Eshkol, Window to the Sea, 1975, Cotton, pique, satin

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Noa Eshkol, Window to the Night, 1981 – cotton, cotton lawn, flannelette, twill, cretonne, jersey, percale, pique, poplin, satin, taffeta, repp with lurex threads, crepe fabric.

The material list reads like a “Who is Who of Fabric”, don’t you think? These pieces made me wish I was a sewer …I am not, but I would like to include more fabric and sewing into my work.

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Daniel Boyd, Untitled, 2016 – oil, charcoal and archival glue on linen.

The details are just so amazing and I love the combination of classic charcoal drawing on top of aboriginal art.

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Daniel Boyd, Untitled, 2016, oil, digital print and archival glue on canvas

Mesmerizing!

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Daniel Boyd, Untitled, 2016, oil, charcoal and archival glue on linen

Boyd translates and re-contextualizes historical images and explores ideas of strength, spirit and aboriginal resistance while at the same time commenting on science, evolution and Darwinism.

“He uses dots as a veil to create scenes that appear incomplete, leaving space for the viewer to complete the story, and mirroring how history is partial and completed through memory and myth.” – Signage at MCAA

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Nina Beier, Allegory of Charity, 2015 – ceramic cups, coffee beens, resin, wood, metal

Look at the crackle texture!!!

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Gordon Bennett, Abstraction (City dweller), 2013, acrylic on linen

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Gordon Bennett, Abstraction (Ntive), 2013, acrylic on linen

“These two paintings are part of a larger series that superimpose the faces of contemporary Australians over earth-toned figures bearing similarities to representations of primitivist figures in the paintings of late American Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat”.  What a wonderful example on how an artist got inspired by a different artist, and translated the inspiration into his own cultural background and style – into something entirely new that only a little hint off the inspiration is left. I love this!!!!

 

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Gordon Bennett, Untitled (dismay, displace, disperse, dispirit, display, dismiss), 1989, oil and synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Bennett is interested in the power of language and the way it shapes culture and identity.

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Newell Harry, As Veneral Theists Rest/The Natives Are Restless, 2008, letraset, black and white gesso and ink on craft paper backed with interfacing, lights, beads, rubber, wool, wood, ceramic, plant fibres, metal, string, cotton, shell, transformer

This was such an amazing piece to explore visually – I did restrain from touching it- but it was very very tempting. BTW- this was the first museum where I actually saw two different people touching paintings and being told off by the guard. I had never seen this before but heard that this happens quite often from one of the Conservators at MoMA and I am just astonished. Tempting – yes – but big no no!

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Tim Johnson Four elders, 1986, oil on canvas.

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again so amazing to see the painting from further away and from a very close distance.

 

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Wait…who is this goof ball in my pic? Awe- my sweet friend Julie- LOL. We had such a good time :)

These pieces on bark were just so amazing- I would love to have some of those hanging in my living room!

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I hope you enjoyed the stroll and those images and materials inspired you :) have a wonderful creative day!

Comments (4)

  • Gayle Kush

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    I am a fiber artist and work almost exclusively in fabric and sewing. I follow your blog because very much of what you do on paper transfers over onto fabric wonderfully! I find a lot of the tips and ideas you have to be useful in my work. Especially your stamps and stencils!!! I paint on fabric all the time. You should try your techniques on fabric (with fabric paints if you plan on sewing anything) once. You just might like it!!!!

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      Gayle- how wonderful to hear that you are actually work with fabric and sewing! You made me totally tempted to try out some new things with fabric- thank you :)

      Reply

  • Sue Clarke

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    Hello Nat,
    Yes, I did enjoy the stroll.
    I would love to be around when you and Julie hang out…I can just tell that you’re both having some crazy fun!
    The dot painting are my favorites.
    Peace,
    Sue

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      We would love to have you :) Have a wonderful 4th July weekend, Sue! big hugs,nat

      Reply

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Scenes from the n*Studio

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I cannot share everything I have been doing last month but I thought I share a little peek into my studio :)

Top Row: Hamburg Harbour Painting, Texture Play, Painting of my Uncle Walter

Middle: Working on two new paintings, working on a fast forward Creative Ice Breaker Video

Bottom Row: Cleaned brushes after a day in the studio, Art Bars and Neo Color II explosion


Also …this is coming up soon – in case you want to join us :)

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My part of the class is up first in the morning:

Nathalie Kalbach: Art Journaling In Depth

Learn how to add interest and an important spark to your art journal with textures and layers. Nathalie Kalbach shows how to create visual and actual texture using paint, gesso, and tools, plus techniques such as sgraffito and collage layering. Texture and layers are important design elements that are easy to produce, and they can communicate a variety of messages, emotions, thoughts, and perspectives. Let Nathalie show you how to go in depth!

Sign up here

It was so much fun last year and my co-teachers are amazing – you will love it. It is a jam packed Art Journaling workshop day! I hope to see you in Arlington Texas.

Have a gorgeous day my sweet friends!

Comments (1)

  • Joi @RR

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    YEAH – you are coming to Texas Nat. Wish I could be there for your class! You are only about 6 hours from me!!! HAVE FUN! I know they will all love you to pieces. Xj.

    Reply

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Inspired by New South Wales, Australia

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After our time in Melbourne we went on a road trip and drove about ten hours to Sydney which is located in New South Wales  which is a pretty big state…bigger than Texas, sorry Texas ;)  And on this long long ride the “Wombat” Signs here and there were quite the most exciting view …if you do not count the radio news that a dingo tried to steal a baby in the Western Territory (and that is no joke- it happened! )

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I loved those road signs.

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And of course when you spend time in Sydney you have to see the opera house -which btw- several years ago when I was in Sydney before, I visited for a concert. Last row seats – amazing sound- I can totally recommend this!!!

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We visited to the Botanical Garden which I love so much. I wanted to show Julie the Flying Foxes that I had seen there a couple years ago, but they were gone. I was told that they were not good for the trees and plants in the garden and were therefore relocated. Here is the blog post with a photo from several years ago . I think Julie was kind of relieved ;)

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Awesome flower bud sculpture

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And more giant trees – where is Julie?

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This was the entrance to our apartment in Sydney- we referred to it as the jungle. Unfortunately it was so humid and full of mold in the apartment that it felt a bit like a jungle too. I wasn’t sad when we left since I have a terrible mold allergy and I could not stand being in the place for a long time. Too bad- it was a beautiful place.

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So was this house – ohhh – I so want a house that is painted orange and has a turquoise iron work balcony – I mean…helloooo – this is beautiful!

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Oh wait …who are those people again …yep …goof balls ;)

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No idea what is growing out of my head but I love the picture of the two of us. We were just sitting there, relaxing and chatting and enjoying some warm sun rays.

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On our way to Berkeley Vale where we taught our second workshop at Darkroom Door, we stopped at a reptile zoo.

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These little critters sleeping in the sun spreading out their legs (lol- it makes me laugh) are Echidnas – they are ant eaters and the only living mammals that lay eggs.

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ANNDNNNDDDDDD – Squealllll – a Wallaby – – ohhh – yeah- I so love them – they are so cute.

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They were just hopping around with us and they were super fluffy. I know they look as if their fur is kind of scruffy but no no- they are so soft and these were very cute. BTW- do not try to touch one in the wilderness …they can get quite vicious, but these are used to people.

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And a little snoring Koala ….this didn’t look so comfortable to me but on the other hand …if you do not have anything else you even fall asleep on an economy class seat on a plane, right?

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The horror on the side of the path …oh man ….spiders big like houses- my nightmare….

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better look at the next koala.

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or at this Tasmanian Devil … yeah not quite like the one from Bugs Bunny …but …I saw one with it’s mouth open …also not one you want to touch – LOL

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This one was just passing by and ….

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Sorry- gotta go back to this little wallaby – did I tell you they were super cute?

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On our last day in Berkeley Vale, our friend Rachel took us for a little tour on the coast. It was beautiful.

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And because Anzac Day was coming up, there was this beautiful red poppy arrangement . Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance of all Australians and New Zealanders who served and died in war and on operational service.

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It was a wonderful time in New South Wales- the flora and fauna, the animals, the landscape and the amazing blue sky are so remarkable and inspiring, I am sure some of this will be part of my artwork in the future in one way or another.

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I hope you like this little trip :) I wish you a wonderful day!

Comments (8)

  • Jan T Baillie

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    Where I live, Natalie, in midwest New South Wales, we see roos, wombats, echidnas and platypus every day in the paddocks, and in our river which runs through town. Glad you loved NSW. Sorry the apartment was bad.

    Reply

  • Seth

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    What an amazing adventure you had Nat. Just so exciting.

    Reply

  • Denise

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    Did you get to hold or pet a koala? They are the softest fur ever. I just love Australia. So beautiful and such wonderful people.

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      Not this time Denise, but last time I was in Australia- it was really cute and fluffy as you said :)

      Reply

  • Rob Keogh

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    Wonderful photos Natalie, it looks like you had a wonderful time in our little corner of the world. I really love the orange terrace house too. How beautiful it is.

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      I really did have a wonderful time in your neck of the woods again, Rob! I hope I can come back some time and I would love to travel around a bit more too :)

      Reply

  • Gayle

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    WOW and WOW again! Amazing travelogue – your pictures and comments transported me to that wondrous corner of the world. Definitely an artist’s paradise – How does one take it all in without the mind exploding with so many possibilities. That turquoise house…what can I say….I want one too! Thank you Nathalie and regards to Julie as well. Your classes must be so much fun.

    Reply

    • nathalie-kalbach

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      Awe- thank you so much Gayle :) I know …I am still dreaming of this beautiful house – i think it would look really good here in New Jersey :)

      Reply

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Mixed Media Circus Workshop at Darkroom Door in Berkeley Vale, Australia

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After the workshop in Melbourne, Julie and I taught in Berkeley Vale at Darkroom Door, about 1 1/2 hours North of Sydney. My wonderful friend and awesome manufacturer Rachel Greig hosted us in her warehouse and classroom and it a great group rocking out the paint, art supplies and art journals!

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Everyone was working for three day, creating covers, painting, stamping, stenciling, book binding – getting messy fingers and tables:) It was so much fun! I loved the class room with high tables and high top chairs, making it possible for everyone to choose to work standing up or sitting. Since I work standing up- this was a dream :)

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Look at all the beautiful colorful pages …with Birds, and Elephants, and other stamp sets :)

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Birds mixed with Julies Stamps and Stencils.

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and more elephants :)

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the Urban Scribble – love the staggered city look!

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And lot’s of stencil patterns for background papers

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I loved how everyone embraced having two different teachers and stencils and stamps from two different persons as well.

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Love the look of the Fashion Dame Stencil used in different colors for pattern

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And the Lilly Wallpaper stenciled with black gesso

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and the Arabesque Stencils used with white over black gesso

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Batik

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one of Julie`s Face Stencils used with my Ornament Stencil for hair

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Another hybrid page with Julie’s stencil on the left and my Art Deco Wallpaper Stencil on the right

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And this is so true – :) If all fails, join the circus :)

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I think this one did? Love the girl taking a ride on the Elephant Stencil!

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So much creative energy and colors in the classroom

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And here is Julie explaining something – it was really fun teaching together again :)

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And here are some photos of me teaching …which usually- you know…there aren’t any :)

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Thank you so much Rachel for having us- you are the best!!!!

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And here we are :) Bound and colorful finished art journals!!!

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And thank you Amanda and Amanda, Belinda, Rachel, Robyn and Robyn, Paula, Kristy Lee (mmmmhhh did I butcher your name again???? please forgive me with your super cute smile, ok?), Lorraine, Genevieve, Vesna and Vesna! We will always have “I pet a kangaroo”, the dog on the tucker box, create you own at mäccas, don’t hesitate to mess up the table, fire alarms, Lemingtons, Anzac Biscuits and lot’s of laughter together. It was wonderful to spend those three days with you!!!

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I will post some photos from Melbourne and Sydney, street art and kangaroos in the next weeks – it was such a fun trip :)

 

 

Comments (17)

  • Robyn Seaniger

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    Looking through your workshop at dear Rachel Greig’s Darkroom Door Workshop on the Central Coast reminiscing about how much I learnt from you and Julie. Watching other creatives interpretate your demonstrations into art was so much fun. I see you have shown two pages of my own and also a photo of me smiling happily while working on my album. I feel like an accomplished artist now ☺️. I wanted to look back on this workshop because it was a great accomplishment for Rachel to bring you to the Central Coast. Thanks for the wonderful memories of friendship and art.

    Reply

  • Tracy Moloney

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    F U N times :)
    I thoroughly enjoy watching Rachel in action on ScrapIt tv as well!!!

    Reply

  • Jackie P Neal

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    Looks like everyone had a blast and the creativity was flowing!!

    Reply

  • Becca Yahrling

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    Oh what fun and creativity at it’s best.

    Reply

  • Teresa Godines

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    Wonderful projects. Looks like everyone had a great time.

    Reply

  • Karen Petitt

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    Lucky ladies! Looks like everyone had lots of fun and enjoyed it too. So wish I could do classes but being disabled is a real issue for me and getting to and back from one I just can’t right now. Lucky, lucky ladies Karen x

    Reply

  • Nicole N.

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    Looks like a lot of fun! And it’s great that it can be shared around the world.
    From: Connecticut

    Reply

  • barb macaskill

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    I would absolutely LOVE to meet the Darkroom Door crew one day!! It would be the culmination o a dream come true. I have always wanted to go to Australia and being able to do crafty things while I was there would make it an even better journey!!
    LOVE what the ladies have created using your awesome Foam stamps and stencil sets!!! MUST HAVE THEM ASAP!!! TFS!

    Reply

  • Carla Hundley

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    Looks like a wonderful
    time had by everyone!
    Carla from Utah

    Reply

  • Sue Clarkes

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    Nat, you even managed to post different pics than Julie did.
    I really like the quote “when all else fails, join the circus”.
    It goes well with “not my monkeys, not my circus” in some way.

    Reply

  • Greta H

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    Oh what fun–beautiful art work!

    Reply

  • Mary Holshouser

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    I would love to take some of your classes. I enjoyed seeing all of the finished projects – especially the elephant designs. I collect elephants and I’m always looking for new stamps/stencils and ways to use them.
    the girl riding the elephant was a clever idea.
    thanks for sharing so many wonderful finished projects.
    Illinois.

    Reply

  • Sabrina Radican

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    Oh boy… I wish I lived there so I could come and visit you and have lots of inky fun!! All of their pages look absolutely, gorgeous, beautiful. wonderful and looks like they all had a blast!!

    Reply

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Winding Down The Year: Best Nine of Instagram 2015

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According to #bestnine2015 these are my most liked photos of 2015 on instagram. I loved seeing this.

Top Row – left to right: 1. Julie while we prepare our Australia Workshop, 2. Bags I had printed with one of my paintings, 3. My self bound new Art Journal

Middle Row – left to right: 4. Painting of the Stanley Theatre in Jersey City, 5. The 2 Tallest Painting in Progress, 6. Water tower Painting and Water towers – kinda geeking out here ;)

Bottom Row – left to right: 7. Art Journal Spread in Progress, 8. Shipping some of my paintings to a show, 9. Playing with a baster in my art journal

If you want to do this too on your instagram account just go here to http://2015bestnine.com/ – be patient -it takes a long time until it loads- and don’t go to the other stuff they pop up- that was a little bit annoying- but in the end – it is fun to see the collage :)

Have a wonderful day

 

Comments (2)

  • Joi@RR

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    Wow – this is so neat – and true to you… colorful!!! Love the theater and your WIP of two talls is FAB. But my fav is still the water tower – I have loved that one from day one. It just has such character and such incredible colors. Those mini water towers are perfect to go with it too! This was a great treat.. Thanks bunches for a WONDERFUL 2015 from N*Studio and YOU dear Nat…. looking forward to another “HAPPY NEW YEAR” with you and your art work!!!! Hugs. j.

    Reply

  • Seth

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    Great to see these 9 pics Nat. And thanks for the link. I found my best nine. And, as you said, had to deal with a zillion pop-ups. But worth it in the end.

    Reply

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Inspired by Buenos Aires, Argentina

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About a week ago I came back from a wonderful trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina. My husband had to work there and decided to take me with him for a short holiday over Thanksgiving. He is the best!!!

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The flight itself was long – with a change in Houston we traveled almost 24 hours – but on the plus side – there is only  a two hour difference to the East Coast at this time of the year, so the jet lag wasn’t as bad as going to Europe. I fell instantly in Love with the City!

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Right now it is summer in Argentina – and the city is not only amazingly green …it is also purple as this tree, which I just learned from my friend Jane, is called Jacaranda Tree. And the one day it rained, the purple reflected on the streets ….did I say magical yet?

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I think “shabby chic” was the word I used most often while describing what I saw :) The city is full of beautiful but also decayed buildings and a huge amount of street art – which I will dedicate a whole extra blog post to (oh yeah- you thought you would be spared of this, didn’t you ? ;) )

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A former student of mine, Ceci and her husband Javier, were so wonderful to spent a day with us and show us around. It was so much fun! One of our stops was La Boca, a neighborhood in Buenos Aires. There are a couple of streets in the neighborhood that are well known for their colorful houses .

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I totally enjoyed – the colors – loooveee! And of course the Argentines are very proud of their pope.

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To not make this sound too romantic …this neighborhood is a very poor neighborhood and while there a two streets that are very touristy – which are the streets you should stick to on foot, it is pretty obvious that the colors and materials are not necessarily used as an artistic choice but rather to beautify what they have.

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Nonetheless my heart rate went a bit up upon those sights and I was craving a sketchbook!

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“Republica” La Boca is also very famous for it’s soccer team – to name only one famous player coming out of there: Diego Maradona.

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Javier is a fan of the rivaling team …so he wasn’t very comfortable in the area- LOL

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And of course what would be Argentina without Tango music and dance? Every time we took a cab with an older taxista, he had Tango playing …LOVE

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And here are Ceci and Javier! Thank you two so much for a wonderful day! You are amazing and I am happy for our friendship!

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I loved those floral paintings called Fileteado that you could spot on signs, or walls or busses all over the city.

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Now ….may I ask all vegetarians to skip this picture? This country is definitely a heaven for the Steak lover. As my husband puts it after a very popular German book “Meat is my vegetable” . I enjoyed it a lot, but I am also on a meat diet since back :)

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On Thursday we spent a couple hours downtown. This is the famous Casa Rosada, well …the back of it, which is most famous outside of Argentina, I guess, because of Eva Peron.

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We went to the Plaza de Mayo at around 3.30 pm , not being aware that every Thursday  around that time the Mothers and Grandmothers of the Disappeared march there. During the dictatorship in the 70s an estimate of 30,000 activists, students and journalists were “made to disappear” by the regime and the mothers of those children started marching in silent protest with the pictures of their children in front of the Casa Rosada every Thursday. I had just recently read and watched a documentary by the New York Times about the Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo and I was very very touched by this, it is very emotional. I recommend to watch it, but be aware it might make you cry as well!

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And even though this picture is a bit dark …can you count the lines of cars? I counted 13 lines while trying to get over the street before the light turned red – no island in the middle – just saying – and this is just in one direction. So believe me, when I say the streets in Buenos Aires are wide …although this one was by far the widest, I have seen :)

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And how about Thanksgiving? We spent Thanksgiving with loads of friends from the States and from Argentina and managed to create a decent ….kind of ….Thanksgiving dinner for our argentine friends …instead of Turkey we had 3 pre-roasted chicken, the stuffing had a little south-american twist, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pies (yeah for pie filling cans ;) ) as well as cornbread. There was a lot of singing , guitar playing and eating …and as you see even a little sign for everyone to add their thankful thoughts too. A Thanksgiving that I won’t forget- it was amazing!!!

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There is more coming …but I think you need a little break :) Have a gorgeous day my friends – hope the pictures did inspire you a little bit!

Comments (6)

  • William Charlebois

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    I love the colorful buildings! The buildings here in Michigan are boring!

    Reply

  • joi

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    Oh no – SPARE ME NOTHING… want to see it all Nat! This was a wonderful post. Wow. Only you could describe a place by saying – green and purple!!!! Love it!!! The fileteado flowers look like YOU – makes me think of your stamps. Good idea for your next stamp set???!!!!!!! :) As I was looking at the colorful buildings, I thought how much I would love to live in a neighborhood where everyone just painted their homes any way they wanted to with all sorts of decor railings, shutters, and graffiti. I love bright and bold so I would be a happy camper in such a neighborhood. When I was a little girl – our house was bright pink!!!! What a fabulous way to spend Thanksgiving. I loved seeing your list at the end… you are right – that will be a valued memory forever. j

    Reply

  • Teresa

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    How beautiful to see my country through your eyes! Thank you for sharing that! I will be pending when you post more!
    I’ll Wanderlust as a student in 2016, so I will learn from you!

    Reply

  • Barb J

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    Nathalie,
    Thanks for sharing this interesting and colorful city with your readers.
    I envy all the fantastic places you get to visit. You are so lucky to be able to travel with your career and when you husband goes on business trips.
    Enjoy the Christmas holiday.

    Reply

  • Arlene Baker

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    Hi, Nathalie. My boyfriend of 17 years and counting , took me to Argentina for 3 months a few years ago (aren’t I a lucky one!). We spent 1-1/2 mos in Buenos Aires. If you should ever go back, here are a few additional things to entice you:
    Xul Solar (a little jewel of a museum dedicated to Xul Solar’s art, Laprida 1212, );
    an unbelievable pastry shop–I believe it’s called La Burdalesa, Av. Santa Fe and Fray Justo Sta. Maria de Oro; Museo del Patrimonio, Riobamba 750 – 1 Piso;
    our favorite restaurant (we went there six times, I think), Eh! Santino, Baez 194–try the lomo panceta and the seafood pasta (might have to ask the owner to make you this one–it’s not always on the menu).;
    Los 36 Billares, Av. de Mayo 1271–a small, local (no tourists) tango bar with great food and a pool hall in the back that’s just for men (no women allowed).
    Eh! Santino isn’t getting rave reviews right now (my boyfriend just checked), so it may have changed since we were there, but the area has many great restaurants.
    I would go back to Buenos Aires any time!
    –elizabeth

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  • Karen D

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    Great pics Nathalie, Buenos Aires looks like a very interesting, and colourful city. I loved seeing all the art work on the buildings.

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Inspired by Chicago Architecture

NatKalbachChiArch

As you might know, a couple of weeks ago, I meet some dear old friends in Chicago and we had a fun weekend. One of the repeated recommendations to do in Chicago had been the Architecture River Cruise and since this is one of the few “touristy” things that even my friend A. who lives in Chicago loves – we were in!

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It was pretty pretty awesome! I am interested in architecture but there is a lot of mid century and more modern building where I am a bit at loss as to the initial appeal. Hearing a lot of background motivations and ideas for buildings was a total eyeopener. It started with this building which was in my “love it without much explanation” range. The Wrigley Building built in 1924 shining in it’s white terra cotta facade inspired by Seville’s Cathedral.

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333 West Wacker built in 1983 – I love the reflection and the fact that the curved facade is mimicking the curve of the river as well as it’s color. That I can see and it made me kind of like it more :)

 

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Chicago Avenue Bridge Tender House- can I have my art studio in there? Love this!!!

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One of the many draw bridges

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Lake Point Tower – 1968 – by John Heinrich and George Schipporeit, two students of Mies van der Rohe. It looks elegant with it’s curves. It probably has the most stunning views in all directions -but I still wouldn’t wanna live there, I think.

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Marina City 1967 – by Goldberg (another Mies van der Rohe student) who believed since no right angles exist in nature, none should exist in architecture. I looked at some floor plans of those corncobs and found them super intriguing. Think living in flower petals.

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Finished in the 80s is this River City building also by Goldberg. While I found the windows fascinating and they reminded me of some Gaudi buildings in Barcelona – this one looked like a nightmare to live in especially upon coming closer with the boat. I don’t know – but the shapes – intriguing again and inspiring.

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Gorgeous reflection – I would love to paint this!

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And more gorgeous reflections- the reflection that changes everyday is making the building interesting for me.

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This was actually the view from our hotel room.

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After the river tour we walked to The Rookery 1888/1907  – Frank Lloyd Wright – which was unfortunately closed already -but boy did I love all the details on the facade. It contains decorative elements reminiscent of late Roman, Venetian, Moorish and medieval-European architecture

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Stunning!

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I see border stamps ….

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This building is the Chicago Board of Trade – 1930 – a breathtaking art deco building which makes me think of old Chicago Gangster Movies and Gotham City :)

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My favorite door – can I take this home, please?

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And the famous Chicago Theatre built in 1921.

All in all I felt pretty inspired by the architecture of Chicago – the shapes, patterns, reflections and I am sure some of them will move into future artwork :) Time to get into the studio. I hope you enjoyed the little tour. Have a gorgeous day!

 

P.S.

My friend Julie Fei Fan Balzer and her Mom and I had a conversation about

At the Museum With a Friend

tune in and listen to the podcast –

I hope you enjoy it. Do you like going to a museum with a friend?

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