My first exploration was to rip out one of the Charley Harper bird illustratons from my calendar. You can see the page I choose in the previous post. I decided it would be fun to create a 3-D bird from his bird page. Here’s the result, a cute, simple origami bird.

For 20 years I have kept a paper planner for my yearly calendar/schedule. This week, after some coaxing from others, I have been slowly converting myself over to a gmail calendar synced to my iphone.

Although everyone tells me it’s so easy and so great, I will dearly miss the pencil smudges, eraser shavings and ink blots that were an extension of my personality in my paper planners. Each year I enjoyed choosing a calendar with a different theme….photos from Paris, Great Women in History, etc. This year I choose a Charley Harper calendar.

As I say goodbye to one of my “old school” ways I decided it would be fun to create paper explorations using pages from my calendar. Afterall, it’s a part of me. It tells the story of my year, why not give those pages another life and another story to tell? If the idea works as well as I think it might, I may continue these paper explorations with other pieces of my paper ephemera: address book, sketchbooks, etc. Could be quite fun!

I am an enormous Avedon fan. I recently saw the lovely exhibit at ICP in NYC.
I was left speechless and teary-eyed. Here’s my homage based on one of his photographs.

Isabel Toledo’s dresses are masterpieces. Her patterns are geometric, however, once sewn the clothing takes on an organic yet structural shape. How can you not love a designer who gives her clothing names like: Packing Dress, Jellyfish Shirt and Kangaroo Pouch Dress? Her exhibit at the FIT Museum is like being in an aquarium full of exquisite, colorful shapes and textures.

Beautiful colors from NYC Pride 2009

A logo I designed for a friend in Chicago who puts together various runs based on Chicago themes. This particular course will take the runners past various “Cheesy” Chicago tourist attractions…..thus inspiring the abstract word “Chicago” based on things you might see at those attractions.

Copy is from the opening sequence to Woody Allen’s Manhattan.

I love this little dog.

Ay, ay Captain.

5 of 5 — Studies on the similarities found in my Mexican / Norwegian heritage.
Mariachi & Polka. Both extremely fun to dance to. My Uncle Myron Floren was a famous accordionist from the Lawrence Welk Show. He would play polkas at family reunions.

4 of 5 — Studies on the similarities found in my Mexican / Norwegian heritage.
Looking at traditional clothing of both countries it is interesting to see both have embelleshed pants and cropped bolero style jackets with vest and tie. Snappy!

3 of 5 — Studies on the similarities found in my Mexican / Norwegian heritage.
I have an Uncle Ole on my Father’s side. And it was my Great-Grandfather’s name as well. Olé!

2 of 5 — Studies on the similarities found in my Mexican / Norwegian heritage.
I much prefer tortillas over lefse.

1 of 5 — Studies on the similarities found in my Mexican / Norwegian heritage.
I’ll be posting one each day this week. People find my mixed background an odd combination but I have found a few interesting similarities while creating these studies.

Panda for hire. The recession hits everyone.