karen o'brien

ahhh, yes. the fabulous photographer shannon lee webb sent me a disk with all the photos on it, so here we go. more adventures from the "art on the hill" weekend experience of june 12-13th!

today i'm spilling the beans on karen o'brien, a gal i met at journalFEST last october at a art/visual journaling fest on the olympic penisula. caught her working quietly on her journal in a collage class and struck up a converstaion.......well, go read all about it a couple of posts back....anyhow, she lives in the same town in oregon as my mom and sister (aforementioned fabulous photographer) so, we were thrilled to get a personal invite to see her new digs and her incredible studio. so, there karen is - right there. see all the whimsical characters behind her on the wall? wonderful and wacky and fun. wouldn't you like one to add cheer to a bare spot or two?? contact her here....i'm sure she has one just perfect for you!

i always get inspired when i get to investigate another artists space.

and to hear how one goes from nurse to teddy bear maker to oil painter to mixed media instructor and creator of funky, whimsical mixed media pieces.

how is it organized?

what's on the work table?

is the artist a book-lover?

is there anything i need to steal from their shelves?

(no, really karen, i didn't steal a thing!)

do they have tons of found paper everywhere?

(are they willing to share?? ahahahah)

do they hoard books to alter?

is there paint all over everything...?

oh, what a joy to talk art, books, teachers, goals, plans, dreams, other artists, see the finished work, see work in progress......the whole gamut! and there was NO disappointment hanging out with karen, i can tell you that.

so, keep up with all of her happenings. she teaches in southen oregon, too - but you never know where you might find her. she has taught at artFEST, art and soul and a host of other venues! check her out!!