ELIZABETH LEADER

"Discarded Ancestors" Collage Series

2011-11-27T16:44:00.000-08:00

I found photo albums thrown out to the curb in front of a demolished house. There was apparently no one left to care for all these mementos and no way of finding out who these people were. The photos were so precious that I wanted to preserve them in some form. To me, they represented all the millions of people who have passed through this city. Each picture is unique and yet so universal that it could be from anyone’s family. They look like my ancestors and perhaps like your’s too. I took some of the photos out of the albums and surrounded them with bits and pieces of abandoned Buffalo – graffiti, empty houses and decaying landscapes. It is my attempt to put the past and present together and to honor these unknown people. I hope their spirits are happy being part of this art and not just discarded as trash.

You can meet and 'adopt' these ancestors at Gallery 464 (464 Amherst Street, Buffalo NY) They are also available in Niagara Falls at the Holiday Market until Christmas. You can also see a selection in my studio at the Tri-Main Center. (Studio 509 - 2495 Main St. Buffalo - Just ring my door bell!)

'TROUBLED WATERS' in the Gallery at NCCC

2011-10-20T11:09:00.000-07:00

"TROUBLED WATERS" OPENS AT NCCC

2011-09-11T12:57:00.000-07:00

A NOTICE FROM ART CRITIC, COLIN DABKOWSKI, IN THE BUFFALO NEWS:
VORTEX VIEWS
There’s something both unsettling and alluring about the work of Elizabeth Leader, who combined small dolls with her own photography to create potent little tableaus now on view in the Western New York Book Arts Center, 468 Washington St., through Sept. 17. For a glimpse into another facet of Leader’s work, art fans can check out “Troubled Waters,” a series of paintings that deal with the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a sprawling mass of trash in the North Pacific Ocean. That show—which opens Thursday and runs through Oct. 15 in the Niagara County Community College Art Gallery, 3111 Saunders Settlement Road, Sanborn — is Leader’s modest attempt to bring attention to the huge ecological problem, also known as the Trash Vortex. “When I first heard of the ‘Trash Vortex’ it so disturbed me that I tried to immediately put it out of my mind. Too late,” Leader wrote in a statement. “My imagination slowly swirled and circled around itself into thoughts and dreams, gathering emotion and then congealing into images. They have come out on paper as figures— some human, some not — in postmodern seascapes, entangled in narratives with endings not yet known.” For more information on the show, call 517-1186 or visit www.elizabethleader.com.—Colin Dabkowski; Published: Sep 9, 2011 12:00 AM

SENSE OF PLACE

2011-07-18T06:04:00.000-07:00

My reclaimed toy series of assemblages is now on view in the "Sense of Place" show at the WNY Book Arts Center.
"Sense" combines Amy Greenan's paintings of abandoned houses along with my work in an "ongoing conversation." The show runs from July 15 to Sept. 17 at 468 Washington St. in downtown Buffalo.

FREE FOURTH FRIDAYS AT THE TRI-MAIN

2011-06-29T16:47:00.001-07:00

We artists at the Tri-Main Center are now opening our studios and inviting in the public every fourth Friday of each month. Between 5pm and 8pm we'll have special events, guest artists, demonstrations and other unique and creative happenings. The next date is July 22nd. Come visit the Tri-Main Center, 5th Floor, 2495 Main Street, Buffalo, NY and get creative.

SAVE THE DATE - TRIMANIA - MARCH 26

2011-02-19T11:05:00.001-08:00

STUDIO VISIT & SPACE FOR RENT

2010-12-07T09:03:00.000-08:00

Here are some views of my studio at the Tri-Main Center at 2495 Main Street in Buffalo, NY. It's a great location with plenty of space, light and heat. The fifth floor is a creative neighborhood and the Tri-Main has many great features including The Lunch Box and terrific security. I have a good chunk of space available in my studio. $150 per month covers everything including insurance. E-mail me at ealeader@verizon.net if you are interested.

'TROUBLE WATERS' Show at PCCS

2010-10-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

A few images from my show at the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies. Besides the paintings, it included a used fishing net with all sorts of plastic debris picked up on the beaches. The net draped over the doorway and proven to be a good conversation piece. The show coincided with the International Coastal Sweep.

BEYOND THE MULTITIDE

2010-09-16T07:15:00.000-07:00

It's time again for the International Coastal Cleanup and coinciding with it is the 'BEYOND THE MULTITUDE' exhibit, curated by Jordan Dalton, at 464 Amherst Street, Buffalo. My assemblage piece features the doll that was dredged out of Scajaquada Creek during last Spring's cleanup. This baby's been cleaned up and dissected and given a new life.

HURRICANE EARL

2010-09-11T10:57:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Earl was scheduled to hit Cape Cod on Friday, September 3rd, the same night my TROUBLED WATERS exhibit was to open at the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies. Earl caused a media event and forced many cancellations before brushing by Nantucket and slamming into Nova Scotia. It was a Storm Watching Weekend.

My TROUBLED WATERS exhibit at Provincetown

2010-08-28T14:48:00.000-07:00

I am joining up with the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies to raise awareness about marine debris and its effect on oceans and the animals that inhabit them. The art exhibit coincides with the PCCS's annual Coastsweep on September 25th. This exhibit will open on September 3rd and run through October 1st. It's at the Center's Marine Lab at 5 Holway Avenue, Provincetown, Mass. If you are in the area this month, please stop in. PCCS is an amazing environmental agency. They base their research on real science as well as rescuing whales and turtles. They have a kiosk on the town's main dock where you can stop by to learn more about their programs.

ANOTHER TRIP TO SCAJAQUADA CREEK

2010-07-07T19:00:00.000-07:00

We park in the Tops Supermarket lot at Amherst and Grant Streets. Walking along the Bike Path, we are soon in another world. At first the Creek is wide open and visible but then we wander down under a decrepit railroad bridge and see aged wooden pillars as well as the foundations of Route 198. The creek is a polluted mess - it's gone through so many uses and abuses but now the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeepers and other groups have hopes to improve its future.

THROUGH A HOLE IN THE CHAIN LINK FENCE

2010-07-07T18:45:00.000-07:00

Right off the bike path is a rusted world of abandoned factories. Huge chunks of obsolete equipment sit in the sun, more amazing than any sculpture. An old 18-wheeler is half hidden in the weeds. It appears scrappers may be organizing some of the remains. It could take a man's lifetime to empty the buildings and sell all the scrap metal. Graffiti artists have marked the territory again and again while someone has tried unsuccessfully to blot them out. This world is both invisible and wide open.

EMPTYING INTO BLACK ROCK CHANNEL

2010-07-07T18:30:00.000-07:00

Where the creek empties out into Black Rock Channel, we see the underside of Route 190 and beside it is a line of ancient piers. No idea what could have been here but obviously lots of history. I'll have to search for old photos that might show what once was.

VISIT TO THE GULF COAST - BAYPORT, FLORIDA

2010-06-18T06:57:00.000-07:00

At the end of May, I went to Florida to pick up Mom and Dad and bring them back up to Cape Cod. We drive over to Bayport to view the Gulf Coast. Today it is clean and beautiful but the newspapers are filled with stories of unsuccessful attempts to stop the leak.

Alive with little fish

2010-06-18T06:55:00.001-07:00

The edges along the marsh are swirling with schools of little fish. Birds are everywhere.
I wonder how long it will be before the oil moves in to destroy them.

Quiet Culture

2010-06-18T06:49:00.000-07:00

Dad tells me that Jack Dempsey and Babe Ruth were fishing buddies and hung out in the area. Today there are lots of fishermen enjoying the beautiful water. All the "small" people who have no chance against BP.

FREE THE SCAJAQUADA CREEK

2010-05-23T17:21:00.000-07:00

It's the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper's Spring Shoreline Sweep going on at many local sites, all connected to world wide efforts. I've signed up for the Scajaquada Creek site. The creek runs through the city, at times buried underground, and then dumps out into Lake Erie. Lots of controversy over this creek including some political action to improve it. It's known as one of the more intense areas for trash because of all the traffic around it.

Getting Organized

2010-05-23T17:18:00.000-07:00

Here's Adrienne Kina, from Americorps ABLE, the volunteer coordinator for Buffalo Niagara Riverkeepers. She gets us to fill out our paperwork, gather our tools and get ready.

Getting Down to Work

2010-05-23T17:15:00.000-07:00

We're going to work for a few hours, then meet back up at the Veterans Hall for lunch and a party. Captain Max leads us out. We bring our bags and tools and get started. Down at the Creek there's the usual plastics, tires and styrofoam.

Kids and Their Finds

2010-05-23T17:12:00.001-07:00

With such a large group of volunteers it's amazing how much can be cleaned up in a short amount time. There's a contest to haul "unusual" items back to the hall. Shopping carts, road signs, a ceiling fan, a rusty gun...these were a few entries in the contest. Every kid got a very nice donated prize.

FROM OUT OF THE WATER

2010-05-23T17:10:00.001-07:00

So much stuff! I took this baby doll home and disinfected her. She'll be added to my 'Trashing the Waters' installation at NCCC next year.

CROSSING THE COUNTRY ON ROUTE 66!

2010-03-14T06:26:00.000-07:00

The plan is made - to take the month of February and drive on Route 66 to LA. To add to the fun, we take Billy Blazes & Zog along (toys from Emmett and Rowan, our grandchildren). We'll photograph them and email back stories and pictures for a little geography lesson. We pick up Route 66 in beautiful St. Louis. Then a little stop in Fanning MO to get our bearings. 66 isn't always easy to find. It's now disguised by other route numbers but we track it down.

THROUGH MISSOURI TO OKLAHOMA

2010-03-14T06:18:00.000-07:00

We get stuck in a storm in Springfield MO and have to wait it out. The only entertainment is the Bass Pro Shop near the motel. We have fun posing the toys with the stuffed animal displays. Then after the storm stops we head into Oklahoma City to the National Memorial. A very moving experience.

TEXAS!

2010-03-14T06:09:00.000-07:00

In McLean Texas, we find this treasure of a gas station. Then in Amarillo, we track down Cadillac Ranch starkly rising out of a field. We didn't expect such harsh weather this far south but it is actually making everything even more memorable.

NEW MEXICO

2010-03-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

We continue spotting Route 66 funky motel signs. Sometimes the motels have been closed and demolished but the sign remains as a historic marker. I fall in love with the Southwestern landscape. And visiting Native American sites.

HOLBROOK ARIZONA

2010-03-14T05:37:00.000-07:00

The highlight of Holbrook is the iconic WigWam Motel. Such a memory for people along Route 66. In front of each wigwam is a vintage car. The place is still in business!

CROSSING THE MOJAVE DESERT

2010-03-14T05:31:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite parts of our journey. The desert is so harsh and vast. Stone markers line parts of the road reminding us of the Okies and the Dust Bowl Migration during the depression. And all the other people who have ever headed West. How dangerous this part of the journey could have been.

CALIFORNIA!

2010-03-14T05:14:00.000-07:00

Billy Blazes & Zog meet their super hero friends in Hollywood. They pose together in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater. We spend a week in LA, seeing the sites, partying with relatives and sitting in traffic!

Cargill Superior Grain Elevator

2010-01-03T12:30:00.000-08:00

I'm working on a series based on Buffalo's post-industrial landscape. Within all the abandoned grain elevators and factories are compelling trashed objects. I am recovering a few and combining them with photography, painting and recycled wood. Each piece is becoming its own little world.

Harrison Radiator

2010-01-03T12:24:00.001-08:00

The amount of buildings and materials just left abandoned in the city is staggering. In the words of one photographer, "the whole East side is an open mall."

Recycled Jesus

2010-01-03T12:07:00.003-08:00

Here is one of the first pieces in the series. It combines the site photo (by railroad tracks in Black Rock) with a plastic baby Jesus and Madonna painting on the wood frame. The wood is from Buffalo ReUse which has proved to be a great source for inspiration and materials.

DOORS CLOSED

2009-10-18T09:41:00.000-07:00

Over the last year, as part of my interest in the environment, I've started exploring some abandoned spaces around the area. I was amazed to find cathedrals of industry, still beautiful in decay. Along the way, I met fellow travelers, graffiti artists, scrappers, great photographers, and other adventurous spirits all appreciating these hidden treasurers in their own way. I am honored to have met them and to be included in the 'Doors Closed' exhibition.

DOORS CLOSED

2009-10-18T09:36:00.001-07:00

The back of the show postcard lists this amazing group of photographers/urban explorers: Timothy Neesam, David Torke, Jeffery Cutler, MJ Worthington, Tammy Hoy and the incredibly talented Caroline Brockers. She's the one who brought us all together.

East Side Furnace

2009-10-18T08:02:00.001-07:00

This colorful furnace sits open to the elements on the East Side of Buffalo. It was once part of a business that burned out and cleaned the insides of storage barrels.

Harrison Radiator

2009-10-18T07:52:00.000-07:00

A small hallway in the vast abandoned complex of what was once Harrison Radiator on Clyde Street in Buffalo.

'Jill Drops Her Pail'

2009-07-29T18:24:00.001-07:00

It's the Chinese Year of the Cow! In Flushing, New York the community is celebrating with a huge summer long festival. Crossing Art, a beautiful gallery in the neighborhood has a show called 'Oh Cow' featuring artwork in this theme. My large pastel & charcoal drawing is part of the exhibit. I am feeling very honored to be in this great space.

More views of 'Oh Cow"

2009-07-29T18:21:00.000-07:00

'Oh Cow' runs from July 18th - Friday, September 18, 2009

Crossing Art Gallery

2009-07-29T18:17:00.000-07:00

The gallery is at 136-17 39th Avenue (Ground Floor) Flushing, NY

Urban Hiking - Finding a Toy Graveyard

2009-06-29T17:32:00.001-07:00

Over in Black Rock, in wooded areas off road by the railroad tracks, people have been dumping all kinds of things. This load of toys just seems like a hundred shades of wrong. The city has now blocked the access road. Thank you!

This Baby Went Through a Fire?

2009-06-29T17:27:00.000-07:00

She's had a hard life. I have to take her home and clean her up. Actually after a few days in bleach water she ends up looking very good. She's going to be part of an art project that will show up on this blog next month.

Baby Jesus

2009-06-29T17:24:00.000-07:00

Is it a sin to throw away Baby Jesus? He's all plastic, just with a few cracks. He could lay here for eternity.

Grass Grows Right Out of Her Head

2009-06-29T17:21:00.000-07:00

This baby has been on the ground a long while. Grass is growing right in her plastic hair.

Homage to Al Volo

2009-06-29T17:15:00.000-07:00

A stuffed rabbit peeks out from under the weeds - reminding me of all the rabbits created by artist, Al Volo. This cloth bunny is too far decomposed to save.

At the Cargill Superior Grain Elevator

2009-06-29T17:11:00.000-07:00

How did this delicate little rag doll end up beside such a vast looming structure? Does anyone know what her name is?

Urban Hiking - Finding a Burned Out Hobo Camp

2009-06-14T04:38:00.000-07:00

Hiking along railroad tracks near Military Road, we enter the woods and find a hobo encampment. It is laid out very well and obviously used for quite a while before being burned. There's lots of cans of food, crudely opened and cooked.
Did the 'camper' let his fire get out of control? Did the nearest neighbors burn it down to get rid of him? The place reeks of stories.

The Stove

2009-06-14T04:17:00.000-07:00

The bright blue teapot stands out in the rubble, looking ready to boil. Apparently there was a time during the depression when Buffalo was "overwhelmed" with homeless men - mostly migrant workers from the Lake freighters. We wonder what the story is of the people using this particular camp?

A Kitchen Cabinet

2009-06-14T04:13:00.001-07:00

The fire doesn't seem to have damaged any of the trees around the camp but had a great effect on this metal shelving.

The Bedroom

2009-06-14T04:10:00.000-07:00

Some old rags and plastic in a matted down area off to the left side of the camp seems to have been a sleeping area.

The Toilet

2009-06-14T04:06:00.000-07:00

Another mysterious story. Someone had to drag this seat a good distance to place it in this particular spot.

Are we in Monet's Garden?

2009-06-14T03:51:00.000-07:00

Wandering down another narrow path, we suddenly come into a magical sunlight garden of wildflowers and sumac.

Hiking in the Post-Industrial Forest

2009-06-02T07:43:00.000-07:00

In this rust-belt city,
in undesirable, unnoticed,
out-of-the way spaces,
on land that has been exploited,
polluted, abandoned and forgotten,
in the cracks and corners of the city,
Nature fights to renew herself.

Open to the World

2009-06-02T07:36:00.000-07:00

We are hiking around the Cargill Superior grain elevator, close to Tifft Farm. Abandoned since the 60's, it has many openings and is much more accessible than I would have imagined. It also has potholes, ditches and trash. Dangerous in so many ways.

Encountered Inside

2009-06-02T07:29:00.000-07:00

We hear sounds as we enter the enormous interior space. This gang looks like menacing terrorists but they are actually a splat ball team. I think of all the history and uses of this building. These urban explorers are adding another layer to the long story.

Where the Freighters Tied Up

2009-06-02T07:17:00.000-07:00

On the river side of the Cargill is a ledge with massive iron forms. I imagine they were used to tie up the ships while their grain was unloaded. Moss and honeysuckle bushes now grow out of the concrete.

The River Side

2009-06-02T07:08:00.000-07:00

One side of the elevator is on the Buffalo River while the opposite side is covered with train tracks. "Form follows function". Grain scooped from ships, stored and sent out by train.
Now the ledge on the river side is covered with bushes.
We plan to make a trip by canoe next time.

The North Pacific Gyre

2009-05-01T11:32:00.000-07:00

My latest series of large environmental drawings are all about water - particularly the Oceans. News reports about the North Pacific Gyre (also known as the Great Garbage Patch) get me very upset but also inspired to make images and get them out to the public. Whatever we can visualize, we can understand and we can change. I'm playing with ideas for a radical nomadic exhibit that could be easily set up in different locations. Please send me your ideas!

Eve Breaks in to the LA River

2009-05-01T11:26:00.001-07:00

In April I went to visit my daughter, Eve, in LA. Sharing my interest in the environment, she suggests a field trip to "find" the LA River. She preps me with a great essay by nature writer, Jenny Price. Now we are all psyched up but finding the river is not easy! We drive around while checking over maps. Finally find a place to park. Getting to the actual water requires urban hiking of the roughest kind.

The River in a Concrete Straightjacket

2009-05-01T11:14:00.001-07:00

The LA river is many things: an example of bad urban planning, an outsize concrete sewer 51 miles long, a movie set (Terminator 2) and a surface for graffiti and murals. Although efforts are being made to revive it, "it's a miserable spot now, a trash-strewn wasteland of empty lots, steel fences and railroad tracks beneath a tangle of freeway overpasses." Most inhabitants of LA don't realize that it exists.

Where the River meets the Ocean

2009-05-01T11:07:00.000-07:00

Looks quite pretty at this point. We tour the beautiful Aquarium of the Pacific located in Long Beach, California right where the LA River flows out into the Ocean

Watershed exhibit at Long Beach Aquarium

2009-05-01T11:03:00.000-07:00

This exhibit shows how the LA River runs from the mountains down through the city and out to the Pacific. The Aquarium is right where the river meets the Ocean.

Foggy beach on Cape Cod

2009-05-01T10:58:00.000-07:00

After LA, it's on to the East Coast. I bring my 91-year-old parents from their Florida home up to their summer home on the Cape. After a successful journey, I meet up with my husband, Hal. Here he is walking along the beach at South Yarmouth. The atmosphere is foggy, cool and beautiful.

The ever present plastic

2009-05-01T10:54:00.000-07:00

As we walk the beach, we notice, even in this beautiful setting, the remains of balloons mixing with the seaweed

There's A Moon In My Mouth

2009-04-02T14:38:00.001-07:00

Here's another small moon painting. Eve had written a poem with the line "there's a moon in my mouth." Somehow it struck a chord and I had to draw it.

Drawn By The Moon

2009-04-02T14:29:00.000-07:00

I've been working on two series of very large, environmental drawings but sometimes I need to just go back to the core and let out some small, intuitive images. This 8"x 10" pastel painting is about the female/monthly/moon relationship that's always there, whether we acknowledge it or not

VTVPA (Victims of Trafficking & Violence Protection Act)

2009-01-18T18:22:00.000-08:00

Here's an entry I sent out today for the Annual Human Rights Art Exhibition in South Texas College and the University of Monterrey, Mexico.

Allow The Forest

2009-01-18T18:14:00.000-08:00

I've been taking photographs in the most abandoned, polluted, neglected neighborhoods in Buffalo. I don't find these places depressing because what I am seeing is Nature fighting her way back up from the toxic soil. I am dreaming of forests taking back these sites if we can just allow the process.

Trees Growing Right Up From the Basement

2009-01-18T18:12:00.000-08:00

These trees growing through the grate are at the abandoned Catholic Campus on Dodge St. in Buffalo.

Hidden Dump Near Tifft Farm

2009-01-18T18:08:00.000-08:00

Close to Lake Erie is this hidden dumping ground. The trees have matured.

Ready For The Holidays!

2008-11-09T12:15:00.000-08:00

I'm happy to announce that the first edition of 'Buffalo Snow' sold out last year. It's just been reprinted in time for this winter. I'll be doing more book signings around Western New York and I hope I run into you! For my out of town friends, it's available on the Barnes and Noble website. (bn.com)

Hope is Alive

2008-11-09T12:01:00.000-08:00

What a thrill to see the joy around the world over Obama's victory. We're headed into change!

Cold winds blowing in

2008-11-09T11:53:00.000-08:00

The Tifft Nature Preserve on Lake Erie was once a dairy farm. It then became the Buffalo city dump. Only later was it converted into a nature preserve. All the layers of history in the land are still there to be seen. It is a great place to hike and feel the changing weather blowing in over the Lake. It's a place I always get ideas for environmental drawings.

A rainy season

2008-11-09T11:49:00.000-08:00

Is it our imagination or were the leaves especially large and the grasses extremely tall this year?

Recently completed

2008-11-09T11:45:00.003-08:00

A drive by the Niagara Gorge inspired this image. The power towers and electrical lines cover the landscape and we all must adapt to them.

Back in Boston

2008-11-09T11:40:00.000-08:00

We went back to Boston in October. Here's my oldest, dearest high school friend, Sandra Steriti Donahue, whipping up a magnificent Italian meal.

THE BOY IN THE BAG

2008-10-02T18:34:00.001-07:00

This is a recent 30" x 54" drawing on kraft paper. Every year around 500 billion plastic bags are used worldwide. They require 300 years to photodegrade in a landfill. They are everywhere, drifting around and showing up in unexpected places. This image floated up and out of my mind.

THE DEPARTURE

2008-10-02T18:30:00.000-07:00

Here's my pastel painting, The Departure, now showing at the members exhibit at the Carnegie Art Center. It's based on a dream image of a train leaving a station. The colors totally flipped around as I posted this but the effect is interesting!

ROAD TRIP

2008-10-02T17:51:00.000-07:00

I headed out to the countryside this week with three fellow artists - Dotty Fitzgerald, Jane Kaskie and Dana Jenkins. It was time to forget about the gas prices, the financial crisis and the political races and just enjoy the beautiful land along Route 104. We found wonderful people with special talents and stocked up on flowers, pumpkins and gourds. We are ready for the season.

The Ancestral Acres

2008-10-02T17:48:00.000-07:00

Here's Martha's Dried Flower Farm on Route 104 just east of Lockport in the little town of Hartland.

Martha's Barn

2008-10-02T13:51:00.001-07:00

There is nothing like the sweet earthy smell of flowers drying in the barn. A great antidote to city living.

Beautiful Upstate New York

2008-10-02T11:37:00.000-07:00

Here's Dotty, Jane and Dana with Todd Belfield of Jeddo Mills. Todd has an exceptional eye and finds the most remarkable treasures. A great destination!

EVE IN TIJUANA

2008-09-07T11:54:00.000-07:00

My daughter, Eve, just returned from Tijuana, Mexico. She's been down there several times working with the children who live near (and work with their parents in) the Tijuana dump. She helps them tell their stories and map their environment with photography, filmmaking and art projects. This will become part of a larger 'KidsMap' project she is creating. Go Eve!

KIDS MAP IN ACTION - TIJUANA

2008-09-07T11:46:00.000-07:00

Here the kid's are painting a map of their environment.

EVERYTHING WENT WILD THIS SUMMER!

2008-09-07T11:35:00.000-07:00

I'm posting this mess o'weeds for all my Garden Walk friends with beautifully groomed yards. This is what happens when you let everything run wild. I was busy working on a series of large drawings this summer and decided I didn't have time to pull even one weed. The invasives (you know which ones they are) choked out all the delicate beauties. Darwin's survival of the fittest in action.

SLIGHTLY NEW STUDIO ADDRESS

2008-09-07T11:30:00.000-07:00

Last month I moved my studio at the TriMain from 547 to 543. Now I am happily sharing space with Dorothy Fitzgerald and Jane Kaskie. It's a huge room and my studio mates are great. Please stop by and visit!

THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF LOVE CANAL

2008-09-07T11:16:00.000-07:00

This is strange. I couple of months ago I visited Love Canal and was struck by its eerie atmosphere - the chain link fence without public entrance, the pipes and mysterious measuring equipment, all in an almost park-like setting. I felt compelled to make this drawing. (The ball is a take-off on the hazard symbol used by first responders.) As I was finishing it, I was surprised to find out that August was the 30th Anniversary of the Love Canal Disaster and Lois Gibbs was in town. Synchronicity?

THE UNDERGROUND RIVER

2008-08-28T07:05:00.000-07:00

Here are a few images from the 'Underground River' show first hung at the C.G. Jung Center in Buffalo, NY this year.

The unconscious mind, moving like water, swirls, flows, boils and churns, tiding in and out, pulled back and forth by the moon.

It flows everywhere and into everything, composing every cell of the body, filling up and flowing out of us again.

Sometimes we can peer into that mind, that underground river, and see things moving in the water - all manner of objects and creatures and try to catch them with our nets. But they can never be fully known and are always changing.

2008-08-28T07:03:00.000-07:00

'Swimming in Murky Waters'

25" x 31"

Pastel on paper

2008-08-28T06:55:00.000-07:00

'From The Aquarium'

66" x 30"

Pastel on paper

2008-08-28T06:48:00.000-07:00

'At The Edge'

26" x 32"

Pastel on paper

2008-08-28T06:46:00.000-07:00

'Scream'

25" x 31"

2008-08-28T06:42:00.000-07:00

'Net Fishing'

41" x 57"

Pastel on paper

Austin

2008-08-27T17:53:00.000-07:00

If you have ever been to Austin Texas, you probably know about millions of bats that live under the bridge downtown and swarm out at night. They left an impression on me and came out in this drawing.

The Hoop

2008-08-27T17:47:00.000-07:00

Now at the Collector's Gallery at the Albright/Knox

Little Devil

2008-08-27T17:45:00.000-07:00

Now in the Collector's Gallery at the Albright/Knox

Pastel on seven feet of brown kraft paper

2008-08-27T17:41:00.000-07:00

'The Tide is Rising' now showing at Hallwalls Members' show

Now showing around Buffalo

2008-08-27T17:13:00.000-07:00

Have patience please while I learn to Blog.

First, I've moved my studio from Suite 547 at the TriMain to 543. (Now sharing space with Dotty Fitzgerald.) I'm trying to post a few works that are currently showing at different venues around town.