Doodling

Bead Journal Project and Sumptuous Surfaces have encouraged me to try and draw.

Trying to do fairies from a book by Linda Ravenscroft, proved very amusing, and I was pleasantly surprised by the result.

Linda Ravenscroft is a talented fairy artist, you can check her website here.

Little Big Ego

Little Big Ego - June 2008

Most of the time, I try to be good. Sometimes I pray, sometimes I meditate, sometimes I reflect on my good points and bad points. Most of the time I try to act and speak in fairness, i try to control my passions.

Sometimes, it pays off ; I feel calm, centered and in harmony. Then I'm happy and I feel I'm a worthy person, that I'm making progress (where to, what for, that's another question).

However after each period of fullfillment I get visits from very interesting creatures. Their leader is Little Big Ego. He is somebody, very full of himself. He screams and makes scenes. He says nobody ever listens to him enough, nobody takes him seriously enough and so on. He is very big, and very melodramatic. He has only a head, and no body.

Over Time, I have learnt he really wants me to pat his hand and give him a cuppa. So I try do do this.

To draw him, I was inspired by a fabulous drawing by Sydney Sime (1867-1941), diciple of Beardsley, which I saw in London a few months ago.

(c) Sydney Sime, "The Wily Grasser"
Fitwilliam Museum, Cambridge

My first me me

Local organic market

Beadbabe has tagged me to do a meme. I don't usually do these, they make me feel unconfortable for some reason, although I love to read them on other blogs... But Beadbabe's blog was one of my first favourite bead blog so I can only say yes ! :o)

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?
10 years ago I was living in a country village near my parents and sister, and working as a part-time secretary for my dad (he worked as an independent). I was desperately trying to be a good wife, and a good mother to my 5 year old. I was part of school committees. I was a lousy gardner and housekeeper (still am). I read a lot of thrillers and detective stories, mostly american, and was an expert on Lara Croft...

2. 5 things on today's to-do list?

Well, I don't do lists, working as a temp, everyday is quite different and I change priorities all the time (thus the name of this blog Hummingbird's nest).

- Today, we all woke up early because my youngest daughter was leaving for a 10 days school trip.
- Next I started my intensive German lessons, 4 hours a day, financed by the region (I've been waiting for these to start since october 2007).
- Then I waited for my caretaker to fix the non existing aeration of my bathroom which caused two light bulbs to explode recently (I've had to hassle the landlord to do something about this for almost 2 years).
- I will definitely spend some time on the internet checking emails and blogs and trying to keep an eye on my eldest daughter's MSN conversations
- I hope to do some beading/doodling, if I can get off the internet.

3. Snacks I enjoy?

France is not really a snacking country, as family seated meals are almost sacred ! :o)
Lately we've had the tendancy to take aperitif while cooking the evening meal with my boyfriend. Usually it will be saucisson (dried sausage), olives, homos, tarama, red cabbage salad, spicy carots or other delicatessen preparations we buy at the local supermarket... and wine !

If I skip lunch because I'm doing something else, I will usually gulp down saucisson, soft smelly cheese (camembert), sometimes biscuits (but I don't buy the kind I like) with tea at 4 o'clock. i tend to drink a lot of herb teas though.

4. Things I'd do if I were a billionaire?

I'm not sure. I believe in collective action. I believe most problems in the world could be solved if we would all put ourselves together.

Maybe I would fund research for ecological and economical technologies, and the transfer of these technologies to emerging countries. Maybe I would also fund a society to encourage people to go back to old age medecine for the little sores of everyday (using herbs and massage and so on). But in a way I am already doing this on a very modest scale.

I also like Beadbabe's idea of doing an artist community building.

5. Places I have lived?

Fontainebleau, France
Paris, France
London, UK

6. Peeps I want to know more about?

I will try to tag somebody who hasn't already been tagged so I will tag :

Caroll Lenthall
Tally
Sulam Sayang (BJP 2008 member)
Sewing Magpie
Ulla

May BJP : Serpent Wisdom

"Serpent Wisdom"

And so, this is my final page for the Bead Journal Project 2007. I'm a little late. it's because I didn't want the experience to stop. Ah well, I have enrolled in Bead journal Project 2008 so I'm not too sad...

In this page, I have made hints to the two powerful dreams I had in India. In the first one, I dreamt my favourite ring lost it's garnet stone and that I couldn't repair it. This actually happened a few weeks later during the month of May when I apparently lost the stone on the beach, helping my kids and nephews to build a hole in the beach - will I ever learn to take care of my things ? lol

Second dream involved a serpent who tried to kiss me. I was quite uncomfortable with this, as I kept thinking about Eve and Jungle Book Kaa. Then I listened to the wonderful audiotape by Clarissa Pinkola Estes In the House of the Riddle Mother. It reminded me that snakes and serpents are powerful archetypes that are found all around the World. Often (even in the Bible), they are associated with trees worship, wisdom, the Goddess Mother, spirituality, life (DNA)... Sometimes they come to teach us how to move gracefully through the ups and downs of life, says Pinkola Estes, as snakes are at home on earth, in water and even in air since they are able to jump. Wow. I recognised then that this dream was a gift.

Thinking back on one year of Bead Journal Project, I realized what a great year it has been for me. Since I enrolled in this project, I found the courage to do a shamanic retreat, and to fulfill a dream I'd had since I was a teenager ; going to India. This year I have grown as an artist (hey I said artist !) and as a person. Also I have met many wonderful people. It is a year to remember.

Last June, I was feeling sad and beaded a mourning Coyote. This May I was a little sad too, and decided that this page would be a pendant to the Coyote piece. Thus the mischievous snake wisdom. Also you can see in the page of motive from Robin Atkin's new book Hearts to Hand Bead Embroidery.

Babies growing

The end of the school year is near, and I have to admit my babies are growing up... The youngest is playing Athena with her theatre group. The elder is well into her teenage years - said her headteacher yesterday : "is she a real nuisance yet ?". Apparently we didn't give the right answer...

A pleasant surprise !

This morning, I got a pleasant surprise in the post ; a little parcel from the United States !

Had I not seen the name on the packet, I would've guessed it was from a pink artist friend !
Look all these beauties, there's even a little champagne, isn't this sumptuous ?

Thanks a million, Grace !

Traces du Sacré

Yesterday we went to see the exhibition "Traces du Sacré", an exploration of the relations between art and spirituality in the 20th Century.

Many beautiful paintings were to be seen. I was moved in particular by paintings from the US psychedelic art movement. There were two major painting by Isaac Abrams : All Things are OneThing and Flying Leap.

(c) Isaac Abrams - All Things are One Thing

(c) Isaac Abrams - Flying Leap

And also by the famous Franz Marc painting :

(c) Franz Marc - Horse in a Landscape (1910)