Costume drama, and mystery

Wish I could tell you where these spectacular women are from, but I haven't a clue. They're part of the humungous new stash and were in a pile of pages that had been a book about costumes. But, no title page. No engraver listed on the pages. No publisher either. If you have spotted these some place else, please, please, please let me know.

Each is hand-painted and a fairly sizable 9" x12" or so. My first thought was to have them floating. Now, I am thinking they'd be swell cake toppers. I have an exhibit coming up in February at Cincinnati's Bonbonerie bakery's cafe and had been thinking about a new collage take on cakes anyway - and calling the exhibit, wait for it, yes, Let Them Eat Cake ...  

The stash just got larger

What can I say?!? I succumbed when a friend told me that he was destashing his long-time print collection. Once the drawers of the flat files were opened, I was a goner. Not a good time to even think about sorting it all, but it MUST be done. There are Open Studios at my studio home - Brazee Street Studios - Friday night. Aieeeeee.

The art of adornment

Victor/Victorian
Geoffrey Firmly Believed in the Maxim that
the Ability to Accessorize
Is What Separates Us from the Animals
mixed-media collage: antique engravings (The Delineator, April 1894 & June 1898),
photo (J.H. Meyer Photographic Studio, 465 Vine St., Cincinnati) and endpaper,
recycled bead catalog, vintage button (Polly Pearce collection), watercolor, ink.

I offered a preview of the new Victor/Victorian series a week ago and am circling back to it now, because it's done. Well, almost. Going to the framer tomorrow.

Some of the  photo collages are inserted into antique album sleeves, while others -  like this one - are on antique endpapers. The endpaper collages may or may not be trimmed, depending on the frames selected. I'm checking out a local framer with a stock of antique frames. Cannot wait to see what they have on hand.

You'll note that Geoffrey is even more adorned via the addition of the colorful hat pin, some feathers and a rhinestone button from my late mother-in-law's button collection. Oh, and the has title changed, too. Could even change again ... you know how I am.    

Another new cast of characters, Italian-style

A few weeks ago I wrote about a food-related collage that I was struggling with. It was a commission loosely based on a piece created for an exhibit earlier this year. A print of the original would have been fine BUT I had forgotten to scan that collage into the computer. Well, the final piece - above - came out fine, even though I had to take it apart to get it there.

An armored knight was central to the earlier collage, as well as this one. The difference though is that the first one was a black-and-white engraving of a standing knight, while this one is a splendidly-outfitted and beautifully-colored knight and horse.

The image is from Costumi Dei Secoli, a spectacular book of hand-painted engravings published in Florence, Italy, in 1837. The two-volume set is falling apart and heavily foxed, but the prints are in remarkably fine condition once you get past the edges.

The art details costumes worn by people depicted in well-known paintings, sculptures and monuments of the time - and each is accompanied by a description. In Italian, of course. I've been scanning the images into my archive - there are close to one hundred 8.5" x 12" plates - and wanted to share a few that you're sure to see popping up in future collages ...

A new cast of characters with special meaning

I've raided my ever-growing stash of Victorian photos and am working on a series that continues my exploration of gender roles. But, this time, it's men who are undergoing a gender bending.

I wanted to explore the stigma attached to being gay during the Victorian era, but do it in a humorous way. For example, the titles on the pieces above are "Geoffrey believed in the power of accessorizing"(left) and "Charles wondered whether the sleeves were a bit much."

The series is tentatively titled, Victor Victorian and is dedicated to my late brother David, who would have been 58 today. He was an early AIDS victim and one of the warmest-hearted people in the world. I've written about him in the past, noting that the drawing table in my studio was a gift from him when I was in college. The plan is to donate part of the money from sales to Aids Volunteers of Cincinnati (AVOC).

I know these new collages would have made David laugh. Out loud.