Following the Rules...or Not

 Maybe it was growing up in a military household where following orders, chain of command, commanding officer, first sergeant, k.p., restricted to quarters and insubordination were concepts dealt with almost daily, but I really....really...hate to follow orders.  And, interestingly, that translates into "directions".

When I get a new gadget, toy, tool, device...I see if I can operate it before reading the instructions.  If I can't, I will resort to reading the instructions or directions.... but I always start at the bottom and read up to where I "get it".  Infantile.  I know.  It's just so darn hard to break the pattern.

One of the challenges on the design wall for Sisters is to use postage stamps selected from Vivika Denegre's stash of vintage stamps.  As everyone felt a bit overwhelmed at that moment, the decision was made that the dimensions for this challenge would be "small".  We had just had a demo from Jane Davila on mixed media and were chomping to get started.  While not explicit, the understanding was that this was to be a small, mixed media piece to show along with a larger work at our December exhibit at the Guilford Free Library gallery.

We also had already committed to a "larger" challenge using Indigo as the basis.

Too Close to The Sun 171/2" x 19 1/2"

Too Close to the Sun detail

I didn't want to use the stamps themselves so I printed them.  The idea to use them came from the recent Mars exploration of NASA's Curiosity...of course, there isn't a stamp for it...yet.  The other bit of synchronicity was my purchasing two schnibbles of marbled cloth at the Lowell show that looked like the surface of the sun.  That's when the concept began to jell.  I used stamps commemorating Viking missions to Mars, Skylab, Pioneer Jupiter and First Man on the Moon.

I'm sharing this on Friday at our regular meeting.  I guess I'll find out how off message I am with my piece that is not really small and is not mixed media.  Anyone have any words of wisdom for me...besides psychoanalysis?   ;^)