Elemental Sisterhood 2015: Synchronicity

It has been two years since we last convened, and this time there are three of us collaborating in the show. This time our theme is "Synchronicity".
We wanted to engage the greater community and so decided that we would invite people to decorate flags for some bunting that would be strewn throughout our show. Not sure how it would go, we were amazed at all of the different types of folks that came to contribute their creativity.

A little bit about synchronicity, and in our own words:

Synchronicity

Synchronicity is a concept created by psychiatrist Carl Jung, which holds that events are "meaningful coincidences" if they occur with no apparent causal relationship, yet seem to be meaningfully related. Jung's belief was that, just as events may be connected by causality, they may also be connected by meaning. When meeting for the first time this year to discuss the possibility of another Elemental Sisterhood group show, the artists, Cynthia Huerta, Maggie Tello-Case and Selena Wilson, discovered that they all had many thoughts, events and occurrences seemingly coinciding with each other, as well as similar feelings about what they each wanted to explore in their art for the show. A strong sense of connectedness emerged and ideas seemed to cascade and overlap with each other, even though the artists had not actually spoken for some time. After that initial meeting, all three felt a strong affinity for the word “Synchronicity” to describe what they were experiencing and the theme of the show was born. Below, each artist gives voice to their thoughts on Synchronicity in terms of the show and their art.

Cynthia Huerta

Lately life has been about everything falling into place and synching together. This collaborative show has been an experience that has reestablished my belief in women working together in a positive and encouraging environment. To me "Synchronicity" is a show that brings everything around me in full circle. Where the past and present meet to form a union of the upmost sincerity.

Maggie Tello-Case

Having worked with these artists before, I knew that we were all capable of working very well together and creating something special; when we met to discuss plans for the show, we all were delighted and a bit taken aback at how easily ideas seemed to come together.  We all had very similar feelings about where we each were in our lives emotionally and as artists, so we decided to explore that sense of connected experiences in the theme of our show. What has resulted is very much a labor of love, not only love for each other but also for our community.

Selena Wilson

Synchronicity is the universe’s way of letting us know we are on the right path and that everything is interconnected. When I notice little synchronicities in my life it is a comfort and reassurance. Working together in collaboration with the community, and with my elemental sisters, I was curious to see what imagery emerged that would reflect our shared consciousness.

Earth Day 2015

Happy Earth Day! I wrote this "Pledge of Allegiance" last year. Share if you agree! :)

Bees!

It was two years ago while I was on Spring break when I got a wild hair. I called my friend Bob (who is a third generation bee keeper and former farmer) to ask if he knew where I could get my own bee hive. "You're in luck!" he said. Apparently, just the week before his neighbor complained to code enforcement about Bob's backyard bees. They had claimed nuisance before. So Bob, who just acquired his newest swarm the week before that when they landed (as they do every year) on a tree in his yard, was already wondering what to do with his beloved bees.

He stuffed a paper towel into the hive box opening that night when they were all inside, and drove them in the cab of his truck just before sunrise the next morning 25 miles to my house. I had the spot all set up for him to plop the box (gently!) onto. He pulled the towel out and we ran!

I watched them as they slowly acclimated and then began flying off to do their thing. This hive colony has been strong and healthy since then. I absolutely love my bees! I have learned a lot, and continue to learn each time I mess with them. 

I sit and watch their beehavior. 

My little honeybee on the lavender.

Honeycomb:

Although I learned from my bee mentors that I should put wires in the frames (to help them build the comb) and to buy wax foundation (factory made wax sheets for the bees to build off of), I naturally have forged my own path. I figured, "the bees probably know how to build their comb , who am I to enforce some factory made design upon their instincts". Plus, I am not too big on doing all this organic honey thing only to begin the whole process with something made in a factory with who knows what inside of it. Therefore, my bees make their own wax that miraculously seems to stay in place without wires. Sometimes the comb is stuck together between frames, but I'm not complaining. Neither are my bees. I think its healthier to trust in their instincts for building how they need to build. When you give them a wax pre-fab, the size and shape of all of their cells becomes dictated. They copy it like a template. So I let them do the designing.

For the love of honaaaaaaay

I have my O.G. deep hive, my regular super, and a mini-super on top of that. I just take honey from the top super, figure they make babies in the bottom one and store honey in the middle one. This is what you call "bearding". They do this for a number of reasons: overcrowding, temperature control, preparing to swarm.

Harvest from April 2015. Three mini super frames and one regular super frame.

Rendered wax. I have made lip balms out of it. I refine the left over mash after straining honey from the comb.

My fancy extraction method...

casualty, collateral damage

One of my first harvests before I got my supers. This frame is from the deep hive.

Riverside Restore's Artist Showcase for Habitat for Humanity

welcome home!

The Habitat for Humanity's Riverside Restore has put together this awesome showcase to celebrate it's anniversary. They selected 40 artists to create with dollhouses and plaques. These will be on display for the August Artswalk at the Riverside Main Library and remain on display for the rest of the month (in case you can't make it for artswalk). Here is a link to the Press Enterprise article. Many talented artists have donated their time for this unique event.
For this project I joined forces with my Grandmother, mother, daughter, and son. It was a four generations collaboration! It was very gratifying to work together on this project which helps to aid other families in acquiring their first home. The home is the foundation of any family, and we were very honored to contribute our art to this cause. Our home(s) have always been eclectic places strewn with remnants of our creative pursuits and passions. We titled our dollhouse "Home is where dreams grow". Almost everything in the house was re-used, re-purposed, or purchased from thrift stores originally. We all put together our odds and ends to create this dream home.
From the living room on the bottom left we begin with my grandmothers room. She wanted morning glories in a mural in a garden room with plenty of flowers and birds. To the right we have my mothers christmas room full of glittery delights; it's her favorite season! She extends her style in the room directly above in her "mexicali" room. Wall-papered with spanish classifieds and cartoons, the decor is not unlike that of her actual home- colorful and festive. To the left is my room inspired by magical forest fairy-folk, with prisms hanging from the window and a copper penny floor. Cute little mushroom fabric pillows were made by mom mom. My window is the entrance to the patio roof where I can sit on the bench and watch the world go by. I grow upstairs into the middle room that is an art studio. The entire third floor has a sunrise mural on the back wall that spreads into my two children's rooms. Kaelah's room has a pile of treasures that stretches across her floor, threatening to take over the house! Overflowing with music, photography, art, and especially books, she really captured the essence of her environment. To my right is Roulan's room. This young artist has a wall of melted crayon and a drawing of a "cool scientist chameleon" on the other wall. His bed is made from colored pencils.
The house is topped with a green roof where butterflies can rest as the chimney bellows puffs of love!!!!

you can vote for your favorite dollhouse or plaque at this link here
http://www.riversiderestore.org/15years/gallery

  

"Home is where dreams go" garden room by Patricia Hill (my granny)

Christmas season room by my mom (Belvia Bailey)

mexicali room

my magical dream room

kaelah's beautiful mess of aspirations

Roulans crazy room of creativity

My mom and I delivering our finished dollhouse. We almost melted, it was 115 that day!!!!!!