When Wylde Women Work

Years ago, I had the great fortune to meet a very dynamic, engaging and talented sculptor Tammy Vitale at the Del Rey Artisans gallery. I had four paintings displayed, Tammy had several of her sculpted works  placed about the show. The admiration was mutual. I've always loved the energy and pure spirit of her earthen and glass works and have been thrilled to have several of her pieces in my home.

Tammy is a both a professional and natural organizer, so it was no surprise that she was the driving force behind the "Wylde Women", a loose group of talent and drive that was born of Southern Maryland women artists. Though my path led in another direction, Tammy keeps that energy alive and constantly moves forward in both her work and her passion.

So, when our paths crossed again at ArtoMatic 2008, Tammy again swept me up in her creative whirlwind and gave me two of her raw torso sculptures to "tattoo". Leave it to a woman with this sort organizational genius to figure out how to combine my craft with her art. She's truly a "weaver".

The result was two works, based on my own love of spiritual symbolism and traditional tattoo art. "Erzulie Freda" and "Damballah".  At this time, they reside in our private collections.

Tammy's work and blog can be found here. She's well worth a visit.

http://www.TammyVitale.com/

Roses and Ribbons

Kimberley and I spent the day finishing her antique ribbon and floral belt. She's amazing...she sat through all the color without moving a muscle. Honestly, she was sleeping at one point.

Tomorrow, I may have to kayak to work if Hannah has her way with the DC area.

Bloom Where You're Planted

After two weeks away, I'm happy to be back in my little studio at Britishink, cat

ching up on email and drawings. Traveling was nice, but a few days at home in Maryland was just as sweet and time on the Patuxent River in a kayak rivals any vacation destination. 

Hey Cyn, Where Y'at?

I finally took a real break. An honest to goodness, real live vacation type break. One that didn't involve disaster relief and rebuilding, caring for a parent, or a soccer ball. 

I didn't pick up a pencil once.

Well, okay...that's  bit of a fib. I worked on a joint project with a Maryland sculptor that's near completion. Other than that, it was simply time in the kitchen, time with the family, time with the camera, and time in New Orleans and New York. And all that time was good. And relaxing. 

I'll be back in the studio September 2nd. I miss it.

And next time, I won't wait as long to take another break. It was good for the soul.

Let me bore you with a few vacation pictures!

Candy Colored!

Isn't she lovely? 

Shawna, the model, is a beautiful muse and owner of the Passionflower backpiece we created together. I have always loved this tattoo. I admired her for her stamina during it's application and deeply appreciated her patience while we worked toward it's completion. 

And damn, she wears it well.

Recently, she went to visit photographer Stacey Barich of Atomic Cheesecake Studio

s (www.atomiccheesecakestudios.com). Stacey is a master of reproducing the classic, timeless art of American "cheesecake" photography. It's a candy colored, Aquanet, and vintage prop whirlwind of sheer fun and the lady knows her craft. 

I can't recommend a visit to Atomic Cheesecake Studios enough! To view more of her work, visit her flickr site at http://www.flickr.com/photos/actiongirl.

I did.

Tattoo Savage Magazine, July 2008

As if we didn't have enough fun at the  2008 Baltimore Convention, celebrating Britishink's 1 year anniversary, Britishink received a nice reminder of that weekend and a few pages dedicated to the studio in July's issue of "Tattoo Savage". It's available on news stands June 3rd.

Congratulations to my friend and studio-bud, Paul Roe, for starting such a wonderful place to ply my inky trade alongside him.