The last gasp of summer art

So much (art) to see, so much to do in August before we buckle down to the serious business of fall. 

Humaira Abid, "Self-Portrait" (left); June Sekiguchi, "How to Wrap Three Eggs" (right)

For a few more days at ArtXchange Gallery, you can let June Sekiguchi's  "Waterfall" wash over you...

"Waterfall" at ArtXchange Gallery until August 27, 2016.

The Seattle Art Fair is long gone, but good news -- you still have two more weekends to be floored by the contemporary Northwest art at "Out of Sight."

Left to right: works by Ka'ila Farrell Smith, Tariqa Waters & Amanda Kirkhuff at "Out of Sight."

And I've dived deep into all the gorgeousness.  

Rose Blake, "Selfie Garden" (detail) at Rebecca Hossack Gallery booth, Seattle Art Fair

But I'm backing away now, before I start comparing my ideas unfavorably to theirs. Which is just one of many ways to feel miserable as an artist.

A visitor to the Centennial Center Gallery admires my work. ©Lisa Myers Bulmash

So though I hope you go and see my work at the Centennial Center Gallery -- before August 29th! -- I hope you won't see much of me for awhile. Things to do, stuff to make... you understand.

Work-in-progress: lots of little steps

I'm tackling four big ol' collages (36" x 48" each) simultaneously. Which means lots of little bitty steps that have to be done four times over.

I've had the images printed out on a large scale at the copy shop...

They know me a little too well here. Surprised they don't run and hide. ©Lisa Myers Bulmash

then I age the paper...

and realize some of them won't work for what I have in mind...

aaaand go back to the print shop. Aaaggghhh. Fortunately, the fun part is yet to come. It involves railroad spikes!

New art: "Was It Something I Said?"

Hey, I'm back! And I brought some new artwork with me.

This collage put me through the emotional wringer, even though the concept came fairly quickly. Remember the inspiration for this collage? 

Looking at this picture is like trying to watch three TV screens at once. Remembering that moment, I'm pretty sure my mom was just chilly and impatient to get back into the warm car. But now I also see uncertainty in her face.

She grew up surrounded by other African Americans in the (segregated) South. You could tell because when she said the letter R, it had two syllables.

I grew up in a southern California neighborhood that had only three other black families. All of them lived on the other side of the street -- the side without a view of the city. (I later learned this was a discriminatory realtor trick my mom recognized, and she insisted on the view.)

When I moved to Seattle, my accent didn't set me apart, but I did feel an isolation similar to hers. It's called "the Seattle Freeze," and I couldn't find a way into a social circle until another California transplant made it her mission to bring me in from the cold.

My friend reassured me I wasn't coming on too strong when trying to meet new people. It was just... Seattle.  That's why I titled this piece "Was It Something I Said?"

This collage is for those who've faced a frosty group and struggled to find a place for themselves.