Anything but Ants Please

Skull Project Revisited

2009-06-27T10:56:00.001-07:00

Finally finished Dutch. Friesen painted to look like Delft-Ware.

Detail with eye and jaw.

Forehead detail.

Gracias hung for display.

Eye and jaw detail.

Forhead detail.

Now only a dozen or so more to go.

A Rockin' Post

2009-06-21T11:45:00.001-07:00

Kimmy has her bat ears on.

High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon.

There were several amazing bronzes of bat faces. Unbelievably cool.

so cute.

This is Thomas, he lives at the High Desert Museum.

This is one of the types of fossils we found on our "dig".

Ted finding fossils.

This is what the dig looks like behind the high-school in the town of fossil.

Believe it or not this is in John Day fossil beds. These are the Palisades and many fossils of plants, sticks, seeds and trees can be seen along this trail.

These formations look similar to the "hoodoos" in Bryce, but while the Bryce formations are sand-stone these were fomed by ancient Lahars.

true.

2009-05-25T11:39:00.000-07:00

Just because I collect cats, doesn't mean I collect cat knick knacks. Okay? Okay.

2009-05-11T19:59:00.001-07:00

2009-05-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

Hey. It's me.

May 1st, First Friday Art Night & my new series "Sixty Years in Sixty Days, A Whimsical Journey through the Chinese Zodiac"

Ravenna!!!

2009-03-12T15:08:00.000-07:00

Ravenna at Wildlife Images.

Ravenna and the Chicken Hamster that sings the Chicken Dance Song.

Chicken, Ravenna and Lion

Ravenna's Story

2009-02-24T15:47:00.000-08:00

Shhh. Don't tell. This is the book and stuffed animals I made for my sweet little Great-Niece Ravenna for her third birthday. Click here to see the story.

ants?

2009-02-08T13:04:00.000-08:00

This arrived in the mail about a month ago, but alas, because of all of the reading required for school I have barely cracked it open. Maybe my reward for doing well on mid-terms will be I get to read a chapter.

And. I know. This blog is supposed to be anything but ants... but, you know how ants are... where there is one.... more are sure to follow.

New Years Day Hike

2009-01-15T08:26:00.001-08:00

My girlfriend Teresa and I went for an amazing hike just down the road from her house on New Years Day. The air was moist and crisp.

Just a slight breeze, the trees are waving their colored prayer flags.

I won't say where this place is, not that it is a secret, but there are a lot of hateful fundamentalist rednecks around here and I wouldn't want to put the retreat's peacefullness in danger.

This is Buddha Padmasambhava, he was recognized as the second incarnation of Buddha and was responsible for founding the Tibetan school of Buddhism. Lama's from Tibet came to the retreat several years ago to erect this concrete Buddha. Looking at the picture to the left of the Buddha housed is a large prayer wheel that spins continuously.

New Project- Delft

2009-01-15T08:23:00.000-08:00

This is Delft. That was the cow's name. I am painting her in a delftware pattern taken from Ted's Grandparent's wedding vase.

Random Holiday Pictures

2008-12-30T11:57:00.000-08:00

Our visit to the bay area to see my family.

Our niece Chloe is so gentle and sweet

Tristin is sweet too and very playful

Me and my brother, Jeremy.

A nice sunny day to play soccer

Wildcats!

Tristin taking Chloe for a drive on his John Deer. He is making sure he runs everything over to his sister's dismay.

Back in Oregon for my birthday. Ted gave me a pinata, what I always wanted. It is the most awesome pinata ever! My present was inside... lots and lots of dark chocolate and waded up money.

Dia de los Muertos- Tribute to my Grandparents

2008-11-08T19:55:00.001-08:00

Me and my grandparents, Bapa and Fluffy, used to go swimming at the pool. My grandpa Bapa had to take out his contacts and wear his big black glasses which he called his eyes so he could see. His glasses made his eyeballs look really big. When he smiled his eyes smiled too. My grandma Fluffy always wore a swim cap when she was in the pool. Her swim caps were very colorful and made of rubber and they even had rubber flowers on them. My grandma Fluffy was very light and could never dive or sink to the bottom of the pool.

Hand sewn (except the fancy border, I did that on my singer), made from wool felt and felt that was made from recycled plastic bottles.

Pumpkin Carvin

2008-10-27T22:07:00.000-07:00

These are all pumpkins that we grew in our garden this year, this totem pole is about 3 feet high.

Also... had to carve the kitty pumkin, the teeth are made from the seeds.

Art Studio Progress and Completion

2008-09-22T19:25:00.000-07:00

Here is Ted. Ted is the best. Ted spent his entire summer building us an art studio. This is a picture of Ted before he knew what he was getting into.

This hole is where an old tree stump was that we had to remove and fill in with rock.

Step 1: Foundation

Completed insulated foundation.

Raising of the first wall.

Two

three walls

Ok, we'll just skip to 4 walls, some windows, Tyvek and partial siding.

After building the trusses we put them up.

half the trusses and some plywood for the roofing.

Whew! Finally all of the trusses are up.

Primer paint.

We painted the studio Enchanted Forest, Pacific Pine and the trim is Corn Husk.

Come on in, it is time to play.

Going back in time for a second... dry wall....ugh!

Hi Ted!

Floor Prep.

Flooring, check. Window trim, check. Base boards, check.

Ok... time to move in!

Kimmy's first project. I am making a squirrel gargoyle.....he he he.

Clay studio side, complete with throwing wheel (not shown) table, drying rack and slab roller.

Library.

Painting side.

Painting and drawing side and front door.

Front Door.

The view into the garden from the painting side. (Also my new series of paintings, dancing chickens, becawk!)

The building took Ted all summer to build, he insulated the "beejebers" out of it with plenty of ventalation. His attention to detail was phenominal and the work space is totally functional. Good Job Ted!!!

and Thanks

Arrgh! Pirates!

2008-09-10T15:41:00.000-07:00

now everybody is a Pirate.

Garden Labels

2008-09-07T16:13:00.000-07:00

The rest of the garden will be jealous now....

Soybeans, Rubarb, Strawberries, Lettuce, Cilantro, Mustard Greens, Sweet Peppers, Anaheim Peppers, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Mint, Oregano, Pumpkins, Zucchini and *sigh* Crookneck Squash.

Some de Young (de Jong) Family History

2008-09-03T18:57:00.000-07:00

Aboard the "Rotterdam" in New York, 1963. On their way back from Holland after Ted's Christening.

Beverly holding Ted, Jake, Ginny, Rita and Esther.

Cousins.

Rita, Ginny, Jacob Jukema, Esther all at the Jukema farm.

Ted's Christening day.
Naije Jukema, Piet Oppedijk, Dieke Jukema, Bouwe de Jong, Afke Jukema, LaRita (Rita) de Young, Beverly de Young, Virginia (Ginny) de Young, Esther de Young, Sjoetji Oppedijk

Ted and his dad Jake. Ted's Christening gown was made from a silk WWII parachute.

Jake (Ted's dad) at a friends house from the Dutch Underground days. His friend hid hand granades in her elderly father's bed when the Germans came to search their house. Jake escaped just ahead of the raid.

Cafe where Jake escaped from the Germans. He hid his gun in a flower vase. If he would have been found with a gun he would have been killed no questions asked. The story is that later the owner of the cafe found the gun and renamed the cafe something like "Gun in the Flower Pot" Cafe.

Rein Bridge where Jake was shot. (He suffered from the wound for the rest of his life.) Jake hid under a plateform in the canal and later swam to a farm house. Jake's mission was to slow down the German retreat by jamming the bridge.

A Windmill. Windmill Leyendikkeis

It was used as a landmark and lookout station/guardpost 1940-1945. Weapons moved through canal to the farm.

Beverly's 81st B-day

2008-09-02T11:48:00.001-07:00

We went for a drive along the Illinois River out of Selma in Southern Oregon.

Teddy and Beverly

Rita and Beverly

Tedward and Kimmy on the swinging bridge

Kimmy! You are such a daredevil.

Rita gave Bev a Mama Mia Soundtrack CD

Rita and Bev dancin' to Mama Mia

Preserving the Garden

2008-08-28T18:13:00.000-07:00

Basil, tomato, and cayanne.

Rare Plant Hike- Deer Creek Center, Selma Oregon

2008-08-13T22:02:00.000-07:00

Ted took these fantastic pictures of Darlingtonia Californica on our hike at the Deer Creek Center in Selma Oregon.

The fen runs down 8 dollar mountain.

I wonder what the fate of this curious ant might be.

Attack Squash!

2008-08-07T16:53:00.001-07:00

Wow. that is some zucchini.

Really?

2008-08-06T12:19:00.000-07:00

I wonder if the Mccain Doll comes with Hawaiian shirts and Baja shorts?

Lava Beds Natn'l Monument (California)- Batty Weekend

2008-07-15T16:43:00.000-07:00

Raid

2008-07-01T07:34:00.001-07:00

Studio Progress

2008-07-01T07:32:00.000-07:00

Gracias and Tumblin' Turtle

2008-05-23T15:28:00.000-07:00

Tumblin' Turtle, Acrylic on Masonite

Gracias. Acrylic on Long-Horn Skull.
She is coming along fine.

The Gardens

2008-05-19T16:09:00.001-07:00

Wait'n for the Sun

Oh Yum, Fresh lettuce and Spinach!!!

A little too much sun for the Peas. It went from 65 degrees to 100 degrees in a week! Ack!

Herb Garden, my first time laying stone. So much leveling!

Herb garden and all of it's tasty treats.

Zen Garden after winter.

Zen Garden in Spring, with Fence and junk removed.

Oh so nice.

Wild Flower Hike in Southern Oregon

2008-04-13T18:54:00.001-07:00

Ted took these wonderful pictures using his macro lense. This is just some of the wildflowers we encountered on our hike today.

Field Larkspur (Delphinium)

Feild Larkspur (Delphinium)

We suspect this Salmon colored Delphinium was a hybrid of the violet one above and the scarlet one below.

Field Larkspur (Delphinium)

Husks of some flower, growing out of granite cliffs.

Unidentified, growing out of granite cliffs.

Prairie Star (Lithophragma parviflorum)

Rosy Plectritis (Plectritis congesta)

Yellow Monkey Flower (Mimulus guttatus)

Tinie-tiny belly flower. You have to get on your belly to see this one. I haven't been able to identify this one yet.

Common Brodiaea (Brodiaea capitata)

Yellow Monkey Flower and Naked Broomrape
(Mimulus guttatus) and (Orobanche uniflora)

Oregon Mariposa Lily (Calochortus tolmeiei)

Osprey

On the Trail

Hey! That's me!

Gracias

2008-03-17T14:03:00.001-07:00

While Ted was doing some work on his sister Rita's guest house he came across this old skull, he asked his sister if he could bring it home for me to decorate in the "Day of the Dead" style. Rita raises long-horns and when it is their time to go she always has their hides and skulls preserved. I love the bright colors and positive message the Mexican holiday Dia De Los Muertos celebrates. After Ted brought home the skull I called Rita to find out what the name of the cow was and I got chills when she told me her name was Gracias because she had been born on Thanksgiving. (By the way her calf-mate's name was Danka.) I have a ways to go on this one, but I hope Gracias will love it.

Hmmm, Humanity. An Installation.

2008-02-16T18:45:00.000-08:00

Hmmm, Humanity. An Installation. By Kim de Young

Waking before daybreak, Dashing out the door to establish my place in the pecking order of the crowded freeways, Watching the sunrise over the asphalt, Spending the sunlit hours under the hum of the fluorescent lights, Prioritizing my day between demanding emails, boredom, and the sound of the urgency in a colleagues voice before their eminent breakdown into frustration, Walking the halls of framed buzzword-morality-posters perfumed with recently burnt microwave popcorn, Rushing into the night air for my place in the pecking order of the crowded freeways, towards home.

Plainly the reality of my life for twelve years working in the semi-conductor industry was on the verge of soul sucking. Evenings and weekends were cherished times of re-energizing and creativity, until eventually not even two days off, a week off, two-weeks off was enough to balance the demoralization of my vitality. This project is a way to forever cast off the binds of that old mindset and move forward towards a new self culture and embrace my potential instead of squandering it.

Fantasy Show

2008-01-31T16:09:00.000-08:00

I am taking a Gallery Management and Technique class and one of our projects is to design/curate a fantasy exhibit using existing artists. I chose to show the work of Beth Cavener Stichter and Milo Winter. I admire both of these artist, Beth Cavener Stichter is contemporary and her work is absolutely amazing, please click the link above and see her work! Milo Winter is an illustrator from the early 20th century. They work so well together because they both portray animals with human emotions. This is the model of the school gallery that I made using Cavener and Winter's work. I scaled it 12 inches equals 1 inch.

Snow Bunny!

2008-01-29T08:24:00.000-08:00

Ted built me my very own SnowBunny!

(He looks a little evil.... hmmm)

So yeah, it hardly snows in Southern Oregon.

2008-01-27T17:05:00.000-08:00

Donkey (Ceramic Pinata) is not pleased.

Not too much composting goin' on in that bin.

Sure does look pretty.

Moon Bunnies in Order

2008-01-07T06:29:00.001-08:00

Hi Mom! Here are all of the paintings in order.

Starts with a regular bunny reading the "Moon Bunny" Book on a windy day.

Then each page will have the story in the moon like below.

First the Moon Bunnies are waking up from their long nap, approx. 28 days.

Of course just like you and me they are hungry when they wake, here they are eating their favorite foods; Thistle, Fennel and Basil flowers.

Eating gives them lots of energy so flying is their first order of business. They also like to glide and soar.

Here they are swinging another favorite thing that Moon Bunnies like to do.

Usually vigorous swinging will lead to joyful dancing, Moon Bunnies are know for their spirit and grace while dancing.

There is always time for the Moon Bunny song to be sung. Here they are singing with great zeal even though they are mostly off key.

Because they sing so hard and loud, they end up with sore throats, drinking buttercup juice will normally help sooth their voices.

Sometimes they get them selves in precarious situations, like the time they decided go tip-toeing across the pond and the rocks turned out to be turtles.

Leaping for joy is another favorite activity of Moon Bunnies.

They barely notice when the day starts to break, except they start yawning.

Just in time they reach the ground, here they are sleeping sound until the next full moon.

So, there we are. I have some work to do on the story, but it sure was fun to paint these.

Felt Kids

2008-01-06T10:47:00.001-08:00

This was the first, but he needed a friend...

This is the bear's friend... Donkey Ant

Then came the Monkey-Mermaid (Sea Monkey) and his pal Brine Shrimp.

Introducing "John Deer"

Made for my Sister-in-Law Rita's Bday.

Street Painting Design

2007-09-28T16:21:00.001-07:00

This is what I will be using for my "street Painting" design next weekend. The square will be 8 feet by 8 feet. Should be an interesting challenge.

Squirrel Pants

2007-09-21T08:23:00.000-07:00

All of my favorite jeans seem to have stains... this is my newly created squirrel jeans. I am used to Red Squirrels being from the bay area of California... did you know the squirrels in Oregon are grey?

New House

2007-09-21T08:19:00.001-07:00

This is our basement living space. Contrary to what my brother may believe, we do not live in the forests of the movie Deliverance.

2007-05-16T09:42:00.001-07:00

2007-05-12T06:31:00.000-07:00

New paintings created for my sister-in-law's guest house, garden room. I probably should have painted lettuce for the snails... yum!

Search

2007-04-11T15:27:00.000-07:00

What's with the search dog on MicroSoft?
I have a new computer at work and I feel like I need to say "Good Boy" everytime he retrieves a file for me.

I was attacked!

2007-03-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

The weather has been perfect for motorcycle riding, I just can't get enough. Well today I was riding home and I was stung. I thought a bee hit my neck and stung me, but an instant later the bee (which turned out to be a yellow-jacket) flew in my jacket and down my shirt. Of course I got stung again. So, I pulled out of traffic, put the bike in neautral, put the kick stand down, and unbuttoned and unzipped my jacket. The yellow-jacket flew out, not before it bit me again. I rode home and bactined the heck out of my chest. Two bites and two stings. I had to keep my cool while the damn thing kept biting and stinging me. Bring it on!

bunny vase

2007-01-27T19:12:00.000-08:00

This vase is handbuilt with a clay called Grogzilla. How totally cool is that? It has these pieces of feldspar that when fired to cone ten just jump out of the surface of the clay body. I used some locally made underglazes for the bunny, which to my surprise came out quite bright even in a very heavy reduction firing. The greenish glaze is called green shell which was applied and then wiped off. I just entered this into a juried show called feats of clay. http://www.lincolnarts.org/featsofclay.htm It's being juried by the editor of Ceramics Monthly. It's a long shot that I'll make it into the show. I also entered three of the 10 perfume bottles "scents of the sea".

My Birthday Present

2007-01-03T19:03:00.000-08:00

For my birthday on the 28th I asked for a Thermos and a Motorcyle. The reason I wanted a thermos was so I could tote my coffee to work with me when I ride my Vespa and the reason I wanted a motorcycle is... well, they're fun!!
So in the morning my husband had two gifts for me and I opened the first one and it was a thermos. Then when I got home from work I opened my second present and it was a bigger thermos. Then later on that night he took me to the motorcycle store! He wanted to get me an Kawasaki KLX250, but they are not sold in California. I had been eyeing the little ninja ex250's so we cheked Craig's list and found the perfect bike!

2006-12-22T06:59:00.000-08:00

Kimmy and Libby

2006-12-10T11:13:00.000-08:00

Here I am on my Scooter named Libby.

Earth Meets Water- Showcase

2006-11-12T13:20:00.000-08:00

We were so excited about the boat, it's just a prop, but oh so cool!

The reception was fun and we sold stuff! In fact, Mary and Gene thought it a great idea to serve all of the snacks on some of our ceramic platters. The funny thing was, someone wanted to buy one of my personal plates that had a crack in it. They just loved it so much and bought it with crumbs and a crack and all. It was one of my favorites too, I always assumed it would be mine, it was kind of sad to sell, but the couple just loved it.

Ceramics from Showcase

2006-11-11T14:49:00.000-08:00

Earth Meets Water

2006-10-29T18:31:00.000-08:00

This weekend is our big showcase we have been preparing for since March. Myself and 5 other ceramic artists have made new work in the theme of water. Most of my stuff will directly reference water, like frogs, and pirates and sea-monkeys and ant mermaids and sea-dragons. We even were able to find a boat for our display. I threw together these post cards for our mailers... I like the campy pirate ship one the best. I will be sure to post pictures of the show here next week. The reception is on Sunday the 5th.

Fine Art Reception

2006-10-05T13:05:00.000-07:00

One of the rare occasions that I am not wearing a baseball cap and pigtails... I did it for the art.

Brag, brag, brag, brag!!!!!

2006-09-27T09:26:00.000-07:00

Last night I found out that I won gold/1st place for the 3-D catagory at a local fine-art show. The juror was Robert Poplack, Associate Professor of Fine Arts at Notre Dame college in Belmont, Ca. He is also the curator of the Weigart Gallery.

Scroll down to see examples of the winning pieces. I entered a set of 5 each of my perfume bottles "Scents of the Sea" I have a total of 10 bottles, but I entered the following:
Clam
Barnacle
Urchin
Sea Snail
Tube Worm

How exciting!!!!!

Art in the Park

2006-08-12T19:31:00.000-07:00

My both from (8/12) Art in the Park, at Historical Ardenwood.
No, I am not shy.

Bottle Project-Glazed

2006-07-29T10:41:00.000-07:00

Bottles have been completed for some time, these are the 4 best bottles out of 10. The other 6 are on display at the JC in my town, I was awarded the President's award and best of class for ceramics at the last student show. These four will be entered in a local Fine Art Show in September and will also be part of a showcase that is about "Water on Earth" The series is called "Scents of the Sea" From the Top- Sea Clam, Anemone, Tube Worm and Sea Snail. I am marketing to all of those mermaids... These were fired to cone 10 in a highly reduced environment. The finish is a combination of red-iron-oxide and Celedon Glaze.

2006-07-26T15:25:00.000-07:00

“Let’s Impeach the President”by Neil Young
Let’s impeach the president for lying
And leading our country into war

Abusing all the power that we gave him
And shipping all our money out the door

He’s the man who hired all the criminals
The White House shadows who hide behind closed doors
And bend the facts to fit with their new stories
Of why we have to send our men to war

Let’s impeach the president for spying
On citizens inside their own homes
Breaking every law in the country
By tapping our computers and telephones

What if Al Qaeda blew up the levees
Would New Orleans have been safer that way
Sheltered by our government’s protection
Or was someone just not home that day?

Let’s impeach the president
For hijacking our religion and using it to get elected
Dividing our country into colors
And still leaving black people neglected

Thank god he’s racking down on steroids
Since he sold his old baseball team
There’s lot of people looking at big trouble
But of course the president is clean

Thank God

The Kittens are growing

2006-07-14T20:40:00.000-07:00

This is Peter (Silver), Dahlia(gold) and Prancer (Big Cat). Its been 10 weeks and all of the kits are getting along fine. Although Big Cat does appreciate when the babies get put away in their room for the night. Dahlia was supposed to go live with some very dear friends of ours, but I hate to admit it... I am a Kitten taker backer. How could you not fall in love with these cuties! We are the luckiest people in the world to get to take care of these very special guys and gal.

My Studio

2006-07-12T18:21:00.000-07:00

This is my studio, If you look closely there is a baby kitten sleeping in the chair. I am working on some new ceramic pieces right now, using a really bitchin' wooden stamp for design and texture on the back of the pieces. I'll glaze/paint/glaze the surface with some of my fun bugs, turtles, sea-horses and of course kittens.

Bottle Project

2006-02-26T20:17:00.000-08:00

Inspired by life in the sea. This is my experimenting with handbuilding and discovering different ways to create organic forms by using simple techniques/forms (and lots and lots of them) After completion of each bottle I put them in my kiln to dry before the bisque stage. I am very good at creating complex forms and then bumping or breaking them when they are bone dry. Very frustrating. So, I had the bright idea of storing them in the kiln while they dry. I had to make them in series by size that way I wouldn't have to fuss so much with the furniture and shelves. I did manage to snap off a piece of the coral on the clam bottle while putting in the furniture. damn. I am going to bisque fire the stoppers in the bottles, but am working on a plan for a chuck with high fire kiln wire so I can glaze them entirely with minimal damage. I will end up firing these in a reduction environment using oxides and celedon and rutile glazes.

The tips are getting crispy here. Each tenticle is approx 2" long.

bent whisker

2006-02-01T06:53:00.000-08:00

2006-01-29T08:22:00.000-08:00