MINERALARTS:

Catsoul

Posted by request…there is more, but this is enough for now. Catsoul is vast and mysterious, containing domestic cats as well as the little fierce wild ones, the great lions and panthers, and the ancient sabertooths and their ancestors. It is the tabby kitten curled up on a pillow, the starving stray waiting on the…

ironwing

March 29, 2012

Cats, graphite drawing, Scratchboard

cats, death, feline, rescue, spirituality

Copper Flutes and Hand Dyed Hemp

These two copper flutes were based on D (small) and Bb (large) 6-hole English tin whistles that I bought years ago. I played the whistles quite a bit when I was in high school, but quit in college when my asthma became too severe. The new copper flutes have a larger bore than the tin whistles and a…

ironwing

March 2, 2012

Iron & Metalwork, Lapidary, Needlework

Tree Book #3: Island Oak

Two views of the same ancient Live Oak (Quercus virginiana) from Nags Head Woods on North Carolina’s Outer Banks. A third view would have completed the circle and showed the jagged blades of wood in the hollow trunk, but it was impossible to get a photo from that direction, since the tree is growing next to a swamp thicket.…

ironwing

February 28, 2012

graphite drawing, Nature

New Spoonflower Fabric Swatches

I received my Spoonflower fabric order yesterday, which was mostly black and white cat drawings for a wall hanging. But I also had two designs printed in color. All the designs were printed on Kona quilter’s cotton. The swatches are 8×8 inches. The first swatch is a collage made from four digital photos of copper ore…

ironwing

February 25, 2012

Nature, Needlework

Tree Book: Childhood Roots and Miniature Branches

Two more Tree Book pencil drawings: On the left is Petrophytum caespitosum, Rockmat or Dwarf Spiraea. It’s essentially a miniature tree, only about six inches tall. It is primarily a Rocky Mountain plant, rare in southern Arizona, where it is restricted to ridgetop outcrops of pure limestone and marble in the Huachuca, Whetstone, and Empire Mountains. The…

ironwing

February 6, 2012

graphite drawing, Nature

Tabby’s Birthday

Tabby is our oldest cat, and the one we’ve had for the longest time. He was a stray that we took in when we lived in Versailles, Kentucky. I first saw him in November 1994 when he took refuge in our backyard shed. He was very friendly and already neutered, so I assumed that this…

ironwing

January 28, 2012

Cats

Embroidered Cotton Shirt

More spiral hook and eyes, smaller than those on the vest. The clasps on this embroidered cotton shirt are made from 16-gauge yellow brass wire. I drafted the shirt pattern. The collar, cuffs, front placket, and back yoke binding are made from tea-dyed muslin secured with handstitched commercial black bias tape. Sleeves and front placket have…

ironwing

January 25, 2012

Iron & Metalwork, Needlework

A Book of Trees in a Dream

I have always wanted to write an illustrated natural history book. It began long ago, when I began to see scientific illustration as more than just an old-fashioned art form, and started to work on it as a spiritual practice. Science. Nature. Art. Spirit. For me there is no division between these things, although Science typically argues otherwise,…

ironwing

January 17, 2012

graphite drawing, How-To, Nature, Scratchboard

art, drawing, lichens, Nature, pencil, writing

Black Steel Wire Necklace

This choker-style Black Steel Wire Necklace incorporates many of the wire design motifs that I’ve developed over the years. I recently returned to steel wirework to regain some strength in my hands, and decided to make an elaborate project that would use up most of my remaining wire. I’m pretty happy with this, and still have enough…

ironwing

January 14, 2012

Iron & Metalwork

iron, jewelry, spiral, steel, wire

Happy New Year!

This Happy New Year Kitten is another ink drawing for the new cat fabric that I’m working on. The final B&W version will probably look like this:

ironwing

January 4, 2012

Cats, Scratchboard