my favorites

For the solstice, my birthday and Christmas I'm making a post of my favorite Etsy finds for you to use as a last-minute gift guide (for yourself or others!) and/or drool-fest.

*Please note. All photos used here and their rights belong to the shop owners. Some of these shops are on vacation for the holiday, but that shouldn't stop you from hearting them, and saving them for later! <3

Squirrel Nook Notebook from You Be and I'll Be



Elk Twins Necklace by Crave Jewelry Design



Queen print by Bad Bird



Recycled Poppy Bobby Pins by Foundling



Sea Treasure Pearl and Shell Rose Ring by Star of the East



My Captain... We've Reached the End of the World print by Hide n Seek



Scoop Neck Deer Tee by The Full Spectrum



Ocean Creatures card set by The Frantic Meerkat



"Scrolls" polymer clay post earrings by Miss Fickle Media



Morocco handmade vintage barrettes by Satura Kitty Creatives



xoxo!

Winter Solstice Sale!

In honor of the winter solstice (winter officially began at 7:04 this morning!) I'm having a sale in my shop.

From NOW until the clock strikes twelve to usher in the New Year, I am offering my set of 10 postcards for $10 (reduced from $12).

I hope you'll be able to take advantage of this for yourself, or for a friend or relative who loves stationery, writing notes in the mail, small art, and/or matt pond PA.

Happy Winter! We're in the middle of a snowstorm here in Maine. Stay safe and cozy and warm!

xoxo

Last weekend's art show.

It's taken me a week to post about the art show, which means I have simply been catching my breath, going to bed at a reasonable hour, and hanging out with my son. But here are some of the photos from last Saturday.

This is in the last twenty-four hours before the show, tending to the details of my small items:

Gift tags, cut from scrapbook papers upcycled from the leftovers of my wedding invitations. (Yes I have saved that paper for almost three years.)


I also labeled 200 hundred more postcards, just in case. This is my list of songs and their dates, so the labels go on the right cards.


This is twelve of the 19 ornaments I displayed at the gallery, all tagged and ready to hang on display. They are decoupaged in upcycled gift tissue paper, illustrations from vintage and foreign children's books and National Geographic maps.


Then, at Captive Elements Art House:

Being a featured artist for the month means I got this whole wall for my stuff, PLUS a table, PLUS my tree!


And I took a better picture of my cello than the last one I posted.


In this picture, my little (much taller) brother pretends he wants to be in a picture with his dorky big (significantly shorter) sister.


That's better.


Ornaments on the tree in the gallery.


The ornament my parents bought.


Later, at home, my husband took pictures of me in the most relaxed state I had been in for weeks.


And I was finally able to let my hair down.


Quiet City will still be at Captive Elements in the "Bringing It All Together" exhibit until January 15! You know, if you don't have any other plans. Hint, hint. Wink, wink. Call the gallery for hours: 207-786-3606.

ALSO, on Saturday, December 20, Captive Elements will be offering all of their archive art at 25% off. Five days before Christmas, this is the perfect opportunity to surprise someone with a meaningful and local gift for the holidays, at a more affordable price.

ALSO SQUARED, on Sunday, December 21, I celebrate my birthday! And the first official day of winter. We're doin' it up true Maine style with a Nor'easter and everything!

Thanks for everyone's support and kind words about my show. I appreciate it in the truest of ways.

xoxo

Don't Forget!

"Bringing It All Together"
@ Captive Elements Art House
opening night:
December 13, 6 pm - 10 pm
25 Landry Road, Suite 3
Lewiston, Maine
FEATURING BOB GRAY AND QUIET CITY

the sky yesterday

Yesterday was dark, gray and snowy. I had the blinds open in the kitchen as I gave my son his snack. I looked out the window to the grayness I expected. A minute later, the kitchen seemed brighter and I glanced up again to see pink in the clouds. Upon further inspection I found this:





As with the last photos I posted of the sky, these have not been altered in any way aside from sizing for the blog. The images you see are exactly as they happened in the sky. Holy moly, right?

the fruit of this weekend's labors

I finished three sister works this weekend in preparation for the Captive Elements exhibit, which is just SIX DAYS AWAY.

As you all know by now I need to strengthen my skills in photographing things on my wall. I'll work on it. At some point. In the meantime come see these in person! They'll be up until January 15.

These are original sketches and collage on canvas:

Tambourine.


Accordion.


Cello.


xoxo

Oh, December

As I am working on more Quiet City goodness for the art show, I want to share with you a few pictures I've taken recently of the sky near my home. One of my favorite things about this time of year is the sky. When it's cold there are colors you can't see because the heat mutes them. The stars are so close. I know it's not officially winter yet, but it's coming.









"I saw a star fall from a green sky
I saw you laugh, your eyes were open wide
I saw your skin uncovered in the night
Uncovered in the night..."
-matt pond PA, "Amazing Life"

"New Fall"

Phew.

I just finished the largest piece of artwork I have done since high school, sophomore year. TEN YEARS AGO.

This is acrylic paint, ink and paper on 16"x20" canvas. (I photographed it on my wall; please pardon the quality of this photo.)



"These small towns have ways of making you feel sorry," is from the matt pond PA song "New Fall," which is on the 2000 album, Measure. I want to thank Matt Pond for giving me the ok to continue drawing inspiration from his lyrics and using them in my artwork.

The drawing in the bottom corner is a print from a charcoal sketch I did two years ago. My husband was the model. I have been wanting to do something with that sketch this whole time, and I finally found its purpose. The rooftops are cut from pages of various books I've collected for the purpose of collaging- an old religion book, a home improvement book, a 1960's university yearbook, and a 1970's children's reading textbook.

This piece will be on display at the Captive Elements Art House December show in a week and a half. I'm getting really, really excited.

The Official-ish Announcement

Captive Elements Art House December show

December 13, 2008
6:00 pm - 10:00 pm
@ Captive Elements
25 Landry Road
Lewiston, Maine

This is QUIET CITY's first art show! My offerings include collage and mixed media art, my matt pond PA-inspired postcard series, and tree ornaments. I hope to see you there if you are in or can be in the area. This is a family-friendly gallery. Tell all your friends and we'll see you all there!

xoxo Courtney Quiet City

too much

Headaches don't subside when all you can think about is your headache. And when you are hosting your family's Thanksgiving dinner for the first time ever, and you've never cooked for more than four people at a time.

This week has been intense but now I get to sit and breathe. But only while paint is drying on a canvas next to me, because the art show at Captive Elements is in two weeks and WHOA.

I just put my boxes of candy up in the cabinet so I would stop eating them while I wait. This is no time for excess, as the November holiday has just passed, and ninety per cent of the leftovers found their way to my fridge. This has never happened before as I was always a guest. With my belly still feeling full of cranberry relish, mashed potatoes, honey glazed carrots, steamed broccoli, rosemary bread, vegetarian shepherd's pie and three varieties of dessert pie, there's no room for candy- especially since I went to a movie over the weekend with my brother, sister, and her husband, where we ate a lot of it.

Speaking of excess, the movie we saw was Twilight. Why is this excessive? Because I am twenty-six years old and I actually liked it. More than what feels right. My cheeks redden at the thought. It's just too much.

My excuse: I still remember very tenderly my early and middle teen years and the vampire stories I was writing by hand in spiral bound notebooks instead of doing my homework. I didn't realize how vividly I remembered that time until I saw the movie.

Oh, excess! Oh, blood and immortality!

Onto business: I am fresh out of decoupaged tree ornaments, so I'll be making more this week using maps and books and canceled postage stamps. My hands itch in anticipation, although I am quite excited about the show and the work I am completing beforehand.

Also exciting: matt pond PA has released a free EP that you can download on their newly-redesigned website. Please hear it.

Paint's dry, or dry enough. Please forgive my randomness but I had to do something other than eat the candy. I wish you a happy December. IT'S DECEMBER!