Baren Digest Friday, 15 February 2002 Volume 18 : Number 1721 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jeanne N. Chase" Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 09:40:18 -0500 Subject: [Baren 16971] Thank You not Enough Dear Friends Perhaps some of you do not know how this started so I am going to explain as best I can. For 25 years I went to work everyday in my studio(once an old farm house) It was great. I worked at Ringling School of Art and Design as a Drawing and Painting instructor, but always spent at least 6 hours doing art work. Art is my life and has been since I was old enough to hold a pencil. I paid my studio off, bought my supplies , had a wonderful collection of art books filling one wall, certificates and clippings and all the things an artist treasures including my art work. Life was good. On Dec. 26th , a police officer knocked on my door where I live and informed me that my studio was on fire, I rushed there and saw it in flames. Then I really do not remember much after that. I felt that my life was really over. I slept 14 hours and napped a lot. Since my immune system was so low I got pneumonia.=20 My husband bought me a computer to snap me out of it and since Barbara Mason and I were roommates at the Miami Conference and had been communicating I e mailed her re; the fire and sent her a picture of the burnt out studio (my husband took that). Dean Clark of Graphic Chemical heard about the fire and that started the cards coming and wonderful e mails to cheer me up. My husband set up a drawing table in the garage. For awhile I would just go out and sit there and do nothing. It was a hard time for me thinking of all the things that were destroyed. Then one week, Sarah sent me a baren and ink, Sue sent some ink and Setswell, Sharri sent some paper and Gilyian sent a nice woodcarving knife. Everything to start me off on my art again. Then I got the letter from Dean Clark about how generous you all have been and words just cannot express how much it affected me. I can honestly say that you all have saved my life. An old clich true. And I love you all for it. Sorry this is so long but I had to get it out. Thanks is just not enough!!! Love you guys, Baren and Print Australia Jeanne N. ------------------------------ From: "Jeanne N. Chase" Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 09:43:33 -0500 Subject: [Baren 16972] PS a ps to the Thank You letter. I am back practicing my piano again (thank you , Mike) Jeanne N ------------------------------ From: "Gillyin Gatto" Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 11:45:46 -0800 Subject: [Baren 16973] commenting on prints more on the topic of commenting on prints in exchanges it seems we have a very functional tool already in place for doing just that all we have to do is USE it...... the feedback section of the exchange gallery is located underneath the prints one must scroll down all the way and will find boxes which allow for direct comments to the artist via e-mail - Gillyin , machias maine usa ------------------------------ From: "Maria Arango" Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 09:02:21 -0800 Subject: [Baren 16974] RE: commenting on prints > more on the topic of > commenting on prints in exchanges > it seems we have a very functional tool > already in place for doing just that > all we have to do is USE it...... > > the feedback section of the exchange gallery > is located underneath the prints > one must scroll down all the way > and will find boxes which > allow for direct comments to the artist > via e-mail > - Gillyin , machias maine usa Good point Gyllyin, the system already in place and I personally received very useful comments in prior exchanges up to about #5, then they stopped. Also, the system provides (used to?) a choice for the artist to have comments private or public. Those budding critics, get on the task! On another note, happy Valentine's Day everyone! and Happy Chinese New Year two days belated. My Ghost of the Pony Express is now on the way to everyone on the list proudly donning the New Year Horse Stamp. Also, I chose not to place in an envelope in hopes that the poor fellows get to their destinations with all the proud scars and dust that a long trip ought to leave on a traveler. Just like the ol' ponies and riders. I did protect a bit with plastic bags, but my favorite cards are always those that come to me stamped and mangled. On this someone suggested that we place in envelopes to preserve the print and I just humbly think that a post-card exchange is a post-card exchange and dressing it up takes some of the fun out of the process for me. If someone wishes to exhibit these humble mangled prints I will be happy to provide a (lifeless) pristine copy. Which brings me to the last point, all this talk of quality and standards and such things is taking the fun out of exchanges, at least for me. What happened to the Baren where we exchanged prints and everyone was so excited to get them and we posted 30 yipees when the mail brought us our packages? Are we giving that up in the name of standards? I'm gonna go hide in my WEN bundle, those engravers know how to be relaxed! (must be those tiny 2" x 1.5" blocks we like to carve). Health and happiness to all, Maria <><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Maria Arango Las Vegas, Nevada, USA http://www.1000woodcuts.com maria@mariarango.com <><><><><><><><><><><><><><> ------------------------------ From: slinders@attbi.com Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 14:32:41 -0600 Subject: [Baren 16976] Fun... "... all this talk of quality and standards and such things is taking the fun out of exchanges, at least for me. What happened to the Baren where we exchanged prints and everyone was so excited to get them and we posted 30 yipees when the mail brought us our packages?" * * * Thanks for saying that, Maria! I find both Baren and PrintAustralia groups are very intimidating at times. But perhaps I'm an interloper in a gathering of professional printmakers. Are we "just a bunch of us who really like printing and prints--and I'm so glad to know that there are others in the world who feel the way I do about printmaking, --and look at this nifty thing I just discovered" or are we a group of "the (twelve) disciples of the art" who are just too priceless to tolerate the company of "non-professionals". And what makes one a professional printmaker, and is that something to strive for? We go bouncing along having a good time, and then we get missives like the one from Dan that seem to stop some of us at least, like deer in the headlights. We blink and try to remember if our print had the current flaw being discussed. I so love to have proof that a buddy did a print, and I don't notice those flaws or human being marks except with affection. And I continually try to figure "How did she do that" ---as in the flowers of your "Vegas Neon". And did she really print that in that lovely purple cast, or is that what one ink does over the other ink? I open exchange packages with a joy that easily matches anything at Christmas, and am sometimes brought to tears with the happiness and beauty and fun of it all! I try hard to stand up straight with my face clean and my hair combed among the likes of some in our group. And sometimes, even after reprinting an entire edition, I'm faced with sending in what I've got or of defaulting on my promise to participate. It's tough to be good enough for this incredible bunch, but they challenge me, and I learn from them and from their prints, and I try to improve. I don't make a living printing. I only seek peace and myself in it, and I don't know if that gives me enough of the right stuff to play this happy game. In fact, it took a long time and a coincidence to feel that I could even subscribe! I sat in the shadows outside of the circle for a long time measuring my acceptability. I'm glad that you speak of the joy and fun, and I'm glad that you said what you did today. You put words to the feelings of lots of us quiet non-professionals with inky fingers. Sharen ------------------------------ From: Mobile101@aol.com Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 17:41:52 EST Subject: [Baren 16977] Re: Fun... Dear Sharen and Maria: It was so nice to receive your email today, on the joy of exchanging and receive prints and the love for print making. I have been having a difficult time joining your group and have been thinking of giving it up. I feel strange coming in with so much confusion over my email address etc. But after reading your email I have reconsidered I am hoping to resolve the confusion so I to can partake in your shared enjoyment. Gilda ------------------------------ From: FurryPressII@aol.com Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 23:28:45 EST Subject: [Baren 16978] Re: commenting on prints MARIA my last engraving was 12" by 30" lol john center ------------------------------ From: FurryPressII@aol.com Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 23:31:33 EST Subject: [Baren 16979] Re: Fun... fun cool ------------------------------ From: David Bull Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2002 20:02:45 +0900 Subject: [Baren 16980] Exchange matters ... Been quite some confusion recently about Exchange matters, so perhaps I might clarify some things ... As the sign-ups for Exchange #13 were coming in during the past couple of weeks, a number of inconsistencies appeared - there was (again) confusion about the start-up time for general start-up and a number of people signed-up too early, there were sign-ups from different names but similar addresses, there were sign-ups from names not on the [Baren] membership list,and at least one of the email addresses left by a participant was invalid, and we were not able to contact the person to confirm their interest. As a result of these complications, the actual list of names changed back and forth a couple of times, and at one point, people were able to sign-up thinking that there was still room in the exchange, when in fact it was actually full. So a couple of names have now 'slipped' down onto the waiting list ... If you signed up for the exchange, please check the page and confirm your current status: http://barenforum.org/exchange/exchange_sign-up.html My personal apologies to the people affected by this confusion. You would think that we would have got all these sort of 'bugs' worked out by now, after four years of doing this, but things are sometimes not as simple as they seem. We never expected that we would have to screen these sign-up names for validity, but last year we learned otherwise when we had sign-ups for one of the exchanges from a group of porn stars ... (It seems to be the b a r e - n in our name that attracts them ...) Anyway, things seem to be stable now. Barbara Patera has volunteered to be the coordinator of the Exchange, and after she gets some assistance and advice from former coordinators, she will be contacting participants with her first message ... *** Exchange #12 is just about ready to fly from Mike's place. The long-delayed cases are now en route to Kansas City, as are (I hope) the last missing prints, so it shouldn't be long now ... *** A request for assistance from Exchange #11 participants: we haven't yet got these prints up on the [Baren] website, as nobody has yet stepped forward to offer to scan them. It's quite a difficult job, as those prints don't fit on the plate of a normal scanner, so one has to head down to Kinko's or someplace to do it .. But if anybody out there has the time, etc. to do this, the rest of us would certainly appreciate it. If you need more details on what format/dpi/etc. we need, please write to me ... *** Now, excuse me while I head back to the printing bench - it's the only way to keep warm in here! Next week is 'dai-kan' - the traditional coldest day of the calendar here in Japan - and boy is it ever! You haven't lived until you've tried printing while watching your breath as it wafts across the workbench! Or taking a break every hour or so to dip your hands into hot water to try and revive them ... The printing paper sure likes it though ... and no mold worries, and no sweat rolling down my nose to drip onto the prints ... All in all, winter is best for this job! Dave ------------------------------ End of Baren Digest V18 #1721 *****************************