February 12, 2015 - studio time with Pam

Today Pam and I met for the first time since early December. There was much to show and tell. Pam is still working on a very big and beautiful trunk. She is also working on other pieces that were wonderful to see.

I have made progress on the Big Bowl but am becoming reluctant to show it until it's all finished and a part of the big reveal! Pam offered a critique of its progress and I plan to follow through with adjustments and additions. I am still happy with it and excited to finish.

I also showed Pam my first attempt at a rosemaled version of my great great grandfather's letterbox. Jon made six letterboxes for me and I am planning to paint each one in a different way. Below is a picture of the first one.

First Letterbox

Here's a photo of the original letterbox my GG Grandfather made and carved when he was about 77 years old. He was from Telemark and both he and his father did some rosemaling. His father was one of the original Telemark rosemalers. They were both metal smiths as well. They made be beautiful ornamental parts for guns, buttons, spoons, etc.

Aasmund Aslakson Nestestu's hanging letterbox

My homework is to design a twining motif using a red palette. Perhaps including the dark blue and green turnovers. I am looking to Ole Moene for inspiration.

Ole Moene inspired rosemaling (needs refining:-)

Also working on a design for a tine using the twining leaves and brighter colors. Pam is challenging me to step out of my comfort zone and do some different things!

The Big Bowl - research & development. December 4, 2014

I have been drawing and re-drawing the plans for the Big Bowl. It involves drawing something, refining it, painting a sample of it, redrawing it, painting a new sample, re-evaluating it, tweaking it, and finally painting it on the big bowl. Here are some of the sketches I've done.

Preliminary sketches for the Big Bowl.

The big bowl showing the mockup of the scene that will go around the middle of the bowl.

The Big Bowl with the mockup of the rim scene.

The big bowl first sample of the rim mockup. This has since been refined and will be narrower. This sample was a 2" rim and now I've decided to make it 1.5". Still don't know if I'll add the yellow rope.

The first sample for the bowl below the scene.

Thursday, December 4th, Pam and I had a site visit from Ann Pryor of the Wisconsin Arts Board.

November 6, 2014 @ Rosemaling Valhalla

Pam and I met at her studio on Thursday, November 6th and spent the day pouring over designs, photos from our Vesterheim visit, and critiquing the sample practice boards I brought with me.
I brought with me two designs I am working on refining. I will continue to improve the designs before painting them on actual woodenware. Here they are in their rough forms. The chalk lines refer to alterations and revisions. Onward!

Covered Bowl Design, Stage 1

TrunkDesign, Stage 1

Pam and Jan Visit Vesterheim, October 23 and 24, 2014

Below are a few photos from our visit to the Vesterheim Study Center and the Vesterheim Museum. We spent Thursday afternoon at the study center. We examined over 75 articles from their collection: trunks, tines, plates, cups, bowls, etc. and each of us took about 500 pictures.
On Friday we spent the morning at the museum checking out and photographing objects from the collections in the basement and all three floors of the museum. There are so many fine articles to examine. We concentrated on the woodcarving and Gudbrandsdal rosemaling.

Detail, Gudbrandsdal Cupboard

Top of Tine

Kubustol by Hans Sandom

Vesterheim Study Center

I demonstrated rosemaling at the Sons of Norway Lodge in Stoughton on Saturday morning, October 25, 2014.

Prillar-Guri Plate

While looking for a subject matter for the center of my crazy Gudbrandsdal plate I came across a reference to Prillar-Guri. According to oral tradition, Prillar-Guri placed herself on a promontory on the other side of the river to the advancing Scottish troops at the battle of Kringen in 1612. Today the site is called Prillarguritoppen. She either played her horn to distract them and then moved a piece of clothing to signal the ambush; or else she commenced playing as the signal.

On my first trip to Norway I brought a book with me called "Prillar Guri, A Heroine of Old Norway". I read it while we were travelling and left it at a hostel for others to enjoy.

16" plate in Gudbrandsdal style with Prillar-Guri illustration

October 2, 2014 @ Rosemaling Valhalla (aka Pam's studio)

Today Pam and I each worked on a version of this design. I followed the original design by Jacob Klugstad (1710-1773). If you have not looked up this man's work, you should. Pam's was more interpretive but equally as interesting. I am very fond of this style of painting!

My goals before our next session are:

• design for a border for my 14" plate.
• designs for the big covered bowl
• work out some color schemes I want to paint

Homework report: October 1, 2014

Exhibit A: Here I was working from a section of a sleigh from Norway. I really like the look of this!

Exhibit A: Inspired by the Sleigh

Exhibit B: My first try at adapting an old panel design into my own interpretation. Not wild about the flower but I like the blues and greens on the orange background.

Exhibit B: First try - homework I

Exhibit C: I like some of the colors achieved in this sample. The shapes are pretty awful. The cool outsides of the leaves and the warm insides--look good to me. The lower left corner is goofy looking.

Exhibit C: 2nd try - homework II

Exhibit D: Another quick warm up exercise to feel the flow of the strokes. It's just a couple of colors of paint on a piece of tracing paper.

Exhibit D: Just another quick practice

Exhibit E: I incorporated a landscape from Norskedalen for the plate with one of my early border attempts.

Exhibit E: Norskedalen 10" Plate

Exhibit F: An 8" bowl with a Gudbrandsdal center. I did this one before our September 18th session.

Exhibit F: 8" bowl with warm cool color scheme

Exhibit G: This is the plate I started at our September 18th session. It is a pattern of Pam's invention. The colors are mine but the bones of this are Pam. I love the flow and the sculptural quality of the design. In the coming weeks I will be working on a border for this plate.

Exhibit G: Center design completion 9.30.2014