One world One heart:A Special Day

This is a special day! A wonderful incredible day!

One World - One Heart! http://oneworldoneheart.typepad.com/

I am happy to participate in this HUGE blog give-away, designed to bring bloggers together and find new artists around the world! You can click on the logo above for more information and a list of more blogs to visit! I am giving away....a doll! This is a surprise...

The give-away goes from today until February 12th... To win, leave a comment on THIS POST ONLY, and please include your EMAIL address in the comment so I can find you!
Check back here on Feb. 12th - I will announce the winner (or the winners)then! Thanks for visiting my blog..and I am happy if you follow my blog!

...HOPE!

Italy, 6 PM, We are the One.

Is emerging your seed?

Cassandra sleeping, 1985

When I sleep I often dream of creations that then come in the next day.
My dreams are often complex and full of colours. My oniric activity is essential for the things I create. I love to dream, yet I do not expect to dream. The dream comes soft and smooth and i don't even know it does. Sometimes I begin to think of something that I want to create and my eyes start to close... Sleep regenerates the cells.

Cassandra sleeping,1985, a particular

Sleep renews ideas, Sleep keeps warm the seed that tomorrow will begin to grow, Even now the seed is emerging...Also your seed!

Goodnight friends!

A day, a jewel, many colours

Today, after many days of rain, the sky was a crystal blue

Even now that the sun is setting, the sky is wonderful, like a blue jewel

I adore the winter,

but today I smell a very inviting air of Spring...


Wonderful!
I am the earth, I am the sky, I am Winter, I am Spring. I smell Nature, I eat the air, I see the sounds of the earth.

I have worked on this brooch for 10 hours, I used mother-of-pearl, paua shells, weaved silver wire and silver charms and beads (a little dragonfly, a little frog, a sugilite stone, also known as luvulite)
This is my thanks to the Universe that has created so much beauty!

tactile self-portrait

Why do I use my image so often? Perhaps do I love too much myself? Perhaps do I am narcissist? This is not a great self-esteem mixed with cult of myself!
I am the only human model that I have at hand!And it is very fun to play with my own image, You too,try and play with your image!

This painting is called Icon.
I have played with the Byzantine painting, rich of gold and metallic contrasts.
I have added a 'tactile' element made with yarn of wool and silk. Also the painting that I used is very tactile: the layers of color are similar to lumps. I did not glue the yarn everywhere because I wanted the yarn to move in the air.
The child above the head is the new, new ideas, the change.The butterflies... I simply adore them, but They are also very common symbols!
For me, a Painting is created for the eyes and hands...and a little for the ears, the yarn rustles in the wind!

Painting,making dolls,creating jewels...smiling!

I had been tagged awhile back by Sandra Mucciardi from Canada http://sandramucciardi.blogspot.com/ to list 5 things I do to keep my mind healthy and my life balanced.
first of all..smile, smile, smile, people don't smile...a smile is a precious gift! smiling...Sandra says 'we need to smile!'

( 'Smile', 1987,This is my old friend Mariella, She was so smiling...)

2) making jewels, creating jewels, drawing jewels, thinking of jewels...rings, necklaces, pendants...It's a little obsession ehehehhe (see my etsy store, left side of this blog)
3) Painting...my old passion, my future passion, This is my passion!
4) creating dolls...dolls are my other passion, my obsession
5) listening to music...sometime I create with Enya...or Bach, or Mozart or contemporary music, I love music!

It is now my turn to do the tagging...
Here are 5 artists I found surfing on the net, I love them!...

They are:
Amanda Howard http://maygreen-fairies.blogspot.com/

Leanne Ellis http://www.la-la-laillustration.blogspot.com

Mr Harte http://aidanharte.blogspot.com/

Barbara Canepa http://canepabarbara.blogspot.com/

Alessandra Sorrentino http://pandaleina.blogspot.com/

My life is balanced by Art! and your Life?

A new artistic idea is like....?

When I have a new idea is like a vortex of color. When I have a new idea is like a hand in the grass or into a soft cream.
When you have a new idea What is it like....?

Old Paintings

I found two old paintings in my parent's house...I painted these women when I was 16 years. The photos aren't perfect, I photographed these paintings with my mobile phone in a rainy and dark day...
The first woman is Salome dancing with her body
the second painting is a woman in the water, title 'Dream'
the other notice is a new award! Laurie gave me a little blog award (see the left side of my blog, fabulous blog).
I pass the award along to five additional blog recipients after my 5 Addictions:
1) Computer: I love to read, to see, to write, to...surf!
2) Books: I read, I collect, I buy, I love books!
3) The Sunset: When the sun goes down, my energy is incredible. I love the night
4) The Autumn: It's my Season!
5) Stones...I love stones!

Ok, the 5 blogs, I love the magical atmosphere of these blogs:
1) Sandra Arteaga http://sandra-arteaga-dolls.blogspot.com/
2) Jordi Solano http://jordi-solano.blogspot.com/
3) Rosanna Art http://rosannasart.blogspot.com/
4) Gothic Rose Antiques http://gothicroseantiques.blogspot.com/
5) The Tattered house blog http://thetatteredhouseblog.blogspot.com/

an award for you!

The land of my ancestors: natural sculptures

Some of my ancestors (mum's ancestors) came from Greece to Puglia, South of Italy.
Puglia is white, with white houses and white walls.

While you are on the plane you can view these white cities and the white clouds.

But when you walk in the countryside, near the low stone walls near the fields (grape, artichokes, vegetables, fruit trees) you can see the natural sculptures of olive trees.
For italians, Puglia (the region of South Italy) IS olive oil (and olive trees) wine fields and red earth.

These are photos near my house, where I go during my winter holidays.

Fantastic natural sculptures!

...each trunk has a unique life, each trunk of tree is carved by the wind...Every tree is hundreds of years old!

I can not stop touching and to photographing these trees, I am in love with these plants carved and sculpted!

In many cities of South Italy, the tradition is to plant an olive tree when a child is born.
This is my wish for the birth of this new year, a strong and harmonious 2009!

****************

ops, I almost forgot...thank you for your messages, comments, sms, emails and letters for my birthday. This is my cake for me...my parents and husband and... you!

the last post of the year??? HOLIDAYS! ...with drawings...

Yeah...on Tuesday morning I will go to my parent's for a week and I don't know if I will have the time to post on my sweet Blog....

Christmas day...(name day, December 26)....MY Birthday (December 28)....HOLIDAYS!!!! eat,cook, smiles,people, confusion, gifts...but I love it!

I will be at home the last day of the year, December 31.

I want to thank you!

Some gifts for you... some of my drawings that I create during the night.

Thanks for having read my posts until now, I promise you new ideas and creations.
I think these drawing will be part of a book for the next year...

for the moment friends...PLEASE...Look at the sky, see the stars and DREAM. AUGURI, Merry Christmas and wonderful Holidays!

and remember...Yes,YOU CAN!

European Street Team and Secret Santa

As a member of European Street Team on Etsy, This year I parteciped to the Secret Santa organized by Artmind http://artmind-etcetera.blogspot.com/

My secret friend is Alessandra Ilardi from Turin (Italy) and her website is http://www.ixela.etsy.com/

What is my Secret gift? a wonderful violet neclklace! a beautiful handmade necklace!

For more News about the Secret Santa 2008, visit Artmind and to see all the gifts sent and received visit the Flickr Pool http://www.flickr.com/groups/967183@N23/

Thank you friend, for this Christmas gift experience, and thank you for This wonderful team!

....I forgot to tell you where is my secret Santa...I sent a doll to Iceland, I hope my secret friend will post my Marquise of Tea... Tinna...? are you reading?

Merry Christmas Etsy team!

White Thoughts

Go to http://thatcreativeplace.blogspot.com/, I added the first post, thanks Lisa!

Painting and fans

This is my last gift to a little little fan...Mattia! He is 2 years old and He is very sweet.
The technique is the same of my self-portraits: a transferred photo on canvas with charms and acrilic paintings
hey Mattia, thank you, you are a perfect model!

Silent Night....

IS EVERYBODY SLEEPING SINCE HOURS? Strange Sunday, silence...silence, quiet, without cars or childrens, only the sound of wind and dark sky. I love it! I'm drawing, but I want to post these pendants, good night!

Saint Lucy Day: The Saint of the Light and the longest night of the year

It's a special day for us, italian and european people.... This is the day children await the most (In some parts of Italy and Europe, Saint Lucy brings gifts to children like Santa Claus).

Celebrated in many parts of the world, but in Sweden above all, Lucy is a Saint that is born from an ancient legend of the Sicily (South Italy).

(Saint Lucy's body, Venezia, Church of Saint Lucy,Italy. Go to see the Church at http://digilander.libero.it/santigeremiaelucia/ )

Lucy=Lucia=Lux=Lucis=Light

(Santa Lucia, oil on canvas, scuola popolare siciliana del secolo XVIII. Chiesa Madre. Santa Maria di Licodia)

from Wikipedia..." Her feast day in the West is December 13, by the unreformed Julian Calendar the longest night of the year; with a name derived from lux, lucis "light", she is the patron saint of those who are blind. St. Lucy is one of the very few saints celebrated by members of the Lutheran Church among the Scandinavian peoples (Danen, Swedes, Finns and Norwegians) who take part in Saint Lucy's Day celebrations that retain many indigenous Germanic pagan pre-Christian midwinter elements...
In medieval accounts, St. Lucy's eyes are gouged out prior to her execution.

In art, her eyes sometimes appear on a plate that she's holding.

(Saint Lucy of Siracuse, Italy)

Dante also mentions Lucia in Inferno Canto II as the messenger "of all cruelty the foe" sent to Beatrice from "The blessed Dame" (Divine Mercy), to rouse Beatrice to send Virgil to Dante's aid. She has instructed Virgil to guide Dante through Hell and Purgatory. Lucia is only referenced indirectly in Virgil's discourse within the narrative and doesn't appear; the reasons for her appearing in this intermediary role are still somewhat unclear to scholars, although doubtless Dante had some allegorical end in mind, perhaps having Lucy as a figure of Illuminating Grace or Mercy or even Justice.[13]Nonetheless Dante obviously regarded Lucia with great reverence, placing her opposite Adam within the Mystic Rose in Canto XXXII of the Paradiso.

In Mark Musa's translation of Dante's Purgatorio, it is noted that Lucy was admired by an undesirable suitor for her beautiful eyes. To stay chaste she plucked out her own eyes, a great sacrifice for which God gave her a pair of even more beautiful eyes.

(Francesco del Cossa, Saint Lucy)

...Lucy's name also played a large part in naming Lucy as a patron saint of the blind and those with eye-trouble. She was the patroness of Syracuse. (Italy)

(Saint Lucy,Domenico Beccafumi, Italy)

(Saint Lucy's burial, Caravaggio, Italy)

Is It for you a special Day around the World? I want to know! write on my blog!

That creative place:I am a member of the team!

WOW, It's a wonderful News, It's official, This is a solemn moment..tadatadaaaaa...yeah!
I am a member of the team..with Marilyn Radzat, Lisa Gatz (the owner of the blog), Dayle Doroshow and Catherine Sneiders who is a writer and fan of That Creative Place!
Here the sites of The members:
Lisa Gatz http://thatcreativeplace.com/ (and http://www.thatcreativeplace.blogspot.com/)
Marylin Radzat http://wwwmarilynradzat.blogspot.com/ (and http://www.marilynradzat.com/)
Dayle Doroshow http://www.dayledoroshow.com/ (and http://dayledoroshow.com/blog/)

sorry, I haven't the Sneiders's blog or site, please team, tell me the address site!
Good luck for our work...Buona fortuna!

It's time to celebrate the event. With a symbol of Holidays

This is my Santa Liberty.
Elegant, solemn, almost ascetic: because Christmas also means meditation, search for hope, and being born again in a better world. Cloth, twig of pine, golden metal garland, hand painted features.

you can see Santa Liberty on my Etsy shop, http://www.gufobardo.etsy.com/

ciao, thanks Lisa!

I'm decorating my Christmas....

first steps...
I have a little tree, a patchwork tree, handmade by me some years ago..one year I add witches, one year angels, another dolls...This year only lights and branches of fir (I have photographed without light around the tree, only the tree's lights)
and this is my fireplace, with big bells and my collection of Santas and Snowmen and Angels

some of my Santas/Snowmen are on my table with myrtles and holly (from my garden)

stay tuned!

Another Award! interesting blogs!!

It's a good time for awards...:O) ...perhaps because it is Christmas? ehehehhh, I LOVE AWARDS!
Thanks Stephanie from http://fantasticfigments.blogspot.com/ ...I am in good company, I see our dearest Gail Lackey in your list!

Ok, The rules of the game:
1.Add the logo to your blog.
2. Link to the person from whom you received this award
3. Nominate 7 or more blogs
4. Leave a message on their blog

Ok, my nominations:

1.They called him Gustav Augusta http://gustavaugusta.blogspot.com/ because She lives in Finland and I love her magic atmosphere....

2. Bambole di pezza http://bamboledipezza.blogspot.com/ because It's the first italian site that I follow (and I'm italian!)

3. Designs by CK http://designsbyck.blogspot.com/ have you seen the CK Hallomas tree 2008? incredible, I love it!

4. Ohm Sweet Ohm http://travellingthesound.blogspot.com/ very interesting!

5. The dark ravens nest http://darkravensnest.blogspot.com/ have you seen her dad's carving?

6. Odddollz by Jaqui http://odddollz.blogspot.com/ She is a little sister of Frankenstein eheheheh

7. The CopperMouse Dolls http://thecoppermouse.blogspot.com/ She has a new incredible, wonderful doll, She is Madeleine Grace, go to see her!

8. Little arty crafty crow http://littleartycraftycrow.blogspot.com/ I love her design and the drawings!

9. That Creative Place http://thatcreativeplace.blogspot.com/ Lisa Gatz is my friend and She has wonderful worskshops! I hope we can collaborate very very soon....

I love you all so much!

Trompe L'oeil:another step

No free time for me today, a very busy day...
Today is Holiday for us (italians) and I'm decorating the house (next days the photos)...but the sunset was so incredible...dark pink with green and violet... that I have taken my brushes and I have added a touch of pink and dark green on my trompe l' oeil...like an impressionst landscape

This is a work in progress! go to see my post 'wall cupboard and earth Day', Post April 22, 2008 and you can see the other photos!

Mixer Media Sunday

It's Christmas! and I'm decorating my house, but...
I have stopped the decorations because I have found a precious object in my box of memories...
I found the shoes of my little sweet nephew Matteo when He was 1 1/2 years old...

and I thought of using these shoes for a 'memento'.

Matteo began to walk (Summer 2007) and his small shoes are a little consumed by his small steps..so sweet!

His steps are full of flowers and red leaves and butterflies and candies (metal charms) ...I hope that Matteo will have his road full of colours and life, as this little panel!

Treasury West from Bead and knit

Liz (beadandknit, Etsy Community) has created this Treasury.
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=34991

There is one of my little bears, Saturnale: fly to have a look!

A French Award

Et voilà! Paris, Parigi, the city of Coco Chanel, Surrealism, the Tour Eiffel, the Louvre!

Paris is my dream...my grandma gave me the money to go to Paris....hundreds of years ago eheheheh..thanks Marilyn for this Award..I had my honeymoon in Paris...

Here I am in Montmartre, a wonderful day of October 1996

if you think a city full of fashion, artists, ideas..This is Paris! ...and I love profiterols, crepe suzettes and baguettes!

The blogs I award the French award to are:

1. As seen through my eyes http://wwwmarilynradzat.blogspot.com/

2.Cestandrea Art blog-Paris http://cestandrea.blogspot.com/

3. Polly vous Francais http://www.pollyvousfrancais.blogspot.com/
4. I prefer Paris http://www.ipreferparis.net/
5. La coquette http://lacoquette.blogs.com/
6. Paris daily photo http://www.parisdailyphoto.com/
7. the Paris blog http://www.theparisblog.com/
8. The Tao of the Elfin Poet http://elfinpoet.blogspot.com/


Here are the Rules for the Award:

1. Please put the logo on your blog
2. Place a link to the person from whom you received the award
3. Nominate at least 7 or more blogs
4. Put the links of those blogs on your blog
5. Leave a message on their blogs to tell them