Black Friday Sale at Wind Dancer Design: Nov. 29

The Friday after Thanksgiving has been the largest shopping day in the US for decades.

Now dubbed "Black Friday" by people who want Americans to shun Big Box Stores and chains on that day, Black Friday and Small Business Saturday are promoted as days to buy local.

What could be more local, than buying directly from local artists?

This Friday, November 29, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., my daughter Alexandra Queen and I will be selling our artwork and jewelry from my studio-- Wind Dancer Design. (Check out the Facebook Event, here.)

 Alex will be selling her handmade jewelry, wearable art, and unique dream catcher wall hangings. Check out her work at Mermaid Heart.

I will be selling mosaic wall hangings, shrines, beaded jewelry, and Wind Dancers. My buy-one-get-one free sale on all beaded work continues through Friday. For those of you who stopped by my studio during the recent TPAC Open Studio Tour-- I have created several new mosaics since the tour.

So-- this holiday season, forget the cheap imports and buy one-of-a-kind gifts from local artists and local merchants.

Come on down to Wind Dancer Design, 3553 E. Camden St. in midtown Tucson this Friday! (BTW- cash, checks, and plastic are all accepted.)

Dia de los Muertos: Altars and Artwork on Display at Raices

Each year in honor of El Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), Raices Taller 222 Gallery hosts a unique show of commemorative altars and artwork. This year, I had the honor of creating an altar honoring my father and grandparents. Assembling the altar was a moving experience. As I dug through old photos and mementos, I realized that every piece of the altar -- from the red nail polish to the can of sauerkraut and the chocolate cover cherries -- tells a story about my family. The opening was last Saturday, November 1, 2008 and runs through November 22.

Ghost Bikes: A New Twist on the Roadside Shrine

Dangerous intersections across the southwestern United States and Mexico often are adorned with roadside shrines marking someone's passing. Around Tucson, a unique type of roadside shrine has now appeared-- Ghost Bikes, white bicycles that mark locations where cyclists were struck and killed.

As an avid cyclist and an occasional bicycle commuter, I think the ghost bikes are a poignant reminder to motorists and cyclists alike; we all can be more careful and respectful of each other on the road.

Photo credit: Arizona Daily Star.

Bogota!

Ok, it's been a very long time since I posted. Obviously, the fall of 2007 was hectic with multiple art shows. After the Cascabel Show in December, I took 2 weeks vacation in Colombia! Yes, Colombia, the country. It was marvelous, exciting, eclectic, historic, luscious. I went with my daughter Alexandra, son-in-law Jorge (who is from Colombia), and my friend Rico. We had a blast sight-seeing, tasting regional foods, and salsa dancing in Bogota, Cartagena, Playa Blanca, and Bucaramunga. Above is an aerial photograph of Bogota, a teeming city of 9 million people. The photograph was taken from Monserrate, a mountain-top shrine and cathedral. It was magnificent. Rico and I took the cable car straight up the mountain, through the forest, while Alex and Jorge walked up with hundreds of pilgrims. Here is another view.


In Bogota, we stayed at the Playtypus Hostel. It was highly recommended by Lonely Planet. It was a very funky and eclectic place, and we met many travelers from all over the world-- Germany, Korea, Sweeden, France, Australia, Brazil, and one guy from California (the only other American and the only other nonsmoker). Here, Alex and Jorge pose in front of the Playtypus. I would recommended it if you want to stay in a cheap place in the Candelaria District, a quaint old section of downtown Bogota. The Playtapus is one of many hostels and old hotels in La Candelaria.

Since I am a fan of history and historic architecture, I was in my element, walking the streets of La Candelaria, drinking in the scenery, and taking pictures. This is just one of many streetscapes.

We visited several museums, including the Museo del Oro, the Botero Museum, and a museum commemorating Simon Bolivar. Here, Rico and I dance with some Botero dancers in the museum.

All over Colombia we tried many delicious and unusual breads. Here, Jorge tries one of them. Below, is a paneria with a selection of tastey carbs. We also sampled many Colombia foods and different regional drinks such as aguardiente, canelazo de fruitas, Cerveza Aguila, Cerveza Costeno, and chicha, an Incan alcoholic beverage made from fermented corn and pineapple. Below, Alex poses with a bottle of homemade chicha. She's wearing an antique jacket that she purchased in the open-air mercado.


The market was amazing. You could buy anything-- from food, jewelry, and electronics to a dead calf head. We spent several hours touring the mercado, munching on treats, and spending money.
We also saw many magnificent cathedrals, eclectic murals, quaint buildings, historic places, and hot dance clubs in Bogota. Here, Alex and I pose in La Plaza de Bolivar with the Christmas lights. For more pictures, check out the link to my Flickr photostream.

In the News!

June was a big media month for Wind Dancer Design and me.

One of my shrines was featured in the "At Home" section of the June 3, 2007 Arizona Daily Star. I would link to the story, but the Star has an annoying policy of selling access to all stories that are more than a week old.

The lead commentary in the the June issue of The American Journal Of Medicine is an article co-written by my boss and me. "Who Will Care for the Frail Elderly?" discusses the current dismal state of long-term care in the US and the impending crisis in care as baby boomers leave the workforce and retire. Not only will the US be in dire need of workers to take their places, but we will need additional doctors, nurses, and healthcare attendants to care for them. There are dozens of government websites with data showing the coming crisis, but there doesn't seem to be any recognition of the problem in Washington, DC.

Lastly, the June 14, 2007 issue of the Tucson Weekly included a letter of mine on immigration-- "The United States Needs Foreign Workers, Not an Underclass." The letter basically pans the US Senate compromise legislation on immigration (which eventually died).

New Mosaics in the Works

I've obviously been in arrears with my blog posting. Things were really crazy before the Tucson Folk Festival craft show. It was a fun event. My booth was situated so I could see people coming and going-- plus see and hear the main stage. Sisters Morales (the Saturday night headliners) were GREAT! They were by far my favorite act of the whole show. Local bands such as String Fingers and the Last Call Girls also were top notch. I bought CDs from Sisters Morales and the Last Call Girls. Playing them reminds me of a pleasant weekend.

To recuperate after the show, I vegged out for about a month. Now, I'm back in the studio. Last weekend I started an ambitious project which I plan to enter in an upcoming art show. I'm building a three-dimensional mosaic waterfall. The finished piece will be just under four feet tall! The water part of the waterfall will be tile and cascading light rope. The base of the waterfall will hide the electrical cords and a CD player which will add sound to the artwork.

I'm also working on a large shrine entitled "La Mano Mas Poderosa" (the most powerful hand-- the hand of God or the Holy Spirit). The vertical section will be 16x20, and I'm going to grout tapered candle holders into the base. I will be entering this piece in the same show competition.

Today, I'll be grouting two pieces that I finished assembling last weekend. One is a Day of the Dead shrine and the other is my "What Would Jesus Do?" political statement. The DOD shrine is for entry into a different show. Busy, busy....