Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Winning Treasury #192

Some words from Anette...

It was such a sweet surprise to win the challenge. I felt particularly honoured to have been chosen by Christina whose treasury-making skills I admire. Since I don't have a shop of my own I decided to look for one with only a few sales that I considered worthy of exposure. And in a remote mountain village in eastern Germany (actually in my favourites) I found leschiwelt run by Nora Leschinski who makes adorable handmade woodcuts. The item I chose had colour and a certain amount of whimsy, which was a deliberate choice. I needed the boost of positive energy that I thought this item would inspire you to go for in your treasuries. And I have not been disappointed. I have thoroughly enjoyed all contributions.

One thing I noticed when going through all treasuries is that what we label folk art has common traits no matter where in the world it was created. It is primary colours, basic patterns, down-to-earth objects like animals and flowers, and we see it in Peruvian ponchos, American quilts, Mexican dresses, Moroccan tiles, Swedish clogs, and so on. It is also present in children’s art, which makes me believe that the concept of art is something we are born with. It's primitive and raw, based on human emotions and the desire to connect with the world around us.

It was a tough choice to pick one (and only one) winner but I finally decided for Gwen Rossmiller's Transformative. What she has created is an image of the creative process, the artist taking in the world around her and transforming it with her material - in this case pieces of wood. Together with the eyes, the hands, the impeccable choice of colour, texture and form and the real life representations of the woodcuts, I think this a stellar curation.



 Congrats to Gwen!  She will be choosing the inspiration item for Challenge #193 from her shop AsteriskPhotoart.  She'll also be judging the Challenge.  Check the team discussion page for a "Laying Odds" thread to make suggestions / predictions on the inspiration item.  We only have today to help choose the item, so please be sure to pop in.  

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