Remember those first nondescript scratches on paper? Or what about how proud you were when you first colored everything without going over the lines? Crayons were your first drawing tools, but you eventually moved on. You picked up some color pencils, maybe even some paints later. But what if you had stuck with crayons? Maybe you would be like Don Marco, the Master Crayon Artist. Born in the late 1920’s, Don Marco didn’t seriously start pursuing art until after his retirement working for air traffic control in Honolulu, Hawaii. Since then, he has sold over one-million prints.

Don Marco starts each piece by drawing a rough outline with “peach-ish crayon” on fade-less tan construction paper, then he builds on the layers. The heat from his fingers is used to blend the colors. With experience and practice you learn what crayons work well with others and which techniques work best. However, he didn’t always only work with crayons. He has used oils and pencils, although his preference is clearly wax. I don’t really have to say much, the quality of his work speaks for itself.

Don Marco is also a mentor. For a year he worked with artist Tiona Marco. Her original name is unknown to me, but as a tribute to Don she combined her family name with that of her mentor. She was familiar with crayon art before teaming up with Don Marco and after her apprenticeship she began selling her artwork. She has a gallery from which you can buy prints or her original drawings. Below are a few examples of her work.

Café La Semeuse bietet Schweizer Kaffee als Schümli und Espresso

• Café La Semeuse Espresso Il Piacere 250g Bohnen
• Café La Semeuse Espresso Don Marco 250g Bohnen
• Café La Semeuse Espresso Don Marco 1000g Bohnen
• Café La Semeuse Mocca 250g Bohnen
• Café La Semeuse Mocca 1000g Bohnen
• Café La Semeuse Parisien Crema 250g Bohnen

Wilhelm T.

I went to the animal clinic to get my minpin, Taz,  some pain medicine.  He is having growing pains.  He is so hyperactive sometimes that he overdoes it and does something to his back leg muscles.  This is the third time I’ve had to get pain pills for him.

Yesterday I went online and discovered Don Marco – the master crayon artist.  It is so cool that those pictures are all done with crayons!!!!  I would love to try this.

Boy I didn’t realize it had been so long since I did anything on here.  I have been so busy.  I took a week-end vacation with my daughter and visited my youngest son.  That was a good time I had not seen him in a year so it was nice.

My Daughter-in-law and her two boys came for a visit.  I had not seen the new baby. He is now 8 months old and just the cutest.  Her oldest is just turned 3 years.  My do they ever change when you don’t get to see them very often.

I added some new software to my pc.  I have had it for a while but never downloaded it.  Boy am I glad I did.  It is photosuite5 by Roxio.  And it offers so much more than the HP photosmart that I usually use.  This one has borders,frames,edges and some awesome editing.  You can even remove wrinkles!!!  I have been having fun with that today.  Now I have a couple new pictures to put in my flickr account.

I think I mentioned that I was working on a pendant inspired by a painting called Four Winds.  While I put some pictures of that in my flickr I am still working on it but I thought I would show some of it anyway.

I also found a cool tutorial on abalone and made a cane of that and have done a few things with it.  I have pictures of those also but like the pendant they are works in progress.

I did manage to make and finish a Bottle of Hope for my daughters Mother-in-law.  She loves Great Danes so that is what I made for her.  It is bigger than the usual BOH I used an empty white diamonds perfume bottle because I wanted the height.  I think it turned out pretty good. I have put those pictures in my flickr also. 

I received an email from a friend of mine the other day with some pictures from a crayola crayon artist.  His name is Don  Marco.  He does some of the most awesome pictures I have ever seen.  I had to find his whole web site so went looking around today and I found it here.    http://www.themastercrayonartist.com/shop/custcat.aspx

I just love American Indian stuff and western and he has quite a few on his site.  He also sells them.  I hope you enjoy looking around his site as much as I did.  His works are way to expensive for me to buy so I will just have to bookmark his site and go back to it often.  His is a remarkable story also.

Well until the next time have a happy clay-zie day everyone.

http://LGdesigns.wordpress.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5125957
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lgdesigns_by_linda/

Mandala Shield, hand-drawn mandala, Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 2008, photo © 2008 by QuoinMonkey. All rights reserved. 

ONE: Hand-drawn mandala, setting pie-shaped boundaries. Made with Crayola markers, glitter glue, and Portfolio water-soluble oil pastels; started as an empty circle.

Celtic Mandala, Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 2008, photo © 2008 by QuoinMonkey. All rights reserved.

TWO: Celtic mandala set up much like a castle and moat, with mazelike bands of designs protecting tender, leafy vines at the center. When emotions intensify, personal habits and rituals help you feel safe.

Protection, Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 2008, photo © 2008 by QuoinMonkey. All rights reserved.

THREE: Perceptions can make you feel sensitive and vulnerable, open to criticism from others (real or imagined). Mandalas during Stage 5 are about vigilance, protection and defense. The walls don’t have to be heavy – your fortress can be a connected ring of flowers.

Hildegard Of Bingen’s Vision, Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 2008, photo © 2008 by QuoinMonkey. All rights reserved.

FOUR: Mystics transcend the emotional intensity of Stage 5 by using the Target mandala to communicate insights and experiences. This mandala represents the 9 circles of angels and humans in Hildegard of Bingen’s Vision. The empty circle at the center is the mystery of the center where beauty is born.

Circle Boundaries, Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 2008, photo © 2008 by QuoinMonkey. All rights reserved.

FIVE: Ringed mandala used to explore feelings. The inner circle is filled with things you fear most. The ring around that is a color that represents courage. The second circle contains mentors, guides, teachers (living or dead). The third, negative thoughts that arise from fear. The fourth, positive behaviors that help manage fear. The fifth circle is filled with positive affirmations.

May Mandalas — Stage 5 – Target

May is a turbulent time in Minnesota. It’s tornado season; the weather is unpredictable. Moods in the month of May seem to follow the seasons. The theme for the 5th Stage of The Great Round is similar to Frog Medicine — protection – setting and keeping good boundaries. It is a Catch-22 that strong boundaries allow us to feel safe when exposing our vulnerabilities. I found it difficult, and comforting, to work on Stage 5.

It was Carl Jung who introduced modern Westerners to the psychological significance of mandalas. He believed we all strive to live out our own unique potential, to experience wholeness.  We began Coloring Mandalas as a practice in January, working with the archetypal circle, and following the twelve passages of Joan Kellogg’s The Great Round. 

Target, the 5th cycle of The Great Round, begins after age two, when you discover yourself as separate from your caregivers, and go after what you want. Sometimes seeking creates conflict, and can lead to disappointment or frustration.

In adulthood, we set and seek personal, creative, and career goals. We may run into resistance from others, feel tired and vulnerable. In Stage 5 we explore ways to set healthy personal boundaries, which allows us to feel safe when we take risks or are in situations where we are emotionally vulnerable.

May’s mandalas are drawn with Crayola markers, glitter glue, and Portfolio water-soluble oil pastels. I find drawing and coloring mandalas fun and relaxing. But there are some artists who consider coloring a serious business. Last weekend, in On The Road, Jason Davis profiled Minnesota Artists. I was delighted to witness the work of Don Marco from Duluth, Minnesota who has been coloring in his Fine Art since the late 1960’s.

In an act of synchronicity that Jung would have loved, about a year ago, a 24-yr-old named Christina Nelson from Superior, Wisconsin decided to try making art with crayons. She thought she was the only one using the medium. Then she met Don Marco working only a few miles away in Duluth; he became her mentor. Now she goes under the name Tiona Marco.

According to the book Coloring Mandalas by Susanne F. Fincher, the healing benefits of The Great Round: Stage 5 – Target are:

• learning to ritualize behaviors of self-care and self-protection
• realizing and appreciating daily rituals and routines
• knowing how to set good boundaries with others
• knowing your limitations and working within them
• cultivating the ability to exceed and transcend limits when needed

 The high humidity and blue skies, with a backdrop of billowing, dense gray clouds tell me we are well into June. And I’ve already begun Stage 6.

 -posted on red Ravine, Monday, June 9th, 2008

-related to posts: The Void – January Mandalas, Bliss — February Mandalas, Labyrinth — March Mandalas, Beginnings – April Mandalas, and WRITING TOPIC – CIRCLES