Make a Mask with Kanika - A Day to Play with Clay

It was just supposed to be an art show celebrating Black History Month.  The Branch Manager at the Elk Grove Library just wanted her library users to have the opportunity to see some black-oriented art in her beautiful new library at the edge of old town Elk Grove, California.  But she and I were concerned that few people would visit the show in their community room.  Neither one of us wanted me to be sitting there, probably mostly by myself, for six hours. So we talked about making this a hands-on event: "Make a Mask with Kanika."  I would bring some clay and let people carve a little mask. Simple, right?  Well . . . because we advertised the event on Facebook, through the local newspaper, to hundreds of people on my e-newlsetter mailing list, and in the library itself, it did not turn out to be a simple day.

The night before, I spent about one hour rolling out mask forms, about eight clay blanks on each of six cookie sheets.  I wanted the very soft clay to set up a bit so that it was "leather hard" and better able to be carved.  I also brought an additional 100 pounds of clay in case we ran out (which we did) and/or people wanted to roll out their own pieces from scratch (which many did).  OK, the prep was done and the car loaded up by 8:30 Friday night.  I spent the rest of the evening watching the Olympics.

On Saturday morning at about 8:00 AM, my son, Matthew, got out of his warm bed and helped me to set up my art display at the library starting at 8:30 AM.  Pat had also asked one of her student volunteers to help me set up the room (thank you!)

I had carefully planned to use four long tables for the attendees, and a fifth one for me.  We put two chairs at each table, but I knew that we could fit one more on the other side of each table if we needed to, for a maximum of 12 people who could make a mask at the same time.  I had brought some plastic table cloths to protect the table-top surfaces, an 8.5" x 11" piece of cardboard and a small sponge for each station, and a bowl of water and spray bottle for each table. I also put out lots of assorted tools at each station that could be used to make textures on the clay.

We set up three more tables on the opposite side of the room for my three-dimensional sculptures, African art books, Kanika portfolios, autograph book, and business cards and postcards.

We also set up information from "I Made It" and "Alpha Ceramics", local businesses who would let attendees glaze/color their masterpieces and could fire the masks for a small price.  OK, by 10 AM I was ready. And the people started coming.  And they came and they came all day long!  In fact, all of the following pictures were taken between 10:30 and 11:30 AM or so, because after that the crowd was huge and I only had time to work with them on making their masks.

But by noon, new people were coming far faster than the old people were leaving. So three more long tables had to be set out, handling four people each. And I had to divvy up the tools I brought.  From about noon to 3:00 PM, I was attempting to assist up to 20 people at a time who wanted to learn how to make a mask.  From the youngest of about two years of age, to many teenagers, to many middle-agers, to several older folks like me, it was a fun and free-wheeling time in the Elk Grove Library Community Room today!!!  Pat kept coming in and marveling with me about how successful the event was.

Thank goodness for the Delta Sigma Theta sorority who brought refreshments!  I was so busy from 10 AM to 3:30 PM that I only had time to drink about 1/2 cup of water and eat two cookies brought by the Deltas.  I didn't realize how hungry and thirsty I was until I got into my car to come home!

So after putting away the sculptures, taking a shower, and eating some quickly-prepared dinner, I reflected on what made the day so special.  They are in no particular order, as follows:

*The weather was sunny and bright, no rain in sight as was prophesied by the weather people.

* Many of my customers and friends came to support me and find out how the sculptures are made.

* Each attendee used the clay in amazing ways, either by creating extraordinary textures on the clay or great shapes.  One lady made several parts for what will be her entry into the 2010 Art Bra Show in honor of breast cancer. One lady made a face sculpture on the back of a spoon and an amazingly delicate filigree design for the headdress.  An initially-reluctant father jumped in and made a cool mask to show his little girls that he was as cool as they were in making a mask.  One lady made the most beautiful small face (I later found out she too had taken numerous clay classes from Cosumnes River College Art Director, Yoshio Taylor).  Another lady made a heart but added numerous additional hearts overlapping the first one.  Another lady decided to try a bowl form.  So many ideas that I cannot list all of them.

* The children were ALL so polite, whether their parents were around or not. None were goofing off, yet they all had a ball making masks and other clay forms.  Their level of creativity was amazing.

* Pat and one of her star employees helped me break down the display. I felt a little bad for the janitor because many of the black chairs were covered with grey-colored clay and the floors would need cleaning.

* All ethnicities and religious persuasions were represented by the attendees.  There was amazing harmony in that room.

* Everyone really seemed to get a great deal from their hands-on experience. And that's what my primary goal was!  I left the library with a sense of hopefulness and excitement that so many people were turned on to clay!

Thanks to Mom I Am Exhausted

Thanks to mom, I have been exhausted everyday getting ready for another art show.  Mom gave me the creativity, drive and confidence in myself to be an artist, like she was.  She made artistic endeavors a safe haven for kids growing up in the 1960s and 1970s.  She lead by example that trying new things was fun and exciting so I relish experimenting with new art modes and subjects ( like water fountains, LED lighted sculptures, metal work, mosaics with a twist, etc.)

Thanks to mom, I am totally renovating my kitchen, from demolition to designing the new space to building cabinets to installing everything myself (and with the help of my boyfriend and son).  Mom gave me the skills to plan, organize, and follow-through. She gave me the gumption to do a big project like that and to feel certain that it would turn out well.

Thanks to mom I am exhausted. But it is a good kind of feeling to know how to set goals and be able to accomplish them and enjoy the fruits of your labor. So breast cancer took mom from this Earth but she lives on through her children, grandchildren, family and friends whom she touched with her magic.

Thank you mom!

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

At the request of the Kuumba Collective, a phenomenal group of African American artists, my "Two Faces of Eve" sculpture will be shown in a special breast cancer awareness section of their brand new gallery. "Two Faces of Eve" makes us question whether it is ugly, confusing, erotic, calm, elegance, merely a representation of disease in the body, or a pictorial of how cancer makes women feel going through chemotherapy, or . . . . ? You tell me what you think the sculpture represents.

The KUUMBA COLLECTIVE FINE ART GALLERY / GIFT SHOP is located in North Sacramento, at 1001 Del Paso Blvd., Sacramento, CA.

This sculpture will be in the gallery until November 9, 2009.


PLEASE ATTEND THE KUUMBA COLLECTIVE'S SECOND SATURDAY ART WALK on October 10 , 2009 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM

For more information, please contact: iristeagarden@yahoo.com or deanero2002@yahoo.com

YOU'RE DOING A BRA SHOW???

What’s a BRA SHOW?

The Women’s Wisdom Project (WWP) and Albie Aware Breast Cancer Foundation are preparing to host their second ART BRA SHOW to bring awareness to the plight of breast cancer in Sacramento and its effects on all women. Artists have been invited to sculpt, paint, stitch and/or embellish a piece of artwork that uses the “bra” as a symbol.

The show will be held between Sept 10-19 at the 40 Acres Gallery, 3428 3rd Avenue, Sacramento, CA. Pieces will be auctioned on Sept 12 from 6-9 PM.

Come and see my “Puttin’ on the Ritz” metal and clay wall sculpture and the other interesting bra art there in August and plan to buy some art to further these good LOCAL causes.

Remember that Breast Cancer touches all of us. One in every eight women will get breast cancer during her lifetime. A cure needs to be found and you can help with your art purchase.

The Albie Aware Breast Cancer Foundation is a local non profit 501 (c) 3 dedicated to breast cancer education, outreach and screening in the greater Sacramento region. Their mission is "to save more lives and empower people with breast cancer through awareness, education and support." Please visit their website at www.albieaware.org or call (916) 927-1592 for more information.

The WWP is an art program of the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services, for adult women who want to broaden their creative lives. Women's Wisdom is a free, drop-in program that includes art classes taught by professional artists. The WWP provides a free, hot lunch, a supportive staff, counseling, referrals and a unique opportunity for socialization. They accept women from all backgrounds and walks of life. For more information, please call (916) 456-1980 or go to www.sfbs.org and check out their programs.

For more information about the show and/or if you would like to donate funds ANYTIME for these causes, please contact the WWP program manager, Helen Plenert, at (916) 456-1980 or at hplenert@sfbs.org

A Blast From My Mom's Past

A friend of mine e-mailed the following Sacramento Bee article about my mother, Mary Marshall, and me. It brought back some amazing memories as mom and I were being profiled for a special showing the Crocker Art Museum was having on our artwork in 2000. I hope you enjoy the article and learn a little about my remarkable mom!

NOTE: The Blue Moon Gallery will feature my and my mom's artwork in June 2010.

Mom's prints are available HERE


SACRAMENTO BEE February 2000, People Edition
By: Celia Lamb

If art is an expression of the soul, then African ancestors speak through the hands of mother and daughter artists Mary and Kanika Marshall.



Kanika sculpts with clay, and Mary prefers to work with watercolors. But they share the goal of creating art inspired by the cultures of a continent they have never seen but are connected to by blood.

In recognition of Black History Month, the Marshalls' Africa-influenced art will be on display at the Crocker Art Museum store Feb. 19 and 20.

Mary, who lives near Mack Road and Stockton Boulevard, began painting about 10 years ago. At that time, she retired from a career in school administration that included serving as principal at Bret Harte Elementary School in Curtis Park, Camellia Elementary School in Elder Creek and Pony Express Elementary School in South Land Park Hills.

Mary always had planned to explore her interest in art after she retired. She enrolled in art classes at Cosumnes River College, experimenting with various media before focusing on watercolors.

"You just can't get any other medium to do that wonderful juicy feel that you get from watercolor," Mary said.


Artistic talent clearly runs in the family. Mary said she encouraged Kanika's childhood interest in art. "One of the things I know I did, and I wish more parents would do, is that instead of just buying the plastic, premade (toys), we always had the crayons and the paper and the pens," Mary said.

Kanika, a resident of Elk Grove, took up art later in life as a means of exploring her heritage. "In the 1970s, when I was in my 20s, I was searching for my identity," Kanika said. "I'm very fair-skinned, so I didn't fit well into either the black or white cultures." At about that time, Kanika read Alex Haley's epic novel "Roots," which told the story of Haley's African and African-American ancestors.

"That got me on a mission to learn more about African cultures," she said.

Kanika studied African history at California State University, Sacramento. She also took a pottery class at CSUS from artist Ruth Rippon. "Pottery was really making cups and bowls and plates, but I wasn't doing that. I was doing this," she said, holding up an African-style mask. "I was trying to do this on the sly."

Later she enrolled in art classes taught by sculptor Yoshio Taylor at Cosumnes River College. "He was just a great inspiration," says Kanika. "He's a Japanese American, so the influences of his culture definitely are displayed in his work."

Under Taylor's tutelage, Kanika said, she began to explore the African influences in her work. She said she is inspired by West African influences, creating proud clay figures wearing traditional brightly colored fabrics and flashy headdresses. Sometimes she depicts people from East African cultures with simpler, lighter-colored clothing. She recently made a figure of a southeast African Zulu warrior carrying a spear and shield and wearing white and blue garments. She also sculpts clay masks and pendants.

Kanika says she likes the tactile sensations of working with clay.

"I don't think a lot about what I do. It comes through my hands," she explained. "It's kind of exciting for me, too, to see what's going to come out in the end."

Many of Mary's paintings depict Kanika's sculptures. Mary also paints images of African people, still lifes and abstracts. Painting abstracts isn't easy, she said. It takes time to develop a style. "If I had my way, I'd do all abstracts, but I'm working my way up to that," she said.



Kanika began showing her work in 1993. Her mother joined her a couple of years later.

Kanika's works have been displayed at the former I.D.E.A. Gallery in Oak Park, the Barton Gallery and the Blooming Art Gallery in midtown, the Sacramento Fine Arts Center in Carmichael and the Auburn Arts Centern. The two women also have participated in various art shows and competitions in Sacramento and the Bay Area.



Kanika and Mary displayed their work at the Crocker Art Museum, 216 O St., in the 1998 and 1999 holiday art shows. February's showing in the museum store will feature only their work, Kanika said.


Celia Lamb

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GIRLZ LIKE TO HAVE FUN!!!

Every year since 1993 I have submitted artwork for consideration for the State Fair Fine Art Show. I have been fortunate the last seven or so years to submit pieces the judges-of-the-year found worthy to be in the show to win awards. There are several different categories among the major visual art arena that artists may enter, sculpture, ceramics, and mixed media. There are also some special categories, such as cultural, wine, and equestrian. Each year, I try to enter at least one of the special categories. This year I tried for the wine category with "The Wine Tasting."

A group of African women in beautiful, long flowing gowns sipping wine. Different types of wines and wine glasses line the right side. Different types of wine grapes align the left side. Yes, maybe this would be best in the cultural category, but it's always fun to try something different!

So why is this on my Cancer Survivor Blog? Why not? It is a celebration of life, of wine, of good friends, of gratitude, or acceptance, of fun.

GIVING AWAY MY HEART TO YOU!

Heart of my heart. In February 2009, I created a new line of textured ceramic hearts using luscious colors. Chopping up a 25-pound block of red clay into roughly triangular shapes, I rolled it quickly to about 1/4" thick, generally making a heart shape. Then I made and bought several textured rubber and clay stamps. Stamps that look like hearts, lace, and leaves. I stamped the clay with interesting patterns, then used my trusty chopstick to incise more lines. Using a needle tool, I cut the outline of each valentine.

But how to make the texture really POP? I painted a black underglaze lightly over the top of the texture to make the pattern really stand out. The sculptures were fired in a kiln to cone 05 (almost 1900 degrees). After cooling, I painted them with underglazes and cover glazes, using vibrant color combinations. One more time in the kiln. Then I strung copper wire through the holes and attached them in a delicate fashion to form the hanging mechanism. And voila! A great addition to my new romance collection.

In honor of my blessed mother, Mary Marshall's, birthday I shall select one winner among the fans on my Fan Facebook page. SO SIGN UP AS A FAN ON THE http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kanika-Marshall/50402302085?ref=ts KANIKA MARSHALL FACEBOOK PAGE and see if you are the winner on May 31st.

More hearts can be seen (and purchased) from my webpage: http://kanika.us/1gifts_pp.htm.