An Artist's Tool Box Mystery

I have pretty much given up on my blog but this story was too long for a quick Facebook post. It concerns a box that I found in the basement. It looked like this on the outside and I had thought it was an old gun cleaning kit.

This is what it looked like when I opened it.

What? Art Supplies! Oh how exciting. The cardboard thing on top looked like this when I opened it.

It was pieces of velvet with smudges of shiny color. A closer look at the sides of the card board revealed some writing.

My first guess was that it was some type of experiment. Some long ago family artist trying out painting on velvet? 

I had no idea who the box had belonged to or how old it was. There have been several family members who have done various types of art. I had a Great Aunt who painted with oils a lot. We have quite a few of her paintings and even some of the programs from art shows she was in. (Yes, we save everything) Could this have been Madge's paint box? I asked Dad if he recognized the writing and he said "No".  Well that just made me determined to find out who the mystery artist was. I needed to look for more clues. Back to the box.

First I examine the contents of the smaller metal box. 

The scrap of paper was on top of the other items. It had more writing and five common pins and a needle....but no name. The text is some sort of recipe, "3 parts turpentine, 1 part varnish" and some other words I could not make out.

Also in the box were a few paper clips, 5 dice (I can't imagine what they were in there for), white conte crayons, and these...

The metal object is like an awl without a handle. The other item is a tiny bottle. I tried to read the printing on the label but could only make out the words "headache" and "constipation". Inside the bottle was a fine silver powder. (Yes, I know it probably was toxic and yes, I tried to be as careful as my curiosity would let me be. And yes I do know that old art supplies often were health hazards, lead in the paint and tubes made of lead...etc..)

Next I looked at the paints. Madge painting a lot of landscapes and still lives with an occasional portrait so maybe the colors would be a clue. Here is the lot divided into color groups.

The largest group was the Reds. 

There were two tubes of Signwriters colors in Japan; Poster Vermillion and Signwriters Red. I have no idea what those types of paint are. The others are oils:  Cadmium Red M, Alizarin Crimson, English Vermillion, and Harrison Red. The last two are color names I have never heard of. The horizontal tube at the top was the only black; Lamp black.

For yellows there was Yellow Lake, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Yellow D, Chrome Yellow M, and Chrome Yellow. I know from reading various histories of color that the Chromes are not good. According to Wikipedia; "the pigment tends to oxidize and darken on exposure to air over time,^[2] and it contains lead, a toxic, heavy metal, it was originally replaced by another pigment, cadmium yellow."

The blues had a tube that did not look that old to me, the Grumbacher label has not changed much over the years. The tube itself does not look very old either. The colors are French Ultramarine Blue, Thalo Blue, Prussian Blue, Cobalt Blue, and Cerulean.

 

The greens have two more chrome colors: Chrome Green Medium and Chrome Green Deep. There is also a tube of Green Earth and Veridian.

There were three tube of browns; Burnt Sienna, Raw Umber, and Burnt Umber. 

The only tube of white was this one that I put in with the yellow group, mistaking the label color for the paint color. It is another paint I don't recognize.

The paints were made by Devoe, Devoe & Raynolds, F. Weber Co., Winsor & Newton, and  Grumbacher. The last two are the only brands I recognize. 

There may be clues here as to how old the paints are but it will take some research. And even if I date the paints that might not get me any closer to know whose box this was or what type of art the artist was making. I so wish these things could talk. 

To be continued....

Fighting a bit....

I seem to be fighting a bit of 'what's-the-point-itis' lately. That feeling of wanting to just give up on stuff that takes any amount of effort....and it all takes effort. I think I am still feeling the physical effects of a cold that Dad and I both had. He is still sick too, and it has been almost four weeks for him. I still have some lingering stuffiness but mainly I am just feeling weak and tired....and a bit depressed. The weather has not done much for my mood either. We had a long string of cold grey days; it has been a cool spring in general, and it seems as if when the sun does shine the wind is gonna blow like the dickens.
We did have a couple of nice days that I took advantage of. One day I went to Granby to take more photos for reference since all of my photos from there seem to be taken in Autumn. I wanted particularly to get some photos of the waterfalls at Enders State park before the trees were fully leafed out since it can get really dark in the gully.

I also went to the McLean Game Refuge and a few other places out there. It was a beautiful day.

The other nice days I spent in the garden. I had to keep resting, sometimes sitting in the wheel barrow if there was not a bench near by. That really makes me think it is not just depression that is making me feel so tired. 

Both of the nice days I also planned on finally doing some painting 'en plain air'. I have wanted to do that since last fall and for Christmas I got a special easel just for that. Well, I packed up my paints and easel but could not get myself to set up anywhere. No place seemed right enough for the effort. I was also afraid that someone would come by and see me painting. Why should that matter? I know it should not but until I do it a few times and build up some confidence I think that fear will be a factor. I thought I should just start by painting something here in the yard but again could not find anything that seemed worth the effort. That IS the depression speaking. Maybe this week I can overcome the fear and depression and just paint. 

I have done some painting but not as much as I was doing. My patron who was buying all my paintings on Ebay has stopped buying so sales have slackened and that is feeding into the feeling of 'what is the point?', though sales never were the point at all. It is times like this that I need to remember that what matters most is doing the thing. It really is all about the process, not the end results, not the sales, not the final product. Just do it, and do it with as much gusto as you can muster in that moment. And it is so true that inspiration follows action. Just get out the materials and make a start and do not wait for the inspiration. 

I had been wanting to do another pastel piece after seeing so many lovely works at the Academic Art show. So, while it was gloomy outside I went to the basement and got to work on a piece I had started a while ago. I really had to make myself get started on it but after a while I could feel a shift in my mood and in my thoughts from negativity and desire to quit to positivity and inspiration so strong I did not want to stop even for meals. It is a lesson I seem to keep needing to learn. 

Here is the finished piece.

And here are the Ebay paintings that I worked on.

I also reworked one of the the paintings that did not sell, and I think I made it better. I really like the texture of the paint in the foreground. I will list it this week to see of other people like it better now too.

Finally a Thursday post on Thursday.....a week late....sigh.

I need to give myself credit for getting back to blogging and not get too critical about the fact that I am not exactly doing what I set out to do. So what if I am not quite blogging every Thursday like I planned?  I am still doing better at it than I was a month ago.
For someone who does not like to go out much I have been rather busy going places. I went to the opening for the CT + 6 show at the West Hartford Art League on the Sunday after my last post. This is a regional show; Connecticut plus the other 5 New England states and New York. I was very happy to have two pieces in this show. I did not realize what a feat that was until I heard that they had about 425 entries and only accepted 85 pieces. I was also very very happy to find out that I had won the Frame Dimensions award for my felt piece titled 'Enders' (the name of the park where the waterfall is located).

My colored pencil drawing titled "City Kitty" is the other piece I did that was accepted into this show.

 I went to help with the hanging of the Academic Artist's show on the 26th. Being on the council for this group has been really good for me in terms of feeling more a part of the local artist community. It has also given me a new appreciation for all that goes in to mounting an art show. We had the opening for this show on Sunday the 1st. It is a fantastic show with some museum quality pieces in a beautiful gallery.

I was also busy doing more paintings for Ebay. Here are the newest paintings.

I also went to the Connecticut Sheep and Wool festival and found out I really am not done with fiber. I did not plan on buying anything and was going mainly to see my friend. I certainly was not going to buy a fleece....

Or any more wool roving....

Thursday post on Saturday?

Ok, so I missed posting on my target date again this week but I have a good excuse; sort of. I had to take day to the eye surgeon to have his second eye fixed for cataracts. And by the time we got home I was not in the mood to sit anymore. I wanted to paint. I am kind of obsessed with painting right now. It has really been a good thing to have in my life right now. A few weeks ago my eldest sister was diagnosed with primary peritoneal cancer. It was such a shock, one that I still feel, though it is sinking in. I am still having terrible anxiety; heart pounding and feeling out of breath whenever I think about Fran. Painting has been a way for me to escape from that awful reality. The fact that they are selling on Ebay gives me a boost too, knowing that they will be enjoyed by others and not just sit around collecting dust here. We don't need more dust collectors here that is for sure.

Here are this week's paintings. I started a series on water.

I also did two more paintings for my Abandoned series.

I also had a nice distraction from my worry over Fran by going to the opening for the Monson Arts Council art show "Deep". I had submitted three pieces to this show and was pleased that two of the pieces were accepted, especially since I learned that they accepted only about a third of the number submitted. It is a popular show with good prizes. The piece that did not get in was one that I knew was a long shot but that I felt compelled to make. When pondering the theme of "Deep" and what it meant to me I thought about how the deepest thing I know is depression and what that would look like as an image. This is what I came up with; Deep Depression: Beyond Blue.

Here are the pieces that were accepted; first a pencil drawing....

Deeply Content

And a felt wall hanging.

What Lies Beneath.

I was pleasantly surprised at the opening of the show to find that my felt piece had won second place for fiber arts! It was such a good day spending time with a friend, looking at art and a receiving a nice check and accolades. I wish my sister could find a way to get a break as easily. I have to remind myself that this is part of self care and that my being miserable over what she is going through benefits no one. So while I do need to grieve and feel the worry it does not help to wallow in it. And when my heart starts to pound and panic is nearing I will do my deep breathing, or go for a walk or draw or paint, and pray.