Bryony Studio

I went up to the Castellani Art Museum at Niagara University today for a talk about the Weaving Women of Ancient Athens. I don't often have the chance to visit art museums, but I do enjoy them when I can. Knotted Pile Sampler, 2011 For the most part, I enjoy visiting art museums to enjoy both the ambiance as well as gather up ideas. Granted, abstract confuses some people, but I like looking at them, trying to figure out what the creator felt or wanted to express. Part of the enjoyment comes from the fact that weaving, especially the art end of weaving can be something abstract. Due to the abstract nature of fiber arts, I find people not entirely able to accept them as art. On the other hand, those within the fiber arts community sometimes feel that art  is just another word for amateur, and use it as such. A fiber artist  can be a derogatory term signifying those who do not wish to put the time, energy and patience into properly finishing a quilt, knitted item, or wall...

One of my favorite places is Ireland, and the many colors that come from the place. I think many people enjoy Ireland, especially when there is a family connection. Dusk is always a beautiful time of day, but looking on the Shannon River from Clonmacnoise is especially beautiful.

Hope everyone had a happy Easter. Back now, with work to do, so this week will have more posts. Today is another Monday Mood, focusing on the end of our perpetual winter. When the weeping willows turn their lovely early spring yellow, I know that spring is coming.

So this week's been on the roller-coaster ride setting. Annoying, actually, but who am I to complain? I've managed to finish two projects, and working on another one. Since it is Easter this Sunday, I thought I would focus on Easter for the Monday Moods. I love the brightly decorated Easter eggs from the Polish traditions. It astounds me the variety of traditions people around the world have for spring festivities. While Christians celebrate Easter, the Jews celebrate Passover, and other cultures celebrate other traditions connected to freedom and rebirth. Hope you all have a Happy Easter.

I found out some cool news yesterday: I was accepted to the Saturday Artisan Market (SAM) at Central Wharf in Buffalo NY. Opening day is May 17.  Newest Weaving Project Can I just say how excited I am by this opportunity? It's going to be a great time of meeting new people and establishing myself in Buffalo. I will be there under my pen/artist name of Bridgette ni Brian, not under the Bryony Studio name since I'm still working on establishing Bryony. As the days progress, I'll keep everyone updated through here and my Bridgette ni Brian Facebook page ( here ) and my Twitter account @bridgettenbrian ( here ) Trying to remain encouraged and hopeful with all that's happening has been interesting to say the least. It isn't easy establishing oneself in the artist community, especially when people wonder just what fiber arts is. Trying to explain to people the benefits of supporting local artisans is even harder when most people are concerned about more importan...

I spent a month in Ireland, and every time I walked into town, I passed this house. It seemed to exemplify what Ireland was: simple, beautiful, modern and traditional at the same time.

When I was little, I was jealous of friends of mine who had a strong ethnic heritage. Two of my friends were half Mexican; another set of friends were Korean, and still others were Italian Polish Easter Eggs at Broadway Market, Buffalo My family didn't have any traditions handed down from parents to children. We have British stock on both sides of my family, primarily English, but with Scottish and Irish thrown in for good measure. My mom provides German and Native American heritage, while my dad throws in some Dutch heritage. Other than knowing my family, I have no traditions attached to them. Do we celebrate St. Patrick's Day? No more than the average American does. Are there traditional Easter and Christmas celebrations unique to the Dutch, Germans or English? Probably. We wouldn't know. See, my family has lived in the United States for most of America's history. My grandma, who immigrated to the US in the 1920s, more than likely descended from Loyalists wh...

Someday, I hope. Spring Flowers I took this photograph about two years ago in late spring. I just thought the flowers looked pretty, and honestly, I like the color. This year, winter has taken far too long to leave. We had a snowstorm over the weekend, but it's warming up now. The weather folk expect yet another small storm, but eventually - they assure us - spring will return to Western New York. Thinking of the warm weather makes me smile because I'm tired of the cold. I've mentioned it before, but I didn't live my entire life in Western NY. I actually grew up in the Pennsylvania Dutch Country of Southeastern PA. Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington D.C. were practically in my backyard. Within an hour or two, I could be in one of the cities. Winters were cool and wet, but rarely freezing or snowy. Spring came in March with the crocuses and tulips. According to a recent news account, Buffalo had around 150" of snow this year ... do the math, and th...