Rachel Arntson's Agwe and a Question

Here is Rachel Arntson's Agwe! Agwe is lord of the sea. He's responsible for successful voyages and safe return to port. Ships and fish are his special symbols.  Offerings to Agwe are taken out to sea and placed in the water so they can sink down to the submerged palace where he resides with his consort, Lasiren.  I like the red sail and the tiny fish in the water.  Thanks, Rachel!

Here's my question.  Please let me know if you are still interested in having the quilting bee. When we set up the Haiti Project, we decided to get together a few weeks after the project started to work on our pieces and see what everyone is working on. The quilting bee is scheduled for next Saturday, April 9, 10:00 to 1:00 at Mosaic on a Stick. Please let me know if you still want to do this.  Cast your vote by clicking on the comment below and sharing your thoughts. Thanks.



Our First Completed Square!

Rumor has it that some of you have your veve squares near completion.  Julie Reeve has completed her first one and she is now working on a second one!  Below is the Ezili Freda flag that Julie has done. Ezili Freda is the goddess of love. Note the use of primary colors!  Also, in order to make some of her shiny stuff even shinier, Julie used Weld-Bond to stick glitter to some gems.  She let that dry and then she bonded the glittered gem to the mesh.

As you complete your squares, please email a digital photo of it to me at mathissl@comcast.net.  I'd like to start posting them on the blog.

Thanks for sending yours, Julie.

Update on Haiti Project and More on Offerings

Great news about our first (I think) community project -- to date, 21 guild members are participating in the Haiti Project!  It's great to see so much interest in and commitment to this project.  We're now making designs available to those of you who want to do two squares.  Julie Reeve is already working on two designs - thanks, Julie! -- Right now there are three designs at Mosaic on a Stick.  If there is a need for more, I'll make more.

Now, more on offerings.  I think some of you are having fun with your offerings.  Last week, I blogged about the offerings for La Siren.  This week, I'll show you examples of offerings to the Gran Bwa and Bawon Samdi.

The Gran Bwa is ruler of the forest and the master of herbal remedies. He  likes offerings that reflect the verdant colors of the forest he inhabits.  Offerings include flowers and leaves.  You can see this in the photo of the an actual Gran Bwa veve below.

The next photo is a veve for Bawon Samdi, guardian of the cemetary and the paramount spirit of the dead. One of his favorite offerings is rum laced with pepper.  You can see that he's holding a bottle of rum.



Introduction to Offerings

Haitian Vodou Lwa (Loa) are given offerings to please them and to gain their favor.  Each Lwa likes specific types of offerings.  In Vodou flags, the offerings are typically integrated into the background of the flag, but sometimes the Lwas are seen holding the offering in their hands.

I'll be sending out a series of blogs on offerings.  Integrating offerings into your specific flag is optional.  Just be prepared to suffer the consequences that the Lwa may wreak on you if you don't provide an offering.  (Some Vodou flags are very busy and there's really no room for offerings.  In that case, the Lwa gives you special dispensation if you don't give an offering.) 

In this blog, I'm focusing on Lasiren, queen of the ocean and patroness of music.  She surfaces from the depths of the sea to bestow favors on her subjects.  Offerings to Lasiren include combs, perfumes, seashells, mirrors, and doves.

Here are a couple images of Lasiren.  I'll be sending out additional blogs of Lwa and their offerings.  Check back often!











Edina Art Center Show Update

I checked with the Edina Art Center today to see if our members may hang glass on glass mosaics in the large window that they have in their gallery.  They said "yes" and that "it would be very impressive" if we did that.

I hope some of you can take some glass on glass pieces to the show!  We'll have a considerable amount of room for hanging pieces, for 3-D pieces, and for hanging glass on glass!

The contract that we have with Edina Art Center stipulates the following:

• All pieces must be for sale.
• Each participant will pay EAC $5 for participating
• If you sell your piece(s), Edina Art Center will receive a 35% commission.

Please figure in the above when you establish your pricing.

The only thing that will not be for sale is the Haiti Project.  Edina Art Center has invited us to display it in it's semi-finished state.  They know that it's going to Haiti.

Beads, colors, lines, and a touch of gold!

I'll be blogging often during the first couple of weeks of our project so please check the blog often. There were lots of good questions yesterday as members picked up their designs.  I want to pass along those questions and answers to everyone as they might be helpful to you. If you have a question, please post it in the comment box of the blog and I'll answer.

First, BEADS!

Beads are used a lot in Vodou flags. I've suggested that you use some beads in your pieces.  Cheryl Anderson commented yesterday that small beads often don't stick well to mesh.  I'm going to try some large beads in my piece and see how they do.  Another material that you can use is GEMS.  Gems fit into the category of "shiny stuff".  Also, as you know, they may be cut in half and set on the cut side in the piece which gives an interesting effect.  Cheryl - thanks for this tidbit!

Now, COLORS!

I've suggested that you emphasize the primary colors in your pieces -- RED, BLUE, AND YELLOW.  Note that the word I used was "emphasize" NOT "use only primary colors".  You may definitely use other colors. I've seen Vodou flags with black, white, purple, and green in them.  You have the freedom to use any color, just emphasize primary colors.  Take look at the Ezili Freda flag below.  There's lots of black, but also lots of red.



Next, LINES.
Some of you have selected flags with narrow lines in them, such as the narrow swirly lines in the flag above.The narrow lines in the cartoons of your flags are lines for you to follow. There's no need for you to try to make them as narrow as they are in the actual flag.  Just follow the lines as you lay your tesserae.

Finally, INTEGRATING A TOUCH OF GOLD INTO YOUR PIECE.
Because we'll be using gold mirror glass for the border at the time of installation, we need you to use a touch of gold mirror glass in your piece.  This will help tie the whole piece together.  If you don't have any gold mirror glass at home, Mosaic on a Stick sells small strips of it so you can purchase a small strip when you pick up your pieces. Take a look at the Guede Mazaca flag below.  There's only a small amount of gold.--That works!

That's it for today.  I'll soon be blogging about integrating offerings into your pieces.  This is optional, but you often see it in actual Vodou flags.  Check back soon!



Haiti Project Kick Off

The Haiti Project is about to begin-yeah!  Your packets will be available for pick up starting this Saturday, February 26 at 1:00 PM.  Packets may be picked up at Mosaic-on-a-Stick. (Remember that The Stick is not open on Mondays.)

Each packet will contain the following:

1. Voudou (also spelled Voodoo) Flag design.
2. Mesh
3. Instructions
4. Voudou Flag Primer
5. Voudou Flag Glossary
6. Information about the specific Voudou Flag that you've chosen.
7. Minnesota Mosaic Guild Dates to Remember.

I'll also be sending this information out to guild members via email.

Check the blog on an ongoing basis for updates.  I'll also periodically be posting images of actual Voudou Flags on the blog for inspiration. -- Have fun!