her name is birdie, but many of you may know her better as dear ada, her blog. it’s a wonderful tribute to someone very near and dear to her that she grew up with and shared a love for art, nature, design and culture. her passions are clear, and just as she showcases wonderful artists on her blog, many of them have also have made their way into her home and onto her walls in today’s sneak peek. click here for more, full-sized images, and stayed tuned for another stellar sneak peek at 1pm. [thanks, birdie!] -anne
[above: We've kind of turned the uses of our rooms upside down in the house, especially since we opened up the large room overlooking the garden. So what used to be the dining room, is now a cozy den. The chair we found at a garage sale down the street (love it) and the couch at a local antique store. We're convinced it really should be in some 60's-esque bachelor pad rather than our house but we're not complaining. The woodcut above the chair was done by my uncle in the 1950's and the mobile, a gift from a good friend, is also from canoe. The 2 photography books on the coffee table are by Ron Van Dongen.]
We recently remodeled 2 small bedrooms off a long dark hall into a big living/dining area. Gardening is a big past time for both my husband and I, so we wanted to enjoy from the inside the outdoors we love so much. We took down all the walls, put in a 10 foot long window and shortened the deck that ran the length of the 2 rooms so that we could look out over the garden all year round.
This is the view down what used to be the hall. The 3 etchings at the left of the wall are by Brian Aldrich and the large collage piece on the right is by Robert Yoder. The top assemblage on the facing wall next to the George Nelson lamp is by Lisa DeJohn and the small encaustic piece below is by Anne Siems. At the far end of the hallway is a collection of black and white prints and paintings done by myself and friends.
The large woodcut on the hall wall is done by Jennifer Leong from Grass Hut here in Portland, where we also got the Lisa DeJohn piece. The other 2 pieces are a couple of monotypes I did, the one on the left is the first pull, the one on the right is the ghost print of the first run. And below is sweet Ruppert.
I love things simple and bold, neutral tones with a touch of bright makes my heart sing. The bedroom certainly expresses this preference. White and cream bedding with brown and cream pillow cases from Plover Organics bought at the lovely Ink & Peat here in Portland and the throw pillow was done by a talented friend. I love the pop of the kelly green modernica rocker against the glass green wall, always reminding me of spring even when it’s rainy and grey (which is often in the northwest to be sure). The 3 little encaustic pieces are by Amy Ruppel and the embroidery piece is by Amy Karol.
Our dresser, again simple and plain, dressed up by an ever changing grouping of things I love. The painting on the far wall is by Claudio Tchsopp.
The other side of the very long bachelor pad couch has some art we love. The large piece on the left is by Mary Margaret Briggs, the lemons on the bottom left is by Claudio Tschopp, the small relief collage is by Janet Julian and the small figure is a pastel I did a few years ago. I found the abstract painting on particle board at a 2nd hand store in Portland.
