Wonder Woman Contest...

I grew up watching Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman.  My sisters took turns playing her, roping each other (and me) with the Lasso of Truth, and floating dolls with fishing line to recreate the invisible jet.  Cardboard tubes painted gold became the Bracelets of Submission.  Sometimes our mom even joined in on the game!  I grew up watching a strong female character empower girls to be heroes and save the day instead of needing to be saved.  I didn't know it then, but early on it instilled in me a sense of gender equality.  Women could be strong and powerful.  Women could be courageous and bold.  Later, when I started to learn about feminism, I found that those concepts already lived in me.  Our childhood games, inspired by a TV show, prepared us.

Over the decades, I've been surprised that there weren't real efforts to reboot the series or portray Wonder Woman on the big screen.  It seemed like there was always a Batman or Superman movie coming out, but it was curious how Wonder Woman's character never seemed to be revived.  That's why I got very excited when I heard that they were working on a movie about her!

To celebrate the release of the upcoming Wonder Woman movie, Allegory Gallery is hosting a little contest!*

Create a piece of jewelry inspired by Wonder Woman and be entered to win a $40 gift certificate from Allegory Gallery! Send a picture and a short description to us before NOON EST on June 2nd for a chance to win! One winner will be selected and announced at midnight. Send your submission to info@allegorygallery.com. 

The fun doesn't end there! The Allegory Gallery crew is going to the movies! Want to hang out with us and watch the film? Join us at the Diamond Theatre of Ligonier at 7PM on June 2nd for opening night! We will have Wonder Woman-inspired goodie bags while supplies last! Tickets are $8 for adults, $7 for children 10 and under, and an additional $4 per seat for VIP seating! We hope to see you at the movies!

*Disclaimer: This contest is not associated, affiliated, and/or sponsored by Atlas Entertainment, Cruel & Unusual Films, DC Entertainment, or DC Comics.

Ligonier Art Walk...

I'm getting excited for the Ligonier Art Walk!  The event is coming up soon and is only a handful of days away!  Allegory Gallery is participating with a bunch of other venues on Saturday, May 27th to celebrate art and creativity.  We are pleased to represent Chicago-based modern folk artist, Mystele Kirkeeng.  Her mixed media pieces are truly inspiring.  We hope that people will come out and show their support for the arts in our area!  We would love to have people join us for this awesome opportunity to see and experience artwork!

Resin Reliquary Class...

We had a fun day at the Allegory Gallery Reliquary Doll Class!  Since I'm not at the store anymore on a regular basis, I don't often teach much these days.  (Even though I didn't always teach formal classes, it always seemed like I was sitting down with someone to show them how to make something.)  It was definitely good to connect with people over creativity and hopefully give them some useful techniques that they'll be able to add to their art-making tool boxes.  We had a delightful group!  We didn't all finish our projects, even after working hard all day, but I hope everyone had a good time and is set-up for success and can complete their projects independently.

I hope that they'll share pictures of their work when they're done!  All of the students did an excellent job and had some really interesting concepts going.  All they have to do is bring everything together.  Here are a few pictures from the class:

Process pictures from the Reliquary Doll Class.

Lennis Carrier and Andrew Thornton at the Reliquary Doll class.

Chris Harris at the Reliquary Doll Class.

Lennis Carrier with her bird-head at the Reliquary Doll Class.

Alison Adorns with her creation at the Reliquary Doll Class.

Inspired by Reading: April Reveal...

For April, the Inspired by Reading Book Club read a delightfully interconnected novel by Armistead Maupin called, "Tales of the City".  The book starts off with one of the main characters deciding to stay in San Francisco during the mid-70's.  She finds an apartment in a house presided over by the ever-so quirky landlord, Anna Madrigal.  From there, it introduces a wonderfully vibrant cast of characters and weaves their lives together.  I love how rich the depictions were and even though the book is over 40 years old, it didn't seem dated or stale.  This isn't always the case; sometimes I'll pick up "great works of the day" and once they're out of context or the buzz has died down, they seem to lose their zip and sparkle.  Not so with this title!  Maupin worked his magic and flash-froze the era filled with zesty details.

Here is my submission for "Tales of the City".  It's a long, strung necklace with rose quartz, amethyst, brass, vintage Czech glass, and polymer clay by me. The polymer clay beads feature a paisley cane pattern that I made.  I was inspired by Anna Madrigal and her flamboyant, bohemian style and her purple kimonos and purple paisley dressing gowns.  I also thought the amethyst was a nice nod to the references about being in the Age of Aquarius. (Amethyst is the birthstone for Aquarius.)  The brown is an allusion to the brown shingles of the building, which one of the characters says is like bear fur.  Rose quartz is usually used to symbolize love and friendship, which are central themes in the book.  I used a yellow brass as a nice contrast to the purples. The flower bead caps remind me of a 70's floral print and dress up the polymer.  I strung the piece so that there's no beginning or end, a nod to the way all the stories seem to circle back on each other and connect.

I really liked the book! (There were definitely some sketchy characters I didn't like, but I was charmed by most of the lavishly fleshed out figures that populate Maupin's world.) I loved how nuanced and detailed all the characters were and how the book captures the vibe of mid-70's, post-Summer of Love San Francisco. I definitely want to read more in this series!

To find out more about our book club, CLICK HERE.  You can also join our Facebook page by CLICKING HERE.  Up next is, "Mistborn: The Final Empire" by Brandon Sanderson.

Book Club Tips...

GoRead.com did a feature on book clubs and Allegory Gallery's very own Inspired by Reading was featured in it!  I was happy to be interviewed about our book club and share it with others.  The article had some really great insights on running a successful book club.  To read the post, CLICK HERE.  And to join our Facebook group for Inspired by Reading, CLICK HERE.

Small Business in Rural America...

Remember this little gem of press?  Allegory Gallery was featured alongside the Amazing Race-winning, goat-raising, book-writing, TV show-making, fabulous Beekman Boys in an article called, "Small Business Ownership in Rural America: Where Community is Everything."  The post appeared on the Insureon blog and I was fortunate enough to be interviewed for it.  The piece does an excellent job of outlining some of the benefits and challenges of having a small business in a rural area.  To take a look, CLICK HERE.  You'd think that a blog by an insurance company would be just about... well... insurance, but it's actually packed with all kinds of useful small business tips and interesting spotlights.  For instance, there's THIS post about small business activism.  As a small business owner, I've found their content super fascinating!