studio mess

The river of Barbies flowing through my studio was O.O.C. last week - I felt compelled to document it. (thank goodness I had it cleaned up in time for the FIT studio tour! yikes)

Even though this may appear to be utter chaos, (and OK fine, it kind-of is) they're all actually sorted into groups and are awaiting organization into their appropriate bins/boxes on the shelving units.

recent aquisitions

Sparkle Glitter Pink Have-a-Heart Bust Pendant anyone? I think I might just have to.

And does anyone recognize this handsome fella?! Whoa, throw back to my childhood.

Studio Tour

This past Sunday on October 24th, I hosted a studio tour at my house/studio for the FIT jewelry student club. The lovely Sarah Abramson organized the day trip event from NYC to Beacon. She asked if I would mind sharing my space with the students, talking to them about my work, my studio, and how this came to be my career… I was happy to do so!

Since my studio is located in a small bedroom on the 2nd floor of our home, I took the students upstairs in groups of 4 and talked with each for about 15 min or so. They asked wonderful questions. It was great to share my work with them and talk about how I run my business.

I had a wholesale order in-process that happened to be out on a tray so it was nice to be able to show them that as an example of how a typical production order is processed.

I also had several one-of-a-kind pieces on display downstairs for the groups that were waiting to come upstairs. And my wonderfully supportive husband Dave set up a slide show on the TV in our living room of images from my website as well.

I was particularly struck by the spirited enthusiasm of the students. Their positive energy definitely gave me a jolt, reminding me how much I love what I do. All in all it was a great day, and I feel like I benefited as much from the experience as (I hope) the students did.

It's funny, when you work alone at home - day in and day out - it's easy to forget how far you've come. We all start somewhere. Talking with the students reminded me how important it is to pay it forward and share my experience with others. Even if I haven't reached all of my goals just yet, I'm quite a ways from where I began which means I have insights I can share.

(group shot in the backyard - thanks Dave!)

In other exciting/related news… amongst the group that day there was a New Paltz student named Kait, who will soon be starting an internship with me to help me through the holiday season this year. SO exciting!!

One & Only Exhibition: John Michael Kohler Arts Center

Can you even believe we are this close to the holiday season already? Amazing how time flies. Wasn't it JUST summer, like, a couple of weeks ago?! Crazy.


One & Only: Gifts Made by Hand is an annual exhibition held at the ARTspace Gallery at John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, WI. The exhibition features the work of 30+ nationally known artists and craftspeople working in a variety of media to create one-of-a-kind works. I was delighted to have been invited to participate in this wonderful holiday exhibition. The show will be on view from October 24, 2010 to January 9, 2011 so if you're in the Sheboygan WI area, go check it out! (ps. I really love pronouncing that out loud: "Sheboygan!")

These new quote bubble pieces are just a few of the works I sent for the exhibit. What's new about these is that the faces are set in profile this time, which I'm rather enjoying composition-wise…

For more information about ARTspace Gallery and the One & Only exhibition visit: www.jmkac.org

John Michael Kohler Arts Center
One & Only: Gifts Made by Hand
October 24, 2010 to January 9, 2011
ARTspace Gallery
725-G Woodlake Road, Kohler, WI
920.452.8602

Fantastic Plastic

Brooch 259 by Karin Seufert

A blurb about The Plastic Show was featured on the Lark Books website on October 6th. Man, I wish I could go see this show in person at Velvet Da Vinci! It just looks SO incredible. I guess I'll have to settle for an online viewing instead. Seriously… you need to check it out online.

Here are a few of my favorites from the exhibit…

Palm 01 Brooch by Sun Kyoung Kim
Leaf Wings Brooch by Yuka Saito


Alpine Rose and Star Brooch by Jante Fleischhut


Brooch by Leslie Shershow

fruits of my labor

A re-order for Russian boutique: Alice-n-Rabbit shipped off today…

And here's a pic of some recent custom Have-a-Hearts, a pin and a necklace. (There's been increased interest in the addition of "pasties" to the busts lately… quite interesting!)

Have-a-Heart Bust Necklace in butterscotch & Have-a-Heart Bust Pin in vanilla
© Margaux Lange 2010

playing

This week in between finishing up more custom orders, and scrambling to complete work for an upcoming holiday show, I managed to (miraculously!) squeeze in some play time. I did some sketching of new ideas, and playing with arrangements for a larger quote bubble piece I've been imagining…

It's definitely not there yet, but I thought I'd share some of the process.

These new quote bubble pieces have the smiles in profile this time, instead of straight on, which I'm digging.

I'm imagining a "talking behind her back" storyline to this one:

this last arrangement feels sort of odd at the moment, but it has some potential I think…

stay tuned!

Autumn is my favorite time of year

snuggled up kitty-kin in his buttercup:

homemade apple crisp… mmmmm

we saw this AMAZING sunset from our backyard last weekend:

Happy October everyone!

Eleanor White

Jack of Spades II © Eleanor White

Last weekend the hubby and I attended the Beacon Open Studios event going on across town as a way to get out and connect with some local artists. It was a lot of fun and we met some great folks that I'm very much looking forward to connecting with again.

Jack of Spades II (detail) © Eleanor White

One artist that I was particularly curious about was Eleanor White. I had seen her work online before, so I was excited to get a chance to see it in person. Unfortunately, she was not in the studio at the time we were there, but we did get a chance to speak to her husband a bit.

Eleanor creates what she calls, "playing card drawings" which are assemblages/arrangements/alterations of playing cards. She draws on the cards, scratches away, or uses gold and silver leaf to affect the surface of the cards.

Card Variations © Eleanor White

King of Hearts (detail) © Eleanor White

King of Hearts © Eleanor White

It was cool to learn that Eleanor received her MFA in sculpture from the Maryland Institute College of Art - my alma mater! She was also the recipient of a 2007 NYFA fellowship for drawing which is a huge honor.

Jack of Clubs © Eleanor White

Queen of Hearts, Jack of Spades, Queen of Diamonds © Eleanor White

I really responded to these works, particularly the circular pieces. Perhaps it's the patterning effect or their almost floral-like symmetry, but I immediately see the "wear-ability" of these works. Definitely inspirational for me! What do you guys think? …you like?

For more images and information about Eleanor White check out: http://eleanorwhite.blogspot.com/

King of Hearts II, Queen of Hearts II © Eleanor White

circular works (framed) © Eleanor White

As a curious side note… also on display in her studio was this gigantic hairball, collected and made out of her own hair…

Shed (hairball) © Eleanor White

I found this hilarious, because I too used to collect and make (smaller) hairballs out of my hair once upon a time…

Caged Hair Necklace © Margaux Lange 2000

(PS. I still have this piece I made back in college. I know! - shocking it never sold! hahaha)

one more reminder…

Modular Earrings © Rebecca Hannon

The Plastic Show opens tonight at Velvet Da Vinci Gallery in San Francisco 6-8pm! Can't make it? Then click here to view all the images from the show.