Treasure Chest

Helen was asked by a local restaurant owner if she could design a custom card for their business. They were quite impressed with this one. Again the problem with a surrealist is they don't plan or have an idea in mind when they work. It also would have involved me in to a little more commercialism than I'm ready to get in to at this point. I will be moving in that direction as we have had other inquiries about greeting cards and such. This whole adventure is still chaotic but less so than it was. Little by little I'm getting a grip on it.

HEFM Tour

This one is called "Sailing". I have been very busy with it being tax time and all. I have been checking out some new venues to plan a tour throughout Southern Minnesota. I am looking at the Gingerbread shows as a primary source. They have 50 shows throughout the year mostly in the Twin Cities area at local malls.

Helen is still putting out works faster than I can keep up with them. I don't even know how many there are. I'm still learning about this website and have tried expanding to other media but I'm having some trouble. I've been trying to hook up to Facebook but I just can't get logged in. At least January is almost over which is what I think of as being hump month in the winter season. Hopefully Feburary will be clear sailing.

Wine Label ?

While going through the opportunities on mn.artists.org I happened onto a call for artist for a Minnesota Winery for art to put on their label for 2011. Helen doesn't do specific requests due to the nature of her talent. However I remembered this one called "COUNTER TOP" and I'm thinking what the heck, may as well give it a try. They wanted something related to the enjoyment of wine and it made me wonder, "What in the world would that be?" I would certainly enjoy the prize of a case of wine. Hmm maybe a picture of me sitting on a case and getting smashed.

TRISH

I was not sure of the venue when we did the interview on KTOE as I had not made the arrangements. The show is simply call "Trish", an afternoon show on community events and issues. Sue Chambers, one very busy woman is a weekly guest on the show as a representative of the local arts community. Coming in we walked through a maze of small hallways and sat down. Escourted by Sue we passed Trish in an office dimly lit. The place was very quiet and layed back. Trish met us just outside the studio, chatted with us a couple of minutes and then started preperations inside the studio. Trish commondering like a Space Shuttle pilot was flipping swiches, turning dials, and viewing screens. Then the critical second came, reminiscent of Michael Keaton in Beetlguise, Trish smiles, "It's Showtime". Together Trish and Sue asked the visably nervous Helen questions about her art while simutaneously viewing her work. Helen did an excellant job only stumbling a couple of times. The show went off quickly and smoothly.

Helen has entered a whole new world in the past year. In addition to this program and the shows, she even gave a speech/interview in front of a crowd of well over one hundred people at the Stakeholders meeting of the South Central Community Based Initiative group. She has done two shows with SCCBI and we would like to thank them for all they have done for her. This coming year could be filled with some amazing events in Helen's life. I will try and do my part to make this all happen.

The work shown here is called "MACHINE" and is actually one of my favorites. It is simple and complex at the same time. For me it represents our technology of the past, obsolete, and forgotten. A relic of the industrial age it sits alone in nothingness while at the same time giving evidence it was a part of a living and vibrant civilization.

Gerald

KTOE interviews Helen Myking

Today at 3:10 on KTOE Sue Chambers-Poet Laureat will be interviewing Helen today in regard to her art. She is quite nervous but I will be with her and being an experienced ham will get her through it. The title of this piece is simply Trellis. It is a very ordinary garden trellis with the exception of it also being a shoe rack of sorts.

In May Helen will be at the Coffee Hag with an exhibit of her works. I will update further as the time draws near.