introducing the perpetual calendar

This blog has chronicled my not-at-all-graceful journey as an artist, from my tentative steps as a photographer to the shaky addition of  "and Design" to my masthead. Thus, it is with great excitement that I introduce the first product developed by the newly evolved "Ann Howley Photography And Design".

Designing this calendar has been on my Wish List for years. I was finally able to complete it as the final project in my Icons, Logos and Logotype class. Nothing like a deadline and a looming grade to get something started...and finished! It has also been quite a journey getting my first custom product printed. I learned a lot and I am proud of the outcome.

I have used a Perpetual Calendar to keep track of birthdays and anniversaries for over 20 years. Yes, the same calendar! Just flip to the next month...again and again, year after year. No more moving names to the next year's calendar. And you can look at the month at a glance and plan ahead.

Each 18" x 4" calendar page is headed by an Ann Howley Photography landscape image from my world travels. Images are from Antarctica, Africa and throughout the United States. The front cover shows all the monthly images. The back cover shows an example of the calendar in use. The sizing of the calendar allows for hanging while not taking up too much wall space. Fit it right next to your refrigerator or over your desk. The calendar is wire bound allowing for pages to be easily changed each month. A nail hole allows for easy hanging.

The calendar is being officially launched at this year's Peach Tree Pottery 6th Annual Holiday Show which will be Saturday December 3rd and Sunday December 4th, from 12 - 5 pm on both days.  If you can't attend the show, please contact me for local orders or order at my Etsy Store.



honoring linda mechanic

I am truly stuck.  It is time to promote the Peach Tree Pottery 6th Annual Holiday show.  I sit at my computer with the To Do list that attempts to reach every friend and family member to tell them about our wonderful annual event.  But, I hesitate.  

I guess I just say it:  Linda Mechanic, my friend, my adopted sister, and the owner of Peach Tree Pottery,  passed away on October 29th after a two-year battle with ovarian cancer. I was out of the country and out of communication when she passed.  For the most part, I know the word of her death spread quickly, especially with all of Linda's Facebook friends.  I apologize to those who might just now be getting this information.  I know this is a painful hit to the heart.

I met Linda in 2005.  Ann Howley Photography had just become a full-time venture.  My friend Kathryn suggested that I show my work to Linda, a local gallery owner.  It felt much like an interview.  I was a new unsure travel photographer, clutching her portfolio.  That meeting truly changed my life. Any artist who has met Linda knows how she loved and supported artists. Her favorite thing, besides teaching on the potters wheel, was to help an artist have their first show.  I had my first solo show in December 2005 and I have been firmly on Peach Tree soil since.

The idea of the Holiday shows came out of a series of  meetings with Linda, Christine Mason Miller and myself in 2006.  Actually, there was one other person at those initial meetings who bowed out because he thought the co-op style idea would not work, that it could only result in "bad blood".  That became our favorite joke as year after year we have had an incredible event with no trace of bad blood.  Those shows have allowed many, many artists to be able to promote and sell during the holiday season.  It was Linda's gift to us all.

Linda and I became sisters when she was battling breast cancer. It was her mom's idea....new daughter, new sister. It was an honor to be welcomed into the family. For several reasons, I have spent a lot of time with people who were fighting terminal illnesses. I can attest that Linda fought for her life with strength and dignity. 

Back to speechless, how do I express all that Linda has meant to me?  She believed in me before I did.  She supported all my endeavors from the moment we met. She gave an enthusiastic YES to any idea I  had.  She gave Ann Howley Photography a permanent home, a place where my art is always welcome. She called me sister.

I feel like the only way I can honor Linda is to carry on for her.  Carry on as an artist, as a supporter of artists and as a philanthropist.  Linda never had an event at Peach Tree Pottery that wasn't also a fund raiser for a worthy cause.  May we all strive to be as generous as Linda.

One last story: I was lucky enough to spend time with Linda just before her last hospitalization. I had a moment with her that I will never forget. I had a "this is the most perfect ever" gift for Linda and I couldn't wait to give it to her. What was it? A Peach Tree Pottery poker chip! Linda collected poker chips and every time I traveled, she reminded me to get her a poker chip. I had recently gone to Las Vegas and discovered a cart on Fremont Street where they made custom poker chips. I had some chips made with the Peach Tree logo and website. When I visited Linda, she was resting in bed, trying to regain her strength for her next chemo. I handed Linda her customized chip and her eyes lit up. Truly lit up, sparkled, glowed! I was totally moved to see the flash of pure happiness from a body that was so racked in illness. I will always remember that instant. Of course, she then launched into tasks that would need to be done for the holiday show.

So there it is.  The 2011 Peach Tree Pottery Holiday Show is being held on December 3rd and 4th with Linda hovering over us from above.  We will hopefully have the most successful show ever, not just in honor of Linda, but to support Peach Tree Gallery.  The goal of Linda's partner, Carolynn, is to continue the operation of Peach Tree Pottery.  We know Linda would want that.

(For more about the Life of Linda Mechanic)

immersion in new york city

I am home from a week alone in New York City.  From this very quiet place, I can realize how immersed I was in the city and how wonderful it was.  In fact, the perfect word is magical.

Several years ago, I had the opportunity to spend three weeks house-sitting in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.  When I arrived, I really had no plans.  I let the location guide me.  Besides taking Spanish lessons, I walked and photographed....alone. 

I recently discovered the book Introvert Power. I believe it has changed my life.  It has illuminated my need to spend vast amounts of time alone and that alone time can be in a crowd.

I took the concepts of immersion and introversion to New York and wallowed in them. I didn't go to sleep at night with a plan for the next day.  I would get up, enjoy quiet coffee time and feel the day.  Maybe this is too "California", but it worked for me.  I intuitively knew how to spend the day in front of me.

Since I doubt I will be blogging about each day, I will share the recognizable highlights.  I say it that way because for me, just wandering was in itself a joy.  

•  Reading the city guide and realizing the Columbus Day parade started in 1 hour.  It was wonderful to be in celebration mode with New Yorkers. 
• Visiting the 9/11 Memorial and the surrounding area and feeling the immense sadness as well as pride in city and country. 
• Stumbling upon Occupy Wall Street and spending some time pondering the issues.  One of the things reported about the protest is the diversity of the crowd.  In the shadow of the 9/11 Memorial, it felt appropriate for Americans to say what they feel. 
•  Visiting the Tenement Museum was suggested to me by several people.  The tour highlights  how people actually lived in New York in the late 1800s and early 1900s.  It was striking to see that many of the issues that affected the immigrants have come around again (and again) and were being shouted about at OWS.
• Indulging in my current obsession with Project Runway.  As a design student, I identify with the show challenges.  Just like a true tourist, I visited the places highlighted in the TV show.  Thank you, Mood.
• Immersing myself for a full day at the Museum of Modern Art.  Not only did I visit my favorites (Vincent Van Gogh and Tina Modotti), I felt I got inspiration from it all. I saw things so differently with my student eyes.
• Taking the free tour of the New York Public Library. I learned about this option in a recent LA Times travel article.  After the tour, I sat in the huge reading room and absorbed the peace.
• Photographing in Grand Central Station. I find it fun to try to capture something so huge, beautiful and kinetic.
• Visiting the Rubin Museum of Art when I learned there was a pilgrimage exhibit that featured the Camino de Santiago.
• Saying goodbye to New York City (for the time being) at Strawberry Fields.

 Magical!

too many thoughts to blog?

Image Note: Gorilla at Los Angeles Zoo.  Do you think he's thinking about what to blog?

My boyfriend appropriately says I have "too many minds to go mad".  I might also have "too many thoughts to be a blogger." I know I have repeatedly apologized for not blogging more frequently. You'd think I'd blog more just to avoid the next painful apology.  Or that I'd stop blogging all together.  Mostly, I write blog entries in my head and the argue with myself about if that's where to begin. The more time between posts, the more fierce these self-arguments get. By the time I get to a keyboard, all of those thoughts are gone and I'm off in a non-blogging direction.

I hope my recent absence was explained a bit by my last post about returning to school.  I recently finished four quarters in a design certificate through UCLA Extension.  I'm now more than half way through a program that I love. For me, two classes per quarter consume most of my time. I just try to keep my head above water week after week for twelve weeks at a time.

I am now taking a break from school to catch my breath, but it feels as frantic as ever.  I'm trying to pack in all those things that never get done during the quarter. Soon I will take a much, much needed vacation, the first major travel I have done in over a year.  I know that's not a long time to many, but for a travel photographer, it's been painful.

Before I start traveling, I am trying to produce a product that I designed in my recent Icons, Logos and Logotype class. The assignment began with the design of my new logo (see blog banner).  Then, we were to design a promotional piece for our business.  Instead, I jumped straight to a major project that I have wanted to do for about five years.  Hopefully, the realization of this project is just around the corner.

Thank you for your patience with me.  I'd promise to blog again soon, but that seems to be a promise I can't keep.

new direction or off course?

I know I don't blog often enough.  When I do, it's usually because I feel that inner voice screaming.  Since (not so) recent posts were about my fears and confusions, I thought it might be nice to write on a more positive day.  It's actually been a very positive week.

Last September I started in a Graphic Arts program through UCLA Extension.  At the time, I was just taking the next indicated class and, truthfully, needed the student discount to be able to afford the software needed for the class.  I never really imagined that I'd complete the certificate program.

I'm now four quarters into the program and I finally feel like I'm in the right place. This is not to say I don't panic often.  For instance, one of the required classes is Drawing for Communication.  I have been coached well enough to know that no one should utter the sentence "I can't draw, not even a stick figure." That doesn't mean that going from pure left brain accounting to a drawing class hasn't had it's traumas.  However, I'm so excited when my assignments look anything like what I'm trying to draw that I don't really care what my instructor or classmates say during critique.  Yes, I listen for suggestions, but....  Anyway, you be the judge: the above drawing is after four weeks of class.

Besides finally feeling comfortable in artistic endeavors, I truly enjoy the entire design process.  This week I was hired for my first paying design project. (Details to be revealed soon.) I also have a completed class assignment that has some promise to be used by a potential client.  It all seems like a dream to me.  I truly fell into what may be my next profession.

True confession: I renewed my CPA license this week for two more years.  Truer confession: I hope I don't have to use it!

peach fest 3 ~ june 12, 2011

One of the main reasons I am so excited about the upcoming Peach Fest 3 is that I missed Peach Fests 1 & 2. Yes, the last two years I was in Spain at this time. In 2009, I was trudging 500 miles across Northern Spain as a pilgrim. In 2010, I was working along the pilgrimage route in a hostel that slept 180+ pilgrims per night.

I've heard wonderful reports of these events. It's a street fair on Boise Avenue, in front of Peach Tree Pottery, the gallery where we have our holiday events.  This event is all about kids and families.  There is a showcase of young artists work, student pottery sales, live music and food. Proceeds from a Silent Auction and a percentage of sales from the young artists work will benefit Saint Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital and those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tornadoes in the U.S. southern states.

I will be participating via sales of my greeting cards.  Twenty percent of my card sales will go to the charities. In addition, you can bid on a framed 16x 20 print ("Fish Eagle At Namibian Sunset") or a set of greeting cards which I have donated to the auction.

If this is your first visit to Peach Fest, it's on Boise Avenue which is three blocks west of Centinela, just north of Venice Blvd in West Los Angeles.  Again, it's on Sunday June 12, 2011 from 10 am to 4 pm. I hope to see you there!

hope's flame

This post is dedicated to the lovely Barb who created the Hope's Flame Candles of Intention.  I was drawn to mine this morning. I needed to write myself this note to try to move myself forward.  I'm in that hallway, the one with all the doors of unknown potential. I'm having a hard time focusing, not knowing what step to take next.  So, I pause.