Happy (almost) Columbus Day, Scribblers! How are you planning to enjoy your long weekend? This holiday marks the anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ arrival to America in 1492. Everyone knows any good explorer always has a few tools on hand and a definite crucial one is a map.

It seems only right to embrace the adventurous spirit of the day with some fun DIY inspirations involving globes and maps! This is a great way to use souvenir maps from past trips or vacations, old atlases, and road maps; or breathe new life into broken or shabby globes with these exciting updates. Have fun exploring these cute and timely crafts on your day off!

Take half a globe and turn it into a unique bowl.

Photo via Better Homes and Gardens

Spread “peace” on earth with contact paper and spray paint.      

Photo via Endlessly Inspired

Grab some maps and some modpodge and spruce up a piece of furniture with decoupage.

Photo via Shelterness

Photo via Roddy & Ginger

Save souvenir maps from vacations and cut them into shapes to display. Try butterflies or hearts.

Photo via Image Surgery

Are you going to give any of these projects a try? How would you transform your old maps or globes?

Have a great Columbus Day everyone!

Scribble Town (ST): Stories come alive in your imagination when you look at the paintings of Xavi Carbonell, an artist from Spain.  Let’s meet Xavi and learn how he creates these beautiful story builders!

Untitled, 2012
Mixed media on paper
26 x 40 in (70 x 100 cm)
XC1361

Xavi Carbonell (XC): Hi my name is Xavi Carbonell, I am 42 years old, live in Alcoi, Spain with my wife and two daughters.  I am a full time artist. have exhibited in various countries in Europe, Africa and the United States and my work is in many international collections.   I am often described as an Abstract Expressionist, and infantile painter.  Infantile is a genre not well known in the US, but it means my work reminds the viewer of a child’s work, but remember making something look simple is usually the most complicated task!

ST: Where are you and what are you up to these days?

XC: I am currently in New York City, painting and preparing for an art fair with my gallerist later this summer.

Untitled, 2012
Mixed media on paper
26 x 40 in (70 x 100 cm)
XC1404

ST: That’s exciting!  Your days are spent with filling canvases with color.  Sounds like a wonderful summer, but I’m sure it’s quite a lot of work too.  When did you start painting?

XC: I started painting when I was 20 and was inspired after seeing works by the Spanish Artist, Antonio Saura in a museum exhibition.  At that moment I realized I wanted to paint and create my own path.

ST: It’s pretty remarkable how those unforeseen moments in life realize the paths we take.  Similar to you stumbling upon Antonio Saura, is there a way that you run into inspiration?  Where do you find your spirit to create?

XC: I am most inspired to create in NYC, the city has such a powerful energy.  The process of creativity is difficult to describe, but I find it’s often a result of new experiences, travel, meeting new people, but at the same time when I am in front of a blank canvas it just guides me.

Untitled, 2013
Mixed media on canvas
48x 48 in (120 x 120 cm)
XC2403

ST: Since your paintings are so narrative for me- I start to hear a soundtrack that goes along with the picture.  Do you ever listen to music when you paint?

XC: There was a period when I exclusively listened to classical music, then it was Jazz, and lately I don’t listen to much music while painting.

ST: Your paintings are so vibrant and strong from your choice of shapes and colors that I make up my own story when I see them.  My imagination just takes off!  Is there a story you are building in your head as you paint?  Is that why you title your pieces Untitled- as to keep the mystery and openness available for all viewers?

XC: Yes, there’s a story in my head and that’s exactly why all my pieces are untitled.  If I use a title, the viewer is pre-conditioned to see something.  I prefer the viewer to create their own story, as I think that’s more fun and I want each person to see what they want to see in my work.

ST: It’d be interesting if you had a book next to your paintings and you could have the viewer write down the story that comes to mind when they see your paintings.  You’ll get loads of different responses!  That leads me to other mediums- what are some other forms of art you practice? Do you ever mix other mediums with your oil pastels?

XC: I have worked in the performance genre, and I love to cook which is a creative outlet.  My concept of mixed media is based on oils but I also include, magic markers, chalk, colored pencils, oil sticks and charcoal.

Untitled, 2012
Mixed media on paper
19.75 x 27.5 in (50 x 70 cm)
XC1441

ST: Painter Joel Garten mentioned to me that you had once said your work is influenced by childrens art.  I am interested to know more about his comment.

XC: I am very inspired by the imagination of children and how they execute the concept on paper.  I am always fascinated by how you can have a conversation with a child on paper with out actually using words.  The innocence of children is the most exciting as adults unfortunately rarely preserve that quality.  It’s something most of us sadly just lose along the way.

Kids, never lose your innocence.  Adults, if you feel like you have lost it, try hard to find it in yourself as it’s the best part of each of us.

ST: With that said let’s try Xavi’s drawing exercise.

XC: One exercise is to draw with your eyes closed.  For instance draw a landscape from memory, but remember to keep your eyes closed!  You’ll be amazed with what you can create.

ST: Scribblers, send in your drawings to and we can post them on the Scribble Blog.  Thanks Xavi for sharing so much with us!  To see more of Xavi’s work you can go to http://www.artangler.com/Carbonell.html.

Untitled, 2012
Mixed media on paper
19.75 x 27.5 in (50 x 70 cm)
XC1463

Scribble Town (ST): Yulia is everywhere!  We first discovered her while flipping through an Oprah magazine and then saw her work featured in Material World: The Modern Craft Bible.  Yulia is an expert paper artist and is generous to share her tips!  Where are you and what are you up to these days?

Yulia Brodskaya (YB): I live close to London, very busy with my paper art and two little kids.

M Real by Yulia Brodskaya

ST: I have never seen anything like your art.  How would you define your work?  It seems to be a peaceful combination of craft and fine art.

YB: I just call them paper artworks; but I don’t normally try to put any labels such as craft or fine art or even focusing on the term ‘quilling’ too much. I use a combination of paper manipulation techniques to create my paper artworks.

Jungle Bird by Yulia Brodskaya

ST: How did you discover this artistic process of creating paper artworks?  Was there somebody that encouraged you?  With your two kids perhaps they help with the playful aspect of your images!  Your birds and butterflies look like they will just fly away.

YB: I always had a special fascination for paper, I’ve tried many different methods and techniques of working with paper, for instance Origami, paper collages, however Quilling technique turned out to be ‘the one’ for me. I started to use it about five years ago: I was planning to create a small brochure with my hand-drawn illustrations to be sent out to potential clients and I was looking for an eye-catching image with my name ‘Yulia’ for the cover. I created a number of hand-drawn variants, but I didn’t like any of them and then I remembered an image from some school book showing a paper strips standing on edge, so tried to make the letters using this technique and apparently the attempt was successful; over the next couple months I switched to paper illustration completely.

Nature by Yulia Brodskaya

ST: Through playing and dabbling we just stumble upon what we didn’t expect! Where do you find yourself feeling really inspired to create?

YB: In my little studio.

ST: How do you manipulate your paper? What is the process?

YB: I use cocktail straw and little cocktail sticks for rolling the paper strips (I didn’t know that there are specially designed tools available when I taught myself to shape the paper strips, I started to use the cocktail straw and I still use it now). Also, scissors, twisters for little details, glue and of course paper paper paper. For the process the best thing will be to search for some basic youtube lessons.

ST: Yup, anything can be a helpful tool especially when you know what your aim is.  Cocktail straws do the trick!  Yulia, any tips for our scribblers out there?

YB: Just have fun with it; it will be a pleasure if you enjoy it. The process is very slow and time-consuming so if you are not enjoying it the whole experience can be a plain torture.  I have a fish pattern that I designed for my workshop in Shanghai, it is very simple, people can use it as a basis for the quilling experiments.

ST: Thanks Yulia!  I’m going to give it a try!

Pure by Yulia Brodskaya

Scribble Town (ST):  Every year, Youth Art Month (YAM) has a flag competition for each state.  Students from each grade level (elementary, middle, high school) creates a flag design for YAM in their state.  The design can use the National theme: Art Shapes the World, or you can create your own theme.  A winner will be chosen from the three levels and the winning flags will be represented on the posters and postcards promoting the YAM show at the Capitol in March.  The winning student artist will receive an actual 3’x5’ flag of their winning design.  On the Scribble Blog with us is the winning high school student from Minnesota, Chelsea Waite!

Chelsea Waite’s winning NM YAM flag!

Chelsea, what was your first thought when you heard of the YAM project?

Chelsea Waite (CW): When I first heard of the contest, I was excited because I have never been involved in a art contest this big before.

ST: Already you sound like a person who is up for challenges and like to take a chance! How did your idea develop?  What story or idea are you trying to convey with your flag?

CW: I wanted to focus on the idea of diversity. I think diversity is important to New Mexico because of the many different cultures we have here. My first idea of how to represent diversity is in using the Zia symbol. I found that I could manipulate the ends of the symbol to go off into different direction, but then come together in the middle to make one complete symbol. This is how I think the people of New Mexico are, we come from lots of different cultures but live together as one.

ST: Multiculturalism in New Mexico is just one of the things that makes it a special place. How did you decide what medium to use?

CW: I decided that I would use Sharpie and color pencils because it is easy to make small thin lines with these mediums.

ST: How do you feel about your final outcome?

CW: I was happy with my final outcome, but I never thought it would win.

ST: And that’s exactly what happened! What do you like most about your YAM flag?

CW: My favorite element in my flag are the yucca flowers. I didn’t choose the yucca flower because it is our state flower, I chose it because it is not very pretty. Compared to the millions of flowers in the world, the yucca flower is ugly but if you look close enough there is beauty there. I think this represents New Mexico because of that very same reason. This state is often overlooked but if people take the time to look close enough they will be able to see beauty.

ST: That’s such an honest approach to depicting your surrounding.  There is beauty everywhere if we just tune our eyes in the right way.  You are so wise and thoughtful!  How did the idea come into your head?

CW: I came up with the idea the moment I heard about the contest. The idea popped into my head very easily and with not much effort.

ST: And just like that we now have a beautiful YAM flag for New Mexico! Thank you Chelsea for your creativity and taking the time to share with the Scribblers!

Scribble Town (ST): With us is Joel Garten, an artist, composer, writer, and entrepreneur.  Joel says, “I have so many different things that I do, and the thing that unites them all is a sense of flow and creative energy.  I use that sense of flow and intuition in everything I create, and try to have a sense of flow in my path through life.”  Yes, you do Joel and it is seen in your colorful, vibrant, and musical paintings.

Joel, where are you and what are you up to these days?

Joel Garten (JG): I am working on a series of large scale paintings. These paintings are 4 feet by 8 feet, really long scrolls of paper that I paint with many different type of media.  I also compose music on the piano regularly.

ST: When did music enter your life and was there somebody that encouraged you to compose?  I wonder what came first- music or painting?  I say this because I can see the music in your paintings!

JG: The music certainly came first in my life.  It came very early, I started playing piano when I was eight or nine, and I began composing music very soon thereafter.  It is something I took to very naturally, and I have been composing for more than 20 years.  Interestingly, I have a lot of difficulty reading music – almost like music notation dyslexia – which meant that I devoted most of my musical output to improvising music.  This means I write the music as I play, it is all one artistic creation of the moment.  My music is very personal, and an expression of my sense of intuition and rhythym.  My music has also always been influenced and inspired by visual art, such artists as Jackson Pollock, Giorgio Morandi, and Richard Diebenkorn.  It is meditative, soulful, dissonant, and repetitive; but repetitive in a good way – the way that repetition can unearth deeper truths in the music as it unfolds.

Here is an improvisation from a recent concert I did in Toronto: joel-garten-live-in-concert

"Untitled" 22x30 inches, mixed media on paper by Joel Garten

ST: And with painting- how do you feel the two artistic elements support each other?

JG: Creating visual art myself is something that happened only recently, and has really increased in intensity in the past few months.  I was inspired to create art by seeing works by Jean-Michel Basquiat.  Just like Basquiat, my work has a lot of bright, joyful colors, but also works at deeper level, what the Abstract Expressionist called “the sublime”.  Abstract expressionism is an influence on my art, as is the work of Cy Twombley.  Yes, there is a lot of music in my artwork, and a lot of people say they can really see music in my paintings.  It is because there is a lot of energy, vibration, and that sense of flow that I talked about earlier in the paintings.  The artworks have rhythm.

ST: When did you start composing, playing the piano and painting?  You play improvisational music- do you ever paint in that manner?

JG: The artwork is definitely improvisational.  I start with no preconceived plan or sketch, I simply start in, and follow my intuition.  I let the painting tell me what to do.  And recently I have been starting to use acrylic paints to do essentially finger painting – except using my whole hand, and sometimes my whole arm.  I also use both hands to paint, sometimes at the same time, just like using my right and left hand to play piano.

ST: What have you been listening to when you paint?  What kind of music do you like?

JG: I have a number of different things on when I paint, sometimes it is Stevie Wonder, sometimes it is jazz by Keith Jarrett (a big influence in my music) or Bobo Stenson.  I like classical music, jazz and Motown, as well as new music.

ST: Where do you find yourself feeling really inspired to create?  If there’s a process you go through to spark the creativity, please let us know.

JG: I usually get most inspired at night.  I don’t really need daylight to paint, I like to paint under incandescent lighting. I put on some music, take some supplies and start painting.

"Untitled" 22×30 inches, oil pastel and oil stick on paper by Joel Garten

ST: What are some other forms of art you practice? Do you ever mix other mediums with your oil pastels?

JG: Well, I have a plan to do a number of other types of art.  The next thing I would like to do is use my artwork to create fashion.  Yes, I use oil pastels, oil stick (oil paint in stick form), and acrylic paint.

ST: I can’t wait to wear a piece of your art!  Do you ever play with other musicians?  Please let us know of your next show.

JG: I improvise music on my own, it is a very personal, and maybe even spiritual experience.  I do have interactions with other musician though.  When I was younger I was invited by the rock musician Bryan Adams to play a concert at his studio in Vancouver.  I am also doing a series of artist profiles of musicians, which is being published on the Huffington Post.  Right now I am focusing on doing small scale studio sessions-concerts of my music, and I want to turn those into a CD.

"Untitled" 22x30 inches, mixed media on paper by Joel Garten

ST: You are up to all sort of creative happenings. Definitely keep Scribble Town posted on all your adventures! Just hearing about how energetic, active, and open you are is encouraging in itself.

JG: A lot of children are natural artists, and famous painters like Basquiat and Jean Dubuffet were inspired by children’s paintings.  It is hard for people to hold onto to their child-like talents as the get older, and marry those instincts with experience.

ST: Thank you Joel for all your insight and inspiration!  Joel has also given parents and teachers tips on how to talk about art with young artists.  To read more about that please go to the Scribble Shop Inspirations page: http://www.scribbleshop.com/content/artist-joel-garten-shares-how-create-and-talk-about-art-your-child

Check out Joel Garten’s website www.joelgarten.com!

"Untitled" 22x30 inches, mixed media on paper by Joel Garten

Scribble Town (ST): From a distance what looks like a beautiful volcano of color and texture turns out to be an ingenious technique of rolled paper and paint. Amy Eisenfeld Genser has mastered the art of creating an organic effect by using mixed-media. Amy is also a mom of three sons from West Hartford, CT.  She says, “I’m a tad obsessed with paper and paint, color, patterns, and texture.”  You’ll soon see why!

Let’s start with, what does a day look like for you?

Amy Eisenfeld Genser (AEG): I am usually in my studio, on the third floor of my home. I work about five hours a day while my kids are in school. It is a juggling act. My typical day is to get the kids off to school, hit the gym for an hour, and then come home to work. Because my studio is in my home, it’s sometimes hard not to get “mess-tracted” as I call it (starting to do laundry, clean dishes, etc…) but having the studio on another floor helps. Going up the stairs is like crossing a threshold. I also listen to books on tape while I work. Time flies when I’m working on a piece and into a great story, but when I see the bus coming down my street at 3:45, my work day is over.

ST: I’ve never heard that term “mess-tracted” before, but I like it because I can completely relate to you! When you do get to your work, how would you define your art?  It seems to be a peaceful combination of craft and fine art.  I have never seen anything like it before.

AEG: I refer to it as mixed-media. I’ve been able to live in both the fine art and craft worlds. It’s nice to be welcome in both places.

ST: I can see how your artworks really settled nicely in the two worlds too. How did you discover this artistic process of paper quilling?  Was there somebody that encouraged you?

AEG: Technically, my process is not quilling – I will outline my process below. I first started experimenting with paper during a papermaking class while studying for my MFA in Graphic Design at RISD (Road Island School of Design). My professor Jan Baker encouraged us to test the limits of what paper can be.

River Run by Amy Genser

ST: Where do you find yourself feeling really inspired to create? On your website (About page) you mention, “The sources of my work are textures, patterns, and grids. I look for forms that can be repeated to create a pattern when they are joined.”  Please expand on that and if you have a story we’d love to hear it!

AEG: Most of my inspiration comes from nature because it is perfectly imperfect. I love all kinds of organic processes. They are visually intriguing and engaging. We spend a lot of our summers on the beach in Rhode Island. I love watching the water, the rocks, and the light. Our beach has rocks with these really neat barnacles and seaweed. Their colors are always changing. Sometimes there’s a lot of it, and sometimes just a little. It’s neat to watch the progression. One day when the seaweed was purple, brown, yellow and green, my husband made the awesome observation that nature never clashes. I love that.

Mineral Violet by Amy Eisenfeld Genser

In reference to my latest “mineral series”, I have always been drawn to gem-like colors. My mother is a jeweler who works with a lot of gemstones. I’ve grown up peering into tourmalines, garnet,diamonds, opals, citrine, etc. We always talk about how juicy and “lickable” the colors are. I have recently been looking at a lot of agate and geodes. The colors are simultaneously vibrant and translucent. Pretty amazing. I thought I’d take a stab at my own interpretation of them.

ST: So how do you turn your paper to look like gems, minerals, and other elements of life? What is the process?

AEG: Using Thai Unryu, I treat the paper almost as a pigment, layering colors one on top of the other to create different colors. My pieces are about a foot wide. Then I roll one layer on top of the other in all different thicknesses. I seal the roll with acid-free, archival glue stick, and then cut the long piece into sections with scissors or pruning shears. I have pruning shears of all different sizes to accommodate different widths.

ST: Wow! What a laboratory of processes! What forms of art do you include in your mixed-media paintings? What are some tools you like to use?

AEG: The actual rolling and cutting process is pretty quick. At this point I could pretty much do it in my sleep. It’s the composition/editing process that usually takes the longest. I paint my surface, either canvas or paper first, with acrylic and a lot of gel medium. Then I place my paper pieces on top and manipulate them until I have a satisfactory composition. It’s like putting a puzzle together, only I don’t know the final picture until I see it. I roll my pieces accordingly as I develop and build the piece. It’s a back-and-forth process. The paper and the piece lay on different tables in my studio. I attach the paper onto the canvas with PVA once I have the pieces where I want them.

Tall Tower by Amy Eisenfeld Genser

ST: Is there a song that moves you at the moment?  Perhaps you can place a song with one of your works.

AEG: I can place a piece with a book on tape – one of my favorite- Prince of Tides” by Pat Conroy. I usually listen to books on tape while I work. My head is usually in the story, and my hands are free to do what they need to do.

ST: The titles of your pieces are very revealing and help the viewer guide how they can look your work.  How do you come up with these titles?

AEG: Usually it had to do with the inspiration for the piece. I just look at the work and figure out a title. They always feel a little uncomfortable and arbitrary to me. It’s hard for me to give words to something that is visual.

ST: Amy, what’s a piece of advice you can give our Scribblers?

AEG: Have fun! Do what feels good. Keep your hands busy and the work will follow along. There’s nothing like getting rid of creative energy through using your hands. I was that kid who was always weaving potholders on the plastic loom and making complicated patterns in woven friendship bracelets.

ST: Thanks Amy for sharing so much with us! Amy has shared an activity for us to get started on our own artwork.  Check out Scribble Shop for more details:
http://www.scribbleshop.com/content/roll-it-your-wonder-amy-eisenfeld-genser

Portrait of Amy Eisenfeld Genser

Scribble Town (ST): With us on the Scribble Blog is Timothy Young! Timothy has a long, creative career as an illustrator, graphic designer, toy designer, animator, puppet builder and sculptor and continues to surprise us with his imagination.

Timothy Young with Barney!

Timothy Young (TY): Hi! I live in Maryland with my family on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. My first book, I’m Looking For A Monster!, came out in 2008 and my 4th book, I Hate Picture Books!, has just come out from Schiffer Publishing.

ST: Where are you and what are you up to these days? I’m sure very excited about your book ‘I Hate Picture Books!’ reaching people everywhere! Please tell us a bit about your book. A little sneak peak please

TY: I Hate Picture Books! is about a boy named Max who is having a bit of a temper tantrum and is throwing away his picture books. Throughout the book Max describes how picture books have gotten him in trouble and all the while we see him either pictured in these books or showing what he is describing in the style of many classic children’s books that the reader will recognize. I really enjoyed poking fun at many of the books I have loved through the years.

I Hate Picture Books by Timothy Young

ST: Throughout your years of experience have you found a favorite place to write and draw?

TY: I have a home office where I do most of my drawing. I write in many places, including when I’m mowing the lawn or driving in my car. That is, I think up a lot of ideas and write them down later on.

ST: I think writing while mowing the lawn is it’s own art form! What other kinds of art do you practice?

TY: I have done a lot of different types of art. I draw, I sculpt, I use the computer to design graphics and advertising. I use Photoshop to finish most of my illustrations.

A few character designs by Timothy Young

I design toys and I have a new toy line coming out soon called HEDZZ™. I designed them and sculpted the prototypes. I’ll let you know more soon about where to get them. You can see more of my artwork at http://www.creaturesandcharacters.com.

ST: All of your characters whether they are in books or in the shape of a toy have such different personalities. What do you hope to communicate with your stories?

Timothy Young's Books

TY: I don’t start out with any specific message, I usually think of a character and a situation they find themselves in. If some kind of lesson sneaks in there, that’s a plus. Mostly I write books for myself and I hope other people like them too.

ST:What was your favorite storybook growing up? Or is there a character that you connected with especially?

Max Eating Green Ham by Timothy Young

TY: I loved Dr Seuss and P. D. Eastman’s books along with many others. Two of my favorites are no longer in print. I especially liked The Ice-Cream Cone Coot by Arnold Lobel and GWOT! Horribly Funny Hairticklers by Steven Kellogg.

ST: I can see your love for Dr. Seuss in your picture of Max eating green ham (look to your right). Dr. Seuss would have loved that! Your designs and inventions inspire us to go to adventure lands! Where do you get your inspiration from?

TY: Everywhere! I can’t stop these characters and ideas from running around in my brain.

Often times I just doodle things until they become a creature or a character who’s story needs to be told. These days I like drawing on really cheap tracing pads I buy at the supermarket. The paper is rough and I like the line quality I get with my drawing pencils. My favorite pencils are Creatacolor Nero extra soft #1s. Once I have a sketch I like I take another piece of paper and trace over my first to get cleaner lines. Then I scan it into my MacBook Pro and do all of my color work in Photoshop.

I wanted to let everyone know about my contest. If you can name 40 books of the over 250 that are referred to in I Hate Picture Books!, you can enter to win over a dozen autographed books by authors whose books are in my book. You can find all of the details at http://www.ihatepicturebooks.com/contest.html.

ST: Thanks Tim for the challenge! I’m up for it. On your mark, get set, go!

The cover of I Hate Picture Books by Timothy Young