SElf portrait-suitcase

Self portrait
of
C a t h e r i n e R e i n k e
suitcase artist

It is customary for most artist to indulge in the traditional artists portrait , as I have on canvas I thought it was time to venue out into my favorite medium-the suitcase. As I recently begun to explore new depths of the the suitcase, quite literally, I chose this very run down,forgotten, used up, rusted and falling apart case. Which at one time had strength and character and was enviable.



This is textured white rather thick wall paper I thought it would be lovely to apply multi layers of paint on it, I was right I love the way it turned out.
There it is after I removed all the lining and washed it down. Sorry the image turned out blurry but you get the idea. The top is cardboard and my husband cut the center out for me with a jig saw.

The case fell apart and had to be completely reglued. It was filled with mold and I washed it down with beach water.



After all the water based varnish I needed to quickly dry it as the top of suitcase is simply cardboard.


I began doing recycled art because of the collection of the way I felt, thrown away , unappreciated, not shiny and new, not what society wanted. I have continually tried to remake myself from the hurt and trauma, betrayal and debilitating pain that I have endured in my life, to hide the pain under neath color , pattern and pretties. Just Like I do with my suitcases.
I took acid free art papers that had an old fashioned feel and simply randomly tore them and placed them on the case so much of the natural stressed wood could be exposed.
The gold paint gave this an elegant yet worn look. Nothing like gold, I love to work with it.

THE MEANING BEHIND THE CREATION

I made this mask a few years ago, it shows four eyes, indicating that my eyes are my predominate feature, I have been accused of being influenced to much by life because I love "eye Candy", it was a criticism.

Maybe so , I see and observe everything around me, textures, details, I find beauty in so much. I also added a sheer strip of lace over the mouth as I feel most of the time that I really can not express what I am really thinking. My radical or deeply spiritual views , which can boarder on unorthodox, thoughts on the origin of life, philosophy, vies on art and such are better left to the realm of my own mind and when I have attempted to share them I have been met at best which ridicule. I later added the tiny square mirror to the third eye, showing how inner thoughts and vision are reflected off the person who you are looking at. So in essence I have 5 eyes and no mouth!

Putting the hand in front of my mouth is an additional reinforcement of how i feel about others telling me hush up, it is a finger to the mouth saying shhh! or shut up or don't say that!



I dressed the mask up with big earrings and ruffle collar showing my love for clothing, she is festivel yet sad, a single tear can be seen dropping from her eye.
For the back I chose this solitary black and white image of the traditional style that represents the artist. The archetype symbol if you will . The artists black beret.

FOR THE ♥ OF SHOES

Stamping into art one shoe at a time!

This is the shoe from an etsy store that inspired me to add this side link. I love working on shoes as well and found this glass mosaic fascinating. How magical , I want it for my garden!

From snakehair

These

These shoes are created from my friend of many years who recently opened her own shop at etsy . All of her work is magical and these shoes will transport you into another realm.

Magical MOXI-cans

From VictoriaPandora

why shouldn't your slippers be as busy as you? the third pair in my endeavors to ground those who know they can fly
walk a mile in these
up-cycled route 66brand mary janes
comfy and steady on your feet
priced easy and good to go
size 9 1/2

RECYCLED SHOES by C. Reinke

 Whats new in shoes ?

 

These are a pair of 1980s stripper shoes made of white patent leather that I have been working on to putting side of my first shadow box suitcase 

Recycled Shoes featured in collections

The Red Glitter shoes are my work, they are Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz inspired

Wicked Witch of the West recycled shoes are featured in this great treasury

ARTsy FARTsy FRIENDZ

♥Featuring fellow artists who are recycling creatively♥

I discovered this artists work when I found her work from this collection that was featured on etsy. I simply adroe her use of the beloved suitcase! As a cat lover myself how charming is this? In fact she, has inspired me to take my hand on a tarot table, my husband and I talked about it yesterday and after I finish up my projects that are in my studio right now(violin case, deer antlers and my first shadow box suitcase) then I move on, we have a few ideas.

From lovenostalgicwhimsy

Upcycled with style! A very cute navy blue vintage suitcase repurposed into a one of a kind pet bed for your kitties, doggies or any other furry little friends. My kitty Thomas loves it!

The Suitcase sits on 6" legs that I painted grey.

Suitcase is in great condition and luggage straps are still in tact so you can pull them out over the pillow or tuck them away out of sight. There are also little pockets inside great for storing leashes, collars, treats etc..

The comfy pillow is covered in a white and blue floral pattern. And of course the entire pillow is removable for washing! Machine wash gentle cycle, tumble dry low.

Add some one of a kind style to your place with this neat little pet bed that is truly one of a kind!

Dimensions: 22"L X 16.5"W X 10"H

♥ Please note legs come disassembled in order to reduce shipping costs. Super easy to assemble!

work in progress-Groovy guitar case

GROOVY FLOWER POWER
GUITAR CASE
REMINISCENT OF THE MAKE
♥LOVE♥ NOT W A R
of the 1960'S

THE PROCESS~

painting in the papers takes allot of time but is essential to bring the work together, to make it cohesive and finished off.





The rusty hinges will be addressed with paint and glitter

I painted the bright lime green flower trim with a touch of pink , as I thought it was too much and wished to bring in more elements of pink.


Next comes after varnish the most fun part for me, adding the bedazzlement , beads, gems, jewels, trims , lace, patches, etc and lots of flowers for this hippy inspired guitar case. Cant you just hear the melodic cry's of Joan Biaz or my u all time favorite Joni Mitchell?

Adding the trim is the part that I enjoy the very most. After I have applied about three coats of water based varnish then the real fun begins.

Adding this plastic flower beaded trim with a center contrasting gem really gave it that flower power look I was searching for
A few more of the same trim only in yellow with other plastic gems are added to glitz it up


This is the top cover close up after beads , lace, flowers etc have been added with secure glue.

I have enjoyed working on guitar cases, most of mine have sold rather quickly, I recently purchase 2 used black cases and am working to make this one look as Hippy and groovy as I can. Granted it has a feminine touch to it. The images are from an old calendar that featured 1960s rock band covers. Hand made papers and optic art papers are what AI am primary using.

At present I have 3 days in this. It is far more time consuming than one would think. there is alot of square footage to cover. I paint in all my papers and in this case I choice to nearly paint entirely all the black and white papers that I used in bright multi color nearly psychedelic tones.

As you can see the inside clearly needed a revamping. It is quite worn. It is good to note that after my treatment of these used cases, they become much more durable and will last for a good amount of time, more so left untreated. Not only does the paper give the flimsy case more stability , so does the glue based mod podge and especially the water based varnish.

My friend Casper loves to look on when I am in my studio. Here I am doing the inside.



I will most likely use a whole bottle of MOD PODGE on this project. These are arcylic colors that I used

This is the side finished up , I added funky mulit color yarn around the handel


HERE SHE IS FINISHED OFF IN THE INSIDE I ADDED PAPERS AND spent allot of time hand coloring them with acrylic paints. The top inside cover I applied a vintage paisley burst that I copied from an 1960s silk scarf and added red fine glitter with a thin top coat of water based varnish.

The back which does not have any trim , gems or patches on it so it can be stored safely lying on its back.