Button It

Everybody loves buttons. I have quite the collection myself.

However my collection has grown rather large since I started making ebru art buttons. You see, I recently got a button machine, and I find the process fun. Plus its a great use of my smaller marbled papers. But, well, its gotten out of hand.


So many buttons!

I do have my favorites. It's amazing how much can fit on a space just bigger than an inch(1.25" to be exact).






I told you there are a lot of them

Luckily for all the button heads out there, the buttons are available on my etsy shop. Every button is made from unique original ebru paper. All the buttons have a pin backing so it can attach to just about anything you can poke with a pin.


One more for good measure

In Other News

I will have pieces featured in two "cash and carry" shows this December. The first one being the Vinyl Show, Which I also took part in last year. Its a group art show featuring only work on vinyl records. The Vinyl Show is held at Future Shock in Portland, Oregon.

The second show is the Portland Big 500. This is my first time partaking in this annual PDX tradition. It led me to working on wood panels for the first time. The Portland Big 500 is put on by The Peoples Gallery in Portland, Oregon.

I will likely do a blog on how those two shows after the holidays are over.

----Workshops----

There will be two tee-shirt marbling workshop at the Loaded Brush in December. The first workshop is on December 12th. If you can't make that date, than how about December 21st. Register for a seat at The Loaded Brush.

*sign-up for workshops in advance.

Are you interested in commissioning custom art or booking an ebru lesson, workshop, demo, party, or performance? Contact me at art@dannyebru.com

Peace & Love,
- Danny

Ganesh And The Flower Of Life

My latest project is a three headed Ganesh with marigolds.

I started this project in September during Ganesha Chaturthi and spent three months working on it. This is the second Ganesh design I have made. However this design is much different then the single headed full body image of my first Ganesh.


Ganesh is hailed as the mover of obstacles, patron of the arts, and protecter of the downtrodden.

The project required many steps, starting with a large ebru mono-print that covered the paper.


This freeform marbling will become the background.

While normally I save the screen printing for last, this project required a change in process. I needed to screen print at this point of the project so I could have a guide when placing the mask over the four big marigold flowers.


Marigolds are known mostly as a symbol of creativity and passion. However Marigold also helps with herbal healing, and is a botanical protector in the garden.

I glued paper cut-outs down over the screen print. Then I went back to the tray for a second layer of ebru.


The paper mask protects the covered area from the second layer of color.

I remove the mask during the rinse the paper receives after I pull it from the tray. Once the paper dries it's finished




But there is more!

I also finished a second version of the piece.

This second piece took three times longer then the first to produce. The reason being, I decided it is time to take my work up to the next level. I am attempting to do so by embellishing the second layer of ebru with a masked pattern.



I appointed the flower of life pattern for this piece. This popular sacred geometry pattern of unity contains all the fundamental forms of life.


Sri Ganesh!

- In Other News -

I have scheduled a fabric marbling workshop for April 12th 2014 at The Village Gallery Of Arts. *sign-up in advance.

Are you interested in booking an ebru lesson or workshop? Contact me at art@dannyebru.com

Peace & Love,
- Danny

Silk Road

Whats new? Well, I have recently started marbling fabric.

First I had to build a new tray out of wood that is long enough to fit most scarves. I also added a couple new brands of paint into my supplies. Then I found a good source for silk.


Breaking in the new tray.

Everything came together quite nicely. The silk scarves perfectly captured the ebru's vibrance, and the lines in the patterns are both sharp and bold.


Pacific Blue, silk ebru scarf modeled by Chelsea Rose.

To my delight the silk even captured the smallest details of the tighter patterns. Plus the fabric is still light and silky.


Cascade Green, silk ebru scarf modeled by Chelsea Rose.

I kept the color pallet simple on the first two pieces so they could be easily added into any wardrobe. But my love for color contrast prevailed on this last scarf. The yellow speckles really pop off the blue and purple swirls and provide welcomed line breaks in the black details.


Chelsea Rose "The Space Gypsy" modeling my new ebru silk scarf.

I am really enjoying working on silk. I like the idea of people walking around with my art. Plus I look forward to trying other fabrics too.

Whoa! Check it out, all three silk scarves are available in my etsy shop!


Painty ebru hand.

-WORKSHOP UPDATE- I am hosting my first fabric marbling workshop in August at Portland's Village Gallery. The workshop will be open to all skill levels. If you're interested please sign-up for my ebru workshops in advance by contacting me at art@dannyebru.com, or the village Gallery at (503)644-8001.

Peace & Love,
- Danny

Guanyin and the Triskelion

I wanted to share some of my new embellished ebru pieces with you.

Guanyin Ebru, a double layered acrylic ebru embellished with a Guanyin screen print.


Namah Guan Shih Yin Pusa

The Bodhisattva Guanyin, deliverer of mercy and compassion, is an enlightened being from the Buddhist tradition. Depicted here in the lotus position, with both hands resting on her lap in the meditation mudra. If you where wondering what is in the vase, it's Amrit, otherwise known as immortality nectar or holy water.


Hear our cries.

I have also finished a new mandala.



I call this one the Triskelion Mandala. The triskelion or triskele is a celtic seal for personal development, physical growth, and spiritual expansion. Based around the number 3, the triskele represents the mind, body, spirit connection. I have also placed 3 of the Buddhist Gankyil in this mandala as well. The Gankyil is associated with the primordial energy that spawned the physical and spiritual realms, and the balance between the three to maintain existence. The Gankyil goes by many names, but is most known as the Wheel of Joy, the hub of the Buddhist Dharma Wheel.

The Triskelion Mandala has a strong presence. Both the Triskele and the Gankyil give the illusion of spinning movement, and the ebru art has a very kinetic appearance too. Plus in some light the lines almost look to be glowing.

In other news,
my ebru workshop is about three weeks away and there is only 4 open spots left. If you are around the Portland, Oregon area this is your chance to learn Turkish Paper Marbling from me. Sign up now. http://villagegalleryarts.org

Also, I have been doing really well selling ebru art alongside my partner Chelsea Rose at the Portland Saturday Market. We are out there most Saturdays, come by and say hi.



Peace & Love,
Danny

Bom Shiva!

My latest embellished ebru project is focused on the Hindu deity Lord Shiva.

I have been working on this project for a few months now. Here are some of the process shots.

Hand painting the Sri Shiva screen on the floor while Chelsea Rose paints her tribute to Lakshmi.


Double layer ebru prints ready to be screen printed on.

Some know him as the Destroyer, and others know him as the Transformer. But Shiva spends most of his existence as the sage does, perched high in the mountains in a deep meditation.


original handmade two layer acrylic ebru (turkish paper marbling) mono-print embellished with Sri Shiva screen print on cotton paper. 19" x 24"

Shiva represents truth, wisdom, and humility.

Sitting in the lotus position with hands resting is the traditional gesture of meditation. The trident seen in his right hand represents the trinity of creation, protection, and destruction. While the drum in the left hand is said to be the source of the first sound from which all of creation resonated. Two more of his hands are reaching above his head with the index fingers touching the thumbs in the gesture of the Vitarka Mudra, a seal of knowledge and enlightenment.


The ultimate in self control, Shiva is the Lord of the Yogis.

Shiva is always seen with a cobra wrapped around his neck, showing his mastery over fear and death. The snake is wrapped around his neck three times symbolizing control over mind, body, and ego.

Shiva also has three lines of ash on his forehead which represent the mastery over the three stages of existence, birth, life, and death, and through the mastery of seeing beyond the illusions of this existence, the universe is cleansed of the impurity of desire through Shiva's third eye.

The third eye peering out of his forehead emits a cleansing flame from which the pure is reborn. No evil can escape the flame of the fully opened third eye of shiva.

In the top of his hair lies the goddess Ganga, from which the river Gangas flows down Shivas dreadlocks to the earth, where it purifies the people, as a statement of selfless compassion. Shiva is also associated with the waning moon which is a symbol of healing.


original handmade two layer acrylic ebru (turkish paper marbling) mono-print embellished with Sri Shiva screen print on cotton paper. 19" x 24"

Om Shiva Shankara Hari Hari Ganga! Bom Shiva!

~Other News
• on the topic of transformation, I recently used some ebru in the cover art for the new Bone And All podcast featuring Chelsea Rose's spoken word poetry, CHAOS CREATURE. Listen>>>

Chelsea Rose leads an exploration through consciousness and evolution.

• Also, later this month I will be doing an Ebru demo at OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) as part of the monthly "OMSI After Dark" event. If you live in the Portland, OR. area, this is your chance to learn more about ebru first hand. See you there!

Peace & Love,
-Danny

Double Exposure

I have been working on a bunch of new pieces lately.

combing the acrylic paint across the size.

The pieces I have been working on are double layered mono-prints. So every piece of paper gets put through the whole ebru process twice.


and it looks twice as cool.

The plus side of double the work comes from overlaying the patterns, which brings a lot of new life to the pieces. The hues vary as the two layers interact and define new details to delight in.


kinda like double exposed film.

In other news,
I am also working on a new embellished ebru piece. It will combine an original Sri Shiva screen print design with double layered ebru.

Also, we at Lucid Optic Lab have been working hard on making some art pendants. We made a few pendants out of select embellished ebru pieces of mine, as well as a few original ebru pendants check out what we have in stock here.

Until next time.

Peace & Love,
Danny

Grow With The Flow

I am making a lot of abstract ebru lately.


original handmade acrylic ebru mono-print on cotton paper.

I made this piece by using a combination of traditional ebru technique and traditional suminagashi technique. I love the colors in this piece, and the perspective really draws me in. I am also spotting tons of hidden faces throughout. I bet this piece would do great in a creative space.


original handmade acrylic ebru mono-print on cotton paper.

With a much looser design and a minimal color palette this gel-git ebru is all about balance and simplicity.


original handmade acrylic ebru mono-print on kozo paper.

A tarakli ebru full of blues and purples. This piece is like a deep river, calm, yet full of flowing movement.

I have been on a bit of a blue kick lately. All the blue is quite refreshing during the heat of summer. You can check out more of my work here.

I have also finished another buddha screen print piece.

original handmade acrylic ebru (Turkish paper marbling) mono-print on kozo paper with 3 color buddha screen print. 12.5"x19".

the ebru in this piece has a ripple effect to it know as the spanish wave. Its a cool effect that is created by altering the printing portion of the ebru process.

I am very busy creating so there will be plenty more to share next time. Until then.

Peace & Love,
Danny

Busy, Busy, Busy - Art Vending

Summer is almost past, but the momentum of the season is still going strong. I am finding myself running all over town to prepare for showing or selling my art, and then running all over town yet again to show and or sell. It has been a very busy summer. It has been a very fruitful summer too, so it is busy in a good way.

This last week was Last Thursday Art Walk on Alberta Street, which happens every last thursday of every month so long as the weather is not to wet. This August we had tons of sun, so I set up a booth with my partner, artist Chelsea Rose. When we work together we call ourselves Lucid Optic Lab.

the Lucid Optic Lab sidewalk booth set up at August's Last Thursday Art Walk on Alberta Street in Portland, Oregon.

We arrived on Alberta Street around noon and set up a sidewalk friendly booth display. On the curbside of the sidewalk I displayed my ebru and embellished ebru, plus a few screen print shirts and some tie dye. I displayed art on both sides of my wall so everyone could see something no matter what side of the street they were on. On the opposite side of the 10' sidewalk Chelsea Rose displayed her acrylic faery art and body painting photography.

Last Thursday is a fun event, we get to hang out with friends, artist, crafters, and musicians all day while we sell our art. Then when the evening sets in and the air cools a bit, the officials close the street and the people flood in. The costumes, stilts, fire bending, and drum circles are impossible to miss. When the streets close we rearrange the booth to bring in flow from the street. Offering a safe haven to appreciate our arts.

the Lucid Optic Lab booth at June's Last Thursday Art Walk on Alberta in Portland, Oregon.


the Lucid Optic Lab booth at July's Last Thursday Art Walk on Alberta in Portland, Oregon.

Lucid Optic Lab is also out selling art at the Portland Saturday Market every Saturday too. Its a fun outdoor arts and craft market that features all local artist who make and sell their handmade work.

Lucid Optic Lab booth at Portland Saturday Market 8-27-11

A weird place indeed, this last saturday we were frequented by random happenings all day. One of the oddest things that stands out is when a very much alive Jimi Hendrix proclaimed his interst in my art and insisted he get his picture taken with me.

Jimi Hendrix is alive and well, and hanging out at the Portland Saturday Market. Jimi was a fan of my ebru art, and he was quite persistent in insisting that he got a picture taken with me.

An exited Jimi Hendrix was quite persistent about the photo. "Over here in front of your art", he said as he rushed me to the front of my wall."Let me see the peace sign", he said "No, up higher like this!" Unfortunately the camera operator, who was a random market goer, cropped out the peace sign in the photo, however he managed to get a shot of Jimi showing me the proper way to do a peace sign.

There is not much summer left, but there is still plenty of fairs, artwalks, and markets to show and sell some art at. See you in the streets.

Peace and Love,
Danny

Abstract Expressions and the Buddha

One of my favorite things about ebru, is the mediums ability to capture abstract visual representation of fluid movement. I think this recent piece of mine is a good example of that.

original handmade acrylic ebru mono-print on kozo paper. 8.5"x11" by Danny

Another name given to ebru is water painting. This is partly due to the fluid effect, but is mostly due to the fact that ebru is actually made by floating paint on top of a fluid referred to as size. Size is the name given to water that has a thickening agent, like carrageenan, added to it.

Using the right technique of pushing and pulling the paint across the size creates lines that lead the eye from one point to the next, visually suggesting movement.

original handmade acrylic ebru mono-print on cotton paper. 8"x10" by Danny

I love getting swept up in the movement of the abstract ebru pieces. I find them to be a great way to add life to a room.

I have also been working on embellished ebru pieces featuring a three color screen print of Buddha.

"Abhaya Buddha Ebru", original handmade acrylic ebru mono-print with three color Buddha screen print on cotton paper. 12"x18" by Danny

This is a very positive piece to have around the house or place of work, and will surely bring light into where ever it finds a home.

Every ebru piece I use I make by hand in my home studio. I also make all screen prints by hand too. Not only do I build the frames and stretch screen mesh crossed them, I also hand paint the print design onto the screen/screens. Then I do all the screen printing myself.

thats all for now.

Peace & Love,
-danny

Danny Ebru enters the Blogosphere - Fearless

And so it has begun...

How shall we get acquainted?
Lets start out with showcasing a current project in the works:

My current embellished ebru piece featuring the Abhaya Mudra Buddha:

"Fearless Ebru", original handmade acrylic ebru mono-print on kozo paper with 3 color buddha screen print. 12.5"x19" by Danny (more to come in varying print colors and ebru designs)

The Abhaya mudra is the gesture of the raised right hand with the palm facing outward. Abhaya in sanskrit means fearlessness, and the gesture symbolizes peace, protection, and the dispelling of fear. the Abhaya mudra is very important in Buddhism, it is said that when the Buddha came out of meditation after reaching enlightenment he stood and displayed the Abhaya mudra as a gesture of the absence of fear. The Abhaya mudra is great for warding off fear.

The left hand of the Buddha is portraying the Varada mudra. It also known as the boon granting gesture, symbolizing charity, patience, and compassion. the Varada mudra aids in breaking the delusion of pride.

The combination of the two mudras is also referred to as Segan Semui-in, or in japan its Yogan Semui-in. With both the Abhaya and Varada mudras the Segan Semui-in represents transformation and success.

All and all the "Fearless Ebru" is a very positive piece to have around the house or place of work, and will surely bring light into where ever it finds a home.

In other news, version one of dannyebru.com has gone live.
check out the official Danny Ebru website

More to come shortly.

Peace n Love
-Danny