taking the pulse...

Have you seen the new book The Pulse Of Mixed Media? 

Do you know what it's about?

Author Seth Apter invited me to be part of his first book and here is what it's all about...

If you gave 100 artists the same set of art supplies and asked them to create, you would end up with 100 unique works of art. This is because the magic ingredient in every artwork is the artist, who brings his or her own history, personality, creativity, and personal perspective to the pieces that they create. It is this magic that is the subject of “The Pulse Of Mixed Media.”

“The Pulse of Mixed Media” grew out of my online artist survey “The Pulse.” In the book, 31 spotlight artists and 102 additional contributors generously share their most intimate thoughts and feelings by providing answers to a series of personal questions. Some of these questions focus on their art, for example the art material they could not live without and the messages they hide in their artwork. Other questions focus on the artist, such as their art-related regrets, the obstacles that they have faced, and the one person in their life with the most creative impact.

my self portrait in the book

I turned the tables on Seth and asked him to answer this question...

Why did you start The Altered Page....?

SETH: Ahhhh. A good question. I had been creating art and handmade books in earnest for about 5 or 6 years at that time and was beginning to take the process much more seriously. I found that creating art was a very satisfying experience but quite isolating. I began exploring the Internet as an avenue to address that - by looking at blogs and websites, and joining a number of Yahoo groups to exchange art and work on projects with others. I became frustrated with the groups for many reasons and decided to stop participating in them. But I wanted to keep that social component and it seemed to be the right time to start a blog as a way to do that. Plus, I felt more comfortable as an artist and wanted to put my work out there for the world to see. Somehow that made me feel more accountable and gave me motivation to work harder and to create more. In my first blog post in August 2007 I wrote...  

"I have 3 goals in mind for this blog. First, to share my art and receive feedback in return. Second, to share artists, websites, stores, books, ideas, and creations that I have found. And third, to share great art finds from the museums, galleries, and streets of New York."

I love reading that now because I feel like I have achieved what I set out to do when I started. 

Seth Apter art that appears in Pasticcio Panoply

Seth is a wonderful artist in his own right.  He has generously submitted his art to several issues of Pasticcio Quartz and more recently his art appears in our latest issue of Pasticcio Panoply.

I was on Mark Lipinski's Creative Mojo radio show today with 4 other artists that took part in Seth's book. I think you can listen to the show here under RECENT SHOWS 3-21-2012 ... I think you'll enjoy it.


Not one to rest on his laurels, Seth has put out an open call to artists... read about it here on Seth's blog. I think you will want to bookmark it. And look for his new book, The Pulse of Mixed Media...because it's one interesting journey into the pulse of mixed media...