Studio Process – Tina Hirsig

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Below is a review of my Instagram account where I post photos and stories about my work in progress on a weekly basis. To read more, simply click on the photo and it will redirect you to my Instagram account. Follow me if you would like!

tinahirsig

This is a special commission for a special friend.

This is a special commission for a special friend. This nest is tiny at about 3” diameter. I wonder what bird made this one.

Stones are from a beach on Cape Cod only accessible after a long walk up and down ten story tall dunes. It was epic!

#duneshacktrail #nest #assemblageart #tinahirsig #artistsofinstagram #treebranch #house #home @niente_senza_gioia

There is nothing glamorous or altered in this phot

There is nothing glamorous or altered in this photo. Just a sweaty, trail hiking, nature lovin’ woman hoping all women feel empowered and free enough to seek adventure whatever that means to her. Thanks to the women of Turkey who started this photo challenge. I am grateful you made me aware of the incredibly high “femicide” rate and struggles you face. I honestly take my freedoms for granted. While there is much more work to do, and why I intentionally teach at an all girls school, I am ready to dig in to the work. Thanks to @whysure for nominating me and her kind words. You are an inspiration for love, kindness, creativity, and open-heartedness. 💞

#challengeaccepted #womenempowerment #gettowork #morethanaselfie #sweatyhiker

This sweet little tree frog was found in this pose

This sweet little tree frog was found in this pose perfectly in tact (given to me by my mother-in-law😊). Today I carefully sewed her on with gold thread. The live oak tree in this collage is one I admire often at James Island County Park. The tree frogs chirp in the forest while I walk in this park so it seemed like a perfect fit. Still working on the drawing in the lower right.
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I am escaping for a few days to the forests of North Carolina to hike with my son before the uncertainty of teaching life takes over my brain. Looking forward to some deep breaths, fires, s’mores, and epic hikes. I have a goal of hiking 100 hikes. No time frame. Just seeking nature. You can follow this journey on my other account @then_and_now_camper
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#treefrog #assemblageart #collageart #fineart #artistsoninstagram #tinahirsig #inprocess #deadthingsmadepretty
#liveoak #jamesislandcountypark #southcarolina

I can’t resist posting this photo of Obi. I don’t often see his ears up like this (notice his green tattoos in his ears marking his race ID). We rescued this gentle giant from the racetracks a little over three years ago and we are all smitten. Life with a dog has so much 💕💕.

#greyhoundsofinstagram #rescuedogs #greyhoundlove #greyhoundsmakegreatpets #greyhoundrescue #greyhoundadoption

This trail and maritime forest in Edisto, SC are t

This trail and maritime forest in Edisto, SC are the subject for my next piece of art. So grateful for my summer studio time!
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#edistosc #trail #maritimeforest #ilovesummer

“Edisto Tidal Creek” 9”x9” Materials: Owl

“Edisto Tidal Creek”
9”x9”
Materials: Owl feather, gold brush leaf paint, thread, image transfer print on canvas
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This small tidal creek flows among live oaks and needle palms in Edisto Beach State Park. This park has remnants of a Native American shell mound (aka- trash heap) dating back 2,000 BCE! I am making a second piece of art about this same forest related to the New Deal Program. More soon!
🌳 🍃🌳🍃🌳🍃🌳🍃
#tidalcreek #edistobeachstatepark #owl #goldpaint #assemblageart #imagetransferprint #phototransfer #naturephotography #nativeamericanhistory

This magical spot is in Edisto, South Carolina on

This magical spot is in Edisto, South Carolina on the state park property. The trail is great for walking and bike riding. These types of maritime forests never cease to amaze me. It is the inspiration for my next piece of art in the works.

#edistobeach #southcarolina #trail #maritimeforest #forest #magicalspaces

Loblolly Pine 9”x9” Materials: pinecones, map,

Loblolly Pine
9”x9”
Materials: pinecones, map, thread, photo transfer print

DM me if you are interested- I will ship it to you. It will also be up in my website shop soon.
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About the Loblolly pine (from the Arbor Day Foundation): It is native to the east coast from New Jersey to Florida and Texas. It is the most common pine you will see in South Carolina because it grows fast and adapts well to the soil here. In the South, the name loblolly means depression. The tree was originally observed growing in river bottoms, which is where it acquired this name. It is extremely aromatic and sometimes is called “rosemary pine”. The Loblolly provides shelter and food to critters and birds. If you are along the east coast and you see a pine tree in your neighborhood it is most likely a Loblolly!
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#loblollypine #pinetree #assemblageart #map #robertrauschenberg #nickbantock #beatrixpotter #josephcornell #kikismith #mentorship

This loblolly pine was photographed in the Francis

This loblolly pine was photographed in the Francis Marion National Forest awhile back. It is the subject of my first piece of art about the richness of our forests.
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#loblolly #pinetree #francismarionnationalforest #forest #southcarolina

I finished something! It’s been awhile 🤦‍♀️ This is a commission for a very patient friend. All those rolled up pieces of paper are maps from the Appalachian Trail she hiked many years ago. The nest and pine cones are also her objects found along her way.
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#appalachiantrail #nest #map #robertrauschenberg #nickbantock #josephcornell #beatrixpotter #kikismith #mentorship #assemblageart

Rolling up maps to stack inside this sculpture. Th

Rolling up maps to stack inside this sculpture. The friend I am making this for hiked the entire Appalachian Trail. Imagine the number of maps she used (this was before the wide use of cell phones and gps)! All of these assembled items are from her adventures.
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#maps #thruhiker #appalachiantrail #commissionart #supportlocalartists #sculpture #nest @deb_bidwell

I’m starting a new series of work about the fore

I’m starting a new series of work about the forests of the Lowcountry. Here is a photo transfer print in process. I plan to assemble prints, drawings, and found objects in these compositions.
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These last few months of teaching and anxiety related to COVID-19 left me empty of creative inspiration. It feels good to find myself again.
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#phototransfer #print #forest

Black Lives Matter #blackouttuesday

Black Lives Matter
#blackouttuesday

#willienelson #keepgoing

#willienelson #keepgoing

Daily workin’ it. Putting the glass in today an

Daily workin’ it. Putting the glass in today and will begin the top half of this sculpture. Look at this gorgeous nest! I’m making this special one for a friend.
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Also- best thing that’s happened in the quarantine is a wood thrush has set up her nest in my lemon tree where I can watch her from my sun room! She is currently patiently sitting on her eggs.
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#progress #patience #showingupinthestudio #nest #woodthrush #workinit

Just making a little collage with nature to show m

Just making a little collage with nature to show my students while they are stuck at home. #covid19art

Trying a little encaustics for the first time. I’m not exactly proud of this work but proud I got it started after years of saying “I should really try that...”
#encaustic #finally

“Silence is a source of great strength.” ~Lao

“Silence is a source of great strength.” ~Lao Tzu

Graphite drawing on paper with gold leaf. 3”x3” **drawing process is shared in my highlight “drawing”

#feather #drawing #graphitepencil #goldleaf #circle #laotzu #tinahirsig #artistsofinstagram #art #silence #strength

Today I will be documenting my process of drawing

Today I will be documenting my process of drawing this little owl feather, found in my neighborhood, in my Instagram story feed. Follow along!

#artistprocess #drawingprocess #drawing #graphitedrawing #owlfeather #feather #tinahirsig #nature #collections #nest #bird

Completed! “Wings” 16”x 23”x 5” Nest, ma

Completed!
“Wings”
16”x 23”x 5”
Nest, maps, graphite drawing, branches, reclaimed wood, glass.

#tinahirsig #wings #graphitedrawing #sculpture #tree #branch #map #assemblageart #foundart #artistsofinstagram

I have been thinking about my hero’s on Internat

I have been thinking about my hero’s on International Women’s Day and I always come back to Gail Devers. I had a poster of her (something like this image I swiped from the internet) in my bedroom growing up. She inspired me to be a better athlete and human in those rocky teenage years.

Her story is incredible from recovering from Grave’s disease that almost caused her feet to be amputated to her recovery and training to become an Olympic gold medalist. Plus she has these crazy fingernails!

Thank you @imgaildevers for being such a positive force our world!

#IWD2020 #inspiration #celebratewomen #trackandfield #hero

Just arrived back from an incredible week in Costa

Just arrived back from an incredible week in Costa Rica with 13 brave children in sixth and seventh grade along with one amazing colleague guided by Unearthed Travel and @planetconservation The nature we experienced and time spent with the locals taught me so much. We visited the BriBri indigenous community (one hour boat ride to their village) which you will see in the first few photos. Incredible how they maintain such a harmonious living with nature in our current time.
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#travelwithkids #costarica #bribri #nature #puravida #conservation #unearthed

This is my wood shop! I’m measuring and cutting

This is my wood shop! I’m measuring and cutting wood for three new nature shrines, two for commission. It felt good to get out there with my saws.

Contact me if you would like a little shrine made for your favorite objects found in nature. I use reclaimed wood to contain found objects protected with glass.

#woodshop #reclaimedwood #womenwithtools #nature #shrine #sculpture #assemblageart #foundobjects

Perseverance…this is the main ingredient to main

Perseverance...this is the main ingredient to maintaining a creative practice over the years. I have heard this from so many artists and certainly feel it now with this piece of art. I have been working on this one for years. Most of the time it has sat in the studio while I envisioned the next step. Putting these doors on yesterday so they swing freely with the added glass was not simple. It was a step in the process I could have easily given up on the project entirely, that’s how frustrated I felt.

I am beginning to think the definition of a successful artist are those who persist and are just too stubborn to let it go.😅 #perseverance #sculpture #assemblageart #nest #wings #graphitedrawing #doors #artistsofinstagram #stubborn

Swipe to see the first light of 2020 🌅 Always a

Swipe to see the first light of 2020 🌅 Always a good moment to share with @neurofly to start the year!

#follybeach #sc #newyear #2020 #bertsmarket #lovefreecoffee

These past few months I have been writing about my

These past few months I have been writing about my teaching practice for professional development at work but also for publishing in teaching journals to share with fellow art teachers. Today I pulled my books off the shelf from my MFA thesis (and dusted off my actual thesis). I realized I have internalized all this knowledge through my current teaching philosophy. Feels good to know that this life time of learning builds in layers and actually has manifested itself in action. That dust collecting on my books and previous work is not an indication of lost or wasted time.

My teachers such as Maxine Greene, bell hooks, Paulo Freire, Dewey, Piaget, and Vygotsky still inform my teaching and art practice. When I say that work in the art studio with children is closest to my heart, I don’t mean that lightly. This work is the essence of what I believe art is and can do. Art creates meaning. That meaning becomes knowledge on the grand scale of humanity. My fellow teachers do this every single day and I am so grateful to be in this profession!

#arteducation #reflection #americanarteducation #thankateacher #bellhooks #paulofreire #dewey #vygotsky #maxinegreene #art&fear #goddardcollege #freeplay #educatingforhumanity

The one thing I love about big cities is their str

The one thing I love about big cities is their street art. It contains all the good vibes about what art can and should do. Here are a few shots from Harlem, NYC and then P.S. 9 school in Brooklyn. I would LOVE to walk through the door to my work with a unicorn at my side 🦄

#streetartnyc #streetart #harlem #brooklyn #ps9 #unicorn

#nycmarathon2019 ! This guy is helping us cheer on

#nycmarathon2019 ! This guy is helping us cheer on @neurofly !!

I am designing a commission piece for a friend who

I am designing a commission piece for a friend who hiked the entire Appalachian Trail. Impressive! These are some of her objects from her travels on the trail. I can't wait to start building her a sculpture that does justice to these natural beauties.⁠⠀
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@deb_bidwell #appalachiantrail #throughhike #nest #birchtree #pinecone #granite #map #baxterstatepark

This is happening! I drew the wing several times

This is happening! I drew the wing several times so this is one I am experimenting on. I have had this thought of using a sewn line as a compositional element in my work. I'm not sure I like it just yet, but I think with a little practice it has potential.⁠⠀
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#sewing #sewingonpaper #mixedmediaart #drawing #experimenting #fiberart #brothersewingmachine

One wing drawing is complete. Now I need to draw

One wing drawing is complete. Now I need to draw it again but flipped so it looks like a pair of wings on the doors of my sculpture (previous post). Having to think in reverse is a mind trip!

#graphite #drawing #albrechtdürer #inspired #valuestudy #wings #bird #feathers #tinahirsig #6bpencil

Spent the morning paddling in Seaside Creek. It w

Spent the morning paddling in Seaside Creek. It was perfect with no wind, which is unusual. Then I dropped my camera in the water. It was an old point-and-shoot but seriously....I was so annoyed with myself. Luckily it did float and I grabbed it out of the water. Not sure if it’s dead yet since it’s drying but the SD card was OK and these are a few photos.

#shithappens #paddle #paddleboard #nature #southcarolina #charleston #cordgrass #lowcountrylife

Wings. I decided these doors to the larger sculpt

Wings. I decided these doors to the larger sculpture need to suggest flight.

I start this drawing process by blocking in shades of grey and then add contrast with a variety of soft graphite pencils. I finish it with a layer of hatched lines to show the detail of the feathers.

#flight #wings #drawing #graphitedrawing #layers #studioprocess #artistsoninstagram #sculpture #assemblageart

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