Sorana Tarmu Art & Design

August's Bounty

It's here! A veggie-centric foodie in August is a kid in a candy store.  For me, it's ratatouille season. There is a Romanian version called by a word meaning "melting pot", but that recipe adds potatoes and meat/mushrooms. I make my ratatouille using Julia Child's method - yes, I saute every type of veggie separately. I use a limited-edition recycled Dutch oven, purchased from MoMa Design Store. Of course, you can use any dutch oven... I recommend trying her recipe at least once, as opposed to stewing everything to mush. You will get a superior dish in both texture and flavor.

Also - cold soup season! I first came across the "Kalte Suppe" concept in a German monthly magazine I was reading in my twenties, very similar in concept to Marie Claire. Since then, I became a fan of what I consider the ideal summer dinner: gazpacho.

These are the first tomatoes from my garden. Their flavor is out-of-this-world. They are an heirloom variety. The bowl

comes from the latest Causebox, along with other earth-friendly goodies.

I have recently started a daily sketching practice inspired by one of my favorite illustrators: Ohn Mar Win. Her Skillshare courses are an absolute delight. She is a very gifted art educator. Use my link for a two months Skillshare free trial. You will find much more than art classes. There are some marketing, career coaching, and personal branding classes very much worth trying. And there are only categories that I have looked for.

I plan to post my sketches on my Tumblr.

I wrote more extensively about how I use August's bounty on my Patreon blog.

Setting Boundaries – The Art of Hispaniola

This event, organized by The Art Garden Shed and Queen of Bohemia Productions for Café Sole and part of JC Fridays, is a call-for-art/art-opening/art-colloquium in one, with a live world music background. Please feel free to bring art objects that you consider related to the theme, and we will exhibit them. Musicians playing ethnic instruments are welcome to sit in. The Hispaniola art is brought by the very owner of Cafe Sole. Join a friendly, stimulating conversation among art aficionados in this newly renovated and ever welcoming entertainment space. Buses stop in front of Cafe Sole and there is free parking provided on site. The event is listed first on the JC Fridays map, available at all JC Fridays venues

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Watercolor Postcards

Summer Art Camp – Day 3

Watercolor postcard – Venice Beach.

Summer Art Camp, Days 1 and 2

 Watercolors

The Way of the Black Stork

I have been fascinated with black storks ever since I learned about their existence. Although they have the same feeding grounds with their white cousins, unlike these ones they live far from human habitations, preferring to nest in the canopies of the oldest forests they can find. If the white stork is the symbol of new life, social interaction and material achievements, I would think the black one is the symbol of seasoned life, solitary pursuits, “ivory towers” and creations of the spirit.

May you be blessed with the gifts of both.

“Black Stork”, Prismacolor pencils on upcycled paper, 2’’x 4’’

Handmade Books

I have dedicated my wix website to my handmade journals and sketchbooks. Some of them are still work in progress.

Wish You Were Here. Love, Journal Square

There is an ongoing art postcard swap with this theme at Hewn Arts Center, 140 Sip Ave, Jersey City, venue managed by Journal Square’s own Ed Ramirez. Next event will be on JC Fridays, December 6. Bring your creations (any bidimensional art medium will do, as long as it fits the theme and size) and let’s swap!

Art Sustains Life, Life Sustains Art

This is the first of a postcard series created for Sustainable JC. The original is an 5’’ by 8’’ mixed media on watercolor paper.

TEDx Jersey City–Saturday November 23 at City Hall

Working on an art project related to this event… More details later…