Fellow artist and on-line friend Sharon Benton has temporarily moved from the Seattle area to San Jose for a few months and we are getting to know each other in person — so fun! Sharon was a charter member of Postmark’d Art so we have been chatting on-line and swapping art since 2004. Last week we finally met in person at the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles and took in the Second International TECHstyle Art Biennial (ITAB). Photography is not permitted so you’ll just have to make the trip. The exhibit will be up through October 14, 2012, so you still have time to see this worthwhile exhibit.

Sharon drove up to Oakland yesterday and we went to the Bay Area Women Artists exhibit at the O’Hanlon Gallery in Mill Valley. I was there earlier this month and shared some of the art with you then, but I was happy for an excuse for a second visit. This time I took a few images of pieces that I particularly liked. Here is Barbara Crow’s acrylic Skara Brae.

Sharon and I agreed that we could each welcome Christine Boone’s Lines #1 into our home. The energy and light of this mixed media work really drew us in and made us want to linger.

Mitsuko Baum created an utterly charming fold-up map of Paris based on a trip taken there in 2002.

And here is the box that Paris is kept safe in.

I shared a full view of Marie Bergstedt‘s Summer here but you couldn’t really appreciate her fully. Here’s a close up of Summer’s face.

Marie stitched layer upon layer of buttons to create depth, contour and color. We couldn’t resist learning about the base that she used.

Here’s Sharon standing with Marie’s salty character Mikey of Mallory.

Susan Press had a unique way of reminiscing with her mixed media piece called Slices of the Past.

Black and white photographs have been sliced apart to create the skirt of this doll which is suspended by thread from the top of a simple glass enclosure.

This exhibit closes August 29, 2012 — today! — so time is running out.