Omaha Craft Mafia

Gocco!

To gocco or not to gocco, that was the question I kept asking myself for months after I first learned about this amazing Japanese screen printing machine. Finally my obsession became a reality a few short weeks ago. And I have to say it was worth the wait. The process is very simple, you take any carbon based copy (either from a copy machine or from using the carbon pen that comes with the machine), you burn a master, you ink the master and you print. And it's all done on one compact machine. I have the new PG5 machine, which prints a 4 X 6 inch image. So far I've burned two masters. One from a photocopy of a Dover clip art flower and the other from my own original drawing using the carbon pen. I know I have a lot to learn and since the video that came with the machine is in Japanese (the only words I could understand were "hokey dokey") I know that most of my learning will come with doing. But that's the way with most things, or it is for me anyway.

There is tons of info out there on the web (the best place to start is www.gocco.com) and several places where you can order machines and supplies, including a couple stores on Etsy and Ebay. I ordered my machine from Felt Cafe on Etsy. If you're interested in learning more or want to see some beautiful gocco prints, go to Flickr and search for gocco. There are a couple great gocco groups on there that are very helpful and inspiring.

*Denise will be walking us through gocco printing at our next 'killer craft night' at Hot Shops Monday, March 10 at 6pm in Amy Haneys studio #216. We are all so excited to experiement with this really cool printing process!

(photos and article by denise levy)

SCOUT: DRY GOODS AND TRADE

On Saturday, February 23rd from 6:00-10:00pm Scout:
Dry Goods and Trade will be holding an Opening Party
and Fashion Show. Scout is located at 5019 Underwood
Avenue in Omaha Nebraska within the Historic Dundee
Neighborhood. The Fashion Show will begin at 7pm.
About 20 men and women will wow the crowd in outfits
they have picked out at Scout with local DJ Rey Cantil
providing the music and Omaha artist Jilawan Bunnimit,
aka Miss Cake, showing art. Fringes Salon and Day Spa
of the Old Market will be doing the hair and makeup
for the models and Roberts Dairy has donated many,
many free cartons of chocolate milk. All ages are
welcome and this is a free event. Free parking is
available in the parking lot west of Scout.

Scout: Dry Goods and Trade is a hip and quirky re-sale
retail clothing store for women and men that sells new
and recycled apparel and accessories. Scout recently
opened its doors on January 3rd. The goal of Scout is
to be a socially and environmentally responsible
clothing store that stimulates resourcefulness and
innovative thinking.

mafia hits the paper!

we had the honor of being highlighted in the omaha city reader newspaper over the holidays. a few of us sat around the table in the mafia studio one afternoon with avishay as he asked us valuable questions about our lives and artmaking. yet another way to get to know eachother through a great mafia experience. amy beck was spotlighted on the front cover of the paper with this image above, which made us all very proud! jenifer was highlighted on the nebraska radio with a snippet of her recorded interview, with her strong voice and ideas. what a gracious moment for the mafia! you can read the article here.

Pulp

I am feeling privileged to have received an announcement from Amy Beck (one of our O.C.M. members) to the opening of a recent show at Pulp. As the end of the exhibit rapidly encroaches, it is worth a few accolades and hype, if only to encourage a few more visitors in whom inspiration and admiration may plant their seeds. Pulp (www.p-u-l-p.com /6114 Military Ave.) a new paper & art store in the heart of Benson, opened their doors on Friday night, January 18th, for an art show entitled “Paper Dolls: Wall to Wall Work by Women”. It was well worth the frigid trip to cram in amongst the crowd and view the collection of work by both local and national women artists, building awareness and raising proceeds for VDAY (a day dedicated to stopping violence against women). The collection of work was mesmerizing and well displayed the full length of the back wall of the store. If it weren’t for the tremendous crowd, I might of stayed all night. Luckily, it is still being displayed until February 13th.

The work of one particularly artist, Nicole Crawlfield (used to promote the show itself) was very captivating for me. With only a small collection of her work represented amongst all the others, her photography stood out to me from the rest with stark depictions of women expressing their sexuality and authority surrounded by the backdrops of the mundane and stereotyped responsibilities of women. As I stood shoulder to shoulder with other guests of the exhibit, looking at these strong and beautiful ladies, I was struck with a feeling of pride at their postures of blatant rebellion to that which was surrounding them, expected of them, or demanded of them.

The other artists who contributed to the show did so with excellence and skill as well. From oil painting to collage work, to handwork, the collection is captivating. Also, the store itself is worth checking-out and supporting. Their shelves are lined with beautiful handmade papers, individually screen printed cards as well as notebooks, handbags, wallets, magnets, buttons and all sorts of handmade treasures. This is one more group I am thrilled to know is supporting the Indie scene here in Omaha, and doing it with style.

Alicia Perry

Omaha Children's Museum

On the 15th of November the Craft Mafia participated in a "How People Make Things" event at the Omaha Children's Museum. Each Mafia member donated a piece of their art or craft to be assembled into a quilt. The children visiting the museum that night got to print fruits and vegetables on fabric to be added to our quilt. Once the prints are dried and stitched together the quilt will be given to the Children's Museum for their permanent collection. What a fantastic evening!

(The ladies setting up and waiting for the next printer.)

(Our fruits and veggies prepared for heavy inks and little hands.)

(One of our many talented printmakers.)

(The soon to be infamous quilt!)

Studio 222

The Omaha Craft Mafia girls have a new HQ! It is located in Hot Shops Art Center in Omaha's Old Market. The workspace will be shared by Eve , Jen , Amy B. , and Kristy, but will serve as the meeting place for all OCM gatherings and trunkshows. We've painted walls, added our own Machine Gun Kelly to the decor, and done some creative lighting. Our workspaces are still developing, but it's starting to take shape and should be one swanky little Craft Mafia hangout! Stop by for a visit!

Painter and printmaker extraordinary, Amy Haney, is preparing for her big run on 21 October in the Des Moines Marathon in Des Moines, Iowa.  Amy and her sister, Christy have been training for this race for 18 months and it will be their first full marathon {at a crazy 26.2 miles!}  This is such a big achievement for both of them and we look forward to seeing Amy after her race - you go girls {literally!}

The Omaha Craft Mafia hosted it's first official Killer Craft Night - and oh what a night!  It was a wonderful success and members have some gorgeous linoleum prints to show off thanks to printmaking goddess and member Amy Haney.  If you a crafter/artist extraodinaire and want in on the fun, apply to the OCM here!  We are also excited to announce our first trunkshow at Hot Shops in the beginning of December - watch our blog for more details or sign up for our mailing list to stay in the know here!  For all pics from our Killer Craft Night, check out the OCM Flickr page here.

Our very own Amy Beck was featured on the local Channel 3 news this evening riding her Rukas {in a lumberjack suit!} around Memorial Park!  And we have video... Congrats Amy!

And if you are a scooter owner in Omaha looking for scooter buddies, check out The Omaha Scooter Club.

Tilly and the Wall will be performing a free concert at Saddle Creek Record's Slowdown on 6 October to celebrate the grand opening of Omaha's first Urban Outfitters - hope to see you there!

{photo by Andrew Kendall}