Blairstown Carol House and Linda Patalive are Artists of the Month at Gallery 23 in Blairstown. Their work is featured in the windows of the gallery throughout November. House comes from three generations of women artists and has always enjoyed creating art and doing crafts. As an art major in college, she experimented with different mediums. After studying Chinese watercolor on both the west and east coasts, she started a business painting tiles. For many years she sold tile trivets at juried craft shows along the east coast. She also designs custom tiles for kitchens and fireplaces working with clients to match wallpaper, colors and even china patterns. “I enjoy the kiln firing process, which to me involves all the basic elements of earth, air, water and fire,” says House. “I love the meditation of painting and the silence of my brushstrokes. It is a surrender of sorts when I place a piece in the kiln after perhaps hours of painting and creating the piece. The kiln becomes that mystery element when the heat transforms the water-soluble glaze and painted colors into a different form, which can be permanent for centuries.” Patalive is known for her silk painting, fabric dyeing, and decoupaged boxes. All of her pieces are one of a kind. She uses various dyeing techniques including batik, shibori, silk screening and silk painting. Her miniature decoupaged boxes, which she has been creating for more then 25 years, are lined in velvet and are a favorite of collectors. She recently spent a week in Santa Fe, N.M., attending a silk painting conference and is a member of Silk Painters International. She is also a member of the Surface Design Association. Gallery 23, an artist co-op, is located at 23 Main St., Blairstown. Exhibit hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, call 908-362-6865 or visit www.gallry23.com.