Sonji Says...

George Ray McCormick, Sr. at the Charles Allis Art Museum in Milwaukee, WI

2008-05-27T18:16:00.001-05:00

May 28, 5:30pm is the opening of my friend George Ray McCormick, Sr.'s one man exhibition of new work at the Charles Allis Art Museum. I'm so excited to see the work he has been creating. Over the past year, I've been to his home a couple of times but all I saw was the remnants of his wood carvings, chips on the floor. Like many, George had a period of time recently, when he wasn't able to be as productive as he would have liked. His biblically based spiritual journey bathes the narratives he carves. They are sometimes frightening, sometimes humorous, sometimes very personally translatable (whether the viewer is Bible-savvy or not). An entire museum space filled with his work will be a wonderfully overwhelming visual experience. Can't wait...see you there.

Consumed Time

2008-05-05T13:54:00.003-05:00

Wow, this is the first day that I've had off in a while when I could actually find some time to blog. I was seriously considering deleting the blog altogether because I've been feeling word-empty and I haven't been making anything to speak of. Only working for money, not soul and I feel sad. Although, as I wrote a few months ago, it has given me time to read...on the bus, some free moments at work or when I'm exhausted at night and dropping off to sleep. You know how it is sometimes. Anyway, I brought my laptop with me to the laundromat today and thought I would blog about my minor art gains as I waited for the spin cycle. The dryer works at home, just not the washer.

Over the past couple of weeks I decided that I needed to build up a stock of backing fabric for my work. I chose colors that I have but don't use so much and just painted to cover the fabric instead of for a purposeful piece. This way, I will have fabric for the back, instead of my usual situation of having to decide which of my beloved yardage should be relegated to the wall side. Some people have asked me why I paint my backing fabric instead of just buying some blah stuff to fuse on the hind side. Answer: integrity of the piece. I like for my imagery to be as much about my vision as possible, so color or pattern generated by someone/something else feels wrong to me. My quirk. I have been ruminating over this backing fabric issue for years and when I took the time to build a couple more large stretcher frames it became easier to tack the fabric (in a rather unpainterly fashion) and get it done. I had to convince myself to do only one layer, to randomly choose colors and to simply brush it on methodically in order to cover the fabric. Backing fabric only. Say it again Sonji...BACKING FABRIC ONLY. Don't think for a second that I didn't have to restrain myself from diving back into the surfaces. I am simply trying to revel in the paint and the coverage. No image. No plan, except for that it is backing fabric. I will have to make it a mantra. In the end I will be more productive. I am simply slow to alter my habits. It is an advancement in technique. Say it again, Sonji.
The smaller frame was one left over from years ago and I've been using it to paint my gray canvas for the newer pieces, but the surface area is so small in comparison to my new 5 x 6 foot frames (the blue one). Like my purple walls?

I randomly chose these colors (beige, blue, cranberryish red) and just went at it as though I was starting a painting. The action felt good, but the colors were killing me. I think that will help me get over wanting to make something out of it all...aside from backing fabric. Say it again, Sonji. This time with feeling. BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACKING FABRIC!!!!

This is other MEDALLION STRUCTURE piece that I'm working on. It is about 4 x 5 feet presently and will grow. Need to paint more fabric. That seems to be my bane, doesn't it? More needed for the front. More needed for the back. I suppose my issues could be so much greater.

Can you see the marker line above the red satin stitched line? I have to stitch an elegant arch across the entire piece and that is my indicator.

And these are ovals in the making...

...meant to end up in the first MEDALLION STRUCTURE (click here to view the previous stage of this piece). I am glad the weather is warming up because the paint will dry faster. And yes, the vegetation is pretty. The birds are glorious. The grass will need cutting.

I forgot to mention that I started my school residencies, hence the business beyond the museum job (which will be over in June). One workshop is all day Tuesdays with K-4 and K-5 making cement garden sculptures for their school garden, as well as a bench and a magic "literacy carpet". I have a great assistant, Anna Stone and the culture of that school is as close to perfect as I've ever experience. So friendly and flexible.

The other school is a wider age range, grades 1 through 6, I think. There are so many children that I haven't kept track really. This project is also with a movement and dance professional. My part isn't as much fun to be honest. We are making props and such for a performance. The kids are so interesting though and it is a lesson in letting go (for me). After all, I'm a facilitator. It isn't MY project or vision. Say it again, Sonji...and go back to painting that backing fabric.

Thanks to all of my readers for sticking with me during my lapse. Don't forget to check my work out in the shows listed in the sidebar. Textural Rhythms is now in Detroit, MI. The Hampton University Museum show is up until the end of July. Sisters in Cloth will be opening this week at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum in Golden, CO. And there's more, but I can't think of it all off hand. I have been good at updating my events page on my website, though.

Stay tuned! Take care.

A Bit of Fun

2008-04-13T11:15:00.004-05:00

I was checking my email on this much coveted day off and found that a friend sent me a link to a very interesting test (we all love our on line quizzes and tests) called the Tibetan Personality Test. She prefaced the link by stating something like "it really is revealing about your true personality." Surely, my tea-saturated brain thought, this will unveil something to move me forward (like our Wisconsin state motto). Gotta take it since I am so self-aware (snicker snicker...being self aware is very scary because altering where I AM is HARD).

I won't share my results with you, simply because I don't want to tamper with the authenticity of your test taking adventure, but I will tell you that I wasn't too surprised. I think I am, in a good way, a very simple person. Not a simpleton, but a simple person, which is why I wasn't too surprised by the results of my test. The one thing I will give away, is that according to my test, I believe that the love of my life, my goddaughter (all of 4 years old now) is my twin soul. What could be better? If you want to feel uplifted, then take a few minutes and participate in it. There are only four questions and I feel very happy and will now make another pot of tea (I've been using my Mom's old ceramic tea pot and now understand the need for chicken shaped cosies to keep it warm) and work on some art. Lovely.

Still in progress...

2008-04-03T20:49:00.003-05:00

I have advanced a bit on this piece. It's difficult to truly see art on the Internet...there's no scale or surface texture or dimension, the colors vary from reality. This piece has a nice wave to it, the way fabric tends to slack when we force structure upon it. It is over five feet high. I'm having a grand old time manipulating it. I need to build extention leaves for my sewing table. At least I've constructed it so that I am sewing from the inside out and I don't have to cram it all under the arm of the machine. I am tacking together a couple of other pieces that will be part of this series I will entitle "Medallion Structure" . Initially, this one began as a "Medallion" but it embodies many of the elements that I use for my Stilt Houses and Architectural Studies, so I won't fight the progression of the ideas merging.

I love this particular detail.

This shot illustrates the subtle coloration in my painted gray canvas, as well as the stitching. As the outer ellipses cascade down to the ground, the stitching changes from black to brown. The stitching on the small interior ellipses in the central medallion-ish area is gray and light blue.Here is some yardage I painted for the liturgical banner I'm working on. It's a bit Van Gogh Starry Night, although not by intention. I want all the banner elements to relate cyclically to nature in their symbolism and patterning on the fabric.

This is what the banner looks like so far. It is pictured against a black background and it is a bit over 5 feet long so far and three feet wide. When finished it needs to be 17 feet long...but still only 3 feet wide. Yikes. I just painted a few yards of reddish/orange in order to add some big spirals on the top and the bottom. Big fun.

Also, if you happen to be in or around Philadelphia and/or Wayne, PA, check out "Art Quilt Elements 2008" at the Wayne Art Center. My "Stilt House II" is in the exhibition.

Imperfection

2008-03-07T12:26:00.007-06:00

Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.
~Robert F. Kennedy

The more you know the less you understand.
~Tao Te Ching

Computers are useless. They can only give you answers.
~Pablo Picasso

There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.
~William Shakespeare

Ring the bells that still can ring.
Forget your perfect offering.
There is a crack in everything.
That's how the light gets in.
~Leonard Cohen

These are some of my favorite sayings. I re-discovered them in a shabby little notebook along with some interesting soup recipes. I am big on starting a little notebook with concepts that hit me, although the notebooks seem to consistently end up being sources for tearing out paper in order to write a website, directions or a grocery list. I hung on to this notebook undoubtedly because the words all deal with imperfection. I am a confessed imperfectionist. I will leave it at that.
Because I haven't been creating work at the same rate as I was this time last year for various reasons, I have indulged myself in a lot of textile based essays from Uncoverings, as well as other coffeetable-ish quilt history books. My favorite reads however, have been The Freedom Quilting Bee by Nancy Callahan (not a coffeetable-ish book) and a book of essays by the reknown painter Howardena Pindell entitled The Heart of the Question. I read them concurrently which reinforced the patriarchal societal issues that blanket all issues but ripened the debate for me about elevating items made for utilitarian purposes to the coveted high art status. It really is all based a motive for money and granduer, as is so much of our American lifestyle. Deep sigh.

Today is my day off work (I actually did a lot of running around yesterday, my other day off this week) and I've been lollygagging about. I enjoy lollygagging. I did laundry only out of necessity very early this morning and then promptly sat down and thought about things I should be cramming into the rest of my day and then decided to do very little of it. I have gotten a bit further on Stilt House III by adding the big blue innertube at the bottom. I do so love my circles and donuts and such. This piece is going to get a bit of embroidery and I have to be in the right mood for all that. Other elements are waiting to be added for completion, but I know the embroidery needs to be done first otherwise it will be too difficult for me to manipulate. If I've learned anything about my own methodology, it's to plan ahead despite my disliking it.

This is a detail shot of a liturgical banner I'm working on for a lovely woman I met in Eugene, Oregon last year. I don't want to reveal too much of it...and it will take me quite a while to complete...but it is going to be very swirly and lively and about growth.

Painted Fabric Flashback

2008-02-21T14:32:00.014-06:00

I apologize for not blogging these past couple of months. There hasn't been much going on to write about...just to and from work and my beloved snow (with some heavy rain and ice thrown in for good measure). I did receive notice that one of my pieces won a first prize award in the Pen and Brush show in New York. A big deal for me. I'm quite pleased. And in the next couple of weeks, I have to pack up work for the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum's "Sisters in Cloth" and the Wayne Art Center's "Art Quilt Elements 2008".

For now, though...enjoy this painted fabric flashback comprised of yardage from a couple of summers ago. I like remembering where I used some of the fabric.

Working on Stilt House III

2008-01-30T22:44:00.000-06:00

I have been quite busy with the new job over the past few weeks. Enjoyable, although not much time to do my art work. Such is life. I did at least get to do bits and pieces here and there and finally construct it into "Stilt House III".

This shows the dimension that I'm trying to add, little by little. The peeled back doorway is a technique I have used before in "Stilt House II" as well as in "Icons as Landscape", but the bowed out stilt is new. It's difficult to see in the picture, but most of the red pieces are curved out from the surface or bent in some way. This is also one of the few times I have used black thread, exclusively, to outline and define shapes and directional linear aspects. I think my new found love of that thick black line stemmed from drawing with a Sharpie marker all the time. Such a simple reason. Everything doesn't have to be deep.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2008-01-02T17:23:00.000-06:00

I'm always amazed that the recognized "new year" signifies so much for me. I don't tend to celebrate other holidays (religious, societal, personal, spawned by Hallmark or otherwise), but NEW YEAR has always been this collective fresh start for me, for everyone...if you choose to embrace it. And this particular one I especially do. I don't make resolutions on this day, but if I'm able to hang in there until the stroke of midnight, my heart and head both feel different. Hopeful. Refreshed. New. Embraced with faith in humanity and myself.

So, what do I perceive for this newly wiped slate called my life? I just keep reminding myself to move forward (the Wisconsin state motto that I like to joke about), not backwards. And not stationary. Even if I'm afraid, take a baby step forward. I implore you to do the same. Hey, I'd given up trying to upload my image on the sidebar and thought I'd attempt it one more time and today...there I am... smiling shyly and gnawing on my sweater. For the past couple of months, Blogger said "oh, no dear. you can't upload a picture" and today it was cooperative. A cooperative new year...could it be? Yes, let's all be as cooperative as possible this new year.

A new job is in store for me. Next week, I will start a limited term position at the public museum. It seems as though I have a half-on/half-off affair with my art career. Half of the year it can support me and half of the year it can't. Such is life, but we all do what we need to and this new job is what I need to do. It's a six month deal associated with the Body Worlds exhibit. I'm excited...because I need the regular income and I need the structure and the exhibit is way cool. Don't worry. I am not one of the plasticized individuals splayed open for view.

Other things are going on that I will write about later. Don't wait for anything too dramatic. I'm only referring to art related stuff. I'll keep my wild personal life to myself. Oh...I did get that 12 foot living room ceiling painted. The back of my neck is killing me, but at least I didn't fall off the make-shift scaffolding!

So, HAPPY NEW YEAR to all. I foresee wonderful new experiences for us, if we dare to let them happen and if we dare to make them happen!

Helping out the Aging Out

2007-12-06T14:08:00.000-06:00

Today, my friend Kathy took me for a tour of Lissy's Place, which is a residence that is part of the My Home Your Home organization that assists young women from the age of 18-29, who have aged out of the foster care system or for whatever reason have a history of transiency or homelessness due to neglect. The case manager who supervises the program and facility was just wonderful and we discussed my doing some volunteer life skills workshops with the young ladies, including sewing skills. So, eventually I'll start hitting everyone up for donations of thread, batting and the like...just giving you notice. They have about a dozen bolts of fabric someone donated which will be a great start.

We can all get rather weepy over our own personal circumstances from time to time, but visiting this place and seeing the need these young women have for examples of functioning adults who know how to sew a button on a shirt or prepare a nutritional meal from scratch or present oneself at a job interview or even how to keep a job once you get one or how to carry yourself with dignity regardless of what the situation is...well, wow. I have been having an on-again-off -again pity party for myself over the past few months, but honestly becoming aware of this epic in person is a swift kick in the butt, my butt. How often do you think about this happening? Sure, I've listened to NPR segments on "aging out of the system" and shook my head and never did anything. I've read newspaper and magazine articles on the subject. Again, pursing my lips and shaking my head. What could I do anyway? I frequently never do anything really because I am trying so hard to pursue my goals and maintain my life. After years of working with cognitively delayed/disabled adults it is easy to convince myself that I've put in my time. But, the need never stops. It's everywhere and apparently I can do something even by passing on the simplest of tasks that I take for granted, like being able to hem a pair of pants, or demonstrate what common courtesy is in a public situation. I, as most of you, learned all this simple stuff from my parents. Well, some kids never get to learn that from anyone because they are trying to survive everyday from a very young age, with no real security for their heart or their person.

I could preach on and on, but the point is that I'm glad that Kathy took me there. Among other things, they need small dressers and I have one sitting in my basement doing nothing. That's my start for the week. When I got home, I emailed the case manager so that she would have all my info and we could communicate until we arrange a time for me to start volunteering.

I'm asking you to also do something. What can you do? What can you really do? I had never heard of this organization, which is local. I'm passing the word on for my Milwaukee area readers and I am asking all you great people elsewhere around the world to find out if there is a similar organization in your area that assists young adults who "age out" of the system. Maybe they need someone to teach cooking/nutrition/grocery shopping basics. Or simple sewing repairs. Or basic "soft" skills, like how to speak to others in a public situation and fill out a job application and write a cover letter...something. Maybe a place like this near you needs a small dresser and someone to teach the young men and women how to repair a torn seam.

Baltimore and blahblah

2007-11-22T12:30:00.000-06:00

I'm still recovering from the Baltimore opening at the Reginald Lewis Museum. WOW! That's really all I can come up with. You know if I am at a loss for words, it must have been something else. I didn't bring my camera because I knew I wouldn't be able to take pictures in the museum. My harrowing experience at the Mississippi Museum of Art has made me behave. If it says "no cameras allowed", then no camera it is.

There were two jazz bands, over three hundred visitors, flashing cameras (in the reception space, not with the work), nonstop book signing (so much so that even the artists involved had a difficult time finding time to converse with one another) and networking galore. I will have you know that I walked a total of 16 blocks in my 3 inch heels, as well as standing for 3 hours straight.

Some of the artists present were Lawana Holland-Moore (who was so apologetic about not blogging lately, but hey...life happens), Peggie Hartwell, Jacqui Johnson, Catherine Lamkin, Betty Leacraft, Cleota Proctor Wilbekin (who is oh-so-glamorous), Marlene O'Bryant-Seabrook, Myrah Brown Greene, Bisa Butler (who is just way too cute, I can't even stand it), Dr. Edward Bostick (who just returned from Colorado where he is part of the man show at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum), Sandy Benjamin-Hannibal (who approved of my hair and attire this time...she is totally channeling my Mother), Liz Pemberton (my new pen pal), Carole Lyles-Shaw, Winifred Wallace, Sauda Zahra and of course, the lovely Valerie White. Her piece was made into a giant wall decal to advertise the show and it was FANTASTIC! I would have liked to meet Adriene Cruz who was there all the way from Portland, OR. Of course, Dr. Carolyn was there managing everything...which is why I could have an obliviously good time! One of my Art Colony buddies, Geoff Johnson came with his lovely wife, Lorraine and a group of Baltimore friends. We only got to talk for a hot minute, but such is the life of the glitterati. We had both cut our hair very short since the summer and of course, we both looked marvelous. I also met a few kindred spirits in the form of playwright Robbye Apperson and artists Janet Waters and Loring Cornish. Whew! I'm exhausted simply trying to relay that basic info to you. I would have never been able to sift through pictures.

FYI...Anonymous posted a comment wondering what I was having for a Thanksgiving meal...well, I don't celebrate the holiday, so I don't have to worry about any type of "special" meal. I made some steamed turnip greens and the red beans are in the slow cooker. Here is a link sent to me about the top vegan and vegetarian restaurants around the world. I may actually get to try the ones in Brooklyn, Columbus and NYC! But, for those of you who do indulge in the festivities of the day...happyhappy to you and yours.

Now, off for a chilly walk with our newly fallen snow. Then some hot chai tea and a bit of sewing and painting. Pictures tomorrow.

This is Me Thinking Out Loud, Again

2007-11-04T18:07:00.000-06:00

I've wavered back and forth whether or not to post about my recent experience at a talk given by three well known curators from three various non-collecting institutions located in the East, West and Midwest. I don't want to seem insulting, nor do I want to burn bridges...not that I have any known bridges with the aforementioned individuals or institutions to burn. Still, I was so saddened after the presentations and I am looking for an outlet for it. I am looking for a remedy.

What I came away with was that the current (and surely past) power structure of the so-called art world, really could give a flying rat's ass about anything or anyone but itself and the oddities it elevates to an exclusive status. How did I come to this unfortunate conclusion? Well, it was presented to me through the content of two PowerPoint presentations and one failed interactive website presentation. I saw it all with my own eyes...nothing I could relate to, even as a person whose life is about embracing art, whose education is through the acculturated fine arts standards (BFA and MFA), whose mind and heart are openly pleading for something of substance.

I went to this talk and have purposefully been trying to understand what on earth is happening when I visit a gallery or museum or art center and all I see is a pile of trash and a flat screen TV projecting the generation of the trash itself. Or I see three TVs with timed videos examining how a white delivery truck drives from one location to another. Or perhaps I am asked to embrace or reject life size photographs (maybe digital, I can't remember) of hideously drunken frat boys or someones really pretty vacation photos with text. I never thought in regards to art I would hit the wall labeled "generation gap", but I have. I seriously feel my heart is breaking when I view this MTV generation stuff that is meaningless to me. And perhaps that is exactly what it is supposed to occur.

Mostly, I don't care because it is all so forgettable. What I do care about is that when I went home and researched these curatorial leaders, through on-line articles, I found one person (the most disappointing presenter of the evening) who was comfortable enough to state in writing that he "only appreciated art that alienated people". This is coming from someone who is the Director of Education at his institution. This person also stated at the talk I attended that he "didn't care if Joe Schmo on the street understood art." Wow. WOW. Another highly regarded professional prattled on about the difficulty of finding a pink poof chair for an installation. The resulting installation was apparently conceptually deep enough to become a traveling one. The other meticulously explained more video imagery of a guy sitting on a meditative platform in various environments. It just kept on coming. I was so sad. I am still sad.

I have also been listening to a series of pod casts, mostly about conceptual art around the country, and that has me sinking in the quicksand of whatever relevant contemporary art is supposed to be about now. Honestly, if I am someone who is trained and willing to embrace this sort of stuff AND I don't even want to view it because it has all become so idiotic and useless, what on earth does Joe or Jo Schmo think about "real" art? At this talk, there was all sorts of code language and slights about the type of work most of the artists that I know and respect do. I felt deflated. My friend Kathy (not an artist) came along for the evening because she wanted to know what I was always getting so upset about and she asked the speakers "so does a television screen have to be attached to it (meaning the art) for you to like it?" Of course, they said "no" but then issued a series of statements meaning "yes" or "there also has to be some one's trash attached to it" or "there has to be items submerged in bodily fluids, along with a video of mold growing and the artist discovering plantar warts on his/her own feet"...I'm being sarcastic of course, but surely this would all be viable "art" in the eyes of these professionals.

The institutional art world is very much a special "members only" club. I'm totally fine with new forms of art, but I'm not fine with the prejudice against what perhaps is now termed traditional art, the type most of us produce. The impact of Andy Warhol is like a disease when combined with slacker intellectualism and modern technology. My favorite dumb art question "is painting dead?" doesn't seem so funny anymore.

To be fair, I was sort of excited at the beginning of the talk because Agnes Martin's work was presented...she made really big minimalist drawings (and small ones, too). When I was in grad school, I went to the opening of a retrospective of hers here at the Milwaukee Art Museum, and as usual, got too close and had to be escorted away by docents. My date was horrified. He became an abstract videographer and installationist (that's a joke...he actually became a hairdresser...that's another story).

I don't have any delusions of being able to either infiltrate or alter the state of institutional art (they would probably faint if they knew I was labeling it so). I want a solution for myself, which is probably to just chug along the way that I have been. Or to build a completely different system...which, I must gratefully add, this fabu modern technology allows us all to do. By no means do I want to make it seem as if I am anti-video art or anti-installation art, because I'm not. I love meaningful and well-executed installations and video art. I've created two installations of my own and definitely find it to be a valid form of experiential expression. My gripe is in regards to a base line of prejudice against other forms of art as being "valid" for the contemporary art experience by those who JUDGE what fine art is supposed to be in our culture. Individuals who decide/influence what monies and energy go where in regards to art and its public presentation and historical sustenance should be able to remove their personal fetishes from the realm of their decision making.

OK. I'm sort of typed out over that, but I still have so much strife in my head and in my heart about art world stuff...surely, I will continue to ramble on about it. Toss some stuff in the mix.

Abusive? Me?

2007-08-21T19:41:00.000-05:00

My Janome New Home is in the shop for repairs. It was really a sad sad happening. I was super zigzagging away through something that I knew was way too thick for that machine, but I did it anyway...it's a trooper. And then nothing. Push the peddle. Nothing. Hmmm. I broke it. I'm sorry Jan. I don't seem to be able to cultivate appropriate relationships.

So, I took her into the shop for repair and Bob says "You are too rough on this machine. You batter it. This is a delicate instrument. A beautiful machine." Good heavens, yes, I know Bob. I'm abusive. I admit it. I'm not trying to hide that. It's perfectly evident. Can you fix her or have I killed her?

"This machine is not meant for that sort of thing." Oh, please stop scolding me. I know this. I've had enough trouble these past few weeks. You aren't my father nor are you Jan's dad. You are her "physician", so stop judging and get to diagnosing and repairing. I am still waiting for the sewing machine police to come to my front door and arrest me and book me on abuse charges.

This went on for countless minutes. The shaking of the head. The tisk-tisking. Onandonandonandon. I was rescued by his lovely co-worker (I forget her name but I should name a machine after her) who said "Have you ever thought of using an older model machine? Something all metal and sturdy, since you only use a zigzag and a straight stitch". Why, yes lovely co-worker...I used to use my Mom's old machine but it broke and I got this new fangled thing that is apparently a delicate flower, too precious to be man-handled by the likes of me. I am very interested in a sturdy mule-like machine. Do you have any?

She guided me by the elbow around the corner (they keep the elderly machines in a side hallway away from all the pretty young things) and my heart almost stopped. Two rows filled with refurbished, rewired geriatric puke green sewing machines. It was like a dream. Beautiful.
I found Jan's great grannie...an old Janome New Home. It's the best. It matches my favorite mug. There's no "up-down" feature for the needle, but this baby is solid. After a few minor incidents (confused threading, bobbin insertion issues and a misjudgment of needle position...through my index finger was not the correct position), we have settled into one another. Bob said he would call me when Jan had "recuperated" after her "surgery" and I have a strange feeling he's going to make me sign some sort of technical release form. Sewing probation.

However...in tribute to the supposedly frail young Jan, I present to you her workhorse heart. All the tough stuff was done on her before she collapsed. I just finished up the embroidery and design amendments over the past few days, though.

Architectural Study V (measures about 10x15 inches including the scraggledies on that falling bundle). I decided to remake some of the Architectural Study pieces. Yes, they were just ideas posing as work (very trendy indeed) but when I got ready to mount them the action was missing and I need that movement. I added the seed/circular elements and the falling bundle. I think I'm going to add some skinny stick-ish rectangular elements but I'm just going to wait a few days and see if it's me simply requiring MORE or the piece requiring a better compositional resolution.

Bundle Study 144 (about 5x6inches). I'm trying to simplify them, if that's possible. De-clutter the bundles...de-clutter the life.

Bundle Study 145 is actually a bit larger than usual, measuring about 6x10 inches.

And of course, I always appreciate when I am credited with being an inspiration of some sort... Jan Jackson (no relation to my sewing machine) has created a fun sonji-ish piece with the fabric she purchased from me. Thanks for sharing Jan. Your other work is totally amazing, too. And, to my Jan...I never meant to hurt you. I won't do it again. Only three layer sandwiches of the traditional sort(ish) for you from now on.

Pissarro, Paul and my Pops (no particular order)

2007-08-07T21:53:00.000-05:00

This afternoon, I went to the Milwaukee Art Museum for a walking lecture on the current exhibition of Camille Pissarro's work. I decided that I should really take advantage of my museum membership more often instead of relying on the fact (?) I am an art historical genius already (gag...). More importantly, today would have been my Father's 86th birthdayand although he's been dead for 26 years, I still celebrate in some way. I loved my Daddy bigger than anything. Is everyone tearing up? I am. It seems I always am lately.

When this exhibit opened in June, I went to see it immediately because I adore Pissarro. He was an Impressionist, sometimes referred to as the "Father of Impressionism" and such, but to me, he was such an individual and I tend to think he should not be grouped with the rest of the Impressionists (fabu as they are...I'm just sayin'). He was close with Cezanne and his love of paint for paint's sake and geometry for geometry's sake and color for color's sake and optics and color "reality" are so obvious. His formalist tendencies are bare naked, despite the subject matter.

One of the first oil paintings I ever made was for my Father and it was a copy of a Pissarro landscape. It might still be in the basement or I might have thrown it out last year in a fit of trying to live a new life and not dwelling on the past. I'm scared to check. Anyway, I vividly remember making it. On my 12th birthday, my parents gave me a beautiful wooden paint box complete with a set of oils and round and flat white bristle brushes, plus an easel, jars of linseed oil and turpentine, a real artists apron with my initials on it and some stretched canvases. That's quite a gift for anyone, let alone a 12 year old girl. My parents always indulged my art, but that gift was extra special. All of it was piled in front of my bedroom door when I opened it my birthday morning. I believe I was so cool about it (being 12 and artistic) that I just climbed over everything and pretended not to notice for as long as I could...which wasn't very long. Even back then oil paint was oxygen.

Why or how I decided on that particular Pissarro landscape is a mystery. I used to look at tons of books and then show my parents and they'd tell me what they liked and asked if I thought I could copy it, so that's most likely where the idea came from. My Mother loved modern art and abstraction whereas my Dad liked landscapes and cityscapes. Knowing their personalities, I always thought it should be the other way round, but what do I know. Art is a mysterious thing. My Dad would also draw seven legged cats to make me laugh and my Mom would copy fashion drawings out of the newspaper with me. OK, I'm digressing again and I'm going to cry more. Let's get back to that lecture...

We all had to wear headphones because the curator's voice was so soft and there were over 100 people present...that's a lot and the museum staff was very happy. I enjoyed the enthusiasm the curator had regarding Pissarro's work and I did learn a few things about him personally that made me like him even more, such as:

he preferred to live on the fringe of towns instead of in big cities
he lived with his lover for 5 years and had two kids prior to their getting married because his family disapproved of the class of the woman he loved (I also admire his woman...screw societal expectations I say).
when he was exhibiting salon style at the beginning of his career, he purposefully signed his name HUGE and painted on large than average canvases because he knew his work would be hung very high on the wall...good business smarts.

I bought a t-shirt emblazzened with a great quote attributed to Pissarro , "It is absurd to look for perfection." I also purchased this book at the museum store about the Paul R. Jones Collection , newly installed at the University of Delaware. A couple of years ago he spoke in Milwaukee and I didn't hear a single word he said because his mic didn't work and no one wanted to tell him to stop talking because he was on a roll. So, I was pleased to find this book and learn more about his collecting. It chronicles 40 years of his passion. Very cool.

Now, baseball on the radio and the Habitat door fabric in the sewing machine. Life goes on.

Another Article about the Gee's Bend Lawsuit and My Opinion

2007-07-10T17:36:00.000-05:00

Here is the latest article regarding the Gee's Bend lawsuit, courtesy of Black Threads blog. Read it and tell me what you think.

I'll tell you what I think...you knew I would. Once again, I will state that I feel the women of Gee's Bend were taken advantage of because of their isolation and poverty. I think that I could find an appraiser to value the quilts at whatever I wanted those quilts to be valued at...whether it be between $10 and $750 or between $50,000 and $1,000,000. The Arnett's are the ones who decided to elevate the quilts into the art world and secure art world prices. It doesn't matter how old they actually are, it matters that the "Gee's Bend" mystic has become big business and the enterprises of the Arnett's "spoke" for the images of the quilts. The women who made these quilts have been cheated, their families have been cheated and their community has been cheated. Not from the cheaters viewpoint, I understand., but definitely from the viewpoint of those being cheated...and from my point of view. When all the paperwork is in with the dates coordinated in a time line alongside the verbal promises, we will see what happens. And this foolishness about the quilts being returned after two years...puleeeez! Oh, I'm sorry. I "borrowed" your car for two years and now I'm giving it back after you decided to sue me. Yeah. I can see how the Arnett's might think giving the quilts back could work in their favor. No harm done. My eyes are rolled so far back in my head, I think they are stuck. That's even too sarcastic for me.

Wealth is a sticky point for people who have it. They don't want to give it up, but they sure don't mind exploiting someone who might not know any better to get more. These women could have passed wealth on in their families and community if this were a fair situation, if all that we-just-wanted-to-help-them-and-get-them-the-recognition-they-deserved b.s. was really meaningful...which it wasn't. If you really want to help people, then you help them. If you want to use people, then you do that. Sometimes the actions look similar. The gray area is for lawyers.

Roland Freeman Honored

2007-06-30T18:29:00.000-05:00

Noted photographer Roland Freeman is being honored by the NEA. Here is a link to the article. His book A Communion of the Spirits: African-American Quilters, Preservers and Their Stories was the very first book I ever read about African American quilts (well, about quilts period!) and it was my introduction to many of the people in the quilt world that I actually KNOW now, like Carolyn Mazloomi, Gwen Magee, Kyra Hicks (I don't know her know her, but we have emailed a couple of times ). If you don't own this book, you might want to try to get a copy. It makes my heart swell each time I pick it up. The photographs are amazing and Roland Freeman's writing style is engaging and informative. It really is a wonderful journey from the pages of a book. I feel as if I am traveling the country meeting people and viewing and touching these quilts right along with him.

One reason I purchased the book way back when, was because as I was thumbing through it at the bookstore (one must always thumb through something with pretty pictures) and came upon a photo (page 294, if you are thumbing along) of an elderly woman, ill and laying in the bed, surrounded by her four daughters and all her quilts. It was the most beautiful photo I have ever seen and to this day it makes me cry out of empathy and pride.

My own Mother had just taken ill from a series of strokes that incapacitated her. I moved home to take care of her and we would go out everywhere, her in her wheelchair looking frail and slightly contorted. People would stare and I would resist the urge to smash their faces in with my bare hands. All I could think of was how the general public views whatever they find different. None of these fools knew the statuesque, trailblazing woman who was my Mother...a woman who had more spirit, intelligence, grace and spunk and sense in her pinky finger than most people do in their whole body. Once in a while, simply to amuse my Mommy, I would blurt out a fierce line of moral outrage to the stunned stare-er. Mostly, I learned to simply enjoy being with my Mom as she was at that moment in time and ignore all the gapers. So, oddly that is how my interest in quilts began, from the power of that particular Roland Freeman photograph.

Check out his website and his organization TGCD which stands for "The Group for Cultural Documentation". I am amazed at the work people do and have been doing for decades. I gotta get off my butt and really DO something.

New Lawsuit Filed Against Arnett's

2007-06-26T08:26:00.000-05:00

The latest lawsuit filed against the Arnett's regarding Gee's Bend quilts is simply heartbreaking. Here is the link to the story.

After reading the article, I am very interested in the other suits filed by Alabama folk artists against this family. The damn is breaking and the Arnett's don't seem to have enough fingers to plug it.

Annie Mae Young, Gees Bend Quilter Files Suit

2007-06-08T10:18:00.000-05:00

Kyra, at Black Threads Blog put together a well linked post on the suit filed by Annie Mae Young against the Arnetts. I'm glad Ms. Young is suing. It must have been a difficult decision for her because of the other quilters and an attitude of patriarchy on the part of the Arnett family and the public at large. I'm sure many are thinking privately "She wouldn't have what she does if it hadn't been for him". Yeah, well. So what? Screwed is screwed and no one should allow themselves to be screwed. Plain and simple.

Opening Night for TEXTURAL RHYTHMS: Constructing the Jazz Tradition

2007-02-09T18:45:00.000-06:00

It was cccold outside, but inside the King Arts Complex in Columbus, Ohio it was red hot!

Of course, the very first thing I had to do was scope out where my babies were. There weren't many people in the gallery at the time, so I got some good shots of the work. Oh, there's my "There is No Melody to Follow". How I miss her. But, she's doing o.k. out in the world. Nice company, eh?

And around the corner was "The Sweetest Song". My other baby. She looks good. I dashed around taking pictures of the amazing work. Surely, the gallery would be crowded soon. The Elijah Pierce Gallery, in which this phenomenal exhibition is showcased, has so many wonderful expanses, corners and alcoves. It was visually overwhelming. And I'd only been in the space for three minutes when...

the people started coming...

...and coming...

...AND COMING!!! You ask, where did all these beautiful people come from? EVERYWHERE! I over-heard conversations (not that I'm an eavesdropper, but I had to listen in order to report back to you all) and the crowd was a coast-to-coast melange comprised of sophisticated art patrons and appreciators, curators, artists, educators, community supporters.

There was a presentation announcing the release of a stamp honoring Ella Fitzgerald. I thought it was going to be a stamp honoring the exhibition's curator, Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi. Somehow, I missed the unveiling, but you will be able to find it at your post office soon.

Dr. Mazloomi spoke about how she conceived the idea for the exhibition and introduced the artists who were present. I didn't include that particular picture, simply out of vanity.

I took some pictures of individual pieces, but you really must see the show in person and get the book associated with the exhibition, which will be available in a couple of weeks. Please contact Dr. Mazloomi. If you are familiar with the other books she has produced, you will agree that they are treasures. As an artist, it's an honor to have my work published in one of her books. The images are printed from transparencies, not digital and are excellent representations of the work. If you are unable to experience this show in person, get the book. If you are able to view this show in person, you will still want to get the book. I'm holding my breath, waiting to hug it and smell it and pet it...oh, yeah...and read it. OK...I digressed, as usual. Here are a few of the pieces that I particularly enjoyed:

"TRIBAL MELODY" by Linda Gray of Indianapolis, IN

"SPIRIT OF RITA" by Carolyn Crump of Houston, TX

left "SO JAZZY" by Liz Pemberton of Tobyhanna, PA

right "FAVORITE THINGS" by Adriene Cruz of Portland, OR

"BRILLIANT CORNERS" by Carole Harris of Detroit, MI

"OHIO RIVER BLUESMAN" by the lovely Valerie C. White of Louisville, KY

"JAZZ ON MY MIND" by the intriguing Cynthia Lockhart of Cincinnati, OH

"HONEY'S MANGO BOP" by the delightful Carole Gary Staples of West Chester, OH

And then there was L'Merchie Frazier of Dorchester, MA. Ohmygoodness! Her piece is entitled "Q: JUST TWELVE NOTES" and I don't even feel qualified to comment on it's meaning. There's just too much going on there. She has so much musical history represented in this piece. Surely, if she reads this post she will leave a comment explaining it much better than I could in my rambling blabbitity. I should have taken notes. Impressive.

I hope that you will be able to view this exhibition in person when it travels near you. I want to be a groupie and follow it around the country, so I will always announce where it is, even though I know that I won't get to every single opening...someone can function as my proxy. THIS IS SOMETHING YOU MUST EXPERIENCE. It's visual, it's visceral, it's intellectual. Everything you could want in an art exhibit. I bet seeing it could convert non-art lovers into believers.

And then there was me...chatting up the only person that would listen, Dr. Mazloomi's husband. Poor man. I talked his ear off. No really, I, like the other artists who were present, had a line of people wanting to take pictures and discuss the work. It was so glitterati. Loved it. That's why we must follow the show. The fame whore in me is calling.

Life is in the Details

2006-09-08T12:35:00.000-05:00

Meryl Streep's character said that in "Bridges of Madison County" (yes I did watch it and even own it...don't judge) and the phrase always struck me as true whether people realized it or not. Amazing that a man wrote it. He must have heard his mother say it.

For you, my darlings...a few detail shots of my Quilt National entry. I read the entry information thoroughly and nothing prohibits me from posting a full view of it on my own blog, BUT...I'm sassy and I'd rather leave you anticipating what it actually looks like in the all-together. Perhaps a bad idea, though, because these details are looking pretty good.

I've named it "Icon with Eternal Symbols and Random Bundles" and measures 37.5" w x 38.5" h. That's not very large compared to the Quilt National pieces I've seen, but good things come in small packages.

Can you see why I went totally insane over this piece? Not insane because it's so completely fabu (which it is), but insane because of all the hand work...my hands are still sore from all the embroidery. And if any of you have seen my work in person, you know how THICK my layers are. Surely, I can crack a walnut with my fingers.