Shopping at nearby thrift shops is a treat for me. I discovered this joy around my 21st birthday. As I unloaded the fruits of a recent 20-minute foray onto the dining table, I photographed the items. Beyond the good buys, low cost, and promise of fun message, the group suggested a direction for my art … Continue reading Mile Markers in an Altered Terrain
Tag: practice
Call / Respond Week 9
We all carry within us our places of exile, our crimes, our ravages. Our task is not to unleash them on the world; it is to transform them in ourselves and others, — Albert Camus Joseph in The Well and the Camus quotation have existed in my repertoire for years but were just put together … Continue reading Call / Respond Week 9
Call / Respond Week 6
A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. It is a scaffolding on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time. —Annie Dill Dance at Midnight is an early work, completed long before I found this quote. I chose it as an illustration … Continue reading Call / Respond Week 6
Wes and Will: More Good Questions
On good weather school days, my father Wes often managed to be in the farmyard when the school bus pulled in to drop off the three of us kids. We enjoyed seeing him there. But as we made our way off the bus, we prepared for the certainty of him asking, “What did you learn … Continue reading Wes and Will: More Good Questions
A Good Barn
As I child, I observed that barns were used for storage and for work. Every farm had one. As a child, I was confused by the Bible story about the wealthy person who tore down good barns to make bigger ones. That seemed foolish to me. I am guessing that most of my adults at … Continue reading A Good Barn
Time for Amendment of Life
3 layered lectern frontal. Fabric screen printed and stenciled. Work engages and excites me when I explore new techniques but also when I use established process and pattern in a fresh way. A recent commission created a deep satisfaction through stewardship of materials, time, and relationship. My fingers repeated decades old take apart skills I … Continue reading Time for Amendment of Life
Joy of Making: Knots
Custom work filled many summer days at the studio this year. Completed projects are now delivered. Before I completely shift into next season's work, my hands and mind are revisiting techniques and tools: a bit like a family reunion. Grandma Alice showed me how to tie quilts when I was a teenager. My fingers readily … Continue reading Joy of Making: Knots
Hone: Knowing And Maintaining A Tool
I use different scissors for different tasks in the studio just as I use a variety of knives in the kitchen. Practice informs me which tool works best for a particular task. Experimentation increases the scope of usefulness for each tool I own. Recently, I have begun to regard my screen images as tools. This set … Continue reading Hone: Knowing And Maintaining A Tool
Origins Of A Crisp Finish
The conversion of garage to art studio began this week. I tiptoed upstairs to see the progress during lunch. The framing confirms that I like my plans; it assures me that the end results will work. The craftsmanship also informs me about my own work. I have been complimented over my years of custom sewing, … Continue reading Origins Of A Crisp Finish
3 Patterns, 7 Colors, and 10 Women
I led my first dyeing workshop this month. 10 good women braved a cold night to gather in a pottery studio to put their hands and minds to dyeing silk scarves. After I demonstrated three fold and tie patterns, each participant received a scarf to manipulate and then color. Here are their results. I discovered … Continue reading 3 Patterns, 7 Colors, and 10 Women