Stitch, stitch, stitch!

(Above: Detail of Anonymous, a Grave Rubbing Art Quilt. Click on image to enlarge. Work in progress.)

Hot Springs National Park is inspiring and I’m hard at work. Every day sees the completion of a new chiffon banner covered in free motion embroidered epitaphs and a couple dozen or so pages in The Book of Death. I’ve also started a small art quilt (approximately 26” x 25”) based on WATER. After all, it is the water that makes this national park so unique. The average temperature when it bubbles up from the ground is 143 degrees and it is pure … absolutely perfectly pure, colorless, odorless, hot water. Hopefully there will be photos tomorrow.


(Above: A ball of "cord" made by free motion zigzag stitching over five or six strands of yarn. This is the first step in making one of my fiber vessels. Click on image to enlarge.)

I’ve also decided to create a fiber vessel. My intention is to make a three dimensional work abstractly representing the forty-three “springs” … which are actually all covered here … protected … although there are a few “display springs” and an exhibition window to one in the basement of the National Park Headquarters (The Fordyce Bathhouse Museum).


(Above: Anonymous on the living room sofa at Hot Springs National Park's "artist-in-residence" house. Click on image to enlarge.)

Every night I’m also stitching on Anonymous, the Grave Rubbing Art Quilt designed to stitch in public … which I will be doing this coming Saturday from 1 – 5 in the Fordyce Bathhouse lobby. Thus far, the tiny vintage embroidered pieces along the edge are completely finished … all 125+ of them. I’m over halfway done with the “crazy stitching” on and around the vintage pieces that surround the child’s slip with the grave rubbing. Hours and hours to go … no problem finishing with nothing to do in public! Stitch, stitch, stitch! This is a "month of Sundays" dream come true!

Hot Springs National Park ... The Gifts of Time and Space

Things are going wonderfully here in Hot Springs National Park! Of course they are! This is the GIFT OF TIME! It is also the GIFT OF SPACE. Although I probably could work at only one project, day after day, it is fantastic to divide my attention between several on-going projects … which means that I can easily put in twelve to sixteen hours every day without ever feeling the slightest bit bored or weary of any one project. So ... that's what I'm doing!

(Above: The Book of the Dead, in progress ... under two, provided Ott lights on a "proper", titled drafting table ... obviously, "heaven"! Click on image to enlarge.)

In the front “studio room”, I am currently working on The Book of the Dead. There is no way I could easily, quickly, efficiently work on this project in Columbia. The sketchbook was a Christmas gift (2009) from my mentor Stephen Chesley. He’s filled at least two since then! I hadn’t put a single mark in mine …until now. This oversized sketchbook is from Art Alternatives and contains 348 blank sheets of paper. That’s 696 pages of 75 lb. acid free paper measuring 12 ½” x 10 ¾”. It’s GIGANTIC … and too overwhelming for me to have tackled until now.

(Above: The Book of the Dead, in progress. Click on image to enlarge.)

On and off, it took three days to fill the book with washes and splatters of ink, coffee filter stains, and watercolor gestures … in a “zen like” process of simply “marking the paper” and then responding to the mark with the next color. My fingernail are still stained with black India ink. Now, I’m using a calligraphy pen and writing my collection of epitaphs on the pages … responding to the arrangement of color and marks … as if casting the words into a physical space. I gave hundreds upon hundreds of epitaphs from all over the USA and England. I can only write for about an hour at a time before my wrist hurts. Fortunately, I don’t have to put anything away. I just leave this desk as it is … returning in a couple hours to write some more. I plan on creating a unique cover and spine when all the pages are filled.

(Above: The kitchen counter/sewing center! Please notice the cupboard is a perfect place for my notebook in which I recently jotted down epitaphs from four different Hot Springs cemeteries! There's even natural lighting!)

Now … my sewing machine had been on the dining room table. This worked for the initial stitching on my Cemetery Flag quilt (sorry … no photo) but it was too “shaky” for my next project ... epitaph banners. Thus, I’m now sewing at the kitchen counter. This works, of course, because I’m the only one here!

(Above: Stitching an epitaph ... I've already snipped the threads between various letters and words in the first line. After an epitaph is complete, I turn the banner over and clip the bobbin threads. Every other epitaph faces the opposite direction on the banner ... so it can be half read from both sides. Please notice just how sheer this chiffon is ... especially by clicking the image to enlarge.)

I saved these banners to stitch while here in Hot Springs. Why? Because each one takes about three hours from start to finish. At home, that’s almost my entire weekday in my studio. Here, however, I can get one done before lunch and then move on to another project! This is the sheerest material on which I’ve ever stitched! I love it … but unfortunately, it’s been discontinued.

(Above: The front "studio room" with the first epitaph banner folded over a coat hanger, hanging from a non-working fan in the ceiling. Click on image to enlarge.)

The banners are headed for my solo show, “Last Words”, in Rocky Mount, NC this coming January … where the ceiling is easily fourteen feet off the floor. I started using the epitaphs I collected here in Hot Springs on my very first day!

(Above: Hot Springs paper and fiber collage on vintage guest towel. Work in progress. Click on image to enlarge.)

I’m also working on my first piece directly related to Hot Springs National Park. Mimicking both the look of the Fordyce Bathhouses’ stained glass and the mosaic tiled floors in all the bathhouses, I’ve created a collage from the pamphlets and information sheets in the park with previously painted WonderUnder (Bond-a-Web) and layers of chiffon scarves. I have more plans for this … including quilting it.

Also, I spent Saturday afternoon from 1 – 5 PM stitching in the Fordyce Bathhouse (which is the National Park Headquarters and the park’s restored bathhouse museum). I designed Anonymous, a Grave Rubbing Art Quilt, for this purpose. It allows me to demonstrate handwork techniques that would have been done by women coming to the area during both the Victorian era (earlier bathhouses) and during the first part of the 20^th century (later/current bathhouses). Basically, I’m crazy quilting … the Victorian rage. Yet, I’m crazy quilting snippets from actual, vintage household linens … exactly the sort of embroidery women would have done probably sitting in the same place in which I sat! What’s really great about this piece is that it is also indicative of my own, contemporary work … it includes a grave rubbing and is part of my concept of recycling and focusing on universal mortality! The grave rubbing is on a child’s slip … likely from the 1930s … and reads: This is for the memory of unknown family members. I’ll post some detail photos on another day! Now … back to work!

First days in Hot Springs

First things first! I’ve hiked over the “mountain”, seen a baby water moccasin, touched the extremely hot water issuing from the display springs, toured the Fordyce Bathhouse Museum, and met a few campers living in RVs and tents all around me.

The Fordyce Building (above) is operated as an exhibition center/museum by the National Park. It showcases the heyday of “taking the waters”. I love all the architectural details …

... like the matching "planters" on both ends of the lobby. I also love the ornamental details ...

… like the Men’s changing room fountain of explorer DeSoto being offered the spring water from an Indian maiden ….

… under a mermaid inhabited stained glass dome …

… near the “ultra modern” baths …

… with their sleek, highly calibrated stainless steel knobs … lots of details! Lots of patterns and decorations!

This is a place that was at the cutting edge of fitness, as is seen in the third floor gymnasium. (Men were even allowed to sunbathe in the nude here!)

(Above: In Box LXXXI. Click on image to enlarge. 14" x 10".)

Setting up my studio here at Hot Springs National Park was a breeze. My car was totally full but the house was virtually empty. Getting to work was easy too … because I brought a piece that was almost finished. I did this intentionally, as a way to “jump right in” with something familiar. Thus, the first work I completed was In Box LXXXI.

(Above: Dearly Departed IV . 11" x 8 1/4". Click on any image to enlarge.)

I also brought a special project with me, one that simply needed enough time to tackle. Everything was ready to go: Victorian photo albums, hundreds of photos of cemetery angels, thousands of clipped, vintage letters, pages of collected epitaphs, matte medium, and a paint brush. Although I’ve got six complete albums, I started with eighteen individual pages from various broken books. I was able to coordinate the colors of the letters to suit the images and the decorate album pages … mostly because I recently clipped an entire stack of old, colorful sheet music. This new set is called “Dearly Departed”.

(Above: Dearly Departed III . 11" x 8 1/4".)

While making these fun pieces, I thought a lot about the work I’m supposed to be making … work reflecting Hot Springs National Park. There’s a bit of pressure on me … to seek inspiration, create quality art, translate something special in fibers … something that can become a suitable part of the permanent art collection. Most of the former artists-in-residence have their work on display in the Fordyce Museum.

(Above: Dearly Departed II . 9" x 7".)

My mentor, oil painter Stephen Chesley, advised me to create at least one "break the mold" piece ... something "out of the box" ... something truly unique, experimental, cutting edge, adventuresome, and honestly "me". This is really good advice ... but it is also not what I'm supposed to be making! There's time enough for my planned projects, Stephen's suggestion, and something that reflects Hot Springs National Park. I know that I should play to my strengths ... create something strong but using a reliable, time-tested, and comfortable technique ... something I'm already good at ... something I can count on since it will be park of a national, permanent collection.

(Above: Dearly Departed I . 9" x 7".)

So, while applying clipped letters, I formulated a workable plan. I’m already hard at work … sketching all the architectural details, ornamentation, decorative patterns, and interesting motifs in the bathhouses. These will be used to create some very special “In Box” and faux-stained glass works … reflecting the park. The bathhouses ARE part of Hot Springs National Park.

(Above: Dearly Departed IX . 11" x 8 1/4".)

For now, please enjoy “Dearly Departed” … all eighteen of them! Each image can be “clicked on” for enlargement.


(Above: Dearly Departed VI . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed V . 11" x 8 1/4".)



(Above: Dearly Departed VII . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XII . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XI . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed X . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed VIII . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XIII . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XVII . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XVI . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XV . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XIV . 11" x 8 1/4".)


(Above: Dearly Departed XVIII . 11" x 8 1/4".)

Artist-in-Residence ... Hot Springs National Park!

(Above: The former park ranger, historic house at the Gulph Gorge National Park Campground on the grounds of Hot Springs National Park ... aka ... HOME FOR A MONTH! Click on any photo in this post to enlarge.)

I am now the official “artist-in-residence” at Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas. It is a privilege. It is an honor. It is an awesome opportunity. The orientation took a full two hours and was filled with all sorts of governmental paperwork … like agreeing not to carry a firearm, litter, or sexually harass anyone. Most of the paperwork was really helpful ... like emergency telephone numbers and personnel contact information. I was provided with an official name tag and nicely monogrammed park shirt that I’m not even required to wear! The people here couldn’t be nicer. The park is beautiful … hot … but I’m very used to that!

I came early to Hot Springs so that I could go to the monthly “First Friday” art crawl through the historic district. Next month, I’ll be part of it … and I wanted to get a feel for the evening in a leisure way. It was so much fun. There’s plenty of great art on display and the gallery owners were all so gracious and easy to approach. It was 9 PM before I knew it! (Actually, the event lists hours of 5 – 8 but each place was still busy when I left for dinner at 9 PM. This is a great, supportive arts community!)

Even before "checking in" to my new home/studio, I was busy pursuing art inspiration. I went to four historic cemeteries … Calvary, Greenwood, Hollywood, and Friendship (a historic Black cemetery established in 1924.) I scouted for rubbings, wrote down epitaphs, and snapped photos. My orientation was at 1:45 that afternoon. I was moved in before 6 PM.

So … here’s a look at my quarters for the next month! Art photos and "Hot Springs Park" photos coming soon!

(Above: The Kitchen.)

(Above: The Living Room.)

(Above: The other side of the living room. I will not be using the lovely fireplace. It topped 100 degrees here today!)

(Above: The closed in front porch ... which I'll use for melting fabric ... perfect for ventilation!)

(Above: The "dining room" ... which, obviously, has been set up as my "sewing room". I found two folding tables in a closet ... which elevated my Bernina to an ideal height. I actually stand while machine stitching.)

(Above: The "studio" ... through which you can see the "dining room/sewing room".)

(Above: Another view of the "studio" room!)

(Above: The bedroom ... linens provided!)

(Above: The bathroom ... complete with a water-saving flush toilet! Our government believes in water conservation!)

Fashion and the Female

(Above: Fashion and the Female, Greenwood's Art Center.)

I'm thrilled that my free motion embroidered wedding veils are now hanging in the Arts Center in Greenwood, South Carolina alongside work by Miranda Mims Sawyer, Hamed Mahmoodi, Randy Pace, Morgan Sayers, Jane Allen Nodine, Abby Funderburk, Laretta Houston, Karen Johnson, Ashley Walker, and Hannah Poe. The photo above was provided by Jennifer Smith, Programs Director and curator of this invitational exhibition. My veils are actually hung in two locations across from one another.

This contemporary exhibit creates a visual dialogue about fashion and its impact on the female in our society. It is open August 1-27, Monday-Friday, 8:30am-5pm, Saturdays 9:30am-1:30pm. Free admission. Reception is Thursday, August 25th from 6 - 8 PM. The Arts Center is located within the Federal Building, 120 Main Street, Greenwood. (864) 388-7800.

I will not be able to visit the show. I AM GOING TO HOT SPRINGS NATIONAL PARK ... to be the "artist-in-residence" ... leaving tomorrow and not returning until September 4th! I will have my laptop, "smart phone", an external hard drive of all my photos and computer documents with me ... Thus ... I'll still be blogging and sharing this wonderful experience.

I'd better think about packing now!

Pins and needles ... and buttons and spools!

(Above: Detail of Angels III, mixed media on recycled wooden mirror panel. Click on image to enlarge.)

I don't pretend to know how much money the first trillion dollars is. I don't understand the economics of the debt ceiling or the battle lines drawn on Capitol Hill. I am worried though. Why? If the country defaults, the national parks will be immediately closed. I'm supposed to be leaving on Thursday morning for Hot Springs National Park ... to be the "artist in residence" from August 7th through September 4th. It is hard to get excited, to plan my departure, to determine what "goes" and what "stays" in my studio. I've got fiber projects ready and a hotel reservation for my night on the road. Am I going? Have they voted? Who knows! I'm on pins and needles!

Of course, I'm still stitching! The following work was completed over the weekend:


(Above: Lancet Window VII. All these pieces are: Unframed 28" x 8"; Framed 31" x 11". Click on any image to enlarge.)

(Above: Lancet Window VIII.)

(Above: Lancet Window IX.)

(Above: Lancet Window X.)


(Above: Angels III. Mixed media on recycled wooden mirror panel and frame. Click on image to enlarge.)

The other week I started working on three mixed media angel pieces. I finished the pair on linen canvas but continued to work on this one. I used an old mirror frame and its wooden backing panel. Once this mirror was attached to a dresser. It was fun pouring various acrylic glazes over the collaged surface ... to resemble tears of grief, appropriate to the xylene photo transfers of cemetery angels. I distressed the frame too.



So ... I'm on "pins and needles" about this week ... waiting to know if my residency is going to happen. Yet, I'm also into buttons and wooden spools! Last Tuesday I hit the jackpot at my favorite auction of used household items ... for just $19.00! The car to overflowing with the contents from three "table lots". It took nearly two hours to remove all the buttons from the paper cards and the safety pins and the carefully strung together threads. Obviously, these buttons once belonged to a seamstress who needed them neatly sorted. I prefer them like this! Okay ... not all the white ones came from this stash ... and these are the only ones I "sort"! The wooden spools will become more of my "ancestors". I also ended up with a nice stack of damask tablecloths and assorted linens. Plus ... I ended up with two giant boxes and three white plastic trash bags of material ... some ladies' sewing stash. I gave it all of my former studio assistant! It was too much to use, too much to handle, too much for me but the bonanza for her.