Sue's Environmental To Do List

(Above:  Sue's Environmental To Do List, 70" x 126".  Vintage quilt blocks altered with hand embroidered calls-for-action phrases presented in 14" wooden hoops.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

The image above was only possible because of a fabulously productive art residency with the Springfield Park Association in Illinois where I stitched phrases onto the vintage quilt blocks and because the 701 Center for Contemporary Art here in Columbia, SC allowed me to use a very large, empty white wall to photograph it.  Of course, I am totally in debt to my great grandmother, Lizzie Oswald, who probably stitched the quilt top I used.  (To read a blog post from Illinois that illustrated me taking apart the quilt top and stitching the phrases, CLICK HERE.)

 (Above:  Photographing the collection at 701 CCA.)

Since returning from Illinois, I cut forty black mat board circles ... each approximately 14" in diameter.  One circle was glued to the inner hoop.  Over this, I stretched the block ... pulling the extra material to the back and taping it down.  Some of the blocks required me to add strips of unbleached muslin because they weren't all square or significantly larger than the fourteen inches.  Then, I put on the outer hoop, tightened it, and carefully hot glued another mat board circle to the back ... just along the wooden hoop's edge.

The result is an acid-free, permanent presentation.  The pieces stack easily.  They all have labels on the reverse.  The black mat board also masks the carry threads on the back of the fabric ... the space between each letter.

The hanging arrangement only uses nineteen of the twenty pieces, but I took photos switching out "Adopt a Plant Rich Life" for "Reduce Food Waste".

The phrases are:

Make energy efficient choices
Plant a tree
Drive less - Walk More
Champion environmental education
Avoid single use plastics
Shop with your own reusable bag
Start composting
Use mass transit
Don't buy fast fashion
Conserve water
Adopt a plant-rich diet
Reduce food water
Reduce, reuse, recycle
Cut greenhouse emissions
Vote for environmental leaders
Use clean, safe, renewable energy
Replace incandescent bulbs
Protect vulnerable ecosystems
Pick up litter
Express your concerns to others

Now that I have photos, I can look for opportunities through which to share these important calls-for-action!

All Sorts of Directions

(Above:  In Box CCCLXXII.  Inventory # 4674. Framed: 25" x 19". $325. Click on any image to enlarge.)

Since returning from Lander University and a successful opening of my solo installation Anonymous Ancestors, I have been going in all sorts of different directions.  It's all good though!

 (Above:  Polyester stretch velvet selection coordinating with a friend's interior design swatches.)

First, a friend is trying to find the perfect artwork for her living room.  Although my work is not at all what she needs or wants, I liked her swatches well enough to make a coordinating In Box Series piece.  I did this because it was a challenge; I'm not one who would ever select nearly neon yellow, silver and gold, and an assortment of blues.  I did this for another reason too! I have older pieces that are still hanging around in perfectly good frames.  This new piece replaced one of the older ones.

(Above:  In Box CCCLXXII in a white-on-white frame that has been hanging for nearly five years with another color wave inside it.)

Some people think that because I own my picture framing shop, I can have EVERYTHING framed.  The truth of the matter is, I ran out of wall space years ago.  When an older piece doesn't sell inside a reasonable (or often "unreasonable") amount of time, it is time to replace the artwork.  I hope this new work finds a permanent home.  The older piece got shrink-wrapped.  It is in a bin where it takes up much less room!

 (Above:  We Never Had Indoor Plumbing, The Wall of Ancestors.  Altered, antique image and frame with convex glass.  22" x 16".)

Now, I need more pieces for my Wall of Ancestors like I need another hole in my head.  Storage is a real issue.  I didn't hang all of the available pieces last week in my solo installation ... but I can't help myself.  I keep rescuing old photos and old frames.  This one was totally inspired by my recent art residency in Springfield, Illinois where I visited Lincoln's home.  Of course I am aware that indoor plumbing is a rather modern convenience and that most people living in the 19th century didn't have it, but this fact became a little more visceral when realizing that Lincoln's home NEVER had indoor plumbing ... ever!  Looking into the two-seater outhouse and knowing this was part of Lincoln's everyday life until moving to the White House was almost shocking. I had to take this realization and make art to express it!

(Above:  Different Dads, The Wall of Ancestors.  Altered antique image and frame.  13" x 11".)

Just when I was telling myself, "Susan, stop making more of these pieces!", I had to make yet another.  I've had the antique frame for months.  Yet, my mail brought me an amazingly large stash of vintage and antique images from a nice woman who saw my Anonymous Ancestors exhibition when it was in Fairhope, Alabama.  Among the works was this picture.  It once had an odd shaped frame, almost an oval.  With a little trimming, it fit the frame I had.  Some things just have to be made.

In the meantime, I am going in another direction ... west.  I'm very pleased to say that I've been selected as the artist-in-residence for Guadalupe Mountains National Park in western Texas, April 17th through May 16th.  I'm also going west for an art residency at Noxabee National Wildlife Refuge in Mississippi from June 29th through July 24th.  I'm excited!  Now ... I have heard from friends that I "get everything" to which I apply.  Far from it!  I just don't announce my rejections (which number quite a few more than the acceptances!)  Honestly, I don't bat 50% ... but then again, most professional baseball players don't bat 50% either!

Anonymous Ancestors at Lander University

(Above:  My installation Anonymous Ancestors at Lander University's Fine Art Gallery.  On view from February 27 - March 27, 2020 in Greenwood, South Carolina.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

It was truly a wonderful experience installing Anonymous Ancestors in the Lander University Fine Art Gallery last Wednesday.  There were students to help unload the cargo van, hang some of the work, put together the sculptural garments, and set the lighting.  (Thank goodness!  I'm terrible about lighting!)

 
 (Above:  Photo from Thursday's art reception.)

Dozens attended Thursday morning's artist talk and many returned for a lovely evening reception.  St. Claire Donaghy, journalist with the Index-Journal newspaper, came to check out the show.  She had already published a very good article after our earlier telephone conversation.  

Steve and I were introduced to faculty members, the interim dean, and other new friends.  Conversations over craft beer and pizza dinner (my favorite type of meal!) ranged from hilarious anecdotes to serious inquiries on our studio practices. A spirit of creativity and shared values flowed easily.  It was great!

I could go on and on about new friends, inspirations, and the engaging questions asked ... but I'll spare readers this emotional outpouring!  Sharing the pictures is quite enough!  So ... below are some of the shots of the show both with and without people!  Enjoy!

PS  Steve and I had time before the reception to visit the National Park Service's Ninety-Six National Historic Site.  This Revolutionary war battle ground features the earthen mounds of the Star Fort and the archeological remains of a former town, communication trenches, and a log cabin.  We hiked on the Cherokee Trail and saw three deer.  The day was beautiful!
 

To the Home of a Foe ... Nope! I'm going to Carrollton!

(Above: To the Home of a Foe, Altered Cross Stitch.  Framed: 26 1/2" x 23 1/2".  Vintage cross stitch with updated statement and hand-stitched background texture.  Click on either image to enlarge.)

During my last few days at a four-week art residency with the Springfield Art Association, I started stitching on the last of the vintage cross stitches in my stash.  It was the perfect project on which to work on the drive back to South Carolina.  Thankfully, Steve flew north last week to do all the driving on the return trip.  (We had an excellent time doing a whirlwind of sight-seeing before packing up the provided duplex!)

(Above: To the Home of a Foe, Altered Cross Stitch. Detail.)

One of my earlier altered cross stitches included the same, original statement.  That updated statement read:  The road to an enemy's door is always a short, two-way street.  While stitching it, I wished I had used the term "dead end".  Having a second and totally different looking cross stitch with the same original statement meant I got to altered my words again ... and insert the "dead end".  I really enjoy pulling the tapestry wool through these layers, linking old and new, and especially adding a twist!  (To see some of the other altered cross stitches, CLICK HERE.)

Thankfully, I have a new, small series on which to stitch later today.  This afternoon I'm headed to Carrollton, Georgia for a quilt festival at both the Carrollton Art Center and the Southeastern Quilt and Textile Museum.  I'm conducting a mini workshop tomorrow.  It's all about making my wooden thread spool ornaments.  On Saturday I'm presenting a luncheon Power Point program called "Beyond a Series".  It's going to be fun!

Wrapping up the Residency

 (Above:  The last few pieces made for The Clothesline.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

Time has really flown by during the past few weeks as artist-in-residency at the Springfield Art Association.  I've been more productive than I thought possible.  The Clothesline now includes sixty pillowcases, sixteen vintage child's garments, and four dozen household linens.  Hand prints made from found fabric are fused to every item.

I've carefully zigzag stitched around every hand print.  The household linens presented a unique design challenge.  I had to decide how to best make each one look good from both sides.  After all, both sides are equally visible when hanging on a clothesline.  Most of the long table runners had hand prints fused to both sides ... allowing the bobbin thread to create a nice outline on the opposite side.

When hanging in strong light, the fabric hand prints on the opposite side are actually visible right through the ground material.

For the fancy fabric place mats, I fused the fabric hand print to the "wrong side" and carefully stitched a yoyo on the right side.  Therefore, each side sort of looks like the "front".

(Above:  Great Grandma's Remnants, a yellow fiber vessels filled with the leftover sashing from a top quilt and a small red-and-yellow fiber vessel that will be given to Betsy Dollar, executive director of the Springfield Art Association.)

Yesterday I took down the clothesline I hung in the spare bedroom.  The actual clothesline was made from yellow cording and a small length of leftover red-and-yellow cording zigzag stitched from old yarn months ago.  I took the two pieces of cording and zigzag stitched them into fiber vessels.  I did this in order to have a place for the pink and blue leftover pieces of sashing that had once been part of the Sun Bonnet Sue quilt top used during my first week to create Sue's Environmental To Do List.  Each piece of pink sashing made two rolls.  Each blue square made one.  Now, every scrap from my great grandmother's quilt top has found a place as art.

 (Above:  The grand hallway at the Lincoln Museum.)

I've also recently visited two more tourist destinations here in Springfield.  The Lincoln Museum is part of a complex that includes the presidential library.  It was wonderful!

Some areas included great vignettes depicting Lincoln's early life.

One section showed reproduced garments worn by Mary Todd Lincoln and other socialites living in Washington, DC during the Lincoln administration.

The staging of an exhibit of newspaper caricatures was utterly fantastic ... at least to the custom picture framer that I am.  All these trapezoidal frames made the experience of seeing these images as off-balanced and tumultuous as they must have been experience during their day.  Another area had blood red walls on which portraits of Civil War era personalities appeared. A touch screen allowed viewers to learn the identities of those in the pictures.  It was quite effective and so was the lighting and seat vibrations during the seventeen minute film shown in a lovely auditorium.

 (Above:  Living room fireplace at the Vachel Lindsay home.)

The other place I went was the Vachel Lindsay home.  Before coming to Springfield, I'd never heard of poet Vachel Lindsay. Evidently he was quite a popular poet/performer in his day and is frequently linked with Carl Sandburg and Edgar Lee Masters (poet I have heard of). He is also credited with discovering (or at least assisting with the early success of) Langston Hughes ... another poet whose latter fame certainly eclipsed that of Vachel Lindsay.

 (Above:  Downstairs bedroom and location of Vachel Lindsay's birth.)

I was the only person visiting the house on the day I went.  The tour was quite in depth as the docent is a poet totally devoted to all things about Vachel Lindsay and his entire, extended family.

I was there for over two hours and treated to stories ranging from Springfield's 1908 race riots to Vachel Lindsay's sister's missionary trips to China.  The docent even played recording of Vachel Lindsay reciting his work.  While I'm not necessarily now a Vachel Lindsay fan (have only read one poem, Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight, since visiting the house), I found myself latter thinking about time, fading fame, and last influence.  I'm glad I went.

 (Above:  Upstairs bedroom.  The far room is where Vachel Lindsay died after downing a pint of lye.)

Finally, I went to last evening's month meeting of Q.U.I.L.T.S. (Quilters United in Learning, Teaching, and Self-Improvement.)

It is always nice to share some of my work for link-minded fiber people.  It is also so much fun to see "Show-and-Tell".

The Clothesline progresses and Confidence

(Above:  Confidence, 12" x 12". Digital image on fabric with hand and machine stitching, beading, and trapunto/stuffing.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

This art residency with the Springfield Art Association is going very, very well.  Since my last post, I finished the third mini art quilt.  I thought long and hard about a title because I've already created larger works of anonymous African-Americans called Persistence, Resilience, and Commitment. I can see all of these characteristics in the strong look upon this woman's face.  As I stitched, I began to see a self-assured woman who certainly could look a person (or a camera) in the eye.  To me, this is an air of confidence.

 (Above:  The back side of Confidence after the trapunto work was completed.)

The figure is slightly elevated from the surrounding background because I added extra felt behind her.  This is a "stuffing" technique called trapunto.

(Above:  Confidence, detail.)

It's hard to capture the metallic gold thread in the halo area ... but the beads sure look good!  Now that I have finished three, 12" x 12" mini art quilts, I will have to decide which get donated to the annual SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) charity auction ... which gets to be in the sale accompanying Art Quilt Elements ... and what to do with the third one.  Any suggestions as to which piece goes where are welcome!

 (Above:  Confidence, reverse.)

Most amazing for me is the fact that I found a piece of West African mud cloth for the reverse.  Honestly, I have no memory of purchasing this unique piece ... no memory of it coming from a successful auction bid ... and absolutely no idea how it managed to get into a tub of vintage fabrics ... but there it was.  Perfect.  I do remember getting the ultra suede sample from an interior designer friend, but why it was in the tub is also anyone's guess!  Coincidence?  Maybe.  I'm more inclined to believe in the power of serendipity or, as Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way calls it, synchronicity.
 

 (Above:  Glass demonstration at Springfield Art Association.)

As valuable as this "gift of time" really is, I'm not spending every waking hour working.  Recently I attended an excellent glass demonstration.  For over two hours the team worked on a single piece of sculpture.  I had assumed they'd show a vase or an ornament, but this was an incredible way to see the talent and time needed to make ART.

 (Above:  A collection of over one hundred fabric yoyo pieces.)

Of course, most of the time, I am really working.  The Clothesline is progressing nicely.  In fact, it's ahead of schedule.  I decided to add a bunch of fabric yoyo pieces to some of the pillowcases.

I've also added more doilies, handkerchiefs, and fingertip towels.

These are images of some of the remaining twenty-eight pillowcases from my original stash of sixty.  They were all legally salvaged in 2011 from the former South Carolina State Mental Hospital.

I also added yoyos to some of the pillowcases hung on the porch ...

... which was hanging for over a week ...

 ... until the wind whipped up and it snowed!  The photo above shows the back staircase.  Amazingly, the floor of the porch also has this much snow on it.

Thankfully, I was prepared!

 (Above:  The stack of sixty pillowcases ... neatly ironed and placed on the chaise lounge in the living room.)

I also took down the pillowcases from the porch area, ironed them, and stacked them on the chaise lounge in the living room.  As much as I want to broadcast the benefits and beauty of line drying, it is rather silly to have laundry hanging in a snow storm!

I've made several new friends here in Springfield. On Tuesday, we went on a short trip to Peace and Applique Quilt Shop in nearby Rochester.  I resisted the fabric, of course.  My preference is "found fabric" but I couldn't pass up a couple balls of beautiful, variegated #5 perle cotton!
 

(Above:  The Springfield and Central Illinois African-American Museum.)

I've also visited the Springfield and Central Illinois African-American Museum. Trips like this are another reason to travel ... because the story of slavery is told so differently when from the perspective of the area.  There was a section on Obama ... which is also unique because he's a local hero.  I am really enjoying my time, my work, and the inspirations that are coming from this experience.