Wednesday, November 20, 2024

Button Tidal Wave in Tan

(Above:  Button Tidal Wave in Tan.  Custom framed:  28 1/2" x 28 1/2". Assorted tan and light brown buttons hand-stitched to a section of an antique coverlet.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

Recently I finished Button Tidal Wave in Brown.  It required me to sort through my buttons, separating the tan and lighter brown buttons from the darker ones.  As the two piles grew, I knew that I would start a tan wave after finishing the darker brown one.

(Above:  Detail of Button Tidal Wave in Tan.)

The variety of brown buttons is amazing, but so seems to be the shades of every color.  Some of the buttons used in this tidal wave could easily have been sorted into the orange container.  After all, orange seems to go from dark cinnamon and rust to light apricot and pale peach.  Yet, I think the range adds to the texture and visual appeal.

 
(Above:  Detail of Button Tidal Wave in Tan.)

There will be one more Button Tidal Wave using the antique coverlet. I wish it had been bigger!  I don't know whether or not this theme will continue.  It depends on both the selection of the background material and the quantity of buttons I have in my stash!

Monday, November 18, 2024

In Box Experiment

(Above:  Steve with hand-stitched In Box CDLXI.)

I've been stitching pieces in my In Box Series for approximately two decades.  CDLXI is four hundred and sixty-one in Roman numerals.  Some are significantly larger.  Some are significantly smaller.  Most are created by free-motion machine stitching with only 100% cotton thread but some are hand-stitched with cotton floss. Over the years, I've been lucky enough to share my unique melting techniques through various workshops.  A frequent question concerns the black, recycled felt I've always used as the substrata for the layers of fuses polyester stretch velvet.  "Have you ever used another color?"  My answer has always been "No ... but go ahead and try that yourself."

 
(Above:  In Box CDLXI.  Layers of fused polyester stretch velvet on white recycled felt with hand embroidery and melting techniques. Unframed:  17" x 10 1/2"; framed:  23 3/8" x 18".)
 
I've used the black felt for a couple of important reasons.  First, it was FREE to me.  My black felt was once the protective covering for a kayak or canoe being shipped from a manufacturer to my friend's outdoor shop.  He didn't want to throw it away.  After all, it is a synthetic ... which will not decompose in a landfill.  I wanted it because it is a synthetic ... which will melt when exposed to the intense heat of my heat gun.  (Click here to see one a commissioned piece being melted.)  Second, my machine stitching has always been done using black thread, like an ink drawing of each motif.  Finally, black is a neutral and high in contrast with the colorful shapes ... but so is white!

Above:  Detail of In Box CDLXI.)

Last week I decided to try the experiment that I so often suggested to others ... use something other than black felt.  In my stash, I had white synthetic felt.  I also had a nice silver frame.  The frame is a leftover from my days as a custom picture framer and my shop that sold lots of beveled mirrors.  Before we retired and moved, more than one hundred mirrors were offered at 50% off.  Lots of them sold but others were moved and became the wall decor in our upstairs bathroom.  There were still more mirrors ... including one in a silver frame.  I decided to design my experiment to fit that frame ... in case the experiment worked!  Well ... it did work!  It worked so well that I'll be making more of these ... not in such a big, silver frame but something nice!



Saturday, November 16, 2024

Button Tidal Wave in Brown

(Above:  Brown Tidal Wave in Brown. Framed: 29" x 29".  Assorted dark brown buttons hand-stitched to a section of an antique coverlet.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

This is the second "button tidal wave" that will result after cutting up the antique coverlet. Though part of me hesitated when taking the scissors to this old material, I had such a wonderful time layering buttons that I couldn't wait to start the second one.  I did have to sort through more of my button collection but I had fun doing that too!

 
(Above:  Detail of The Button Tidal Wave in Brown.)

I know that the third button tidal wave will feature light brown and tan buttons.  I know this because I'm already working on it!  The final wave, however, is still undecided.  It could be black buttons but I think that won't have the desired contrast with the dark, navy blue coverlet.  It could easily be off white and white buttons because I have more of these than any other sort of button ... but what would the outline be?  Questions! Questions!  These ideas keep my mind occupied while my fingers attach buttons!

(Above:  Detail of The Button Tidal Wave in Brown.)


Thursday, November 14, 2024

Mandala CCXI

(Above:  Mandala CCXI.  Custom framed:  40" x 40".  Found objects hand-stitched to a section of a vintage quilt. Objects include: Parts of two antique lamps; wooden textile mill perns/spindles; toy car wheels; keys; blocks cut in half;  wooden, decorative bird ornaments; brown coasters; bright blue coffee K-pods; Mardi Gras doubloons; prisms; and assorted buttons and beads. Click on any image to enlarge.)

I've run out of the colorful, wooden bird ornaments that I bought at the Creative Reuse Shop in Springfield, Illinois.  I'm a little sad about it because the shop had even more of them.  I never thought I'd use the ones I got but I did.  However, I have lots and lots more toy car wheels despite using more than fifty of them for this Found Object Mandala!

 
(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCXI.)

This past week was exciting.  Two medium-sized In Boxes and an older piece over which I poured UV filtering epoxy went to the GreenHill Center of NC Arts in Greensboro, NC (despite the fact that I'm not really from North Carolina!) and another Found Object Mandala went to the Holiday Ensemble Show at Spalding Nix Fine Art in Atlanta.  Meanwhile, another mandala sold at Spiralis in Easton, MD.  I finished two large In Boxes and another smaller, hand-stitched one.  Plus, I'm working on a commission!  Life is good!



Wednesday, November 13, 2024

In Box CDXLII gets a frame

 

(Above:  In Box CDXLII framed.  40" x 40".  Polyester stretch velvet squares and rectangles fused in layers on recycled synthetic black felt.  Free-motion machine stitched.  Unique melting techniques.  Click on image to enlarge.)

Last November I created In Box CDLXII for a traveling special exhibit called Behind the Seams.  This exhibit was organized by The Quilt Show. (Click HERE for a page on the Quilt Show's website that features the work and a free video of Ricky Tims and me demonstrating my techniques ... though the incorrect Roman numeral is listed! LOL!  CLICK here for my original blog post.) 

 The required size was a minimum of 30" x 30".  This series is generally not this large.  Why?  Well ... standard sized mat board is 32" x 40".  Also, standard glass is never over 32" in width.  I knew when I made this piece (which was shipped and shown without framing) that over-sized materials would be needed.  During the last year, the piece went to various quilt shows across the country.  Last week it returned.  Steve and I framed it with over-sized materials.  I think it looks great.  Perhaps I really should start making more of these large ones!

Tuesday, November 05, 2024

Button Tidal Wave in Gray

(Above:  Button Tidal Wave in Gray.  Custom framed:  30" x 29 1/4". Assorted gray buttons hand-stitched to a section of an antique coverlet.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

I might have to rephotograph this piece.  It seems that the intense autumn light bouncing around in my sanctuary-sized studio reflected off of some of the buttons.  I will attempt this in a few days ... when photographing the next Button Tidal Wave!  This tidal wave was so much fun to stitch that I immediately started a second one ... with dark brown buttons. That one isn't mounted and framed, but when it is, I'll take more photos of both of them.  In the meantime, this post will stand.

(Above:  Button Tidal Wave in Gray, detail.) 

I'm not sure how many button tidal waves are in my future.  Plenty of things will determine the number.  First, I haven't figured out how many are possible using the antique coverlet in my stash.  I've had it for a couple month.  It was donated to me by a friend who was also moving away from Columbia.  At first, I couldn't imagine cutting it.  I've never owned a coverlet.  I've always thought of them as rare and valuable and something NOT to be cut.  Yet, this one wasn't in great shape.  There are several "problems".  Plus, it was given to me "for art" ... because it needed a "second life".  

 
(Above:  Button Tidal Wave in Gray, detail.)

Second, I'm not sure how many buttons are used ... obviously hundreds if not many more than a thousand.  It is hard to know whether or not I have enough of any shade.  Obviously, I knew I had enough dark brown buttons for the second tidal wave.  I'm also sure I have enough light brown/tan buttons for a third.  My collection could likely produced several off white/white tidal waves, but that idea comes with a puzzle.  What buttons would define the outline?  I'll be thinking of this in the coming days.  In the meantime, I'll be stitching on a Found Object Mandala and mounting the brown button tidal wave.


Friday, November 01, 2024

Mandala CCX

(Above:  Mandala CCX. Custom framed: 21 1/4" x 21 1/4".  Found objects hand-stitched to a section of a vintage quilt.  Objects include:  Part of a lamp; poker chips; two teams of foosball figures; toy car wheels; sun-shaped parts of napkin rings; prisms; vintage electrical capacitors; four rotors from toy helicopters; keys; beer caps; expired medical devices in clear/green plastic containers; bright yellow electrical wire end connectors; red, plastic circles from a beer yoke; assorted buttons. Click on either image to enlarge.)

I've had the two teams of foosball figures for several months and have no idea why I waited to use them!  Perhaps it was the colors.  I just didn't respond well to a limited palette of red and yellow.  When I finally pulled out the green and blue poker chips to accompany the red and yellow ones, the design just fell into place.  Sometimes, the center inspires the mandala.  Sometimes, it's one multiple arranged in a focal circle that inspires the mandala.  Sometimes, it's the colors.  This is one of those times!
 

Thursday, October 31, 2024

Three more hand-stitched In Box pieces

 
(Above:  A composite photo showing three recently finished, hand-stitched In Box pieces.  Click on image to enlarge.)

Once upon a time, it was a rare occasion when I decided to hand-stitch one of these pieces.  Since moving, however, I almost always have one on which I can stitch.  These pieces come in handy for times I'm riding in the car or van.  They are also my "go to" stitching between Found Object Mandalas.  I really enjoy stitching them.  Each one is a challenge and the results are so very colorful!

Today is also Halloween!  It is our first in our new home/church location.  There are three little kids living across the street who will be trick-or-treating here this evening!  Back in Columbia, we lived in a very, very active Halloween neighborhood but our house (the middle building between four law firms) was in the first block, the entryway, and surrounded by parking lots.  We never got any trick-of-treaters.  We are excited to pass out chocolate!  Yes ... Steve got Reece's cups and KitKats, the candy he likes best!

Wednesday, October 30, 2024

Mandala CCIX

(Above:  Mandala CCIX.  Custom framed:  19 3/4" x 19 3/4".  Found objects hand-stitched to a section of a vintage quilt.  Objects include:  A vintage typewriter ribbon tin on a silver belt buckle; corn cob holders; emery-filled sewing strawberries; prisms; Iwo Jima collector coins honoring US veterans; aluminum circles with numbers; small bicycle wrenches; sewing machine bobbins; yellow poker chips; copper-colored aluminum can tabs; assorted buttons and beads.  Click on either image to enlarge. $395.)

Before going to Venice, I'd finished stitching this Found Object Mandala but didn't find time to mount it, frame it, photograph it, or blog it.  I knew it would have to wait.  Today ... it all came together!

 
(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCIX.)

Several of the items on this mandala came from the Pickens County flea market.  The flea market is every Wednesday, all year long.  Steve and I went today but found next to nothing.  Some weeks are outstanding; some aren't.  Maybe next week I'll score a few more interesting things like the emery-filled sewing strawberries!



 

Sunday, October 27, 2024

Our Italian Adventure

 

(Above:  Steve, Gabriella, and me along Venice's Grand Canal at the Peggy Guggenheim Palazzo Museum.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

Steve and I met Gabriella last June while installing the invitational exhibit at Featherstone Gallery on Martha's Vineyard.  When she told us about her upcoming Guggenheim Fellowship in Venice, we immediately decided to cash in our refunded frequent flier miles from a canceled pandemic trip in order to visit her.  It was a great decision!

The weather wasn't exactly cooperative and there are so many tourists in Venice that sightseeing isn't as easy as it once was, but we had a wonderful time nonetheless ... especially since this wasn't summer!  Both Steve and I have been to Venice, but always in the summer when it is extremely hot.  

My first time in Venice was in 1968.  I was eight.  Venice stunk in low tide. My head was at the average height of the bags people were carrying ... which meant I was constantly being pushed around in the crowds. While my Dad was taking a photo of my little sister Wanda and I ... standing on the Rialto Bridge, a pigeon pooped on me.  I hated Venice.  

Thankfully, I changed my mind a few years and a couple of inches later.  (It didn't hurt that the city cleaned up the canals and forbid those living there to continue throwing household sewage directly into the water!)  Nowadays, there are boats selling fruits and vegetables, gondolas with singing gondoliers, lots of art galleries, numerous gelato shops and cafes, museums, street musicians, and a public sanitation department keeping most of the beautiful cobblestone alleys and piazzas free of trash.  

Venice is now facing "too much tourism".  Frankly, I think they created the problem!  There are now giant parking lots on the edge of the city and a "people mover" monorail to transport cruise ship visitors and those who come by tour bus or car from these parking areas into the city.  Parking in these lots isn't cheap but it isn't wickedly expensive.  So ... by making Venice "easy and rather affordable" to access ... well ... there's always a crowd.  Still ... Venice is magical.  For most of the day, we simply walked and walked, admiring the shops, the patina of peeling painted shutters, the flower baskets, the mix of architectural styles, and the rich colors that have survived centuries.  We wandered into a couple of free art exhibits that were still on view after the Venice Bienniale.  

We ran into a photo shoot.  Both the gorgeous model and the photographer were gracious about tourists interfering.  At one point, the model posed with a few gawking tourists.

We didn't purchase online entry tickets to San Mark's Cathedral nor did we wait in the impossibly long line.  We've been there before and there are so many other exotic houses of worship in Venice (as well as everyplace else in Italy!)  Most churches had modest fees to enter. Back in 1980, just after I graduated from The Ohio State University ... the summer that I turned twenty-one ... none of the churches had entry fees.  By 2003 when Steve and I went with our younger son Alex, most did charge a small amount but allowed photography (without a flash). Now, in a righteous attempt to maintain some semblance of sacredness, photography of any sort it forbidden.  Steve and I watched tourists disregard the signs. Once upon a time, such actions created the term "Ugly Americans".  Nowadays, every nationality seems "ugly".  The photo above, however, was taken in one of the churches without a fee that allowed photography.  I adore these ornate votives!


 I took several pictures there ... including one of the amazing floor!

 For the most part, however, I wasn't busy taking pictures.  I really just wanted to soak up the atmosphere and take note of the colors (including those just inside Italian clothing shops!)

As much as I adore Venice, Steve and I decided not to return for a second day ... not even if it promised more contemporary art experiences like this window covered in lipstick kisses!  We rented a car!  We decided to use it to visit places that aren't easily accessed without a vehicle!

By staying in Padua ... some thirty miles west of Venice ... we had other places to visit!  Here we are outside St. Anthony's basilica!  You can't tell by this picture, but it was raining!  (Inside was over-the-top but also another place forbidding photography.)

One of the reasons Padua was selected was because I also went there in 1980.  In fact, I spent my twenty-first birthday inside the famous Cappella delgi Scrovegni, also known as Giotto's Arena Chapel.  Back in 1980, I arrived around 2:00 PM.  Like many places in Italy at that time ... and still in many of the small towns ... things close for "lunch" from noon until 2:30 or 3:00 PM.  I waited and then spent the rest of the afternoon inside, often sitting on the few marble steps to the altar area to simply admire my surroundings.  I know this because ... well ... blogging hadn't been invented but I was actively journaling that summer and still have those copious notes.  I wrote: 

Finally, a lady approached with a large ring of keys. I got up knowing she'd open the door and I followed her to the entrance. A few other people gathered around and did the same. The door opened and we went into the dark chapel. My eyes were glued to the darkness, above and ahead. The lights gradually went up, and I felt at once at home surrounded by the frescoes Giotto painted over 680 years ago. 


In the intervening forty-four years, much has changed.  The door I entered in 1980 was the one used for nearly seven hundred years.  It is now permanently closed and locked.  In fact, the entire chapel is located inside a lovely fence.  Now, visitors must book a ticket for a timed entry.  There is no "lunch break".  Summer hours (including October) are from 9 AM to 10 PM.  It's 9 - 7 for "off season".  Access is from a separate building.  Once permitted to enter, one walks to a glass enclosure to watch a fifteen minute Italian video with English subtitles before proceeding through another glass doorway, up a wheelchair ramp, and into the chapel through a door that opens near the altar area.  This is done because the entire place has undergone intense conservation and is now in a temperature and humidity controlled area.  I'm glad that the Arena Chapel is protected.  I'm especially happy that Steve and I booked an evening entry.  Without light from the outside, Giotto's frescoes were all that were illuminated.  Although I could have spent more time, the twenty allotted minutes felt quite right ... and photography was permitted.

Next we visited Villa Maser, north of Padua.  This Palladin designed estate was amazing and parts of it are still occupied by the current owners!  There's a carriage house and extensive garden areas.  Frescoes covered the walls.  Like many of the churches, photography was not allowed inside.


Wine is still being produced in the vineyards.  We had a snack and sampled two of the red wines produced there.

 

We also went to Petrarch's house.  It is south of Padua in a most charming hillside village.  Photography was permitted ... which was nice.  The wooden ceilings were all ornately painted and the walls were covered in frescoes illustrating many of Petrarch's poems. 

Petrarch's dying wish was to be buried in the nearby church ... and if this wish wasn't granted, to be buried just outside of it.  Well ... he didn't get his dying wish (but maybe because the marble tomb on its gigantic pillars wouldn't fit inside the doors!)

The area around Padua was littered with ancient estates.  We drove by former mansions in decay.  We drove by some converted into schools, hotels, and especially wedding venues.  Such was Villa Selvetico.  The place was gorgeous.  Room after room of restored frescoes and marble floors were outfitted with comfy chairs, silk damask curtains, and antique furniture ... perfect for a destination wedding. 

Most of the frescoes were much later than those at Villa Maser and elsewhere.  I had to wonder how a curator or even an owner were to decide what century to preserve when places like this existed through several centuries, dozens of generations, ever-changing styles, and the ravishes of time.

We visited while a very fancy, all day wine tasting was in progress.  Those who bought tickets could sample various wines every hour, starting with sweet in the morning and ending with dry near evening.  From the looks of it, there was lots of wine and more than ample pourings.  We saw lots of these people walking off the alcohol around the thermal pools that surrounded the hilltop villa.  It was indeed a beautiful place.

Yet, I think my favorite villa was Castello Catajo. Only a small portion of this enormous place was open to the public and yet the rooms seemed to go on and on.  Photography was not permitted inside.  The signage was in both English and Italian ... and was very well written.

Photography was permitted in the areas open to the outside.  The place was so rich in history that Steve and I think Netflix ought to create one of their historic series based on it.  Sure ... these television shows generally follow "a person" or a "lineage" ... but why not "the ghosts" who must haunt a place like this!  So many important people came here at one time or the other.  There are tales of money, arranged marriages, social climbers, warfare, greed, and a desire to preserve all of it.

In my mind's eye, I could almost see scenes being filmed on the grounds ... around the lilypadded ponds and in the maze of carefully clipped hedges and trees that seemed straight out of a Harry Potter chapter.

We also went to Monselice.  We hoped to get inside the castle but that didn't work out.  Thankfully, however, we popped into the town's arts council (thinking it was some sort of tourist information office) and were treated to the tower!  One of the people working there simply grabbed the keys and walked us up for great views! He told us about the nearby pilgrimage chapels which we later visited.

Because the castle tour didn't work out, we went out into the countryside for a typical Italian lunch ... at a place with a restaurant cat.  Nope!  This cat doesn't actually belong to the restaurant.  He just hangs out there! 

Beside the restaurant was Bolin Vineyards.  We tasted several wines and I ventured out into the field.  Apparently, this area is undergoing some sort of experiment that requires the grapes to wither on the vine.  The man pouring wine couldn't explain more.  Withered or not, it was pretty and the honey bees were feasting.

Not only did we purchase a bottle of wine but we got their olive oil too ... just to remember the trip for several more months to come! (I wrapped it in two plastic bags and it came home perfectly in our luggage!)

We had a full day in Verona, one of the only days during which it didn't rain!  The ancient amphitheater was undergoing construction repairs, but I think anything from the Roman era must constantly require at least some maintenance!

Verona is a shopper's paradise, and although I'm not much for shopping, it was fun to look into all the windows ... especially along the one high-end, pedestrian street that is totally paved in marble!

There's an elevator to the top of the tower but we opted to walk up.  The views were terrific.  At one point, bells started ringing.

Thankfully, these bells ring only after the tourist traffic hours!  They were this close ... as in, one man reached up and touched the largest bell!

Verona is best known as the location Shakespeare used for Romeo and Juliet.  There's a courtyard in the middle of historic Verona with a stone balcony known as Juliet's Balcony.  It is a popular tourist destination, especially for star-crossed lovers, despite the fact that Shakespeare never mentioned a balcony (or even know what one was!)  It wasn't until the 1930s when this 14th century facade got the stone balcony. 


 Hilariously, the walls between the street and the inner courtyard are covered in graffiti despite the signage with threatens a heavy fine!

There's also a shop on this courtyard selling little heart-shaped locks for people to sign and attach to a provided fence.  The building itself includes a museum in which the bed from the 1968 film is on display.  People paying to visit the museum take turns walking out onto the balcony and posing for the tourists in the courtyard.  It was all very fun and silly ... over a fictional character!

With all the rain from days earlier, the river was high and a bit rough.  Steve and I walked over two of the ancient bridges. 

We also took a funicular to the top of the nearby hill and then walked back down in order to visit three of the city's churches.

This photo isn't one of the churches in Verona.  The ones to which we went were all places with entry fees that forbid photography.  Each, however, was as ornate (or more ornate) than this one in Padua.  By this point, the soaring pillars, statuary, tablets of remembrances, floor placards, mosaics, reliquaries, and architectural elements were starting to blur together.

Most of the side altars in all these places had giant canvases depicting saints and Biblical scenes.  The realism was amazing.  Proportions, lighting, a sense of space were obviously studied and well crafted.  Many actually had signs listing the artist and the date when the commissioned painting was installed.  Surrounding these masterpieces were detailed frescoes and marble carvings.  Every surface seemed embellished by a talented hand.  Between the churches and the villas, Steve and I must have seen thousands of artworks that have survived centuries.  Yet, most of these fine treasures are not by people whose names are found in art history books.  Even Wikipedia doesn't have a listing for most of them.  There's a name but not necessarily "a life".  My mind swirled with conflicting thoughts about fame and fortune and my personal desire to "leave something behind" as if to mark my place on earth and establish some sort of pinpoint on the long timeline of art history.

Our final day in Italy was spent in Vicenza.  There are too many places to visit for just a day.  We picked the Palazzo Leoni Montanari, a museum with a variety of exhibitions on display ... including a selection of Russian icons from their permanent collection. It was particularly well done and very informative.  We were literally face-to-face with many of these precious objects.

A solo retrospective was devoted to the often satirical and truly brilliant, contemporary work of Javier Jaén (who I am now following on Instagram).  That skull was created using cigarettes ... with the "white end" facing one direction for the "bone" and the other, tobacco end, facing the opposite direction for the spaces that are eyes and nose and mouth.  From Barcelona, Jaén works in several languages when needed ... including English ... as he's often illustrated articles for the New Yorker and other American publications. 


Another exhibit featured marble and bronze sculptures that were a rage in the 1730s for wealthy collectors (like the Russian Tsar, etc.), especially this giant sized one called the The Fall of the Rebel Angels by Francesco Bertos. Carved from a single block of marble, sixty or so figures are finely carved in every detail ... fully in the round.  How this was done is anyone's guess.  How much this five foot or so tall sculpture weighs is also a mystery.  The lighting slowly shifted from dim to bright.  

 

These very different exhibits were all housed in this extraordinarily elaborate palazzo.  Again, I couldn't help but to think of the thousands of artists and artisans who spent lifetimes slaving over their craft in hopes that "something lasts".  Well ... all this did last and Steve and I saw it. Yes, it was inspirational ... not in the sense of me wanting to work in any of these media.  I'll not be approaching my own artwork in response to all these Italian treasures.  I will, however, be working with the knowledge that it isn't up to me to determine what might make it to the next generation and what will be forever lost.  Centuries from now, nothing of mine might remain.  Even if something is still around and has my name attached ... well ... the odds are that it will be like most of the thing we saw:  a footnote!  I am happy to continue knowing this because ... WOULDN'T IT BE WONDERFUL to make something that is seen for that length of time! Now ... back to work!