After Hurricane Helene

(Above:  Mandala CCV. Custom framed: 15" x 15".  Found objects hand-stitched to a block of a vintage quilt. Objects include:  An espresso candy tin lid; vintage cheese pokers; silver paper binders; peace sign charms; yellow and orange sock organizers [obviously a silly made-in-China thing that probably came from a dollar store]; jumbo African coconut shell heishi beads; four clear epoxy leaf shapes made from a candy mold; assorted buttons and beads. $195. Click on any image to enlarge.)

Ever since Steve and I moved to the renovated Cateechee mill village church, I've been struggling to find a habit for regularly blogging.  Many excuses have been written.  This time, the excuse is unique: we had no power due to Hurricane Helene!  

(Above:  Mandala CCVI.  Custom framed: 20 1/4" x 20 1/4". Found objects hand-stitched to a block of a vintage quilt.  Objects include: A woven top to a small container; club and spade shaped cookie cutters; doll arms; Tinker Toy connectors; two sets of ornate door hinges; coffee K-pods; UAW buttons from 1970; orange, plastic lids; assorted buttons and beads. $400.)

Cateechee was without power for five full days.  Steve and I, however, were only here for the last three of them.  In fact, we actually missing the entire storm.  Why?  Well, Spiralis Gallery in Easton, Maryland now represents my Found Object Mandalas!  Although the focus of this gallery is Afro Caribbean art, particularly artwork from Haiti, director/curator Gail Patterson is including a selection of Outsider Art ... and my mandalas nicely fall into this category!

(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCVI.)

For quite some time, I've been slowly researching Outsider Art galleries.  Steve and I even went to the Outsider Art Fair in NYC the weekend before we moved.  Yet, moving and adjusting to retirement meant that I hadn't found time to actually act on any of the locations I identified as potential galleries for my work.  Thankfully, Gail Patterson came to me!  Steve and I just delivered nearly a dozen pieces last Friday ... returning after the hurricane downed more than twenty trees within a few blocks of us.  Several roads were blocked by both pines and oaks.  Nearby streams are overflowing.  Banks are eroded but ... thankfully ... this area is in far better shape than western North Carolina.

 

(Above:  Mandala CCVII.  Custom framed: 22 3/4" x 22 3/4".  Found objects hand-stitched to a section of a vintage quilt. Objects include: A glass floral frog; old-fashioned wooden clothespins; a complete set of thirty Kenmore sewing machine discs for various stitch patterns; four drawer pulls; child's scissors; red and blue plastic lids; keys; vintage Mallo cup candy redeeming cards; beads on long needle-like parts of prostate radioactive seed implant devices; assorted beads and buttons. $425.)

Steve and I returned to find our freezer was still mostly frozen.  Everything was given to an extended family across the street with a generator.  The contents of the refrigerator are now in the county dump.  We had breakfasts at the Starbucks in Seneca ... hot coffee while recharging our phones and my laptop.  Then, yesterday in the early evening, a crew from New Brunswick, Canada pulled into the neighbor and worked feverishly to restore power by 9:00 PM.  Steve and I were truly amazed.  We'd originally got a text message saying Friday before midnight.  This was updated to Wednesday before midnight!  Yet, power came more than a full day beforehand.  We are grateful.  I celebrated with a hot bath!

 

(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCVII.)

These three Found Object Mandalas were finished before we left for Maryland.  In fact, I'd already taken photos.  So ... today ... with restored power, I blogged them.  Now, please don't think that I wasn't working for the three days during which we had no power!  Hand-stitching doesn't require electricity!  So, my Lace Forest grew!  Now ... to begin again with another attempt to establish some sort of regularity around here!