My Bluegrass Roots

(My Bluegrass Roots. 45 1/2" x 35". Image transfer on vintage quilt with buttons. Hand stitched. Click on image to enlarge.)

My Dad and his parents, my Grandma and Grandpa Lenz, came to America sixty years ago this month. Originally from rural Hungary, they'd lived for three years in a DP Camp in Hessen before boarding a ship in Brennen harbor. They came through Ellis Island within two years of its closure and settled in Columbus, Ohio where a great uncle lived. So ... I'm the daughter of German immigrants.

But, that's only half of the story!
My mother's family is from Wild and Wonderful West Virginia! ( ...and the "rest of the story" is at the bottom of this post!)

This fact came in handy recently. Why? Well, my studio is located at Gallery 80808/Vista Studios, a cooperative artist group in downtown Columbia, South Carolina. The location is an anchor for the two annual art crawls: Vista Lights in November and Artista Vista in the spring. This year, the group selected a title for our spring exhibition: O Brother, Where ART Thou? with a Bluegrass theme.

Personally, I'm not a big fan of Bluegrass music. My husband Steve, however, loves it ... plays it on the iPod when we've traveling through West Virginia. (I ignore it and stitch in the car.) I wasn't thrilled with this theme ... not even a little bit ... until I had this outlandish idea: Why not create a photo transfer on a quilt? Why not use one of the photos scanned from my great grandma's album, a photo from West Virginia, land of Bluegrass ... My Bluegrass Roots?



Of course, I'd never done a photo transfer on a quilt. In fact, I don't know that anyone ever has! I did know, however, that Denise Furnish works with acrylic medium on antique quilts. Her Nine Patch won one of the awards at Art Quilt Elements 2010. (This piece is pictured opposite my Father and Mother in the exhibition catalog.) The piece fascinated me. Immediately, I wanted to "try this new technique" but resisted. I generally don't jump on a new product, book, or approach to art-making unless I've got a strong, concept driven reason for it. Now, I had a reason ... and about a gallon of matte medium! (Denise paints on her old quilts. She planted a seed in my brain and it finally took root!)

The antique quilt came from Bill Mishoes' auction. There were three old, damaged quilts sold together, and I was successful with a $60 bid. I cut the blue-and-white one to a workable size ... something under 48" x 36", the size of my frame shop's dry mount press. Using matte medium, I attached the back of the quilt section to a piece of heavy, canvas-like upholstery material (also purchased at Bill Mishoes ... years ago ... an entire bolt.) A day later the two were mostly attached but I secured them with a few rows of straight stitching along the lines of the quilt blocks. For several days, I added layer after layer of matte medium to the quilt surface ... at least seven or eight layers.



In the meantime, I was also working with the scanned images from my Great Grandma's photo album ... looking for one with good contrast, clarity, and a bit of charm. Using Photoshop, the selected image was enlarged and the contrast was increased. (Generally, I would "flip" the image for proper orientation after transferring ... but I liked the reverse better when envisioning it on the quilt ... better placement of the faces against the quilt!) I burned a CD and had FedEx Kinkos print an over-sized photo copy.

Two layers of matte medium were applied to the photo copy. Finally, I brushed on yet another layer of matte medium on both the quilt and the photo copy and placed them wet-on-wet together. Using a brayer, I applied pressure, eliminating all air bubbles ... and then allowed it all to dry. Finally, I put the quilt into my dry mount machine. Knowing that acrylics adhere to one another when exposed to heat, my intention was to definitely fuse the acrylic covered quilt to the acrylic covered photo copy ... firmly embedding the photo copy ink and its "carrying film" to the "substrata", the quilt. (My dry mount was set to 185 degrees with 28 pounds per square inch for five minutes. Love this machine!)



Next step ... my new studio assistant and I rubbed off the paper. The first layer was easy! With a dampened scrap of terry cloth and a little "elbow grease", the image was exposed. Unfortunately, more abrasion was needed. The surface dried with what looked like a film of "white" over the entire surface. This was just "more paper" which required lots more gentle but firm rubbing ... and my fingertips seemed to be the best thing for it. This took about four more hours ... and, yes, I got one little blister ... but it was worth it!



Frankly, rubbing the paper off was the most difficult part of the process. This is only because my fingers are really, really strong! I decided to stitch buttons around the edge. My collection of mostly vintage buttons is large enough that I could use only ones 3/4" or larger ... in both whites and blacks. I used a chenille needle and button hole thread.


(Above: Detail of edge ... black and white buttons. Click on image to enlarge.)



The piece needed one more thing ... two lines of running stitch, above and below the transferred image. This was pretty hard to do considering all the layers of quilt, upholstery material and at least ten to twelve layers of matte medium ... but it worked! I'm really please with the piece and am already working on two, smaller companions.

AND NOW THE REST OF THE STORY!

Of course I knew that the photo came from my Great Grandma's photo album. It is owned by my 93 year old Grandmother and is located in the attic over my Dad's workshop. I scanned it a couple years ago. What I didn't know, however, was the identity of many of the people in the photographs! Earlier this week I wrote to "my genealogy studio assistant", aka my mother. Who were these people? They were in a lot of the pictures. Some of the other photos identified the woman as Mary Rollings. Unfortunately, my mother didn't know who this woman was. She had to visit my Grandma.

Mary Rollings isn't a relative at all! She never did marry into the family but the man in the photo is Frank Haeberle, the sixth child of my Great Grandpa's eldest sister. Frank was born in 1897 and was supposed to have been madly in love with his first cousin, Elma. Elma was my Great Grandpa and Grandma's eldest child. She was born in 1908. From the looks of LOTS of the other photos, she was also madly in love with Frank! Unfortunately, she died right before her sixteenth birthday of spinal meningitis (1923). My grandma, Elma's baby sister, was the last to see her alive. Grandma was only six. Grandma vaguely remembers Mary Rollings. She's in lots of the pictures, especially with Frank in the mid-to late 1920s. Frank Haeberle, however, never married.

When I think about Bluegrass, lost love is a recurring theme. A wild and beautiful landscape is also a recurring theme ... that's West Virginia! While Mary Rollings isn't a relative, she's likely the embodiment of my Bluegrass roots. Frank Haeberle would be my third cousin ... I think? (I'm never exactly sure how this works!) My mother remembers him as a handsome man despite having parents that weren't so attractive ... tragic ... also My Bluegrass Roots.
(Thanks Mom!)

Jon Eric Riis' "Shimmer" at the Sumter County Gallery of Art

(Jon Eric Riis in front of his Blue-tipped Emu Feather Jacket at the Sumter County Gallery of Art, Sumter, South Carolina.)

Last night Steve and I went to the Sumter County Gallery of Art for the opening reception of Jon Eric Riis' solo show, Shimmer. I wouldn't have missed it for the world and the experience will remain with me as an inspiration on so many different levels.


(Above: Invitation image for the exhibition.)

First, it isn't every day that an artist with a truly international reputation has a solo show in the middle of South Carolina! Jon Eric Riis is arguably the very best contemporary tapestry artist on the entire planet. He excels in every approach to his work: conceptually, spiritually, artistically, technically, creatively, and according to every known "rule" for making quality works. There's been plenty of writing done on his processes, inspirational journey, and on his life and works. I'm not about to try adding to the scholarly writing. Let me just provide this LINK to his website and add ... He's a really, really nice man too!



I first met Jon Eric Riis in October 2009 at "Talking Threads", a one-day fiber and quilt symposium at the Sumter County Gallery of Art. I blogged about this experience HERE. The symposium went along with the exhibition on display at the time: Tradition/Innovation. Jon Eric Riis had work in this South Arts sponsored show (which is still touring). He was the keynote speaker at the symposium. He was amazing. Gifted and talented, he took time for every question (not matter how silly or clueless they were). He was gracious, approachable, a good listener, and willing to share his thoughts openly. I'd long admired his work (having seen pieces in the Renwick, the Textile Museum, and at the Met.) After meeting him, he also became a role model ... an inspiration for the best sort of character an artist can be. It is no wonder that Karen Watson, the Sumter County Gallery of Art Executive director, sought him out for a solo show.



So ... Jon Eric Riis is a world class artist. He's a nice man, the sort after whom one might model an artistic character. Yet, the most important reason to travel to Sumter is THE ARTWORK! I'm not sure there are words to adequately describe this work, the luster and shine, the sheer quantity of it, the professional presentation, or the many thoughts and feelings it evokes. I'm not going to try. Instead ... here's a little tour ... in the order I took the photos! (I've posted the exhibition statement and a photo from the reception at the end of this post.)


(From Shimmer, a solo show of work by Jon Eric Riis. Click on any image to enlarge ... which is really worth doing since this is meticulous work done most masterfully!)


(Above: Night Flight Tapestry Coat, 2004, detail. Woven metallic thread and silk, black freshwater pearls and coral.)


(Above: Flight Tapestry Coat, 2004, detail. Woven metallic thread and silk, freshwater pearls and turquoise beads.)


(Above: Exhibition shot.)


(Above: Triad Tapestry Coat (from The Black and White Series), 2006. Woven thread and silk)


(Above: Sacred Heart Tapestry Coat, 2005. Eight layers, woven metallic thread, Swarovski crystal beads. If forced to select a favorite in the show ... this is it. I will always think about the seven layers of this piece that were necessary for the whole but are mostly unseen. This is a physical manifestation of "doing it right" ... no matter what!)


(Above: Sacred Heart Tapestry Coat, 2005, detail. Eight layers, woven metallic thread, Swarovski crystal beads.)


(Above: Dialogue, Suite of Twenty Panels, 2009. Woven metallic thread.)


(Above: Dialogue, Suite of Twenty Panels, 2009, detail shot from the side. Woven metallic thread.)


(Above: Golden Boy, after statue of Paris, 1999. Woven metallic thread.)


(Above: Bruised, 2006. Woven metallic thread, black agate beads.)


(Above: Exhibition shot.)


(Above: Blue-tipped Emu Feather Coat, 2009. Woven metallic thread.)


(Above: Blue-tipped Emu Feather Coat, 2009, detail. Woven metallic thread.)


(Above: Icarus II, 2003. Woven silk and metallic thread, Swarovski crystal beads.)


(Above: Icarus II, 2003, detail shot from the side. Woven silk and metallic thread, Swarovski crystal beads.)


(Above: Dancing Couple Tapestry Coat, 2007. Woven metallic thread, Swarovski crystal beads.)


(Above: Exhibition shot.)


(Above: Exhibition statement.)


(Above: Reception!)

Valentine's Day ... What's Love 2012

(Above: Sundays Child and Friends, an altered poem with corresponding dolls. Click on image to enlarge.)

Although I'd never been to the annual, non-traditional Valentine's Day bash here in Columbia, I certainly had heard about past year's bawdy fun and board-line pornographic artwork. Called "Whats Love" as in the Tina Turner song "Whats Love Got to Do With It?", the event is widely attended (over 1000!) and Facebook friends post constantly with anticipation leading up to it. This year the new arts publication, Jasper, was sponsoring a room devoted to poetry and suggestive literature of all kinds. The theme for the entire event was "technology". To reflect this theme, the name of the one-night only exhibit became "What's Love: Input/Output".

I had an idea ... one that combined "art" (in a very loose, slightly naughty manner), poetry, and technology. Jasper Magazine sponsored it and Sundays Child and Friends was created. During the week before Valentine's Day, I revealed each doll on its own blog and on Facebook. It was silly fun altering the poem, making the skimpy attire, and uploading the photos onto social media. Last night was the "big event". It, too, was lots of silly, stimulating fun.



Above is how the seven dolls originally looked. They are all some sort of collectible toy from the early 1980s ... complete with labels, storybook names, and metal stands.



Above is how they looked after transformation. Click on the image and the altered poem can also be read. In order to incorporate technology, each doll has displayed with a QR code on the signage above and behind them. (See first photo!) The QR code navigated viewers to the blog post with each doll's "before" photos. The entire blog can be viewed HERE.



There was dirty dancing performances from three different, local groups. Lots of people dressed up for the occasion ... including a married man wearing a jean skirt, fishnet hoses, and heeled black leather boots with his ordinary suit jacket, white shirt and a proper tie. People struck R-rated poses for total strangers to take photos and there were many interactive pieces too.


(Above: Photo installation by Molly Harrell.)

Yes ... there was all sorts of art too. Molly Harrell's photography was among the very best art presented that night. She also conducted a voting for "Sexiest Geek", male and female. She photographed three men and three women who work in the computer industry ... in very fashionable, attractive ways ... cut out the images and mounted them on backgrounds made of colored floppy discs.


(Above: Bohumila Augustinova and Anastasia Chernoff with porcelain penises.)

Some of the work and many of the people aren't particularly appropriate for blogging ... but I was quite taken by Anastasia's concept. She and collaborator Matt Kramer created a fantasy Victorian cabinet of sex toys ... in a very nice antique music stand!

Shedding Memories

(Above and below: Shedding Memories, 3D found object assemblage, 60" x 20" x 14 1/2". Click on any image to enlarge.)



This piece came together last week. The actual work was done on only two afternoons but I did a lot of thinking between the two days. My mind swirled with construction issues, trying to decide exactly how to attach the three sets of crutches and how to stabilize them. I knew the piece addressed time and aging, the cosmetic desires inherent to people as they grow older physically but still have a youthful outlook on life. The antique train-case was the catalyst for this concept. It's pop-up mirror made it an instant symbol but I wasn't sure what to fill it with. Of course, I collect intuitively and thus find just about everything I need already in my "stash".



A friend gave me a gallon Ziploc bag full of 100% cotton nasal spray inserts. It seems a law firm needed these for a law suit but ordered the wrong size. The friend thought of me for the unwanted, wrong size pieces. She gave them to me and they were perfect ... pure, unused, clean, healthy, and suggestive of all sorts of things that might go into a cosmetic case. The snakeskin came from my parents. They found it in the woods several years ago. I've been waiting for the "perfect time" to use it. This was undoubtedly it. Yet, the nasal cotton inserts were "too bumpy" for the snakeskin. I dug around in my boxes of vintage linens and found a skimpy bodice with ribbon sleeves and a strip of lace ... perfect. The bottle came from England and had been filled with natural bath salts. I altered the label with WWII ration stamps. A clock key and pattern marker were added.



While rummaging through the fabric, I found the child's dress ... again, perfect! I hung it using a chain from a cuckoo clock. An antique key went on the other end.



To stabilize the crutches, I built a framework from pieces of Victorian furniture and cut down an old frame. Wavy antique glass was fit into the moulding and I added a wooden ribbon spool topped with a globe-like old marble. Most of the things I used came from Bill Mishoes' auction house. I was there again this week, hunting-and-gathering from the bits and pieces of lives I'll knew know but feel akin to. I got an old radio and a basket with wooden croquet-balls last Tuesday night. I wasn't successful with any of my bids on Friday night ... but I got a lot of hand stitching done for the next piece which is already underway.

Time Signature

(Above: Time Signature with door shut. Below: with door open. 55" x 34 1/2" x 15". 3D found object assemblage. Click on any image in this post to enlarge.)



I've been thinking about this piece since purchasing the rickety stool at Bill Mishoe's every-other-Tuesday-night "walk around" auction of used household items. (Bill has a much more serious auction every Friday night where the available items are considered to be of a higher quality. I attend both regularly ... stitching between bidding! I prefer the "junk" on Tuesday nights. It's like rummaging through forgotten closets and the recesses of a dark garage, foraging for a lost treasure.)



The stool was perfect. I loved it instantly. In my mind, I could see the clock case and the piano keys attached to it. It cost me $6.00 plus a 10% buyer's premium. Preparing it took the better part of a day ... sanding out some of the peeling paint, gluing it back together in places, reinforcing it with carpenter's finish nails, and applying a coat of shellac over all the surfaces.

The clock case came from another Tuesday night's sale ... as did many of the small, attached items ...



... like the Dominoes ....



... the old, red, tea tin ...



... the eye glasses ...



... clock gears and face ...



...the cancelled check, etc.



The piano keys came from a friend, Pat Callahan, who espied an entire, broken piano dumped off the side of a road. (Pat's a long distant runner who has actually gotten lost once while training for a marathon. I can't imagine running further than a sightline to my house!)



The seagull skull was found on a beach on the Olympic peninsula (Washington State) and carefully brought back in my carry-on luggage. The beer caps were saved from the trash at the Green Hill Center's "Winter Show" reception.



The key came from my sister Sonya ... the first one from the two buckets of used keys we acquired from a local university (years of rekeyed dorm rooms and student mail boxes.) The clothespins came from a Margaret Nevel, a friend from my last session with Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way. The leather bound, miniature Shakespeare book came from an auction house outside Washington, DC.



Like my earlier piece, Time, I enjoy my memories and the suggestion of other people's memories that come in the process of such an assemblage. Time is moving at a constant pace, making our memories a little more distant every moment. The title comes from the musical world. Time signatures are the musical denotations that indicate the number of beats per measure and which note value constitutes a single beat. Thinking about the rhythm of music is like seeing a heart beat.