Welcome to the reindeer generation, this is Elsie in Stage II of development. The magazine "Cloth, Paper, Scissors" had done a sincere head job on me. Still in the realm on collage and assemblage, it is best I stay on the hound for new methods and technique pairings. The reindeer is cloth on paper, secured with a type of zig-zag stitch. The continuous line around Elsie is done in pencil. Honestly I couldn't wait to move to the finishing, but afterward I muse with this state being the end. Falling back I'm remembering ideas of series, relationship and cohesiveness while still boning up on experimentation. | Elsie in the last stage. She's framed and I'm not a framer to say the least. I'll have a better photograph for you soon. I just did not want to turn back and get hung up in fixing photos and writing. Some days patience has its sway and the product is good. Elsie moves outside of the frame. Dances even. I miss the qualities of pencil that don't translate into ink and brush. I think my plan to get a fine tipped calligraphy pen will work better. A finer line and then accents in heavier ink. I hope quilter get the gentle joke of machine applique quilted in pencil and/or ink. Transition between mediums and material can be a beast. Unfortunately you can't sew everything down or on. Then again I think I'm wrong. I must have just challenged myself. I'll write this down in my working journal so I don't completely forget and admonish myself for bridging into Conceptualism. Materialistic I am and find thoughts cheap on manifestation and expensive on experience. Koan anyone? I'm grapsing on the ear of next two Christmases having a complimentary series more worked and archival. Playing out Easter as well by finding the complementary meanings in Easter. |
Taking time out and attending to life other than the studio. Still its hard to turn complete and focus otherwise. Got things prepping up for #5. Four will be a little different than using natural finds. Still good either way you look at it. Broaden the series base and subject. Play and lengthen. I'm sure I'll be able to come back to this series later in the years. Just keep thinking to move beyond the sum total of parts and surpass expectations for unity, should I chose that means. The series title is decided and all of the pieces have names. It is called Cell Line and you can find it under Current Work. Please feel free to gaze. I added a few detail shots for all. That seems so important when building a sculptural look. Each perspective of the pieces are different. Shifting gears to sewing for the remainer of the week. I have plenty of hand work to go around for years. I'll be working on old projects. I may finish this one wall hanging in time for the Arts Market. FYI: The garment rack is purchased. Now I have a place to display the quilts and wall hangings rather than folded up and stored till requested. Aside: I'm happy with the skills I acquired over the past four years, still I seek the refinement in classic designs, especially sound execution. I have room to play with art quilt design and construction, still I like a bit of the familiar. Though I'll be sticking my neck out on designs this year; I'll be trying to develop a signature style. I lied. I showed I was finished. There is some tweaking left. I'm scavenging for my epoxy come tomorrow. First I have to let the spools dry. They got now air circulation in the jars and were soft, though set. That section will be epoxied to the backing making for a tight package. Afterwards I can come back with a matte acrylic spray and seal the whole piece. The roots are prime for it and I no longer have to worry about bugs. The sand needs encasing for the inevitable installation and risk chipping without it. Lastly a signature and date. Indelible markers are on the supply list from last month. Glad I roll things over.
I pushed myself again this time. I can see the connections and sense of order manifesting only after completion and patience allows them to come forth from the canvas slowly. It scared me how far I went this time.Taking risks for me is standard, but developing them is not. I have no more control over the materials than I know what the final outcome will be. The materials shape my hands these days, they do not bow down to the tools I buy. Frequently everything is up to bar hand work and I pray I learn to minimize chemicals and build a greener body to work with. Again and again I return to making all of my materials, using raw supplies for the market and finding nothing better that my hands to do the trick, controlling pressure and direction with no extensions or appendages to fingers and palm. Yes, though sometimes tools do better than I , like hammers and the like. I'm happy with the stretch and lack of derivation. The piece holds in separation and wholeness without looking like granma's garage or dowsed in glue. I'm finding my tact with this exploration. It develops as I go. I've finally got the acorns in the ammonia and they will soak overnight. They'll be used at a later date, but I feel the need to get pieces prepared months ahead of time. I never know if I switch gears to go for the complex verses simplicity and balance of form. Got a beeline on a site called indiegogo.com. Provided I can work it well and get promotions in order, I may be gearing up for requests for something like a micro-loan or donations to launch into gallery shows. I do not understand it yet, but I will explain at a later date. If you are interested, you may want to follow me there as well. Tidy and fingers messy. I spent today helping in the front and back yards as much as I could. The rain, well tornado siren kept me awake last night, left it mushy but nice weather to work in. I felt hydrated instead dry to the touch like in the summer months. After rest and nourishment, I got back to the rhythm of working the spools. I worked it yesterday, but came up dry after a couple attempts and yield few. Today was great. The total is eighteen, including the other five I completed the other day. Finishing was strong and I'm prepped for the build: eye screws, nails, and epoxy ( if I can find it). Everything I need to put the picture in my head to rest. I'm confident it will work and look forward to the second build with the same approach. I want to by Tigertail for that so the structure will be stronger. Tigertail is a jewelry making supply for stringing. Update: Flipped through my Texas Butterflies book and got stuck in Swallowtails, but no confirming picture. So on to the net. Sites from Texas A&M University and a commercial site to confirm helped. He/She is a Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, not an Emperor at all. Thus the change and I have my first title for the series. Yea for me! For a friend: Estimated price is over $650. I'll have a confirmation by the time I post a final picture. With a little more tweaking maybe I'll become an artist. Right now I'm having too much damn fun playing! Hah! The current panel is bleeding me for life juice. Things are coming outta my mind that I never would have thought. I love it. And it is not at a rate I have to lay down for and suffer through the rapid imagery. Resting is good. I never thought I'd find another pace of life and the day to operate at. Others seem to be adjusting well and that makes me happy. Meanwhile this piece may take another week or two with the hand work to complete. Also I've gotten side tracked in making bindings. It never turns out to be only the amount I need, but another run more. Then and only then will I have enough and it usually works out that way. With a steady and disciplined hand I will get through. Below is from today so far and last night following after the last post. Fixing the timings as we speak... Tired. Started late. Started slowing down during the carving and fighting heavy eyelids. If it was for the neighbor, Luis, I'd never have posted tonight. He's great support while working when I do not play the radio. I'm playing out the bits of daydreams as I go and work with them. I'm also opting not for an easy piece, but highly developed and challenges the viewer. The intricacy is in the steps. a 9 by 9 piece of full involved is where I am headed. I fight with myself the longer piece start to take. I wonder if people will pay and then the adage comes "People pay for great workmanship". In that case I think I am on the road and am stumbling appropriately. It's about extending your attention span and taming your hands to be a reliable tool. I am learning on this what my hands can not do and mentoring my intellect to handle it. I am not a machine. Variation is good. Patience and a companion canvas required. Staring into space. Sorry. Time to go and get a bite before bed maybe. Either way. Sweet dreams and good night. The yield was not as juicy as last years vintage pieces. In turn for that I got some fat quarter batiks in greens and blues. They'll be used for butterflies and moths. Tons from the free table and a few panels for needlework. I'll abstract something and integrate it into large projects I'm sure. Becky, a quilting friend from the Twisted Stitchers Art Quilt Group I'm in, took me back to the table and asked if I noticed something. I said no, where? There it was smack in my face, a quilting hoop with supports. I've been looking for two years and the quilt garage sales to see if maybe it'll fit in my budget. I prayed for it and forgot. It needs new bolt and a few more repairs, but it'll work and I sure do appreciate the efforts of my guardians in whatever form they come. And yes, post lunch today I took the photo. Another will be had eventually. But for now this will do. Enjoy! BTW: I'll have sizes for this one and the first for next week
"Doctor! Doctor! She's not breathing."
"What happened?" "Hurry!" "Can't you see I'm giving her as much resuscitation as she can handle? What is it" "She's lost blood pressure! She's going pale!" "It's precious. He's cracked." "Put that down before you break it. Forceps! Glue! Paper!" Post surgery and I'm trying to make light of it all. During the second row of nails I cracked a seam in the wood along with the grain line. I lost time right then and there. The last time something like this happened was being nailed in the sternum with a baseball while batting for my team. I'm lucky it didn't crack and who's to say it didn't. No pain, forgetfulness and therefore no trip to the hospital. I was in third grade I believe. Anyway, no excavation due to the fact the sides of the repair would deteriorate farther than I have the means to rescue. Clamps are now on the list for my hardware stash. An unwise repair giving wood body and glue a bit of a paper mache feel. The nails are still in place. Last for my rig is staples when he's dry. After jerry rigging I may mount on another piece of wood to keep the portions together. Needless to say she is not for sale till I am satisfied of the durability. I know I know, how durable do you have to be to sit on a wall? On the flip side, I'm willing to explore my lesson a la Luis (next door neighbor) and build structures with cracks and seams exposing the repair lines. Ultimately to use as a base for another piece but integrate the beauty of line with it all. Setting time is over night. If you are interested I may have a shot before mid-afternoon. Ultimately I am pissed because at a juncture, it took my breath away. Just for a moment I felt like a modern primitivist. Alive and in love with cultures of nature. Please excuse the focus. I did not reset the camera for it, diving in for the first shots of the day. You may still be able to make out the materials and tools to follow the narrative. Don't mind me, my mouth still hurts from the dentist and my golden hours to work unimpeded were late this afternoon. Pain meds, scheduled for later. Thanks for letting me share. Below are today's pics and I'm moving into the last stages tonight and tomorrow. I have a few things to prepare and then its discipline definitely to rule the day. Take a gander and I hope you enjoy the journey. I'm in a bit of pain and will be retiring early. The dentist appointment went well and now is the time to heal and deal with the aftermath. With rest I'll be alright, the doctor warned against heavy activity and lifting. You know how intense blogging can get, so I'll keep it short. I've moved on the the second pass and the images are stocking up in my mind. Nary a variation on a theme, but core thoughts made concrete for visual appeal. I'm involved in the pieces, the inception, the process, the finishing. I hope the viewer will find the intricacy, depth and shadow play worth revisiting time and again. I'm happy for the direction I've taken and can't keep but a sliver of a though away form the two dimensional pieces. There is growth and not repetition, so I am thrilled in that regard. I took a few pics and only on in missing. Meaning I did not have the camera when I was working the material. I am speaking of tin can which I drilled holes into. They will become bell forms to attach to the canvas. This is one of the main anchor motifs for the series. The only thing left right now is to remove labels and to abrade the surface a bit to change it from shiny to scoured and many faceted. The process of attachment is where my mind lays and if I have enough hardware to complete the job sans glue. It'll happen, I'm confident. Enjoy the pics and the process, they'll be more on the morrow. And as ever, "Thanks for Reading"! I moved on last night with a sting in the pit of my stomach as to when and how I was going to finish the first canvas. I took a chance on the raffia, stealing moments of thunder in graduate school. All I know is I am starting to remember and my soul is steady at work next to my body. It speaks more if I just shut up. And I will from this point on. Finishing off the back is the next point of detour and I've solved the issue. At some point I'll be building deep shadow boxes, at least 3 to 5 inches deep. The pieces will be set in on a light colored background. I've decided to use the space surrounding to build a bit of a retablo or reliquary feel to expand on the story where these pieces spiritually and ethically dwell. I harvest much from nature and preserve a bit from recycling and second hand purchases. Life cycles and renewal may be an integral issue. I keep coming back to the words elegy and requiem for this and I'm trying not to belittle them. Sensing my grandparents in it all and matching visions, makes me wonder if this will be a series that develops over a longer period of time. Extended documentation of an experience. Hmm. I'm headed for a late nap. I never fall asleep till sun up as it is. Then I'm back to wrapping packages in synthetic deer ligament. Native American research still happens in curious places at the library. I need to return and rethink my connections to the environment and how it plays out in dream space. Stage Four and I'm taking a break to regroup energy and make careful decisions to completion. I'm playing out the fanciful thoughts and bantering with supplies telling myself less is more and everything just might get used in the long run. It does not have to be a single statement, but an elegy that develops itself from climax to final comments in pursuit of the soul. On the light side, I have acorns from a red oak to harvest and prepare. I'm hoping the squirrels won't mind. Maybe I'll get to be included in their ecology as well.
It will get better and easier I chide myself. This is really a prototype and not a reduction. I learned form the larger piece and this, this is a world of difference especially minimizing the take on oil paint. Layers will build and I have an urge for a soft pastel. Thinks to remember and be reminded of: ninkisi. I have an urge to pull out my thesis and see if I am still there working in that vein. Plunging the nails in the midsection had me think of the doll figures, though lacking physical representation. I have an affinity for Amish technique and remember they don't put faces on their dolls. Still this is not cultural appropriation and out right theft. Respect is there even if I don't take to incantation, potions and lotion being a reality I wish to take part in. There is beauty there for me and a resolution of constant motion with my hands and a need to be involved and concentrate. Affectation and adornment. Speaking of which there is a piece I have yet to get to. Armour for a shaman. The piece in the museum said each of the pieces making the armor contained a verse or page from the Koran. I had to think about it in East Africa and all. Amazing to think it through. I wondered if the Bible or my writing that I strongly believe in would be just as powerful. It would have to be a documentary I think. Film the whole process and rationale of why to chosen what verses. Ritual to action. My own process to invent spiritual Kevlar. |
N.A. JonesVisual Artist; Independent Researcher; Librarian; Cook; Amateur Astronomer; Gardener - the hard way, Writer; Explorer Archives
November 2015
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