nightmares with teeth

this is what happens when you watch the first 15 minutes of JAWS at age 5.

here's the piece of i've submitted to Joetta Maue's Down To Sleep show opening soon in Lawrence, Massachusetts.  check link for details.

TITLE:    nightshift gallery – Act I

DATE:    2012

MEDIUM:   applique, embroidery, garment construction

SIZE:      24” x 30”  [girl’s size 7]

Artist Statement:

Two constants throughout my life have been sewing machines + monsters.

Sewing, is a magical process that allows me to make flat materials 3-dimentional or stitch together any combination of elements.  As a medium, it possesses limitless possibility regarding form, method and application.  Either by hand or machine, I choose sewing because it is my inheritance.

The combination of girlie and non-girlie elements is a particular favorite.   Nightmares, a preoccupation with fear, and an ongoing obsession with horror films and fairy tales are forever present.   I love monsters because they are never what they seem.

the HIVE

several new projects in mind for the new year, all involving stitching.

mythical monsters

i found these LIFE magazine clippings in a old box of saved images and articles. illustrations by Roudolf Freund, wildlife artist and long time illustrator for LIFE.
click images for larger viewing.

true blooded... all the way.

below is a piece i finally finished for the sarah!, sarah!, sarah! invitational. thanks john for the invite. so nice to be drawing again, but i'm so glad it's done + i no longer have to contemplate the existence of such a person as sarahP.

... and a tip of the hat to miss jeffie for all those years of dance, sequins + bubble gum... oh + for photographic proof that i am quite the american.

click for larger viewing

artist of interest - danny treacy*

in the throws of costume making insanity, i stumble across this brilliant reminder.... a costume can be made from just about anything. found objects and a little ingenuity are all you really need. these refashioned, recovered clothes pieced together and photographed by Danny Treacy are prime examples.

artist of interest - madge gill*

this is madge gill. she was a self taught artist who began obsessively drawing mediumistic works after the death of her daughter in 1919. for the next 40 years she completed over 4,000 drawings. according to wikipedia...

She claimed to be guided by a spirit she called "Myrninerest" (my inner rest) and often signed her works in this name. The figure of a young woman in intricate dress appeared thousands of times in her work, and is often thought to be a representation of herself or her lost daughter. She drew this woman in various moods and appearances, almost never showing her entire body, and with her clothes interwoven into the surrounding complex of lines and patterns.

unfortunately i couldn't find much information on her, but i intend to continue searching. i did mange to find random images of her work throughout the internet, some of which are still being auctioned off to this day. according to one biography i read, she rarely sold or even displayed her works. she attributed them to Myrninerest and considered them belonging to her.

additional biographies may be found here, here, here, + here.

bookcover*

etsy just keeps making the world a smaller place. a customer who bought one of my bette davis prints a few months back, asked if she could use the image on the cover of her soon to be published book. i said sure + we worked out the details. so i wanna congratulate Lauren Berlant on the publication of her latest book, The Female Complaint. lauren and heather, book designer of Duke University Press, were both a joy to work with. they sent me a copy of the finished publication + it arrived in the mail just yesterday. what a nice surprise to come home to on a monday afternoon.

the fruit in the corner are loquats or japanese plums from my backyard. i love having fruit trees of my very own. they're really tasty right off the tree, but i'll have to experiment with a few loquat recipes as well. if i come up with anything worth sharing, i'll be sure to post it.

the bee's knees*

to say i've been overwhelmed this new year is a vast understatement. between becoming a first time homeowner, dealing with the nightmare that is construction/home renovations, moving everything i own in the middle of mardi gras [which is quite a feat in itself], and breaking up with my boyfriend of almost three years, i'm more than ready for a return to some type of normalcy. so many changes all at once is enough to make any girl crazy.

this is the time when i should be making things. being in my studio is the best way for me to work things out. unfortunately most of my sewing/art supplies are still in boxes. the clutter filled chaos, otherwise know as unpacking, doesn't help the situation either. besides, when there are so many things to tend to around the house, like trying to figure out how to relight the pilot light on a gas dryer, making time to sew gets pushed further down the to-do list.

so until the home-front is a bit more settled, i'm gonna focus on the image above. it's a collage i made a few years back. it's the prefect illustration of how i'd like to feel right now; young, carefree, frolicking with the bees, while super styling in a plaid paints suit. so until all the disorganized loose ends of my life are neatly tied back together, this is where your likely to find me.... with the bees.

the russian music box*

i made this as a present for my ex-boyfriend a couple years ago. it is made entirely from items i had lying around my house, with the exception of the copper wire.

my good friend carolyn gave me this mini disco ball a while back. it's has a tiny motor inside to make it rotate. it also has a short cord with a plug on the end made to fit into a singular bulb socket on a string of x-mas lights. i've always wanted to put this ingenious invention to good use. this was the end result, a double barrel music box/nightlight. i spent a month or two actually constructing it and a month prior contemplating design and such.

it has two wind-up music boxes in the back. one plays close to you and the other plays chim-chim-cheree. they sound really great when played simultaneously. one of the music boxes has a rotating spring that spins around.

here's a list of other recycled/household items used:
weighted stand for a drafter's desk lamp
scraps of matboard
paper, paper, paper
pipe cleaners
glitter
wire
glue
spray mount
thread (and sewing machine)
old russian novels
pom pom balls
short strand of x-mas lights
color pencils
ink
and a few other things i'm probably forgetting...

finally.....

after many trials and tribulations, i've finally got something printed!!! it's not the greatest print, but it's better than nothing. square dancing anyone? more adventures in screen printing coming soon.

just two more*

kibs gets a makeover -
these are for you girl xxxoxxxox love you

altered photos*

i've been super busy working on a costume for a friend, but i really wanted to post something. so.... here are a few altered photos i made a couple years back. these are really fun to work on, especially on those days when you feel like working on something, but you don't wanna start completely from scratch. first, print a digital photo or scanned image on heavy weight cardstock. the rest is up to you.

the cardstock makes for a great drawing, painting, & collaging, surface. it's pretty much unlimited possiblities from here on out. sometimes i go back and forth between old fashioned drawing and photoshopping. i'll bring the photo/drawing to a certain point, scan it, photoshop it, reprint it, & then start drawing again. computers are pretty amazing!!! i'm so glad i've gotten past my "computers are the spawn of satan" stage in life. i'd certainly be missing out if i had remained so closed minded.

this was one of those panoramic photos that i split into three panels. unfortunately, that camera broke. oh well, how long can you expect a $20 plastic camera to last.