Craving Connection

Craving Connection

With the residency now coming to a close, I prepare for a show at the gallery. I don't anticipate much of an audience. After months of many people hunkering down, some are taking the first ventures beyond their bubble. We can't stay cooped up forever and as social creatures, we crave connection. We thrive on it.

I've been working on an artist statement in response to art making and have drafted a little something....

Intertwine

Artist Statement.

For me, artmaking takes a new sense of urgency in the midst of current circumstances. My year long fascination with wet felting, using nature as my informant in the design process, has not deterred, rather amped up. This show, Intertwine, was conceived under different times. I wasn’t even sure this exhibit was going to happen. The high touch, low tech experience has been overshadowed with new mantras of our times. To touch =germ transfer. Here, to touch= connection. Connection to life. Others. Our natural world- which we have become woefully out of sync. Originally, I was to share in a live demonstration how these pieces were created using wet felt techniques. Still, you may participate.  I invite you to take a seat on a cozy stool. Take off your shoes and feel the hand-felted rug on your bare skin. A rug that was made using methods dating back hundreds of years. There are other ‘touchables’ of sample roving, felt, and fleece, but please do not touch the wall art.

On inspiration: Nature has always been an informant. One of my favorite places in Colorado to observe nature’s design is the bristlecones near Mt. Evans. Here, tangled forms dance with the elements over time. Concerning the groupings, some pieces seek to capture clearer, harder forms and edges, while others showcase the unruly side of raw wool. Color shifts, diaphanous forms, and opaque spaces render paint-like effects.

Although my residency year with 40 West is nearly complete, my fascination with wet felting is not. I plan to continue felting with the addition of developing natural dyes. I hope I can still slow down, observe, and disembark from the sometimes inhuman pace the modern world demands and keep making those profound connections.

Intertwine is June 5-27 at the 40 West Gallery, 1560 Teller in Lakewood.
Gallery hours Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 12-4pm and by appointment

Is it durable? Will it last?

I'm often confronted with the question on the durability of felted works and my first response is always, of course its durable! It was good enough for the nomads on the steppe to shelter in and so many other daily uses. Yet felt is truly an ancient material, and with the advent of modern materials and synthetic fibers, most of us don't come into contact with the raw materials anymore.

Most recently, the felted sign out front of the studio was removed for a more modern, 'permanent' sign. The felted one was holding its own quite well, through rain, wind, and snow, it did not lose any integrity. The notion of its permanence gave me pause. Do I mind if it withers and disintegrates over time? Not really. With care, many naturally made materials can last a lifetime. And further, should all materials stand the test of time? How is this helping humanity? Need I mention the oceans filled with plastics that will stand the test of time?

With my residency term half complete, I'm turning my attention to my show in June and how I will best communicate what this time has meant.  Capturing the raw beauty of a very free and ancient material and sharing this finding with the public excites me. I don't see an ecological platform arising in this moment. For now, I will focus creating haptic possibilites with wool fibers. There is beauty in embracing the impermanence

Gratitude

As November comes to a close, I'm looking back at the moments as resident artist and being grateful for this time and space to create.

First Friday Elements show entry

Day of the Dead First Friday skull painting activity

Creekside workshop. Loved making art with these beautiful ladies!

Hosting Overland High School students on a field trip to 40 West. Thanks Liz!

They are a greeting and a gift! Hand felted cards.

What to do on a snowy day? Make art!

Process: Second Cuts, Veg Matter, and Crimpy Locks

"Besitos'" fleece, a CVM merino wool. Loved the smoky grays and brown tones.

Process starts at the heart of the matter, that being wool in its most raw form- fleece. I recently voyaged down to the Land of Enchantment to the Taos Wool Festival to speak with the ranchers and artisans, delving a little more into the world of fiber. 

The Bounty: Gotswold, Merino, and Teeswater. Time to sort our that veg matter and clean the wool!

Three different fibers felted up nicely. Love those wily locks!

Rock Dwellers: Bloom Exhibit

"Blooms" of lichens and moss depicted in this recent piece on display at the Colorado Mills mall.

A few close ups and process photos....

More Beautiful with Age

Bristlecones thrive near alpine heights, twisting and weaving into a graceful old age. More beautiful with with each passing season.

The newest series of felted works during my residency draws from the rhythms of the Bristlecone Pine's growing patterns. Taking shelter in the lee of a boulder, young bristlecones must gain their start in life to flourish in the extreme alpine climate.

Process photos:

A few other bristlecone pieces:

New Artist on the Block

Greetings 40 West neighborhood and beyond! I'm the new Artist in Residence with the 40 West Creative Arts District in Lakewood. For those who don't know what this means, I have been given a year long residence in an apartment building in this creative district to live, create, and share with the residents and greater community. I hope to keep this blog to document the activities and process photos, keeping everyone informed of the transformative impact the arts can have on a community.

The following photos are a compilation of art walks around my new hood, some studio photos, and my recent birthday party.

My studio is getting set up... shoe organizers holding up my wool collection

The light rail from my window

Potential workshop samples... wooly mandalas and felted soaps

So neat being right on the green line Art Line!

Reconnecting with friends and family on my birthday... 40 @ 40 West!

My brother leading a Sol LeWitt inspired drawing

The drawing reinstalled in my flat. Stop by for a visit and doodle!