Happy Holidays

As Christmas draws close let us remember the reason for this blessed day.  No matter what your regligous beliefs or non beliefs take a moment to be thankful for all the wonderful blessings life has to offer.  Our freedom, our health, our abilities to forgive and forget.  Our passsion for creating.  Our ability to feel joy and saddness. Treasure each day no matter what your situation is - remember it could always be worse. Take a moment to smile, to laugh, to cry, to remember those that have left this world before us. Don't forget to tell that special person in your life that you love them, no matter what.  Be thankful for those that gather with you and those that can not make it this time.  Remember to be just a bit more giving  -  in time -  in patience - in caring - through out the coming year.  Relish this magical time and carry it in your heart always.  Have a most blessed Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year.  I'll talk to you next year.

Purpeck

I realized that I probably should clue you in on why I keep refering to "purpeck".  I wrote a feature story for Jane Dunnewold's Art Cloth Quarterly about "Arual and Friends".  These were the names that I had given to those "little voices" that we all contend with on a daily basis.  I am going to "re-print" the story on "purpeck".

PURPECK

       Ms. Dally has been very busy collaborating with her friends these past few months to find ways of detouring my studio time into “grandma time”. She seemed to think it would be an excellent idea for me to have my grandchildren, Ragen who is 3 years old and Sarah 11 months old, visit with me several times but most importantly over a long four day weekend. I argued with her about all the projects that needed to be worked on and how behind I was on them. I might as well have been talking to a brick wall! She knew that I could not resist those angelic little faces and all she would have to do is just remind me how much I enjoyed them – well that and having Ragen ask me as only she can do “Dawa, I need come Dawa’s house…..peas” Of course that sweet little voice was all it took to brake my commitment to studio time. Here I am thinking that I have lost a whole four days of work and how much farther that would put me behind in the projects that I have lined up. Then the hurried-ness and “must-get-dones” just seemed to melt away when I opened the door and Ragen ran up the walk with such excitement yelling “Dawa, Dawa” and gave me a big hug and kiss and then Sarah reaching out for me with her little face lighting up with a grin from ear to ear.
        Ragen, the 3 year old, has her own area in my studio and is a regular visitor there. She knows where her paper and scissors are as well as her paints, crayons and markers. She has gotten the fine art of cutting tiny little pieces of paper down pat. Her bright blue eyes just sparkle when she gets to “kuck” her papers with her own scissors. Today she asked me to sit down beside her and help her “kuck” papers and draw. In sitting with her and watching her create I was amazed at her confidence and deliberation. She would carefully select a colored piece of paper and just the right colored marker then proceed to make marks on the paper. With each stroke she would stand back, put her hands on her hips, cock her head to one side, look intently at the mark and exclaim “purpeck”! Then continue with the next mark. After each mark she made on the paper she would stand back and pronounce the mark “purpeck”. She told me her story about the “bad guy” and “Nemo” and of course the “mermaid” with “purpeck” strokes of her marker and confidence in her abilities. Now if you asked an adult to describe what she had drawn they would be at total loss to decipher what she was showing them. Why should there be any question as to what those little marks at the bottom of the “bad guy” were – of course they were his “dibing soup”. To her innocent 3 year old eyes her drawing told her story and it was perfect.
        While watching her that day I wondered at what point in my life did my marks stop being “purpeck” to me? What changed in me to diminish my confidence and the deliberation of making perfect marks each and every time?
        I’m realizing that perhaps Ms. Dally knew what she was doing and this was not “lost time”. As I thought about Ragen and her purpeck marks I decided that MY eyes and MY mind will see each mark that I make as “PURPECK”. There may be an adult out there that has no clue as to what MY marks are saying but they tell MY story to me and are PURPECK. I’m thinking that maybe we should all be making “purpeck” marks.

Ragen is now 6 years old and still has that confidence about her "purpeck" marks. And while she is very confident about her marks, I am still working on mine.  I am getting better and am beginning to like a lot more of my work - but still have those occasional marks that go into the circular file as they are not "purpeck" to me.

Release

As the year winds down it is time to release all those past mistakes, let them go and move on.  We have yards of clean fabric in front of us waiting for us to make our mark on.  What a wonderful thought that we can start each day, week, month, year with a fresh start - a clean slate.  We are free to choose different paths, to explore new avenues, to make a difference.  We are free to accept the challenge to grow in the coming days.  If we stumble we have a new day just around the corner.  Time to pick ourselves up and try again. Learn from our trials and enjoy the journey.  Let our minds and hands begin to work as one.  Transform those yards of fabric into magical places in our minds eye.  Call upon the child to come play daily - immerse ourselves in the act of doing and being. Remember that EVERY mark we make is "perpect" Keep this magical time of the year in our minds and hearts all through the coming year.

RELEASED

19" x 106"

Cotton Sateen, Printed, discharged, gold powder, paper lamination

Available Here

Childs Play

I am constantly amazed at the number of people that must have "instructions" before they can create! If you are following "instructions" how is that creating? While there are some guidelines if you are using products such as mixing dyes or discharge paste or photo emulsion---I don't believe there are any fast rules. I guess I create very much like I cook! Some of this and a little of that - and somehow it turns out. I know that I can never duplicate or reproduce what it is I'm making - I can come close but not exactly. Now I can't say this is a good formula to follow if you need to have a consistent color for production work - then yes you would need to know exact measurements so that the product can be consistent. BUT I will say that to me that is not creating - that is producing. This is one area where I would be in way over my head - I don't think I could make the same thing twice if my life depended on it! I don't like to repeat what I do - my work is truly "one of a kind". When I work it is as if I am transformed to another place - a place where rules go out the window. (Of course safety rules should never go out the window!) My child self takes over and boots the adult out the door slamming it behind her! Who cares if I didn't measure exactly or if a little bit of blue gets mixed with the red....or if the squeegee isn't at a perfect angle or pulled from top to bottom....who is going to know but me? If the end result is something that I like than does it really matter how I got there? Let your child out more often you will be amazed at the results!

Emerging

This is the time of year when many begin to reflect on the accomplishments of the year....  where they are now from where they were a year ago...  Did they move forward or stay in the same place?  I don't normally do resolutions but I do look at where I have come from and where I want to go.  What will it take to get to that point?  I'm thinking that this year has been a tremendous year of experiences - I opened a Fiber Gallery with three other very talented ladies, only to see it have to close due to circumstances beyond our control - but the experience was there and is something that I would do again when the right time and place finds me. I entered several shows and was accepted (yeah - even won some awards!), I was invited to participate in an international show, I was in a group show, I had a solo show.  I completed many yards of fabric.  All these "accomplishments" are great but what did that really do for me?  I GREW as an artist!  I became more confident in my abilities, I actually started this blog (something that has been on the burner for a long time).  I am learning that there is worth in some of my thoughts.  I have realized that I can "run with the big dogs" and keep up.  This past year has been very exciting for me in experiences.  I can set my sites higher for the upcoming year and begin to EMERGE in a bigger way.  I hope that everyone sets their sites just a bit higher for the upcoming year.

Art Work:  Emerging, (detail) Cotton Sateen, screened, discharged, printed, textile paint, ink, gold powder  22" x 106"
Available here

Surfacing

Surfacing after a few days with my grand children. It was a magical week but also made me appreciate young mothers who deal with little ones daily.

Not only surfacing from children but also from mind matters....trying to de-clutter thoughts to make room for new beginnings. This time of year is especially hard for me to do that. There are so many distractions, so many activities and "to do's" that time for thinking art thoughts is very limited. I gave myself permission to stop for seven days and play with the girls, to enjoy the season through their eyes, to see that even if the ornaments are all clumped together the tree is still beautiful. The two year old would stand and just "awe" in a breathless manner. She was taken to another place by the magic of it all. The older ones were excited and relished in the placement of the "special" ornament.

The energy expounded this past week would have been enough to power a small town! The enthusiasm for each activity was contagious. Their acceptance of the smallest, simplest task was amazing to watch. The minds going at full speed as they took in packages, lights, trees, cookies. I will try to hold it all in my mind so I can record it on fabric at some future point. For the present I need to get the "adult" things caught up and of course I will enjoy the quietness for a bit.
 
"Surfacing"
 24" x 100"
 Layered Silk Organza, printed, gold powder
Available Here
 
 

Horizon

Horizons is a small piece done to remind myself to look forward....simple lines with sunshine.....filling the foggy, rainy days....6" x 8" x 1", hand dyed fabrics, hand stitching, gold foiling  - a nice little bit of sunshine..... availabe here