new year

I have spent the last 5 days, the first 5 days of this 2008th (by some calendars) year in a whirl of change. I probably look the same, I probably seem the same in other ways too...
Evaluate if you like. Here's a picture of myself and Mr. Butler at the beach around this time:

The new year coincidently (?) brought on some serious reflection into some personal issues I've been learning of, negotiating, and struggling with for a few years now. That's a pretty fast progression (in the grand scheme), but it's felt long enough. Brought on by the presence of warm, good people and intentional care of the soul (despite my stubborn unwillingness to care!), the revelation necessitates forward movement into the world with strength, gifts of love, and an ability to receive the infinite goodness that exists in the world.
I'm sure many others are experiencing a similar change (it is that time of year!) and it is inspiring to know my condition is universal.
So, with this change in thought comes plans to travel, plans to see art and culture that I've felt inaccessible to me in the past, plans to join the American Craft Council and participate in the contemporary merge of art and craft, continue to commit, with renewed vigor, to making the meaningful paintings and drawings, sculptures and installation pieces I've begun to make my regular practice. These are many: In this way, I'm still the old Rebecca-arie!

I mentioned that I'd seen the work of Agnes Martin at the Hirshorn Museum... Still inspired by that painting, I took the time to look her up and here's what I found:

Leaves, 1966


I couldn't find info. for this painting, though I think it was done in the 70s.

"Within the narrow parameters she set for herself, a square format (72 inches x 72 inches until 1995, when she changed to 60 inches x 60 inches), thin washes of color, and straight graphite lines, the paintings were endlessly varied and beautiful."
-Deborah Garwood
The above quote felt poignant to what I am doing in my recent work... I don't think I'm on the same track, but I'm inspired to say the least.
I also read an interview with Agnes Martin when she was in her 80s living in Taos (1995?). In this interview she is so clean in her description and egoless and simple in her interpretation of her art and the process. At first, I felt sorry for the interviewer (A.M.'s responses are so solid and short), but then I realized that the work of Agnes Martin and her philosophies of art making couldn't produce any more description. Minimalism frees the artist and the viewer from complexity and convolution. It's an act of love I'm happy to receive.
Click here to go to the 1996 Art in America Joan Simon interview with Agnes Martin.

seeing what other people have created is inspiring to the creative individual. Look at more art.

I've been visiting my dear friends Jo and Matt and their new little one, Mackeon. He is a lovely little one. Being with dear good friends and meeting their lovely child... how can I not be inspired and energized? Here's Mackeon now!

Christian and I went to the Hirshhorn Museum yesterday as well (click on the title for a little segue to that site). I love that museum and would have stayed much longer hadn't the closing hours sent us away! I've always loved the Juan Munoz sculpture in the garden near the entrance, so I'm including some pictures. I also thoroughly enjoyed the newest acquisitions (downstairs) and am happy to have read about the Hirshhorn's plans to acquire many works by contemporary artists! Furthermore, I was inpsired (for my own paintings) by the the work of Agnes Martin and Clifford Still. I realize some ways I want to proceed with more simplicity and focus on texture, pattern and color with the paintings/drawings I currently work on. More to come.

Merry Christmas. I hope each of you have a place to be warm and find joy today.

sedona textures

In going with the slightly cheesy aesthetic of the sedona tourism racket, I thought "Sedona Textures" might be a good title for this post. Maybe I'll put together a coffee table book to sell in gift shops there.

Despite all that, I am happy to have a beautiful new camera for use in taking lovely photos during Christian's and my time there.

Here are some of the photos taken (way back during Thanksgiving time) while at Taliesin West (FLLWSA campus), and while taking an overnight trip to lovely Sedona, Arizona.

Click here to go to the Flickr photo album.

Clearly, I like lichen. (I've also always liked that the words like and lichen together are somewhat stutter-ish.) I appreciate textures and surfaces of natural designs as I ponder my own work for fabric design, paintings, drawings, and graphic work. I consider these natural patterns far more interesting than most others I see in the man-made world. Excellent teachers for me.

spaces

This is a personal venture, the blog, so I hesitate to apologize for not posting in over 2 weeks(?), but I do feel a sense of obligation as I write.
I’ve been meaning to post photos from the painting I was working on. I’ve since finished one of the works, stretched the canvas over a frame (now 5'x5' in dimension) and now find myself wondering if this painting really needs to be stretched over a frame. I painted the piece on the loose canvas on the floor (for a few reasons: the graphite stick wrote better on the surface and I could work on all parts of the canvas without the awkward reach of large workings on the wall) and have since grown endeared to its nature as loose, even wrinkled and with its unprimed, ripped canvas edge (a sort of frame in itself). The painting now hangs on my studio wall, with its collection of birds flying up from the lower left bottom/edge. It’s what I wanted, though not what I wanted as I feel unsatisfied and ready to do another. I think I must take the first off of its frame to relieve the too-formal taught surface it now boasts. I wish for the three-dimensionality it used to have in its waves of slightly warped, painted fabric (you can see this in the photo-collage above as the pictures were taken in process). I am happy with the written atmosphere of breathing transcribed onto the painting’s surface. That is most prominent in the piece, and I am glad of all the negative space it lends. I am more interested in the negative space. I may make the birds even smaller on the next one. Might the birds be more a part of the atmosphere created by the layers of writing and gesso? I think so.

Having made the photo-collage out of a few pictures taken of the work, I am realizing a possible change to the work. The assemblage is not accurate to what is on my wall now - all of the written text is the same size and obviously, the lighting across the work is not representational of the actual white and gray tones of the gesso and graphite. I think I may do some layers of larger and smaller text sizes to signify a kind of near/far in the atmosphere.

Furthermore, while running today, I saw a giant flock of starlings take flight out of a tree and fly across the overcast sky in a mass of movement and flowing form. First I should say, it was gorgeous and I stopped running because I had to take it in. Second, I realized I want my birds to be tiny and far away, similar to those in my sight today. I may lightly layer gesso over some of them in order to attain more depth along with the near/far text layering.

It will be a few weeks before I can get back in my studio and work out these issues. I hope to feel regenerated and ready after time apart. Now, I'm in Virginia for 10 days to visit beautiful family and friends. It's been a lovely time so far, and I look forward to the days ahead. I'm considering purchasing small papers in order to do some miniature drawings such as the painting... We'll see what happens.

Hoping to organize and post photos from the Sedona AZ trip soon... keep checking in!

p.s. Thanks to Erin for checking the blog so diligently despite my lack of contribution over these past few weeks.

all day inside

The good part about snow days in Wisconsin (which are many), is that I will be inside working in my studio for extensive periods of time. On Saturday I posted to first snow storm pictures... so here's what I was working on that day.

I was in Arizona with Christian Butler (pictures from that trip, still to come...) and we went on the Day after Thanksgiving shopping freakout... (I now wondering why we didn't fully participate and even eat Mall Food Court food.) At Neiman Marcus, I tried on a jacket I loved with sleeve details much like the sleeve extensions I put on my coat here. The jacket was too large (thanks for convincing me not to buy it anyway Christian). A few days after returning to Wisco, I was skateboarding around and realized that my black peacoat's sleeves are too short, it's always annoyed me, and I should use the great wool my Mom gave me to lengthen them... and AHAH, use the sleeve detailing I loved about the coat at NM. Bingo. I also added a fat ruffle (with the same accordion fold as the sleeve detail around the elbow) around the hood so that the sleeve extensions wouldn't be solo. The ruffle reminds me of the way fur trimmed hoods sit over the head (I've always liked that look). It also references a loose bonnet... bringing in the colonial style!

Well, tell me what you think. And if you too think your sleeves are too short, there's a way out of that mess. No need for cold wrists.
Here, my notes before beginning. The original sleeves are about 2 1/2 inches shorter than the extensions. As you can see, I left the original inside and attached the new part to the old.

winter comes when it wishes

You can see in the photo below, my bicycle tracks from my visit to the indoor farmers' market this morning... it wasn't snowing when I left. This weather is perfect for my indoor plans for sewing, cooking and of course, work on my painting and drawings.
See my neighbor shoveling? It's only been 1 1/2 hours since the snow started to fall. The good thing about this snow: It's light, fluffy, and dry! (What a relief from the southern snows of my childhood).