happy....

Halloween!!!! Boo!

Do you have scary plans? We are heading to some parties tomorrow and carving some pumpkins tonight. My costume is pretty simple and totally home made. Maybe I will share pics next week. We use to have a Halloween party every year and I would get really into my costume and get super creative. Now I tend to take the easy way out. I am hoping I will get back into it...I always loved Halloween.

Otherwise working with my needle, de-installing this, and shipping this off to a gallery.

Have a safe and fun trick or treat!

spewing out, sucking in.

Read my post on metal smith and artist April Wood here.

sometimes.

apprehensive.

i am tired....

so short on words. But the best art needs none. The very lovely paper cut work of Mia Perlman.


Her work is beyond amazing, gorgeous, and huge. The time and craft that goes into making and installing something like these works is very impressive and inspiring.


a bit from her statement:

My work is meditation on chance, control and the ephemeral nature of reality. The forms in my work exist on the brink of being and not being, free from physical constraint. Imaginary landscapes are shown frozen in mid-evolution, on the brink between contracting or expanding, solidifying or breaking apart. My goal is to find the picture beyond the big picture, the space between the nucleus and the electron, the moment between creation and destruction.

Her website is very thorough with images, statements, videos, and interviews. So go explore. And if you are in NYC her work is included in this very cool show that I cannot wait to see.

did the sun get lost?

Where oh where did the sunshine go? This shot was taken a few days ago in a moment of delightful shadows. But lately my studio has been a cool gray and my arms have been chilled. The heat is still not even started in my studio- and though I have it set up in good working condition I would like to get my space back. Right now my studio is about 20-30 square ft less then normal. And it is cold. Brrr.

Good news is that I am finally really feeling like I am getting back into my studio swing. Since August it has felt totally off and now it is starting to feel good again, thank goodness.
I gave up on the digital projector and am planning on working with a newly purchased Tracer. I hope, my fingers are SO crossed, that it will work for what I need. It should arrive in the next few days. And then I need to find a dark place since my studio is flooded with light both night and day. Hopefully, there will be an empty interior studio that I can use for an afternoon. I really am excited to get started on this piece so I hope it works or I might just lose my mind.
Otherwise working away on some other things....

open circles.

The new Surface Design magazine has some very cool artists featured- all working with techniques that approach fiber in a way that is physically open. The artists either create open surfaces like lace or crochet or cut away from surfaces to make varied "open" surfaces. Seems to fit perfect into this weeks obsession with lace. But actually I am always obsessed. So the first artist I would like to feature is fiber artist, lace maker, and mixed media extraordinaire Ilze Aviks.


Ilze focuses her work on the image of the concentric circle to talk about much wider and diverse subjects. The use of the circle as repeating form places her work in a very contemporary way, particularly referencing the minimalist movement. But her mixed materials, including embroidery, found fibers, and hand made lace place the work in so many other places that it is fascinating.


By using the shooting target as her template and then covering it up she subverts the violence of the image to comment on femininity, nature, and mankind. Or perhaps speaks towards Americans complacency toward the wars that we are part of?



Her use of super sweet colors combined with bold messy colors and lines is striking.



Ilze also created a lovely series of work, Artifacts, where she combines her printmaking techniques with her embroidery skills. Nice.



See more of her work and detail shots at her website.

on my lap...

Some work at my lap. This is a work I started over 2 years ago and never finished and am now finally finishing it. I always liked the piece- it just stopped having priority for awhile... But since I cannot seem to move forward with what I want (because no one I know has a digital projector and the one that I borrowed will juts not properly work!) This piece is holding me over through the utter frustration! ERgh.

I might just have to suck it up and rent a projector for a day. That way I can at least get started on these new pieces. That would be so nice. Otherwise I just feel like I am standing still.

The submissions for connective thread are starting to come in regularly and it is so fun and exciting to get them in my inbox. All the work is so different and creative. It will end up coming down to selecting work that really makes a great show together as a cohesive whole. You still have just a bit over a month to submit so make sure you do!

concrete lace....

I would love to walk upon this in a regular old building, it would truly make my day. This concrete lace is a new installation at the new Nottingham Contemporary building. They chose a lace work to reflect the history of the area.
Lace maker Louise West created the piece.

Louise is a traditional lace maker and makes some truly gorgeous traditional works of lace from collars, to lace ribbons, to lace table works. It seems like just recently she has started to explore more contemporary ways of sharing lace.
Some cool new works range from free form pieces:



To nature inspired bobbin lace.




She has like 20 blogs all with only a few posts so it is kind of difficult and frustrating to research her. She would benefit from a computer savvy person helping her consolidate into one or 2 blogs. But regardless she has talented fingers and I am so intrigued by her Concrete lace piece and hope to see more in the future.

I really wanna...

See this exhibit. It looks oh so cool. I mean I really love lace as an artwork and it seems that this is some pretty radical and fun stuff. So if you are near Philly do not miss the opportunity run down to the Design Center and see Lace in Translation.

A lot of the work is from artists that I have featured here. So you can imagine how much I would love the show itself.

There is the super awesome industrial lace of Demakersvan.


The above Quaker lace inspired the super awesome fence that as been on the blog rounds for awhile.


And my total favorite Cal Lane. I LOVE her work.


I am so inspired by how she creates lace out of the most unexpected materials.

and Tord Boontje, who I feel like must have designed my shower curtain because it looks just like his work.


But the best part of the website is that they ask artists to submit their work and inspiration with lace. The "translations" are lovely and much to be inspired by so I am confident I will pull a few to feature here this week. Take a look.

The exhibit is until April so hopefully I can make it down to check it out before is goes down. Lace.... so lovely.

granny squares and home.

Here is my little pile of granny squares. I am getting a pretty good hang of it and do not need to look at my cheat sheet anymore. Yeah! But mine never look as perfect as the ones in books or online tutorials. Maybe with time.
But this little pile is almost an entire skein of thread...so I think I need a lot more yarn than I thought.

It is gorgeous here in NY which makes me love being in my studio with the windows open and the sunlight streaming in. But still totally frustrated because I am trying to get a large piece started and am having problems figuring out how to transfer the image onto the linen. So my fingers are crossed for a miracle. Or for electronics to simply communicate properly. One or the other.

And if you want a little bit of me and some other super talented folks interpretations of home go here to buy a super awesome postcard pack. The images are all about home. Good stuff.

found family photos.

I saw the awesome embroidery of Shabd Simon-Alexander over at Cup of Jo. Joanna ordered a custom hankie for her man as a sweet wedding gift. Shabd's embroideries are totally lovely and her hand is wonderful.


I really like how the images are placed on the handkerchiefs. I have played with pinning old photos onto linens and these read in a similar way. Her use of everyday quintessential snap shots as resource allow the works to speak on a much larger level. By being specific she becomes more universal. I love how that works.



Her selection of handkerchief to image is picture perfect. They seem made to be together. The pattern of the linen complimenting the simple poignancy of the image.


An excerpt from her statement about this series of work:

Shabd Simon-Alexander examines this... through embroidery, a traditional medium of memory and storytelling. Working with both personal and found snapshots, the artist transfers the images, stitch by stitch, onto discarded handkerchiefs and other fabric objects. When broken down into the most basic of forms, the memories of a stranger are as familiar to us as our own. She is not experiencing the event or the emotions captured in the images; indeed, it is not even important who is pictured. She is breaking down the experience of memory, and forming a relationship with the photographs themselves.

Her handkerchief series is my favorite but don't think her talent stops there she has plenty of other inspiring work on her website.

finally...

feeling like I got over a hump. I cleaned up my studio yesterday , since it will be a week until I can put it back to normal, I have made the best of it. And in the process of cleaning, re- organizing, and looking through stuff feel a little bit of energy and excitement coming back.

I washed some pieces, above, that are part of a larger piece. Finished my piece for the upcoming Over and Under show in Austin, and got around to getting organized with my schedule.
So maybe having your studio put in complete upheaval can have a good side after all.

A friend of mine forwarded me this article about the state of craft today, totally worth the read.
and Rubi McGrory of Rubi Studios had some very good feedback and reporting on the recent American Crafts Council Conference and the resulting Martha bashing.

Have a great weekend!

another chance at a class with me.

Just in case you were heartbroken that you could not make it to the last class, I am teaching an embroidery class in Brooklyn on November 7th. The class is super cheap and just in time for you to get your skills primed in time to add personal touches to all your holiday gifts. Please join us or if you cannot Please pass the word.

Intro To Embroidery Workshop
with Joetta Maue
At SPACECRAFT, Williamsburg
November 7, 1:30-3:30 pm.

In this introduction to embroidery workshop students will begin their very own original custom sampler. Each student will design their own sampler with a water-soluble marker, using their own unique handwriting or provided stencils. .
We will learn the most basic skills of preparing the fabric, using the hoop, and threading the needle to finishing the project for final display. 5 traditional embroidery stitches will be taught: the split stitch, stem stitch, backstitch, satin stitch, and the ever-mysterious French knot. With the skills learned each student would be able to continue making beautiful pieces of art or simply embellish items of your own. So bring your creativity and lets get stitching!

$20- bring your own supplies or purchase before class. $35 supplies included.
contact@spacecraftbrooklyn.com or 718.599.2718 to sign up and for details
www,joettamaue.com

frustrated mess.

Agh. My studio is a total mess since they are putting heat in. Or actually they are not. They were suppose to get started on Monday and now it will not be until next Wednesday. All my crap is piled in the middle of my space and it sucks. I am quarantined to a little chair in the corner like a naughty little girl. Rrrrr. So frustrating.
Today I think I am going to try to make it a little bit better since I am stuck with it this way for a few days. And maybe hopefully I will actually get something done today. But I am not holding my breathe. I hate when things are all wacky.

(the piles surrounding me are not as cute as this adorable pile of kitties, but seeing them made me feel better. Doesn't it make you?)

mounds of knit.

The gallery and studios that I teach my community yoga classes at in Brooklyn has a great exhibit up now and I was especially intrigued by the work of Lindsay Chandler. Lindsay is currently a student at RISD and has some very cool work. No statement or words to give us incite into her process but her current work is all from a series called Central Landfill so it seems she has an environmental slant.


From looking at her work close up it appears like she may combine found knits that she stretches and manipulates along with machine knit pieces that are custom made.

I really love the texture and layering she creates with her technique. In person the works become very 3 dimensional and are of a nice size. I could imagine them huge and would love that even more. Perhaps as a huge wall installation.

Considering Lindsay is an undergrad she does not have a huge portfolio but I am excited to see what she does next.

Wanted: Patience.

I swear I am making work...I just have not been loving my time in the studio. I am feeling really bored. To take on something totally new is so slow moving and takes such patience and random experimentation on my part.
But I think I just need to suck it up and exercise patience as I am feeling desperate to experiment and try something different.

I have also been a bit frustrated as I have been trying to get started on a large scale project for my solo show in January and keep hitting hurtles to getting the image transferred to my fabric. Please wish me luck today as maybe, maybe it will work out.
Images of new work soon. I promise