Sunday, April 7, 2013

In between

In between - that's what I feel like I am at the moment...in between. What? Here and there? A rock and hard place, perhaps? 

No. No. All is well here. It's just how the universe has me feeling what with winter still holding on while spring tries to muscle her way in. We've projects around the house to start, but, well...starting can be so darned difficult at times. Getting that momentum going, you know?

So, I've been locking myself in the studio once the urchins leave for school. And that is good.


 Sections of the next piece have been being sewn together and are waiting for more.

The past few days have been a frenzy of attempting to sew a pinafore apron out of my rusty cottons a la Christine Mauersberger's pattern that she was kind enough to share (Many thanks Christine!).


It fits, but needs tweaking - pockets are called for and it's a bit too long...or is it? The straps in back are a tad off somehow... I promise more photos soon.

Time in between has been spent applying to exhibitions and waiting for notification of acceptance or rejection.  I'm happy to say that



Mapping the Mermaid's Dreams © 2013 will be part of the Juried Member Show 2013 at the Ridgefield Guild of Artists, April 13 - May 12, Ridgefield, CT and


my collages The Scent of Tea Wafted Through the House, The Memory of Tea and The Making of Tea (all ©2012) will be part of Less is More: Small Works in a Great Space (A Mitchell Gallery National Juried Exhibition) , May 29 - June 19, 2013, at The Mitchell Gallery, St. John's College, Annapolis, MD.

Having my work accepted into exhibitions is a new occurrence for me. While I was juried into some of the best art shows along the east coast with my weavings, rarely were they accepted into exhibitions. Curated into by a curator who was familiar with them, yes, but juried into...no. So if you've been hearing the odd Woohoo! that can't quite be placed or get the feeling that someone is doing a serious happy dance (or 2 or 3) in the studio, that's likely been me.

All in all, this feeling of in-between-ness that has settled in has been quite productive for me. Of course, it could be a side effect of the allergy medicines that the allergist prescribed. This time last year, skull splitting headaches were a daily occurrence for me. Let's see...in-between-ness vs skull splitting headaches...not really a contest, is it?

20 comments:

  1. Woo-Hoo! Good for you! I've had inbetweeness for more than a yr now! Not sure it's the good kind. Keep plugging along. Right now I'm in a "tie up loose ends" mood. Have niggly things (like patching jeans and organizing notebooks) that I've managed to get done and larger things (like finally compiling the Conant grant samples into a book)that still need doing. Oh yes and finding another publisher... So glad that your productive inbetweeness is paying off and that the allergy meds are kicking in!

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    1. Thanks Julie! Hey, "tie up loose ends" moods are usually productive and that's excellent. Need to get in that mood next myself. Sorry to hear the search is on for another publisher, but am sure that you will find the right one.

      See you in a couple of weeks?

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  2. Congratulations on shows.... always a great feeling!

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  3. Having never met an admitted "rust junkie" before, I'm really enjoying your work! Lots of rusty things to poke around and explore on our beaches here. . . such wonderful colors, textures, expressions of a change over time.

    Cindi

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    1. Cindi, welcome to the world of rust junkies! There are actually quite a few of us out there...some who admit it and are proud of it, some still not ready to be so open about it...but we do exist.

      I stopped by your blog and was blown away by your photos of Alaska!!! What a gorgeous area you live in. I'll be back to visit. Hope you stop by often too. Enjoy!

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  4. Congratulations Jennifer! I think a happy dance (or 2 or 3) is certainly called for!

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    1. Thank you Pat! Happy dances are always a good idea.

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  5. Hi J, I LOVE the book SO much - what a fantastic result. In between ness can be super frustrating, but it's a good time to practice the 'one moment at a time ness'. I'm using my short break of 2 days from the mayhem to start sorting through my pile of paper work - slow but satisfying. Love to you all XX

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    1. I'm so glad you like the book! I'm also curious to see the one you were working on. Have fun with the paperwork. Enjoy!

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  6. Congrats Jennifer!! - Your pieces are just gorgeous and deserve as much show time as you can drum up - they are wonderful!!

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    1. Thank you Wyn! I'm enjoying the freedom making these pieces is allowing.

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  7. Ooh yay - and happy dance in the office happening here for you! Don't you just sit there and go wow, wee, I got juried in...? Fantastic that your new work is offering you this success and sense of accomplishment. Yay again!

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    1. "Wow, wee" Ha! I think my exact words were more along the line of "Holy sh!t". Not the most eloquent of responses, but...

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  8. Congratulations on your recent acceptances...and how wonderful that your work will be enjoyed by more people. I also like how you can sense a certain coherence between both the book & the collages...
    I suppose in-between-ness can be a good thing if we are able to accept it as part of the natural flow of things - and listen to whatever slips in as we wait for the journey to continue. I hope whatever's blooming that's aggravating your allergies stops soon, though - just imagine how much clearer everything will seem when you can stop the medicine again (probably in more ways than one)! In the meanwhile, enjoy your sessions in the studio while your little 'urchins' are at school...

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    1. Thank you Lisa! This end-of-winter/spring is definitely more enjoyable than this time last year. The allergy meds are working at keeping the headaches away...well...so far. The pollen is low here at the moment. I may be changing my statement when it's so high that my dark blue van turns green. Arg!

      As long as the creative energies continue to flow midst this in-between feeling, I can deal with it. Much prefer this to wishing my head would just go ahead and explode...which is how I felt most of April and May last year. It wasn't pretty, to say the least.

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  9. Oh, I think a happy dance in your new pinnie is called for. Congratulations. I do like the Mermaid and Tea pieces. Well done. Now, I want to see a full-on picture of the apron...when you are ready.
    Also, thank you for linking to me! xo

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    1. A full on photo of the pinnie, with me modeling it, will come...just as soon as I'm happy with it. Still not quite there yet, but soon...I hope.

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  10. J - I would stick with the drugs they are could be giving that winning edge!!! Seriously - a big congrats - no mean feat to get into juried exhibitions. Love where you are taking all the rusted fabric. We knew all that binding and leaving stuff outside would be a winner - and the additional skill is how you are bringing it all together. B

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    1. I totally agree with you about the allergy drugs...I'll take in-between-ness over skull splitting headaches any day! Many thanks for the congrats and kind words. Little did I know that my rusty habits would end up being successful art.

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