Pittsburgh - James Gallery

Too tired to write intelligently right now...but I wanted to share what Pam and I discovered today before leaving Pittsburgh - all thanks to Christine for the recommendation.

The James Gallery on South Main Street in Pittsburgh, which is currently hosting an exhibit of Jan Myers-Newbury's work, is a jewel of a gallery and not to be missed.

More about the James Gallery and Jan's wonderful pieces tomorrow. Good night!

Fiberart International at Society for Contemporary Craft

Pam and I are in Pittsburgh to see the Fiberart International exhibition.

Yesterday we visited the Society for Contemporary Craft to view part one.

 Peace flags welcome visitors to Society for Contemporary Craft.

 

Yes. I'm the kind of fiber geek who takes photos of the signs. 

I must note here that I took the photos below with permission from Society of Contemporary Craft (SOCC). While my photos represent a large portion of the work exhibited at SOCC, not all works were photographed. As you'll soon see, there is a full and detail shot of each piece with the accompanying information. Hopefully there are no typos, but if so, please let me know so they may be corrected. Enjoy!

Eszter Bornemisza, Hungary

Lung of the City 2011

dyed, reprinted newspaper, torn, thread, yarn, machine sewn

 .....

 Rachel Meginnes, US

Untitled 2012

textiles

.....

 Elodie Sabardeil, France

Palpitations 2011

cotton and thread on wooden chassis

.....

 Sandy Shelenberger, US

Textures 1 2012

encaustic with paper on cradled boards

.....

 Julie Abijanac, US

Disease Mapping 2012

recycled copy paper, thread, glue

.....

 Hiromi Murotani, Japan

Scenery 2012

cotton linen cloth, nylon thread, rubber thread

.....

 Janice Lessman-Moss, US

#416 2012

cotton, wool

.....

  Samantha Fields, US

Triptych with 206,720 beads 2011

recovered afghan, beads, stretcher frames

.....

 Julie Sirek, US

Dissolving Dream 2012

Joomichi (felted) Korean mulberry paper

.....

 Eileen Hoffman, US

Redolence 2011

chenille pipe cleaners

.....

 gallery view...that's Pam by the way

.....

Susan Hotchkis, UK

Once 2012

textile

.....

  Ann Graham, US

Birth of a Square 2012

silk, quilted, felt backed

.....

 Patricia Mink, US

Tapia Study 2011

fiber/textiles

.....

 Lizz Aston, Canada

Antiquated Notions 3 2011

paper, free-motion embroidery, thread, burn-out

(My apologies for not having a full shot of this piece.

It was behind glass and next to impossible to photograph without glare.)

.....

 Elin Noble, US

Fugitive Pieces 9 2012

whole cloth quilt

.....

Personal note - As I strolled through the gallery, I found myself comparing the work present to that of the work exhibited last year at FiberPhiladelpia, particularly Outside/Inside the Box. I also compared the works present to that shown at Fiberart International 2005. It may not have been fair of me to do so, but it was impossible not to. 

Wondering how the comparisons faired? Well...let's just say that I left the Society for Contemporary Craft yesterday feeling very under-whelmed. That said, there were a handful of pieces that held me spellbound and restored my faith in fiber art/artists.

We're off soon to see the second part of Fiberart International 2013 at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and are hoping to be awed and amazed. Stay tuned.

Searching for Roy G Biv II - Yellow, Pittsburgh style

As you may have guessed from the title, I'm in Pittsburgh, PA for a few days. After the 7 hour drive here, a walk around the neighborhood was called for to stretch my legs a bit.  Seems Pittsburgh wanted to help in this month's search for Roy. Yellow was everywhere.

 

Searching for Roy G Biv II - Yellow update 1

Yellow is a color I will forever associate with spring because of the jonquils and goldenrod that seem to explode from the ground once the temperatures begin to warm. 

Yellow is present in small splashes around the house and in my studio as well. From the collage made by friend and Torpedo Factory artist Jeanne Garant, to my trusty measuring tape, to the fringe of a scarf Deb brought me from her India trip. And then there's a sight we see everyday...a simple yellow line painted against a black textured background.

Among the yellows around the house are photos taken by me in 2008 when my husband and I went to China to bring the little urchins home. Yellow, in all its variations, was as prevalent a color as red and the two were often found in combination. Alas, I never stopped to inquire why or what meaning the two had.

The middle photo gives you an idea why not and what our days were (and still are) filled with. That's Grace happily chewing on a fabric duck while Ellie stretches to reach the alphabet cube.

For more yellows, take a stroll over to see what Julie, Maya, Fiona and Deb have found this month. Do you have yellow?

Lisa and Kim answered the call for yellow. And they are delightful!

In the studio and a Roy G Biv reminder

This is a week of very little studio time due to errands, finishing reading a very good book (Jacqueline Winspear's newest, Leaving Everything Most Loved), no school Thursday or Friday (think shortened spring break) and...well...just because.

Still, I've managed to squeeze in a bit of time to work on the denim apron. It's coming along nicely. 

Also snuck in a quick trip to a thrift store for more jeans as it dawned on me that there weren't enough to make a pinnie apron. Hopefully the second will go much smoother than the first...now that I know what needs doing. (even I'm giggling over that comment!) It won't be finished this week or even next, as there's a trip to be taken next week. More on that soon.

Tomorrow is the 3rd Thursday of the month which means it's time for Roy G Biv 

 and yellow.

Do you have yellow?

An early start

I rose early this morning and the studio called.

Some old jeans were waiting to be cut

into pieces for the next apron.

Yes. The next apron.

The saga continues...

Hey Christine!

My Calamity Jane apron is finally finished!

It has pockets

 and a tiered hem...or sorts.

  Front.

 Back.