Zaftig

My work is included in the 2014 January issue of Zaftig, an online art magazine created and edited by Jacob Sanders.  This months theme is Nourishment.  Check out the zine here.

The Always Hungry Buff Orpington

Work in progress.  Honey's favorite foods!  Honey is a Buff Orpington.  I am reading a book titled Homegrown and Handmade: A Practical Guide to More Self-Reliant Living by Deborah Niemann and in the book she quotes Lara Caldwell who says "The Buff Orpingtons were certainly the calmest and gentlest, even the rooster was a big softy who got pushed around by bantams, but definitely not feed efficient layers."  page 116

That made me laugh so much because I always noticed that Honey ate a lot more than the other chickens and her figure sure looked like she ate the most food.  Nothing got between Honey and her scraps and I love her for that!

Miss Honey and Her Cow Pie

Work in Progress for page 11.

Color and Shape Study of Rosa Bianca Heirloom Eggplant-Finished!

In September I posted some water color studies I did of two Rosa Bianca Heirloom Eggplants and my plans for those studies. I finished the piece today. Here is a link to the post with the studies.

I had finished all the eggplants and started sewing them onto a big navy blue fabric. I got pricked so many times that I was about to give up. It is still shocking and unsettling every time I get pricked. And even more frustrating when I get pricked three times in 30 seconds.

I laid out the eggplants on the fabric to see what larger shape they would make.

Here is the piece finished. It is 32 x 28 inches, all fabric and thread. I think the title is Color and Shape Study of Rosa Bianca Heirloom Eggplant or just Rosa Bianca Heirloom Eggplant. I like the first title because it gives a bit more of an explantation of what the viewer is seeing, but it makes the title long and calling something a study makes a piece seem like it is not a final piece. Then again, I could use a different word than study. Or maybe it is obvious enough what I am trying to do when I simply call it Rosa Bianca Heirloom Eggplant. I have two more pieces similar to this and I go back and forth with the two sorts of titles.

And a close-up of an eggplant.

I am glad to be done with this one. Always near the end of a piece I get antsy to start another with completely different materials. I don't think I could ever do just one media over and over again. I need a break from fabric and sewing machine, so I am going back to sculpture to create a piece about the disappearance of our honey bees.

Rosa Bianca Heirloom Eggplants

In the middle of August I went to start an eggplant inspired piece when I received a phone call that made me realize I had two shows coming up and that I had so much to do. I put it aside and haven't had a chance to get back to it till now. The shows are done...and I am relieved. I can rest and make artwork again. I will post images from the BFA show in my next post.

These are two beautiful Rosa Bianca Heirloom Eggplants I bought from the farmer's market back in early August. I was so surprised by their shapes and colors. Right after this picture was taken they were sliced and made into vegan eggplant parmesan.

I knew I only had a matter of time before they went bad so I did as many watercolor paintings I needed to do to make sure I captured everything I saw in the eggplants. I was interested in their silhouette and their creamy yellows, many purples and that great brown shape in the middle (not sure what that is called).

So this is what I was up to today. I am using the water color studies to make these abstract fabric eggplants. I will make many and then sew them to something...I am not sure yet. First I have to make many of these before I decide what to do next. It is a lot of fun to be free of copying an eggplant from life or photograph. Instead, I use my memory of what I enjoyed most when I looked at these eggplants and the result is something new that slightly resembles the eggplant but also creates a new perspective.

I am so happy to be using fabric completely for once instead of mixing it with other mediums. I was greatly inspired by Rebecca Ringquist when I saw her work at the Packer Schopf Gallery in May. It was a lovely way to start my internship.

These crazy eyes are the result of a hectic last few months. Maybe now I can pick up the apartment...

I have had a great summer and I am excited to be experiencing fall for the first time in 19 years before school got in the way.