International Freeform Crochet Guild 2011 Challenge

The INTFF 2011 Challenge book and website are released!  The challenge theme was Mythologies, Stories & Fairy Tales, and I have to say that I've never seen such a terrific display of freeform... ever!

Check it out!

http://www.freeformcrochet.com/

Grand Canyon Sunset

Between a bout with bronchitis, I've managed to start a large new piece.  I've wet-felted the background, and now I'm going to have fun embellishing it. 

I've got some gorgeous eggplant-colored silk yarn, and I'm going to use it to suggest the cliff-tops and mesas.  I'm laying it out, and then I'll couch it onto the felted background.

Above you can see me playing with following some of the felt colorway with the eggplant silk.  And below, I'm needle-felting on various yarns to highlight the top of some cliffs with vegetation on the right.

I'm thinking of suggesting a river, far below, meandering through.  Will post this in progress as I work on it.

Getting Organized...

Was getting organized yesterday for some upcoming submissions.  I'll be submitting for 6x6, the INTFF 2011 Challenge (for which I need to write something up describing it, and which I can't show you until after it's published!), and Peace Felt.  And starting to get piles of things together for Elegance in April. 

Neal worked on his ship and put together a couple of display easels for me for EinA.  And Donna came by to work on some charity items for her crochet group.

I was noodling around with some roulags of wool, and had a glimmer of an idea on a possible piece using them.

So really, the studio looks like a wreck, but there is some method to my madness!

Moon Kissed is done...

"And still of a winter's night, they say, when the wind is in the trees,


When the moon is a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas,

When the road is a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,

A highwayman comes riding— "

-  Alfred Noyes, The Highwayman
 
 

 

It's hard to tell in the photos, but the tree branches reach forward, out to the viewer.

 

This piece will be submitted to the Danforth Museum's Off the Wall juried show.  I'm hoping that they can see the dimensionality in the 3MB file.

Anticipation...

Looking forward to a day at the studio tomorrow!

My sister's coming by to work on her jewelry (she'll be at Elegance in April with me on the 30th at St. George's in Framingham), and I'll be photographing stuff for various submissions and finishing up Moon Kissed.

I'm thinking of submitting Moon Kissed (and two others) to the Danforth Off the Wall juried show this year.  It was so fantastic to be juried into last year's show and such a great experience, that I want to do it again!

Elegance In April - 4/30/11

An evening of artistic and cultural wonders for your review. So break out your fancy attire and be swept into the world of local artists as you meander garden paths of paintings, photography, fiber arts, stained glass, book and poetry readings. And all surrounded by soft music, samples of wine, cheese and various culinary treats to accent your journey.

Like what you see? Make a purchase and take the elegance home.
A silent auction is also available.
When: Saturday, April 30, 2011

Where: St. George Parish Hall, 74 School Street, Framingham
Time: 7:00 to 9:00 P.M.
Cost: $25 (early bird $20 - March 20 to April 10) - no tickets at the door.
Proceeds: To help defray the cost of St. George Youth Ministry team's pilgrimage to Madrid, Spain in August for World Youth Day.

For tickets:   Leslee Willitts willitts at rcn.com 

Moon Kissed

Although I'm not able to post a photo of the freeform crochet piece I'm working on for the 2011 International FreeForm Guild's themed show (fairy tales, stories, myths), I have also been working on a wet-felted piece with needlefelted detail that I'm calling Moon Kissed.  I finished wet-felting the background of wool and silk yesterday, and today I started on the three-dimensional needle-felted detail.

It's a tough one to take a photo of, because of the dark colors, but I hope this gives you an idea of the background and the three-dimensional tree.

My goodness!

I really haven't meant to ignore this blog, but life has gotten away from me.  You know how it goes.  Sick me.  Sick Neal.  Sick critters.  Root canal.  Neal in hospital.  Neal in surgery.  And then you look up and it's been weeks and weeks since you've blogged... or gotten to the studio.

Had a great time at the Danforth, showing the teen docents how to needlefelt.  They had fun, and I think I've created new needlefelters.

Am also working on some items for the Elegance in April event at St. George's.  My sister (with her jewelry) and I with my needlefelt will be there.  Should be fun!

The primary piece in progress is for the International Free Form Guild's theme show.  It's due in early May, and I can't show you what it is -- it's unveiled at the online show, and published in a book that comes out in the summer.  The theme this year is Myths, Stories, and Fairy Tales.  I'm having fun planning and executing my idea.

I've got this coming Monday off, so I'll be in the studio all day Monday instead of Saturday.  Or perhaps in addition to Saturday -- not sure yet.  But if you're in the area on Monday, stop by (10a-3p).

I was excited to find that the book, 100 Artists of New England, shipped before I thought it was going to from Amazon.  E. Ashley Rooney has put together an interesting collection of emerging artists.  This collection includes my bud, Lynette Haggard (p110) with her fabulous encaustic.  The book is organized by each state in New England, with luscious full-color images of the artists and their works.  It's a visual dessert of a book. 

-Perry-

Getting Back to Go

I spent yesterday getting the studio back to working order.  Neal's going to be building a wooden ship over the winter, so I need to re-organize all the beading supplies.  I've ordered shelving, and will jam it in somewhere!  I figure one more day for re-organizing and I'll be able to play... err... work.  :)

Whew!

Open Studios was a rousing success, with a good stream of folks coming through... including almost all of my friends and family members!  It was great fun, including having my sister and her jewelry there.

Now comes the job of putting away all of my displays and getting the studio back into working shape.  It's been weeks and weeks since I've been able to work on my art, with the run-up to the event.

Remember, if you're in the Saxonville area on Saturdays, I'm usually there from 10a until 3p.  Come on up and ring the bell.

-Perry-

Open Studios... closer and closer!

Save the dates!

Our Saxonville Studios Open Studios 2010 preparations are in high gear.  Gallery 2B has a fresh coat of paint and a new carpet, and will soon be hung with artwork from all of the artists.  Our flyer is ready to print out and distribute.  Invitation postcards are ordered and will be mailed out at the end of next week.  We're all spiffing up our studios in readiness for you! 

I hope you all can come to this free and family-friendly event.  We are a really diverse group of artists and artisans, and will have everything from oil painting, acrylics, watercolors, encaustics, silk painting, photography, jewelry, sculpture, textile and fabric art for viewing and holiday shopping.  Stop in and view the art, chat with the artists, and see working artists' studios.

Free and ample parking.  More info, map and directions at:  http://www.saxonvillestudios.com/

See you there!

-Perry-

Post Road Art Center "Abstract Show 2010"

I was juried in to the Post Road Art Center's "Abstract Show 2010".  Opening night is tomorrow, 5:30p until 8:00p, at the Center in Marlborough.

Read more here-- hope to see you there!

http://www.postroadartcenter.com/Abstract_Show_2010_Page_1.html

-Perry-

I Love Saturdays!

Saturdays are the only days I seem to be able to carve out for the studio right now, but I make them pretty inviolate.  From 10a until 3p, you can find me there.  Sometimes earlier.  Not usually later.  My friends are always welcome to come by to visit or play-- I love having company while working.

Today is a mixed kind of day.  I need to put together more embellished purses for the museum store, but I also need to make a fabric skirt around my sink (it's a LONG sink-- eight feet long but four inches deep -- perfect for felting) to gussy the place up a bit for the open studio event the first weekend in November.

You are coming to the open studio November 6th or 7th, from noon to 5p, aren't you? 

Good.  It should be fun.  The Saxonville Studio artists are hosting an event where you can meet all of the artists and see their work.  Come see how we work in Saxonville's old mill complex.  It's a family-friendly event, and free!  More as we get closer to the date-- but please put it on your calendar now!

So, breakfast and then off I go!

Vacation Week is Over

My week of vacation is over, but I got a few pieces done in a few extra studio sessions.

I finished "Bird's Eye View of Tidal Pools" in needlefelt.  I'm torn on whether or not to wet-felt it.  I probably won't, as I like it the way it is now and am not sure how it would alter.

I started and finished "Roses at the Light", and am pleased with it as I was experimenting with various aspects of it.

And then tried a piece called "Winter Departs" with mixed wool and silk.

My sister joined me and made a gorgeous fossil coral and copper crystal necklace, bracelet, and earrings on copper.

Lunched with Colene, Michelle, Valarie and Elton and admired the shibori in progress.  Am looking forward to playing with them now and then, torturing silk and cotton with dyes and string and bleach.

This Week in Review

My sister joined me in studio Saturday, making jewelry.  Lynnette came in for lunch.  I like company and visitors.

I needlefelted detail on Peace Felt 2010, and it's complete for mailing out in a week or two.

Finished Pink Pockets.  Pockets is turning into a theme.  It's very lightly needlefelted.  I like the feel of fluffy batts of wool, and coaxing pockets into it.

I did another piece in my "Times of My Life" series, Baby.  Baby is a very lightly needlefelted piece.  So I have Baby, 8, Hippie, 28, and Bride.  I need to take photos of all of these.  Hippie is the first piece of textile art-to-wear I ever made, back in the late 60's-- a pair of hip hugger bell bottom jeans that I patched and embroidered (NFS of course).

I started a needlefelt background for a rocky beach, and worked on another piece that's a birdseye view of sea and marsh that needs to be wet-felted before I needlefelt detail.

In more mundane efforts, I threw all of the loose stuff in front of the shelves into bins, so it looks a little more organized.  Open Studio is coming up the first weekend of November, and the studio needs to be accessible and I need to have display space.

Looking forward to taking Lynette's class in encaustic.  (http://www.lynettehaggard.com/)  Should be fun to experiment with mixing encaustic and fiber.

Counting down the days until I get back in the studio next Saturday.  And vacation week follows-- up to Maine for Monday through Wednesday, and then home and studio.  Need to gather together new things for the Danforth Museum Shop for the fall season.

Today was an abbreviated day at the studio, but I did finish up the Peace Felt project piece, and worked on a new landscape.  Pockets is completed.  And I worked on a felt purse that I'm just adding needle-felted embellishments to, for the museum store in the fall.

I'm going to try to get down one afternoon this week to dye some pashminas.  I'd like to solid dye them, and then later try some shibori with bleach and see how they come out.  Total experiment, but it could be fun!

What I'm Working On

I had a productive weekend in the studio, spending most of Saturday and then Sunday morning starting a few new projects.  I'll post some photos soon.

1)  An abstract called "Pockets" that has an under-sea feel to it that's lightly needlefelted.
2)  A wet-felted abstract piece with varied shades of purple wool and silk hankies.
3)  A needle-felted purple abstract piece for my Peace Felt Project recipient.
4)  Several hyperbolic crochet pieces for the Smithsonian Community [Coral] Reef Project.

As I said, a productive weekend.  Very satisfying.


Some other pieces from July...

Whither Blows the Wind? (Gulf Coast Summer of 2010)

Birch Tree, 2010

Dawn Breaks While Mother Nature Slumbers, 2010

Green is the Color

We've had a verdant summer, and I've been saturated in greens.

This piece is entitled "Green is the Color", and shows a crisp rocky stream at the foot of gently rolling grass, bordered by a mossy stone fence.

Traditionally matted and framed, showing that fiber art can be more conventionally mounted.

"Off the Wall" Exhibition at the Danforth, 2010

Katherine did an amazing job at mounting the exhibition at the Danforth... and I'm not just saying that because my piece was on the title wall. :) What a talented group of artists at the Danforth-- I'm so honored to be included in this exhibition!

At the Danforth Museum of Art, Framingham, MA

Annual Members’ Juried Exhibition "Off the Wall"
Artists' Reception 
Thursday June 17, 2010  -  5:30pm - 7:30 pm

I'm very excited that one of my pieces, Time Passages, was selected for the Off the Wall exhibition.  This is a wet felted piece, with needle felted detail.  Please view the exhibition, along with the juried Community of Artists exhibition, at the Danforth during the Artists' Reception -- I'd love to see you, and I promise that you'll enjoy what's on view!