What IS that thing?

Earlier today a giant remote-controlled bed frame with a diesel engine interrupted my breakfast. After a night of poor sleep (mad cleaning spree brought on by caffeine at midnight), I thought I'd gone completely insane when this monstrosity wheeled around the street in front of my house. 

Turns out the bed frame picks up storage units and scoots them around, and this one was in the employ of a neighbour. 

Weird and noisy

Moving along. Tapestry #1 is off the loom and I'm darning in the ends and sewing up a few holes before I dye it. Here's a 3-part sequence showing progress over the course of 6 hours or 8... I can't remember how long it took to build up that section, but it took a long time. 

Here's tapestry #2. I tore it off the little frame loom at home because it was taking far too much time. I did this chunk in about 3 hours yesterday. 

Leopard print pants are awesome

That's all for now. I'll be visiting family this weekend, and won't be able to finish Tap 2 on Saturday as planned. 

Pulse

I'm so pleased by the progress I'm making and the shape of the project so far. I know it looks like a weird blobby-beige thing - don't be so nervous, it's supposed to look like that for now - but the accumulation of hundreds of tiny steps will eventually be coherent and beautiful. 

Living an inspired and strange life is a continuing priority, so I spent Saturday evening building a blanket fort in the living room. In a house like this, full of beautiful rugs and old chairs, the fort seemed more like a Berber tent or a Mongolian yurt. And with Bjork's latest album blaring at nearly full volume (as if the collection of odd furniture and my own strange costume [because you can't be in a blanket fort without a costume] weren't enough...), I made myself at home. 

Q: Why would an adult build a blanket fort, dress up in odd clothes, and dance around like a little kid for an evening? 

A: I like making blanket forts. I don't want to be bored. I want to change my perception of this space and these objects. I want to transport myself to a new land. I want to be my witchy shapeshifter self, and what better way than to do that, what better way to refresh imagination/spirit/body than to build a new home and live there for a while? 

to top it off, we're getting even more snow tonight!

Continuing that train of thought, what will I accomplish this week that will refresh my imagination and uphold my responsibilities?

1. Pull together my artist talk presentation and have it a polished gem by Wednesday

2. Practice 6 days of yoga without skipping a day...

3. Practice painting

4. Curate a collection of animals

5. Turn that coconut hull into something

 

Ashes and Diamonds

Apologies for the lack of posting last week- I worked every day and didn't get studio time until Saturday. Thank the gods this is a 3 studio day week, and oh what a gloriously productive and happy week it's been! 

First up, I need to thank the Guild members yet again for their support and understanding while I've been trying with varying degrees of success to sort my shit out. It's probably been pretty annoying to deal with me, and I've yet to help wash the teacups. Secondly, I need to thank the Burlington Public Library for being awesome in pretty much every way possible. If you ever visit this town, have tea with the Guild at the BAC, and then go to the library and talk to Lauren after you've biked along the waterfront trail. 

I swear nobody paid me to endorse all that. 

If you would like to pay me to endorse all that, shoot me an email! My rates are reasonable. 

What's chased some of the gloom away? Phone calls, movies, meetings, and studio time. I've been talking to dear ML. out East about living inspired lives and staving off boredom/stagnation, and we (the Guild and I) have been working on the info package for the residency program for the coming year, I'm making things in the studio and work's crystallizing, and I watched "Ashes and Diamonds" like... four times (amazing, inspiring, gut-wrenching, gorgeous movie! Find and watch it)! 

Something happened in that conversation with ML. last week that shifted my attitude towards my living space and life here. I need to do more strange and small things, things like building blanket forts in the bathtub, curating exhibitions of glassware, colouring with crayons... Inspiration comes from many sources, and it's too easy to get stuck in a negative headspace when you're far from the people and animals you love and you're constructing your life, post-graduation.  

I'm getting more encouragement and inspiration from the studio stuff. It's magically shaping up. Armed with weird coloured odd yarns, I sat down to start weaving on Tuesday.

various yarns and cloth dyed with avocado, cochineal, walnut, kamala, tea, and a six-pound rusty anchor.

All of the boxes were made (and made possible by the Potter's Guild) on Tuesday too. Look at 'em! They'll be white once fired.

Easy way to spread a warp: throw a few shots of fine thread and beat into place. Repeat a couple of times and TA DAA! So much easier than sticks or rag. The next time I do this for tapestry though, I will add a solid something before weaving to give a firm base. This method's a little flimsy for tapestry and I found my first inch of weaving slid back on the warp. 

plus it's pretty...

Free-form tapestry in progress (note: I'm over-dyeing all of this nonsense):

of course there's weird shit in here! 

Since weaving 12 panels in this fashion would take an insanely long time, I'm changing the construction of the boxes a little, and for the better...

And did I mention I'VE JUST FINISHED KNITTING A SOCK?