Sunday, March 31, 2013

Everything Else

What I want to share is the varied collection of photos -- stuff outside the mainstream of my photographic thoughts while I was on the road for 2 weeks.

So here goes.

There were nearly 3 miles of sidelined train cars, south of Olympia. Some have graffiti, some not. They've been there for years.

Taken walking across the 5th Avenue Bridge in Olympia early morning.
We drove south to Portland dropping in on Tori Bryer who was at Putney School with me. She's an accomplished artist, with wonderful artifacts everywhere.

&  some of Tori's art work. 

At Ian Trivett's I fell in love with his cobwebs.

Along the way south I saw this marvelous whale vertebra.

Bridges kept happening.
 

A most unusual clock.

This is an American Bittern. It's a rare bird to see because they are very reclusive. Not this time. We were able to be pretty up close. You can see why this bird is so easily camouflaged in reeds. This was only the 2nd time I've ever seen it. And what a great post!

These  next 3 are from an artist's home in Sonoma County. These face-forms-from-metal-scraps were all over the property.


This is my sister, Annie, in her garden. She is processing compost. We both talk at once! Hmmmm

 There were many boxes in Annie's garden with collections in each....
...like the glove bin. Annie told me she has trouble throwing things away. My eyes got bright because I love helping people throw things away!

Horse-like hoists in Oakland harbor.

My cousin's daughter, Naomi, showed us around to see her favorite houses in Alameda.


                          
That's enough & the best of the trip & so that's it for now!

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Textile work -- Revisiting Old Work

As I went to visit friends & relatives, I would find my work hung in their homes. This always is a bit of a jolt to me. I have to reconsider if I still think the work worthy!
...as in worthy of still being up.

So I thought I'd share these glimpses of my past work in order that they reappeared to me. At Ian Trivett's home.....

These first two are collages onto personally-worn-blue-jean-personally-made-paper. The cut images are from art magazines. I had forgotten all about them.  The themes, as I was getting ready to title them, were scientific/mathematical.

Time & Space Revisited                           
Other Kinds of Measures




The quilt I made for Ian's first baby.

I liked that burl that John Trivett found & I took a burr to it & hollowed it out. For many years this bowl held the wonderful driftwood I collected on Long Beach on the edge of Vancouver Island. My 3 girls teethed on these salt-laden driftwood pieces. When John & I separated I gave the bowl to Ian, my eldest stepson. I still like it & I still want to make it thinner!! Too funny!

NO, I didn't do this, nor do I own it, except in my heart.  Under each rhomboid patch is a piece of paper. These patches were whip-stitched together. [You don't need to know what this is!] The paper is removed after the 4 seems around each patch are sewn. This is the classic pattern called Baby's Blocks or Tumbling Blocks.  I saw this wonderful old piece-in-progress in Tori Bryer's studio, &, I might add, coveted it!!

On to my sister's house in Mill Valley.
I gave Annie 3 quilts in all.
The earliest quilt I gave her was a bed quilt.
 
This is yet another mandala from my early quilt-making years. With beads and sequins. I called it  Byzantine Summer Fantasy.

This one's called Australian Motif. The dots were made with the end of a chopstick wet with acrylic paint! I've thought about doing more like this, but it's in the zone of cultural appropriation... not so great a zone! So I never have. I still am fascinated by this art--even the modern stuff.

This is upholstery was on a couch in a motel the last day of travels. I am mad for triangles. 
I love the thinner & thicker sawtooth columns!

I have other examples to show you of my triangle work. This one's very sawtoothy.

This I made in 1998. It's called Red Triangle Quilt   & a very recent one, unnamed yet.

Then there is this one that I shared before.

...and these ones that I made in Maui. 

& this is my favorite Maui triangle quilt.

And here for the finale: this was done in 2010. It has one Very Important Triangle!
I had NO idea were this revisiting chapter would take me, but I love how it fetched up in my triangle fascination.

                                                            That's all for now.




Simplicity


On the coast I noticed the gulls were flying north. I don't think of gulls as migratory, but of course! They were not in a flock, but an almost continual straggling non-line.

The ultimate simplicity, ocean & sky.



Construction zone.....
&
 contrails
&
repeats!








These water photos aren't really simple, not at all. But when I watch moving water these patterns often miss my notice. I was captivated by the marble-like look of these surfaces.

Last, a corrugated barn with various scuzz....

That's it for now.