This is the poem I just completed in Calligraphy. It concerns the life and struggles of Mississippi civil rights worker Fannie Lou Hamer.
It is written in the Italic style and fitting in all the words meant an extra long piece of paper, plus lots of effort to make No Mistakes in the words of the author, Dan Richard. He was so moved by the story of her personal struggles that he wrote this poem, which was read to Dr. Martin Luther King. He commissioned me to make this handwritten tribute to her which will hang in the Civil Rights Museum in Belzoni, MS.
Here is a framed print of my calligraphic piece entitled " Outrageous". It is part of my "ripped torn series", where I use my hands, never scissors, to tear the papers and create that loose effect I am after.
I prefer using handmade paper whenever possible. It's the texture, and the way it rips that can even leave intriguing bits of thread to create my desired image. I use a heavy white stock to write my message in the Italic alphabet, in black ink. I like to add a metallic water color as an accent. Since I chose gold paint , my frame color was to pick up this hue. This is one of the smaller prints, but I also show this as a card.
Finally, I think the message is why I chose this for today's blog. It reads as follows:" I want to be an outrageous old woman who never gets called old lady. I want to get leaner and meaner, sharp edged and earth colored 'til I fade away from pure Joy!". Author Unknown.
As my years on this earth mount up, I want to engage and rejoice in my individuality. Pure joy seems a nice way to go.
Here I am again in my white bowl series. Made out of high fired porcelain, this one has a specific name." Le Chat" is French for the cat. French is a language I like to speak and carry it into my work, when possible.
I started doing my "critter" series a while ago. The cat is the perfect creature to abstract, because they all have a certain silhouette. Now with a dog, you are going to want to see the small breed, or the larger; the long haired or sleeker profile. A cat is a cat. I have recently begun to appreciate this animal as I am getting to know a couple as personal friends here in Sedona, where I live.
You notice its unusual shape? Who says all bowls must be round? I make this by hand.The design is drawn in cobalt blue oxide, then covered with a clear, transparent, lead free glaze that makes it easy to clean. The color white you see is the actual clay. itself.
People often want to buy it for their pet to eat out of. Perfectly understandable. I also enjoy that as I get to the bottom of the bowl, my cereal is peeking out between the ears or tail. Art that makes you smile. I like that.
It is summertime in the high desert, here in Sedona. My white, porcelain bowl, holding its ripe fruit, just seems to fit into the season and the mood of this late afternoon. The monsoon has just come. The air is heavy with moisture and it is getting darker outside.The light color of this bowl shows off not only its form, but what it holds inside.
This is part of my series of handmade bowls with a clear, shiny glaze over it.You are actually looking at the color of the clay itself! Fired to a very high temperature, this bowl can go in the oven, is food safe, and may last longer than us, if taken care of.
The outside surface is intentionally textured to better show off the iron oxide stain I have added. As I tell people, "This is what makes the red rocks of Sedona , red." I like the juxtaposition of the smooth interior and the rough of the exterior.The yin and the yang of my creation.
Here I am in front of Victor Hugo's house. It is located in the Place Vosges, a very nice little park area on the right bank of Paris. It was late at night, after a very nice meal, and the museum was closed. It was a thrill to me to be where this writer, artist, and poet of the nineteenth century created some of those works we know.
Remember the movie "The Hunchback of Notre Dame"? This man wrote the book. I read Les Miserables as a young girl and it moved me then. Born in 1802, and living until 1885, he saw many changes in his country and world . His work touches upon the political, social, and artistic issues of his time. He served in the National Assembly and campaigned against the death penalty. A rather outspoken critic of what he deemed unjust politics, this man was not afraid to speak his mind.
Hugo is an artist I have always respected. I found out he is buried in the Pantheon, on the left bank, near the Sorbonne.That was the area I stayed when I first visited Paris almost 50 years ago. Life does go in circles.
Now I am back in Sedona, Arizona, remembering my visit and thinking about what I will be creating next.
Here I am last week at an art "exposition", over in Paris, France. I was staying in the Marais area, which is full of quite sophisticated art galleries. But this was something different.
In a large room named Halle des Blancs Manteaux,
(Hall of the White Coats) there were some 60 artists exhibiting their work for the weekend. To do this, they had to pay the promoter about $1,000 euros each. A euro is about $1.15 each. So we artists always seem to pay to show, it's just quite pricey there.
I had a fun time going around and talking with various exhibitors. Speaking French is a big help. We had literally stumbled onto this opening on a Saturday evening. It closed at 8pm in the evening. Maybe to go to eat dinner. They
do that later over there. Have you ever tried to find a restaurant serving food in Sedona after nine pm? Believe me, it doesn't happen here in rural Arizona.
The artist with me is named Hortense Varillon and she had the most cunning images on glass, almost in a shadow box. I had not seen anything like it and we got to talking. Funny how some things are universal. "Are you selling", I asked and got a spiel about how difficult it is to sell art today . I found this the common complaint from other exhibitors in the Halle, and the level of work was quite high. I bought her a beer, since I was not the optimum art customer this trip.
So how do artist try to sell their work in Paris? They do whatever they can do, just like us.
Here are my latest "Native Sculptures". They stand about a foot tall each, and even though they are two separate creations, they like to hang out together. Such new pieces, they are still here in my studio display shelves.
As you can see , they are well dressed and bejeweled. Real Arizona turquoise on their neck and ears. From my study of southwestern and other tribes, plus historical evidence, adornment is definitely observed by both sexes. I like using real stones, making them more authentic.
Their robes are likely blankets, which has long been a custom for outer wear. I have taken artistic license and my turquoise glaze seemed appropriate for my desired results.
These were constructed as large clay slabs, built around a loose form. High fire porcelain shrinks quite a bit, so you can imagine how tall these forms seemed when first they entered my kiln. I constructed their heads separately, and then attached them. Faces are always a challenge. How to create charater starting with a piece of the earth?
I feel my Native Sculpture show their personalities.
