Packed East Coast Trip

I recently took a quick trip back East to surprise my sister-in-law for her birthday. We made it into a tri-city marathon, visiting Baltimore, Philadelphia, and NYC.

Step outside Baltimore city and it's horse country. So lush and green.

Sudden thunder, lightening, rain, and sun - fabulous weather! At Fells Point, Baltimore, MD.

We saw how much Baltimore has changed (in certain neighborhoods) where gentrification has taken hold, and what remained the same - in personality and physical structures. I sure do miss the east coast. As a Western Pennsylvanian, I'm not from "the coast", in fact, Pittsburgh is on the border between the midwest and the east. But I know my love of old architecture in Europe is rooted in old American cities. 

This is the Phoenix Shot Tower built in 1828.

Shot Tower is a Baltimore landmark I've enjoyed ever since my husband bought a postcard with this image from me in order to introduce himself. We just celebrated our anniversary in Baltimore over 30 years later.

Candy-colored houses along Federal Hill Park, Baltimore.

First night in NYC at a Cuban restaurant in East Harlem. The mural behind me looks like a stage set or I'm actually IN Cuba. Yes, that's my microbatch textile scarf I'm wearing.

Whitney Biennial - Is she part of the exhibit? If so, I like it, a lot.

A colorful room at the Biennial. Thinking about site- specific art like this faux stained glass.

Love this brickwork in B-More.

Happy pooch in dog park as seen from a footbridge in Philadelphia.

I'd really like to know what other people think of the Biennial this year. I admit, I'm still puzzling over it. Maybe we just did and saw too much and my senses were simply over- and under-whelmed! In a single day I attended three trade shows, including Surtex, the art licensing show, which was really interesting to me as I'm investigating licensing my art for fashion, product and textile designs. All three (furniture and stationery too) were at Jacob Javitz Center. I went with my design/ illustration Parsons friends. THEN we went to the Whitney show with another group of art friends. No wonder I couldn't stand up for another moment at the end of our last full day....

So my interest in digitally printed clothing pulls me toward this complicated story at the Whitney Biennial. 

At the Surtex Trade Show in NYC, for art licensing, an attractive booth.

Artful Weekend

ArtSpan artists dropping off their work for stARTup Art Fair weekend - before the room is transformed into a gallery.

stARTup Art Fair Taking Off

Eighteen artists were selected to be in ArtSpan's room at Hotel Del Sol for stARTup Art Fair. I was one of them, with my soft sculpture. Rhiannon MacFaden has been involved since it started and she thinks this fair is really taking off now. It is San Francisco's contemporary art fair for independent artists, which takes place annually during Art Market SF. http://sf.startupartfair.com

Joen (L) and Allison (R) of ArtSpan as we wait for the crowds to show up.

Art Market SF is a Hit This Year

Speaking of bold strokes at the Art Market, here's a gorgeous ultramarine blue piece that caught my eye.

Along with the bold there is the delicate and beautifully crafted work.

Legion of Honor - Always Inspiring

This sculpture is much larger than life and totally natural. It contains a candle wick that was lit upon installation. Fischer's work is interspersed throughout the museum in surprising ways! 

https://legionofhonor.famsf.org/exhibitions/urs-fischer

Me and my sculpture surrounded by selected ArtSpan artists work. 

Set-up day in the courtyard of Hotel del Sol.

One of the larger works on display at Art Market SF reminds me of my recent trip to Burma! It's a blow-up version of a reclining Buddha.

The gala was packed but fun. Lots of VIP tickets were circulated. I had to go back again to get a better look at the work with less of a crowd.

Here's another piece of meticulous sculpture that caught my eye. Both the dog (above) and the porcelain (left) were at the Duane Reed Gallery, St. Louis.

After two art fairs I went back to see Monet's early work at the Legion. This museum is a fantastic place to go on a beautiful day! The views are spectacular. And this is a show to see again and again. This time we wondered around the upstairs galleries and caught the quirky sculptures of Urs Fischer (left).

What a jam-packed art weekend! It was filled with friends, feasts, art fairs, and art museums. It was bathed in sunshine and fair weather.

Sunday night wrapped up with my book group and a lively discussion of an unusual novel called The Vegetarian. My favorite parts of the book were about the art video that describes the protagonist turning into a plant.

Exploring Soft Sculpture

In 2016 I began making soft sculpture as a natural outgrowth of learning to sew. I had not made a soft piece since art school days, when I made a large pink satin baby. This time, I started with a small prototype, in the form of a rag doll. She's made of leftover Lycra fabric with my artwork, Woman on the Bay Bridge.

Detail of Blue Woman with Pink Posey, at The Laundry, SF, CA, 2016

Leaning against the gallery wall next to one of my silk scroll paintings, here's my first life-size soft sculpture.

Stage one was this rag doll made from fabric remaining from my "1-yard dress".

Learning sewing and stuffing techniques

Embroidery sampler

Wrapped legs and pelvis, a work in progress

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At the Pure Barre studio on West Portal, instructor Kelly Leslie wears my art leggings.

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Kelly says these leggings are not only extremely unique but durable and comfortable. Title of legging art: Women and Artichokes.

Moving into a full-size, standing sculpture, I took a similar approach. I used a work of art printed on a slightly different stretchy fabric. This time - rather than having a piece that is the same on both sides, I used the background of the painting for the backside. Both were sewn and stuffed and feel nice and squishy to the touch. I'll likely add armatures to future works so they can stand up better on their own.

My plan is generate quite a few of these pieces - enough to fill space. I envision a roomful of my printed, stuffed figures - made from my drawings. I see them stacked, hanging, and seated on stuffed chairs. I'm starting with a series titled 65 million refugees.  This is a very real and alarming number. I'm going to pitch this idea as an installation piece which will be customized to various spaces. I need grants and residencies to help me produce this large body of work (so to speak). 

I'm also taking a soft sculpture class now and learning a bunch of new techniques: creating different types of armatures, making pillows for body parts, wrapping, embroidery and applique, reed basketry, weaving, stuffing and batting, and more. Incorporating painting and drawing in 3-D. 

But also, like a sewing circle, being in a class (all women, no surprise), we are sharing knowledge. And I am realizing how long it takes and how labor intensive it is to make this work.

I'm happy about being a part of a movement with roots in the Bay Area. There's joy in making art out of every day life skills and transforming materials around me. I love the idea of combining sensory experiences too. I can't wait to use scent as well, since that is something very particular in my life. I inherited an extremely sensitive sense of smell which sometimes torments me, but I will put to use! In fact I look forward to using everything I know and have learned as a creative director over the years. Producing an experience and filling a space.

The idea of soft sculpture as it relates to the body and wearable art has always made sense to me. I started applying my art to fabric a couple of years ago. I use fabric as a substrate for single images on large silk scrolls, and I've made limited editions of wearables in patterns. This design, unlike others I've made, is not a single image nor a pattern, but it is made to wrap around a body creating a living, moving sculpture. Women and Artichokes is my photo of artichokes collaged with my life drawing.

Lessons Learned in Year One

LOOKING BACK

After many years of yearning, I changed my life from being a part-time artist to going into full-time art-making in February 2016. I created several bodies of work, website, gallery packet, press kit, art CV, bio and artist's statement, and I participated in several shows. Now I'm taking a look back to consider what I've learned and what I need to do next to continue making progress.

TRANSITIONING

During the build-up to my transition one year ago, I co-founded a creative agency for arts marketing called Stir. Before that I enjoyed a productive stint in non-profit marketing and design with my agency, Cherry Tree Creative. Both were businesses I founded after working as the marketing creative director for the JCCSF for seven years. Before that, and for many years, I ran a creative agency in North Beach called Kirshenbaum Communications. And throughout this time, I drew a model every week. Now with the support of friends, husband, and art coach, I began this new journey into art – cultivating a different way of being, seeing, and doing. 

One thing that happened in my first year of enthusiasm and experimentation was that I have confused many people about my goals, so I will try to clarify them here and now. My plan is to make art, show it, and sell it. I'm working on getting bolder, bigger, stronger conceptually and technically to become an exhibiting visual artist, getting into better and better juried shows, galleries, and other quality venues. 

A STRUGGLE WITH WORDS

I've been concerned about semantics and terminology and what to call myself and my art business. I started out calling my art site Cherry Pits Art and my card title started out as "Artist", morphed into "Artist and Designer" and now I've settled on  "Visual Artist". I've shifted the name emphasis on my website away from the Cherry Pits brand to my own name, because that now seems particularly critical to being an artist.

I've been thinking about design vs. fine art, art vs. crafts, fashion vs. artwear, decorative art and ceramics vs. sculpture, products vs. art merchandise. And the term "making". Where does that fit in? Even as I'm writing this I can't decide what terms to use. Fine Artist vs. Visual Artist. One source says: Current usage of the term "visual arts" includes fine art as well as the applied, decorative arts and crafts, but this was not always the case. Hey, I know!

MY TEXTILE HEAVEN

I love what I've discovered so far - the world of making art using textiles that I make. The tricky part of this new thread is that I confused people about my direction. Working in the digital design industry for so many years it was exciting for me to be able make things that are tangible and useable. But suddenly I found myself explaining that I'm not a fashion or product designer now...but a fine artist.

CLEAR MESSAGING

So, now I'm re-working my website after a helpful portfolio review with three SF gallerists, thanks to SFAN, at Arc Gallery this month. I want to be really clear about my artwork and let people (especially gallerists and jurists) see what they want as easily as possible. So, I've rearranged my site nav, and moved the photo section into a subsection of the blog, because it's not my artistic thrust. I've also removed the many art products that I made and were shown in my store (now called "Available Works" and is comprised of my prints on paper). I might maintain an active sideline elsewhere though I haven't decided yet.

Now I have to apply everything I ever learned about PR, sales, and marketing to myself and my art. And I have to remember that people will not know what I have in mind so I must preface and explain. This is a good place to start.

A friend recently asked me (on our way to a textile arts event) if I wanted to be the next "Vera", a fashion emblem and iconic artist of another era, known for her signature silk scarves. I understood that she thought of me as a designer of wearable art. I have made my own brand of figurative silk scarves (see photo) and I will continue to do so. Figures are my subject, so what we put on our bodies is also of interest to me. All things figurative are. But becoming a fashion designer is another story. Not for me.

As I back away from non-wearable products I think bigger and bigger and in context. I will create large-scale installation pieces filled with my figurative soft sculptures and my patterns will be papered and upholstered throughout. Wait and see!

WHAT'S NEXT

That's where year one has led me into soft sculpture and silk scrolls. I want my next scrolls to reach from floor to ceiling and not be attached to walls but to ceilings. I want us all to be able to walk through my work, like walking through a crowd.

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Sunset walk for inspiration in the hood, in San Francisco, CA. I'm big on urban hiking. I'm wearing one of my art dresses too.

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A wall of my pre-digital life drawings. Made the switch to the Apple iPad in 2013 and never looked back. Photo taken in my home studio.

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Last year I was dabbling in making textile art merchandise - cocktail napkins, tea towels, and placemats - but I probably won't continue making these products. I have a tiny amount of stock left - so contact me if you are interested!

One of my handmade silk scarves - the only one that I made into a product that is also a silk scroll.

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Blue Woman with Pink Posey is my first large soft sculpture in a planned series. I started with a small prototype.

Visual Highlights of Myanmar

WHERE AND WHEN

Ending the year and starting the next with the most exotic and best trip of my life was a great way to bring one year to a close and start the next. Only complaint is that with so much fresh stimulation it's been tough to get back on track with my art making and blogging. Here's my travel itinerary and the slideshow below - a sampling of images from the several thousand I shot - sort of follows our itinerary.  We planned our own trip (my travel partner is my husband) and it worked out incredibly well. The winter holidays are an ideal time to head to South East Asia to escape from them (that's my preference), and for the driest, coolest weather. It was hard to come back to US politics. All around the world people are wondering what we Americans are up to. In Burma, folks loved Obama. 

December 18 - 20 - Yangon (used to be called Rangoon)

December 21 - 23 - Mandalay

December 24 - 27 - Bagan

December 28, 29 - Pindaya

December 30 - Inle Lake

December 31 - January 3 - Ngapali (a beach town on the Bay of Bengal)

January 5, 6 - Yangon

A few highly recommended books I read on the trip are Myanmar Lonely Planet, Burmese Days, The Piano Tuner

Post, Post, Post Mortem

Getting ready 1: The shadow of one of my "helpers" for the shows. Making packets of gift wrap.

Getting ready 2: Cutting, sewing, and stuffing. The process of making my soft sculpture at SEW. 

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The last show and sale of 2016. I'm with my work on display at The Blueberry Farm in Sebastopol, CA. 12/16

My pop-up storefront in the heart of Hayes Valley in SF, CA. October 2016

I'm wearing one of my art dresses next to one of my color block silk scrolls at the Maker & Moss pop-up.

Our Opening Reception Brunchette at The Laundry. November 2016

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My soft sculpture installed. November 2016

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Newest fabric design made into long, 2-sided silk scarves, a tribute to Warhol (a fellow Pittsburgher). I have two left  in my online shop.

IT'S THE END OF THE YEAR!

My three art shows are wrapped up and I'm taking off for an exotic travel adventure! After this last blog post please check back next year. I promise an awesome slide show from a very photogenic trip.

I'm still thinking about what I learned from my 2016 shows and how that will affect what I do next year as I plan. The October, November, and December art events were the culmination of several years of creating multiple bodies of work. The emphasis for each show was unique.  

My first show was a one-day Pop-Up at Maker & Moss (see my blog post). Held at my friend's artistic retail housewares shop in Hayes Valley, I was asked to make a lot of art merchandise for this show. I  went into production for many months - designing, sewing, finding helpers, making new editions of prints, figuring out my product lines, packaging them all up.

This was a lot of work for one day. It's unlikely that I'll book another one-day only pop-up, but it was a healthy deadline and test run.

The second show started out with SF Open Studios and a shared rental gallery at The Laundry in the Mission. Talented artist friend Lisa Lightman shared the space with me. Our art paired beautifully. 

This was my first opportunity to show all seven pieces in my new series of life-sized silk scrolls and the beginning of a another new series, large soft sculpture. With a fan creating a gentle breeze, my scrolls fluttered slightly, producing an experience for the viewer of being in a roomful of nude women in conversation. 

One of my corners of the gallery showing a color block silk scroll (left), two of my white silk scrolls (right), three of my prints and a drawing (center) Plus the fan. November 2016

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This is my friend who stopped by during her Thanksgiving visit. She felt an affinity for the red-haired subjects in these scrolls. November 2016

I also showed (and sold) silkscreens, etchings, fine art digital prints, and pre-digital life drawings at The Laundry. 

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Another corner of the gallery shows a large silkscreen (top left), Backs, a set of four fine art digital prints (below), and a gouache painting (right). More redheads!

We were asked to stay on in the gallery through November - a wonderful chance to get more exposure. We had opening and closing events with Spanish champagne and snacks, an art talk, and more. I sold prints and drawings met some interesting people. I got some exposure to curators and galleries and photos of my scrolls as a group.

The Laundry is a new hotspot in the Mission. It's a shared workspace and artspace focussed on building a creative community. This is a place to watch! I plan to stay involved with The Laundry and show my work there again.

I've just wrapped up my last art event, at The Blueberry Farm in Sebastopol, an annual group holiday show and sale with five artists (jewelry, sculpture, photography, painting, and montages). I sold prints, drawings, art cards, tea towels, silk scarves, cherry pit filled hot/cold pads, gift wrap, art leggings, and more.  

Even the weather was on our side. It was a gorgeous, crisp late fall weekend. This farm is utterly charming...even the mint-filled ground cover smells great. We served tiny blueberry muffins and home-baked goodies. It was nice to be out of The City and I met lots of cool locals and was impressed by my SF and East Bay friends who made the 1.5 hour trek to see and buy. I'd do it again next year!

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Hosts and artists Alivea and Gayle Cole at The Blueberry Farm. Thanks! December 2016