Category Archives: my art history

the story thing…

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I am going to explain why I don’t write stories for my dolls, but first-

sometimes I go away for a day or two and it’s hard to get back to the blog. I am in the middle of an ocean of wip’s right now, so nothing really to post. Just a lot of potential…

The post has to have a photo though- I received an email last week asking if I was the M. Kirchner who made the mugs in the photo attached to said email. Asking if I was still making them. Her mom collected them and she wanted to continue the collection- it was wonderful to know that the old work is cherished.

Many people have suggested that I write stories or bios for my dolls. Many other doll artists do this and do it very well. This is why I don’t.

1. When I was a senior in art school, I was finishing up a ceramic sculpture. Someone came over to look at it and started describing what they thought was going on in the piece, what they thought the story was. I was amazed at the richness of their narrative- much better then I could do. I realized that, left to their own imagination, viewers would come up with much more interesting stories then I every could and they enjoyed doing it.

2. When I made functional pottery, I pictured the user contemplating the images on their coffee cup or cereal bowl. The image might draw them into their own fantasy world (away from the real world) and inspire different stories each morning. I hoped to make a world in bowl- or at least a little vignette.

3. A few years ago I bought a doll from someone who wrote rich and wonderful bios of her creations. I did not see the bio before I received the doll. When I read it, I was taken aback. I’m not quite sure how to say this- I didn’t like her (the doll) from her description… I mean, I liked the doll itself- just not how she was described in the story… I thought- I would never be friends with this person- she would totally intimidate me in real life. She was smarter, more popular, more accomplished… I don’t know- the kind of person that I feel completely overwhelmed by. That certainly clarified the issue for me-no stories.  Resolve is easy when you don’t want to do it anyway!

I want to make characters that will inspire peoples imaginations- viewers will come up with their own stories. The dolls will be a catalyst for the imagination. No static story lines. I absolutely LOVE when people tell me who they think my dolls are- it always makes me feel successful when my work creates a spark.

I don’t want to sound like I have anything against other people writing up stories for their work- it just isn’t what I want to do.

this and that…

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I’ve been having a very social week- unusual for me. It is connected to the new school year although no one in my house is affected by that- first time in more years then I can remember. It is just one of those new month/year things- I need to connect with people I haven’t seen in a while.

I went over to see a friend to talk about studio design… I am probably going to be moving my studio so I am working on the fantasy planning stage- ie looking at other peoples’ spaces, online and in person. She has a lot of my art from the old pottery days. It was fun to see it hanging at her house-

She also had this amazing bit of advertising ephemera. It is a TIME magazine ad from November 1955 for Simplicity patterns. Can you imagine a sewing pattern company advertising in such a mainstream magazine now? Anyway- great Steinberg drawing, so funny text. If you can’t read it, you can check it out here on Flickr- click all sizes.

Last night I went up to Portsmouth, NH with Abby, for the opening of the Teeny Tiny Art Show at the Three Graces Gallery. Wow! Portsmouth is a happening place on the first Friday opening night. Here are Abby’s beautiful birds-

We also got to see Elsa‘s amazing paper cuts. I don’t think there is any way I could get an idea of the delicacy of these pieces without seeing them in person. I’m in awe.

Today, we are waiting for Tropical Storm Hanna to visit. It is very humid.

summer lady 2 and some history

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Summer lady 2

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Here are some sketches and some faces that I’m working on.

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And, I decided that Loobylu‘s Friday Archive was a great way to add to my category of “my art history”. So you know I used to work in clay. I made a lot of single decorated tiles. They were meant to be hung up on the wall individually. I always thought of them as art for the kitchen or bathroom- places you might have a problem hanging paper art. And, you could put these pieces through the dishwasher if they got dirty! I have the ones that were defective- you can see that this one has a big firing crack in it. It is dated 1980. It hangs in my studio now.
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quilt- 30 years old

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This is the first quilt that I made that I considered a success- I was happy with the design and function.  I made it in 1978, 30 years ago.  The top and bottom edges were originally navy and white stripe.  I also used that fabric in the dark areas.  The design has changed because of how it faded but not ruined.  I used another stripe fabric from an old dress that has completely disintegrated.  This quilt has seen a lot of use and it is stained, torn, all around pretty ratty.  If I get inspired to make another quilt, I might use this design as a starting place.  I’m going to put this photo onto flickr so you can see it big if you are interested.

my art history

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You might have noticed that I added some new categories last month. One of them is “my art history“. I figured that it would give me a place to show how little has changed over the years!

When the studio building where I worked burned down in 1999, it took me a while to realize that one of the biggest loses would be my sketchbooks- years of them. I have been thinking about the recurring themes in my artwork. If I post examples of the artwork with those themes, it is a way of remembering what was in those sketchbooks. And as I try to make some kind of order in my studio these days, I keep finding examples.

I figured this needed to be posted today, since I finished up another tiki yesterday.

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1972, I think. Carved out of a scrap end of a 2 x 4. In an early 70’s definition of feminism, my 2 friends and I signed up to take wood shop in my senior year in High School. We were the groundbreakers- the first girls through the door. This was a little project I did then.
Combine embroidery, a Spirograph, a 14 year old and some really ugly color combinations-

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It is 3″ x 3″. I did this the same year as my sampler. I have no memory of how I transfered the image onto the fabric, but I see on the back that I wasn’t happy with my first try.

and some other stuff- Last Saturday, I broke down and got myself a subscription to Embroidery. I was so excited when I got an envelope in the mail today- 2 magazines- yippee! And another thing- I am having problems with my comments and email. I am not getting emails when someone comments so I have to go check things out regularly and when I email back, it might look a little odd. It all has to do with over-zealous spam filters or something… arg!

catching up

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today I’ve been working on catching up with all the email correspondence- I’ve been terrible!

Also, I’ve meant to give some great feedback for Dollmaker’s Journey for fantastic service. I needed some special fabric for a class I’m taking- I ordered on a Saturday and had it on the Monday- wow!

Here is a not doll project I did yesterday- new placemats.

placemats

Yeah, I’m finally using some of the fabrics I’ve bought recently! I love cotton prints, but they don’t really fit in much with the dolls I’m doing these days. The back (or maybe they are reversible) is linen from IKEA a few years ago. Here is the great insight of yesterday- I struggled through sewing 2 of the mats with a million pins and still getting puckers and tucks… all of a sudden I remembered my walking foot- that amazing tool that came with my sewing machine but I had never yet tried- well, guess what- it really works! The 6 that I did after that came out much better!

Here they are on the table, along with some of my old art i.e. my pottery that got broken and turned into a mosaic hot dish holder.

table

And a picture of the kitchen window on a spring evening-

window

finishing up in 2005

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I liked Jess Hutch’s post on old projects– ghosts of crafty past. I have been seeing a lot of my old projects surface while clearing out my parents’ house. It is usually a great relief to heave them into the trash, although a few are special to me. Over Christmas, when I was down in Connecticut again and visiting a very dear friend that I’ve known from childhood, this appeared- yikes! I made this as a beach cover-up in 1970…

shirt

When I got back home I had a package from Australia waiting for me. Aren’t these the best!

pin and mouse

Thanks Hil!

Then, today, a mystery! A package with no return address and no message inside…

wood doll

Thanks so much, whoever you are!

Have a Happy New Year everyone! I am looking forward to a very good year ahead!

more stuff

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I found the buckle I wanted and finished up my bag. So far, so good- it is working very well.

bag

I am back from a few more days at my parents house, recovering from an overdose of cleaning, sorting and organizing… I ought to be doing that at my own house. This time I brought home some of the the Japanese dolls that my parents recieved as gifts over the years. They are beautifully made and I’ve been looking forward to having them for years!

They need a little cleaning and grooming. I will have to be very careful not to damage them. The fabrics are a bit faded but they are somewhere between 25 to 40 years old and considering that, they are in good shape. These other dolls are washi dolls- they are made of paper.

washi

I also brought home some of my pottery that I’d made and given to my Mom years ago.

pottery 1

pottery 2

On the drive home I stopped for a little retail cheer-up therapy at The Wrights Factory Outlet. These are the ribbons I bought-

ribbon 1

I love these ribbons with words. My favorites are ? and !

ribbon 2

cat softies

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Loobylu has a Month of Softies project that anyone can join in on. This months theme is vintage catwalk. I have been thinking about participating this month.

Over the years I have done a lot of “cat art”(?)…
on hats-

cat hat

sweaters-

cat sweaters

pottery-

cat bowl

I am going to try to knit a kitty- knitted stuffed animals always have a vintage look in my eyes.

knit cat

I was really pleased to find this image-

jazz cat

in Meggiecat’s blog… which I found through In a Minute Ago– a treasure trove of valuable links and information! The blue sweater is excellent!