Inter/Intra/Indra's Net

For the next month, I will be blogging over here.

I am very excited to be the second-ever virtual Artist in Residence at Struts Artist-Run Centre in Sackville, NB.  This project coincides with the lead-up to their most awesome event, A Handmade Assembly.  It was a great pleasure to participate in their inaugural Assembly back in 2011 and it is possibly an even greater pleasure to dig in to it even more with this opportunity.

My project, which will exist online in the form of photos and my commentary, also is happening in my studio.  The project, titled, Inter/Intra/Indra's Net, is an exploration of relationships and how they are manifested in this time that is so marked by our online interactions.  I like that the project mimics the residency in that it is looking closely at how the real and the virtual interact (or if they do) all the while being both real and virtual.  Whoa, my head is exploding!

Anyway, while I pick up pieces of my brain, go on over and check it out!  All is explained in great detail (did you doubt it?).

See ya there!

Welcome To My Life

Look what I came home with!  My time at the Monastery wasn't just about realizing the true nature of things; it also was dedicated to sewing two sets of altar cloths for the main altar.  Due to a miscommunication (thankfully not directly involving me!), they went out and purchased this (gulp) Bernina.  As you can see, it is a demo model so it was steeply discounted but still, it's a Bernina.  Berninas are famous for their unmatched quality and for costing a much as the GNP of some small nations.  The person who found it online and purchased it knew that she was getting a great deal but it was still a bit rich for the blood of the Monastery.  

On the second morning of my sewing endeavours, the abbott and the training coordinator came by and pulled me aside.  The abbott said, "Did you talk to her yet?"

Training coordinator, "Not yet."  Then, looking at me, "Nothing's wrong - don't worry."

Are there any words in the English language that would cause one to worry more?

But, as it turned out, they simply wanted to know if I wanted to buy the machine from them.  Oh yes!  Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!

O glorious machine!  You are so Swiss and perfect.  Welcome to my life.

Then, two days ago, this arrived.  In a move sure to baffle any and all MBA's, Ani of Widdershin Woolworks sent a gift roving to each of the people who participated in her team of the Tour de Fleece.  This is one of the overdyed grey Shetland rovings that she has made even more beautiful.  Thank you Ani!  And to you, beautiful roving, I say (wait for it):

Welcome to my life!

BTW, I have been in discussion with Ani about coming to Newfoundland next summer to lead a dyeing workshop and she is willing.  We haven't settled on dates yet but if you think you would like to attend (and what better excuse to come to Newfoundland), please let me know!

Gratifying

Back down from the mountain, events have not paused to allow me to catch my breath.   Or finish the laundry and properly unpack.  But more on that later.  For now, my preference is to share some of the more mild items of note.

In the shadow of the kitty kat....

I finished the shawl from the handspun Portuguese Merino and I do love it so.  It isn't quite as soft as the original, which Zabeth made from Rambouillet yarn, but it wins prizes for simply being beautiful.  And it was 100% pleasure to spin and knit.  So there you have it - a physical manifestation of happiness.

I actually finished it while on the ferry from Newfoundland to Cape Breton, NS, but couldn't block it until I got back from the Monastery.  Delayed gratification - this term has been all over my life these days.

Meanwhile, some might return from two weeks at a monastery with enlightenment experiences, I returned with two huge bags of marigolds.  Not the worst deal, if you ask me.  It helps to have friends in high places, in this instance, the head gardener.  He was so excited at the idea that his beautiful and gigantic marigolds would continue to offer themselves up after their blooms had begun to fade that he picked pounds and pounds of them.  I will use them to make dye for wool, in case you were wondering.  And, in case you were wondering, that's a whole lotta dye right there.

What About You?

Hides Nothing, 2013, ink, watercolour and crayon on paper.  One of five drawings on paper and fabric on view at bkbx, 543 Union Street, Brooklyn, NY, until the end of the month.

Random Sample

Please join me on Sunday, September 15th, from 6 - 9 p.m. at bkbx (Brooklyn Box), a new artist collaborative, for the opening of our first exhibition, Random Sample.  bkbx is at 543 Union Street in the Gowanus neighborhood of Brooklyn.

bkbx [Brooklyn Box] is an exhibition space located in the former National Packing Box Factory on the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, NY. An independent Project-in-Residence at Proteus Gowanus, bkbx was founded by eleven artists who came together through their association with Proteus Gowanus. bkbx artists come from a wide variety of stylistic and conceptual practices, but share a dedication to forming a meaningful alternative model to today’s art environment. In the bkbx community, creativity is experienced as a form of generosity.

Random Sample will feature work by:

Diane Bertolo
Sasha ChavchavadzeCarrie CooperiderNick DeFriezRobert GouldRobyn LoveAnne-Marie McIntyreEva MelasLado PochkhuaTani TakagiKit Warren