“The Artist’s Body” exhibit

This is my first show in 17 years and my first solo! I’m obviously excited and scared all at the same time. The Untitled Art Society approved my submission for their +15 Window ( located nearby the Jack Singer Concert Hall) in the Calgary Epcor Centre for the Performing Arts. The show opens on April 9th and will run until May 30th.

For those of you who are unable to attend in person, and there are those of you who i really wish could be here with me, i will post photos from the actual exhibit on the day i set up. Incidentally, because of the “venue”, there is no official Opening. The “reception” is a closing actually, Thursday May 20th, and will adjourn to the Auburn Saloon, next to the Calgary Tower! (Cowboy boots not requisite apparel…and no spitting.)

And my “statement”:

“This series started with a chance remark, a phrase we have all heard or said “She has such beautiful bone structure.” It’s not always a flattering comment about someone, so I started wondering what if our bones *were* beautiful, not in the sense of the wonder of the human body’s design, or as a perfect armature, but as decorated objects themselves.   To most people, body parts bring an image to mind of gore, decomposition, murder or war, abandoned bodies and tortured souls. To some they are merely armatures, scientific bases to build on, to others they are beauty of form in the abstract. I want mine to be not necessarily “pretty” but to give the viewer a sense of loss, of warmth, familiarity, even of humour. So many of our phrasings have to do with the body: beautiful bone structure, thin skinned, all legs, air head, eye candy, bleeding heart, body politic—since i love word play and punning, it seemed natural to translate those cues into actual art.

Over the past year i have been exploring interpretations of the human form in textiles and textile techniques. “The Artist’s Body” is a personal odyssey, with colour and line depicting the rhythms and paths my own has taken. Personal symbols radiate across each piece, showing directions  i feel i am taking as i return to the basics of my stitch history.  Cloth, like skin, bone and organ can be soft or hard depending on its treatment and use. As with fabric, we can stitch body parts together to mend or alter. Our very being is created from fiber, our bodies a network of threaded veins and seamlessly knitted bones.

Each body part presents itself as a separate entity in this series. As i’ve worked through this collection, it’s less about figurative realism and more about emotion and the sense of what’s hidden from ordinary senses.”

On a side note, this opportunity came about because my submission “Every Beat Has A History” was rejected by the CQA/NJS. (Detail in 2nd photo above) I wasn’t going to give up so easily and immediately submitted it to the UAS! Another exciting area has opened up as well, partly because of this piece also, but i haven’t permission yet to reveal that one.

Please go see the show, and let me know what you think!

PS

Even though i *am* excited about this, i think it’s in a sense being hanging over me and that’s why little work is being done on other things! I bought dowelling for hanging the biggest piece today, have one sleeve left to finish and a pile of rocks and sand to collect for the display of Beautiful Bones. I’ve borrowed a black ceramic hand from work to hold the heart used in the postcard and have a few hooks left to put on the skin piece as well.

I am looking forward to looking forward again after backing away from this after the set-up!

 

Slideshow