Parties at Penland

After everyone gets settled in at Penland, the different studios plan parties.  This way we break up the studio time and also get to know each other, across disciplinary lines.  Being rather irreverent folks, artists usually find a way to make gentle fun of their craft.  They are also very good at making their own fun, in general.

The first party was an annual tradition, "Pin the pastie on the pinup," at the blacksmithing studio.  In case you think this in poor taste, please keep in mind that the pasties are exquisitely crafted and there's no anti-feminism at play.  Many of the "models" were guys; in the interest of preserving anonymity for anyone who decides he or she wants to go to business school or law school at a later date instead of being a fine crafts person, I've restricted the pictures of pastie wearers.

Here's what the iron studio usually looks like, above right (in the dark, since the party was at night).  And below is one of the party goers, Lee from Seattle, who's in the Metals studio. Check out the amazing iron work behind him.

Next, a selection of pasties--each studio provided one or more sets.  In order: cast paper pasties from the book and paper  studio, iron and steel pasties from the blacksmithing studio, and felted pasties (along with more typical samples of work in a beginning felting class) from the textiles studio. 

The members of the felting class were great participants--all had their own pasties made on time for the party.  I decided I should go see what else they were doing, so here are some more shots of felters at work.

The rollers are used to make the different elements of wet felt bond together.  The colors are very rich, and it is almost impossible not to touch these pieces.

Here's Susan with her completed felt-covered book (above). The critter on the right is inside the front cover.  Susan's from New Mexico; another woman in this class came all the way from Brazil.

Time soon for another Friday-night party:  on April 1, there's  going to be an "edible book" party hosted by the book and paper  studio.  This is not an April fool's joke--in fact, this is an international event.  You can learn more about it at:  

http://www.books2eat.com/

More on this event later, and also on our progress making different kinds of paper and book structures.

First week at Penland

This is what it looked like at Penland when we arrived, and the weather has generally been pretty nice. You spend a lot of time walking from studio to housing to dining hall, so the weather is important.  We did have a night of freezing cold and it spit snow for a day, but spring is definitely on the way.

 After an 8 hour work day, since I'm a work-study student (more on that in a minute), it was time to get set up in the books and paper studio.  There are 8 students, all women except for a male college student. One woman is my age and another 4 are in their 20s -30s.  There's also a retired gal who is probably 75 plus.  Melissa Jay Craig, from Chicago (below) is the instructor.  In this photo  she's instructing us on how to use the Holland beater to make pulp out of cut up denim blue jeans.

Here are some examples of her books (left), the ones that look like "books." Others of them are more sculptural in nature.  Here's her web site (below):
http://web.mac.com/melissajaycraig/Melissa_Jay_Craig/Melissa_Jay_Craig_Home.html

Here's a quick look at my desk: you can see the beginning of a shaped cover and some miscellaneous sheets out of pigmented cotton rag.  I'm also collecting tea bag packets just because I like the colors.

Now, a little more about work study.  There are only about five of us who are 40 to 60 years old, and the others are mostly college-aged people.  Most of us are doing institutional kitchen work or gardening.  On our Saturday full-work day, one of my responsibilities was to clean all the ceiling lamps and exposed pipes and wipe down the walls in the dining room from a ladder  (below).  Now I generally spend 3 to 4 hours a day, six days a week, sweeping and mopping floors and hauling stacks of dishes.  I'm "off" on Saturdays. Luckily the food is really excellent and I'm eating like a truck driver.  This is a lot more daily exercise than I am used to!  It takes some getting used to and means I'm not as productive in the studio as I might otherwise be, but the tuition break is substantial so it's worth it to me.

Here are a couple of the younger folks (above).  You should hear the music, they are really rocking in the kitchen and it goes pretty quickly.

Here I am getting ready to go to work (hair has to be covered so we all wear hats and scarves).

There are four of us work study students  in a room: Leila from New York City, Ann from Alaska (above), me, and Cathy from.... Charleston!  They are all taking a pottery concentration.  Cathy, Ann and I are all about the same age and go to bed fairly early because we're pretty worn out.  Leila, who's about 40, stays up into the wee hours and parties a bit more.  We're waiting to see how long she can keep it up.

Getting used to our work schedules and getting started in the studio were the major preoccupations for the first week.  More, later, on what we're doing in the studios and social life at Penland.

Before heading to the Mountains

Before heading to Penland, I'd like to introduce some of the work I've done this past year while making the transition from an office-bound project manager and researcher to an artist working out of my home.  In 2009 and 2010, I exhibited with a great group of women belonging to the Women's Caucus for Art and the Sophia Institute--a great way to "get my feet wet."












The painted lady (left) is intended to be practical--you can hang a coat on her.  The cut-paper collage (right) is of women getting a lift to work in Lesotho, Africa.  My husband Carl works there several times a year on an environmental restoration project, and he has gotten to know the weavers at the Maseru Tapestry Coop in Lesotho.  The Palmetto Fiber Arts Guild has helped raise money  to train 4 young women to work in this coop, and next Fall will host a photo exhibit about them at the Center for Women.  I have also designed rugs for them to weave (below).

In recent months, I've enjoyed creating more painted ladies and an occasional painted dude (below).  I plan to continue making these in smaller versions for hanging jewelry as well as  coats.

Next August, I'll have my first one-person exhibit at the main branch of the Charleston County Public Library, "Grappling with Flannery O'Connor's South," in August.  This exhibit is in honor of the Tapestry Book Group, another outstanding group of women, who have often provoked me to think outside the box.

At Penland, I hope to finish the cut-paper collages for this exhibit, as well as related artists' books and a few sculptural pieces constructed of handmade paper.  Recently, I've spent a lot of time in a little room cutting tiny pieces of paper, which would drive some people crazy.  But this is all about to change, because I will be getting dirty outside, wearing water proof work boots and a water proof apron.  

More on that to follow....

Family Feud
from "A View of the Woods" in Everything That Rises Must Converge by Flannery O'Connor