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So busy posting about Stitch Fetish, but there’s other stuff to share as well, like Young Adult at Gallery1988 in Hollywood. Co-presented by HelloGiggles.com, the show is all female artists on the theme of 80′s YA books.
I solved the mystery of what to make by going with Nancy Drew.
“Nancy Drew: Sleuth or Snoop?”
Show opens Saturday, Feb 2 (the same night as Stitch Fetish, argh! but you should stop there on your way downtown to the Hive!!).
Do you know about the Craftivist Collective in the UK, run by my lovely friend Sarah Corbett? They’re a super group (not the kind that fills stadiums and has gold records) that create projects and host workshops for public works all on socially relevant topics. Sarah’s amazing, and just got back from Indonesia!! but that’s another story for another time.
Sarah’s putting together a book!!! And they need some help fundraising, so here’s some info, in the lady’s very own words:
“I’ve attached information on a Little Book of Craftivism we are producing with Cicada Publishing (who are boss!) but they can only pay for half of the budget because this is a niche market and a risk for them. So, we are crowdfunding the rest of the money (£5000- we currently have £1400 from individuals. The deadline is 1st February eek!). Would you or any of your contacts (individuals or organizations) be interested in offering some funding for this book? It can be as little at £1 to £3000.”
HERE is where you can donate and find out more about the book.
So much art and fun to be had this weekend! I’m in two openings on Saturday night (yay!) so whether you’re an eastsider or west, there’s an option. For you eastside, downtown types, there’s the monthly opening at The Hive Gallery (no longer charging a cover or hosting loud bands, just art and chatting with lovely peoples!), this Saturday, October 6th from 8-11:30. The (chilling) theme (it is October after all) is the Great, Dread Cthulhu!
I’m not a huge Lovecraft girl, but I’m pretty pleased with what I came up with, “When Cthulhu Sits Around the House, Cthulhu Really Sits Around the House,” hand stitched red-work on linen, 9″x12″ framed:
I’ll post about the westside opening later – it’s too cool to double up on; I think each of these shows deserves their own post.
The Textile Art Center is having an event to celebrate the publishing of Hoopla! Wish I could be there, but…. such is life. Should be fun though!
Lots of stuff on the horizon, and it’s time to start sharing!! First up, I’m going to be in a book!!! Yep, it’s true! Hoopla:the Art of Unexpected Embroidery.
There’s a pattern to make your very own ransom note pillow, like one of mine:
Also, I have a piece in show that opens at the end of October (more on that later) and I’ve been offered my first featured artist show, at Hive Gallery, in downtown Los Angeles, with about 20 feet of wall space to fill all by myself, in May of ’12! Woot woot!!
My favorite author died yesterday. I’m surprised by how effected I am. I’ve been reading her books for close to 30 years, and while I knew she was sick, 76 is too young to die.
If you’ve never read any of her books, please try one in her honor. She wrote something for every age group, was witty, wise, and kind to her characters. Some of my favorites (though I’ve read them all at least twice) are: Fire and Hemlock, Magicians of Caprona, Archer’s Goon, Deep Secret…
I could go on, she was publishing for almost 35 years.
Rest in Peace Ms. Jones. You gave me joy, hope, and friends I revisited time and again. I love you.
I am a huge fan of Agatha Christie. I love the rhythm, the world, the fact that there’s always a solution. I find that I read her novels as palate cleansers, between things, when I’m unsure what to read next, or there’s nothing really drawing me. Sometimes, halfway through, I realize I’ve already read the one I’m reading, but because I pick them up used, it had a different cover, or was published later under a slightly different title. I always finish them anyway.
There’s a terrific article about Christie in the latest issue of the New Yorker, and I had to share the accompanying photo, taken by Lord Snowdon in 1974.
Doesn’t she look just like Miss Marple? And how fab are her dress (with it’s hidden panel of stitch work) and shoes? And the necklace?? I would wear this entire ensemble, as is. Nu?
You know the excitement when you discover an author or great book, and all you want to do is rush home and read? Well, I’m having a bit of that at the moment. Damon Runyon!! How have I never read him? I’m reading the short stories that Guys and Dolls is based on – which I’ve seen, loved, been in – and they are fantastic. The vernacular is so rich and unto itself; there’s practically no tenses and all the women are Dolls or Judys. It’s killing me! Here’s a couple examples:
“But I will say that the doll in the club car is worth looking at, and anybody can see that she has plenty of class, although personally I like them with legs that are not quite so spindly. She is by no means a real young doll, being maybe twenty-five or twenty-six, and anybody can see that she knows what time it is.
Furthermore, she is very stylish, and even if Harry the Horse is a guy who gives dolls a tumble this is about the last doll you will figure him to tumble, because she looks as if she may be such as doll as will holler for the gendarmes if anybody as much as says boo to her.”
and
“She is tall, and thin, and has a first class shape, and her hair is a light brown, going on blond, and her eyes are like I do not know what, except that they are one-hundred-percent eyes in every respect.”
How great is that? Gendarmes? One-hundred-percent eyes? Harry the Horse? I want to go back in time and be a gambler’s doll on Broadway. Sigh. Here’s a clip from the movie; The Sky rolls for souls.
I am in love with the work of Olly Moss. He’s a design guy who’s swiftly moving into the art world. He made his first “art print” for Gallery1988′s Lost project, and it’s been off to the races since then. His stuff is being marked up and resold on Ebay for inordinate amounts (14x the original price???), so if you can grab something on it’s release, and you love it, you should!
image via RCPetersMusic.com
via Olly's Fickr
His imagery is so strong. You know what the piece is without reading the small print. Read the rest of this entry »
We all love the internet – what’s not to love? – but I’m getting concerned that we (and I include myself) are becoming convenience junkies. The biggest danger is the only shopping. I’ve learned to control the ebay impulse – you think drunk dialing is bad, you should see some of the wacky drunk purchases I’ve made – but I have a real online book buying problem.
First of all, booksellers email me about sales and with coupons, because I buy books, so I feel like I’m saving rather than spending. Then, whatever book your looking for, in or out of print, you can pretty much find an affordable copy somewhere on line… unless you want a first edition copy of Gravity’s Rainbow in hb. And, when you’re shopping on line it feels like fake shopping, there’s no money, no slips get signed, but then books show up. Genius.
Here’s what I’ve bought in the past month – mostly on impulse:
Les Jeux Sont Faits by Sartre
New Moon by Stephanie Meyer
Absolute Sandman 3 by Neil Gaiman
A Tale of Time City (first ed) by Diana Wynne Jones – I’m slowly trying to collect her books first ed.
Widdershins, Dingo, and Memory & Dream by Charles De Lint
To name a few… Help! I need more book shelves.
Celeb sighting: Fisher Stevens walking his dog down Abbot Kinney – I almost knocked him down; I was stepping on cracks in the sidewalk.
When did Abbot Kinney get so gentrified? I knew there was a PinkBerry there now, but wow, it’s upscale boutiques from Venice to Main Street. And it’s become a “destination shopping” area; all along the street on a Saturday, women flit in and out of stores, pollinating the cash registers. As much as it’s weird, there are a couple really lovely additions to the block. At the south end of the street there’s a really cool – if overpriced – used bookstore and The Farmacy (same as the one in West Hollywood) has opened a clean, bright Venice location.
Proposed new names for the street: Hampton Kinney, South-by-South-West Hampton, and South Abbot Beach.
Not only did we have a fun of ton manning the FanLib booth, but Melanie and I had a great time wandering the Javits Center and taking pix! Here she is with a storm trooper.
We saw Jedi and Indiana Jones and sexy harem ladies. We got schwag and stickers and pins. Melanie got interviewed by David Price of The Middle Show. He asked her when nerd girls got hot; she said they always were. That’s why she’s my best gal.
The highlight of the show, obviously, was Gaiman. Bill Hader intro’ed him, talking about what a rabid fan he is, how Gaiman’s brought him career luck, and doing some impressions of celebrities in Gaiman roles (Vincent Price as Coraline was hy-larious!). Mel videoed him doing Pacino “spitballing” idea on the set of Sandman… imagine Pacino as Sandman…
Anyhoo, Neil was fantastic. Funny, charming, generous of his time and spirit with his fans. He read some short stories, and then the third chapter of his new novel, The Graveyard Book, about a boy raised in a Graveyard by dead folk mostly. The book’s due out in October. Here’s a crappy picture of Neil reading.
I found footage of Neil talking about the CBDLF, from the very beginning of the reading, but the reading itself isn’t up yet. I’m sure someone will post it, there were lots of people with handheld digital cameras.
What a fantastic day.
On a completely different note, Happy Passover all. If you’re not a Jew, and you find it hard to remember what we do at Passover, just remember that while Passover and Easter are celebrated at the same time of year, our food is the opposite of Jesus: unrisen. Good Yontif!
