Front Yard Installation Installation

This is what "Orange Construction Fence Series #22," which I created in 2003, looked like before I cut it in half vertically a few weeks ago. It was not one of my better pieces. What was I thinking when I made it?


This is the left half of "Orange Construction Fence Series #22" flipped 180 degrees. Already an improvement.


As I was preparing it for installation, I cut random "holes" in the printed fence in places that didn't overlap with the triangles or the sleeves in the back of the piece that allows the polls to hold it in place. Now it's more construction fence-like.


For this installation my husband and I chose to use black plumbers piping instead of galvanized piping like we used on "Fence Installation Series #1/16". I don't know if this stuff will rust or not, but time will tell. This is what the base looks like.



Here's "Fence Installation Series #1/22" installed outside. There is a bar going through a vertical sleeve on the left side, but not the right side. The bar across the top goes through a sleeve, and is fixed. The bottom bar also goes through a sleeve. You can't see it, but the bottom bar is attached so that it can move with the wind. I guess I should have taken more pictures as we put this together. Oh well.

Obamas on the Lookout for Art

Nice to read: "Obamas on the Lookout for Art" on ArtInfo.com on May 26, 2009!

"The Obamas are revamping the White House art collection, and to make room for modern works by African-American, Asian, Hispanic, and female artists, they’ll be doing away with many of 19th-century still lifes, pastorals, and portraits that are currently on view." Read more.

We got our first hint about this from The Daily Beast, back in February.

My sister-in-law is waiting (hoping) for Oprah to get in touch with her about her aerial art. I'd be incredibly happy to talk to the Obama's about my visual art. Nice to dream about, isn't it?

On Exhibit - Community of Artists

My 12 x 12 x 12 Series September and ...


... Orange Construction Fence Series #63, will be on exhibit at the Danforth Museum of Art, in Framingham, MA, in the "Community of Artists" show from June 3 to August 2, 2009.

There are two local shows at the Danforth Museum of Art, "Off the Wall" and "Community of Artists," both on exhibit from June 3 to August 2, 2009. Both shows are annual events for the Museum and are always full of wonderful work in many different types of media. If you're in the Boston area, please stop by. You won't be disappointed.

There is a Patron's Preview and Auction on Saturday, May 30, 2009, and the Annual Members’ Juried Exhibition Opening Reception on Wednesday, June 3, 2009. Get more info about both events. I will be attending the June 3rd reception. I'm not sure about the May 30th event yet.

Front Yard Installation

I installed "Fence Installation Series #1/22" in my front yard on Monday. This piece is one half (vertically) of what was "Orange Construction Fence Series #22," which was made in 2003.



I love how the sun shines through the holes I cut in the piece ...


... and what it looks like on the street, in front of it.


Here is the back view.


And what it looks like at night.

The bottom bar is attached so that it can move with the wind. The top bar is fixed. This piece is more banner-like compared to the stretched and rigid "Fence Installation Series #1/16", which is installed in my backyard. I'll post pictures of how #1/22 is put together ASAP.

Both of my outdoor installations are experiments to see what will happen over time to mixed media/fiber as it lives in nature. Will the paint stay the same or fade, will the fabric hold up or fall apart, what else might happen? My plan is to document both "Fence Installation Series #1/22", and "Fence Installation Series #1/16" every Monday for the next year, and post them on my blog to share what's going on.

Backyard Installation 1 - The First Few Days

"Fence Installation Series #1/16" has been outside in my yard for three days, and it's already been rained on twice, and hailed on once. So far so good.


It looks like the back fabric, which I never preshrunk, did shrink a bit when it got wet in the rain. The piece was quite tight on the polls, but now it is REALLY tight. Thank goodness it didn't rip as it shrank.


More evidence of shrinking. Many ripples on the front fabric, as the back shrank.


Front view.


Back view.

We still need to bury the legs. I don't like all of this metal showing.

I'm going to take a picture every week, hopefully on Mondays, and will post it on my blog. I might post it on my website too. I need to think about how I would set it up on the page.

Backyard Installation 1 Installation

My original plan when installing my work in my backyard was to install it using plastic coated garden stakes that I bought at Lowes in their garden center. Here are two 6' stakes in position in my yard.


My husband and I slide the stakes through two vertical sleeves I added to "Fence Installation Series #1/16", and also slide a 36" garden stake through the top, attaching the corners using copper elbows and tubing. This became problematic because 1) we kept hitting rocks in the ground and it was bending the garden stakes, and 2) the piece was not stable and would blow over with the first stiff wind. We had to plan a different way to install.


We went back to Lowes, and bought galvanized piping of different lengths, elbows, T's and end caps. My husband planned how to install it that would keep it stable through all sorts of weather. These are the parts we bought.


Here is the piece upside down, with the side, top, and elbow pipes in place. It was amazing that we got this far since I sewed the sleeves on without measuring, when we were going to use the garden stakes. When we switched to pipes, we forgot to add the elbows in when we calculated the width. There was no slack when we got everything in place.


Still upside down, the bottom cross piece was attached. A second problem we hadn't thought of which was how to thread it on both ends when the threads go the same way. We were unthreading one side as we threaded the other.


A short extension, and then the legs were attached. This is a close-up.


The legs. This will never blow over.


"Fence Installation Series #1/16" in place in the back yard. Need to pick up the remaining leaves from last fall and need to bury the legs.


Backview.


Closeup of back side.


Back side at night.


Front side at night.

Read my post from yesterday that has other info about Backyard Installation 1.

My husband and I hope to install a second piece soon, that will be mounted more like a vertical banner, and possibly a third installation, that will be installed more like the way a real plastic construction fence would be installed on an actual construction site.

Backyard Installation 1

Though my first backyard installation isn't totally complete yet, I wanted to post some pictures. The two pictures above are close-ups of what I'm naming "Fence Installation Series #1/16."

This piece will be living in my back yard for a year, and I'm planning on documenting with a weekly photo, to see how it holds up through a full year of Massachusetts weather. It's one of what will probably be two or three installations on my 1/10th of an acre. My husband (my installation collaborator), and I decided to install this piece so it's stretched tightly in all four sides, as an experiment.

It was rained on early this morning. I'm curious to see what will happen as it dries. Will the back fabric, which was not preshrunk, shrink? If so, what will happen since it's stretched so tight on the frame? What's going to happen if the clematis that's growing on the structure next to it, starts to wind it's way through the holes in this piece? How is it going to hold up when it snows? What will happen on a windy day?

"Fence Installation Series #1/16" might be a boring name, but I want to keep my naming scheme similar to my other mixed media Fence Series names. The reason this one is #1/16 is because it's my first installation (#1), but it's made from Orange Construction Fence Series #16, which I made in 2003 (though it didn't have holes in it until a few weeks ago). All numbers for installation work will be numbered 1 and up, and if it's made from a previously numbered piece, I'll add the "/#" to the name.

For a little background on this piece, you can read my More Outdoor Installation Preparation post from May 17th, and Outdoor Installation Preparation post from May 13th.

You can also read my Thinking About Installations post from May 11th.





These are two full pictures, taken yesterday. We have to bury the legs, which I hope to do today or tomorrow.



This is the back of the piece, as seen from my neighbor's house, or as you enter my back yard.

The next piece we hope to install soon will be mounted more like a vertical banner, and if I do a third installation, it'll be installed more like the way a real plastic construction fence would be installed on an actual construction site.

More pictures soon, including how we mounted it.

Ribbon

One of my two ribbon/lace orders arrived after my Surtex and The National Stationery Show field trip. Yeah! Can't wait to use them when I work on more sweaters.

Cluny lace

I discovered that the lace trims I have from my husband's grandmother's sewing supplies, that I've been using on some of the sweaters I'm working on, is called "Cluny lace." I never knew the name of it. Here is the definition:

Cluny lace –noun
1. ivory-white bobbin lace made of strong linen or cotton thread.
2. a machine lace, usually of cotton, copied from it.

After some research, I found an online resource for vintage Cluny lace, and have ordered three different colors, each on 144 yard spools. They were very reasonably priced, so I cancelled the bottom two laces I ordered at the The National Stationery Show shown on my post this past Wednesday, which were a little pricey and weren't exactly what I was looking for.

I'm very excited to have vintage lace to use as I work on more sweaters. I'll use the black and ivory a lot. The yellow, not as much, but the price was right. I wish the other colors I found were also inexpensive. They had green, purple, blue, brown, and some other colors, but they were double the price. Sigh.

Peplum Sweater Updated

After getting feedback from an artist friend, who has a lot of clothing design expertise, I decided to update the collar of the grey peplum (repurposed, recycled, reconstructed, upcycled, redesigned, tweaked, used) sweater that I showed last week. We both agreed that the collar needed the same brown lace that also lines the triangles of the peplum. It looks much better. Above is the updated sweater, and below is what it looked like last week. Looks more finished now. I'm happy.

Sweater description: Grey wool sweater, zippered front. This sweater has been enhanced with a peplum made from parts of a different sweater and accented with antique lace trim. Size Petite Medium. (A peplum is a short overskirt or ruffle attached at the waistline.)

Surtex Field Trip - part two

Yesterday I discussed my visit to Surtex. The National Stationery Show, and The International Contemporary Furniture Fair were also open for business at the same time at the Jacob Javits Convention Center, in New York City. I had plenty of time, so I checked them out too.

The National Stationery Show is HUGE!!!!! It's not only paper products. There are also other items that you'd find in stationary stores and gift shops. I walked the aisles, past hundreds of booths. Most were not of interest, but toward the end of my journey I visited five booths that had various trims and ribbons. Very exciting since I've been having trouble finding nice embellishments for the sweaters I'm repurposing, recycling, reconstructing, upcycling, redesigning, tweaking. (I really need a good terms for what I'm doing!)

At one booth, I ordered 13 spools of ribbon, mostly black, white and/or grey, in various widths, 25-50 yard lengths, for wholesale (yeah!!!). Great prices! Another booth had the best French ribbons and laces! I ordered one spool with grey velvet and black cotton lace, and a spool each of cream and black cotton lace. Very pricey (for a whole spool), but so beautiful! When I break the cost down per yard, the price is very reasonable. It's total cost for the spool that adds up. The scan isn't very good, but they are shown in the picture with this post.

I also walked the entire International Contemporary Furniture Fair, which was wonderful, and also HUGE. I have many friends who would have loved the experience. Great furniture, rugs, fixtures, etc. There were some individual artists exhibiting, but it was mostly small to large companies. I did stop to talk to some of the artists because I was curious about how they chose to be there. Everyone was very nice.

The work of most interest to me was by a group of young British artists who were wonderfully creative. One had huge hanging ceiling lamps made with different fiber materials, one had felt wall pieces, another had wall fiber pieces with many tiny found objects sewn to it. One other amazing artist was a fiber artist from London who had incredible fabrics he embellished with paint and thread. He said he has had great success selling his work to some popular catalogs and stores. Very impressive. He was a bit shy about it, but I was really happy to hear about his success. There were also interesting objects on exhibit by some more commercial designers that involved felt, which is always fun to look at.

If you ever have the opportunity, do visit Surtex, as well as The National Stationery Show, and The International Contemporary Furniture Fair. If you're luckier than I was, maybe you can also visit The Supply Side: An Annual Exposition Featuring Suppliers to the Social Stationery, Giftware and Graphic Arts Industries.

Surtex Field Trip - part one

I went on a field trip to Surtex, at the Jacob Javits Convention Center, in New York City. This trip was possible thanks to one of my alma mater's MassArt (Massachusetts College of Art and Design). The trip was open to graduating painting and illustration majors, and alumni.

On Monday, I woke up at 5am, and left the house at 5:45am to drive into Boston. At 6:30am we drove via bus from Boston to New York City, where we had the day to wonder around Surtex, as well as The National Stationery Show, and The International Contemporary Furniture Fair. (Unfortunately The Supply Side: An Annual Exposition Featuring Suppliers to the Social Stationery, Giftware and Graphic Arts Industries was not open on Monday. I would have LOVED to wonder around that show. Oh well.)

For anyone not familiar with Surtex, here is the description of who exhibits and attends, from their website:

"Markets Represented:

Art and design for sale and license to numerous industries: decorative fabrics, linens and domestics, contract textiles, wall coverings, floor coverings, apparel textiles, stationery, greeting cards, giftwrap and other paper products, tabletop, giftware, housewares, toys, ceramics, packaging and publishing."

"Profile of Attendees:

Art buyers and licensees from the home furnishings, domestics, apparel, contract, gift, housewares, toy, stationery, greeting card, paper product, publishing and automotive manufacturing industries, plus retailers, licensing executives, advertising agencies and stock houses."

As a mixed media/fiber artist, I found Surtex very interesting. From what I understand from what exhibitors told me yesterday, Surtex used to be a huge trade show, with many hundreds of exhibitors. Due to I'm not exactly sure what, it was down to less than 300 exhibitors this year.

There was a wide range of work shown. Many commercial artists showing holiday and themed art. There were also many artists showing flowers, patterns and etc, that were very nice, and a number of artists from Japan with beautiful work. I was very happy to see over a dozen more funky artists, with more interesting patterns, colors, and textures, with samples based on different printmaking and painting techniques.

I stopped by those booths and spoke briefly to the artists. I found just about everyone was nice about sharing a few thoughts and experiences about their show experiences. The repeat exhibitors said they got a better response in the repeat years because the attendees remembered them from previous years and wanted to see how their work grew from one year to the next.

There were some recent art school graduates exhibiting with the most innovative work. Their friendliness, excitement and energy was really nice to see.

I loved visiting the booth of one new exhibitor, a seasoned artist, who I felt was more in line with my interests/esthetics. Her style was very different than the other exhibitors. I really liked her playfulness with color and texture. She exhibited her art, as well as her line of patterns for possible paper or fabric licensing, in her booth. I spent some time talking to her sister, who is her business partner. She was very helpful in discussing their business and offered to answer questions via phone or email, if I have any, if I decide to exhibit. It was a nice connection, and I am very happy for her having a good show and wish her much success.

A few weeks before the show, MassArt had a panel of artists discuss their experiences at these shows, and it was good to have the background before the trip.

I have wanted to visit Surtex for 15-20 years, but have never had the money, time nor access, so this was a great opportunity for me to participate. One strange thing for me was we wore "student" badges, instead of "guest." I haven't been a student since 1980, so when asked where I was a student, I explained I was an alumn who travelled with students to see the show. The conversation changed (in a nice way) as I explained I was there to learn about the show as a practicing artist.

On the way down and back to/from New York, there was good bonding on the bus between artists. I'm always glad to have new art friends. The trip ended when we returned to Boston at 11pm, and I was home by 11:30pm. Long day, but a good day.

Over the next few months, I need to think about whether I want to be an exhibitor in coming years, if I can come up with the $3000-5000 in expenses for the booth, setup, PR, travel and housing in NYC. Money will be my biggest issue.

Sorry this is a long post, but I know many artist friends will find this interesting.

Tomorrow, I will post about The National Stationery Show, and The International Contemporary Furniture Fair. Stay tuned.

More Outdoor Installation Preparation

I made it through the difficulties of stitching the holes, and can safely say that Orange Construction Fence Series #16, which needs a new name, is ready for installation in my back yard.

I employed Operation Cut Up and removed the fabric where there was nothing printed from the texture of the construction fence I used. Above is a picture after most of the fabric "holes" were removed, and below is what the piece looked like in 2003, after I finished it, but before I stuffed it in my closet and forgot about it.


Orange Construction Fence Series #16 measures 38" w x 49" h. I'm still not in love with it, but I think it looks much better than it did originally, and I think it'll work well when installed outside. The cut holes in it changes the look of it completely. I wonder if my portfolio reviewers could imagine this in my work when they suggested I investigate installations. I'd love to know.

I'm hoping to install it outside before June first, in a semi-sheltered spot under a blue spruce tree. I'll be installing it in my back yard, instead of my front yard, because I don't annoy my neighbors if it starts looking very weathered. I'm not using a piece I am in love with since I assume it's going to get dirty, and maybe start to fall apart. Hopefully it will make it through a New England summer, fall, winter and spring.

I've received email requests asking me to post pictures and an explanation of how it's installed, which I do plan on sharing.

After installation, I plan on documenting it with weekly photographs, as it spends a year outside in its new "home".

Repurposed, Recycled, Reconstructed, Upcycled, Redesigned, Tweaked Sweaters

I've finished working on six (out of 50) repurposed, recycled, reconstructed, upcycled, redesigned, tweaked, used sweaters. I'm still not sure what the appropriate word is for this project.


Striped wool sweater used to be a pullover, and is now cardigan. The tag says size XL, but it's more of a Medium because it appears to have been shrunk in the wash. Needle center opening with small funky buttons. Pocket is needle felted also.


White wool and angora sweater used to be a pullover, and is now cardigan. Size Medium, hand covered fabric buttons.


Grey zippered front wool sweater that has been enhanced with a peplum made from parts of a different sweater and accented with antique trim. Size Petite Medium. (A peplum is a short overskirt or ruffle attached at the waistline.)


Purple wool, nylon and angora sweater that was a pullover and is now a cardigan. Has small embroidered wool flowers with a purple bead in the center, not visible in the picture. Size Small, hand covered fabric buttons.


Grey wool and angora short-sleeve sweater that was a pullover and is now a cardigan. The bottom of the sweater has a lace edge. Size Medium (questionable because it's very small), hand covered fabric buttons.


Purple wool blend sweater with needle felted black dots on entire front, edges of sleeves, and back neck and bottom. Also needle felted black line around all edges of the sweater. Size Small. Long style, with black two buttons.

My plan is to convert all of the pullovers into cardigans. When finished, the sweaters will range in size from women's small to 2X (I think). When I picked out the used sweaters, I tried to get a full range of sizes.

Photo colors may not match the sweaters completely due to differences in individual computer monitors.

I need to design and order labels for this sweater line. The fabric content and cleaning labels, that came with the sweaters, will stay on each individual sweater.

All sweaters are for sale. Where I'll be selling them, I don't know yet. I have some ideas. I would love to hear questions, suggestions and get feedback about the sweaters and where to sell them, so feel free to send me an email at jeanne@jeannewilliamson.com, if you'd like.

Read my last post about this project, which was on May 1st.