Crazy Quilts and the Contemporary Crafter

I saved this article by Gayle Worland from the Sunday paper on March 1, because there were a few things that really resonated with me in the interview with Beverly Gordon (professor of textiles and apparel design at UW-Madison and the curator of this exhibit, "A Fairyland of Fabrics: The Victorian Crazy Quilt" )

She compares the craft of these women to present day scrapbooking (and that segues into other paper and fabric crafts), citing an emphasis on creativity, invention, and play, and the importance of "abundance" and "collecting" of material as part of what fuels the craft(s). There's also the intriguing aspect of collective motifs - themes or subjects that appeal to many of us who do the same kind of art and craft that are reflective of our time and cultures and interests.

I quite like this quote the article ends with:

"There's a sense that there's infinite possibilities with materials and making beautiful things ... It's about making something with little bits, the fascination of combinations, because essentially they are a collage."

A Bug's Life

While looking for something else, I stumbled across the website of
Jennifer Angus, who is an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, in the school of Environment, Textiles, and Design. (Yes, that was my first degree... except it might have been called something else back in the day)
She does these amazing installations that are made of real (though thoroughly dead) insects, mounted on walls and placed in precise patterns. Beautiful, repellent and fascinating at the same time, somehow; a marvel from across a room or inches away...


















These last three photos are from an installation at the
North Dakota Museum of Art.
There is a video that shows some of the process of doing an installation on her website, and also some educational games for kids.
She says that the insects are reused for installations until they cannot be repaired anymore, but I can't imagine that we will ever run out. Of bugs, that is. Insects will be the last living creatures on earth. I missed the Chazen exhibit last year in Madison ... it would have been great to see in person; I have a well-known and cataloged fear of insects coupled with a kind of morbid obsession.

Out and About at the Chazen Museum and Memorial Union

I took M. and friend on a little field trip to the Chazen Museum today.
This Deborah Butterfield horse sculpture is one of my favorites from the permanent collection. It's actually part of ArtSmart program, a collaborative program between the museum and the school district. We had posters of this work and some of Deborah Butterfield's other works at school, and I had some lesson plans based on her work.
















This is one that M. was particularly taken with. I don't remember who the artist is, though... I'll have to look it up next time we go.












There is one Louise Nevelson work in the permanent collection. Both M. and I like the use of the violin (and cello?) bridges in the piece. Every time I see it I think about getting some old bridges to use in some assembly work. I do have a little collection of the pegs for strings... I always thought they would make great little doll pieces.













We were actually there to see an temporary exhibit: "Ringmaster: Judy Onofrio and the Art of the Circus". The museum description:
"Judy Onofrio’s life-sized sculptures of extraordinary performers, animals, and circus acts will be exhibited alongside examples of banners, posters, and carvings—drawn from the Circus World Museum collection—that have inspired her work. Onofrio’s glittering constructions are carved, molded, painted, and assembled from wood, fiberglass, beads, ceramic shards, and collected objects. With Onofrio as ringmaster, these materials take form as contortionists, acrobats, and magicians of yesteryear who once again twist, soar, and cast spells for audience..."
Photographs of the temporary exhibits are not allowed, but you can see some of the pieces that were on display at her website. I was amazed at how large the pieces were... some of them must have been 12 feet high... and so detailed.
In Ring of Fire, (third row down on the page you can get to from the "exhibition" link on the left), the woman balances without being attached to the hoop... you can see her swaying gently up in the air.
































I've probably passed by this door a million times... it's a church right in the middle of campus... between the Humanities Building, the Chazen, the University Book Store, and the Lake Street Parking Ramp (where I have spent countless hours roaming in circles looking for parking), but I don't think I've ever had a camera when I passed by the very cool doors.
We wandered over to the Union, got a Babcock Hall ice cream cone, and sat out on the terrace to watch the lake and the boats. (This is right after the major rains/flooding we had here, so the lake level is really high, and probably a bit toxic at this point, but that doesn't seem to phase anybody out there.)