pink pussy hat project

Check out the Pink Pussy Hat project.  The mental image of thousands of women wearing warm pink hats (with pussy cat ears) while marching inauguration day to express concerns for women's health issues hooked me.  The Pink Pussy Hat project writers were inviting and I wanted to be part of this action.  I couldn't wait to find pink yarn.  Although I am a fiber artist, I'm not a knitter.  I learned to knit in junior high when mohair sweaters were the rage, but haven't done much for years.  A decade or so ago I picked up knitting needles and some cool yarn to make a scarf for a gift.  After a few false starts, I had the rhythm and was tickled I was able to dredge up memories from 40+ years ago and was actually knitting.   Several inches into the scarf, I noticed it had begun to narrow.  I realized I had been dropping a stitch or two every few rows.  I hadn't remembered to count my stitches.  Duh.  Counting isn't my thing.  There's always more than one way to "skin a cat" so pulled everything apart and did a re-start opting to use a pegged plastic ring (knitting loom).  It was a breeze and I didn't need to count.

hat #1

For the Pink Pussy Hat project, I used the knitting ring.  I'm working on my third hat and will be sending them to Washington DC to join other hats made by hand for women to wear on January 20, 2017.

eureka springs school of the arts

My first teaching experience at the Eureka Springs School of the Arts (ESSA) was in 2005.  The school had been active for many years, teaching classes in artists studios and now owned a building  outside of Eureka Springs, AR on Hwy 62.  I was asked to include in my class proposal a list of resources ESSA should provide: water, electricity and table space as well as a list of the equipment I would bring: blenders, vats, buckets, beater, press, etc for students to use in my papermaking class.  They had a building and nothing else.

In July 2016, I taught at ESSA for the sixth time.  Each time I am there I notice the improvements and expansions.  I am excited to witness their growth and am proud to have been a tiny part of it.

Eureka Springs School of the Arts main classroom building.

Today, the Eureka Springs School of the Arts has grown to include a jewelry building, a metals  studio, a fibers studio, an administration building, an artist-in-residence studio and a cottage for out-of-town instructors.  A wood studio is planned and fund raising is underway.

The Eureka Springs School of the Arts administration building
next door to the main classroom building.

Groomed paths invite you to stroll the property and enjoy the
beauty of this special place nestled in the Ozark mountains.

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knotless netting workshop

Pebble Pendant examples

Knotless Netting, or Looping, is an ancient technique using cordage to create bags, baskets and nets.  Judy Mulford and Donna Kallner are contemporary fiber artists who use this technique in their work.

Knotless Netting variations.

Mahota Studio and the ARTesian Gallery and Studios hosted PEBBLE PENDANTS in Sulpher, OK on June 24, 2016.  In this workshop, students learned the basic "loop" stitch, explored patterns and netted a pebble (or fossil) for a pendant.

Margaret Roach Wheeler, of Mahota Studio in Sulpher, OK, showed examples of netting impressions found in clay from Penelope Ballard Drooker's book, Mississippian Village Textiles.
 

Netted Pebble Pendants by workshop participants:

welcome 2016

As this new year begins with resolutions and good intentions, it also is a time to reflect on achievements, highlights and goals met. 2015 was a banner year for exhibitions.  My work was part of juried exhibitions, a site specific installation and a one person show.  

2015 began as Missouri Fiber Artists' 3D FIBEREXPLORATIONS
continued at St. Louis' Lambert International Airport.

ARTIFACT:  SEA OF SALAHIT

GARDEN OF NO REGRETS at Contemporary Women Artists XVII -- Re-imagining Femmage,
The Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO.

MANUS

VOYAGE, a solo exhibition at the Schmidt Art Gallery, Bellevue, IL

VOYAGES at the Goddard Art Center in Ardmore, OK

PAIRINGS, St. Louis Artists Guild, St. Louis, MO;
Cox Gallery, William Woods University, Fulton, MO;
 Albrect Kemper Museum, St. Joseph, MO 

UNFOLDING at FIBER FOCUS at Art St. Louis in St. Louis, MO

JANUS, TARPON, MAKO at SPEAKING OF FIBERS

2015, The Foundry Art Center, St. Charles, MO;  Morton J May

 Foundation Gallery, Maryville University, St. Louis, MO