louise bourgeios fabric exhibit

this month there was an exhibit of louise bourgeios at hauser and wirth in london, called 'the fabric works.' i heard about it on CRAFT, via the wonderful magazine about textiles, selvedge.
from the show's description:

Fabric played an important role in Bourgeois’s life. She grew up surrounded by the textiles of her parents’ tapestry restoration workshop, and from the age of twelve helped the business by drawing in the sections of the missing parts that were to be repaired. A life-long hoarder of clothes and household items such as tablecloths, napkins and bed linen, from the mid-nineties Bourgeois cut up and re-stitched these, transforming her lived materials into art. Through sewing she attempted to effect psychological repair: ‘I always had the fear of being separated and abandoned. The sewing is my attempt to keep things together and make things whole’.

love it.

wearable art by nicole dextras

nicole dextras works in a variety of media, including some that is ephemeral, like these cabbage shoes.
more photos of her amazing wearable pieces made of plants can been seen on inhabitat, including more information about her current show.

when i was little, a very cool family friend visiting from switzerland made complete outfits out of giant rhubarb leaves for her daughters and i. it was an amazing experience that i still remember, and probably my first exposure to wearable art! (well, not counting playing dress-up). the cabbage shoes especially remind me of that time...

fashioning felt; an exhibit in nyc

the cooper hewitt design museum currently has an exhibit entitled 'fashioning felt' that is all about felt! the image above is from the exhibit website, and features the work of andrea zittel, one of my all-time favorite felt artists (white felt dress, center top) and also the lovely felt/lacquer work of jorie johnson (lower left) as well as other stunning felt creations.

it's so great to see felt getting showcased like this. from their website:

This exhibition will explore the varied new uses of felt—an ancient material, believed to be one of the earliest techniques for making textiles. Made by matting together wool fibers with humidity and friction, felting requires little technological expertise and is an extremely versatile material. The exhibition will begin with historic examples of felts, showcase innovations in handmade felts, and feature contemporary uses of industrial felt in a range of fields, including product design, fashion, architecture, and home furnishings. The exhibition is being organized by Susan Brown, assistant curator, Textiles.

check out their blog about the exhibit to see a comprehensive felt video that serves as the introduction to the show.




and also these fabulous sketches by feltmaker janice arnold who has created a mongolian style felt yurt for the exhibition! yes, that's right, a yurt. awesome.

this shows looks like it is truly amazing. it will be at cooper hewitt through september, and i think that it may travel after that.

william kentridge: part 2

the show last night was great! and today i visited the exhibit at the henry (runs until may 3), which i highly recommend. there are prints, drawings, stereoscopes (very cool!) and multiple video installations.

his work is also on display at the greg kucera gallery until march 28th (image from the gallery website).
and what looks to be the most amazing, kentridge is also directing 'the return of ulysses', the first opera for the brand new pacific operaworks company, which includes life size puppetry by the south african handspring puppet company. wow. the first show is tomorrow night (march 11) at the moore theater in seattle, and there are also shows on march 13, 14, 20, and 21st.

william kentridge in seattle

william kentridge is one of my absolute most favorite artists of all times. from south africa, many of his artworks deal with issues of apartheid and capitalism.

he works in a variety of media, but what i find most striking is his video art, which he makes by drawing large charcoal sketches and altertering them by smudging out, erasing, redrawing, and layering. he then creates animation by photographing these drawing as he alters them. the results are stunning. he also make lovely shadow puppets.

the image above is from the henry art gallery, where an exhibit of his work is on display until may 3rd, 2009.

tonight i am going to see his performance, "I am not me, the horse is not mine:"

This performance, first presented by exhibiting artist William Kentridge at the Sydney Biennale in 2008, combines live performance, animation, narration, and a vocal and instrumental soundtrack. The work continues Kentridge’s investigation of the roots and trajectory of modernism, drawing on instances of censorship and brutal artistic repression from the Stalinist era of Russian history.

from the henry

i'm pretty sure it's going to be awesome!!

autumn open studio at piano nobile

are you in or near seattle? please join me at piano nobile for their biggest open studio yet, on saturday, nov. 8th, from 2-6 pm. the individual and collaborative work of 8 artists will be on display.
FEATURING NEW WORK
Chadhaus custom furniture
dao jewelry exclusive fall/winter collection
Piano Nobile Home furniture, lighting, and textiles

NEW COLLABORATIONS
Felt Cafe & Piano Nobile Home merino wool felt garments and housewares
Lit Shades & Piano Nobile Home couture silk lampshades

AND TWO MONTH-LONG ONLINE EXHIBITIONS!
Cambodia 1: Paintings and Photographs by Bennett Grizzard
Rough in the Round: Hand-Turned Wood Bowls by Laura Yeats

come meet the artists and sip some hot apple cider in our ballard studio:

Piano Nobile
908 NW 50th Street
Seattle, WA 98107

other than open studio events, piano nobile is open by appointment only.
if you miss the party on november 8, please contact them to schedule a visit.