This speaks to me tonight. To make great art requires deep vulnerability. I love what she says is the original definition of courage: “to tell the story of who you are with your whole heart.”
Thanks to Michael Bungay Stanier for bringing Ms. Brown to my attention through his Great Work Interviews.
I had fun in the studio today. I resumed turning postsurgery three weeks ago, but I have spent only a few days here and there during those weeks actually turning, including two days of open studio. Today was the first really full day I’ve had working in the studio and the first day I really felt my mojo back. I had been feeling tentative and clumsy. Today, I picked up a large chunk of spalted wild cherry that someone had brought me during the studio tour. He had had it since 1990 (!), and I found it to be cracked throughout and utterly dry and very punky. What came off the gouge was mostly dust, with a few dry shavings. (My studio now looks like it’s coated in brick dust.) I decided, what the hell! It felt like a perfect opportunity to play, with nothing at stake and always the possibility of a bowl.
I tried to cut past the cracks, but discovered that they went all the way through. The wood was so punky and funky that I decided to go for an elegant shape, leaving the walls thick for integrity, and let the texture be what it would, in contrast to the shape. I sanded with 60-grit sandpaper just to reduce the unavoidable tearout and then sandblasted the bowl inside and out. It ended up with a wonderful weathered-sandstone appearance. I applied a single but generous coating of Danish oil to bring out the rich cherry/sandstone color. I love the result, though I know it’s not for everyone. What do you think? (The photos are just snapshots, so please forgive the color variation. The second photo is most representative of the actual color—at least on my computer.)
The official Open Studios web site is experiencing some temporary growing pains and should be back on Thursday. In the meantime it’s redirecting to their Facebook page. To fill the “map gap” there’s a new interactive Google map of all studios and artists linked to the Facebook page.
Here’s a link to the map: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=214558702952893952236.0004a0dad36d1f63b5f1d&z=11
And here’s a link to the online version of the listings and the citywide map in Zócalo magazine: http://www.bluetoad.com/publication/?i=66075&p=8
Check out this article written by UK woodturner Brian Clifford, called “Trees, Wood, and People”: http://www.turningtools.co.uk/trees/trees2.html. He examines the role of trees in the development of human culture—from the very evolution of Homo sapiens—and the close relationship humanity has to trees, perhaps grounded in genetic memory. Stimulating ideas, even germinative.
Thanks to Karen Dombrowski-Sobel for sharing this discovery with me.
Once again, the artists of Tucson—including me—will open their studio doors to visitors for the Tucson Artists’ Open Studio Tour. This time around, instead of just cleaning up and setting out work, I’ll be working at the lathe throughout the weekend, so if you have ever wanted to see me turn, come on by. I’ll be here 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, April 16 and 17. For a complete list of the artists participating and maps to their studios, pick up the April issue of Zócalo Tucson magazine or visit the Tucson Open Studios web site.
Next month, Flux Gallery will be rehung to create a “Spotlight on the Artists,” with a reception Friday, April 8, from 5 to 8 p.m. Come by between April 8 and 30, Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., to see new and selected work by Carol Ann, Lee Roy Beach, Peter Eisner, Katherine Minott, Shirley Wagner, and me. This will be one of only two events I will be participating in this spring, so I hope to see you there!
"Stem," by Lynne Yamaguchi: maple burl bowl on a painted cherry pedestal
If you’re in the area, please check it out. The opening reception will be held Thursday, March 25th, from 6 to 9 p.m.
Look what my sister found on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbp2_0huciE! Apparently, someone I’ve never heard of, a California artist named Brandon Teris, found my “Imagine a World without Art” essay and made a video of it. It’s fascinating for me to see someone else’s interpretation of my words. (You can read my original essay here on my blog).
UPDATE: Unfortunately, I won’t be able to participate in this show, because I have the flu. I hope you all will still check it out though!
For my next show I’ll be trying something different: a small one-day show hosted by Patricia Mooney and Sara Spanjers at the interior design firm Designlines, at 2080 N Craycroft Road (between Grant and Pima). I will be one of fourteen local artists showing work at the “Cupids, Cookies, and Champagne” art show on Saturday, February 12, 2011, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (I will be outside, in the north-side parking lot.)
Come start the Valentine’s Day weekend with some gourmet cookies, champagne, and a private showing of art. There will also be a raffle with prizes including a one-hour design consultation, a Designlines accessory, and original artwork by Sara Spanjers, along with other contributions.
Contact Patricia Mooney of Designlines Interior Design Studio, at 885-9577, or artist Sara Spanjers, at 731-1620, for further information.
. . . my work to break your heart open.
