Tuesday, June 21, 2011
As summer slowly arrives...
Monday, June 20, 2011
The What and Why of retirement
The reception of the art was magnificent!
And a group of Korean art quilters were invited to exhibit at the convention. Their work was outstanding! And, they came to meet Carolyn at her reception. We ate cake for CR's birthday, drank wine, listened to live music next door at the Crown Cafe and generally had a wonderful evening!
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Opening Reception June 17
Carolyn Halliday uses the vocabulary and skills of textiles to sculpt forms that often reference body and/or nature. She hand knits wire and other nontraditional materials into forms that often grow from simple elements of nature and life’s daily debris. With her work, she magnifies nature,and references concepts of the feminine through the female form and domesticity.
My Father’s Religion grew from her experience growing up with a father who loved the woods. Her father’s religion was in the woods. The family spent all of their free time in the Northern Woods. At the time Carolyn would have preferred to stay in a hotel. Nonetheless, her father passed his religion onto her.
My Father's Religion is an installation that explores the calligraphic nature of a knit line, pays homage to the sanctuary of the woods, and questions if art, as in the Byzantium, can transform life. This installation is laid out like a Byzantine church(cross shape)The reference to the Byzantine church comes from her fascination with the idea that the images created for the church, during the Byzantium, were allegedly so powerfully beautiful that they converted people to Christianity. Can art or the beauty of nature transform one today?
Opening Reception, June 17, 7-9pm
shown in conjunction with:
Monday, June 13, 2011
Trees in the windows
My Father's Religion
June 4-July 12
Opening reception June 17, 7-9pm
(Psst! There will be cake!)
shown in conjunction with:
Friday, June 10, 2011
My Father's Religion will be open SUNDAY
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Wire and clothing?the continuing interview
I made my first wire vest because I wanted to wear it to an art opening of my sculptural work. People loved it, so I made a few more art wear pieces off and on, for art wear shows, and for some sales (not that they were ever big sellers, or I would have made more)
But you continue to make wire clothing...
My interest was in the sculptural end more than the fashion end. BUT, I'm very interested in the roles of women, domesticity, expectations of appearance, beauty---all those classic feminist issues----my own struggles of being taught I was never thin enough, pretty enough---so with my figurative work, I like to fold in those societal issues. Of course the choice of rigidly adhering to textile techniques, is a kind a way of wanting to emphasize or elevate "women's work". I intend to make garments that are sculptural, or sculpture, so all of my art wear I want to be displayed as sculpture as well as wearable. That being said, I think fashion is fun. It's fun to wear something unusual. It's a shame that it causes so much misery and over consumption.
Open now!
My Father's Religion
June 4-July 12
Opening reception June 17, 7-9pm
shown in conjunction with:
Monday, June 6, 2011
It is a process
Susan Hensel Gallery is open on Mondays, 10-5. Other days it is wise to call ahead and make an appointment.
The gallery will also be open Thursday, June 9, 10-5.
Open Now: My Father's Religion June 4- July 12 Opening Reception: June 17, 7-9pm
shown in conjunction with:
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Of nature and manmade materials...
My Father’s Religion grew from my experience growing up with a father who loved the woods. My father’s religion was in the woods. The family spent all of their free time in the Northern Woods. At the time I would have preferred to stay in a hotel. Nonetheless, my father passed his religion onto me.
Open Now: My Father's Religion June 4- July 12 Opening Reception: June 17, 7-9pm
shown in conjunction with:
Friday, June 3, 2011
Installation is nearly done!
It involves wire, tools, plumbing pipe, picture wire, monofiliment, a level...and forming, re-forming, frogging and knitting.
The day was made much easier by the participation of Mark Carlson.
My Father's Religion is showing in conjunction with :
Opening Soon:
My Father's Religion
June 4- July 12
Opening Reception: June 17, 7-9pm
Thursday, June 2, 2011
The interview continued...
When did you become interested in knitting with wire?
Around 1996, when Minneapolis was hosting Convergence for the Hand weaver's Guild of America, I was very involved (as a volunteer) with the art wear show. A woman named Kerry McDermot from Arizona, had 2 machine knit copper garments in the show. Something clicked for me and I thought th
at was the coolest thing ever. I went into our basement in search of wire, found some florist wire, and knit a doll.
Dolls? Where did that lead?
So then I got intrigued with non traditional materials. Because I am frequently outside walking and grew up often in the woods, I started collecting stuff that might be used for knitting (tree roots) or was inspired by stuff to work into knitting (sticks, rocks). The tradition of basket making, and the range of materials being used in that textile medium, has influenced me. I also was intrigued with the challenging of shaping and knitting----for example--hmmm-how would I knit that vase shape; how would a make a knit box, etc. The transparency, shadow play,and rigidity of wire were all exciting explorations for me.
Somewhere in all of this, I moved away from the folk art sensibility into work that was increasingly conceptual. I was always seeking and learning and looking for the melding of textile and craft into the world of fine art---a split that continues to intrigue me.
Opening Soon:
My Father's Religion
June 4- July 12
Opening Reception: June 17, 7-9pm
shown in conjunction with: