the point of loose ends

looking, originally uploaded by dressform.

EDIT :: it was brought to my attention that you can't click out of bloglines to see the install shots of the show.... you have to visit the post physically on my blog... and then it works... so FYI

that was the title of the show that wendy kawabata and i came up with. above is my dad and grandmother looking at my work.

this was one of those really great show experiences. the kind that make you wish that all shows could go like this. first of all the people who teach/work in the art departement down at mira costa are incredibly friendly and helpful and interested [they asked great questions]. remember how my box was magled by Fed-Ex? someone made me NEW FRAMES.... so i got there and didn't have to re-frame stuff.... wow. plus it was the first time that i showed several bodies of my work simultaneously....it was really cool to see how the pieces connected to one another.....


wendy's piece bloodlines

i also think that some larger force [kismet] was at work in bringing wendy and myself together. i knew i'd like her after seeing a few images of her work and our email exchanges back and forth.... but i didn't realize how precisely our interests and aesthetics would collide, intersect, and converse with one another. she is a caucasian woman who has taken her 1/2 japanese husband's name. i am a 1/2 japanese woman who's name doesn't reflect that. she is really thinking about her 3 year old son and how to bring him up in a world where his cultural identity is somewhat in flux. i am living that life. she is living in hawaii where she is re-examining her colonialist roots.... i often dream of what it'd be like to be in hawaii - the only place i've ever been where people thought i came from the village down the road - not some exotic country or undiscernable ethnic bloodline.



we had to give a talk about our work 3 times. by the third time we were both a bit punchy. it is REALLY hard to figure out what to say that 3rd time out. even if you fundamentally realize that the audience hasn't heard it all before, i just could not say the exact same thing. luckily we were able to steer the 3rd round and asked for more questions from the students.... and we did it in more of a free flow.... the first 2 talks we went one at a time. the last one we interrupted one another and went back and forth between thoughts and our works.



for the first 2 talks my family was there. luckily the room was full enough that the addition of my mother, and father and grandmother didn't add to my nerves. :) it was actually really great to be able to talk about the blanket piece and then point to my grandmother and say : that's HER voice! one of the faculty asked my parents to say something during the 2nd talk and i was so incredibly moved by what they said. i am so so lucky to have the support of my family. even though they might not always understand what it is to live the life of an artist, they are there for me in every way shape and form. their warmth and concern and pride for me is something almost indescribable. plus my dad pointed out a thread between us - his anti-violence/war philosophy and my work with the tanks and targets... i honestly didn't even make that connection.... and it's been staring me in the face!

if you'd like to see more install shots [and some details of some pieces]:: click here

and if you'd like some art stuff to chew on..... wendy brought something up that i've been rolling around in my brain. part of what i love about our works together is that they both fundamentally are relying on the act of drawing. mark-making. and we both like to use non-traditional materials to do this. she mentioned that she sees the act of drawing in 4 potential approaches ::

1. draw what you see - something right in front of you
2. draw from memory - something that you once saw, but you no longer have a reference to
3. draw from imagination - something you've never seen. ever.
4. drawing as appropration - using other materials/ideas/visuals as source materials....

well... there went my idea for shorter posts i guess.....

if you haven't already seen.... mav and grace both have gift guides.... and i'm super honored to have underdog stuff featured on mav's .... along with SO MANY TALENTED people i love and admire.... and poppytalk has an amazing holiday card guide.... tis the season, no??? BUY from small business.... buy from artists! why not??

and lest you think i did nothing else in southern calif


i did manage a few photos.... check all of them out here. the light is definitely different down there....more soon!