felt tanks and personal treasures

APAture - install shot

i just got some install shots from the APAture show that was at space 180 in San Francisco in sept.

i loved how the curator suggested i bring in green to relate to all the other work in the show. they also were pretty much in charge of the installation and did a phenomenal job. the whole show really flowed together. the green ended up being the thread that tied the whole room together.

APAture - install shot

APAture - install shot

APAture - install shot

i love how the flowers trail off... it's like the are exploding from the main radial formation

my gram

the other weekend i went to pick up a bunch of stuff from my grandmother's house. it's interesting to think about someone's presence within an object. i spent a lot of time with my grandparents when i was young. so there are a lot of stories in the "stuff" that they had around the house. it's hard not to get sentimental. it's also hard not to sneeze. so much dust! [even though her house was clean!]

even though there were so many treasures - and funny things [drawings that i did when i was very small] - we threw out or prepared to donate so much stuff too. it really made me think about what you want to surround yourself with. why have things just to have them? sure there are things we need - but in terms of objects - i want to be surrounded by things that have an aesthetic or personal value to me [even if in the end no one else cares or understands why i had such things].

anyway - the photo above is of my grandmother when she was a child. it's from either the 20's or the early 30's... in it's original frame [which i had to do a little repair job to]. i feel so honored to have this photo. even though it was before i ever could have known her for some reason it really embodies her personality to me. i re-arranged our bedroom this weekend and found the perfect spot for it.

hope you had a good monday. i'm holding my breath for our momentous election. it's hard to believe it's finally here. if you haven't done it already - don't forget to vote. i'll be back on wed. with an announcement about a show that opens thurs.

Comments

Anonymous said…
oh lisa, your show looked AMAZING!!!! I love love love the space it was in..just fantastic!!!

I completely understand trying to find an object, when I lost my grandparents and dad, it struck me as such a big choice and your photo is simply perfect!
Anonymous said…
Lisa, the show looked fantastic! I really love how the work by different artists interacts. Wonderful!

That is a gorgeous photo of your grandmother. I spent a weekend in January helping to organize my grandmother's house. It was very intense and emotional. My grandparents' home was a very happy place for me as a child but the last thing I needed was more stuff. At the same time I wanted to weave in some of my grandparents' treasures into our home. I came home with a few chairs, their salad bowl, some cookware, aprons, and of course, photos. Beautiful, beautiful photos. I love being surrounded by them. xo
shari said…
hi lisa.
the install looks fantastic. a tank mandala! i love the portrait of your gram. so sweet and special. fingers crossed for the election. xox
Anonymous said…
I love how you arranged the tanks in flower shapes, they look like cherry blossoms - must be fun arranging these into things that are completely unrelated to the original form. Your grandmother as a child is beautiful, it's such a wonderfully sweet picture to keep (interesting to think how different objects have values to different people). Sending hugs.x
julie said…
lisa, this photograph of your grandma as a child is so special - im sure a very valued piece that will be with you always.

the shots from the gallery are wonderful - your work stunning as ever and it seems to fit so well in that fabulous space.

ps love your new banner - such a sense of 'space' in such a small image. xx
Esti said…
i just love your felt tanks, and this display is just great, the radial approach, the flowers scattered neatly and reaching out to others' works... Very nice.

And reading your words about objects... it's funny but i just had luch with my mother-in-law, who's a multidisciplinar artist and huge things collector; her house and workshop is full of stuff to the ceiling... and as we talked today about our material sources, she said to me, all of this I'm keeping just in case, will be put in the dump within half an hour after I die... and she laughed.
Wow. Really interesting installation. Came here via Julie's blog. Glad I stopped by. I love the photo of your Grandmother. What a beautiful memory.
bugheart said…
i always wonder
what the items
we surround ourselves
with would
mean to others.
how will people
feel about those
objects when i
(or someone i love)
are gone...
so nice that
you have these
memories
in her objects
to cherish
and hold on to.
xoxox
Katrina said…
lisa, these installation photos are gorgeous. i'm not sure how i missed this one as it's not far from me at work. i LOVE the gray/ hot pink, my goodness so good.

and that part about objects, photos, belongings... it's so tender. just like the photo of your grandmother and that beautiful frame. i'm going to hold on to that little bit of tenderness... so lovely.
amisha said…
that photo of your grandmother is so special... such tenderness in the image and the vignette you have created around it.
i think about that question a lot- what we surround ourselves with, and why. and how i would explain to someone why certain things are in my space... and why i hold onto some things for years, and then one day decide to get rid of them. being in this tiny space now has definitely brought those issues so much more to the surface.
and your show looks wonderful! i love the pattern of the tanks, especially those tank-flowers escaping across the wall...
xox

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