Virginia Fitzgerald

new year, new challenge

2012-01-05T02:06:00.003-05:00

So for the few past weeks I have been floundering and flopping around about my work and the direction my art is going. I have been pouring through many books, magazines and blogs about inspiration and 'living the creative life'. In fact I have recently put a list of some of these books on this blog's sidebar. >

matted origami dress

I am sure much of this insecurity and uncertainty stems from my current personal situation as well as the holidays. Besides both being mentally taxing I had not been in my studio for way too long. So as I was hanging with my girls, I was also surfing the web, looking for inspiration, and one site I discovered was Creative Every Day Challenge by Leah Piken Kolidas. This site's description spoke directly to that place of longing and yearning that I had been feeling so acutely. I saw in this challenge a very informal and low stress community that speaks to my omnipresent, almost all consuming desire to create.

In many ways I am doing something creative every day already. This site just incorporates many of my 'projects' in one place. Here would be a place/way to record my daily work which I think is one of the important aspects of this 'site'. As many of you know, I have some serious inner critics and I am thinking that documenting my daily activities may be a way to appease these critics, when they are berating me for not working. Also I am hoping that this 'exercise' will help to diminish the 'precious' aspect of my work for me. Much of the time I see myself getting stuck on the 'end' product, how a piece should look, how finished everything should be presented. And these thoughts are contrary to my true nature ~ I love a mess, I love to see process, I want to break down all shoulds; I really just want to create, put myself out there, excavate my creative soul and see what comes out.

For many of you who follow me on facebook, some things maybe be repetitive ~ like the dresstags. And I have a few friends wondering why I am even adding to my very long list of daily responsibilities, but for whatever reason I am going to try, I am going to jump in!

I am still figuring out what this challenge will actually be for me but I am planning to post my daily creative 'acts' on my Daily Dress Project blog. And I hope just to post them - not photoshop the photos, not write a long essay, just document. So that is what I am up to, and my first posting is today, January 4th. :)

Below you will find the text from the Creative Every Day Challenge site. If anyone out there is interested, come join the fun!! what I really love about this 'challenge', is that it is celebrating the act of creating - be it cooking, art, singing in the shower, arranging flowers, you get the idea :) and it is low pressure!!! that is key for me!!!

So Happy Happy New Year to all and peace, Virginia

The Basics:

I started Creative Every Day Challenge in 2008 to help infuse my life and lives of others with daily creativity.

Creativity is meant in the broadest sense, so it doesn't have to be something art related. Your creative acts could be in cooking, taking pictures, knitting, doodling, writing, dancing, decorating, singing, playing with your kids, brainstorming ideas, gardening, or making art in the form of collage, paint, or clay...or whatever!

You do not have to post every day! I know for myself that having to post every day for a year would be too much. You can post about your creativity in whatever form you like, whether that be once a day, a few times a week, once a week, or once a month. Do what works for you!

This is a low pressure challenge, with the idea of bringing more creativity into our lives. I will not be the creativity police. I hope that we can all find ways, simple and grand to express our creative selves. Have fun with it!

follow up to the late night rant . . .

2011-12-27T23:09:00.002-05:00

as some of you know i was quite anxious about my submissions to the juried Fountain Street Fine Art's PAPER exhibit (click here to see the blog post about these anxieties) I spoke mostly about the painting/drawing that I submitted, being a new direction for me, and which stirred some serious critics in my head.

Yesterday I received an email with a list of the accepted pieces/artists for the show and I am happy to announce that my name was on the list!!! But my drawing/painting piece wasn't.
The piece that did get in is one of my favorite mini dresses, Take a Number!!!

take a number

take a number (back)

I especially love this dress because it contains the contradictory element usually found in my larger dress sculptures. The dress is bright and colorful, yet it has an underlying message. As a mother, wife, cook, soccer mom and working artist I have felt so drained and exhausted by all the demands asked of me, and I am not unique in this feeling. When I made this dress I was feeling particularly taxed.

thank u 4 waiting

I chose to use the deli tickets as I did for the dress, Thank u 4 Waiting, but for this piece I used the tickets to suggest the idea of many people needing many things from this one woman. I used red and pinks thread to sew swirling lines onto the paper mache top. I left the ends of the sewn threads hanging to give the sense of loose ends or feeling drained or frayed.

So that is the story behind this piece, which will be part of this exciting exhibit at Fountain Street Fine Art. Below is the list of all the accepted artists and their pieces along with some other information about the jurying and the dates of the show. And what about the drawing/painting?!?! well it will head back to the studio to be judged another day.

peace

James Welu selected 47 pieces by 41 artists from the more than 190 pieces submitted by 85 artists,

The following pieces were accepted:

First Name	Last name	Title
Ann	Barbato	Frau Finnegan
Lisa	Barthelson	f-sorted family debris series
Meg	Black	Storm Coming
Suzanne	Booth	Escape
Arlene	Chaplin	Wandering Away
Brenda	Cirioni	Rock Nest
Cheryl	Clinton	Summer Shadows I
Jane	Coder	Hydrangeas
Patricia	Crotty	Red, White, and Black 10
Lynne	Damianos	Pakm Leaf I
Bob	Evans	Visual Eyes, Water Street, Boston
Nan Hass	Feldman	The Rooster in the Kitchen
Virginia	Fitzgerald	Take a Number
Amy	Furman	String Things
Milisa	Galazzi	Waggle Dance 5 Diptych
Steve	Gatter	Columbia Farm Afternoon
Ania	Gilmore	&
Bob	Hesse	Fleurs du Mal
Wilson	Hunt Jr.	Wild Thing
J.B.	Jones	Blue Clip
Linda	Kimerling	Square #1
David A.	Lang	Wing Walker
Randy	LeSage	Figure I/Figure II
Madeleine	Lord	Hello From Queens
		Hello From Boston
Stephen G.	Maka	Winter Stone Wall
		From Series "Medusa"
		Row Boats
Ginger	McEachern	The Shoe Box
		All the Colors
Robert	Meszaros	Trunk 1002
Karen	Nunley	Indian Summer
Jeanette	O'Connor	Initiation
Joan	Onofrey	An American Lobster
Roy	Perkinson	Daybreak, Columbia River
Robin	Reynolds	November Glow II
Karen	Rothman	Papier-mâché mask models posing for still life
Mahala	Sacra	Dominicana in Pieces
Dale	Savit	Untitled
Joyce Utting	Schutter	A Cut Beneath
		Twining Flask
Suzanne	Stumpf	Egg Shell Nest
Susan	Swinand	Lunar Force
		Falling Moon
Amy	Waltch	Rust Lillies
Timothy	Wilson	Portrait of Packing Paper
Cynthia	Winika	Firecracker

The show will run from

Friday, January 13, 2012 through Sunday, February 5, 2012.

the opening reception, which will be held on

Saturday, January 21, from 5:00 – 7:00 PM.

wishing you . . .

2011-12-25T10:30:00.000-05:00

a joyful, enchanting, magical & heavenly holiday!!

Hope all your dreams and desires come true during this festive season!!!

Please know that I am so grateful for your witness of my thoughts and works, and for your cyber support ~ thank you & peace, Virginia

late-night ramblings after a long day

2011-12-21T01:40:00.000-05:00

Today I was possessed, as I have been for the past 4 days, by my driving desire to enter a 'new' work to the Fountain Street Fine Art's PAPER exhibit. So even though it has been a long day, my heart and head are still spinning, and I felt that I might 'talk out' my thoughts here on my blog. Today has brought up some fundamental questions that I feel many artists face now and then.

the piece that I left @ FSFA

Fountain Street Fine Art is celebrating its first anniversary with a Paper Show (paper being the traditional first anniversary gift). Besides wanting to be part of any show that this wonderful gallery puts on, James Welu, Director Emeritus of the Worcester Art Museum, is the juror.

I have known about this call for weeks and I had SOOOOO many ideas. But, as is usually the way my creative life unfolds, other life needs kept me away from focusing on this call, until this weekend, which was a little late.

I mean - what a wonderful call - PAPER, anything to do with paper - my head was exploding with ideas -

"Media may include, but is not limited to paper, oil, pastel, acrylic, watercolor, collage, photography, video, ceramics, metal, fiber, glass, wood, and stone. '

~i wanted to create an interactive piece with my little dresstag dresses, pinning these dresses on a wall (each with a fortune) to create a dress and encourage the gallery visitors to take a dress/fortune.

Ever since I started the Dress Project I wanted to set up a situation where participants would disassemble a dress. I always wondered how would the dress 'decompose', would there be areas of the dress that people would not remove?!?? But alas, couldn't fold enough dresses construct a dress.

~I also started a small paper mache dress - on which I was going to 'collage' letters and images of internal organs.

This dress was going to reflect how I have been feeling during my divorce process - exposed and raw. The initial dress form turned out very successfully, a nicely defined figure, but I didn't have enough 'quiet' or reflective time to be able to take the next step.

~I fantasized about expanding on my Daily Dress collages. I wanted to push the possibilities of working with paper - collage, sewing, burning, transfers, . . .

~I also have been working on a series of works on subscriptions cards ~ yes those pesky cards that are always falling out when you are trying to curl up to read Oprah. And last time I checked subscription cards are paper.

But as the due date approached and the days/hours/minutes ticked away I was drawn to a piece that I started in March at the Vermont Studio Center. It is a painting on paper, inspired by the wall paintings in my 2009 installation, 'this comes from within'.

although I exhibited this dress
I didn't think it was finished

I started with a simple drawing which I then reworked and repainted, adding and embellishing with creatures and hands and insects and bodies. I have started MANY projects using this painting technique - a mostly monochromatic line painting/drawing. But with all these starts I have hardly finished one of them. Even with the walls of 'this comes from within' I only stopped painting the walls because I needed to build an 8ft dress out of eggshells.

So for the FSFA's Paper show I 'finished' my line painting on paper, which has churned up many doubts/questions in my creative soul.

First, for the longest time many people felt like the painting was finished when I brought it back from Vermont. But I didn't, I liked parts of it but I felt it needed more. So off and on I have been adding and subtracting to the painting. Then, in the past week I tacked it back on the wall and went at it. Again I had some colleagues suggesting that it was done, but alas I kept seeing areas that I felt was weak, lines that I wanted to strengthen, so I kept on working.

the piece that I left @ FSFA

the 'start' of painting (VSC)

And I LOVED it - I LOVE this technique!!! It is very intuitive, I just start working on an area and I start to see new images emerging or morphing into something else. I am drawn to creatures and internal organs; these painting seem to just unfold. I think i could paint like this for hours and days (which I did @ VSC)

So why the questioning - I don't think there is any artist out there who hasn't struggled with the concept of 'over working'??!?! Also as the 'last call' for entries was approaching I still kept seeing one more area to tweak, one more line to clean up. And then when I delivered the piece and hung it with the other work I REALLY started to question the work?? I wanted to take it down and rip it up.

So I am struggling with questions ~ who knows when a piece is done?? How does one know?? If the work feels so authentic does that make it your real art, no matter what the end result is or the reception??

I am in the process of re-reading Art & fear: observations on the perils (and rewards) of art making by David Bayles & Ted Orland. It is a good book about the obstacles that we artists deal with and even create for ourselves. It addresses the numerous ways that fear can affect, alter and at times sabotage our art.

Entering this painting to the jurying process has stirred up some emotions for me, one prominent emotion is insecurity?!? I surprised my daughters as I questioned if I should really leave the painting in the gallery. It is hung by T-pins, so one of my daughters thought it might need a frame but then pointed out that a frame would obscure the surface texture!!

I am thinking that these emotions are stemming from exhibiting something that is truly personal and new for me. Besides the installation walls, this is a unfamiliar 'work' for me. I wondered if I would have felt like a 'fish out of water' if I had submitted a dress?!? A few years ago it was a little out there to submit a sculptural dress but now I think of it as normal.

So why the whirling brain - the endless questioning of myself and my choices. Was this the right piece to put into this show?? Now with my divorce I need to analyze which projects I spend time on - i need to consider the financial benefits and this makes my head spin.

So thank you for indulging me in my ramblings and if you have any thoughts or suggestions I would be to hear them. And even though I have more to say on this subjest, the clock is appoaching 2am and I am driving the carpool at 7:20 am. (wish I wasn't such a night owl :)

So ~ नमस्ते, Buenas noches, Buonanotte, Bonne nuit, Slap Lekker, Gute Nacht &

Happy Winter Solstice & peace

playing a little catch-up!!!

2011-12-17T13:12:00.000-05:00

In my head I have at least 5 separate blogs that I was hoping to post but for now I am going to do a quik debriefing and hope to follow up with more detail a little later.

detail from 'ball gown'

As my last post mentioned, this has been a wonderfully full month for my work. I have pieces in many venues, from Cambridge to Worcester and some places in between.

Last evening I gallery sat at the Fountain Street Fine Art gallery, Framingham, MA where the show is Present Company. This is a salon show of members' work. I am exhibiting Treacherous and Do they know it is Christmas?? It is a rich show ~ the owners of FSFA, Marie Craig and Cheri Clinton always hang an exquisite show!!!

I also have delivered more dresscards to Artisans Way in Concord, MA. I am so excited that my dresscards are finding homes ~ I love the combination of the quotes and the dresses. And since I can never make anything the same way! I am now incorporating papers that I make/design as well as the origami paper. I am very happy with how these have turned out and hope to expand on this idea.

In Attleboro, Emily, or the Dress of Etiquette, is holding court at the Attleboro Arts Museum, for their member show! The opening reception was quite crowded (always nice to see) and I was pleasantly surprised when Emily receive a merit award.

At the Sprinkler Factory, Worcester, MA there are two other dresses holding court, Provocative & Black Widow for the No Theme, No Limit show. Love the gallery space!!!

And the other main project that has been demanding my time is a commissioned dress, made for the interior design store, Shafer O'Neil, in Wellesley, MA. They asked for the holiday dress that highlighted their collection of vintage Christmas ornaments. This is the first full-sized sculptural dress that I have happily completed in a long time, so there many aspects of this piece to celebrate.

'ball gown' (working title?!?!)

I hope to elaborate further about 'ball gown' in a later post, but for now my studio is beckoning so . . .

peace

'tis the season . . . & thank U!!!

2011-11-30T09:58:00.001-05:00

To add to all the craziness of the season, I have pieces in four wonderful shows this month!!

I am truly honored and pleased to be included in them all. Listed below are the show venues, dates and opening information. If you click on the gallery's name you will be sent to the gallery's own website for further information. I am planning to make it to most of the openings - always a good time!

November 22nd - January 11th 2012

Cambridge Art Association's, Cambridge, MA

RED

It's more than a color;

metaphor, feeling, idea or hue...

**RED Receptions at both galleries:

Friday December 2nd, 5:30-7:30pm

Awards at 6:30pm at University Place

124 Mount Auburn Street

December 2, 2011 - January 14, 2012.

Sprinkler Factory's, Worcester, MA

2011 Winter Exhibition, No Theme - No Limits

**Opening and Reception, December 3, 2011; 5:00-8:00 PM.

The reception is open to the public

December 10, 2011 – February 2, 2012

Attleboro Arts Museum, Attleboro, MA

2011 Members’ Exhibition

**Opening Awards Reception:

Saturday, December 10, 2011; 2pm-4pm.

Reception is free and open to all.

Live music at the reception by JAZZ SET with Tony Anzivino on piano, & Rich Balest on bass – alumni of Boston Conservatory & Berklee College of Music.

November 18th - December 18th 2011

Fountain Street Fine Art's, Framingham, MA

Present Company

member show and holiday sale

see website for extended hours

Lastly - this all could not happen without my many amazing friends who help me by ~ delivering work or taking care of girls or bringing a desperately needed cup of coffee or safely driving a sleepy me and so much more!!

So a BIG thanks goes out to 'team fitzgerald'!!! U know who U r!!

( I am thinking of making a team t.shirt :)

So . . .

Thank you!!

Hope to see you at one of the Openings!!

Peace!!!

Heading South!!

2011-11-07T17:54:00.000-05:00

I am very so excited because I am packing up to head down south to Mystic, CT to lead an all day workshop tomorrow!!! The workshop is in conjunction to the Mystic Art Center's exhibit, Form & Fantasy: A Contemporary Twist on Fiber Art, in which I have a piece ~ 'insatiable'.

The day is split into two sessions ~ organic crocheting in the morning, based on my creatures and wraps, and collaging, based on my daily dress project, in the afternoon. The broad focus of the workshop is creating while focusing on process over product.

Both of the bodies of work that have inspired these workshops are produced in a very organic way. I am more interested in the process and getting my thinking-mind out of the way, than the product!! Secondly, reusing materials is a main theme in both these works so i am planning to high light the wonders of reclaiming the materials that surrounds us ~ most of the daily dress pages are based on some piece of detritus that inspired me during that day!!

Lastly, both of these bodies of work thrill me ~ my creatures and daily dresses are a huge passion for me so I am hoping that it will be easy for me to share.

So I am filling my car with my endless collections of stuff - vcr tape, electrical cords, candy wrappers, and so much more!!! I so enjoy teaching and leading workshops as they allow allow me to share my passions, and they also give me the time and excuse to make art! Getting the time and 'band width' to be creative during the day is usually quite difficult when trying to make a living as an artist:( But tomorrow I will be sharing some of my skills to a group of teachers who, hopefully, will teach to their classes, so the tradition & passion will continue!!

xxx & peace!!

happy to announce . . .

2011-11-03T09:03:00.000-04:00

I am happy to announce that 'womb wrap' was accepted into

Cambridge Art Association's

RED

Its more than a color;

metaphor, feeling, idea or hue...

womb wrap - organic knitting

November 22 2011 - January 11 2012
Reception: Friday December 2, 5:30-7:30pm

Juried by Howard Yezerski
Howard Yezerski Gallery

Day of the Dead dress

2011-11-01T22:51:00.000-04:00

As so often happens with me, I started doing one thing and ended up making a dress. Suddenly this afternoon I discovered I had a free moment so I thought I'd start to take down the Halloween decorations!?! When I was removing some of the creepy spiderwebs from one of our trees, I found that they were quite stubbornly stuck. While wrestling with them I realized that instead of removing them (since they clearly did NOT want to come off) I should really just make a dress out of them.

I loved this idea for many reasons ~ the first reason being that lately I have really been hankering to make a dress outside ~ it is such a joy to be creating in the elements. Another reason is ever since my daughter had wrapped the tree with these cottony webs I wanted to make a 'webby' dress. Lastly, this year I had yet to make a Halloween dress, so I thought this will be my Halloween dress, just one day late. But as I pushed and pulled the strands around I realized that this was not a wispy, cobwebby dress, it had more of a ghostly feel, a spirit dress, a perfect Day of the Dead dress.

So here is a dress for the spirit world. And when the wind blew, the skirt of the dress would start to float as if she had a place to go. But then, when the breeze ceased, this dress seemed to have changed her mind and would settle back into the bark.

I wonder if she will stay the night or if she will drift off into this clear, cold night?!? A teacher of mine pointed out, as I was saying I didn't like the shorter days, that this is the time of year when the veil between the worlds is the thinnest. This is a time to dream, to be quiet and listen to our muses. As the time of darkness grows we have more time for reverie (if we can walk away from our computers, TVs and other eletronics). So on that note . . .

Good Night, Sweet Dreams & Peace

dresscards

2011-10-31T20:29:00.001-04:00

As I mentioned in my last post, I introduced my dresscards during my open studios and now I will officially introduce them here. My dresscards are my newest note cards, each with a hand~picked quote and a hand~folded origami dress ~ which is attached with a brad.

With these note cards I am happy to be incorporating two of my loves ~ my origami dresses and words & quotes. I am constantly searching for the quotes that move me.

I hope to highlight the wise words of women (like my heroines ~ Anais Nin, Mary Oliver & so many others) but i will mix it up (not being a big fan of any kind of discrimination :)

The cards are white and 4x6; blank inside and signed on the back.

They can be sent or framed or both.

At this point you can get them at Artisans Way, 18 Walden Street, Concord, MA ~ 978-369-4400

and in a new store in Natick, Renew!, 19 South Main St. ~

or you can order via me just email me or comment below.

The cards are $8. ea. ~ you can request a quote but the dress paper will vary.

So that is the story of my dresscards!!! I have also been trying to post a new quote each weekday on Twitter (@virginiafitzart) and on facebook!! so you can see new cards there!!

Happy Halloween & Peace!!

what a month!!!!

2011-10-27T21:21:00.001-04:00

Upon reflection , I must say that this has been quite an exciting and full month ~

‘insatiable’ won an award at the show Form and Fantasy, at Mystic Arts Center in Mystic, CT; I am the artist of the month at the Attleboro Arts Museum; I have a dress at the BCM (as my daughter calls it); I hosted a terrific open studios where I successfullyintroduced my new dress~cards (which I just dropped off at the new Artisans Way Fine Arts and Craft Gallery, Concord, MA) & now there is a wonderful interview of ME, onthe web!!!

Lynette Haggard, artist and blogger, has this fantastic blog whereshe posts her interviews with artists from all over and currently you can readabout my career as an artist ~ inspirations, beginnings, projects and many otherinteresting facts. Here is a little peekand here is the link to the entire interview. http://lynettehaggard.blogspot.com/2011/10/virginia-fitzgerald-natick-mass.html

I must confess it was a great experience to do this interview, her questions made me really think about the hows and why of my work.

Also this Saturday I am going to experience another side of Lynette, as a teacher, because I am going to take her Encaustic Workshop at the Fountain Street Fine Art Gallery, Framingham, MA ( can't wait to add another technique to my repertoire!! And then I will be back at Fountain Street Fine Art on Sunday to gallery sit during their new show, Beyond the Surface: biological explorations in wax. This is a group show of encaustic work, stop by to say hi. Another arty event that runs the entire weekend is the Grand Opening Celebration Events at Artisans Way, Concord, MA: October 28th: Opening Reception: (4pm-8pm), October 29th: Artist talks and demonstrations (10am-6pm), October 30th: Cake Cutting & Raffle Drawing (12pm-5pm)

So ~ Thank you Lynette for this awesome experience and hopefully I will see some of you at one of these arty events!!! Peace!!!

Virginia Fitzgerald: Natick, Mass.

Virginia Fitzgerald and Lush

2009
57 x 24 x 24"

sculpture: fabric remnants, discarded clothing,
scrap wood, chicken wire, copper spool,
buttons, beads, embroidery floss;
100% found and discarded material used in the piece

Please share a little about yourself. Where did you grow up and what were the early influences on your work?

I was born in 1964 and grew up in Chicago, IL. When I was 11, we moved to a suburb of Chicago. I was fortunate because my grandmother loved to take me to the Art Institute of Chicago so I was exposed to magnificent art at a young age. I remember studying the Impressionists, having their bright colors and mark making pointed out to me. I have vivid memories of standing mystified in front of Seurat’sSunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, and wanting to dive into Georgia O’Keeffe’s Sky Above Clouds IV; this 8ft x 24ft painting of endless clouds. Lastly I remember searching out the plaster sculptures of George Segal. As I got older I became a huge fan of Henri Matisse and the Fauves. And in the past years I have become a contemporary art junkie, making many pilgrimages to NYC to see cutting edge shows in Chelsea galleries. I have also lived in numerous cities with wonderful museums, L.A.; New York and now Boston. I presently live in Natick, Massachusetts, with my two daughters.

a week has past. . .

2011-10-22T22:20:00.002-04:00

. . . since this year's Natick Artist's Open Studios, and I think I may be recovered enough to share the experience!! (if ever so briefly)

Provocative (Rope Dress) held court in the hall

After much muttering and procrastinating (anyone who reads my facebook artist's page may have seen some griping about needing to clean my studio) ~ I had a wonderful open studio!!!! Many familiar faces came by to see what I was doing and to get some peanut M&M's!! A great success even though I really didn't get my studio very clean!!! I know the chaos did 'scare'' a few folks off, but those who were brave enough to enter, LOVED what they saw ~ a real working studio!!!

creatures in their different states of display

I had many interesting conversations and fabulous comments on my newer work - my creatures and my wall painting that I began at the Vermont Studio Center.

I had my creatures greet visitors as they entered my studio.

Art talk by the peanut M&M's

a bit of an idea of how messy most of the studio was!!

There was much positive feedback about my wall painting that I started at VSC this past March. It was fascinating to watch visitors stand in front of this piece and just get lost in it's magical world. there was some discussion about me painting a wall in a house like this, which I would LOVE to do!!!

series of Carbon Footprint Dresses with Poetry Dress

And I also was able to show all my carbon footprint dresses that I have done this past year. These too got a lot of attention. And, of course, I created a NAOS 2011 carbon footprint dress!

after one day

NAOS 2011 carbon footprint dress

And I also rolled out my newest greeting card to much, much success!!! Still working out all the details but I hope to be able to offer these on Etsy or my web site, soon!!

So, all in all, it was an exhausting yet exhilarating weekend ~ full of insightful conversation ( where is the creativity in the carbon footprint dresses?), joking, 'footprint'ing, exploring the mess and lots of fun.

I thank everyone who stopped by during such a beautiful Fall weekend & for those who didn't, there is always next year?!? :) peace

to dress tag or not to dress tag?!?!

2011-10-03T16:09:00.000-04:00

To dress tag, or not to dress tag, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in heart & mind to endureThe slings and arrows of a run-of-the-mill life,
Or to take arms against a sea of the ordinary,
And by dress tagging, end them? To tag, to sleep ... no more;
(my apologies to Mr. Shakespeare)

Mystic, CT, after delivering 'insatiable' to the Mystic Arts Center for their Form and Fantasy show

Form and Fantasy: A Contemporary Twist on Fiber Art

September 30 - November 12 ~ Opening Reception - Thursday, October 6^th from 5:30pm-7pm

Dress Tagging while visiting Red Alert Cocktail Dress at the Boston Children's Museum's exhibit ~

In the Bag

September 15 - November 27, 2011

can u see the dress???

@ my favorite restaurant, flour, down the street from the BCM

Flour Bakery, Fort Point Channel12 Farnsworth St.,a perfect place to go after a visit to the Boston Children's Museum!! thumbs up from our entire group!!!

their tag line ~ Make life sweeter, Eat dessert first!! (what do u think Mom?? :)

a little something extra @ the FPAC store

then next door to flour is the Fort Point Artist Community Store ~

Made in Fort Point: The FPAC Store 12 Farnsworth Street

@ the opening of Here Now at the Sprinkler Factory, Worcester, MA

Barthelson Crane: here now
Sprinkler Factory Gallery
Opening Reception: Saturday, October 1, 5 to 8 pm
Artists Talk: Sunday October 23, 3:00 pm
October 1 - 30, 2011

experimenting with tagging

'May this dress help you find your inner baker'

this tag may have been too suggestive?!?

this 'tag' I put in a busy JoAnn's Fabric, thinking that the creative clientele would be open to picking up a dress, but it stayed put for the hour or so that I was shopping :(?!?! I am dying to see one get picked up!!!)

this made me question my whole dress tagging endeavor ~ is this insanity??? why am I doing this?? why am I throwing one more 'thing' into my already full life?? last week, besides delivering artwork and submitting artwork, I got to deal with a dead chicken, a broken pipe, flooded house and then lost my all keys for a truly uncomfortable amount of time?!?

but even as I question this latest obsession, I can't deny this burning desire to put these 'tags' out in the world. Even if they are never picked up & end on in the trash ~ they might bring a smile to someone before it is thrown out. And I have so much fun figuring out what 'intention' to put on each dress and where to put it, so I guess the dress tagging will continue!! so keep your eyes open AND if you want to be part of the fun ~ email me or comment below and I will send you some dress tags!! But beware - it is addicting :) Peace

Dress photos hit the Road

2011-10-01T09:12:00.001-04:00

Packing up the photographs of my ephemeral dresses to take them down to Attleboro to be ...

New York Diner Dress

Artist of the month ~ Attleboro Arts Museum

2011 Community Gallery Artists

OCTOBER: VIRGINIA FITZGERALD

It all began on Wells Beach, ME. in 2006. I had an idea of an image of a dress and while walking on the beach one morning. I picked up a stick to see what this ‘dress’ would look like. I drew a sleeveless, life sized dress and illed it in with the beautiful beach rocks & then proceeded to let the high tide take it away ~ giving me a new, clean canvas on which to make another dress. The process felt so right and so gratifying that for the rest of the vacation I made a dress! & each day I would walk the beach with no preconceived idea and would just listen to which material I was to use that day…

www.virginiafitzgerald.com

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To learn more about exhibition opportunities in the Attleboro Arts Museum’s Community Gallery contact office@attleboroartsmuseum.org or 508-222-2644 x15.

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Back to Nature

Beach Warrior

Back to the Sea

Wedding Dress (Brenda's Dress)

A Little Jam, Please

I am so happy to be the Artist of the Month at Attleboro because I love this place!! wonderful people, space and exhibits!!! Definitely stop by if you are in the neighborhood!!!

Peace!!

sizzle. . .

dress tagging at the Natick Collection

2011-09-28T09:41:00.000-04:00

'may this dress bring you fun'

'may this dress bring you inner beauty' ~ left at Sephora

this made shopping at the mall much more enjoyable for me. peace

'insatiable' on the road again

2011-09-22T12:40:00.000-04:00

Recently I got an exciting email, which read ~

Working on 'insatiable' at Attleboro Arts Museum

"Congratulations! I am pleased to inform you that your piece Insatiable has been accepted into the Mystic Arts Center Form and Fantasy fiber exhibit and was awarded 3^rd Prize! . . Out of the approximately 70 entries we received from around the country, the juror selected 26, or 37%."

So 'insatiable' is on the road AGAIN!!! In fact I am heading down to Mystic, CT tomorrow to deliver her and then plan to swing through Manhattan to see de Kooning: A Retrospective at the MOMA!!

dress tag in Wellesley

I am so psyched because beside seeing some great Art, I plan to do a little dress tagging in the big apple. Yes I am calling my little dress activity dress tags or dress tagging ~ thank you all for your suggestions. As u can see I have tagging quite a bit. And I am not even photographing each tag because I realize that it is always appropriate to pull out the camera in certain spots.

So NYC and Mystic keep an eye out for some little dresses filled with good stuff.

And here's the 411 on the mystic show:

Form and Fantasy: A Contemporary Twist on Fiber Art, runs from September 30 - November 12, with the Opening Reception - Thursday, October 6^th from 6pm-8pm.

peace!!!

on the road again . . .

2011-09-20T16:10:00.002-04:00

Last week I once again packed up my Red Alert Cocktail Dress to take her on the road. This time she was going to the Boston Children's Museum for the In the Bag exhibit. It is quite a production so I thought I'd share some of the journey.

first I take off all the bottles...

& refresh any that are cloudy...

then I pack everything up....

waiting in the hall to be loaded

all loaded on the pushcart

in the freight elevator

on the loading dock of my studio

unloading at the BCM in the gallery

& the rebuilding begins....

in all her glory at the opening reception!!!

The BCM did a great job displaying the Red Alert Cocktail Dress!!

and the opening reception was quite a wonderful event ~ besides the inspiring & provocative exhibit put together by Liz Milwe and Peter Wormser, we dined on Island Creek Oysters from Duxbury, MA, so yum!!!

Then the party walked over to Lot F Gallery in a glorious Fall evening, where we viewed the work of Todd Robertson, dined on delicious Thai food and danced,

it was a wonderful evening!!

I am so honored that Red Alert Cocktail Dress was included in this significant show!!

Click here it read a press release talking about the importance of this exhibit.

thank you & peace

Opening tonight!! Red Alert's coming out!!

2011-09-16T15:40:00.000-04:00

Red Alert Cocktail Dress is part of In the Bag

In the Bag

Opening Reception at Boston Children's Museum:

Friday, Sept 16, 2011 from 6 - 8 p.m.

The reception will be followed by dinner at:

Lot F Gallery, 145 Pearl Street #4Boston, MA

the art & politics of the reusable bag movement

Artists and communities working together to save the planet.

September 16 - November 30, 2011
In the Gallery at Boston Children's Museum
308 Congress Street
Boston, MA 02210

FEATURED ARTISTS

    Miggs Burroughs

    Virginia Fitzgerald

    Virginia Fleck

    Julian Gilbert Karen Guancione

Sarah Hollis Perry

Dan Price

Dan Steinhilber

an appeal for creative suggestions..

2011-09-14T12:30:00.000-04:00

fortune dress on card

Here on the home front ~ i am doing a few more 'dress droppings'. I love the whole concept of randomly scattering these dresses filled with good intentions, yet i have been wrestling with some aspects of this activity. Hoping that my cyber-community may have an idea or two!!

First - i don't like calling them dress bombs, although 'bombing' is a graffiti term and scattering these dresses around has a 'graffiti' element.

to bomb :To bomb or hit is to paint many surfaces in an area. Bombers often choose throw-ups or tags over complex pieces, as they can be executed more quickly. From Wikipedia's graffiti terminology

I don't like using verbiage that refers to violent or military action. I believe in the idea that all we do/say/think sends certain energies into our world ~ positive, negative, kind or aggressive energies; thoughts become reality. This idea about violence in our language was very much in the press after Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot. Articles were written about how our language is full of combative and brutal imagery. Here is a link to an NPR article speaking to this issue. So I am trying to find a more positive name/label ~ dress droppings ?!?, dress-ups ?!?, dress tags (another graffiti reference) Any thoughts?? I'm open to all ideas and would love any suggestions!

Also I experimented with putting the dress on a card with additional information. It is about the size of a business card, and I listed my blog address, so I might get a record of where these dresses end up. Although part of this process is the randomness of just putting the dresses out there, it would be fun to see where some end up. But not sure I like the dresses attached to anything. Again any thoughts???

on a card or just free flying out there in the big wide world?!?!?

Fortune dress w/out card in Home Depot

fortune dress on car at Jo-Anne's Fabrics

And lastly I am experimenting with putting these dresses on greeting cards ~

hope to have a bunch done for Natick Artists' Open Studios ~ October 15 & 16, 2011 ~ noon - 5 pm

So thanks for any idea & peace to all!!

Red Alert Cocktail Dress comes to Beantown

2011-09-08T11:30:00.001-04:00

Opening Reception ~ Friday, Sept. 16th, 2011 ~ 6-8pm ~ hope to see you there!!! peace

the art & politics of the reusable bag movement

Artists and communities working together to save the planet.

September 16 - November 30, 2011
In the Gallery at Boston Children's Museum
308 Congress Street
Boston, MA 02210

Opening Reception at Boston Children's Museum:
Friday, Sept 16, 2011 from 6 - 8 p.m.
RSVP by September 6th
(617) 426-6500 x245 or
Mayers@BostonChildrensMuseum.org

The reception will be followed by dinner at:
Lot F Gallery, 145 Pearl Street #4
Boston, MA

FEATURED ARTISTS

    Miggs Burroughs

    Virginia Fitzgerald

    Virginia Fleck

    Julian Gilbert Karen Guancione

Sarah Hollis Perry

Dan Price

Dan Steinhilber

dresses 'hit' metrowest .... such fun!!

2011-09-05T23:00:00.001-04:00

More dresses 'bomb's, this time in some Massachusetts towns ~

Wellesley, Needham & Natick....

This dress was left in a sugar bowl at the Treats Cupcakes Bar in Needham

before dinner

& was gone after dinner!!!

what fun!!!!

& I had a different cohort this time :), thanks Harriet!!!

Not sure if I will be able to keep this up during regular work week hours .... but it has been fun for the 3 day weekend!!! I love the idea of spreading good intentions and maybe inspiring someone. Though I have NO idea where these dresses are ending up ~ that is kind of fun too!!!

Peace

Dress 'bombing' in Portsmouth, NH

2011-09-05T00:39:00.000-04:00

Today, daughter Maya and I took to the road to one of our favorite New England hamlets ~ Portsmouth, NH. While there I got the idea of sprinkling the town with 'good fortune' dresses.

It started while waiting at Starbuck's. Not being one to have idle hands - I made a dress out of an index card that i had in my pocket. After I made it I thought it would be fun to put it in a corner with a bit of good fortune on it for the one who may find it.

dress#1 ~ "may this dress bring u joy!

starbuck's, 1 Market Squ.

Maya and I liked the idea so much that we found some beautiful origami papers and made a few more, which we carefully placed around downtown Portsmouth.

dress#2 ~ "for you who finds this dress, may you have a yummy meal!

me & ollie's, 10 Pleasant St.

dress#3 ~ "may this dress bring the finder personal satisfaction"

a planter on Congress St.

dress #4 ~ "may this dress bring u a good night's sleep"

random car on Congress St.

dress #5 " may this dress bring you love"

Riverrun Bookstore, 20 Congress St.

dress #6 ~ "to the finder of this dress ~ find good fortune"

shoe store on Market St.

who knows if anyone may find one of these dresses, or for that matter pick it up! But it was fun to quietly dapple downtown Portsmouth with some good thoughts. But now, watch out, because who knows where dress will pop up next???

Happy Labor Day Weekend to all!! Peace

once again, with feeling

2011-08-28T08:47:00.010-04:00

In the past few days I have revisited this most important quote and felt that it was to time again to share it. I feel that it is vital for everyone - artist or not!!!

" There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique, and if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium; and be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, not how it compares with other expression. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. No artist is pleased. The is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others."

To me this quote speaks to the core insecurities that we all can battle with, artist or not. It speaks to the idea that we each have a special gift to give the world, or as one of my dresses says, 'we each have a spark of the divine'. And it is not our place to block or question this gift ~ and that is where the trouble begins.

As a mother of two girl, one who is a teenager (yikes), I have watched as they start hiding themselves to fit in, how they have become guarded in their personal expression and appearance, how they put on masks, they close their channel. In their worlds, especially their entertainment world - there is a sameness. In the world of pop singers I am amazed on the number of Barbie look-a-likes ~ skinny & blond (i honestly can't tell many of them apart, but I am not their target market).

Now I appreciate this is adolescences, what we have all gone through and they are discovering who they are..., yet it doesn't stop at adolescences, and it is not only in the celebrity world. I see it in my everyday world, the real world I have always wondered why does everyone want to look like everyone else??? Everyone following the latest fashion craze, no matter if it doesn't feel right on their particular body type. (In high school I wanted to be the Glamour Don't) Where did the idea of personal expression quietly get squashed?? Thank you advertising and media ~ the more insecure we feel about ourselves the more we will buy.

I am aware that I am talking in large generalizations, and now more then ever are is an embracing of differences. But I believe there could be so much more celebrating of our uniqueness - our gifts, our 'quickening's. And for those of us who struggle with this (I am constantly in a battle with self doubt and mourn the energy that I spend in this wrestling match), I desire that we find a way to believe more in our own voices, our own visions, our own expressions, and to squash the self doubt; to celebrate ourselves and each other; be at peace with that queer, divine dissatisfaction. ( I love Graham's choice of words ~ I know exactly how that feels ~ queer and divine)

So peace!!

and for those of us on the East Coast I hope we all ride out Irene safe and sound and dry!!

a question for my fellow artists

2011-08-23T22:41:00.002-04:00

my question:

does anyone know how to fix sharpie marker that has been drawn on a coroplast panel??

For this year's Natick Artists Open Studios we are doing a p.r. event where 10 artists have created a b/w drawing on a roughly 2x4 ft piece of coroplast, that people will be able to color at the Natick farmer's market on September 17th ~ the NAOS Art on the Common.

I was honored to ask, and have been obsessed with creating this dress. But as I have been working on the outlines I have noticed that the Sharpie is not as permanent as I would like on this surface. When experimenting with coloring in a black and white drawing with colored sharpie everything is getting muddy - the colored sharpie is picking up the black!! None of the other artists are having this issue (typical ~ I have the issues!!) But as I have small areas to color in I would love to 'fix' the sharpie so this dress doesn't turn to mud.

I have tried workable fixative which melted the sharpie. I also tried covering the sharpie with matte medium, Golden's Fiber Paste (for a texture to receive the colored sharpie) and wallpaper paste and nothing is working ~

any suggestions???

Thank you! & peace~

p.s. ~ mark your calendars!!!

Natick Artists Open Studios

October 15 & 16, 2011

noon - 5 pm

be there or be square

ending with a bang!!!

2011-08-02T21:50:00.008-04:00

Today I had the pleasure of talking to some of the campers at the Attleboro Arts Museum all about my piece 'insatiable'!! It was a wonderful morning!! My girls and I also introduced the campers to the wonders of crocheting. For most, this was the first time, however there was one girl who

is a pro (she made an orange ball!) and I wanted to learn from her.

We got all the campers, ages 6 - 13 years old, crocheting with different green yarns, some were using hooks and some were finger crocheting. Soon I was showing some how to work with two or more strands and then we talked about adding the beads and charms ~ we all had a blast!! At the end of our time each camper had created a significant chain, and for those who wanted to, they gave me their handiwork which I then incorporated into 'insatiable'.

So 'insatiable' grew a bit more today, and grew a lot during the Green show, which sadly ends tomorrow! It has been such a wonderful experience to be involved in this terrific show, so if you can stop by tomorrow!! hours: 10- 4 pm.

But if you can't make it ~ here are two links to videos from the opening reception ~ you can see me with green hair tinsel performing 'insatiable'.

http://www.doubleacs.com/?q=node/2673

http://youtu.be/E8YHRVxYSoA

Enjoy & peace

if: obsession

2011-07-29T15:23:00.010-04:00

OK ~ another IF topic that I couldn't pass up however I am feeling like i am cheating, a bit ....

This collage/illustration comes from MY most recent compulsive obsession ~ my daily dress journal/project!! I started creating a page a day in a moleskin sketch book in February. I try to take some detritus from the day and create a 'collage' which includes an origami dress. When i first began I filled a book, creating a page for each day. Since then I have started two more books but the days are not always in sequence, and I skip a day here or there ~ but that is only because of, wait for it.... I run out of TIME!!! but I am obsessed and I am now collecting every scrap of interesting paper that i can find!! and I LOVE it!!! ( I have even set up a Daily Dress Project blog where I am trying to post each page, I am still in March, but plugging away:)

When i was wondering why I was spending time working on these books (when there was amble other things I could be addressing) my very wise daughter responded, without hesitation - you need a creative outlet!! from the mouth of babes!!

So that my contribution to the Illustration Friday community!! a illustration of an obsession which also represents my obsession with making art and my obsession with dresses!!! Which leads me to the other photo in this post - the dress I made with Eugene Quinn for the Barefoot at Rockport event which was held yesterday!! It was a beautiful event and I was so honored to be included!! Thank you Corina Belle-Isle who organized all the magic!! Happy Friday!!

dresses here, dresses there...

2011-07-18T06:48:00.009-04:00

I have been blessed with a summer full of exciting opportunities. First there is Green at the Attleboro Arts Museum!! Then, this weekend I dropped off the 'dress of etiquette' aka Emily at the Narrows Center for the Arts in Fall Rivers, MA for their show Baggage. ~
JUL 20, 2011 - AUG 20, 2011
RECEPTION: AUG 14, 4 PM

Baggage is what we carry when we travel and what we bring to relationships. Baggage contains our belongings and our emotions. It gets dragged, lugged, carried and shipped from place to place. It can take many shapes and hold many things.

The diverse and dynamic exhibition will include sculpture, painting, drawing, and photography from the following 25 artists:

Aparna Agrawal, Milcah Bassel, Harry Bernard ,Merilee Bowers, Wendy Brusick, Alyana Cabral, Andrea Cabral, Deborah Carlson, Donna Catanzaro, Emily Corbato, Kate Doyle, Virginia Fitzgerald, Fran Forman, Caron Gonthier, Chrystee Governo, Jacqueline Henry, Jennifer Jope, Grace Koshinsky, Michael Kurgansky, Susan Lirakis, Charles McGill, Filipe Miguel, Susan Post, Stephanie Silvi, Hollianne Wood-Garrothers

Lastly, but not leastly, I am doing a collaborative piece with artist Eugene J. Quinn for Barefoot at Rockport, a celebration of art and fashion Thursday July 28th. The event sounds so fantastic ~ On July 28th, Art comes alive in a fashion event on Boston’s north shore. Barefoot at Rockport is a day long celebration of fashion as art, a showcase for independent local and national designers, and boutiques. It’s a day of shopping, wine tasting, a showcase for our artisan food designers, mixologists, stylists, floral designers, it’s a fashion exhibit at one of New England’s most notable art associations, the Rockport Art Association and a fashion extravaganza and exclusive cocktail party all set against the back drop of the jewel of Boston’s north shore, Rockport MA and in one of New England’s premiere performance centers, the Shalin Liu.

And Eugene and I are creating a 'dress' that will be auctioned off, with proceeds going to the Rockport Art Association. This is a very exciting, yet daunting, project. Eugene has given me some of his old canvases and I am incorporating them into a dress. We decided that the old canvases were going to be part of the skirt and he would paint a new painting on the bodice. So I have created a bodice out of plaster which I am going to deliver to the artist today....can't wait to see how this all comes together....

More to come about the Rockport dress and this packed-full event, but right now i need to pack her up and head North.

Happy Birthday David Lang!!!

2011-07-12T13:56:00.008-04:00

today is the birthday of the awesome & most creative David Lang,

Happy Birthday, David!!!

And upon arriving at my studio this morning I found a lucky penny & knew it was going to be part of David's birthday dress (as is tradition)!! Up in my studio I found some wood & my trusty, rusty dremel drill and just followed the muses!!! It was a true dress project moment ~ hardly thinking, just creating (love that). I used inks and stains on the wood in my favorite swirly motif. Then I took the drill and carved the swirly motif into the wood. Then added some rubber stamps....

In the chaos which is my studio, I found this lovingly worn fortune that seemed so appropriate for a man with more energy than a bunch of first graders after consuming much chocolate cake ~

"every moment is a golden one for him who has the vision to recognize it as such"

& for the dress I turned to one of my favorite resources ~ the order of service from the Unitarian Universalist Area Church, Sherborn. The dress "a spark of the divine" came from these pages ~ it is full of positive affirmations and poetry, and it is on a beautiful colored paper!!

The dress reads ~

"We go forth into the world in peace

To act with works of love

To affirm each person's dignity

And to cherish the living earth"

David epitomizes this sentiment so it seemed a fitting choice. And this birthday boy is in the midst of that wonderful frenzy of getting ready for a show at the Boston Sculptor's Gallery in a few weeks. To keep up with this bundle of energy check out his blog or his facebook artist's page & enjoy the wonder which is David Lang's art!!

peace

Gabby called it Bob

2011-07-10T08:58:00.020-04:00

It was a fabulous evening at the opening reception for Attleboro Arts Museum's exhibition, Green. I had such a wonderful time 'performing' with my piece, 'insatiable'. Many people helped me work. A girl named Gabby was very intrigued with the piece ~ wondering if I was going to be working on the piece the entire time the show was open!? She was disappointed when I told her that I would only be crocheting during certain scheduled times, but then she learned how to crochet and helped me work on the piece. She also did decide to give 'insatiable' another name, she called it Bob.

The museum staff had created a terrific set-up for me and 'insatiable' ~ I had an entire corner to myself. There was also a bowl where people could leave materials for me to crochet into the piece. When I got there there was a buckle in the bowl that I immediately worked into the piece.

For me this evening was extra exciting because I was 'to perform' with my piece during the reception!!! With this in mind, I felt I should 'look' the part, so I went all out ~ I wore a green dress, had green fingernails and toenails, green tinsel in my hair and made myself a kind of crocheted shawl, which I loved wearing. And the experience was awesome!!! I LOVED!!! working on 'insatiable' again. In fact it was so wonderful that I have started another giant creature to work on at home. This time it is red; and I want to make it so people will be able to go inside the piece. That is something I see people wanting to do with 'insatiable' ~ to get inside, however there is no easy and safe way to get it.

It is amazing to me to see how people are drawn to 'insatiable'. I encourage them to touch and play with the piece. Many artists and curators discourage any touching of art because the oils from hands can cause the work to decay. But as I have mentioned before ~ I see my creatures as alive and especially 'insatiable' ~ changing all the time. So the idea that 'insatiable' will be touched, meaning that there is the possibility of it getting a little dirty or oily, only adds to its ever evolving state.

The entire show is a treat for the senses. there are some amazing pieces from all over the country. Below is a list of all the contributing artists, with the award winners in bold :). ( I also put links to their websites and take a look if you have time - so really cool work!!!) And it is SO great to be in another show with my soul sister artist friend, Lisa Barthelson!!! Just another perk about this show!!!

So if you are in the area - STOP BY. I will be working on the 'insatiable' at certain times during the exhibit and I will try and post the times here!!

Green Exhibiting Artists

Michelle Acuff, Jenny E. Balisle, Stephen Barnwell, Jeanne Barry, Lisa A. Barthelson, David Lee Black, Peter Campbell, Mia Capodilupo, Donna Catanzaro, Barbara Clark, Barry Close, Iris Falck Donnelly, Virginia Fitzgerald, Ricky Gagnon, Eleanor Gilpatrick, Julie Gray, Michael S. Guertin, Leslie Hirst, Kevin Hughes, Bonnie Jaffe, Sharon Loper, Petra Nimtz, Elaine Pawlowicz, Norman Petersen, Lahary Pittman, Barbara Poole, Nikki Rosato, Lisa Gabrielle Russell, Cheryl Safren, Ruth Scotch, Hiroko Shikashio, Alan Strassman, Mark Taber, Stephanie Terelak, Tom Wagner, Elizabeth White, Peggy Wyman, Stephenie A. Zentara.

that was also a lot of 'press' :) and I think I made an interesting subject. Below you will find a link to one article about the opening.

article in the Patch online

AAM is going 'Green'

Attleboro Arts Museum, 86 Park St., Attleboro.

Tues. through Sat. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

www.attleboroartsmuseum.org or 508-222-2644.

GREEN - A National Juried Exhibition, July 6 through August 3

peace

The time has come the time is now....

2011-07-05T16:53:00.018-04:00

This entry is way overdue, yet very timely. This post is about one of my favorite fiber pieces, 'insatiable'. I have mentioned this piece a few times, always planning to write a longer blurb later, however that hasn't happened, as of yet. But today that will all stop!!!

(drum roll please)......introducing 'insatiable'!!!!

'insatiable' is part of my creature series, however this creature has not reached it's critical mass yet, in fact this creature is still growing, consuming most anything green in its path. I exhibit this piece as a performance piece, and actually I will be performing with 'insatiable' tomorrow evening at the opening for the national juried show, Green, at

the Attleboro Arts Museum. click here to link to press release. I am so honored to be a part of this national show and, here is a first for me, I will be receiving one of the six juror's awards!!! The guest juror was Kate McNamara, Director and Chief Curator of the Boston University Art Gallery, and from what I saw when I dropped off 'insatiable,' it looks like she put together a great show!! The show will run from July 6th - August 3rd; opening reception and award ceremony July 6th from 7-9 pm, with live music by Cactus Attack.

As I mentioned, I will be performing 'insatiable' during the opening and hopefully at other scheduled times during the show. I did this during the show “Insatiable: Our Rapacious Appetite for More” @ the Kniznick Gallery at Brandeis University’s Women’s Studies Research Center, this winter. It was a terrific experience ~ as I sat and worked, many people would come and sit

with me and add to the piece. We would sit together crocheting and have wonderful conversations. I also LOVED teaching people how to crochet, 'Virginia style'. I feel as though I am part of a tradition, passing on this treasured passion, since I was taught by fiber artist, Mandy Greer. During my visit to Portland, OR a few years ago, I went to one of Mandy's crochet-a-thon where many gathered to crochet for Mandy's piece “Mater Matrix Mother and Medium ”. During the event Mandy taught us novices her style of crocheting and hence, my creatures were born!!

Another intriguing element of 'insatiable' is the materials that i have used. i started with a variety of yarns but soon felt the need to use less traditional crocheting materials, such as gardening twine and gimp. Then I found myself using discarded materials, such as broken headphones, ripped plastic bags and old balloon ribbons with the popped balloon. People can also bring in materials for me to crochet into the piece. At the Brandeis show, during one of my performances a woman brought in her dog and gave him a trim and I crocheted his fur into the piece.

'insatiable' has many elements that gives it intrigue. I have collected so much materials that I know that this creature will be growing for awhile. The last really exciting aspect of 'insatiable' is that I see all my creatures as very organic, almost living. So when my creatures are exhibited I tell the curators to display the creatures however they feel is best for that show, since my creatures can hang on the wall, sit on the floor, perch in a corner like a web, to name a few options. So far all the curators are eager to play. So I can't wait to see how 'insatiable' will be tomorrow.

There is so much about this piece that I am going to include the write-up i submitted with the piece. Some of it maybe repetitive but some will be new and interesting!! Hope to see you att the opening!! peace

‘insatiable’ belongs to a body of work which I call ‘creatures’. In the spring of 2009 I was introduced to crocheting by fiber/ installation artist, Mandy Greer. Then at the end of 2009 I had an accident in which injured my hands and I was not able to do my usual studio work. However, I was able to crochet, and this is when the creature series really began. I call them creatures because each piece has its own personality. Each creature is created in an intuitive process. Each creature defines itself ~ I work in an organic way, adding different yarns and beads as the piece demands. Then each creature is finished when it feels that it has reached its critical mass.

‘insatiable’ is a great example of how the creatures work. I started this creature with the idea that it would be a regularly sized creature, however I was soon aware that this piece had other plans. I started ‘insatiable’ with different green yarns but soon I felt the need to expand my ‘materials’. I started adding more non-traditional materials; garden twine, old balloon ribbons (and the balloons), old electrical cords and broken headphones to name a few. I have cut plastic campaign signs, plastic shopping bags and trash bags into thin strips and crochet the strips into the piece.

As the piece continued to grow and take in more and more materials, ‘insatiable’ became a performance piece. It was clear that this piece/creature was insatiable, never satisfied, always wanting more. When it is shown, if the gallery wants, I come in at scheduled times and ‘feed the beast’ or in other words, crochet more materials onto the piece. During the performances people can bring in any twine-like material in greens or browns and I will add it in. During one show a women brought in her dog and gave him a trim and then gave me the trimming to add to the piece. Also during my performance I will teach anyone who wants how to crochet and they can add their own handiwork to the piece.

The performance element of the work has been very excited ~ besides getting many people evolved an artistic process, I have created a situation evocative of quieter times, when community was formed when women gathered to do their needlework. During my performances the participants quiet from the craziness on their high tech, electronic worlds. They engage with each other and appear to find some solace.

‘insatiable’ speaks to the idea of ‘recycling’ by taking the many materials that people have dismissed or discarded and reusing and incorporating them into the piece. There is a parallel between ‘insatiable’ and a tree. Besides the visual similarity, ‘insatiable’ takes what is discarded and turns it into something beautiful and new, such as a tree takes carbon dioxide and turns it into much needed oxygen.

‘insatiable’ can be exhibited in many different ways ~ it can sit on the floor, on a wall, in a corner or hang from the ceiling. The possibilities are endless. Thank you and peace.

if: remedy

2011-07-04T01:55:00.006-04:00

This week's illustration friday's prompt is 'remedy'. For this week i reached back to one of my greeting card illustrations, an illustration for a get well card!!

I think the remedy for most anything is a little TLC!!

Wishing all a happy and safe 4th o' July!!! peace

thank you Puffin Foundation!!!!

2011-06-29T11:50:00.002-04:00

Last week the mail brought me good news; no, great news, phenomenal news. I received news that The Puffin Foundation is giving me a GRANT to create/finish my piece, ripple ~ Yahoo!!!! This is such exciting news!!! To receive a grant is such validation of one's work and vision, as well as a financial boom. This grant could not have come at a better time!!! My job at Dana Hall has come to an end and I have been dying to get back into the studio, but there is

always that ever-present incomegoblin.... but now I have something to feed him for a month or two :). So instead of looking ahead to a summer of employment uncertainty, I can plan a summer working away in my studio~ guilt-free (what will that feel like?!?)

The Puffin Foundation does great work ~ "continuing the dialogue between art and the lives of ordinary people." Their mission being..“ the Puffin Foundation Ltd. has sought to open the doors of artistic expression by providing grants to artists and art organizations who are often excluded from mainstream opportunities due to their race, gender, or social philosophy.”

And besides providing grants for artists, they also have wonderful exhibition spaceswhere they put on thought- provoking and provaocative shows. Currently at the Puffin Cultural Forum in Teaneck, NJ is the traveling exhibit, In the Bag. This show "traces the history of the reusable bag movement and presents creative alternatives to using plastic shopping bags, in cluding beautifully designed reusable bags made from billboards, juice boxes, rice bags, and discarded plastic bags."

I am proud to say, that for the exhibit in NJ the curator, Merri Milwe, invited me to show my Red Alert Cocktail dress, which I was happily did. The exhibit runs from June 3rd - July 21st.

I applied for a Puffin Grant to help me complete my piece 'ripple' (it's working name). 'ripple' is a newer rendition of my large dag tag dress which was called '3,000 and counting'. '3,000 and counting' (made in 2006-2007) was about the dead soldiers in the Iraq conflict - very literal. But I was never happy was the way that dress looked, the shape. So when the dress was finished being in the provocative show, A Call to Art at Gallery 55, Natick, MA, I brought it back to my studio and cut it in half ~ much to the chagrin of many. But I didn't like it and I knew it could be better.

As the pieces of the dress sat in my studio I was struggling with how i wanted to remake it. While in it's deconstructed state, the dress did 'spawn' two smaller and poignant dog tag dresses ~ "in memory of..." and " do they

know its Christmas?". Two dresses that have been shown a multitude of times, evoking much thought and conversation. But still, the large dog tag dress sat in disarray. I would work on it but still wasn't sure where it was going. By this point there were way more than 3,000 dead from this war ... did I get more dog tags to keep up with the death toll? But I realized it was about more than dead soldiers. As the time past I began more aware of how the affects of the war were so far-reaching ~ not just the dead and their families, but so much more ~ the child who has been shuffled around to different care-givers because of parents' military duty and stress of the co-worker of the girlfriend who was murdered by her boyfriend who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. The stories are many and I want represent that aspect of this crisis ~ the ripple affect of this conflict. So that is what I proposed to the Puffin Foundation and that is what they decided to fund!! So thank you Puffin Foundation, because this is no small undertaking, and to have your endorsement that you believe in this project enough to fund it it is priceless. below is the description that I included in the grant!

My project is to create a large, sprawling sculptural dress commenting on ripple effect that recent and past military involvement has on everyone ~ the soldiers, their loved ones, their families and children, workplaces and schools, communities and society as a whole. The repercussions are far reaching and the issues are complicated.

My proposed piece, “ripple” is its working title, is important in that it will facilitate dialogue about our continual engagement in military situations, and our dependency on a military economy. With “ripple” my goal is to have people stop, look, think, feel, engage and communicate.

This piece will build off the power and energy of an earlier work, “in memory of...”, which also addresses war. Made out of dog tags ‘decorated’ with photos of soldiers who have already given their lives, “in memory of...” provides a safe and scared arena for consideration of the sacrifices war demands. Its presence quiets many, and even brings some to tears. “ripple” will also consist of dog tags, along with beads, charms and other material to represent the nonmilitary.

My truth is simple. My voice is gentle, yet compelling. The ideas that I deal with are complex. I offer an alternative to fear-based thinking or even lack of thinking. My work elicits fresh thinking, engaging people to generate their own thoughts and opinions. With your funding I will have the means to bring “ripple” to fruition, a piece that fulfills the mission of the Puffin Foundation; “...continuing the dialogue between art and the lives of ordinary people.”

peace

Rui Rocks!!!

2011-06-27T10:15:00.006-04:00

I found this awesome image in my email yesterday. One of my design students took photos of my work from my blog and web site and created this!! I love it!!! It is so exhilarating to see ME made up out of all my work!! it is all there ~ dresses, paintings, fiber, photographs and more! Thank you Rui!!!

How Virginia got her groove back

2011-06-14T01:36:00.008-04:00

For anyone who has children, they know that June has a momentum all its own ~ school, sports, after school classes all are finishing and there are numerous end of the year fetes and events that can suffocate one's calendar. For me these past few weeks have had even more poignant events ~ besides my girl's schools winding down (including a 'promotion' from elementary school to middle school), a 13th birthday (hello teenager!!) and some other family affairs; I finished up a wonderful and intense semester of substituting at the Dana Hall School. The past five months at Dana have been such an amazing learning experience for me, with wonderful teachers - my Dana Hall students. I believe it is safe to say that we all, students and teacher, grew and stretched ourselves ~ and I hope we all continue to challenge ourselves. But as wonderful that this experience has been, I have been painfully aware that I have been a stranger in my studio (only so many hours in the day to be teacher, mom, cook...). & I have SO missed making art and being in that arty mindset. So now the time has come to get myself back into the studio; to re-immerse myself in that heady drug of creative thought!! One way that I get those juices flowing is by applying to shows and that is what i did.

For a few years I have been aware of the A.I.R. Gallery's yearly benefit postcard show, but I have always missed the due date. This year that changed!! I successfully got a postcard in the mail (thanks to next day air). BUT for me, in the midst of everything - I see this as a victory!! And I am very happy with my submission ~ I had planned to make a collage piece with an origami dress (like my daily dress project pieces) but, as is so true so many times, the muses has a different idea. This card is a perfect snapshot of my life at this moment of time and what a perfect way to begin this new creative journey.

Here is some of the 411 of the show :

A.I.R. Gallery's yearly benefit postcard show, Wish You Were Here 10 from June 22 – July 16, 2011. Last year’s exhibit had work by over 400 artists including Kiki Smith and Mary Frank. This year we hope you will join us in our mission to provide leadership and community to women in the arts by exhibiting your work in Wish Your Were Here 10.

The postcards, made and donated by artists nationwide—both men and women—will be shown in our Gallery III space. Each will be signed, titled and dated and may include a message from the artist. The cards will be labeled and a list of participating artists will be made available to gallery visitors. All postcards will be priced at $45 including New York State sales tax.

We hope that you will be part of Wish You Were Here 10 and we look forward to seeing you at the special Postcard Show opening on Wednesday, June 22, from 6pm to 8:30 pm, for the reception on Thursday June 23 from 6pm to 8:30pm for all three exhibits we will have on view or for the DUMBO 1st Thursdays Gallery Walk on Thursday, July 7 from 5:30pm to 8:30pm.

111 Front Street #228. Brooklyn, NY 11201 . phone 212-255-6651

peace

illustration friday ~ asleep

2011-05-27T19:46:00.005-04:00

Once again I feel that it has been too long since I have lasted blogged, which is true. One reason is since I have been away soooooo long there is soooooooo much I want to say so I get stymied. But then I saw today's Illustration Friday's prompt: asleep, and knew I couldn't pass this up...

In fact this is a wonderful prompt for me... so much that I couldn't pick because all three if these are some of my favorite illustrations - from way back, so i'm posting all three.

And I do hope to be posting a bit more regularly because there is just so much to share, to ponder & to post. (also my teaching position is ending so i will have a bit more time on my hands, well at least until my girlies get out of school :)

peace & happy memorial weekend!!

artistic existential angst

2011-04-27T22:43:00.007-04:00

so .... I feel like it has been years since I have posted on this blog!! I have been working on my daily dress project blog ~ which I wonder what is the purpose of doing it, but then I still do. But now here I am!!! And I feel like sharing what I have been experiencing lately. As I think about it, it is yet another roller coaster ride, ups and downs (more the downs) ~ and there are many legit reasons for this ride, but every time I speed into the loopty-loop I feel scared and lost, and maybe sharing will help me and others!!

So in the past month, give or take, I have had a mind blowing experience at Vermont Studio Center, as well as set up and took down 2 significant gallery shows. The latter alone can send me into a minor tailspin but I think the combination has taken its toll. Also I returned from a time of living and breathing art to a schedule that doesn't allow for much studio time ~ teaching (with extracurricular activities) and a family that really missed me and wants their due!! Add to that the revelation from VSC to take better care of myself!!! whew!! In fact today was an 'old Virginia' day, which means high energy, get in as much as I can!! It was a great day but this falls under the category of burning the candle at both ends ~ up @ 6ish to get girls ready & off to school, teach from 8-2:30, then pickup girls and friends for an artistic field trip, dinner and some much needed flip-flop shopping!! I love these days and the artistic field trip was to ArtSpace in Maynard for Catherine Evans' show, Struggling with Entropy. It is a wonderful show - so inventive and talk about a woman who knows her way with materials - 14. 2 miles of gimp, Clementine boxes, yoplait cups and sharpies on medium-density fibreboard (MDF). It is an spirited show, sadly ending on Friday. The wall of gimp is breath-taking, viewed up close it is one thing: a study of gesture and color combinations and technique. Viewed from a distance it is another: a study of color and movement. Catherine is an inspiring soul ~ full of ideas with the courage to develop them!! Talking with her this afternoon was stimulating, it helped me to feel like the artist that I am. She had also set up an interactive work station with squares of MDF and sharpies of every color ~ so I sat down and drew a dress!! Working with the sharpies on the MDF is dreamy ~ she has created a large wall piece called, "too many markers to count" which I have admired for awhile, so it was delightful to make my own design. And I am happy with it, although I am thinking about putting some text behind the words.

I have been doing a few thing with text lately. I love to work with words, legible and illegible. I like to think that the essence of the word is in the work, even if it can't be read. I started this diptych about my VSC experience and both sides have words. The background of the piece on the left is filled with words about my experience and I am thinking of putting words behind my sharpie/MDF dress. Words that convey strength, knowing, courage and spirit!! to note finding my artist self again!!

The idea for the diptych pieces came from my daily dress project/journal. Both of the visiting artists @ VSC were drawn to my daily dress book. Both were fascinated and suggested that i create the pages in a larger format & this is what I did for the VSC diptych. I don't think they are as successful as the pages in the book which are intimate and manageable ~ but it is a good experiment. It is interesting once the first ddp (daily dress project) book was done I was a bit at sea on how to continue. I loved the idea of making some days bigger and some small. But as with so many things - reality trumps idea. So I have a new moleskin book, but even with that I am struggling ~ saving many materials from each day but not being able to create the pages :(. Time is the culprit!! and I must remember that ~ not that I have lost my 'touch'. All those artists out there know what I am talking about - any blip is your work and immediately you question you place in this world as an artist.

So I am struggling with that question and how much does one alter their life to accommodate this desire, or does one even have a choice?!? I am believing more and more that I don't have a choice ~ if I am not creating I implode. So, voila ~ artistic existential angst. More on the issue, but now pillows beckon, haven't seen them for around 18 hours. peace

announcing....yet, another obsession

2011-04-04T20:46:00.007-04:00

Now how to begin.....

I was given a moleskin notebook for a project called The Sketchbook Project (more about that project later, but for now.... ) I became quite enamored with my moleskin notebook with the kraft paper cover and when I finished that book I wanted more!! & ever since beginning The Dress Project I have toyed with the idea of a daily dress. Also during this time my studio time has become shorter because I am spending many of the daylight hours in a classroom, so there has been some pent~up dress creativity. So I got myself another moleskin notebook and suddenly the pieces fell together.... introducing the Daily Dress Project or journal.

For this journal I create a page from some detritus that comes to me during the course of the day ~ a receipt, a paper bag, packing material, whatever catches my fancy; that is be the starting point. Then I build the page around that element and eventually I add an origami dress. Sometime the dress is large, sometimes small; one time the dress isn't even there, you get the idea.

This project has become a wonderful addiction as well as an exhilarating experience. To the left is a photo of a new notebook - a plain paper, 5.25 X 8.25 inch, 80 page Moleskin Cahier Sketchbook. Below you see images of what my Daily Dress Journal looks like NOW ~ I need a rubber-band to keep it closed!!! I am truly smitten ~ everyday a new puzzle to work out, a new challenge, a new opportunity to create. On these pages I am experimenting with different media and new techniques. And of course there is the nostalgic side of this ~ each journal page encapsulates a moment in my life, a diary of images.

As this journal is almost done, and I am playing with some ideas about how to continue. But as I ponder how to go forward with this project, I realized that I wanted to share this 'idee fixe', so voila the Daily Dress Project blog!

Yes, I know.... another blog?!?! but after much thought it only seemed appropriate ~ the daily dress project needed its own space where each day will have its own spotlight! not squeezed in between shows announcements and creatures and larger dresses.

To begin I have posted 6 dresses on the site, and a little story about that day's collage, if need be. I am going to try and keep the text to a minimum, have it be more about the image. So I hope you have a moment to go share in my latest all~consuming passion & I'd love to hear what you think!!

that address again ~ www.dailydressproject.blogspot.com

& peace

fundraiser for Rosie's Place ~ tonight

2011-04-02T08:49:00.005-04:00

I am participating in a fund raiser for Rosie's Place in Boston, a wonderful place......

Rosie’s Place, a sanctuary for poor and homeless women, offers emergency and long-term assistance to women who have nowhere else to turn. Founded in 1974, Rosie’s Place welcomes each guest with respect and unconditional love. Rosie’s Place accepts no government funds, and relies instead on committed volunteers and private supporters to accomplish its effective and innovative work.

The fundraiser is this evening in Framingham ~ below is the announcement

from the organizer, Cheryl Perreault. Hope to see u there!!

ToNIGHT ~ LA CARRETA MEXICAN RESTAURANT

WOMEN MUSICIANS and ARTISTS TO RAISE MONEY FOR ROSIE'S PLACE

I would also like to announce a special fundraiser that I am involved with taking place tomorrow between the hours of 4:00 and 10:00.

This event will be an open-house style ...come when you can for a few hours or stay the entire time! This special event of partaking of Mexican food, listening to a non-stop line-up of talented female performers and viewing beautiful art...all for a donation of your choice for Rosie's Place is the vision

and creation of singer-songwriter Ruthann Baler who is founder of Strike A Chord

There will be ongoing music performed by a line-up of 30 talented women and I look forward to emceeing the whole event with my dear friend Ellen Schmidt! There will also be a number of artists exhibiting artwork including previous guest features of the Women's Art Forum such as Jeanine Vitale, Kris Waldman, Lynne Damianos and Virginia Fitzgerald. In fact, Virginia will be exhibiting a wall piece in addition to one of her special dress art pieces! All artwork will be available for purchase and each artist has kindly agreed to donate a portion or all of their sales to Rosie's Place!

A line-up of the performers and a listing of the artists can be found in the attachment.

I'm really looking forward to this special event of women artists sharing their art for women of Rosie's Place.

This event is open to the public. We would love to see you there in support of this special cause.

return from Brigadoon

2011-03-27T14:36:00.015-04:00

I CAME......

(an empty, clean studio, full of possibilities and potential)

I SAW......

(soon pink and red was popping up EVERYWHERE)

I CONQUERED...... ( & CLEANED)

(an empty, clean studio ~ ready for the next lucky artist)

I am back from my few days in paradise, Vermont!! As I am transitioning back to reality I am powerfully aware of how fortunate I was to be able to have this experience and that I will be living and learning the lessons that i got in Vermont for days, weeks, months and years! There is so much I want to share and to explore about my time that it can be a bit paralyzing ~ so I am going to take the advice from one of my favorite books by Anne Lamott, "Bird by Bird", translation one step at a time.

So along with a quick peek at the stages of my studio space, here are the most wonderful artists that were in the firehouse studio building with me. We had a unique experience because our walls did not go all the way to the ceiling so we had more of a communal feeling with much cross pollination ..... click on their names to see their websites ~

Emilee Lord

Sophia Narrett

Emily Bowser

Jon Geiger

and lastly,

my signature on the door frame of my studio ~ a tradition for all departing artists.

peace