January 2010
3 posts
Hiatus
a break or interruption in the continuity of a work, series, action, etc.
yes, twas the case. but with all projects on board, in a line, and set for the marching, i am more than swelling with excitement & anticipation when looking to the calle that lay ahead.
August 2009
8 posts
More to Pot-Pour-Ri
Sounds of Appassionata in F minor emanating from her room.once within, scrapbooks open to reveal linear equations for the next architectural masterpiece. painstakenly constructed models lay strewn about the room. wires. concrete. wood. glass. stone. the elements used to build our everyday foundations for fundamental living. and amid all that reveals structure, i find a collection of architectural...
The Pot-pour-ri Interview
Tique: what were your thoughts on being interviewed?
Allison: i was very thrilled to share my thoughts about the things i create and enjoy doing. much of what i do in jewelry design is actually developing an idea into a physical object, so i was excited to share the importance of my design process and what i draw inspiration from.
Tique: what about your jewelry design do you find original?
Allison: that's a tough question. the originality of my jewelry design comes through my design process. every design begins with an idea. i may see a building, an ad, or a photograph that provokes a potential design and i sketch these ideas. i work with scale and to allow an idea to develop into a design. after deciding on the right material for a particular design, i take it to the table. as for what you can see to be original, i think my designs emphasize the importance of utilizing negative space.
Tique: i recently came upon the Nora House designed by scandanavian architects Tham & Videgard Hansson Arkitekter, that had me think of your jewelry designs. are there are any innovative architects whom have inspired your work?
Allison: my design knowledge rooted in architecture. from my studies in this field, i can say that good design comes from being honest with a material and the way that material is applied to a design. as a lover of modernism, i believe simple forms give us more opportunity to appreciate a material - may it be wood, concrete, glass, or stone - and give a sense of cohesion and order to a design. my most recent design series with wood was first inspired by le Corbusier's Notre Dame du Haut in France, a marvel of modernity in my eyes.
Tique: what well of inspiration do you draw from?
Allison: i am inspired - as i said before - from the things i see day to day. whether it be a dried leaf on the ground or a facade of an old building, anything that catches my attention serves as inspiration. that is why i always carry along my sketchbook.
Tique: if you were to come upon a perfect stranger wearing one of your creations, describle how that would make you feel.
Allison: that would be fantastic! that thought crosses my mind each time i sell a piece of jewelry on Etsy. i don't know when that day will come, but i when it does, it will be an interesting conversation starter.
Tique: i understand you are a pianist and perform locally in Minnepolis/St. Paul-how long have you been companion to a piano?
Allison: for about 12 years now i have been a pianist. i began taking lessons quite late compared to most musicians, but soon after began performing, teaching and loving music to this day. i was trained in classical music and when i sit down at the end of the day, you can bet i will be playing Beethoven.
Tique: I like the fact that you stay involved with your local music scene. are artists there supportive of one another and what about it could be improved upon as far as community/venues go?
Allison: the network of musicians in minneapolis/st. paul is fantastic. each local artist brings something unique and wonderful to their music creating a diverse, well-rounded music scene. the musicians are very supportive of another – you see local artists at each other’s shows and many of them play together in other side projects. the musicians are dedicated, the fans are loyal, the venues are awesome - i wouldn’t change a thing!
Tique: if life were to allow you one talent- would you follow architecture, music, or jewelry design?
Allison: if i had to choose only one, although it would be a terribly bad idea, i would choose architecture. architectural design is not only about aesthetics but it addresses issues about the way we use and understand the places around us with a design solution. architecture directly affects people and the way they live - i find that fascinating.
however, i strongly believe all three interests influence one another and my architectural designs would become less successful if i lose my creativity found in listening to and playing music and designing jewelry.
Tique: as a child, were you aware of your eye/interest for things that has directed the field of study that you are in now?
Allison: yes, i have always been interested in making things. as a child, i spent my summers crafting, beading, working on little projects, and finding remnants from my grandpa's junk pile in attempt to make "cool" useful things. i still have many of them with me in my apartment. as i grew older, i began the like the idea of making things for myself instead of searching for something that matched what i had in mind. so i began designing and making all sorts of things from scarves and picture frames to earrings and necklaces.
Tique: other than jewelry, if we came to your residence, would we find any other creations you have made, experimental, or otherwise?
Allison: well, i have bits and pieces of architectural projects around my apartment. architectural models made of wire, concrete, or wood can be found just about anywhere. you would also find reused fabric remnants made into various things.
Tique: because of your love of aesthetics, i am interested to know what you surround yourself with at home. what type of layout or decor do you have?
Allison: my younger sister is quite talented with photography, so i have several of her pictures framed and on my apartment walls. also, i collect rocks from my travels - they are lined across window sills and found in fun arrangements. in the past i have been sporting a black/white/grey motif with accents from my fabric creations and rocks.
Tique: you have chosen wood as your main element for jewelry design. why? and will you incorporate others in the future?
Allison: currently i am designing with wood as my main medium and i will be slowly integrating silver into future pieces. what i like about wood is that each piece is unique with grain pattern and hues. it also lightweight jewelry.
Tique: Dubai is an insanely innovative mecca for architecture. what are your thoughts on cities being more artistic with their planning endeavors? especially in the face of the technological and creative times that we live in, would you say we should strive to fit those times visually?
Allison: although what is happening architecturally in Dubai is quite fascinating, i do not find interest in keeping up with the impractical architectural designs. but as far as cities being artistic with their design and planning endeavors, i believe architecture is not art nor is it iconic. the purpose of architectural design is to be experienced, to be lived in and to make a positive impact on our lives. the experiences found in everyday architecture is what interests me.
Tique: What would be your dream in the world of design?
Allison: my dream in the world of design is to be part of the next “charles and ray eames”.
Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson is an architecture student at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Follow Allison Johnson’s blog: http://pot-pour-ri.blogspot.com/
But naturally, you must visit her shop at http://alliebelle4.etsy.com
July 2009
50 posts
Wake up to Mia Rae
The year is 2087. She happily skips through to a time too distant yet for our ordinary thoughts. Upon her return, she brings back to us a world filled with intriguing lightness: a finally found freedom to unabashedly exude our fantasies. to unlock our vaulted vision. autumn leaves, backward clocks, Flight, and modern rainbows. She dances down from staircased clouds. She waves her hands wildly in...
The Bewakeful Interview
Tique: what were your thoughts when asked to be interviewed?
Mia Rae: Honored, excited & then I probably bit my lip to the side
Tique: what does a typical day entail for you?
Mia Rae: I have made it a pledge every morning to lay down on the ground and look up at the sky with a greeting in my eyes. I had to do this to slow myself down before I started zipping off for the day in "go" mode. A typical day is sewing, My dog, making a mess, baking, My dog, sewing, fiddling with plants, lil bike rides, making a mess, sewing & then rubbing my feet & stopping around 10pm.
Tique: What well of inspiration do you draw from?
Mia Rae: Time travel, Meditation, Mildly Cold Showers, Rooftops & probably simply being Bipolar.
I’m prone to thinking a lot about death and doomsday; My way out I think is creating a future apparel that feels free. I often gaze out from my roof looking out onto the cars where folks appear so gloomy. I imagine the world car-less dancing in a musical about surviving & loving the simple life. Of course they are dressed in "BeWakeful" from head to toe...
Tique: if you were to travel to a foreign land, describe how you would feel seeing your creation on a perfect stranger--and so far from home?
Mia Rae: C0nnected & Alive ; much like a cold dip in the ocean
Tique: Is the world that you create within your items similar to the world you would like to reside in physically, or rather are they one and the same for you?
Mia Rae: Yes & No ; There are many other parts just as diverse as this world that I’m not able to tap my creative side into just yet. This side is less colorful but just as real…. If not more.
Tique: if you had a chance to remake a film with you as its costume designer, what would it be?
Mia Rae: Peter pan 1924, the Never Ending Story & Barbarella
Tique: Are there any monumental figures (personal or world figures ) who have moved you?
Mia Rae: Peter pan, Eugine Fields, David Bowie, Dr. Who, Virgina Wolf & Soul Singer Betty Davis
Tique: what was life like for you as a young girl? -any other creative sorts in the family line?
Mia Rae: My family’s sorta like a bunch of brunette Martha Stewart's on acid. The shadows that rolled across my bedroom windows were from clay coiled life size monsters. During the day I’d balance on my head against the wall in front of my grandmother's sewing room & stared at the wall of buttons & bing a ma bobs. As soon as no one was looking, I’d sneak to the sewing machine & mischievously played . Walls of fabric to drape & safety pin into dresses & tents, mom’s & aunt to smash my hands in the clay with, & one cousin to copy cat the latest 80’s fashions (pumpkinhaus.etsy.com).
Tique: Your grandmother was a seamstress. do you feel had you not been exposed to the environment of fabrica you would not be a daughter of fashion today/ or do you feel as though regardless you are genetically predisposed to your creative surges?
Mia Rae: My grandmother was a seamstress true but; The rest were painters, sculptors, avant fashion addicts & one shrink. I think I was destined to the arts however I might have sculpted fabric or been more of an installation artist.
Tique: I wanted to ask you about JoMary Frances Barker (Delia). can you tell me a little about her?
Mia Rae: JoMary is my friend's mother; I never actually had the chance to meet her but was always told I’d love her & she’d love me. Her interests & obsession with sewing was much the same. She passed away from cancer unexpectedly & was given a few weeks to live. We never had the chance to meet & yet we work side by side everyday. I think ½ of my materials are from the deceased; passed on to me.
Tique: i understand that certain organizations have your support. which ones and why?
Mia Rae: It all started when I was given a large donation of fabric (12 huge garbage bags FULL) from JoMary Frances Barker, a woman that had just passed of ovarian cancer. It was mine with the agreement that I would donate a percentage of my sales from the items to a cancer research foundation of my choice.
I chose the “ Avon Army of Women” in part because my mother is a supporter. It is headed by a woman surgeon who discovered the link between hormone shots for menopause and cancer.
Endangered Species Protection; I have a strong pull to the world we are losing & I’d like to be as much apart of it as I can especially our wildlife. I’m a big dinosaur fan as well………..
American Cancer society ; This I chose because “Army of women” is obviously only women & I felt rather imbalanced not supporting the other side.
National Marine Life Center; I have a firm belief that many of the answers we seek be it past or future lay deep in the waters . We know more about space than the ocean floor! If I had been fostered out of my art whack happy family I think the marine biologist in me would have kicked in. The most calming place for me is the Atlantic. One of my secrets when I’m all wound up & can’t meditate is to watch 5 minutes of non narrated Marine life anywhere I can find online.
Tique: have you ever been dissatisfied with a creation?
Mia Rae: Yes in deed; Once a month something sours; I have a box of redo’s that are awaiting their day to shine.
Tique: Are you brewing any new creations you would like to give us a sneak peek of?
Mia Rae: I’m weave-eling a wild wind of idea’s right now for Bags, High wasted elastic topped jump suites & winter neck wear!!
Tique: you have chosen etsy as an avenue to present your items. what about etsy do you like?
Mia Rae: Etsy is a world of it’s own with millions of mystical and potent little fingers making & sharing like little elf's .
Tique: 3 colors in a scheme. which ones?
Mia Rae: Dirt Brown, cherry Red, Robyn Egg Blue
Tique: I’m going to sketch out a scenario. a woman walking through an outdoor market in Montreal. the air is fresh. the world is alive. she is dancing through a sea of voices. her hands are clasped together as she carries a clever tote round her wrist filled to the brim with her newly purchased goods-flowers included. can you dress my woman? give me a mental sketch of what she would be wearing stamped mia rae of course...
Mia Rae: Ahhhhhhhhhhhh……
she is a light little feather in her autumn layers;
High wasted dark dirt brown linen wide legged overhauls with a tuff of red lace along the bottom hem, 3 spaghetti straps make the suspenders on either side and cris cross the back.
* She wears a red low cut V-neck tank that tears down to the high waste line in tiny tiny small orange buttons looped across in yellow threads.
* She wears a small pocket watch around her neck on a extra long chain
* Her bangs are short & her hair has been fashioned into a loose high bun with a thin yellow ribbon
*Flat simple elf like shoes that are highly worn from troufeling through the mud.
*Her basket is magenta pink & orange with a red pleather handle ; full of blueberries with one small yellow flower stemming out.
Tique: there seems to be a surreal quality to your clothing that adds an unworldly dimension to everyday life. what is it about your clothing do you find original?
Mia Rae: Colorful, Sexy, Slouchy, Tom Boy, Future Girl, Dr. Who companion meets the care bears at a psych ward; not many folks have that brewing in their magic hat. I am keen to detail & color in the tiniest of places; I love stripes & the smallest amount goes along way.
Tique: what sort of emotive responses to you wish to evoke with your clothing?
Mia Rae: Carefree, sexy, time traveling versatile Barbie
Mia Rae
A percentage of all of Mia Rae’s sales will go to the following organizations:
* Endangered Species Protection
* Love/Avon Army of Women
* American Cancer society
* National Marine Life Center
You can follow Mia Rae on these links:
http://Bewakeful.etsy.com
http://MiaRae.etsy.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/miarae/
http://BeWakeful.blogspot.com
http://twitter.com/Mia_Rae
...
A Look at The Black Spot Books
The summonings of relics rich with unbound time. The sounds of whispering wants that await to be found. The ever spooky. The trampled treasure. She has found them. She keeps them. She makes them her own. And, finally, she releases them to us. The secrets once tucked away have been unlocked into our world. Here tis Margaux Kent the beauty behind The Black Spot Books.
I found her to be rather...
The Black Spot Books Interview
Tique: what were your thoughts when asked to be interviewed?
Margaux: Yippy!
Tique: what does a typical day consist of for you?
Margaux: I never live a typical day!
Tique: is the name "the black spot books" in reference to robert louis stevenson?
Margaux: yes.
Tique: what well of inspiration do you draw from?
Margaux: what once was but not AS it was but as it has become. not specific enough? I like spooky, even if it only seems so because of the relationship with time.
Tique: is the world that you create within your items similar to the world you would like to reside in physically, or rather are they one and the same for you?
Margaux: ! They are one in the same, again, sometimes I want to escape, like when the roof of this olde house became not-a-roof and allowed the rain to come in. And when the wind gushes through the cracks all over and chills me in the winter so much that I step outside for warmth. And when the electricity, so strangely wired, leaves me in the dark when the sun settles. And when I cannot stop stopping at yard sales and flea markets and dumpsters. And when I cannot stop collecting notes from time ,preserving them in a time capsule (my journals) for my kids and their kids and theirstheirstheirs for when they live in a future (present) they may not wish to be in. Oh, every passion can be a trap and every trap and passion the reason to live!
Tique: if you were to travel to a foreign land, describe how you would feel seeing your creation (books,jewels) on a perfect stranger--and so far from home?
Margaux: I would want to say something but I get so shaky and nervous many times- sometimes I am fine. so I don't know - I know there are people with them in other countries!
Tique: being a vegetarian and your decision to use leather, what is your stance in the face of vegans?
Margaux: Hmmm, i don't know. Sometimes I wonder why I am vegetarian. Maybe I am afraid of the freedom. I would love to be on Andrew Zimmern's Bizzare Foods, but I am not tempted by meat. And I'd probably barf if I had it. To vegans, well, discipline is good, no matter what form.
Tique: what is the oldest scrap of leather you have worked with?
Margaux: Hmm. It is hard to say because very little is actually dated, but I think a wallet that was from the mid 1800s.
Tique: where is/are the most peculiar place(s) you have retrieved leather?
Margaux: The leather I use has been bartered from farms in Ecuador, ripped from old chairs in Holland, taken from boots and shoes and saddles, and found in abandoned houses across the United States. But the most peculiar place was in Ecuador. I was traveling with Sophie, a girl from England, that I had met in the Rain Forest (we were both volunteers - there for working with injured bears - when we got there we found there weren't any bears so we learned a bit about plants and then took off) and had just met a boy (whose name I forget) from Holland. We decided to go horse back riding and went to the first farm we found. The ride was amazing and when we returned, our strange guide with golden teeth walked us through an alleywayish thing that was his backyard. There was a parrot in the centre who mimicked Sophie's laugh perfectly. I saw a black leather saddle cover loaded with bugs and webs hanging on an olde fence. I asked Golden if I could buy it. He made a noise kindof like the creatures in The Dark Crystal, beginning low and ending high "hmmmmmmmm?" but with his mouth open and teeth glistening in the close sun. He removed the dirty and holey thing from its resting place and looked at it curiously, named his price and we made the exchange. It set me and Dutch to thinking... we ended up renting a quad and driving all over Banos looking for farms and olde leather! I ended up with 2 feedbags full (i was on the back with my arms outstretched and each with an over stuffed bag of gross olde animal skins and hairs.) Treasure hunting, no matter what the treasure, is every kids dream! Early the next morning I sat outside on the veranda of the $6 a night hotel and separated leather from hair and fabric. It was a pretty disgusting job and I ended up fitting the leather into the computer pouch of my backpack and throwing two monster bags of gunk in the gubbage.
Tique: are there any monumental figures who have moved you?
Margaux: this is endless. is Egon Schiele monumental? or Anselm Keifer? How about Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen? Fyodor Dostoyevsky, he is monumental. I love. And Georges Perec's Life: A User's Manual. I think that is the book that had the biggest effect on my photography and other art.
TIque: I love the smell of leather. Name 3 thoughts that are aroused when you smell it.
Margaux: I HATE the smell of leather! I think of new cars and dead animals! When I cut up and clean the olde leather that I use I pull my shirt up over my nose for all of the olde whatevers that have been living in it for so long may try to enter me through my breath!
Tique: if we were to pose in front of you several dustladen bound books of age, yours being amongst them, would you be able to pic yours out? what would distinguish yours from the others?
Margaux: Yeah, though most people think that the huge journal that I carry around is ancient, most of the journals that I make are soft bound with a rough cut edge. Very distinguishable!
Tique: have you ever been dissatisfied with a creation?
Margaux: Erm, really? Hell yes!
Tique: what do you think the future of books is?
Margaux: Sniff.
Tique: are you brewing any new creations you would like to give us a sneak peek of?
Margaux: Well, my husband and I are writing and illustrating a children's book! I also have a slew of new photographs for a bunch of shows this fall.
Tique: you have chosen etsy as an avenue to present your items. what about etsy do you like?
Margaux: I love so much about Etsy. On the right day (or wrong) I don't stop. Mostly the people. It is a world where people care about what they make down to the tiniest detail of handwritten notes and wrapping. There seems to be a definite common language. Where can you get this? I am not anti social but I am also not the type that makes friends no matter what. Same block, friend. Same office, friend, same yoga class, friend. Not me. I am particular and I have actually met people I'd call friends through Etsy! Also, complaints are minimal (i have had 3. 1st, i thought there would be 3 little books, whineeee. 2nd, you are lame and overpriced, 3rd, It is not technically a blank book because you wrote title and website on the back page) oi yoi yoi.
Tique: do you ever imagine the sort of things that your customers fill their journals with? what comes to mind?
Margaux: Oh! I always wish to know... I have a page on my website (which is idle now with Etsy around) that was supposed to be filled with the innards of journals set free.
Tique: close your eyes and envision the sort of homestead that would house your photographs. what do you see?
Margaux: Hmmmm. homestead. My eyes are closed and I cannot see anything but my house and my moms... Hmmmm. I am just seeing what I like - olde houses with age stained plaster...
Tique: what do you wish to portray with your photographs?
Margaux: I try to portray a timelessness. An insanity or a worldliness that often is one in the same. I extract characters from books. I try to understand who I am. I draw little ideas for photographs and sometimes have them so well planned, other times I wander and the props happen to just be there waiting. I build stories - the kind that can be torn apart and told in any which way. I try to find purpose in meaninglessness.
Tique: what was life like for you as a young girl? -any other creative sorts in the family line?
Margaux: my mom was an amazing artist but got a scholarship for math and abandoned art pretty much after that. my papa always claimed to be unable to draw a stick figure, but he is the one who wanted me to be an artist, he supported me in every way, and the funny thing is, I see that a lot of what I do comes from him. My papa recently gave me my long ago requested, bag of teeth! He bundled mine and my brothers teeth in various paper stuff from the 80s, tied them up with rubberbands or twisties into little ghosts and labeled them with our names, tooth no. and date out! I am hanging up each ghost with a taxidermy pin.
I have a horrendous memory. I think this is because of my journals. I write then abandon. So, mostly I remember making things. I remember going to some kind of party - a sweet 16 maybe - and two girls walked up to me and asked, "are you margaux fried?" to which i (they didn't look the least bit familiar) carefully responded, "yes" and they said, "we remember you from camp always in a corner looking down and anytime someone would walk over to you and say something you would hush em up and just say, "i'm making something"
Margaux Kent
Her upcoming shows:
That Bites (teeth show)
Pageant: Soloveev Gallery
607 Bainbridge St
Phila Penna
14 August 2009
25 July 2009
Handmade Market Memphis Taproom Phila PA
4 September 2009
Stockbridge Fine Arts Gallery, Phila PA
10 September 2009
Photography show with Katie and Christy at The Random Tea Room
1 October 2009
Inliquid Benefit Phila PA
2 October 2009
Goggleworks,...
gent
“Well, if i am to don a corset, what’s wrong with a bustier?” Guy asked himself as he fingered his tie bar.
gent
Guy fumbled his way to making do with his tie. He felt for his pocketwatch and tucked his kerchief. As he looked at himself in the mirror, he couldn’t help but remind himself of his mother. He recollected how she took care to prim herself for an outing. Was he indeed a gentleman? And what really, is a man? And what was truly the difference between a gentleman and a lady? Perhaps the difference...
equus
Mrs. Equine’s obsession with shoes was not much aligned with that of other women.
equus
Seated on their leather red, Mr. and Mrs. Equine liked to recount their bareback midnight rides that had at last escaped them.
turquesa
the mark men awaited Turquesa’s heighted hit.
turquesa
Turquesa seeks to retrieve the spirit bird that reflects the blue color of sky. So with this, every stone turned blue she will find- and afix to the point of her arrows so that her mark be not missed.
insecta
Arthro displayed his linear figure.
insecta
Segmented. Divided. Cut up. A metamere. A somite. Arthro didn’t know how many parts he had. He only knew he wished to be whole.
nomad
he needn’t the point of the directional arrows. he now followed the gaze of his eyes that sought the eastern sun.
nomad
he awoke that morning with no particular feeling but of that to move. move in out time. move in out space. one who prefers the foot has no name. has no home. they are bound unbound to the earth. he carries a dialogue between foot and spirit-and when his feet cease to talk, a soul’s soliloquy will keep his walk.
camelia
Camelia, green with envy towards the woman within.
camelia
as a lady, she must show her proper face to the world. as Camelia, she reveals more. there lies a woman who is unyielding, obsessed with desire, who screams and chants savage freedom. passion brims-violently almost-her song rapid, her love erratic. there are appearances, facades, disguises- and man paints of her but one face. the face of a lady. and as she falls into a reverie amongst the people,...
matador
Carmen was aware of the dagger laden head, yet invited it to bed. She wished to taste its color.
matador
Carmen knows the death of all flowers, the fading breath of all colors.
steorra
alas, Estrella spans her lighted points.