artist

weathered & worn (solo show)

Exhibition, Gallery

“Practice Joy” (36″×48″) is one of many new pieces making their debut at the ‘Weathered & Worn’ exhibit.

So excited to announce My First SOLO Show!!!!

5 years ago, I took my first art class (since 4th grade) at Northwest Encaustic. With no formal art school training to account for, I had little to prove…just a whole lot to gain. The teachers fueled my curiosity while expanding my creative toolbox. And their generosity afforded me a whole new language to explore and share my stories.

I am who I am as an artist because of this studio/gallery. So this feels like the perfect location for my first ever solo show!  “Weathered and Worn” will be part of West Seattle Art Walk in May and June.  The exhibit will be up through the month of June.

NORTHWEST ENCAUSTIC
7150 44th Ave SW., Seattle 98136

OPENING RECEPTION
MAY 9, 2019
6-9pm

ARTIST RECEPTION
JUNE 13, 2019
6-9pm

*P.S. At the receptions, I will have ~40 original paintings available between $150-$250.

**P.P.S.  I  r e a l l y  hope you can join me for this!!!!

 

 

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The Stories We Inherit

Art, Film, Installation, Origin story, Story, Works In Progress

Backstory:  Couple months ago, a friend invited me to create a piece for a project she’s working on about dimensional wax pieces. While most of my encaustic paintings are textured and could be considered “dimensional,” I really wanted to push myself to get off the wood panel and see what I could create in 3D space. She asked for a piece that reflected the themes of cultural inheritance and legacy I explored in my film, A Lot Like You.

This prompt reminded me that in April 2018, I pulled out the transcripts of family stories I collected for my film — and, with no clear end goal in mind, I started cutting up and inking the shredded transcripts…trusting that they would some day find their way into a piece…

4/17/18 – These interviews I transcribed with my family elders on Kilimanjaro were the heart of my film. Even on the page, my Aunts’ stories are arresting. Now these transcripts will form the foundation of my next piece…

 

4/20/18 – As an encaustic artist, it’s rare that I can work on an art piece outside my studio. so I’m relishing being able to ink the shredded paper wherever I please. Especially on a day like today when I’m feeling pretty lousy, I can binge watch Theaster Gates & Andy Goldsworthy docs while reclining on our sofa, wrapped in a cozy blanket and sipping coffee.

 

4/20/18 – End of Day 3…inking each piece by hand is a slow and meditative process. 7 hours straight today. Time to switch gears and walk the dog!

 

FAST FORWARD TO 2019…

2/14/19 – …and now, for something completely different!! Spent the past 2hrs cleaning the studio, getting ready to work with encaustic, paper, wire and fabric. Won’t have anything finished to show for the next few weeks…but i’ll be posting detail shots of this piece in progress. (just for the record, i have Absolutely No Idea where this is going. i’m just committing to experimenting with 3D play.) 🙂

 

 

2/14/19 – The motif of yesterday’s painting of chain links takes root as I finally find a use for the shredded transcripts of family interviews that I inked last year.  While I don’t have much experience constructing dimensional pieces–I do remember making paper chains in grade school…

 

2/15/19 – Spending all day making encaustic paper chains out of shredded family transcripts. 5hrs down, 4hrs to go…

 

2/21/19 – I started the day making strands of orange & red, but then decided to limit my palette to colors of the Tanzanian flag — fitting since these paper chains are made from shredded transcripts of interviews with the Tanzanian side of my family. So now I’m focusing my efforts on blues, greens, yellows. Onward!

 

2/25/19 – All day, today & tomorrow, I’ll be 1) coating transcript strips with encaustic medium on the hot plate to 2) make links, then 3) gluing them into chains. Podcast playlist is packed, headphones are fully charged. Here we go…♡

3/1/19 – Much gratitude and love to my friend Connie for coming over this morning to help me create an alginate mold of my face.

 

3/1/19 – Been obsessively scraping and cleaning up this piece with my pottery & dental tools for 4 hours straight. SO satisfying! But it’s time to step away, and return with fresh eyes tomorrow to check out my handiwork in the light of day…

 

3/4/19 – As I experiment with making an encaustic cast of my face, I’m struck by how much the wax-filled mold looks like an oyster shell…🌊

 

3/5/19 – Turned out, and cleaned up, the encaustic cast of my face. The verdict is still out re: how I feel about it. It’s getting a bit weird (and eerie), having disembodied faces on my work table. Here’s hoping I can turn them into something beautiful!

 

I made this short video about the “source material” for these paper chains – shredded transcripts of the family stories I gathered while filming on Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2003.

 

3/19/19 – Working on the bottom half of my dimensional encaustic piece today — arranging the wax/paper chain in (what I hope will be) an ascending spiral!🤞🏽

 

3/26/19 – Spending the day weaving twigs to form the interior walls of the Chagga hut that will surround the wax mask…♡ Wood up top, paper below.

 

3/28/19 – Yesterday was a “2steps forward/1step back” kind of day. This is the challenge and the thrill of #LearningByDoing . Even tho I had to undo a lot of my work, no effort was lost. Each go-around leaves a trace of story that will be seen and felt in the final piece. Every turn is worth the effort.

 

3/28/2019 – #TBT2004 to filming in my father’s Chagga hut on Mt. Kilimanjaro. Fast forward 15 years, different medium, same story (exploring my cultural inheritance and legacy). Spent today finishing the woodwork that, for me, is reminiscent of the interior of our hut.♡

 

3/29/19 – The Stories We Inherit (72″x 12″x 11″) – Wax, wood, wire, and paper. Calling this piece done…for now…at least in its current iteration. You know how it goes.

 

Nine Elephants – Origin Story

Art, Exhibition, Narrative, Origin story, Story, Works In Progress

Backstory:  Twenty years ago, I was reeling from the upheaval of my Saturn returns. So I rented a beach cabin and spent 4 days in silent meditation, writing about what values I wanted to guide my life choices.

photo by Zorn B. Taylor

I came away from that retreat having whittled my list down to nine values…values that my spirit animal exemplifies. I got a tattoo of 9elephants as a reminder of the Being I aspired to be.

The theme of 9elephants has since informed my activism and filmmaking. It’s the name of my production company. These values formed the cornerstone of our wedding vows 16 years ago, and the foundation of my parenting principles 11 years ago. And so I suppose it was just a matter of time before this recurring theme manifested in art form…

 

5/8/18 – Starting my new biggie piece (36″²) while watching Hari Kondabolu’s Netflix special that dropped today!!! Wood glue burn of my Chagga nickname written in Korean — which will hint at land masses in the final piece. The paint palette will simply be the colors of the Tanzanian flag.  And so it begins, again…

 

5/8/18 – End of Day 1: I’ve been having WAY too much fun painting a background watercolor.  Most of this will be obscured when this is all done. But I am a big believer that all the energy, attention and intention I pour into each layer will be felt in the final piece. The beauty is in the making…

 

 5/12/18 – Saturday morning, added layers of encaustic and oils to this Biggie piece today. Reminds me of Tanzanian kitenge cloth.

 

5/18/18 – After putting this painting in Time Out for a week, I had a huge AHA! moment while writing this morning. My way forward with piece suddenly became clear. And now, instead of playing hookie today like I’d planned, I am completely Obsessed with bringing my vision to life!!! Folks who’ve known me a while can probably see where this piece is going…

Continue reading →

Shine On!

#NoPanelLeftBehind, Art, Exhibition, Narrative, Origin story, Works In Progress

Every painting has an origin story.  My initial vision for this blog was to show the evolution of pieces, from start to finish.  (If I could, I would name my blog, “The Journey Is Everything.”)  You can track the progress of all my pieces on my Instagram feed.

Here is the origin story of Shine On – my rusty sunflower piece, which has taken on many forms over the past year…

8/12/17 – Wrote out my morning meditation on engaged, contemplative imagination. #BeginAgain

 

8/14/17 – Morning Meditation (final).  For my COCA Residency, I took this 24″x24″ white painting, and brought it to life in a 90″x 90″ 3D installation ~ The Truth Has No Borders.  This shipping container installation combined 40 years of work in writing, music, film and art into a single exhibit examining identity, family, culture and migration.

 

2/10/18 – I lied earlier when I posted the white painting, Morning Meditation, and said it was my “Final” layer. The following week, I was bored to death of it. So I taped it back up, and went back to work.

 

2/12/18 – Shoreline. Came downstairs to find the kid laying out wax scraps on my painting, telling me it needed more texture. So I spent the day fusing the wax scraps onto the painting, and adding silver leaf.

 

7/19/18 – And now, for something completely different.  I scraped and torched the Shoreline piece all the way down to the panel. 🔥🤩  The free write on the base of this panel was suffocating under the layers of valiant, earnest effort. Now it (and I) can finally breathe again.#BlowtorchTherapy #NoPanelLeftBehind #BeginAgain

 

7/31/18 – Today I return to a mostly empty studio, and start the day by making sunflower seeds ~a perfect meditation for beginning again.

 

8/1/18 – Got my first coat of rust on the sunflower seeds.

 

8/2/18 – Conquering fears today about not being able to draw by just painting these petals on free hand. More coats to follow. 😅 (I needed some way to pass time while the second coat of rust dried on the sunflower seeds!)

 

10/16/18 – Shine On! Applying new knowledge about color mixing to this piece, which is vying for a spot in pop-up exhibit/talk next week (“My Life in 24 Frames“, 10/23 at 6pm, Columbia City Gallery).

 

Day 30 – 30 paintings in 30 days

Art, Solo Series

wp-15383213005714927054244311169479.pngUPDATE: This shop was live for the month of October only,
and is now offline.
The remaining SOLO pieces are available for sale
through Columbia City Gallery (Seattle).

.     .     .     .     .

Today is day 30 of 30!!! So grateful for this daily studio and writing practice that helped me stay grounded through this challenging week…

Now that my online store has launched, I want to find new ways to use my art in service to my activism. So I’m excited to share that I will be donating 20% of the proceeds of my SOLO sales to the Coalition Ending Gender Based Violence.

So you can treat yourself to a color-filled painting that lifts your spirits while buying direct from the artist, and know that a portion of your money will go to support survivors of sexual and domestic violence.

Thank you for kindly for your consideration.

And with that, I give you my final painting ~ #30 of 30:

SOLO #28 – 9″x12″ Oil & cold wax on Arches Oil Paper (2018)

Day 29 – 30 paintings in 30 days

Art, Solo Series

I can’t believe how many creative adventures have resulted from my seemingly random, last minute decision to jump on this bandwagon.

Painting and writing every day breathed new life into my flailing blog, produced much-needed inventory for my first art market, developed the scaffolding for my new talk, and helped me overcome some creative blocks.

Thank You for all your encouraging online and in-person comments about my posts! Many of you sweetly asked whether these paintings are available for purchase. And so, to show my gratitude for your joining me on this creative journey, I AM LAUNCHING MY ONLINE SHOP!!!

I have loved making these SOLO pieces. Every painting is original, and impossible to duplicate. There are even additional paintings here that didn’t make it onto my blog.

If you see something you love, please use the Coupon Code 30in30 to get 15% off your entire order. Free shipping on all orders in the US.

And so, with gratitude, I give you painting 29 of 30:

SOLO #26 – 9″x12″ Oil & Cold wax on Arches Oil Paper (2018)

Day 28 – 30 paintings in 30 days

Art, Solo Series

Yesterday was hard, I won’t lie.  I’ve been listening a lot, and bearing witness to what my loved ones have been holding.  And today, I intend to do more of the same.

With love, I give you painting 28 of 30:

20180926_205417-015244591210161262034.jpeg

SOLO #25 – 9″x12″ Oil & cold wax on Arches Oil Paper (2018)

Day 27 – 30 paintings in 30 days

Art, Solo Series

Watching Christine Blasey-Ford’s testimony, I’m feeling inspired by her composure and bravery. As a fellow Holton-Arms alumnae (and survivor), today’s painting is in our school colors of blue & white.

Inveniam Viam Aut Faciam ~ I will find a way, or make one.

Here is painting 27 of 30:

SOLO #24 – 9″x12″ Oil & cold wax on Arches Oil Paper (2018)

Day 26 – 30 paintings in 30 days

Art, Solo Series

One of the greatest gifts of the digital age is the removal of barriers between artists/creators and their audience.  No longer is there a singular path to (or definition of) “success”, with gatekeepers at every milestone.  The floodgates are wide open — and while not always to my liking, I think we ultimately benefit from seeing the breadth and depth of work being created around the world every day.

So chart your own course.  And be smart about what/who you give your time, attention and energy to. Focusing on the people right in front of you who are moved by your work will open more doors than banging on that One Door that refuses to let you in.

Go Where the Energy Is.

Here is painting 26 of 30:

SOLO #23 – 9″×12″ Oil & cold wax on Arches Oil Paper.