recap of Clear Skies & Cloudy Days
the work from my show "Clear Skies & Cloudy Days" is up at Land, 3925 N Mississippi Ave in Portland, Oregon through September 2nd, 2012. you can see most of the show online at this link: http://bit.ly/TCCxAG
(but really, if you're in the area, please go!! this work is definitely meant to be seen in person on its impossibly tiny scale.)
when i boarded my Alaska Airlines flight last week with 3 oversized cardboard boxes ("only" $85 to bring with me as opposed to the $600 3-day UPS cost) i had my heart in my stomach, imagining all the terrible ways my artwork would be defiled in transit! everything arrived safely - kudos to alaska airlines and Nancy at the San Diego airport counter who held my hand through the process.
(by the way, that's our new-ish cat Violet, who is wonderful)
Despite hanging 148(?) pieces on the walls, stairwell and ceiling (and a mural!), installation was surprisingly fun and easy. Pat & Amber Castaldo at Land are just amazingly kind, patient, hilarious people and my friend Janice who helped me install the show has a heart of gold that has left me consistently in awe that I lucked out with a friend like her. she worked as hard as i did - and this was supposed to be her VACATION! what a friend.
While Janice and I measured and remeasured the wall, leveled and re-leveled every painting, hammered and made total swiss cheese of the wall, Amber and Pat (and Vinnie) rotated visiting us upstairs, photographing all the artwork, adding all the inventory, helping us secure all the artwork to the wall, made sure everything was in order for the show, kept us laughing and made us feel at home.
here are all the miniatures laid out on a bench before we started hanging them up, photo by Janice Headley:
after a few more-than-late-nights, the show was hung! i painted a cloudy mural along the stairwell leading up to the gallery in the middle of the night. my cross-stitch collaboration about extinct animals with my friend Irene followed the stairwell up to the gallery as well, and within the gallery, artwork was spaced along all the walls - a blend of mixed media and tiny drawings, larger matted/framed paintings and the miniatures in that photo above. Almost 150 pieces total.
here's a photo of a corner of the gallery -- probably taken around 2am, sometime between painting a mural and poor Janice's computer splitting open along the seam causing us to furiously google who in Portland could do a quick fix!
the stairwell leading up (photos by Pat Castaldo):
my husband flew into town from San Diego to join Janice and I for the opening, and after some mac repair, drinking, eating and karaoke, it was time. we walked over to Land with butterflies in my stomach -- and the opening ended up being SO MUCH FUN! felt like a Susie Ghahremani: This Is Your Life episode with friends from all eras of my life: high school, college, art friends, collaborators and beyond. i felt totally surrounded by loved ones: my amazing artist friends Amy Ruppel, Martin Ontiveros, Jason Sturgill and Emily Martin; collaborators Yvonne and Jeremy from Little Otsu; Lauren and Scott from Badge Bomb; power bloggers/friends Jena from Modish and Greg from Hungry Eyeball; Portland superstars Torie from Crafty Wonderland and Seasons and Jen from Presents of Mind; All-around sweethearts Ed and Laura who housed Janice and I for a couple nights & who made our Portland trip extra-special w/ extra-curricular food, drinking and adventures! & all-around sweethearts Justin and Alisha who helped pass out postcards for the show! Rachel and Tracy, high school pals from Chicago days! Brie, college pal from RISD days! Roya, Ellis, Hayley and Brett and Mina - family friends, but basically family! & more. i am sure i am forgetting more!!
for me, it all went by in a flash - openings always seems to; it was such a great night.
it's scary to prepare and then fly to an art show: it's work produced over years that very few people (if any) have seen. and the travel cost is high (plane ticket, accommodations, transportation...plus getting your art there in the first place). it has all the components for colossal failure! i was nervous as could be (broke out into hives from stress!) this was my first solo show in the area, first show with Land, and i didn't know what to expect.
HOWEVER, it was as unique and wonderful an experience as Portland is a city -- worth every penny, minute and brush stroke. thank you so much to all who came to the opening. It meant the world to me to feel embraced by my friends in Portland & to bring to light some of the art I've been making these past few years since I last did a solo show in such a great gallery space. (Land is an amazingly artist-friendly space and if you're in the area, I strongly suggest you pay a visit - not just for the art shows but for the amazing range of gifts, prints and books they carry in their downstairs shop.)
all is well & i'm a lucky girl!
that's me & michael - photo by Pat Castaldo. you can sense the relief!
(but really, if you're in the area, please go!! this work is definitely meant to be seen in person on its impossibly tiny scale.)
when i boarded my Alaska Airlines flight last week with 3 oversized cardboard boxes ("only" $85 to bring with me as opposed to the $600 3-day UPS cost) i had my heart in my stomach, imagining all the terrible ways my artwork would be defiled in transit! everything arrived safely - kudos to alaska airlines and Nancy at the San Diego airport counter who held my hand through the process.
(by the way, that's our new-ish cat Violet, who is wonderful)
Despite hanging 148(?) pieces on the walls, stairwell and ceiling (and a mural!), installation was surprisingly fun and easy. Pat & Amber Castaldo at Land are just amazingly kind, patient, hilarious people and my friend Janice who helped me install the show has a heart of gold that has left me consistently in awe that I lucked out with a friend like her. she worked as hard as i did - and this was supposed to be her VACATION! what a friend.
While Janice and I measured and remeasured the wall, leveled and re-leveled every painting, hammered and made total swiss cheese of the wall, Amber and Pat (and Vinnie) rotated visiting us upstairs, photographing all the artwork, adding all the inventory, helping us secure all the artwork to the wall, made sure everything was in order for the show, kept us laughing and made us feel at home.
here are all the miniatures laid out on a bench before we started hanging them up, photo by Janice Headley:
after a few more-than-late-nights, the show was hung! i painted a cloudy mural along the stairwell leading up to the gallery in the middle of the night. my cross-stitch collaboration about extinct animals with my friend Irene followed the stairwell up to the gallery as well, and within the gallery, artwork was spaced along all the walls - a blend of mixed media and tiny drawings, larger matted/framed paintings and the miniatures in that photo above. Almost 150 pieces total.
here's a photo of a corner of the gallery -- probably taken around 2am, sometime between painting a mural and poor Janice's computer splitting open along the seam causing us to furiously google who in Portland could do a quick fix!
the stairwell leading up (photos by Pat Castaldo):
my husband flew into town from San Diego to join Janice and I for the opening, and after some mac repair, drinking, eating and karaoke, it was time. we walked over to Land with butterflies in my stomach -- and the opening ended up being SO MUCH FUN! felt like a Susie Ghahremani: This Is Your Life episode with friends from all eras of my life: high school, college, art friends, collaborators and beyond. i felt totally surrounded by loved ones: my amazing artist friends Amy Ruppel, Martin Ontiveros, Jason Sturgill and Emily Martin; collaborators Yvonne and Jeremy from Little Otsu; Lauren and Scott from Badge Bomb; power bloggers/friends Jena from Modish and Greg from Hungry Eyeball; Portland superstars Torie from Crafty Wonderland and Seasons and Jen from Presents of Mind; All-around sweethearts Ed and Laura who housed Janice and I for a couple nights & who made our Portland trip extra-special w/ extra-curricular food, drinking and adventures! & all-around sweethearts Justin and Alisha who helped pass out postcards for the show! Rachel and Tracy, high school pals from Chicago days! Brie, college pal from RISD days! Roya, Ellis, Hayley and Brett and Mina - family friends, but basically family! & more. i am sure i am forgetting more!!
for me, it all went by in a flash - openings always seems to; it was such a great night.
it's scary to prepare and then fly to an art show: it's work produced over years that very few people (if any) have seen. and the travel cost is high (plane ticket, accommodations, transportation...plus getting your art there in the first place). it has all the components for colossal failure! i was nervous as could be (broke out into hives from stress!) this was my first solo show in the area, first show with Land, and i didn't know what to expect.
HOWEVER, it was as unique and wonderful an experience as Portland is a city -- worth every penny, minute and brush stroke. thank you so much to all who came to the opening. It meant the world to me to feel embraced by my friends in Portland & to bring to light some of the art I've been making these past few years since I last did a solo show in such a great gallery space. (Land is an amazingly artist-friendly space and if you're in the area, I strongly suggest you pay a visit - not just for the art shows but for the amazing range of gifts, prints and books they carry in their downstairs shop.)
all is well & i'm a lucky girl!
that's me & michael - photo by Pat Castaldo. you can sense the relief!