"intoxication may last from eight to twelve hours"
Morning, faithful reader types. I managed to survive the weekend and get through my gallery reception Friday night, which played itself out surprisingly well. Recap is below the cut, if you care.
Here's an image of the marquee. I shot it under an umbrella
freeze_etch carried over my head as it was pouring Saturday night when I went back to document a few things. We've been suffering a drought here and I'm grateful for the rain.
The opening reception for "PIPE DREAM", my silly solo steampunk pile-of-pics-and-paintings, took place Friday evening.
I was nearly tardy and there was a gaggle of well-dressed weirdos hovering outside the gallery when I arrived. I felt slightly stampeded but I wager that was my own anxiety. Generally, the response from the guests was effervescent. I was showered with some of the most thoughtful compliments I've ever received--local multimedia artist David Ebbinghouse was in attendance and he compared the technique
dreadful_red and I used to graffiti her hideous nudes from college painting to the way musicians improvise jazz. I pretty seriously blushed. I was also told repeatedly that my stuff was too inexpensive by beaming patrons, and I sold over $1,000 worth of art in 2 hrs.
mischiefmydear informed me this morning: "I seriously think you might have set a record for quantity of prints sold and amount of money earned" at the Textillery Gallery. It was rumored that Friday was also the largest number of people the gallery had seen at an opening (ETA: See comments below--Ash dispels my guesses). Seriously stunned, I am.
Seemed like most of the people who came by weren't too confused by the concept of steampunk, and some had researched it ahead of time. I think the genre appeals a lot more to middle-aged folks like my parents than say, the goth thing, partially because it's as my dad said, "less creepy" [lol], but also because the concepts it embraces are whimsical and nostalgic. I think most people got the idea. One of the reporters I talked to misinterpreted the diversity of models amongst my photographic images as a blatant statement on body image. Really, I explained to her, all of the people in my fantasy world are my real friends and they were asked to be a part of this because I figured it'd be fun (and much less expensive than hiring pro models, admittedly). I didn't specifically choose young people or older people, tall people or short people, skinny people or voluptuous people, etc. to make some sort of high-falutin' point about male/female body image/dichotomies. I just really like shooting strong and intelligent people, and I'm definitely surrounded by them in my current social circle. Then we got into a long rant about the photographer's gaze and letting the models own their space and how homogenizing my cast of characters would be the very antithesis of steampunk. I think talking to this reporter and the other people who experienced my art at the reception really helped me better solidify my own theory on my work.
Hopefully whatever nonsense graces the newspapers will get this notion across--I have no idea. I've been contacted by a ton of reporters this weekend looking for interviews--we'll see what happens.
I visited the gallery with
lillornyn Saturday afternoon to take stock of what had sold and what was left behind, and afterwards, over a fancy lemon chocolate downstairs, he noticed I was being particularly silent. I confessed to him, as I stared out the storefront window into the heavily graffitied alley where I took pictures of
prosewitch, that for once, I think, though I can't be sure just yet, that I'm actually satisfied with the way the show turned out. I really rarely use that term, "satisfied". But I am pleased, and thinking back on the process of pushing a huge solo show out of my head in just under two months, start to finish...certainly, I remember how awful the heat was during all the shoots, and the bug bites that marked my calves, the bruises, the long nights, the stress... But more importantly, I remember how truly magical it was for me to create this show and endure the process side by side with some of the best friends and support network I've ever had.
So, thanks again, guys. I mean it.
ETA: The gallery is stocked with my show until the 30th if you didn't get a chance to see it Friday, just so's ya know.
Next up on the never-ending agenda:
willowperson and I are traveling this weekend to Fayetteville, Arkansas for Masque and Veil, a goth and industrial music festival. We're picking up
nathan_fhtagn after the Abney Park performance there and dragging his fool ass back to Indiana for next Tuesday's Axis of Evil, where he'll be performing with The Ghosts Project and Dark Side Tribal.
After I get through that, maybe I'll get some naptime. Unlikely, but, a girl can dream. ;)
Here's an image of the marquee. I shot it under an umbrella
freeze_etch carried over my head as it was pouring Saturday night when I went back to document a few things. We've been suffering a drought here and I'm grateful for the rain.
The opening reception for "PIPE DREAM", my silly solo steampunk pile-of-pics-and-paintings, took place Friday evening.
I was nearly tardy and there was a gaggle of well-dressed weirdos hovering outside the gallery when I arrived. I felt slightly stampeded but I wager that was my own anxiety. Generally, the response from the guests was effervescent. I was showered with some of the most thoughtful compliments I've ever received--local multimedia artist David Ebbinghouse was in attendance and he compared the technique
dreadful_red and I used to graffiti her hideous nudes from college painting to the way musicians improvise jazz. I pretty seriously blushed. I was also told repeatedly that my stuff was too inexpensive by beaming patrons, and I sold over $1,000 worth of art in 2 hrs.
mischiefmydear informed me this morning: "I seriously think you might have set a record for quantity of prints sold and amount of money earned" at the Textillery Gallery. It was rumored that Friday was also the largest number of people the gallery had seen at an opening (ETA: See comments below--Ash dispels my guesses). Seriously stunned, I am.
Seemed like most of the people who came by weren't too confused by the concept of steampunk, and some had researched it ahead of time. I think the genre appeals a lot more to middle-aged folks like my parents than say, the goth thing, partially because it's as my dad said, "less creepy" [lol], but also because the concepts it embraces are whimsical and nostalgic. I think most people got the idea. One of the reporters I talked to misinterpreted the diversity of models amongst my photographic images as a blatant statement on body image. Really, I explained to her, all of the people in my fantasy world are my real friends and they were asked to be a part of this because I figured it'd be fun (and much less expensive than hiring pro models, admittedly). I didn't specifically choose young people or older people, tall people or short people, skinny people or voluptuous people, etc. to make some sort of high-falutin' point about male/female body image/dichotomies. I just really like shooting strong and intelligent people, and I'm definitely surrounded by them in my current social circle. Then we got into a long rant about the photographer's gaze and letting the models own their space and how homogenizing my cast of characters would be the very antithesis of steampunk. I think talking to this reporter and the other people who experienced my art at the reception really helped me better solidify my own theory on my work.
Hopefully whatever nonsense graces the newspapers will get this notion across--I have no idea. I've been contacted by a ton of reporters this weekend looking for interviews--we'll see what happens.
I visited the gallery with
lillornyn Saturday afternoon to take stock of what had sold and what was left behind, and afterwards, over a fancy lemon chocolate downstairs, he noticed I was being particularly silent. I confessed to him, as I stared out the storefront window into the heavily graffitied alley where I took pictures of
prosewitch, that for once, I think, though I can't be sure just yet, that I'm actually satisfied with the way the show turned out. I really rarely use that term, "satisfied". But I am pleased, and thinking back on the process of pushing a huge solo show out of my head in just under two months, start to finish...certainly, I remember how awful the heat was during all the shoots, and the bug bites that marked my calves, the bruises, the long nights, the stress... But more importantly, I remember how truly magical it was for me to create this show and endure the process side by side with some of the best friends and support network I've ever had.
So, thanks again, guys. I mean it.
ETA: The gallery is stocked with my show until the 30th if you didn't get a chance to see it Friday, just so's ya know.
Next up on the never-ending agenda:
willowperson and I are traveling this weekend to Fayetteville, Arkansas for Masque and Veil, a goth and industrial music festival. We're picking up
nathan_fhtagn after the Abney Park performance there and dragging his fool ass back to Indiana for next Tuesday's Axis of Evil, where he'll be performing with The Ghosts Project and Dark Side Tribal.
After I get through that, maybe I'll get some naptime. Unlikely, but, a girl can dream. ;)