It All Comes Back To Art…

Which means I have time to hideout in the Frae Hay Meeting Room in the Rock Springs Library and update my blog. I have had three people in as many days complain that I have not posted recently. The final kicker was when a friend who linked to my blog told me their list put “It Comes Back” dead last on the list based on most recent updates. 

So in honor of the carpet cleaning I will now relay the history of carpets to you my dear readers. (And please don’t sigh; you might be surprised at some of the highlights of carpet history.)

  A carpet is defined as “any loom-woven, felted textile or grass floor covering” according to Wkipedia. Although we think of carpet as a floor covering, the term is also historically used for table and wall coverings in pre-eighteenth century Europe. How far back animal skins and woven grass mats were used as floor covers is anyone’s guess, without preservation or a written or pictorial record we just don’t know. Starting in 6000 BCE there is evidence of goats and sheep being sheared for hair and wool, respectively, which was then spun and woven into fabric, which we can safely guess turned into rugs. (As any mother of a teenager can attest even the finest garment will eventually end up on the floor for everyone to step on or over.)  Most historians agree that the great early civilizations, the Egyptians, Chinese and Mayans all began making carpets around the same time. An early Egyptian fresco created in 1480 depicts a handloom for weaving cloth, while Chinese texts from the Sassanid Dynasty (AD 224 - 641) talk about the buying and selling of carpets. 

By the fifth century BCE carpet making had reached a high artistic level as evidenced by the Pazyryk Carpet. Found by Russian archaeologists Rudenko and Griaznov in 1949 the oldest known “knotted” carpet was discovered in the Pazyryk valley, about 5000 feet up on the Altai Mountains in Siberia. The Pazyryk Carpet, seen here, reflects all that is artistic in carpet making, vibrant color (even after 2500 years) and an attention to symmetry, human and animal figures, and pattern.

  For many centuries it seems the empires of Western and Central Asia and the Middle East including what is now parts of Russia, China, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq just to name a few, kept a tight hold on their rugs and rug making abilities. It was not until the 10^th century AD when the Moors took a firm hold of the Iberian peninsula, and what is now Spain, and the subsequent Crusades that rugs and carpet began making inroads to the European home. 

In 1537 Robert Rothe, a barrister and entrepreneur brought weavers form the East to produce carpets on his estate in Kilkenny, Ireland. At the same time Cardinal Wolsey, of Henry the VIII fame, was busy importing Turkish rugs to England and trades people were exhibiting carpet knotting.

 Cardinal Wolsey By the 17^th century Persian, or at least Persian style rugs were a staple of the wealthy Western European household. In 1655 a carpet factory was built at Wilton in Salisbury, England and by 1685 it was staffed with Huguenot weavers who had fled France to settle in England. It is rumored that many of the weavers were smuggled out of France in wine barrels, which apparently was not a moral dilemma for them. As a side bar lets have a look at “A Huguenot” by the Pre-Raphaelite artist John Everett Millais, the young man is the Huguenot and the young lady a Catholic, this romance can only end badly!   During the early 1800’s there was a decline in fine handmade carpets due to the Napoleonic War and competition from machine made due to the industrial revolution. While in America hand knotted rugs, rag rugs and imports from England still made up the bulk of carpets adorning people’s floors. It is not until the 1920’s with U.S. industrialist Marshall Field’s modified a weaving loom that machine-made rugs woven to look like handmade Oriental carpets in an unlimited variety of colors are made possible. Today buyers are able to pick and choose from hand knotted Persian rugs, to polyester indoor/outdoor stain resistant carpet, rag rugs to silk woven carpets.    Not just an item to keep your feet warm, carpet is an attractive artistic addition to the home, or if you’re in a casino they are a patterned distraction to keep you moving towards the slot machines!

It seems only right to kick off the new segment Friday Fun Facts on a Tuesday, so here we go… Friday Fun Facts will be a random few bits of art knowledge that will hopefully fascinate, educate and inspire. I have painstakingly researched each of these facts, so there will be no question as to their authenticity. Now feel free to drop art names over dinner, start conversations with strangers over the new facts you have learned today, or just revel in the knowledge that you are a smarty pants and know something the person next to you in line does not.

The paintings “American Gothic” by Grant Wood (1891 – 1942) has become a cultural icon of the American spirit. Since its creation in 1930 it has been criticized as a slap in the face to rural people everywhere, complete with threats from a lady who wanted to bite Wood’s ear off, to being lauded as “a depiction of steadfast American pioneer spirit”. Either way it’s a great painting, and now on to our facts.

Fact 1: Wood used his sister Nan to model for the woman in the painting and his dentist, Dr. Byron McKeeby, for the man. They couple sat separately for the painting and neither of them sat in front of the house, Wood incorporated all the elements separately. Fact 2: Nan was so embarrassed about the presumed husband/wife relationship between the couple in the painting that she began telling people she was the farmer’s daughter. Wood never went on record to confirm or deny his sisters comments, which add to the mystery, but preserved harmonious Wood’s family get-togethers for years to come. If you are interested in reading more about Mr. Wood and “American Gothic”, and trust me you should be interested if only for the list of bodily harm people threatened Wood with, check out: Steven Biel’s “American Gothic: a life of America’s most famous painting 

For a broader look at Wood see:  Jane Milosch’s “Grant Wood’s studio: birthplace of American Gothic”Lynda Joy Sperling’s “Famous works of art in popular culture: a reference guide” 

Wanda M. Corn’s “Grant Wood, the regionalist vision”

That’s the motto here at the CFAC, and so here are some photos of Artist Trading Cards completed by local artist, children, and CFAC staff.

ArtCamp June 2008 Student work:

 

“Pony Tail Girl”     “Somewhere in Utah!”     “Newly Weds”     “Scary Girl”

Dianna                  Koryn                            Josh                     Konstanz

 

“In the Dark”      “I paint with shapes. - Alexander Calder”      “Praise the Kitty”

Cole                   Konstanz                                                        Tina

 

 

Jennifer’s Work:

“Six Pence”     “Ouroboros”     “Dinotopia”

 

“Mmm Nature”     “My Personal Artists Card”     “The Bugs Bunny Guide to Travel”

 

 

“Purple Splash”     “Picassoface”     “Desert Bloom”

Angi                      Deon                 Pricilla

“Birds Fly”     “Dreams”     “Greed”

Debora            Nina             Debora

 

 

“Colors”     “Shh”     “Pink Posy”

Bridget       Kaylou   Angi

 

“Cross stitch Mountain”     “Desert at Dusk”     “Lady of the Rockies”

Wendy                                Nena                         Peggy

So that you, my dear reader, are in the know, ATC stands for Artist Trading Card. And Artist Trading Cards are individual art miniatures that are 2.5 by 3.5 inch size, the same as baseball cards and collectible card games. The cards are traded or sometimes sold, and can be traced back to early miniature portraits and artists’ business cards. Small, portable art has been with mankind since we first dragged ourselves out of the muck and began wandering about. Think of the Venus figurines, miniature illustrations in Illuminated manuscripts, or the lovely little self portrait by Jean Fouquet.

The modern ATC craze started with a Swiss artist, M. Vanci Stirnemann, in 1997. Stirnemann wanted to produce a catalogue to document his activities with other artists but found the cost of printing up a catalogue too expensive. The artists solution was to hand make 1,200 cards and offer them for trade in his show. Visitors, no matter their age, sex, or artistic ability were encouraged to stop by and trade cards with Stirnemann and each other during the closing reception. Since that time the gallery has hosted an ATC trading session last Saturday of every month. A Canadian artist, Don Mabie, was there for the first ATC session and brought the idea back to North America. Now artists trade ATCs all over the world, both in person at conventions, and online.

You may be thinking to yourself at this point “what is the draw?” (No pun intended) Well, like all art ATCs are a multifaceted love affair. There is the lure of just making art, of making art in a small format, and my personal favorite making art in a small format that doesn’t take a lot of time, materials and money and can be easily destroyed or given away if it turns out bad. ATCs the most forgivable kind of project, and unlike most projects they are meant to be created by everyone. No talent or grand ideas necessary. The flip side is the collectablity of ATCs. As a confirmed pack rat and cheapskate the idea of getting lots of different art by lots of different people for free (!!!) is just too tempting. That ATCs are small and easy to store (or in my case hide from my husband so he doesn’t know how much art I am collecting) is just one more reason to get involved. Finally, the freedom of ATCs is unlimited. As long as the base of the work is 2.5 by 3.5, even if the work folds out or the art takes up two or three cards, and any medium or concept counts as an ATC.

So now that I have, hopefully, piqued your interest… I would like to invite you to stop by my repeat Artist Trading Card Collage Workshop, Friday, June 6, 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. in the Ferraro Meeting Room of the Rock Springs Library. Just like the last class I taught on collaged ATCs (thus the repeat in the title) this class will focus on three different collage techniques to make the cards. We will work on techniques including a torn paper landscape, a partially obscured portrait, and a painted paper towel abstract, all in the 2.5 by 3.5 format. The class is free, but registration is required so we know how many bodies to plan for. Suggested supplies include magazines and paper to collage with and photos or ephemera (buttons, stamps, lace, string, etc.) to decorate with. If you would like to see some(more) examples of the ATCs stop by the CFAC and check out the display or check out a book about ATCs or Collage art listed below.

·        Artist trading card workshop: create collect swap by Berlin, Bernie.·        1,000 artist trading cards : innovative and inspired mixed media ATCs by Bolton, Patricia.·        Rubber stamping artist trading cards by Doherty, Laurie. ·        Collage art: a step-by-step guide & showcase by Atkinson, Jennifer L.·        Collage with color: create unique, expressive collages in vibrant color by Davies, Jane.·        SoulCollage: an intuitive collage process for individuals and groups by Frost, Seena B.·        Collage for the soul: expressing hopes and dreams through art by Harrison, Holly.·        Creative collage techniques: a step-by-step guide including 52 demonstrations and the work of over 60 artists by Leland, Nita.·        Collage discovery workshop by Hellmuth, Claudine.·        The art and craft of collage by Larbalestier, Simon.·        The art of paper collage by Rothamel, Susan Pickering.

I have a weird propensity for finding small round things.

Coins, buttons, marbles, rings, eggs. You can bet if it’s small and round I will happen upon it. I’ve been doing it all my life, and I don’t even have to be trying, things just catch my eye. My husband says I’m worse than a magpie or a crow, and yet we have a huge jar of marbles, several jars of change, a scattering of nuts and bolts, and a few pieces of wearable jewelry because of my fixation with small, usually shiny, round things. The most expensive thing I have ever found was a gold ring with diamond chips around half a heart; it was a $50 or so item. The weirdest thing I ever found was a “witch rock” a very small rock with a naturally worn hole in the middle of it that some people believe when worn will protect a person from witchcraft. (Due to my contrary nature I did try and find out what folk lore says would happen if a witch were to find and wear a “witch rock”. I came up dry and figure we can assume that witches don’t spent their time looking for cool rocks.) 

Most recently I have found several tiny blue bird eggs in front of the CFAC door – all on separate days spaced out over several weeks, a half dozen marbles on the garage floor of an abandoned house, and this past year walking my son in his stroller, nearly $100 in change. I think I have passed on my “gift” to my son, since he seems to find lots of stuff on the ground as well. (Although to be fair he is only 31 inches tall and so much, much closer to the ground than the rest of us.) Last week at the playground my little guy found and picked up a green unspent paintball, and then tried to eat it. I grabbed it and told him it was not food, even though it did kind of look like a gumball.

And that ladies and gentlemen brings us back to art… since the next thing that popped into my head (right after ick germs on my baby’s hands) was one of Wayne Thiebaud’s paintings. Three Machines, an oil on canvas painted in 1963 that shows three gumball machines in a row. If you haven’t experienced Thiebaud’s (pronounced tee-bo) work yet I think you are in for a treat! 

The artist was born in Mesa, Arizona in 1920 and gained fame and fortune painting things like toys, cake, pastries, lipstick, and San Francisco’s dramatically steep streets. Thiebaud is often associated with Pop art, even though he started painting objects of mass culture way before the other Pop artists.

As an aside to help make things clearer, Pop artist you will recognize are Andy Warhol, and the “mass culture” items he painted you should recognize are Campbell’s Soup Cans and Marilyn Monroe. You also have seen Roy Lichtenstein’s work, even if you don’t remember it. His “mass culture” work looks like comic strip blocks blown up, complete with tiny ink dots to make up the color.

 Thiebaud didn’t just stick to food and toys; in 1968 the artist was commissioned by Sports Illustrated Magazine to paint the Wimbledon Tennis Tournament. And in 1971 Thiebaud started is love affair with San Francisco cityscapes. Images of highways, traffic, steep streets and palm trees are all painted in the artist’s pastel colors, thick brush strokes and sport well-defined shadows. Thiebaud is still showing, and I presume painting, if you have a minute stop by and check out the CFAC’s great book on the artist Wayne Thiebaud: A Painting Retrospective, or go to Amazon and order any number of books on the artist including a personal favorite, Counting with Wayne Thiebaud. If you have more than a minute, hit the Springville Museum of Art in Springville, Utah and see Wayne Thiebaud: 70 Years of Painting on display March 28 through July 27, 2008.

 

I am finally back from my two week anti-vacation. We had the plague at my house and lost half of February and the first part of March in the process. We went “En Famille” to visit the Doctor, then the pharmacy, and then home to nap, some on the couch, some in the rocking chair. Being home sick is just as exhausting as going to work in my opinion, everything seems to take forever to think of and then execute.

Tea? First decided if you can swallow it, then drag sick self and sick baby to stove, fill water, light burner making sure to keep everyone’s hands, feet and clothing out of the way and wait for hot water. Find mug and tea, fill mug, remember to turn off stove so house remains intact and haul hot mug, sick baby and sick self to rocking chair. Try and sit without spilling hot tea all over self and baby, enjoy as much as possible with throbbing throat. Repeat as needed for bottles with medication hiding inside and all meals.

Making tea that first very bad day I was reminded of a few books…Years ago I read The Plague Tales Amazon by Ann Benson, a great historical fiction work that follows two physicians from different times. The story jumps chapter to chapter from Jewish physician Alejandro Canches who works during the plague-ridden era of King Edward III’s reign to Doctor Janie Crowe battling a global epidemic in 21^st century America. The thread that holds the two stories together is the medical journal of Doctor Canches, which Janie now possesses, that holds secrets on how to cure the plague and other deadly diseases. The Plague Tales is good stuff, a nice blend of historical fiction, romance, and what-if possibilities..

The second book that came to mind has more to do with the story around it than the book itself. A close friend of mine picked up The Stand by Stephen King Amazon some 15 years ago for something to read while he helped his wife get through a particularly rough bout of a chest cold turned to pneumonia. He said that with each turn of a page, with his wife’s breath wheezing and rattling beside him, he became more and more paranoid. My friend said his thoughts ran wild “Sure she doesn’t have a super-flu, but just listen to her cough… Hmmm a fever, chills, rattle in chest, that’s what she has, same as the guy in the book…” He summed it up well “reading about sickness and living with sickness is a paranoia inducing experience. A well written story will do that, make you the worst kind of hypochondriac, books like The Stand should come with a warning label so sickies don’t pick ‘em up.” Too true.

By the middle of the second week I was too physically and mentally dejected to even think about reading. As I coughed, sniffed and dragged my aching body and pounding head around making tea, taking care of my son and husband, washing laundry, and monitoring everyone’s medication intake, it occurred to me what I needed. If I could just get my hands on the kind of outfits a 17^th century plague Doctor wore I would be set..

Sure I would look like a giant freaky crane, but the benefits are clear. First the broad rimmed hat, worn low on the head would keep the heat in and looks smart (the well-groomed kind not the book kind). The full head, face, and neck mask has a beak stuffed with a blend of aromatic spices and herbs assuring the wearer a pleasant lungful no matter where they go or what they do. Crystal lenses protect the eyes, and I could probably manage to get them rose tinted which would only help my outlook on life. Finally, the full length gown covered in wax with leather gloves, boots, and breeches complete the necessary safety precautions. Not much gets in or out of wax, and clean up with a damp cloth is a breeze. I would probably eschew the long wooden stick to push away plague victims who got too close, I am after all caring for my family, but it might be nice to use to pick up things off the floor. Perhaps I could find one of those pincer grips you can use to get cans off the top shelf in your cupboards.Looking back from a relatively healthy perspective the whole costume is a bit much, but the beak face mask is still a good idea. I could always use a breath of sweet smelling air.

Doktor Schnabel von Rom (”Doctor Beak of Rome”), engraving by Paul Fürst, 1656.