52 Weeks of Printmaking on Textiles: Week 8

Smithsonian National Museum of African Art

On Wednesday, February 22, I had the opportunity to speak with two art history scholars from the Congo and one from Nigeria. It was great to receive their insights on their culture, art and the future of art. After our two hour discussion, we looked at a few books in the museum's library.

Handcrafted mixed media textile books number 3 and 4

It was wonderful to have them look through each page and give me feedback. As an artist, it is amazing to see how historians view the artistic process and the final art piece.

Handcrafted textile books

They really liked the covers and said the wooden covers reminded them of glass.

Handcrafted textile books by Suzanne Coley

What is so interesting about this comment is I really wanted to have glass covers for these books, and I looked into it. There were two problems: 1. I would've had to hire someone to create the glass covers and 2. They would have been too fragile for my project. (I shattered a sample while transporting a piece to my home.)

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Surviving my Teen Years with Shakespeare

I became passionate about poetry in high school when I desperately needed guidance. When I needed something to make sense of the chaos others called life. There was no IG, no FB, no Internet, no cell phones, no "reach out and touch" when life quickly crumbled, leaving you alone with just the clothes on your back. Earlier this year I revisited all 154 Shakespeare Sonnets and began making textile books inspired by them. Here is Sonnet One -- Don't Get Twisted by the Bling of Youth.

Born of Love, Shakespeare's Sonnet 151

Over the summer I worked on new artwork, Born of Love , inspired by Shakespeare's Sonnet 151. The book offers a translation of the sonnet to the language of textiles and embroidery. Working on this book allowed me to explore the beauty of textiles from four continents. Its construction is inspired by the poetic structure within the sonnet. This book, along with two other of my art pieces, will be on exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library from 16 Sept 2024 - 9 Feb 2025.

Evidence: The Art of Candy Jernigan

Art is Life I was introduced to Candy Jernigan's art and book when I was going through cancer treatment more than a decade ago. Her meticulously arranged collages, paintings, and drawings have had a profound impact on the way I view art, life, and visual storytelling. Before reading her book, I had never seen how powerful art journaling could be -- that it could also be an artistic tool for social commentary. Candy Jernigan (b. 1952- 1991) attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY. Soon after graduating she became a painter, set and costume designer in Provincetown, MA. In Evidence , Stokes Howell wrote, " By the time she returned to New York in 1980 she was starting to develop the themes and methods she would work with the rest of her life." Candy described the transformative process of taking found objects, "trash," and discarded materials from life and turning them into art: "In 1980, as I set out on my first trip to Europe, I decided...

Baltimore Sonnets

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