Introduction to "Niche"

I'm excited to announce one of the exhibits I'm creating work for this coming April.  Martin Nature Park in Oklahoma City is a favorite spot for J and I to get out in the "wild" while not having to commit an entire day to getting out of the city.  It's a very peaceful oasis in town with plenty to observe and free from the distractions of the built environment.  It's quiet.
For the past several weeks, I have been working on some pieces for installations that will be placed throughout the park for the duration of April - this is part of Martin Nature Park's Earthfest events.  One installation will go along each of the three trails, in addition to a small one within the nature center building.
I may have mentioned this before, but thus far all of the outdoor installations I've created have been temporary.  I create them, I place them, I photograph them... and then I take them down.  No one but me gets to see them in person; only by photograph.  Martin Park has given me the opportunity to install and leave my work there for the public to see, and to find.  It's thrilling to know that visitors to the park will stumble upon each installation.  As they hike the trails and look for each work with an awareness of the presence of the artwork throughout the park, I hope this will bring the attention of visitors to the phenology and stages of growth of the various plants and other organisms residing there. It will encourage engagement and contemplation of the ecosystems within the park as visitors notice the installations, and can help them to cultivate a stronger connection to nature.
The images shown are just a few shots of my works in progress, and I look forward to sharing more in the near future.  Visit Martin Nature Park at 5000 W Memorial Rd, Oklahoma City, OK during the month of April to see "Niche".

On the Horizon

There's not a lot to share at the moment... I've gotten my studio painted and am in the process of setting it up at the present moment.  Still requires some painting of a bookshelf, but it's nice to be able to find things again!  My studio room has three huge windows facing the front yard (to the south), and they let in SO much natural light!  I'm itching to go plant shopping, but will need to hold off for a bit.
In addition, I've started working on pieces for a couple of different installations that are coming up this spring.  You'll be seeing more progress on these in the near future, as it develops!  One aspect entails venturing into similar, yet very new to me territory... working with lichen!  Can't wait to share more on this project, and others.  And, you know... to stop being so cryptic.  More to come soon!

52 Forms of Fungi || #22

Clavaria zollingeri.  Dazzling, bright, ascending wisps of coral fungi incredulousness.  I've wanted to knit this species since I first laid eyes on a photo.  Its otherworldliness appealed to my senses and imagination. (which I suppose is a sense, isn't it?)  You know how sometimes you see something and think how it can't possibly be real?  Moments like these are what fuel my thirst for observation and inspire me to ponder the depth of what we are surrounded by.  I could never fathom it.  How sweet it is to coexist with such magnificent creatures!
Clearly, since this fungi grows in eastern North America, I will be obliged to at some point visit that area in the fall to look for some.  Even if I never find it, I am at least happy to know that it's just out there being amazing.  As fungi does.
As with the Lactarius indigo, I would like to thank Berroco for providing me with the yarn for this fungi!!  It is made with Ultra Alpaca Light in Viola.  Oh, stitch definition...  Vibrant color scheme...  Soft and cozy...  I'll never get enough of Ultra Alpaca!  Good thing I've got a few more species to go with the generous support Berroco has provided to my project.  Thanks, guys!
I also want to put this out there - if there's a fungi out there that you LOVE and would like to see it in knitted form, please share a photo (with scientific name, if you know it) on my Facebook page!  Even though the project has extended into a 2nd year, I am committed to finishing all 52 forms... suggestions are welcome!
This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project. Check out more of the forms from this project.
IMG_4748-1024x682
IMG_4749-1024x682
IMG_4757-682x1024

Wall Hangings || Turkey Tail

Meet "Turkey Tail", a wall hanging inspired by the turkey tail fungus.  I created this piece at the same time as "Riot II" this past summer, but unfortunately never had a good opportunity to get photos of it in an open space with good natural light... until now!  The individual polypores were knitted and then mounted onto a large piece of elm bark.
IMG_4732-682x1024
IMG_47391
IMG_4741-682x1024

52 Forms of Fungi || #21

Words cannot express how excited I am to be back on this project again!  I've definitely missed it.  The next few forms for the 52 Forms of Fungi series also include a bit of exciting news... Berroco offered recently to provide yarn for some of my mycological creations, and I shortly thereafter received a nice little package of Ultra Alpaca (one of my most favorite yarns!) in multiple gauges and a variety of colors, as well as a couple of other yarny surprises.  I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the support, and want to say a big "THANK YOU!" to Norah Gaughan and the Berroco team.
Thanks also to all of you who have followed along with the project and reached out along the way - it means a lot.  Momentum Tulsa sidetracked me a little bit, and with the current first time homebuying milestone it's looking like completing all 52 forms by the end of the year is most likely not going to happen.  However, this just means that the fungi will keep on coming for a while longer, so I'm okay with this!  I hope you'll keep checking back to see more.
Now, what do we have here?  This is Lactarius indigo, which exudes a dark blue milky substance when cut.  Sounds like a fantasy novel, doesn't it?  How incredible that these things exist in real life.  The range apparently passes through my state, but I have yet to see one in person.  Are there any tricks on where to look for these beauties?  **Edit: I had previously reported that this is a good mushroom for dyeing wool, but Alissa Allen from Mycopigments has clarified this for me and I'm sad to find out that the blue milky cap does not really transfer to a dye very well.  I would still love to see one, however!
To create these blue milky cap fungi, I used Berroco's Ultra Alpaca yarn in Pastel Blue and Azure Mix.
This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.
IMG_4419-1024x682
IMG_4421-1024x682
IMG_4424-1024x682

Installation Week

I installed Saprobia in the early part of this week, a very gratifying experience.  It's been a lot of work, but there's something to be said for seeing a project through from beginning to fulfillment.  Feels good :)
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.  These forms will be incorporated into a larger installation for the exhibit.
(photo on bottom left taken by Laura Reese with OVAC and also of Laura Reese Art)

 

 

 

 

Momentum Spotlight Video

Momentum Tulsa opens a week from tomorrow.  I'm going to Tulsa this weekend to begin putting my installation together (the most exciting part!).  Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition and Invisible Arts put together this great preview video on the Spotlight artists for this year's Momentum Tulsa exhibition.  It overviews my project, as well as the other two Spotlight Artists and the work they are creating for the show.  After watching this, I'm even more excited about seeing their projects in completion than I was already!  Check it out..

Saprobia || Juglans Nigra

This is a preview of the black walnut phase of my Momentum Tulsa installation, entitled "Saprobia".  You can read more about Saprobia here and here.
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.  These forms will be incorporated into a larger installation for the exhibit.
Materials: yarn dyed with ground black walnut hulls, walnuts
IMG_4270

Saprobia || Taxodium Distichum

This is a preview of the baldcypress phase of my Momentum Tulsa installation, entitled "Saprobia".  You can read more about Saprobia here and here.
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.  These forms will be incorporated into a larger installation for the exhibit.
Materials: yarn dyed with baldcypress leaves, baldcypress bark, decaying wood
IMG_4220
IMG_4222

Saprobia || Juniperus Virginiana

This is a preview of the eastern red cedar phase of my Momentum Tulsa installation, entitled "Saprobia".  You can read more about Saprobia here and here.
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.  These forms will be incorporated into a larger installation for the exhibit.
Materials: yarn dyed with eastern red cedar heartwood, eastern red cedar needles and bark

Saprobia || Maclura Pomifera

This is a preview of the osage orange phase of my Momentum Tulsa installation, entitled "Saprobia".  You can read more about Saprobia here and here.
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.  These forms will be incorporated into a larger installation for the exhibit.
Materials: yarn dyed with osage orange root extract, osage orange leaves
IMG_4195
IMG_4198

Saprobia || Celtis Occidentalis

This is a preview of the hackberry phase of my Momentum Tulsa installation, entitled "Saprobia".  You can read more about Saprobia here and here.
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.  These forms will be incorporated into a larger installation for the exhibit.
Materials: plant fiber yarn, nipple galls harvested from hackberry leaves
IMG_4175
IMG_4176
IMG_4180

Saprobia || Pinus taeda

This is a preview of another phase of my Momentum Tulsa installation, entitled "Saprobia".  You can read more about Saprobia here and here.
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.  These forms will be incorporated into a larger installation for the exhibit.
Materials: loblolly pine needles
IMG_4100
IMG_4103

Saprobia || Populus deltoides

Populus deltoides refers to eastern cottonwood, from which materials for these pieces were harvested.  This is a preview of another phase of my Momentum Tulsa installation, entitled "Saprobia".  You can read more about Saprobia here and here.
Momentum Tulsa opens on October 12th at Living Arts in Downtown Tulsa.
Materials: cottonwood seed, cottonwood leaves, thread
IMG_4082
IMG_4087

Weekend Workspace || 9-15-13

Things are coming together on the Saprobia project.  I was able to get some finalized photos of a couple of phases today, which I will share with you in the next week or so.  Things have been a little silent around here simply because of the amount of time and energy going into this work.  Less than a month to go...

 

Weekend Workspace || 9-8-13

The "Saprobia" project is coming along.  I've had a few different phases going at the same time that I was able to wrap up this weekend... More on those soon.  Some of the phases are comprised almost entirely from materials foraged from their respective tree, while others are more fiber based with limited foraged elements.  I'm looking forward to the installation, and intermingling these unique phases of the work in the staged forest floor setting.  Seeing the pieces come together is exciting, but the installation itself is by far the part that's most fun.

 

Saprobia || Introduction Part 2

The words from the first part of my introduction to this project describe the biogeochemical cycles continuously occurring over time in natural ecosystems.  Rarely do we think of a tree as a product of the growth and death of all other trees in that place before it... Perhaps as the offspring of another tree's seed, but rarely as an organism nourished by the same building blocks that it will one day again become... in order to support life going forward.

Saprobia communicates this idea through the representation of a tree as a decomposer organism that would contribute in returning it to the soil to continue the cycle.  The project manifests as an installation of various forms of fungi, each constructed from components of a certain species of tree.  These saprobic representations of a species connect the viewer's perception to the continuity of forest mineral cycling and the interconnectedness of all organisms in an ecosystem, past and present.

Saprobia poses the question of what is next for the elements that once comprised a plant. How will they contribute to other life going forward? How can so small a thing have such an impact? The balance and interaction within nature transforms into a muse for our rejuvenation and strength.

For a number of weeks going forward, up until the installation in October, I will share a little about each saprobic form created for this project. All parts of an ecosystem depend on one another in the delicate balance of the environment.  Natural intelligence guides phenology harmoniously, in a magnificent symphony of self sufficiency.  How remarkable it is that we get to witness this strikingly mysterious collaboration of life.

Photos: 1. dye jars with baldcypress leaves, eastern red cedar heart wood, and black walnut hulls 2. working with honeylocust leaves 3. knitting with seed of cottonwood

 

52 Forms of Fungi || #20

This mushroom holds a special place in my heart.  While I have no idea what species it is, this is a replica of one of my favorite mushrooms that I encountered on my visit to the Pacific Northwest last summer.  We were on a coastal trail surrounded by ferns and, well, mosquitos, and there was an eerie darkness under the trees near the creek bank where it was found.  I won't forget that moment for a long time.  Blackish red russula?  What do you mycologists think?  The actual mushroom was a little more reddish than my interpretation.

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

 

IMG_3992
IMG_3990