Midwest Summer

time transfer

i saw this building near downtown chicago and the colors struck me as beautiful.  i have no idea how or why this palette of pastels is wonderfully painted onto the side of this building, but i like it.  maybe an attached parking garage was one day removed and what we see is the remaining wall which used to contain a stairwell filled with painted over graffiti.  Or perhaps it was an easter egg factory that blew up, i don't know.  but somehow over time this canvas was painted onto this structure's side, both strategically and haphazardly, and i am certainly glad that it was.

this building also reminded me of some recent photo transfers i have done (like the one above).  primarily the color scheme seemed related and, upon closer look, there seems to be a similar rhythm and fading to both paintings.  i guess that's what i like about both pieces- they show the impression of time both spent and passing by.

i wish there were enough hours in a day to crochet like aldo lanzini

aldo lanzini, an artist/designer living in milan/manhattan, does not follow planned designs or patterns- he lets his needle take him to some creative places...

 amina by aldo lanzini

 guiseppe verdibed by aldo lanzini

 all bovisa exhibit- aldo lanzini

 missoni crochet for faces- aldo lanzini

 

 installation view of aldo lanzini exhibit

installation at bellevue museum of art by mandy greer, fiber artist from seattle

 polish artist, olek, crocheting a bicycle in nyc. photo by maro

 olek's installation knitting is for pus***

skything performance at fort wayne museum of art.  that's me on the sampler with a website crocheted by john mccormick (on drums). we like to dress up our instruments so the focus is on them.

with contact mics in gloves, i amplify the motions of crocheting while john plays and processes his own sounds during a performance at fwmoa.

some of my recent projects...

 landscape in progress

 headband for lyndy 

reindeer hat for deer siena

not quite aldo lanzini as of yet!

from the old neighborhood...

I have a large number of photographs that I took while exploring the West Central neighborhood in Fort Wayne, IN, where I play with focus.   I try to stare these photos down to see if I can force them into focus with my eyes.  But instead my eyes tend to get lost in the unfocused areas, which makes me zone out until I remember what I am doing!  I like this sensation quite a bit.  It happens to me when I experience good art and is probably the best thing that art could do for a person, other than make them laugh.

looking back at my time exploring rural indiana...

Many libraries in Indiana offer "art checkout."  I wonder about the kinds of people who temporarily bring these pieces home with them and how frequently they change up their space.  I wonder how you can sneak your own artwork into these collections so that one of these folks will take a bit of you home with them.  (Carnegie Public Library, Angola)

It seems to me that one of the most popular business attractions in rural Indiana must be antique shops.  I have found some brilliant blasts from the past in Kendallville, Angola, and Grabill.  

Another great part about rural Indiana are these constant reminders of the past.  This old advertisement, painted on a building in downtown Columbia City, no longer serves it's marketing function, so is simply aesthetically pleasing.  The old jail in Columbia City can no longer function as a jail, so becomes the "Haunted Jail" instead every Fall. 

In Peru, Indiana, you can find a renowned collection of circus artwork, costumes, props, and photographs.  There is a beautiful art collection at the old Ruthmere estate in Elkhart, Indiana.  The family gained their wealth from creating Bayer pharmaceuticals and had several Italian sculptors visit their home in Elkhart to sculpt these statues.  

This house in Marion, Indiana was built by an oil tycoon over a century ago.  His young wife outlived him by several decades and was quite an intellectual and world-traveller, and her interior designs reflect this sensibility.  

But my absolute favorite part about rural Indiana is the open road!

(all photos taken by Megan Mirro)