GONE ! Like a Band of Gypsies in the Night

Changing the World One Thread at a Time closed Sunday afternoon, March 26, 2006, ostensibly at 4:30 pm. Tubac had held studio walks that weekend; the village was packed.

Since we had to be there to remove the exhibition and get the work done, a few lucky stragglers were able to wander through the take down. A tall, beautiful woman with grey curls, came and claimed Ice House; she really did not want to see the exhibition close.

By the time all the nails were removed from the walls, all the signage was retrieved for the artists and the trucks were loaded it was all of 6:00 o'clock in the evening. Don't think that an exhibition disappeared in such a competent haste is over, finished, done, packed, and shipped.

Now the real work has begun. I am alternating carriers. FedEx got outgoing packages yesterday as I went past there on the way to the photographer. The truck is now filling with packages for United Parcel Service. Tomorrow I get to sit and stitch in hospitals and doctors offices waiting for my husband's cataract surgery. Thursday another big truck load will go where ever it must to deliver packages to the shipper on my way to do two other errands in Tucson.

I'm letting you in on the behind the scenes work process. I'm also letting you know that I am not ignoring your work. All is safely under lock and key and well insured in my own workshop. Each will be delivered to the carrier as soon as it is packed. United States Post Office will be last. I will prepare shipments on line and phone the post office for pick up. It's still snow bird season; I cannot stand in line with numerous packages for hours on end.

I think the last of the work will go out on Friday. If there is any issue, I will contact an artist individually. I will be ignoring most of my email until I get through this week. Sent latte grande with an extra shot, please.

Rambling River Blues

Lazy afternoons in river front dives drinking beer and eating fried catfish. The high hip roof and the screens instead of windows; the fans stir the swampish heat. Whether it's the Ohio River or the Saint Johns River, the thump of a bass and the sound of the piano remind you that it's always the blues.

The Eye, The Evil Eye, The All Protective Eye

An Evil Eye is not threatening. It is a hex sign to ward off the things that may come around to give us grief. It is used in many cultures. You will see it painted on the bows of boats to provide protection.

In Northern India you will see it painted on water jars above the front doors of houses; providing that same protection from harm.

Go check out the website; they hot link is below the paragraph below my photo. You can see the full image of The Evil Eye Blues. Another set in the completion of my website.

Diversion of the Night

Congratulations to Monique Gilbert of Bierbeek, Belgium. Diversion of the Night sold Sunday, March 19, at the Tubac Center of the Arts.

I have mixed feelings. I am delighted to see it sold. However it always hoverred at the edge of my peripheral vision. I guess it was one of those works of art I was considering for myself.

Lovely Rain & White Out On Mount Hopkins

Your Sunday Garden News and weather conditions in the Sonoran Desert. Yesterday's wind blown sand and microscopic grit has given way to lovely rain today. It is alternating between a slow, gentle rain that has a chance to soak in and wild, wind driven squall lines.

The Texas Mountain Laurel in the picture is as close to wisteria as you will find in Sonora. It's picky. It blooms on last year's wood. You can not water it or it's roots will rot. It won't bloom without rain. Last week's less than half an inch has given us gorgeous blossoms. Lovely, pendulous, lavender flowers that remind you of the scent of Juicy Fruit® gum.

The rain at 2800 feet means snow on the mountain. Snow plows will begin running at daybreak so that the astronomers can get from the Observatory down to their dormitories at the bowl. Work all night and sleep all day.

Sand Storm Central and Tan Out Conditions

Happy Saturday Evening to you all. This is Miss Pink the bug brain cat. She reminds me of the wildebeast in Kenya. They have parasites that live in their brains and cause all sorts of physical antics. This cat is either bug brain or she sees things that no one else sees. She literally bounces off the walls, carroming herself from one side of the hallway to the other on her journey to the back of the house.

We also call her the tart. She can be quite coy. She comes around to love you. The next thing you know you are somewhere in the real world, you look down, your trouser legs have been Pinked. Never fails, you've been seduced by the purring.

I'm telling you all these foolish things because the weather is pushing wind and sand and dust through the Sonoran Desert. It's fierce and fearsome. It makes my lungs feel like Miss Pink is in there sharpening her claws.

Theoretically we should get some rain tonight. Maybe. The desert plays tricks. Last Sunday Mount Hopkins had a foot of snow with drifts three feet deep blocking the road to the observatory. The accurate rain gauges recorded only four tenths of an inch of water from all that snow. It was an all day plowing job.

But the mountains are big, meaning hundreds of thousands of acres of watershed. That four tenths of an inch of water from the snow means that the spring down near base camp has fresh water for the coatimundi, the bear, the ringtail cat, the bobcat, the mountain lion and all the lesser creatures. Never think that the word desert means dead or hot; desert means arid. A land of little water. A land where a very little water supports an amazement of life.

And poor Miss Pink is only allowed to look out the sliders. The javelinas come through the alley and the bobcats and coyotes have cats for breakfast.

GRAIN OF SAND - CONNIE UTTERBACK

I thought you might like to see one of the most intriguing works in Changing the World One Thread at a Time. Grain of Sand is a multi layered multi structured work with depth and visual intrigue. Add to the manner in which it grabs you and pulls you across the room to inspect it is the fact that it looks like old fashioned screen. It IS, however, a very twenty-first century material that is used in the manufacturing of tires. It's one of the reasons if you can get to Tubac to take a look you should. The net image is barely one percent of the reality.

Another Piece of Art Sold

Ice House by Carol Larson sold on Saturday. It is a delicate, subtle work. If you think about it carefully you realize it's your grandmother's old log cabin. Your grandmother never had the glorious fabrics and the textures and the pastels and threads that went with the sheer gold foil.

Way to go! Carol! Congratulations.

Step by step, days and weeks, we are proving that the public will, in fact, buy textile art. It's just a matter of making sure it is in the right place at the right time. Those right things mean that the right person walks by, stops in his tracks, and reaches for his checkbook.

Let's all remember that. Every single piece of art belongs to one very special person.

Thought everyone might enjoy hearing what the executive director of the Tubac Center of the Arts has to say about people watching during Changing the World One Thread at a Time.

"Everyone who passes through here simply raves -- saying they've never seen anything like it. And more and more I'm observing that you're right -- the textile essence of this exhibit is something somehow familiar, yet non-threatening to a general audience -- so that they will look at detail (e.g. I've never seen our visitors so glued to reading the labels) as well as the social message -- which they might simply skim right over in another medium."

" This exhibition has drawn the largest crowds since I’ve been here, with the visitors’ adjectives and exclamations ranging from “Awesome” to “Spectacular” – with nothing in between."

The Blues Is Up For Viewing

Good Monday Morning, I know many of you are wondering where I have been hiding. I was waylaid by a sore throat and a cold. But I am now vertical and my heart is still beating. I thought you might like a look at the Ju Ju Woman Blues.

Please go to my Home page. Click on Galleries. The menu will drop down. Click on The Blues. I think you will enjoy the exploration.

My Spider must have spun webs all night. None of this was available when I caved in for the night. The last, bronze, work is titled, The Blues for a Forgotten Goddess.

Getting The Blues up and running is a good omen. Next comes the Left Turn Lane. It has been out of sight and out of mind for too long.

Registration is no longer needed to comment. Please let me hear from you. I am still experiencing some problems with a few email addresses; if I ignored you it is because I did not find your message until yesterday afternoon. That's why I removed the registration requirement.

Danza Serpiente

The Nogales International newspaper from Santa Cruz County on Tuesday February 28, 2006, published the above image on the front page of their community section. Danza Serpiente, by Dorothy Fix, is so large it leaves only four inches at the bottom of the page for the beginnings of Mike Touzeau's review of Changing the World One Thread at a Time.

La Dia des los Muertos is an integral part of the culture of Nogales, both in Sonoran Arizona and in Sonora, Mexico. I suspect this newspaper clipping will make it's way all over Mexico, carried there by campesinos who will add this bit of color to their home altars. It will remind them, day by day, that they are always accompanied by those who have gone before.

Northern Mexico is changing. People have the ability to travel and attend cultural venues. This review will bring an even broader audience to Tubac.