Things I Love Thursday

I really didn't know I would, but it turns out I love to yarn bomb!  I've led some 'bombing' activities in the past (remember my bicycle, the shopping cart, and the Children's Discovery Museum?) but I have never done an installation myself.

...that is, until I went to Weyburn.

I arrived to hang my art as part of the ArtWalk events.  Jaynie Himsl (fibre artist) is organizing the whole thing.  She put a ladder in my van, brought along a couple bags of yarn & thrift store remnants, and informed me that we'll be yarn bombing the downtown tonight.  HA!  I was like, okay. (!?)

It was fun!  We both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  It seems the more we did, the more creative we got.  We worked until it was too dark to see, then headed back to her place where we prepared some more pieces for the next morning.

I am loving this!  The coolest thing about what we did was that most of it MOVES.  One tree is covered in tassles and just the slightest breeze has it waving at you as you walk by.  SO LOVELY!!!

*Jaynie would like folks to know that anyone can pitch in with this decorating.  It will be removed at the end of August.
*I would like you to know that with the heat and lack of rain, these installations dry FAST and the trees won't be harmed.

Monika  late night selfie with Jaynie outside Investors Group

p.s.  We decorated four trees, 2 bike lock stands, and one post while we were there.  I love it!  We even managed to get noticed by a reporter.  (**You can read it here: Linked)

Happy Thursday!

On the Horizon

Woah Nelly!  I really wasn't expecting a sudden swoosh of sales right at the time when I have an exhibition coming up in Weyburn.  I've been pulling a lot of all-morning, all-afternoon, all-evening and until-2-am at times.  good news!  I have now officially completed all my pieces and am in the process of framing them up.  Several of my new threadpaintings are various takes of pieces I've done before.  Because I work by sight, I can spend some time playing with composition and elements, colours and value.  I have a few favourites I like to rework.  This one in particular, I am really thrilled about.  It's a spin-off of Prairie City that's at the MacKenzie Art Gallery with Dimensions right now.  All those Prairie City modern postcards have me enjoying buildings as part of the landscape.  I never expected to find this theme so enjoyable!

I can't call it Prairie City 2 because it really is entirely different.  It has a lot of elements in it.  The sky is moody.  There's no fence posts.  The gold field glows and glistens.  The foreground is ...'looser'.  I feel so great that I was able to finish this one in time for Art Walk.  This is definitely my favourite.  It's fairly large at 7x7".  The frame measures 14x14 so it's a good feature piece.

On the Horizon will be among a half dozen other pieces of mine all summer long with ArtWalk.  My location will be Investors Group, 54-3rd Street.  Because it's a public space, I chose to showcase only my framed threadpaintings.  I was told their walls are dark blue, so that will either be really terrible or really great.  haha  Right?  Who knows how the art will look.  We shall see.  Hopefully the wide white matting will make them pop.

I leave on Tuesday to head down there and yay!  I get to camp out at Jaynie Himsl's place.  She is the powerhouse who has pulled this whole thing together.  She is so very amazing.  I first knew of her through postcard swaps 5 years ago.  Her's were always among my favourite and travel with me when I do Postcards Workshops.  Jaynie was then part of Our Prairie in Fibre show in January.

Okay!  Weyburn.  There will be several group exhibitions, and one walking tour loaded with destinations throughout downtown.  There are a lot of artists involved.  AND IT'S ALL FIBRE, ALL SUMMER LONG.  I will have to make a second trip just to take it all in!  Check out this lineup!!  Please google them to learn more.   (I cut and pasted the following from the City of Weyburn website.)

WEYBURN FIBRE ART DESTINATION 2015

Dates: July 2 – August 31, 2015 

Gallery Locations:

Allie Griffin Art Gallery “Abstracts” 

Signal Hill Arts Centre Gallery “Join the Thread” Group show of 12x12s

Credit Union “Fabric Art” 

Grace United Church “All Beings Confluence” 

Art Walk: 

Carol Schmold  -  Soul Matrix Natural Healing   405 Coteau Ave
Brenda Andrews - Superior Office Products   122 3rd St
Cindy Hoppe, Debora Barlow, Judith Panson  -   FarmLink   114 3rd St
Monika Kinner-Whalen  - Investors Group   54 3rd St
Colleen Sproat, Michele Craigen, Shirley Mathieson - Evelyn Lane Ladies Wear   219 Railway Ave
Brenda King - Big Jim's Brew Shop  51 3rd St
Anna Hergert - Edward Jones 119 3rd St
Martha Cole - J.Auburn Pepper bldg. foyer   110 Souris Ave
Susan Selby, Valerie Wilson - Smiles on Souris   7 Souris Ave

Pamphlets showing all locations of the Art Walk will be available at the Gallery locations.

“ALL BEINGS CONFLUENCE” PANEL MAKING Summer School of Fibre Art Dates: August 24 - August 28, 2015 Times: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm; 1:00 – 4:00 pm Instructor: Martha Cole For more detailed information visit http://www.weyburn.ca/pdfs/SHACABC.pdf

And now, are you wondering where Weyburn is?  It's further south than Regina, which for me, feels like I will be driving nearly all the way to the equator. : )  It's really Southern Saskatchewan.

Well - off to Handmade House to work and then to the SK Craft Council to drop off more art.  THANK YOU for all your support.  I just cannot say it enough.  : )

Have a lovely weekend,