2023 Artwork

Messages From the Past

size:40’x23″

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Made using many hand dyed fabrics, machine stitched and quilted

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Old walls with many stories. I love the look of the past when these messages were important. This wall used to abut another store that is all gone except for the cuts where roof rafters joined. Windows came and doors went, advertising was painted and repainted over decades. Now it stands on a forgotten side of an old building, beaming forgotten messages from the past

Woman on the Porch

size:40″x23″

I don’t know her nor does she know me but she looked so relaxed, almost sad are her eyes. What is she thinking as she squats on the stoop. I was drawn to her.

many of the fabrics were hand dyed, some came with a mottled design. Her draped dress is fabric that I dyed and then added surface texture to using Paint Sticks

Flamingo in a Peacock Costume

size 18″xx8″

Just for fun as part of the Larson Galleries’ exhibit “Put a Bird on it” they decided on a challenge to any artist, who wanted to participate, with a plastic flamingo yard ornament that had to be transformed into art. Over 24 artists responded. I love this sort of a challenge as it stretches my mind and opens me to off the wall ideas of “what if”. My Peacock costume even has a zipper from the neck back should the flamingo decide to remove it.

Outside of a plastic flamingo on metal rod legs, I have added stiffened fabric, real Peacock feathers, paint and Sculpy clay for feet. The flamingo s will be auctioned off at a silent auction to help support the Larson Galleries future shows.

Tooting Her Own Horn

size: 30wx33h

This was a complicated piece as the image lost it’s depth as I manipulated it. After I had quilted it I worked into it wit Paint Stik to separate the petels.

Contemplation

size: 20″wx26″h

This photo was taken by my son-in-law Pepe Gutierrez of his son Rafa. I don’t know where the river is. I thought he looked so peaceful sitting there watching the water pass by.

Henry Beauchamp

size: 26″wx32″h

Henry Beauchamp was a prominent member of Yakima WA. This is a commissioned piece made with hand dyed fabric. More information about this piece is on my Public Works page.

Rev. Leon Sullivan

size:26″wx32″h

Rev. Leon Sullivan was a prominent member and minister in Philadelphia PA during the mid to late 1900’s. This is a commissioned piece made with hand dyed fabric. More information about this piece is on my Public Works page.

Looking Glass

size 40″wx32″h

This is part of a series depicting Yakima. This building now houses the Yakima Makers Space, a creative venue for the community. The fabric is hand dyed or painted with heavy stitch work for detail.

Backside of the Tracks

size 36″wx25″h

What town doesn’t have railroad tracks running through it? The entire city of Yakima was physically picked up and moved 5 miles when the railroad came through and decided to locate it’s station in another location. Some of the tracks are still in use with our agricultural products being shipped to markets.

Art Deco Lobby

size 16″x36″

This is such a lovely old Art Deco building called the Larson Building that I have used in a few pieces. However this is the first time I have attempted to recreate the lobby as it is so dark. The walls are clad with black marble. Outside of my usual applique technique, I have done paint stamping and tiny piecing with a lot of thread to replicate the ornate detail work. Paint Stik is used to add highlights to the shadowy staircase. it is quilted on a mid-arm quilting machine.

Splendor From the Alley

size 21″x35″

One the left is the exterior of the Larson Building in all of it’s Art Deco splendor as seen from the alley across the street. The building on the right is also an historical building that has served as various restaurants over the century. It is appliqued with mostly hand dyed fabrics and detailed with threads and Paint Stik.

ML’s Garden

size 36″x 36″

This is a piece for an exhibition I am presenting with my painter friend Susan Hahn. We are creating our art using the same image to show our audience our perspectives. I have created the daisies in white satin to reflect the light of the garden. The flower centers are made of coffee can inner lids that were painted wit Lumiere paint and then bubbled using a heat gun.

Antiquity

size:19″x12″

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This was an experiment in techniques I rarely use. It began by distorting magazine images of Egyptian mummies by applying citrus based cleaner to partially dissolve the ink. When that was dry I photo copied the new image onto Transfer Art Paper and pressed it onto this course linen fabric. To finish the piece I drew the lines and icons in glue then added foiling and gold leaf to that. Sometimes I just enjoy playing with something different

Demise of de Mouse

size 12.5″x12.5″

I did this after a conversation, with a friend, about cleaning the garage and the things that can be found that way. This mouse was very dead and laying under my car. On the “So are you going to make art with it?” challenge, I relocated it to the bottom of a post (obviously before I cleaned the garage) and took some photos. When I played with the images on PhotoShop the colors came alive and I loved it. I treated my fabric so it would take ink jet printing well and made the 2 prints. After adding borders I machine quilted it. It makes me laugh. This is another just for fun piece.

For Rent- 2 Rooms with AC

size 13.5″x33.5″

Old low income apartment building still stand and are forced in and out of service as they become more run down and unfit for living. The city will close them down until the owners bring them up to code and then the still shabby apartments are rented to those who can not afford better. It is better than being left homeless but they are sad accomidations.

A Storm is Coming

size 24.5″x42″

Based on a photo my friend Susan Hahan took of fall leaves reflecting on water, I changed the atmosphere to indicate a rain storm approaching. The reflections in the water were created with hand dyed silk and stains to give it the wet look of water. The trees and sky were hand dyed cottons.

The Cats Watch

size 25.5″x26″

This image was given to me to use. It is a small Mexican village at an odd time of day when no one is in the street so I added the woman and child. It is probably early morning and the street is in shadow as they walk alone. Someone has painted s series of large cats on the wall. They are the only other creatures present. I do not know why they are there.

Long Shadow on the Red Zone

size 32″x16″

In 1980 Mount St. Helen erupted. It was an event felt around the world. In June 1986 I visited the area. It looked like the face of the moon. No vegetation or animals were evident. The earth was flat golden dirt. No one was supposed to get close to the area yet as you could get lost as there weren’t any markers to show directions. This is the end of the public area. The gate to the Red Zone was comprised of linked padlocks. Each person or agency who was allowed access had a lock. If you didn’t lock up it was obvious who left it open. Our shadow crept under the locked gate as we photographed it. I have always loved the strangeness of the image and finally decided to translate it into fabric.

A Long Long Way Away

size 12″x12″

I don’t usually work abstractly so this little piece took months to complete. It was started in a workshop where I was given the background fabric and a few pieces to start the design. These were fused to the background. From there it sat pinned to my design as I slowly thought out how to balance color, pattern and motion. Having no idea where I was going with it, I was happily surprised to find that I ws finished. There is a lot of stitching on it as the background fabric pattern was stitched following it’s lines. The rest has less stitching giving it depth.