Large Bird Nest made from Wire

For the past week or so I have been testing my bird-like skills by building a nest from bits of wire. The nest is about 80cm across and is super heavy. I am currently building a second one that is larger. The act of making this nest has made me contemplate how we arrange our homes, what we bring into our homes, what we decide to display in our homes and what things we discard from out home space. I read the book  "Home" by Witold Rybczynski years ago and it has profoundly influenced my nest series. The concept of "home" has always intrigued me and has been something I wanted to explore. His book Waiting for the Weekend has also influenced my work countless times.

This nest will be included in my exhibition in conjunction with the Northern Saskatchewan Children's Festival. 

I have 5 other large nests that I plan on building and will work on them in the approaching winter months.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Completed

After many failed attempts and lots of frustration the tower of bird nests is complete. I love it. I now want to create an inverted one with the nest on the bottom being the smallest because human's have sort of messed up the order of what they want.  This concept is inspired by a conversation with my husband. Young people want all the things from the top  for example fulfillment when they don't have shelter yet,  haven't really worked yet or  have stability or security. The young people are wanting recognition and mastery of a subject but haven't done some of the things on the other layers of the heirarchy.  The sides of the glass boxes are open intentionally to symbolize that moving from one layer to another is very possible.

Bird Nest from Lottery Tickets

I have constructed a bird nest from lottery tickets. The inspiration was an article in MacLean's Magazine where they said that many people do not have any sort of nest egg for retirement and are planning on winning the lottery to cover retirement expenses. I cut lottery ticket purchase forms into strips to create the nest.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

I am working on a new project that will see bird nests encased in glass etched with the words that describe each layer of Maslow's Hierarchy of needs. The nests will get progressively larger and be stacked in a pyramid shape.  I bought a dremel today and will be etching the glass with it. I cal see the dremel becoming part of many of my projects.

 

Maquette of the entire pyramid of nests

More Nests

Once again I altered some prints of nests, to create 2 new pieces. I am loving the alterations of prints, using ribbon, thread and paint. The prints are only held onto the stiff back paper with stitching of some sore. It is so fun to use thread in my nest pieces.

Long and Winding Road and Nest Eggs #1 (The Red Thread)

Here are two new pieces that I have finished on this Thanksgiving weekend. The scanner doesn't seem to give the red thread the correct colour, but you get the idea. I have hand-stitched the nest. The nest below used ribbon and stitching. The concept of the financial market being held together by a thread and therefore some family budgets being held together in the same way. My daughter asked last night why is the nest red, and I said of course that the "in the red" of the financial world is the reason.

 

Nest Eggs #1 (Red Thread)

9x9"

Long and Winding Road 

9 x9"

Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools - 100th Anniversary Gala

Quite a while ago I was asked to create a very special commission piece for the 100th anniversary of the Catholic School division. I created a linocut for each person that will attend the gala dinner tomorrow night. At the gala I will be explaining the printing process and destroying the printing plates that the prints were created from. I will also have my printing press on display as well as the tools used to create the block. A personal goal of mine with the process is to create an understanding of the difference between a print and a reproduction. A print being concieved of as a print from the beginning and a reproduction often beginning in another medium.

I also did the graphics for the event in partnership with my son and created 10 panels that outline the history of the Saskatoon Catholic Schools. Below you will find the print and the panels.

 

 

CSEA Teaching Award - Fredericton

I recently found out that I won a teaching award from the Canadian Society for Education Through Art (CSEA).  I decided today to not attend the awards in Fredericton for a few reasons. One, it is really far from here, two, connections are bad because I am booking so late, three my friend Wanda Underhill has a big event at her new gallery and four I have been away from home too much lately. And of course money is always a factor. Plus, I want to make some art.  Here is one of the images that they will show on the powerpoint when my award is announced.

 

Bird - by Liam Grade 2

Hanging by a Thread

This is a new piece of mine. I used my print of a nest and my sewing machine to create a very interesting textured piece. It is part of my series that comments on the current economic crisis. The piece will be included in an exhibition at Open Studio in Toronto in December. I love the paper that I printed on. I bought it in Budapest and just love the texture. A similar piece will be included in an exhibition at Cube Gallery, Ottawa in December.

Christmas Smalls Show VII

New upcoming exhibition. Today I got word that I will be in an exhibition in Ottawa in December. I will be including several nests and a few tulips.

Details below

Christmas Smalls Show VII
Nov 29-Dec 31, 2011
Group Exhibition
Cube Gallery
1285 Wellington St. W. Ottawa, Canada

Curated by Don Monet