Trees Are Poems

"Trees Are Poems" 2014

"Trees are poems that earth writes upon the sky" - Kahlil Gibran

A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they will never sit in.

- Greek Proverb

This piece is hand-stitched on fabric, and is relatively large at 24"x16". It's the first time I used carbon paper to transfer the design directly onto the fabric from the template. I got the main image by combining two photographs from the book "Portraits of the Insane" (subtitled 'The Case of Dr Diamond'). The book contains photographs of asylum patients from mid-nineteenth century Britain. One of the photographs was captioned "Acute Melancholia", and I chose it for both image and subject. The mosaic pattern of the dress is my design.

My original intention was to use only line stitch, but I ended up doing a type of fill stitch in the figure's face and hands and in the Palestinian sunbird that rests on her lap. The figure is surrounded by the outlines of olive leaves and olives, with repeating birdcages as the border. On reflection I like that the leaves and olives are rendered only in outline, making them seem less solid, like ghosts.

The subject of 'Trees Are Poems' is a response to my deep sadness about the desecration of Palestinian olive trees since 1967, both officially by the state of Israel and by its illegal settlers. It is estimated that between 800,000 and 1,000,000 trees have been uprooted, burned, and cut down. Thousands are destroyed each year; in October 2014 hundreds of trees were burned down by illegal settlers near Jerusalem that are believed to be some of the worlds oldest, trees from a lineage that are mentioned in the Old Testament. 

Besides being an integral part of the Palestinian economy, the olive tree is deeply connected to Palestinian culture, heritage and identity. Their destruction is a huge part of the ongoing ethnic cleansing of Palestine and has been compared to the destruction of the buffalo in the genocide of Native Americans. This ongoing devastation is also a tragedy for the entire world: these trees belonged to the planet, a heritage that is lost to of all of us. 

'Trees Are Poems' is not a portrait of any particular person, and I'm not trying to represent a Palestinian woman. I intended the figure to personify an Archetypal Feminine, mourning the loss of nature and the suffering imposed on a whole culture. But of course she also symbolizes an aspect of myself, coming from my own feelings of grief about this indefensible destruction.

Update: On January 1, 2015 Jewish settlers uprooted 5,000 olive tree saplings near Ramallah on Palestinian land. They also broke the roots so they can't be replanted. The saplings had been planted in mid-December in honor of Palestinian official Zaid Abu Ein, who died after being beaten by an Israeli Occupation soldier during a demonstration to support tree planting and against land confiscation.

http://electronicintifada.net/content/heritage-uprooted/7126 

http://www.zaytoun.org/

Ode To Golden

"Ode To Golden"  2014

 For we are the ocean and the waves, the darkness and the light -  Tony Parsons                                                 

In "Ode to Golden", I took an image of a Panamanian golden frog and overlaid it with an Islamic geometric design, using fill stitch.This frog is critically endangered primarily by a fungal skin disease; pollution and habitat loss are also factors. With line stitch I surrounded the frog with a floral pattern covered with circles that represent both its eggs and the disease that threatens it. 

To learn more-   http://amphibianrescue.org/tag/project-golden-frog/

  

In a broad sense the Islamic motif on the frog represents our human impact on and interdependence with the natural world. Specifically these two very disparate ideas- "Islamic Culture" and "Golden Frog" -have both been assailed in their own way.

Besides the frog, the "Golden" in the title refers to the Golden Rule and the idea of golden threads. The Golden Rule calls for compassionate empathy of the "other". 'Golden threads' is a concept I gleaned from Gaia theory that refers to the soul energy that connects all beings on our one living planet. I like this metaphor because I stitched this piece with actual golden colored threads.

It is in the spirit of the Golden Rule and the golden threads that I dedicate this piece to the people of Gaza, especially to the children. They are undergoing unimaginable suffering as the Israeli Occupation Force continues it's third, and by far most devastating, bombing of the Gaza Strip in six years. As I write this, an estimated 2,069 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, including 553 children. Over 10,500 people have been injured, including 3,106 children. 1800 children have been made orphans.

I have barely touched on this tragedy. To learn more please go to http://savegazaproject.org/ 

Under Siege

"Under Siege" 2014

I titled this piece "Under Siege" because with the exception of one subspecies of African white rhinoceros, all five rhinoceros species in the world are in danger of being hunted by poachers for their horns, and three of the species are listed as critically endangered. In keeping with the theme of the title I overlaid the image of the rhino with a design I took from Palestinian embroidery. The background is a modified Islamic geometric pattern with rhino horns for the border. 

This is the first piece I've stitched on fabric rather than paper. To get the design on the fabric I used a transfer pencil to trace from a xerox collage. It was then ironed (in reverse) onto the fabric, with the border added later. Because the process is new for me, with such a complicated design and relatively large size -13"x17"- it was a challenge, and it took me a lot longer to make than I was expecting!

Below are the images I referenced including the xerox collage. The Palestinian embroidery design is from the book "Embroidery from Palestine" by Shelagh Weir.

In Memory of the Passenger Pigeon

"The last known specimens were seen in most states of the eastern United States, in the 1890's, and the passenger pigeon died out in the wild in Ohio about 1900. The last survivor of the species that had once numbered 5 billion died in captivity in 1914."

--from  'A Green History of the World' by Clive Ponting

                                            

"Once There Were" 2014

"Once There Were" is my contribution to the story of the extinction of the passenger pigeon. It is an astounding story: that humans caused the extinction of a species that numbered in the billions in only about fifty years.

The bird in the piece is filled in with thread, while the colored rice paper cut outs- in the shapes of acorns, hatchets, oak leaves and rifles- are outlined with chain stitch. I also stitched the words "once there were five billion now there are none". This design surrounds the pigeon in a repeating oval pattern and includes small stitched birds and tear shapes. It tells a brief visual story and evokes for me the description of flocks that would fill the sky for hours. The border is comprised of the sun, moon, a partial representation of the tree of life, and stars in the corners. These are ancient symbols I added to refer to the abiding beauty that surrounds us, less transient than so many things from the natural world that human beings impact.

  

Zoomorphics in paper, wood, fabric and thread

Zoomorphic: having or representing animal forms or gods of animal form.

These mythological human-animal images are found across civilizations and cultures. Here is some of my work that depicts human-animal hybrids. Two of the earlier posts have a human-fish hybrid (Mosaic Work and Paper and Thread).

"Green Tara Sphinx" 2011

The original Greek sphinx has malevolent connotations. With "Green Tara Sphinx" I

created my own hybrid of a sphinx and a Buddhist Goddess. This piece does not reference any particular myth, but rather is open to interpretation. I like what Green Tara represents: she is a Bodhisatva of compassion and action, a protector who comes to our aid to relieve us of physical, emotional and spiritual suffering.

This one of the first sculptures I made using hand stitched images on paper, then applied as mosaic: the design on the animal body is of a scarab and on the wings, a bird.

"Kinnari" 2012

I made this piece for a show entitled "Reclamation" featuring art that re-imagined paintings, sculptures and found objects which have been discarded. I found some wooden objects from a thrift store which I recombined to make this half human half bird. I decided to call it "Kinnari" which is the name for the female version of the half-human half-bird creature from Southeast Asian Hindu mythology. A Kinnari is renowned for her dance, song and poetry, in contrast to the more odious Harpy from Western mythology. The specific meaning is less is important to me than the form itself, and I like that the title connects it to an expanded interpretation which is very different from the Greek version.

The stitched mosaic surface design on the upper body is a bird and on the lower body a primitive female form.

"Chiron" 2013

I titled this piece "Chiron"as both a reference to the Greek myth and to the planet, including its  astrological meaning. Chiron in the Greek myth was a teacher, considered to be intelligent and kind. In astrology, Chiron is symbolized as the "wounded healer". It represents our deepest work to heal our spiritual wounds and our return to greater wholeness, consciousness and love.

I used fabric rather than rice paper and thread applied on the surface and not stitched.

"Al-Buraq Pull Toy" 2013

Al-Buraq is a creature from Persian iconography that has the head of a human and

the body of a horse. I made this as a "pull-toy" with political connotations referring to Iranian culture, Islamophobia, and Western domination.

The surface is rice paper overlaid with hand cut paper and stitched and wrapped thread on paper.

Mandrake and Amulet Sampler

These are hand-stitched with cotton thread on rice paper.

"Mandrake" 2013

With "Mandrake" I took some images from an alchemy book and combined them (along with leaves from a different source). I'm fascinated by medieval illustrations; their quality of drawing and color is both decorative and masterful. 

"Amulet Sampler" 2013

"Amulet Sampler" was inspired by Afghan war rugs. Many of these rugs are brightly
colored and beautifully decorative, yet the images in them are made up of tanks and guns and rockets, reflecting life in a context of war and occupation. I find these rugs to be deeply political and intriguing, with their visually joyful compositions created from objects of death and destruction.

This piece refers to the human burden on the natural world, with the weight of an ancient amulet (scarab), on one side, and a modern amulet (grenade), on the other.

Homage To Palestine

"Falasteen (Taffaha)" 2011

Needle and Thread: used to mend, stitch, patch, sew, embroider, darn, tailor, embellish, construct, repair, create.

Al-Tatreez: Palestinian embroidery

"Falasteen (Taffaha)" 2011

I made this piece in homage to Palestine, a sort of portrait of an aspect of the culture,
Al-Tatreez, that I have great admiration for and that endures under circumstances in which Palestine-- the people and the land--is so often a target of the Zionist regime.

I titled this piece "Falasteen (Taffaha)", which means "Palestine (Apple)" in Arabic.
The surface of the sculpture is hand-stitched paper mosaic; the apple, a symbolic
allusion to the William Tell story, is overlaid with an approximation of a design I saw
in a photograph by Sarah Farahat entitled "International Women's Day, Bethlehem,
Palestine" (2009).  It is from her 2011 show of photographs and installations
and events called Can You See Me Now? (Part 1)
http://sarahfarahat.weebly.com/can-you-see-me-now-part-1.html
It can be viewed on the right-hand slideshow of her website.

To me this photograph contains a profound narrative: its immediate evocation
of a rich culture, the stunning contrast- both visually and soulfully- between
foreground and background.

The photograph: a young girl looks directly into the camera--at all of us. She is
wearing a colorful embroidered dress; next to her in partial view (we see just a section of another dress and the beautiful stitching on it) stands an adult--her mother?
At mid point is razor wire, behind which stand two IDF soldiers in drab green uniforms.
They wear helmets and carry automatic rifles..... are they themselves colonized,
soul-deadened by their own indoctrination?

My eye is always drawn back to the the girl and the joyful, vivid colors and designs
of the dresses. It is tragic that she has to live in an apartheid state, under the boot
of the ongoing Israeli occupation.

Imagine a world without hate, indeed. May Palestine be free.





Embroidery in Palestinian Culture- http://ariel.chronotext.org/asalah/2/section_1.htm

Piece of Peace- http://pieceofpeaceseattle.weebly.com/

Palestinian Refugee Camp Embroidery Projects- http://palestinecostumearchive.com/refugee_camps.htm

Women in Hebron- http://womeninhebron.com/

Animals From The Past

I was looking at Chinese Tang Dynasty horses. This piece was conceived when the US was having "debates" about whether to invade Iraq. I put quotes around debate because the whole thing was so obviously manipulated--the "weapons of mass destruction" or any 911 connection.

The "bomb-blossom" on the horse represented the moment before the deadly decision was made: how the bomb could instead be a blossom of awareness, could of turned into something else.

It's weight is carried by an animal that represents beauty and intuition.

Camel Pull-Toy

See previous posts "Pull-Toys" and "Mosaic with Fabric"

 "Topsy 1903"

Topsy 1903

I unexpectedly saw the footage, by Thomas Edison, of his execution of the elephant Topsy in 1903. It was such a profoundly disturbing and evil act, and I made this piece in homage to Topsy. 

Thomas Edison was attempting to prove the dangers of AC current, and after the elephant had killed three trainers- including one who tried to feed her a lit cigarette- Edison was happy to electrocute her to help prove his point.

I subsequently learned that he also electrocuted dogs and cats as well as cows and horses. How many school children are taught this? We learn about the great inventor and his genius, another hero of American ingenuity. We are told to be proud. 

Suppressing the 'dark side' of Edison is an example of how National Identity itself is mythologized, conveniently omitting what is destructive and abusive. Then it becomes possible to project that dark side onto "the other".

Topsy 1903

Paper and Thread

       This work, made by hand-stitching cotton thread on colored rice paper, is the beginning of a new medium and process for me. In some of these pieces I combined images from distinctly different cultural contexts. I am interested in the idea of civilization and its art and artifacts, identity and our collective humanity.  

Pull-Toys

Giraffe Pull-Toy

Pink Dog Pull Toy

These two pieces are in the "pull-toy" style, with wheels on the base, which are decorative rather than functional. My first one was called "Camel Pull-Toy", and I made it in response to U.S. imperialism - the idea that America can drag other cultures- in that case Iraq and Afghanistan- around like toys. These pieces don't have political content, but visually I like the bases. These bases were constructed by Robert Rowland using found materials. They are also examples of using paper (Giraffe) and hand-stitched thread on paper (Pink Dog) instead of fabric. Thread on paper is now my main medium, in two dimensions.

Mosaic With Fabric

I made some sculptures using fabric instead of glass as the mosaic surface.  This was very labor intensive, as I hand-cut each small piece of fabric and glued them on, one at a time. The design itself was fairly arbitrary, as I wasn't  looking at any specific motif.  The idea of Aladdin's Dog came after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, and the subsequent pillage of cultural objects. I became interested in the idea that this invaluable cultural legacy could so easily become a sound-bite in American mainstream media. Mesopotamia now reduced to a place where the U.S. could justify "Shock and Awe" with such seeming disregard for it's history (not to mention terrorizing it's people). I think this piece would of been more successful if I'd used a more specific historical Islamic design.

Mosaic Work

The Sacrifice of Gaza, 2010, hand cut glass, paper pulp, wood, 20"x10"x26"

I had started this piece in Taos, and when I started working on it again in Portland it was just an unfinished paper pulp deer. Previously I'd place different objects on its back, then I'd change my mind and saw them off again. It reminds me of how in flux I was at the time with my work, how dissatisfied I was and how much I would work to try to make it right, including making big structural changes.

By the time I began creating it as a mosaic piece, I had learned a lot of the technique through trial, error, and finally a class that I took at PNCA (and where I made Glass Giraffe). I found a separate space from my apartment that I rented temporarily and worked on it diligently for six months. It was incredibly precise and focused work, hand cutting small tiles to specific angles and placing Tham very close together, but I had a natural feel for it and the process was familiar and enjoyable to me.
  
I started working on it in 2008 and I planned to just make a straightforward mosaic piece. I was well into the design when Israel began operation 'Cast Lead', its three-week bombing campaign of Gaza. I had gradually been learning about Israel's settler colonial project outside of the mainstream media's propaganda, and Palestine had captured my imagination and my heart. I decided to make the piece about Gaza in reaction to the bombardment and ongoing siege. It was easy in terms of the image itself: the deer as a sacrificial creature and the common geometric design that I'd begun is found in Islamic art. Ancient and stunning mosaics have a large presence in Palestine and Gaza as well. I added the Arabic word for Gaza on the deer's head and a rocket image on its back. 


In 2008 the US gave Israel 8.5 million in tax dollars a day. Now it's closer to 11 million. As Israel, directly supported by US tax dollars, continues its illegal and inhuman siege, including bombardments, of Gaza, The Sacrifice of Gaza remains even more relevant today.

The Sacrifice of Gaza, detail

Glass Giraffe
hand cut fused glass, cast glass, paper pulp
18" x 3" x 11"
2008

I made Glass Giraffe in a class that I took at Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) in 2008 when I lived in Portland. I wanted to learn some techniques for making glass tile mosaics and the class also covered intro to kiln glass and casting. I made the paper pulp body, then applied and grouted the fused glass tiles that I made using a kiln. The head and legs are cast glass, which is a very challenging process because it involves precise calculations and it was ambitious for my first time trying it even though I didn't know it before I started! 

This piece fits in very well with the themes of this show - giraffes are endangered species, and I like the material and title, 'glass' that adds to the idea of fragility. It's also a transition piece that was the result of searching for new ways to work and materials to work with. I remember that making it was a joy, and that I was very motivated and inspired.

Derceto
paper pulp, hand-cut glass, wood
13" x 3" x 2"
2008

Pug
paper pulp, hand cut glass
8" x 4" x 13"
2008

Nemesis
paper pulp, hand cut glass, wood
17" x 6" x 4"
2008