I stumbled across the work of Inger Carina in the pages of Juxtapoz. The Swedish artist doesn’t just crochet, but she went through a period of filet crochet obsession. I can’t do justice to all of her work, though I must share her guns (above), but check out her blog at hellocraftlovers.com/category/textile-stuff-that-normally-are-not-textile. I wish she had a lengthier bio on her website.
Author Archive
Soft Punch
May 24, 2012Hair Stylist to the Canine Stars
May 23, 2012I have a little fantasy that someday I’m going to go to hair school. I think I have some apptitude for that kind of work. My favorite “person” to practice my hair cuts on is my dog, Scout. The inspiration for this look is a haircut Denise Huxtable (played by Lisa Bonet) had on The Cosby Show at some point in the 1980s. What do you think? Not bad for someone with zero training, right?
Utah Arts Alliance Celebrates 33,000 Square-Foot Arts Hub With Grand Opening Event
May 18, 2012
Salt Lake City’s newest Arts Hub will celebrate its grand opening this weekend. The new, huge facility is made up of art galleries, event centers, dance rehearsal space, individual arts studios, performance space, photography studios, offices for non-profit arts groups and an outdoor venue for festivals. The SLC Arts Hub is the brainchild of Derek Dyer, executive director of the Utah Arts Alliance, who has renovated the large facility on the west side of downtown to create what is arguably the most comprehensive art space in Utah.
The public is invited to join in the grand opening on May 19 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Hub, 663 West 100 South in Salt Lake City. All artist and nonprofit studios will be open for tours to offer a behind-the-scenes peek at the arts as they are created in Salt Lake City. Entertainment will include dance demonstrations and The Gray Wall Gallery’s first exhibit in their new location, consisting of work from artists who share the Hub as well as artists who will be featured in the upcoming Urban Arts Festival, slated for June 9. Refreshments will also be provided.
“The Arts Hub is a bustling center of creativity for the resident artists, professional performance groups and nonprofits that work in the space as well as classes and events for everyone interested, concerts, performances, exhibits and more,” said Dyer. “The great thing about the SLC Arts Hub is that it offers local artists an affordable home base from which they may earn an income in a difficult economy.”
With affordable studios for artists, offices for nonprofit groups and rehearsal space for performers, the Hub will contribute greatly to financial sustainability for local artists. Simply having a place to work, perform, teach and show helps many overcome some of the most difficult barriers to making it as an artist. Frequent festivals, open houses and gallery stroll nights will offer the artists an opportunity to sell their work.
“The Arts Hub is helping my business immensely by providing me a studio I can use for photography, conference room and office space at a price I can afford,” said Cat Palmer, a local photographer and Hub tenant. “It’s helping me make it as an artist and a business woman.”
“Our hope is that the Arts Hub will change the landscape of Salt Lake’s art scene by providing a home for artistic growth that hasn’t been seen before in our state,” continued Dyer.
Resident groups housed in the Hub include Salt Lake Capoeira, Samba Fogo, B-Boy Federation, People Productions, the Human Rights Education Center, Rhythms of Life, the Spanish Actors Workshop, Concept Creations Art, Glitch Wear and the Incendiary Circus’ fire performance group. The Hub also houses UAA programs like the Youth Arts in Utah program classes, Gray Wall Gallery, the Hub Boutique as the Utah Arts Alliance permanent collections gallery. Resident artists include Derek Dyer, Cat Palmer, Blake Palmer, Benjamin Altenes, Keith Eccles, Jenn Cook, Chris Madsen, Terrance Hansen, John Madsen, Jason Stewart, P.J. Hair, Tamara Fox, Alex Pysher and Michael Christensen. The Hub property also includes a community and sculpture garden space, as well as a circus tent for events.
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About the Utah Arts Alliance
The Utah Arts Alliance is a nonprofit arts and educational organization committed to furthering the arts in all forms. In addition to the SLC Arts Hub, the UAA has a gallery at 127 South Main Street in Salt Lake City. For more information, visit www.utaharts.org.
Matteo Pugliese
May 16, 2012I stumbled across these awesome bronze sculptures on Pinterest and wanted to share them. Matteo Pugliese is a Spanish sculptor who works in bronze. See more of his great stuff at http://www.matteopugliese.com/
Free Film
May 11, 2012
I want to invite everyone to see a free film. It’s called Addiction Incorporated, it hasn’t yet been released to theaters. It’s the story of a tobacco industry insider, hired to research how to make a safer cigarette, and then fired because he discovered the first evidence that tobacco is addictive. I know that sounds like old news today, but his discovery led to the first federal regulation of the tobacco industry, and the education campaigns that exist today. Here’s the screening schedule, tickets are FREE:
May 15
Brewvies Cinema Pub
677 South 200 West, Salt Lake City
7:30 p.m.
Must be 21 years or older
May 16
Salt Lake Community College Amphitheater
4600 S Redwood Road, Taylorsville
8:00 p.m.
All Ages
May 21
Ogden Megaplex
2351 Kiesel Avenue, Ogden
6:15 p.m.
All Ages
May 21
Santy Auditorium
1255 Park Ave., Park City
7:00 p.m.
All Ages
May 22
Main Library Auditorium
210 East 400 South, Salt Lake City
6:30 p.m.
All Ages
May 22
Moab Arts and Recreation Center’s Stage Room
111 East 100 North, Moab
7:00 p.m.
All Ages
May 23
The Price Theatre
30 East Main Street, Price
7:00 p.m.
All Ages
May 24
The Scera
745 South State Street, Orem
7:00 p.m.
All Ages
May 24
Salt Creek Cinemas
1101 East Highway 132, Nephi
7:30 p.m.
All Ages
May 25
The Electric Theater
68 East Tabernacle Street, St. George
7:00 p.m.
All Ages
Green Chile
May 8, 2012
A recent trip to Santa Fe inspired me to make a goal to learn to cook like a New Mexican. New Mexican cuisine is a Mexican-fusion style, kind of like Tex Mex, but much better. The first recipe I need to master is Green Chile, a salsa-ish, heated topping for basically everything. Before I share the first recipe I tried, which was stellar, I’d like to offer a tip on buying green chiles in Utah. There are a thousand types of chiles, and not all are available to us locally. However, poblano chiles, a large, dark green pepper are available at Smiths and other grocery stores. They aren’t really hot, though my hands were a little burny after working with them, and they work great for chile rellenos as well. Be sure to lay them down on your gas stove top and burn the skin off of them (called roasting) before you start.
Green Chile Tomatila Sauce
- 3 pounds fresh tomatillos
- 1 can (26 ounces) mild green chiles
- 2 onions, quartered
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Makes About 6 Cups
- Put tomatillos, onion, garlic and green chiles (along with liquid from the can) in a saucepan. Add enough water just to cover. Bring water to a boil, then decrease heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Cool slightly. Strain, reserving the liquid.
- Transfer tomatillo mixture to a blender or food processor and puree, adding just enough liquid to give it a thick, smooth consistency. Season with salt and pepper and let cool. After cooling, mix in chopped fresh cilantro.
Just Add Costume for an Instant Sex Symbol
April 27, 2012
While in Santa Fe about a week ago we saw a photography show. The artist went to Japan, met a young geisha and took her photo day after day, year after year. I liked the photos, though the Photoshop work was maybe a little too obvious, because of the costumes, the make-up, the effort that goes into being a geisha. My favorite photos showed the blurry line where real skin is exposed beneath the make-up, ear lobes with dabs of misplaced make-up, make up blurring into hair growth patterns, reality meeting fantasy.
That’s why I continue to follow the art of the geisha, and its really why I belly dance. A reviewer from Santa Fe’s monthly magazine, “THE,” refers to it as an “intentional departure from reality.” Take an ordinary girl or woman, who may have been scrubbing a toilet or changing a diaper 15 minutes ago, add makeup, hair, costume and you have an instant symbol of sex and culture. For me, it’s all about the transformation from human reality to utter work of mortal art.
And yes, after the geisha wipes off the white war paint and hang her costumes, she, is back at work washing dishes and paying the power bill, all the while drawing her next costume with her mind’s eye.
Nina Tichava
April 24, 2012
While in Santa Fe, we ran into some acrylic panels that looked like traditional quilting patterns, complete with the stains on an old quilt. The artist is Nina Tichava, a native of Northern New Mexico who has lived part time in the Bay Area. Our new friend Peter, from the Nüart Gallery, located at 670 Canyon Road in Santa Fe, told me that she spent a childhood surrounded by quilts. There is something about those old patterns, past down from generation to generation, that become impressive symbols of America, our grandmothers, our mothers, our teachers and the warmth of falling asleep at night. In other words, they mean a lot. Here are some of Tichava’s pieces:
Jeffrey Hale Graces The Hive
April 19, 2012
On Friday night from 7 to 9 p.m., our friends at the Hive Gallery will open a show of all Jeffrey Hale’s artwork.
I like Jeffrey’s art and I’ve followed the new paintings he exhibits at the Hive for more than a year. His portraits are mainly close-ups of women in a modern take on Modigliani’s faces. Long necks, sad expressions, and sometimes even a little blue blood dripping down.
Check it out:
The Hive Gallery
Friday, April 20
7 to 9 p.m.
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Aaaaah Matisse
April 6, 2012I stumbled upon this picture the other day and I can’t get it out of my mind. Matisse has been a favorite all of my life. It’s not the image – it’s never the image – it’s the emotion that you remember. Beautiful.
