Exhibit Wall: Case 3

A Few of My Favorite Things, Joyce Gilmer, Cookbook

Narisah Revealed, Wendy Mike, Fabric, Brass, and Wood

Artist Statement

I am besotted with love for the human form, specifically emanations of the figure in motion. My attempt is to create and portray a kind of gestural language: a vocabulary of postures. Necessity and intent cause me to seek out and perfect the use of non-traditional, low-tech materials. Natural fabrics, such as silk in this case, I find mostly in thrift stores. Fabric has been used to protect and embellish the body for millennium, achieving its expressive apex in women’s clothing. The medium references the female; the work is inherently feminist. I begin by sculpting an anatomically detailed figure for use as a model on which to cast the fabric. When complete, the sculpture is less about the dress and more about the body it describes. With the body absent, the essence of the physical form, the “spirit’ of the individual is present, yet free of “identity.” Beauty is cherished and consciously coaxed from every sculpture I make. Just as it is impossible to throw back one’s head with chest and arms open to the sky and simultaneously experience depression, beauty works irresistibly on the soul

Beaded Bag, Debra Box, Glass Seed Beads and Deer Hide

Artist Statement 

Debra Box is a registered Southern Ute who didn’t expect her life to take an unforeseen turn into the art world. Debra experimented in traditional, museum-quality beadwork making beaded items for her and her husband. They participated in mountain man rendezvouses. It was a chance trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1986, they came upon the Santa Fe Indian Market. It is a yearly Native American art market which draws collectors from all over the world to view and buy Native American art. Debra applied to the market in 1987 and has participated every year. Debra is recognized for her beadwork and her painted rawhide containers. Debra’s rawhide containers are based on storage containers her ancestors used to store their everyday items and possessions. Debra loves to research beadwork and the rawhide containers when traveling to various museums. She has had the privilege to have her artwork bought by museums, celebrities, journalists and fashion designers.

Summer Vacation Graphic Illustration, Gretchen McRae, Acrylic on Matboard