{"id":36110,"date":"2018-02-27T14:20:02","date_gmt":"2018-02-27T19:20:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/?p=36110"},"modified":"2018-03-05T13:22:27","modified_gmt":"2018-03-05T18:22:27","slug":"home-edition-essex-flowers-opening-pix-part-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/the-bomb\/2018\/02\/27\/home-edition-essex-flowers-opening-pix-part-i\/","title":{"rendered":"‘HOME EDITION’ . . ESSEX FLOWERS \/ OPENING PIX – PART I \/ THE MAGIC, DARK ROOM !!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

ESSEX FLOWERS .. ‘HOME EDITION’
\nopened FRI FEB 23, 2018 – the show runs thru . . MARCH 11, 2018
\n& there will be a . . ‘sister show’ \/ at the Essex Flowers install – in the Projects space at Nada – in about 2 weeks.
\nESSEX FLOWERS<\/a>, 19 MONROE ST., CHINATOWN
\nHRS: SAT & SUN \/ 12-6 PM & by appointment<\/p>\n

PAR-TAY . . . . ON !!!!
\nHOME EDITION !!!!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nwow, it was still early, but the crowd outside was huge, and buzzing !!
\nso much excitement in the air.
\nmuch excitement for me too, because I had just heard the day before, that one of my ‘repaired quilt’ projects had been accepted into the show !!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nMICHAEL MAHALCHICK, framed by the almost ritualistic seemingly stained glass window \/ with glowing blood red & neon ‘purple light’ emanating, pulsing from just inside.
\na wizard, in a wizard’s light.<\/p>\n

the word on the street – was that the show . . “WAS A RIOT – FRONT & CENTER” !!!! <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\njust before I made it in, I met IAN COFRE, left, with . . MELISSA BROWN, a member of the ESSEX FLOWERS collective, who I’ve known a long time, & who helped hang the show.
\nshe looked so stoked !!
\nshe showed me the DIY catalog of the exhibit, which lets you know which artist did what work.
\nshe laughed with such gusto, as she told me the exhibit had just came together . . as 2 parts.
\nthe smaller front room, projecting the neon purple light, was the ‘dark lounge’, as in . . the dark arts !! the dark side of the moon. the seance in the Edwardian dining room. the alchemist magic. the ritualistic. the tantric. the diviners. the dreamers. aka . . the Stoner Lounge !!
\nlol, and my<\/em> quilt was hanging . . in there !!
\nI loved . . it.
\nto bring in something like a quilt, and be part . . of the dark !!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nthe games . . begin.
\nhanging in the storefront window: ritualistic, mysterious, calling to the dark worlds. small, stained & leaded glass ‘charms’, by FRANK HAINES . .
\ncaught the reflection of the colored LED lights, inside . . . and played with them.
\nnote . . the ‘row’ format.
\nit’s strange how things that are so<\/strong> organized – can speak . . to deeper secrets. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nDENISE KUPFERSCHMIDT. her plastic ‘shower curtains’, also hanging in the wide storefront window, also reflected a ‘tantric’, chiming, chanting . . end-game \/ off the deep velvet night outside, and the colored neon LED light within.
\nthey had, just this amazing splash, ’emblem’, a perfect ‘spin’, of cherry red. splayed across them, that sparked reflected light, deeply. darkly. this was a ‘promise’ – you don’t want to make.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nthey were so kinetic in their ‘stiff’ thick plastic reflection. sometimes bright, sometimes opaque.
\nsometimes, even . . quilt-looking.
\nbut, most definite not !! Bed, Bath & Beyond !! nothing was. unless very very ironic.
\n& esp in this room: it was more like . . Mary Shelley. dark Chinese alleys. blood maps. haunting. hiding.
\nsymbols. codes. alchemy.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nthe powerful eerie light . . came from 2 LED ‘light fixtures’ – by LIZZIE WRIGHT.
\nvintage vinyl Mickey Mouse record player by MICHAEL MAHALCHICK.
\na glimpse of the ‘Privacy Screen’, by RUFUS TUREEN in the background.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nthis one was in the window. the other one, was across the small, dark room, the ‘den’.
\nLIZZIE WRIGHT, ‘untitled’, 2018. wood, wire. LED lighting, threaded rod, and hardware.
\nalchemy. <\/p>\n

a glimpse on the right of: PATRICK ARNOLD’S ‘God is Dead’ pillow.
\nyeah, you can ponder on that \/ as you relax, your head. on the couch.
\n2018, 18 x 18 in.
\nembroidery, canvas, pillow form. edition #1\/10.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nalso in the window, and reflecting . . the ‘strange’ emits . . of colored light.
\na plaster cast of a head, ‘Roy 3.0’ . . by WILLIE WAYNE SMITH.
\nairbrushed, acrylic on cast hydrocal, 22 x 8 x 8 in.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nand there, it was !!
\nalmost right there on the left, when you walked in, bathing in the wizardly room’s glow.
\nalive with the surrounding mysterious, mystical vibes, & . . deep secrets.
\nprojecting its almost century-old \/ protection ‘spell’ . . to a new audience.
\nimbued with the headiness of homespun spells.
\ndomestic skills & home life \/ in a dark fitful room, of new age design \/ arts & crafts.<\/p>\n

my repaired . . ‘Log Cabin Crib Quit’ \/ ‘Straight Furrows’, ca. 1925.
\n38 x 58 in.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\ndetail.
\nNANCY SMITH, ‘Log Cabin Crib Quilt Repair’.
\nI worked on it, on & off for about 5 years, from 1997-2001. all hand-stitched.
\nwith various vintage ribbons, trims, snips of textiles. patches. old buttons, trinkets & even tiny vintage craft bells.
\nan traditional colonial patchwork, it is ‘built-up’ in segmented ‘rows’, just like a . . Log Cabin.
\n‘Straight Furrows’ refers to one of several Log Cabin design variances. they use the ‘light & dark’ contrasts of the textile patches, to map out broad diagonal swaths \/ or ‘furrows’ . . representing the farm’s plowed fields, with its rows of growing crops.
\nquite worn-out, when I found it, this quilt was made for a baby’s bed, it measures 38 x 58 in., and dates to somewhere around 1925. it is almost 100 years old.
\nit protected the babe with its warmth & momma’s skills. it was most likely made on a hard-scrabble farm, with treasured scraps from worn-out clothing. it’s most definite . . the most basic kind of ‘patchwork’.
\nbeside the protective ‘spell’ of the design, its mother’s earnest wish for her baby to be protected, safe & warm, was part of each stitch. a tarot card . . of a blanket.
\nas well, the red, and here sometimes yellow as well, small squares . . in the center of each larger square, stood for the warmth and glow of the hearth. the fire. at the vital center of rural 20th home life.
\nin turn, it also symbolized, in literally in every stitch, the warm heart of the quilt maker at the center of the home. & thus it still casts its spell.
\nalmost a 100 years old !! <\/p>\n

I kept thinking:
\nI wonder what the home-maker quilter, who so skillfully & so frugally, and so lovingly, and so patiently cut & hand-stitched this baby quilt, would think of it re-surfacing !!
\nfor another . . go round.
\nin a show like this !! <\/p>\n

& how we so, still – need to watch over our children.
\na patchwork Log Cabin quilt is a . . flag, a painting \/ literally a blanket.
\nthat provides warmth, and wishes . . ‘care’ \/ over the unknown, life’s fragility & wards off evil.
\nit’s an old home-spun ‘spell’, for sure.<\/p>\n

PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ESSEX FLOWERS .. ‘HOME EDITION’ opened FRI FEB 23, 2018 – the show runs thru . . MARCH 11, 2018 & there will be a . . ‘sister show’ \/ at the Essex Flowers install – in the Projects space at Nada – in about 2 weeks. ESSEX FLOWERS, 19 MONROE ST., CHINATOWN HRS: SAT […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36110"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36110"}],"version-history":[{"count":40,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36110\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36211,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36110\/revisions\/36211"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}