"Abject Objects" (continued)

"Abject Objects" (continued)
   A few weeks ago I posted the first 2 of 5 new pieces I completed for a new show at The Sebastopol Gallery which is where I show my work on an ongoing basis as a Member Artist. You can see the first two here and here.
   My inspiration for these 5 pieces came from Dayna Collins' series of works she called "Curious Elements". If you missed it, do go over to her blog "Art Alley Studio",  where you can see all 120 of her creations or just click here you can see a good sampling.
    Here are pieces 3, 4 and 5:  titled (in order of appearance above)

"Summer Moon" - The Moon, as Shakespeare suggests in Romeo and Juliet, is fickle. Its orbit moves it swiftly across a wide tract of the night skies, changing its appearance continually in both bold and subtle ways. 

A half-moon section of a vintage bar stool, supports a vintage door plate, with an amber half marble.

"Summer Solstice" ● -  The first day of summer—the summer solstice is the longest day of the year, the Sun reaches its most northern point in the sky at local noon. After this date, the days start getting shorter. 

A vintage water faucet handle, and clock gears make up this whimsical piece of things that are round.

"Cloverdale Roller Canaries"- What Is a Roller? It is a breed of canaries bred solely for their distinctive voice. It is soft with long, intricate rolls or tours. Color is variable. They are also great mimickers. 

Wooden door from the back of a vintage mantle clock, collaged with ads for Roller Canaries. 
 

   After hanging the new show at the Sebastopol Gallery, I stood back and looked at all 5 pieces on the wall. I thought about each of the items I used to make these pieces, the patina, the rust, the nicks and bumps. Although the parts are seemingly unrelated, all probably originated around the same time (40's-50's). Each of the disparate items used in making this series appear to have lived a full and productive life when they were new. Eventually, and over time, their original usefulness ended and they were cast aside. On the wall, it seemed to me that they had found each other again after many years of being apart. Now all have found new and beautiful careers as pieces of art.

     All 5 pieces came together easily, gracefully and decisively.  All are ready to hang.

"Ungepatchged" — Yiddish for all mixed up . . . .

  

"Ungepatchged" — Yiddish for all mixed up . . . . ●

(update: In my original post I asked for help with the translation of the word "Ungepatched". 

I received a copy of a most helpful email from a woman in Israel, giving me the correct 

spelling and better understanding of the word "ungepatcheged". Please read her words below.

"So I think the mirror is beautiful although it is ungepatchged (not ungepatched) which usually means something done with no taste with too much on it (for example a dress with many designs and a few kind of materials and on top of it some bottoms  etc., and than with shoes which also don't match). Or a painting which someone just put colors and items which is with no taste. 

And yes the mirror has a lot of things in the frame of many themes, however, although it is "ungepatchged" it still is beautiful."

Thank you for this - it all makes sense now.  

Original Post:
A customer came to the gallery a few months ago and saw "Mirror, Mirror", and really seemed to enjoy the piece. She left a message for me saying she was interested in commissioning a similar piece, and wanted me to contact her. We exchanged a couple of emails and phone calls and finally we had a chance to meet around the first week in June. She was very careful / cautious not to 'give me too many "do's and don't s " about what she wanted in her mirror, fearing that it might inhibit the 'whimsy' of the piece. . .  but she did say she wanted lots of silvery stuff, and that she liked black and white as a background color . . . and that was all she gave me. While we talked, I noticed she used the Yiddish word "ungepatchged" a couple of times while describing what she was looking for. In the end we agreed that "Ungepatchged" is what we would call the piece when it was done.
   Well, as you can see the mirror is full of whimsy, and full of 'stuff'. In addition to the many bits of bling the mirror has several interactive pieces to amuse and bemuse the viewer. There are things that are full of imagery, some that stir up wonder and delight while other bits are meant to trigger the memory to produce a set of fond mental pictures. On top there is a black galloping horse, a flower garden, a silver fan, buttons, and a corkscrew. Below there are vintage Volkswagen keys, a sea shell, a dragon fly and a gazelle. There are cat eyes, coins and a bottle cap.
   But the pièce de résistance is a beautiful face plate from a 1930’s Singer sewing machine atop a silver skull with red rhinestone eyes.
   Among the interactive pieces, there is, a magic wand that sits behind the sea shell, an optometrist’s lens that swings from the horse, a vintage metal paper clip, and a tiny vintage level that sits in the lower right hand corner.
   It doesn't feel as though the photographs do it justice.
   By the way, the client picked up "Ungepatchged" last weekend, and I am told she really loves it!

PS: if any of you speak / understand Yiddish and can offer me a better translation of  ungepatched, please share with me.

"Muse's Museum"

 

"The Muse", "Don Door Knob", "Mr. Puzzle Wood", "Secret Tea-Ball", 

"Kaleidoscope", "Magnet Man", "Shake It-Don't Break It", "Love Letters"

 "The Muse"

"Muse's Museum"

I adore interactive art pieces.  I love being able to touch, hold, and play with the parts and pieces that amuse and bemuse.  This piece is an assemblage that begs you to hold and touch and play.

A vintage oak file box, fitted with parts of a wooden spice rack tower, and covered in green tissues and overlaid with sewing pattern tissue.  The 8 slots are filled with unrelated items that are interactive and hold secrets of their own. A harlequin doll head filled with glass beads and sealed with a glass stopper, a vintage wooden door knob, a wooden puzzle, and a tea ball with a surprise inside.
Next in line are a kids' kaleidoscope, a strong magnet and ball bearings, a wooden shaker and a small jar full of "love letters".

 A vintage fishing lure hangs on the lid - when you pull the lure it will gyrates as it retrieves.

The fun is in the viewer's imagination . . .  what do you see?