Installation Artist Spotlight: Shanell Papp

Shanell Papp is a Saskatchewan-based artist who we're thrilled to have participating in this year's installation programming. Her contribution to City of Craft, LAB #4, is a life-sized skeleton and organs made completely out of knitted yarn. Much of her textile-based work deals with the human body and physical vulnerability. Read on to find out more about her process and her other weird and wild work...not for the squeamish!

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LAB is an ongoing body of work that you began in 2005. How has LAB evolved from 2005 to the present?

LAB evolved out of an earlier project, Body, that I did in 2005. I made an exact replica of myself from wood, pantyhose, spandex and plaster. Body was an important work for me (because) I was reconsidering materials and processes in my work. Before this point I was mainly a photographer. Body was my first more textile-based sculpture.

In the summer of 2005, I began making the yarn skeleton LAB, which took three months to complete. I showed the work in a student show and in 2006, I graduated from Univerity of Lethbridge with my BFA. I continued to work on LAB an made the primary organs for the skeleton (heart, brains, liver) and it was accepted into a few shows—a group show at SAAG (Southern Alberta Art Gallery), in Vancouver at Galery Gachette and in Calgary for The New Gallery. It was really overwhelming…I didn’t expect the work to travel that so much.

Every time I show LAB it is displayed differently and the work is still under construction—parts are repaired and other parts are being replaced. I think I may never finish it, which is okay. I like that the work is constantly evolving, changing and growing. I still need to make arteries, veins, muscles, skin, hair, eyes, etc.

In your statement about LAB, you refer to your interest in “the human body and textiles in combination.” How would you define the relationship between textiles and the body?

Textiles and the body share a close relationship with the clothing we wear to protect the body. Textiles are delicate and in constant need of repair and cleaning, and our bodies are in need of constant repair and cleaning, but over time, all our work will only extend the life of a material that will not last forever.

Textiles are essentially big, giant, organized knots, like the human body is a giant knot of cells that are somewhat the same, but different and bound together. And some textiles/fabrics are made from the flesh of animals, which I think is interesting.

What attracts you to slow, tactile methods of making such as knitting?

I do work slowly and with my hands, but this is part of a larger technique. I am interested in making objects out of low, familiar, everyday materials and adjusting them to be unexpected. I like to have a personal relationship with my materials, so this could explain my devotion to making handmade objects, but I think textiles are the best material to elicit an empathetic and familiar response, so I use (them) primarily to as a technique to aid the meaning of the work.

You are currently pursuing an MFA in Studio Art from the University of Saskatchewan, so I’m sure you’ve been spending a lot of time in the studio. What other projects are you working on right now?

Currently I am making several pieces-- (one is) a suit from old printing press mats called Pressure Suit and I think of it as an astronaut or deep sea diving suit that protects the wearer in harsh or unknown environments. I am also working on a series of Blood Pools (working title) that resemble blood pools made from head injuries. I was looking at a lot of crime scene photography and was thinking about how (crime seem photos don’t) seem real, (and) how (the people in the photographs look like) they are sleeping and I wanted to make the blood pools to enhance my disbelief. I also made a life size horse from carefully tailored garbage bags. I am interested in building objects about exploration, vulnerability and the 19^th Century.

In the past I have made video, photography and comic book works. I plan to make an autobiographical graphic novel and/or a historical graphic novel about the Arctic…hopefully I will get around to this someday.

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For more on Shanell's installation LAB, take a look at her portion of the City of Craft installations page.

Materials Needed for Holly McClellan's Garbage Dress!

Attention, crafters! City of Craft 2009 installation artist Holly McClellan needs your unwanted clothes, fabric scraps and notions for her Crafty Garbage Dress! Play a part in creating an elaborate sculptural gown made out of salvaged materials! Think of it as a materials swap...at the end of the second day of the show, all materials will be re-distributed to interested parties. Too good to be true, huh? Read on for more information:

I am creating an installation during the City of Craft event made of unwanted clothes. We are also getting crafty and making things with the scraps or leftover supplies for the installation. If you have something made of scraps you would like included in the installation, bring it to the event and it will be used.

On Sunday, December 13 the installation is on exhibition. The leftover supplies & scraps from Saturday are available for people to take. At 4:00 pm, crafters and designers are invited to pick apart the installation, take the clothes and re-use them in future projects or as they see fit. Please spread the word to any designers working in "Slow Fashion." Thanks.

For early drop off or pick up of clothing or supplies, contact:
hmphoto@sympatico.ca or (905) 725.8118

Sponsor Profile: The Sewing Studio

Who are you? Denise Wild, Founder of The Sewing Studio

Where are you located? The Sewing Studio has two locations in Toronto's posh Rosedale neighbourhood: 1225 Yonge Street (at Summerhill) and 266 Avenue Road (at Dupont)

What do you/your business/your product do? At The Sewing Studio, we teach sewing classes for all ages and skill levels. We also sell sewing machines and offer sewing parties, sewing bootcamps, and Free Studio Time.

What will you have at the show? Do you have any special plans for your table/space? We're giving away a Janome sewing machine at this year's City of Craft as well as a surprise take-away for all the show's attendants!

Why handmade? Sewing is where fashion begins. There are no clothes on the runway without a bit of fabric and thread to begin. We love making something from start to finish whether we're conceptualizing a design from scratch, tweaking an existing garment off the rack, or copying one of our favourite pieces.

Students at The Sewing Studio show off their creations

Are there any crafts you are especially tuned into at the moment? It's always about clothes for us! Right now we're loving long-fur vests (faux, of course) and everything slashed (tops, jeans, totes).

Anything else we should know? The Sewing Studio is launching a website extension January 1st that features sewing classes online and.... an online sewing magazine! Fashion-lovers rejoice!

Home and Away (and In-Between)

Our Installations co-ordinator Tara Bursey has outdone even herself with this fantastic looking group show she has curated as an extension of City of Craft 2009 programming (on top of the 14 (!) installations she has planned for the weekend of the show). The opening reception doubles-up as a pre-craft show party. Come out and celebrate craft in the city!

A thematic group exhibition brought to you by City of Craft

Opening Reception:
Friday, December 4th. 7-10pm
Exhibition runs December 3-13, 2009.
City of Craft takes place December 12-13th at The Theatre Centre, 1087 Queen St. West

Location:
Cream Tangerine Café
At the Great Hall
1087 Queen Street West, Toronto

Craft processes and acts of making have a way of rooting people to their surroundings. People make or purchase craft items to enhance their domestic spaces and make themselves “at home.” Alternately, people take comfort in craft and art making when they find themselves in unfamiliar territory or when situated in transitional spaces such as on planes and buses and in waiting rooms. Home and Away (and In-Between) is an exhibition that strives to explore how the act of making enables us to relate to where we are.

Home and Away (and In-Between) is a thematic group exhibition of selected vendors, organizers and installation artists involved with this year’s City of Craft event. The exhibition also includes a few invited special guests artists. Home and Away will serve as a pre-fair party as well as a public preview of the wares in store at this year’s City of Craft. Please join us in celebrating our third awesome year!

Artists:
Lizz Aston, Fiona Bailey, Amy Borkwood, Leah Buckareff, Marta Chudolinska, Heather Fagan, Meags Fitzgerald, Sara Guindon, Genevieve Jodouin, Serena McCarroll and Tyler Brett, Laurie McGregor, The Misanthrope Specialty Co., Jen Spinner, Gillian Wilson and more.

Sponsor Profile: Coriander Girl

Photo by Becky Johnson

Who are you? Hey, I'm Alison Westlake and I own a little flower/antique shop called Coriander Girl. I sell fresh flowers as well as antiques, gifts and locally made crafts.

Where are you located? 1537 Queen St. W Toronto ON M6R 1A7, two blocks East of Roncesvalles on the South side.

What do you/your business/your product do? I offer an array of seasonal, fresh and dried, hand tied bouquets for events, weddings and passers by.

What does your sponsorship for the show entail? A live flower arrangement and two gift cards for the raffle, and $2 gift tags with handmade lavender sachets for the swag bags.

Why handmade? Okay, my flowers aren't handmade but, I do believe there is something rather crafty about floral arranging. Whether it's a "you were right" bouquet or something for yourself, flowers are for spreadin' the love. From the minute they are cut flowers begin to die and so I think of myself as intensive care for botanicals. This urgency creates a certain amount of tension in the work and this makes the entire process for me incredibly romantic. My flower shop is unique in that I make all of the paper goods for the business by hand with the help of my logo artist Maybelle Imasa Stukuls. Hang tags, business cards and other promo goods are each hand done in the back of my little shop. Coriander Girl was greatly inspired by Karyn Valino and The Workroom. I wanted a workspace for floral arranging and all things craft. Basically, I've always wanted a grand craft studio, so I opened my own store! Now, I have an excuse to play all day long!

Anything else we should know? Right now I'm loving that the main part of my job is shopping for crafts! I am constantly sourcing new products for the shop and on the look out for new artisans who want to sell their stuff on a smaller scale. In the New year I'll be carrying jewelry by the lovely Kalpna Patel and other great local artisans. I just starting carrying Ella's Botanicals which I think are perfect for Coriander Girl.

I've also joined the blog world, you can check out coriandergirl.blogspot.com for news about the shop with the occasional personal bit.

I'm so looking forward to the craft fair this year. If you had told me a year ago, when I was just a spectator at the show, that this is where I would be now, I'd have fallen over. I am honoured to be involved this year along side so many incredible artisans! Thanks to City of Craft for all your hard work!

Sponsor Profile: Soak Wash

Hello out there in internet land and welcome to our fist sponsor Q&A profile for City of Craft 2009. Around these parts, we are very proud of our sponsors. They range from local to international business - all with some kind of indie or handmade connection. That's right, we don't just hop in bed with any old corporate interest at City of Craft and as a result we care very much about these businesses - and we want you to get to know them and the people behind them, too.

Stay tuned in to these profiles as they also hold within them tantalizing previews of the swag bags we give to our first 100 shoppers (Saturday only, dudes), our hefty raffle packs and more!

We are very happy to start this profile series with local fibre-care juggernaut, Soak Wash. So without any further ado...

Who are you? Soak Wash Inc. creators of Soak- Modern Care for Fine Fibers

Where are you located? Sexy industrial strip mall just outside the big city (Mississauga)

What do you/your business/your product do? We used to be Jacq’s-Hats, an award-winning knit accessories company. Now we’re Soak Wash Inc. Our customers often ask us how they can best take care of our knit hats, sweaters and scarves. We didn’t like other wool washes, so we decided to offer them a modern approach to fiber care. We developed a premium, no-rinse wash solution that works with our stuff – and with anything else people care about enough to hand wash. Soak can now be found in yarn shops, sewing studios, lingerie fitting boutiques and department stores.

What does your sponsorship for the show entail? Goodie bags will include a mini-soak single use samples as well as some product knowledge. There’s a juicy Soak prize pack up for raffle grabs too.

Why handmade? Our designs, concepts, fragrances and packaging all stem from our creative crafty side. Our knits were hand-made. Soak is biodegradable, non-toxic, no rinse and eco friendly.

Are there any crafts you are especially tuned into at the moment? We’re in love with our new scent- Unleash which is a collaboration inspired by Ravelry.com. We’re inspired by the connectivity of craft at the moment. I’m also immersed in quilting these days.

Anything else we should know? We’re launching new products in January- Carrie + Phil- wash basins, from Soak. Carrie: fun-loving multi-tasker. Carrie is as happy carrying towels to the beach and toys to the park as she is keeping your yarn stash and other neat stuff, tidy at home. Phil: bright and indispensable. Phil loves protecting hand-washables from the rest of the laundry and relieving the sink of its duties by providing a safe haven for Soaking. He also works perfectly for dyeing, felting and other yarny tasks.

For even more Soak information as-it-happens, check out their blog at http://www.soakworthy.com.

Installation Mania!

All Citizens Postcards photo(s) by Serena McCarroll

Come one, come all and hear ye, hear ye:

As we draw nearer to the big, big day, our installations page has finally come alive on the website. Shoved full of valuable and dazzling information amassed and compiled by our installation curatrix (too cute?), Tara Bursey, it is a veritable treasure trove of large scale craft/art goodness.

And if that were not enough, you can also check our the installation features on our blog for Tara's in-depth profiles of individual artists and their work(s).

Keep your eyes peeled, crafty citizens; The streets around the Theatre Centre will start to be dotted with City of Craft Installations as early as next week!