With so much going on this summer, I decided to list everything in one post. There are current and upcoming exhibitions to see, new Stitch Minute videos to watch, as well as new products and a Sale in my Etsy shop.
But first, a little Barbie nostalgia.
With all of the chatter about the new Barbie movie, I thought I’d show mine from the early 1960’s. She co-mingled with the trolls, who mostly tolerated her. Looking back, I can see why the trolls won my heart. Barbie’s world was conventional and limiting, whereas the trolls opened up possibilities for a kind of magic to happen.
EXHIBITIONS
MY BED – The Netherlands
BEDTIME STITCHES heads south!
The touring exhibition of original artwork for my picture book, My Bed, is currently on view at the Southeastern Quilt and Textile Museum in Carrollton, Georgia thru Sept. 15th.
MY BED – India
Since its premiere at the Cahoon Museum of American Art in 2020, Bedtime Stitches has been seen by thousands of visitors at 8 different museums across the country from Maine to Washington State. And it’s not over yet! To find out where Bedtime Stitches will be going into 2025, visit the exhibitions page.
MY BED – Russia
Hearing reactions from people who’ve seen my artwork in person makes me feel that organizing this show was worth all of the effort. I especially enjoyed this comment written earlier this year in the guest book at the Pacific Northwest Quilt & Fiber Arts Museum:
“It makes you think that everything is possible!” ~ Eleanor, Seattle, WA
2023 WOODS HOLE ART SHOW July 24 – 29, 10 AM to 8 PM Woods Hole Community Hall, Water St., Woods Hole, MA
This delightfully eclectic annual community art show is made up of artwork from people who live, work or lurk in Woods Hole. It’s been a long time since I had anything available during the summer to put in, but this year, 2 pieces from my seasonal landscape series, Harvest Time and Mossy Glen, will be included. Please note that the show is up for one week only (July 24 – 29).
Self Portrait: A Personal History of Fashion at the Woods Hole Public Library
THE WEE WORLDS OF SALLEY MAVOR
SOUTHERN VERMONT ARTS CENTER, Manchester, VT September 30, 2023 – January 7, 2024 OPENING RECEPTION: Saturday, September 30 from 2 to 4 P.M. GALLERY TOUR with the artist at 3 P.M.
This will be a large retrospective exhibition in the Art Center’s main gallery. It will include a wide array of original picture book illustrations spanning my career, including Bedtime Stitches, the touring exhibition of artwork for my most recent book, MY BED. Also on display will be recent pieces that explore cultural diversity, migration, fashion, the natural world, and a range of social narratives, from the everyday to topical subjects.
Southeastern Vermont Arts Center, Manchester, VT
NewSTITCH MINUTE Videos
SUMMER SCENE PREVIEW The summer scene is slowly taking shape and I hope to finish it in time for my exhibit in Vermont this fall. When the piece is complete, I’ll write a series of posts that go into more detail, with commentary and photos that document my process. It’s the 4th in my seasonal landscape series. You can learn about how I made the other three, Frosty Morning, Mossy Glen and Harvest Time, in earlier posts on this blog. The images are printed as cards and jigsaw puzzles (20% off sale July 23 – 31), which are available in my Etsy Shop.
George’s Chairfeatures a child nestled in an upholstered armchair, engrossed in a storybook, surrounded by imaginary characters, including St. George and the Dragon. There are also four new cards with images from Mary Had a Little Lamb. They include Mary and her lamb in the garden, in the barn, in the kitchen and in an apple orchard. The different scenes are available separately or in a sampler.
Frosty MorningRabbitatMossy GlenBirds of Beebe WoodsHarvest TimeThread Spools
To keep up with new posts, please subscribe to this blog. Your contact info will not be sold or shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.
First off, I’d like to welcome the influx of new subscribers, who’ve recently discovered my work through The Quilt Show. I hope that you enjoy exploring my needle and thread universe that you don’t get too lost in the archives! ————————————————————————————————– Today’s post includes an exhibition announcement with a virtual gallery tour, a zoom interview hosted by Niisha HandCrafted from Dubai, UAE and a preview of the fall landscape in my 4 seasons series.
Southeastern New England took the brunt of last weekend’s blizzard, but miraculously we didn’t lose power. Sunday was both a gross and fine motor skills kind of day, with shoveling outside and stitching inside in front of the wood-stove. Gotta have a balance of physical exertion and fiddly handwork or weird things start to happen!
I’m working on the fall landscape (autumn for some of you) in my 4 seasons series. As you can see, this scene will have a moss-covered habitat for the wee folk that is surrounded by chain-stitched vegetation. There’s still a lot more to do, but if I can complete it by spring, this yet-to-be-named piece will join Mossy Glen and Frosty Morning in my retrospective show at the Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk, ME this summer (June 3 – Sept. 11, 2022).
Bedtime Stitches Touring Exhibition The International Quilt Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska is hosting Bedtime Stitches through April 9, 2022. Even if you live too far away and can’t see the show in person, you can have a virtual gallery tour on their web page here.
The Bedtime Stitches exhibition is a unique opportunity for the public to see the detail and 3-dimensional quality of my actual hand-stitched artwork, which was photographed and printed in the book, MY BED: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep around the World.
Russia
The collection of artwork takes the viewer on an international journey, showing where children sleep in varying cultures and living environments around the world. Along with the framed embroidered pieces, interpretive boards give a background peek at my process. See where the show is going for the next few years on the exhibitions page.
Bedtime Stitches at the International Quilt MuseumBedtime Stitches at the International Quilt MuseumBedtime Stitches at the International Quilt Museum
Signed copies of My Bed can be ordered in my shop here. Watch this 8 minute documentary about how I created the illustrations for the book.
Visitors to the exhibition, as well as those of you at home with a copy of My Bed, can hunt for details in the artwork using the downloadable sheet below.
And finally, I want to share a zoom interview I did with Niisha HandCrafted from Dubai, UAE, which can be seen on her Facebook page. If you’re interested in learning about my artwork, where it came from and why I do it, this interview is for you. Prompted by Niisha’s insightful questions, I blab on for over an hour about all kinds of things – how I got started and grew as an artist, what I think about “slow stitching”, as well as offer advice for people who want to build a creative life of their own.
I’m happy to announce that the touring exhibition, BEDTIME STITCHES, is on view through Dec. 31, 2021 at the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, MA. This is an opportunity for people in southern New England to experience the detail and 3-dimensional quality of the original artwork for my book, My Bed: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep around the World .
Rob and I recently drove up to Lowell to take photos and videos of the show to share with you. In addition to snapping still photos, Rob filmed some impromptu conversations in the gallery, which are included later in this post.
My bas-relief embroidered book illustrations have 2 lives. The easiest and most accessible way to enjoy them is by looking at the reproductions on the printed pages of the book, My Bed. Another way to experience the artwork is to go to an exhibition of the originals, where the scenes are presented behind glass in shadow-box frames hung on the wall. Either way, you can get lost in the stitched miniature worlds full of characters, props and scenery.
Personally signed copies of My Bed are available in my shop here. Watch this 8 minute documentary about how I created the illustrations for the book.
The BEDTIME STITCHES exhibition has been traveling for the past year and is booked at museums around the country through 2024 (see schedule below). I’m open to extending the tour, so if you’d like to see the exhibition come closer to where you live, please reach out to museums in your area and tell them about the opportunity to show my artwork. Interested museums are welcome to contact me (Salley at weefolkstudio.com) for information about hosting the exhibition.
Pam Weeks, the museum’s curator greeted us when we got there. She did a beautiful job hanging my artwork in a cozy corner gallery, where visitors can spend time viewing the pieces up close.
A series of information panels describe different aspects of my working process, including making sketches, stitching and using wire and found objects.
While we were there, we had the good fortune to meet 2 very interesting women – artist Laura Petrovich-Cheney, who’s remarkable Wood Quilts are also on display and Janet Elwin, who helped found the New England Quilt Museum in 1987. Here we are conversing at the museum.
BEDTIME STITCHES will be on view at the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, MA through Dec. 31, 2021. The next stop on the tour is the International Quilt Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska (Jan 25 – April 10, 2022).
To keep up with new posts, subscribe to this blog. Your contact info will not be shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.
I am delighted to announce that the Bedtime Stitches touring exhibition is opening today at the Cedarhurst Center for the Arts in Mt. Vernon, IL, which is in the southern part of the state. This is an opportunity for those of you in the middle of the country to see the original bas-relief embroidered artwork for my picture book MY BED. UPDATE: The exhibition has been extended to August, 2021 (closing date TBA). I’ve already heard from fans who will be driving from Chicago, St. Louis and Nashville to see the show. Others from further away are planning overnight visits. I wish I could be there to greet you all, but my artwork will have to stand in my place.
Whenever I post announcements about the exhibition, I hear from folks who want the exhibition to come to places near where they live. I would love to be able to point to locations on a map and have them magically appear on the schedule, but that requires enlisting venues to partner with. So far, Bedtime Stitches is booked at locations in eastern, western, northern and southern parts of the country through mid 2023. The current schedule is at the end of this post.
So, will more locations be added? I’m open to extending the tour, if there is an interest. To make that happen I need your help. Over the past few years, I’ve contacted just about every quilt and textile related venue I could find, as well as other art museums. For whatever reason, sending proposals hasn’t worked. What has worked are personal contacts and extra motivated fans. Several bookings are at places that have shown my work before and a few came about as the result of fans telling their local museums about the opportunity to host the show. So, if you would like to see the exhibit come closer to your doorstep, I encourage you reach out to museums in your area. They are more apt to respond to an enthusiastic member of their community than to some random stitching lady they’ve never heard of before. Past experience has taught me that as more people experience the book and exhibition, the word spreads and new opportunities will arise. Interested museums are welcome to write me via the contact form at the bottom of this post.
The staff at the Cedarhurst Center for the Arts put together this Eye Spy game for their visitors. It could also be fun for those looking through the pages of the MY BED book at home. You can download it here:
Autographed copies of the book, MY BED are available in my shop here.
Watch MAKING MY BED, an 8 minute documentary film about how Salley Mavor created the illustrations for MY BED on YouTube.
To keep up with new posts, please subscribe to this blog. Your contact info will not be sold or shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.
For the past month, things have been very busy around here, with the publication of my new picture book, MY BED and the debut of the touring exhibition, Salley Mavor: Bedtime Stitches at the Cahoon Museum of American Art in Cotuit, MA (through Dec. 19, 2020). To plan your visit and register for timed entry, go here. For those of you who live too far to visit, do not fret! The museum has put much of the exhibition on their website here. You can also scroll through this post and see many, many pictures of the show.
The Bedtime Stitches exhibition is booked through 2024, the the possibility of more locations being added. I wish I could wave a magic and send it all over the country, but I’m limited by how many years I want to keep the collection in circulation, as well as reliant on the interest and financial support of museums and curators. If you want the show to travel close to where you live, please talk it up with a museum in your area. Enthusiasm from local members of the community can make a difference. That’s how a few of the locations already on the tour heard about the opportunity. Museums are welcome to contact me (salley at weefolkstudio.com) for information about hosting the exhibit. To find out about the book and see the tour schedule, please go here.
Sarah Jonson – Director and Curator
Bedtime Stitches has been years in the planning and I feel so fortunate to have had the support and encouragement of the Cahoon Museum along the way. When the pandemic caused it’s closing earlier this year and the museum had to cancel its major summer exhibition, they remained committed to my show this fall, even lengthening its duration. I’m impressed by the staff’s professionalism, dedication and resourcefulness in carrying out the museum’s mission which states that it “celebrates American art in ways that expand knowledge, enrich the spirit, and engage the heart.” Museum Director Sarah Johnson was even able to secure the sponsorship of the Coby Foundation, which funds projects in the textile and needle arts field!
Annie Dean – Special Projects Consultant
Because of Special Project Consultant Annie Dean’s careful planning, we were able to get the show installed without a hitch. Michelle Law was brought in to hang the artwork and wall panels and expertly apply the title decals, which can be tricky to do.
Michelle Law – Art installation specialist
Since Bedtime Stitches opened a few weeks ago, I’ve heard from many locals who’ve been to see the show. Thank you for going! For everybody who lives too far, I’ve posted several slide shows with photos of the gallery, the artwork and the wall panels.
Slide Show of the main gallery at the Cahoon Museum:
MY BED original artwork The touring exhibition features all 18 original bas-relief embroidered illustrations for my picture book, MY BED. The pieces are presented behind glass in cherry wood shadow box frames that my husband Rob made this past summer.
The scenes I made for the book have 2 lives: 1.AsIllustrations: The original embroidered pieces were photographed and reproduced in the book, MY BED. 2.As Framed Artwork: I added fabric borders, signed and dated each piece and put them in frames.Then they were ready to be hung on the wall and exhibited, so that people could experience the detail and 3-dimensional quality of the “real thing”.
I am glad to be able to share my work in both printed and original form, so that it’s accessible to a variety of audiences, young and old, from near and far.
Slide Show of finished pieces with borders:
Front Cover
South America
Scandinavia
Japan
Afghanistan
North America
North Africa
The Netherlands
India
Russia
Iran
Ghana
Mongolia
Night Sky
Home
Animals
Wall Panels This slide show includes an Introduction, Bio and a series of mounted boards that describe in words and pictures how I approached illustrating My Bed, from the initial sketches to the many stages of creating the 3-dimensional scenes that are reproduced in the book. The series of panels highlights different aspects of my working methods and gives glimpses into my thought process as I made choices along the way.
Introduction
Biography
Sketches
Figures
Fabrics
Stitching
Beads
Wire
Found Objects
Animals
Only at the Cahoon Museum In addition to showing the original artwork for MY BED and the information panels that comprise the Bedtime Stitches touring exhibition, the Cahoon Museum has devoted space in the gallery to displaying rarely seen items from my studio. To give a historical context to the development of my art, they wanted to show work from my childhood to my art school days to the present day. Included are my doll house, fairy houses, self portrait and other 3-dimensional figures and scenes which you can see in this slide show:
Wee Folk Studio animation Logo
First Book, 1963, age 8
Lichen Lookout 2013
Grate Hall 2015
Polly
Modular Village 1977
Modular Village 1977
Stuffed Pins, 1976-1982
Wee Willie Winkie set
Insects 1979
mushrooms, fairy 2005
Felt Wee Folk
Self Portrait: a personal history of fashion, 2007
You can also see my mini tributes to the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (See how I made Ruth here.) and Climate Change activist Greta Thunberg (See how I made Greta here.)
Ruth Bader GinsburgGreta Thunberg
The 40 page picture book, MY BED: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep around the World is published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, ISBN 978-0-544-94906-5. It is available through booksellers everywhere. Autographed copies are sold at Eight Cousins Books, the Cahoon Museum and my Etsy Shop.
To keep up with new posts, please subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be sold or shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram
Once Upon a Stitch, my retrospective exhibition of original embroidered picture book art will be at the Cape Cod Museum of Art for a few more weeks, until Sunday, January 26th. So, if you’ve been thinking about going to see it, act quickly. It’s been wonderful to have a place to send people, although it is limited to those who can make it to our beautiful peninsula.
For those of you from far away, here’s a brief video tour of the gallery.
A brief tour of “Salley Mavor: Once Upon a Stitch” at Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis MA
There’s also a scavenger hunt with lots of cards made up of different close-up details to find in the framed artwork.
Images in the scavenger hunt
Last Saturday, I talked about my work to a very nice group who nestled themselves into the gallery. After being introduced by Benton Jones, the museum’s Director of Art, I shared stories about growing up in a household where making things was as routine as brushing one’s teeth.
This was different that my usual slide presentation, in that I just talked off the cuff, making it more like a Show & Tell. I brought some things to show like my first book (mixed media, of course) which I made at around age 8. People often ask when I started making the kind of art I do. I have to say that I’ve been on this path my whole life. Manipulating materials in my hands has always been more satisfying that just drawing or painting. As a child, I felt that crayons were not enough and that my pictures weren’t finished until something real was glued, stapled or sewn to it.
My first book from about age 8
Most of the audience were women who share a love of stitching and sewing. There are a lot of us out there and we tend to gravitate toward each other. It was a pleasure to meet and share my work with such kindred spirits!
SALLEY MAVOR: Once Upon a Stitch Dec. 12, 2019 – Jan. 26, 2020 Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis, MA Winter hours: Thursday 10am – 7pm, Friday – Saturday 10 – 4, Sunday 12 – 4
To keep up with new posts, subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.
My retrospective exhibition of original picture book art, Once Upon a Stitch has been at the Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis, MA. for 2 weeks now and I’m happy to hear that lots of visitors are specifically coming to see it. If you’re thinking of making the trip, please note that the museum’s winter hours are Thursday 10 am – 7 pm, Friday – Saturday 10 am – 4 pm, Sunday 12 noon – 4 pm. The show runs until January 26 and I’ll be giving a Family Gallery Talk on Saturday January 4th, 1:00 – 2:00 pm.
It took 2 trips in my Subaru Outback to transport the more than 50 bubble wrapped frames to the museum. That doesn’t count the dozens of wee folk characters I brought along to set up in a display case. At first, the curator was skeptical that everything would fit, but after explaining how I envisioned the layout, with clusters of double hung frames, he relaxed. The museum’s very able crew ended up filling the gallery walls with what could be a record number of pieces!. After everything was hung, my husband Rob looked around and said, “You must understand, with Salley’s art, more is more.”
The first thing you see when entering the gallery is a grid full of of prints showing enlarged animal faces and other characters staring at you. They are blown up details from pieces in the exhibition, which includes a wide selection of original hand-stitched children’s book illustrations I’ve made over the past 300 years. Oh, I mean 30 years!
Four original illustrations from Mary Had a Little Lamb are on loan from collectors. It’s the largest reunion they’ve had since the book was published in 1995.
Most of my books are represented in the show, with groupings of pieces from either my own collection or ones that are borrowed from their owners.
A rather plain concrete pole in the middle of the gallery called out for some kind of embellishment, so, I lace-bombed it with doilies. To make it, I cut a length of green felt to the right circumference and machine stitched lace and doilies to it. I pinned the seam and stitched it in place on site. Like a lot of textile geeks, I have a collection of misc. old lacy things and it feels good to finally use them for something.
The opening was well attended by many people who knew of my work, as well as others who were seeing it for the first time. I got to watch people’s reactions to seeing the originals, which is a totally different experience than looking at the pages of a printed book. I can honestly say that without exception, everyone was smiling. In the photo below, a man is telling me that he just came from visiting New York and that my show was more impressive than anything he saw at MoMA. As you can see, I was flabbergasted!
There’s a scavenger hunt with about 20 cards, each one showing 4 different close-up images that you can look for in the artwork. This game is certainly not just for children!
The exhibition is an opportunity to see the detail and 3-dimensional quality of my work.
I was happy that my friend and picture book collaborator, Judy Richardson came to the opening. Here we are in 1991, having our publicity photo taken with Bella the elephant at the Barnstable County Fair.
And that’s Judy and her husband Phil at the show, looking at the originals from “The Way Home“, which she wrote and I illustrated.
I hope that many of you can make the trip down the quaint and historic Old King’s Highway (Rt. 6A) to Dennis, Massachusetts to see the show!
Dec. 12, 2019 – Jan. 26, 2020 Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis, MA Winter hours: Thursday 10am – 7pm, Friday – Saturday 10 – 4, Sunday 12 – 4 Family Gallery Talk with Salley Mavor – Saturday January 4th, 1:00 – 2:00 pm
To keep up with new posts, subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.
You are invited to come see an exhibition of my artwork at the Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis, MA. This is a chance to take in the fine detail and 3-dimensional quality of my original sculptural embroideries that are reproduced in children’s books.
SALLEY MAVOR – Once Upon a Stitch Cape Cod Museum of Art December 12, 2019 – January 26, 2020
A wide array of picture book illustrations spanning 2 decades of my career will be on display, including favorites from The Way Home (1991), Mary Had a Little Lamb (1995) and the award-winning, Pocketful of Posies(2010). Several pieces are on loan from private collections, making this an opportunity to see work that is rarely shown in public. The exhibition and accompanying scavenger hunt are sure to appeal to families and anyone with a penchant for miniatures and/or needlework.
I’ve been preparing for the show all Fall, gathering enough pieces to represent every book I’ve published from 1991. That meant contacting people who’ve bought original artwork, some as far back as the 90’s. I’m grateful for their willingness to loan their pieces for the duration of the show. While they were in my studio, I cleaned up the glass and frames, so they will be sparkling clean. Also, Rob took some digital photographs of the art, including detail shots really close-up.
Once Upon a Stitch Scavenger Hunt
I’m using the photos for the scavenger hunt and large printed images, which will be hung in the gallery along with my embroidered originals. I just love playing with scale!
Large format prints of details from my books.
An advantage of taking high resolution close-ups is that the photo quality isn’t lost when they are blown up big. I’ve been asked if these large prints are for sale. Unfortunately because of contractual agreements with publishers, I cannot sell reproductions of these images. But, I can use them to compliment and expand exhibitions!
I hope that those of you in the area will make it down Old King’s Highway (route 6A) to the Cape Cod Museum of Art to see the show!
To keep up with new posts, subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.
On April 13th, I had the pleasure of speaking about my work to an audience at the Cotuit Center for the Arts. I’ve given many talks, but this one was different. The arch of the story has shifted from a straight forward account of my development as an artist to one of personal transformation. Sure, I still gave a glimpse at my process and showed early work, but this time it was presented as a journey of discovery, with twists and turns that guided me to a place where I’m ready to take risks and be more outspoken with my art. I talked about how I found my voice and described what it’s like to go from the land of innocence into the real world. Not too long ago, it seemed like all anyone could talk about were my techniques and workmanship, but now people are commenting on the content, which is what I’ve always wanted. The audience was wonderful – they even laughed at my jokes! People who were there described the presentation as enjoyable and inspirational, with just the right amount of edge to keep things interesting.
My talk was not videotaped, but Rob and I are thinking about putting together a encapsulated version to share. As always, the challenge is to find the time to do it. Until then, I thought I’d offer the following excerpt of my opening remarks and a few slides from the beginning and end of my presentation. In my introduction, I refer to my exhibit, Liberty and Justice: The Sweet to Satirical Art of Salley Mavor, which just came to a close. I’m excited to say that a select group of pieces from the show, including the film and display case full of characters and movie props will be going to the Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk, ME for The Art of Cute exhibit (May 1 – Aug. 31, 2019). Two other pieces of mine, Displaced and Cover Up will also be shown. The large exhibition, which is curated by the Illustration Institute, takes a serious look at a powerful aesthetic that is often not taken seriously. From the little bit I’ve seen, it promises to be one of the most unusual art exhibitions you are likely to see this year. I hope to meet some of you at the opening reception on Friday, May 10, 5 – 8 PM.
Opening remarks before “Once Upon a Thread” by Salley Mavor April 13, 2019 at the Cotuit Center for the Arts.
Before launching into my slide presentation, I’d like to share some thoughts about the Liberty and Justice exhibit that’s upstairs. Truth be told, I hate talking about politics. At a dinner party, I’m the silent one, watching and listening to the sometimes heated debate swirling around me. But when political forces invaded my safe little existence, I felt compelled to act. In the first days after the 2016 election, I knew that it wouldn’t be long before artists, writers, comedians, playwrights, filmmakers and musicians began using stories, irony and metaphor to help America and the world cope with what is happening. I think that all sides can agree that we’re in deep doo doo. My art may not help make sense of it, or offer solutions, but it exposes the elephant in the room.
2 years ago, when I posted scenes from the Wee Folk Players series on my blog and Facebook, there was a lot of reaction, both positive and negative. One person was so mad that I was making fun of the president, they threw my books in the recycling. Another told me that I’d ruined her hobby. My favorite was from someone who said I was not qualified to have a political opinion. But for every criticism, came many, many more saying things like, “You go, girl!” and “You made me laugh so hard, I peed in my pants.”
My fans have come to rely on my art as a safe haven from the viciousness of the world. I don’t blame them for wanting to stay in the land of innocence. My dolls may be revealing a darker political reality, but you’ve got to admit, they’re still adorable. I just don’t do ugly or grotesque. For me, it’s about finding the sweet spot, even in the scary places we don’t want to go.
People wonder how I can speak out this way, considering the potential for backlash. I can take a risk, because at this stage in my life, I don’t need the approval of others in the same way that I used to, nor am I invested in a certain outcome. I realize that this is a luxury that many people do not have. And that adds to my sense of urgency. I feel a responsibility to document and reflect what I see happening around us and to bear witness, like artists have always done.
I’ve learned that my art helps people process what is going on at a deep and emotional level. What started as my own outlet for managing the barrage of news, has turned into a way for others to experience their own catharsis. Someone recently wrote to tell me, that after seeing this show, she burst into tears, realizing that my art helped her deal with her distress and dismay over the state of the country. She said that she felt uplifted for the first time in three years. When I hear this kind of reaction, I know it’s been worth it.
Having my work deemed too divisive and labeled as controversial has led to a chain of events that brought it to the attention of many more people. The episode has opened up conversations within our community about the purpose of art, which isn’t exactly an everyday topic of discussion. And I can’t help thinking that it has revealed an undercurrent of fear that we all have. Fear of upsetting people, fear of other points of view, fear of losing a way of life and most of all, fear of what is happening to our country. This experience has taught me that art can be a powerful way to face fear. It can be seductive, unsettling, stunning and confronting, which spark conversations about what it means to be living in this beautiful and terrifying world.
I have worked hard to get to where I am and this latest chapter is the strongest and most satisfying so far. Stretching myself artistically makes me realize that I am not what I thought I was. I am transformed, and everything I make from now on, whether it’s political or not, will be influenced in some way, by this adventure into forbidden territory.
What I make and how I do it didn’t just come out of the blue. It’s been a slow and steady process, from early childhood to today. I come from a long line of quiet, but determined people. My late parents, Mary and Jim Mavor were my role models. They created an environment where art mattered, a lot. It was not an extra. Dancing, playing music and making art was our family’s way of feeling human and connected to our Woods Hole community. My mother was an artist and business woman who left me with the belief that making art is the reason to get up in the morning. My father was an engineer with a visionary streak, who followed his ideas, no matter how esoteric. I am grateful to my family, including my husband Rob, for helping clear a path and never standing in the way, as I pursue my passion.
Before I continue, I want to squelch a rumor. Some people have been overheard saying that I must use a sewing machine. That is not true. OK, I use one to make clothes and pot holders and that kind of thing, but my artwork is all stitched by hand. Period. Even in this day and age, machines just can’t do what I do. Now that that’s cleared up, let’s move on to “Once Upon a Thread.”
A needle is my tool, thread is my medium and stitches are my marks.
For over 40 years, I’ve created 3-dimensional hand stitched artwork that ranges from PRECIOUS
to POIGNANT
to PROVOCATIVE.
For most of my career, people have come to expect a certain kind of expression from me, of sweetness and childhood wonder.
They’re surprised to find that I can also make art that is strong, funny and dark.
So where did this doll infested universe come from? It all began at the height of the baby boom…
…in a family of introverts who were either making things or gazing into space.
And things haven’t changed that much.
At this point, I spent 45 minutes going through my whole life up until now with photos and commentary, showing work and talking about the experiences that helped form who I am as an artist.
In the section about making our animated film, I showed the following time lapse.
With the slide below projected on the screen I said, “I will end by showing you what my work table looks like now. You can be assured that its surface will never be completely clear of thread. At a time when most of my friends are retiring, I’m just gearing up. For as long as I can, I will keep making art that reflects both the lightness and the darkness of the world, in my quiet, but determined way.”
To keep up with new posts, please subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be sold or shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/orInstagram.
Thank you to all of you who’ve already made the trek to see my show, Liberty and Justice, at the Cotuit Center for the Arts . If you haven’t been yet, there are just 2 more weeks to get yourself over there! They report great traffic, with many smiling faces seen on folks coming from the Upper Gallery. To read a review of the show from the Falmouth Enterprise, click here.
You are invited to come hear my talk on Sat., April 13th at 11 AM. I will give a peek behind the scenes at my working process (including making the film) and share what it’s like to shift from safe and secure subject matter to political art.
Liberty and Justice: The Sweet to Satirical Art of Salley Mavor Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cotuit, Massachusetts March 2 – April 20, 2019 Artist Talk – “Sweet to Satirical”, Sat., April 13, 2019 at 11 AM
The exhibit will be in Cotuit until April 20th and then a portion (including the film) will go to Kennebunk, ME for The Art of Cute exhibit at the Brick Store Museum (May 1 – Aug. 31, 2019).
I’d also like to remind you that 4 large bas-relief embroidered pieces (Including Displaced, below) are in the Migration exhibit for 2 more weeks.
MIGRATION Imago Foundation for the Arts, Warren, Rhode Island March 14 – April 20, 2019 – Show Dates IMAGO Gallery is located at 36 Market Street, Warren, RI 02885 – 401 245 3348 – Open Thurs 4 – 8; Fri and Sat 12 – 8; Sun 11 – 3 and by appointment.
To keep up with new posts, please subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be sold or shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/orInstagram.
SALLEY MAVOR 
