The Intimate Woods

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Salley Mavor

My latest piece, Birds of Beebe Woods, is included in The Intimate Woods exhibit at Highfield Hall in Falmouth, Massachusetts. An exciting assortment of artwork will be on display throughout the building and grounds this fall. It’s all part of Beebe Woods: The Trail Leads to Our Door, which celebrates the 40th anniversary of J.K. Lilly’s gift of Beebe Woods to the Town of Falmouth. The opening will be this Friday, September 28th, 5:00 – 7:00.

Highfield Hall’s web site describes the exhibit as follows:

The Intimate Woods: Wed., Sept. 19 – Fri., Nov. 16 Inspired by the flora, fauna and intimate details of the woodlands, this companion exhibit to Beebe Woods: The Trail Leads to Our Door features the work of ten regional fiber artists including Salley Mavor, Helen Koehler, Joyce Shutter and friends. These artists’ creative interpretations of the natural world are enlivened by a wide range of media: from hand-made papers, felting, beadwork and collage to various forms of fine needlework. This exhibition serves as a reminder that our observations of nature are ever expansive and the rare and delicate lady’s slippers barely noticed at our feet can offer as grand an experience as the stately beech trees that have reigned over Beebe Woods for decades.

Here’s a shot of Rob taking a picture of the felt covered wire border from Birds of Beebe Woods before it was all assembled. And other photo of me taking a photo.

Birds of Beebe Woods finished!

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Salley Mavor

Yeah! After 4 1/2 months of constant stitching, Birds of Beebe Woods is finished! I know that many of you have been checking in all summer to see its progress. We propped the stretcher on a window sill outside, securing it with duct tape on the top sides. The piece feels heavier than anything I’ve made before. All of that wire adds up in poundage. Over the next few days, my husband Rob will take photographs of it in different lighting conditions outside. For soft shadows, a bright, hazy day, will be perfect. when we get a good photo, I’ll have a poster made to sell in my Etsy shop.

Now that it’s finished, I can bring Birds of Beebe Woods to Mahopac, NY next week, when I give a talk at 7pm at the Mahopac Public Library. This stop on the Pocketful of Posies touring exhibit ends the same day, Wed., August 29th. I hope to see some of you there! To see the full schedule of the tour look here.

Then, the birds piece will be hung with other Beebe Woods inspired artwork at Highfield Hall in Falmouth, MA from Sept. 18 – Nov. 15, 2012, as part if the The Intimate Woods fiber art exhibit. I’m also giving an all day workshop at Highfield Hall in Falmouth on Sat., Oct. 27^th. We’ll make felt banners with wrapped wire lettering. Find out more here.

Posies @ Mahopac, NY

Posted on July 6, 2012 by Salley Mavor

Earlier this week, we delivered 30 framed originals from Pocketful of Posies to the Mahopac Public Library, which is the next stop on the tour (see full schedule here). The town is located in New York state, off Rt 84, just over the border from Danbury, CT. The artwork will be on display for most of the summer, through Wed., August 29th. I will return to give a talk about my work that evening at 7:00pm.

Pocketful of Posies, July 3 – August 29, 2012 at the Mahopac Public Library, Mahopac, New York. Talk by Salley Mavor- Wed., Aug. 29th, 7:00pm

Birds of Beebe Woods

Posted on June 23, 2012 by Salley Mavor

For the past 2 months, I’ve been working on a large (24″ x 30″) fabric relief piece. I haven’t picked a title yet, but the picture depicts birds in our town owned forest, Beebe Woods.

The deadline to finish is in early September and since my work takes forever, I’ll be stitching right through the summer. The piece will hang in a group fiber show, The Intimate Woods at Highfield Hall in Falmouth, MA, Sept. 18 – Nov. 16, 2012. This will be the same venue for my Pocketful of Posies touring show, when it returns home next year, Sept. 4 – Oct. 31, 2013.

Poster – Birds of Beebe Woods

I’ve been taking photos of the different steps and have so far made a crow, robin, and cedar waxwing, with many more birds to come. The stage curtain looking border is made of felt covered wire. Later, when I have time, I’ll show more pictures. Right now, I’m happily in La La Land, immersed in the sewing process, listening to narrated books.

Update: Posters and cards of Birds of Beebe Woods are available in my Etsy Shop.

Self Portrait in Cotuit show

Posted on June 18, 2012 by Salley Mavor

Self-Portrait detail, 2007

One of my fabric relief pieces, Self Portrait: A Personal History of Fashion is on display this summer at the Cotuit Center for the Arts in Cotuit on Cape Cod. It’s included in the PORTRAITS show upstairs through July 22, 2012. The Center’s main floor gallery is showing portraits by super realist painter Jon Friedman. I hope that summer visitors to the Cape will stop in to take a look!

FREE Felt Wee Folk Fairy Poster (left) with the purchase of a signed SELF PORTRAIT: A Personal History of Fashion Poster (pictured below) from my Etsy Shop. All posters are 18″ x 24″.

ALSO– Fairy poster is included with the purchase of my how-to book, Felt Wee Folk: Enchanting Projects from my Etsy shop.

Self Portrait Poster

Rabbitat at RISD ICONS exhibit

Posted on June 15, 2012 by Salley Mavor

On Wednesday evening, we went to the opening of RISD ICONS: A Legacy of Illustration from Rhode Island School of Design. The show features the varied artwork of over 50 RISD alumni, including children’s book illustration, comics, editorial and advertising. My piece, Rabbitat, was nicely displayed next to fellow ’78 classmate, David Wiesners’s original painting from his most recent book, Art & Max. My former teacher, Judy Sue Goodwin-Sturges (pictured below) joined us for the festivities.

Special Offer to my blog readers: Buy a Rabbitat poster at my Etsy Shop and receive a free Felt Wee Folk Blossom Fairies poster. Just mention free fairies poster on your order.

The show is on display for a short time, through June 25th, at the Woods Gerry building on the RISD campus, 62 Prospect St., Providence, RI.

Rob and I joined Judy Sue and some old and new friends for dinner afterwards. I was delighted to meet Jamie Hogan (RISD ’80), an illustrator who teaches at the Maine College of Art. We hope to reconnect soon at MECA, where my son Ian is a painting student.

Wild Things exhibit

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Salley Mavor

"Little Miss Muffett" illustration from Pocketful of Posies

An illustration from Pocketful of Posies was part of an exhibit recently held at the Cotuit Center for the Arts. Every winter, the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod organizes an exhibit of work made by Cape Cod artists, with the purpose of exposing school children to art. There’s a different theme each year, and the latest was “Wild Things”. This exhibit ended a couple of weeks ago. Back in 2007, I made my Self Portrait for a show they put together of the same name. I try to participate every year, if I have something that fits the theme.

Local photographer Mark Chester took this B & W shot of a school group being shown the original fabric relief illustration for “Little Miss Muffett”. She held up my book, open to the printed picture and told the children how my work was used as an illustration. The tour leader is the Cotuit Center’s educational coordinator, Lenore Lyons. Mark had a photo in the show from his delightful new book of paired photographs, Twosomes. Thanks for sending over the photo, Mark! I’ll probably include Miss Muffett in the Mashpee Public Library display during the month of May and this July and August at the Mahopac Public Library, Mahopac, New York .