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

Close-ups (chairs)

Posted on June 2, 2012 by Salley Mavor

It’s been a while since I’ve shown some closeups, so here’s one about chairs. See the archived posts from the Close-ups Series here.

I use chairs as perches for my little dolls. The trick is making the chairs in shallow relief, so that they don’t stick out too far in my pictures. The first photo shows a girl sitting on a chair made from milled wooden pieces that are used in doll house miniatures.

detail from “The Storyteller” 1998

George’s chair is made with old worn upholstery fabric. The chair’s feet are sculpted with Fimo. Read about and see more pictures from “The Storyteller” and “George’s Chair” in another post here.

Detail from “George’s Chair” mid 90’s

Mary’s mother sits knitting in this detail from Mary Had a Little Lamb. I only had to show a board in the back and one chair leg to achieve her pose.

These little women from The Hollyhock Wall are about 1 1/4″ tall, so their chairs are tiny. They were made of wire wrapped with grey embroidery floss.

The yellow high chair is made from miniature doll house wooden parts. It’s in the kitchen scene in my picture book In the Heart. I was able to get some copies when it went out of print, so I’m offering autographed books for a good price in my Etsy shop.

detail from picture book “In the Heart” 2001

Here are a couple of details from Pocketful of Posies: A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes. The girl is sitting in a wicker chair made with floral cloth wire.

Detail from “Pocketful of Posies” 2010

Scallop shells serve as a hat and chair back for this character in “Posies”.

Detail from “Pocketful of Posies” 2010

Posies originals at Art Institute of Chicago

Posted on May 10, 2012 by Salley Mavor

pages 48/49 from “Pocketful of Posies”

I am happy to announce that two original fabric relief illustrations from Pocketful of Posies are included in the exhibit, Told and Retold: Picture Book Artists from Studio Goodwin Sturges at the Ryan Education Center at the Art Institute of Chicago. The show opens on Saturday and will be up for 5 months from May 12 – October 28, 2012.

Detail from page 49, “Pocketful of Posies”

My contributions to the show are two double page spreads, the one of Humpty Dumpty, Peter Piper and Two little dicky birds and the street scene with Pat-a-Cake, Cobbler, cobbler , mend my shoe and Polly, put the kettle on. The exhibit features sketches and finished artwork by: Holly Berry, Nicoletta Ceccoli, Christine Davenier, Bob Kolar, Salley Mavor, Daniel Miyares, Eric Puybaret, and Sebastia Serra. Our methods and styles are vasty different from one another and we are all represented by the children’s book agency, Studio Goodwin Sturges. Plans are in the works to have the artists do a special program at the museum and I’m hoping to come! I’ll post it on my events page as soon as I get a firm date.

Pages 18/19 from “Pocketful of Posies”

Etsy shop open for business

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Salley Mavor

I’ve finally joined the rest of the world by opening an Etsy shop! It’s taken a while for me to figure out what kind of items to sell, since I’ve given up mass-producing dolls and kits, etc. I could have really used a service like this 30 years ago, or even 10 years ago. At the moment, I’m happy to offer three brand new posters of some of my more popular fabric relief pieces; Self Portrait: A Personal History of Fashion, Rabbitat and On Halloween.

The 18″ x 24″ posters are high quality reproductions, printed on sturdy 100 lb. paper. My sister, Anne Mavor did a beautiful job with the graphic design–so tastefully done. I’m very excited to be offering these, so please visit my shop!

Posies show going to North Carolina!

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Salley Mavor

detail from "There was a Crooked Man" from "Pocketful of Posies"

I’m excited to announce that the Pocketful of Posies Traveling Exhibit will be going to the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains next year! 25 original fabric relief illustrations from the book will be exhibited from January 11 to February 23rd, 2013 at the Foothills Arts Council in Elkin, North Carolina.

My goal was to have the “Posies” artwork travel to the west coast and the south, so I’m thrilled to add this show and the one in Fresno, CA. (see announcement here)

Portland, OR reminder

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Salley Mavor

This is a reminder for those of you in the Portland, Oregon area, who plan on coming to my illustrated talk, Once Upon a Thread. I’ll be at Gossamer on Sunday, April 1st at 3:00 pm. I recommend getting there early, as space is limited. I plan to be there by 2:00 pm to mingle and chat. It will be wonderful to meet my blog friends!

Close-ups (sheep)

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Salley Mavor

It’s time to bring back the Close-ups. I started the series 2 years ago, when I fell off a ladder and broke my wrist. Using one hand, I wrote about and showed pictures of past projects, organized by theme. It helped me get through the 4 month recovery period, when I couldn’t sew. See the whole Close-ups series here.

Right now, I’m in hibernation, making parts that will be used in an animation my husband Rob and I are doing. This “little” project is growing into more than a winter activity, though, and it will be a long while before we’re finished. I want to wait until we have a finished film (probably a few minutes long) before we show anything, including process photos. I’ve got other art related commitments to take care of this year, so I’ll soon have to put the animation project aside until I have more time to get totally immersed.

Back to sheep–which are giving birth at this time of year. Maybe it’s their expressions, or their ears, or their white fluffy body balls with stick legs, but sheep are very satisfying to portray. This first image at the top of the post is a detail from my picture book Mary Had a Little Lamb. See more pictures from the book here. The one below is part of an embroidered piece I made in art school in 1974.

These sheep from my 1986 Noah’s Ark fabric relief, show the beginning of my love affair with French knots.

Here’s a simpler, appliqued version, which decorates a felt purse in my 2003 how-to book, Felt Wee Folk.

Then, there are several details from nursery rhymes in my 2010 picture book, Pocketful of Posies.

Posies show coming to Fresno, CA

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Salley Mavor

I’m happy to announce that the Pocketful of Posies Traveling Exhibit is going coast to coast! 25 original fabric relief illustrations from Pocketful of Posies, plus some illustrations from my other books will be displayed at the Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children’s Literature, Henry Madden Library, California State University, Fresno, CA, from March 18 – May 27, 2013.

This arrangement came about because a librarian at the Arne Nixon Center saw my illustration on the cover of the current issue of Horn Book Magazine. (See how I made the cover artwork here.) She found out about the touring exhibit and inquired about sending the artwork to Fresno. Luckily, half of the pieces in the show are available during the time slot she was interested in, so they’ll be shipped to California in a little over a year. The other half will be shown at Cedarhurst in Mt. Vernon, Illinios about the same time, from Feb. 23rd to May 5th, 2013.

Plans are in the works for the show to travel to some other locations, which I’ll announce when arrangements are confirmed. I’m so glad that people in different areas of the country will be able to see my work “up close and personal”. Inquiries from non-commercial, secure venues with museum lighting and a shipping budget are welcome. (weefolk@cape.com)

coming to Portland, OR

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Salley Mavor

I’ll be going out west to Portland, Oregon this spring to visit my sister Anne. She helped me set up an event at a wonderful fiber arts shop called Gossamer.

The owner, Rose used to sell my fairy kits when she ran the store at the Portland Waldorf School, so she is familiar with my work. Now, she is happy to have her own shop, which sells fiber arts materials and Waldorf supplies. On Sunday, April 1st at 3:00 pm, I’ll be there to give an illustrated talk, show the Rabbitat film, sign copies of Pocketful of Posies and meet people, including some blog followers from Portland. I’m thinking of bringing some original fabric reliefs to show, too.

Closer to home, my next presentation will be Wed., Feb. 8th at 12:30 pm at the Falmouth Congregational Church, on the village green, Falmouth, MA. The public is welcome to come hear me talk about my work and see some original fabric relief pieces.

2 more weeks to see “Sewn Stories” in Brattleboro, VT

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Salley Mavor

Self Portrait detail

My show, Salley Mavor: Sewn Stories will be at the Brattleboro Museum in Vermont for just 2 more weeks. It’s a wonderful little museum in a great town! Many people have seen the exhibit since it opened last July , but I know there are others who have been thinking about going, so now is the time. The show will be there through Sunday, February 5th, 2012.

The show includes several originals from Pocketful of Posies as well as illustrations from some of my other books. My Self Portrait: A Personal History of Fashion and Rabbitat are on display, too. After the show ends, the self-portrait will be returning to its semi-permanent home at the Woods Hole Public Library.

I don’t usually toot my own horn so loudly, but I want to share a few sentences from this review of the show, which came out in Art New England:

“In astonishing detail, Mavor’s work above all conveys an artist who is entirely present. Beyond merely illustrating a story or poem, she brings us into it. Engaging with these works is like searching for stars in the night sky–at first we don’t recognize the extent of the delicate endless stitching, but as we keep our eyes focused, more and more appear. Surely her thread is gossamer, her fingers unimaginably nimble.”