Rabbitat revisited

Posted on February 25, 2024 by Salley Mavor

With the coming of spring and Easter, I think it’s a good time to revisit Rabbitat, which I completed 13 years ago. The piece was an experiment of sorts, for the purpose of reintroducing a sense of play into my working process. At the time, I was transitioning from the all-consuming 4-year job of researching, illustrating, and launching Pocketful of Posies and I felt the need to make something that wasn’t restricted by size and textpe placement specifications. I also wanted to be free to change things around as I went along.

When I set out to make Rabbitat, I had just 2 elements in mind — a driftwood house and a rabbit topiary. I let the landscape evolve as I worked on it, adding rabbit characters and a garden details as the imagined scenario unfolded. I told my husband Rob that I was making a habitat for rabbits and he immediately said, “Oh, it’s a Rabbitat!” The scene is available as a note card and a children’s jigsaw puzzle in my Etsy Shop.

RABBITAT note cards and a children’s jigsaw puzzle are now available in my Etsy Shop.

TOPIARY
I frequently draw thumbnails sketches of visual impressions that pop into my head. For years, ideas for animal shaped topiaries kept showing up in my notebooks.

In Rabbitat, I wanted to expand the topiary concept that was introduced with the cat and bird in the “Molly, my sister and I” rhyme from Pocketful of Posies.

RABBITS
To make the rabbit figures, I used the same methods taught in my how-to book, Felt Wee Folk, with furry adaptations, including long pointy ears sewn on top.

RABBITAT FILM
Before the piece was finished and all of the parts sewn to the background, I asked local cinematographer (and friend of my son Peter), Daniel Cojanu to make a short documentary about how I work (see the Rabbitat film below). We had such fun coming up with different ways of showing my art, from stitching closeups to gathering driftwood to stop-motion animation. In the years since then, Daniel has gone on to build an impressive career producing science and environmental documentary films.

DRIFTWOOD HOUSE
To make the house, I combed through all of my driftwood and selected pieces which I could see as a roof, side beams, and a doorway. I carved them in spots, so that they fit together and lay down as flat as possible.

I decorated the house walls with an embroidered chain-stitched vine pattern on felt. This was the first time that I made mossy patches using lots and lots of French knots.

RABBIT TOPIARY
For the rabbit topiary, I cut separate parts out of dark green felt and embroidered branches and leaves. The eyes, nose, mouth and whiskers are wire wrapped with embroidery floss. I also sewed wire along the scalloped outside edge, so that the pieces could be bent and shaped. Two glass leaf beads make the eyes.

The piece is large compared to my book illustrations, measuring 24″ x 30″ , with a depth of 1 1/2″.

SLIDE SHOW
I hope that you enjoy this slide show of details from the piece.

BRIAR BORDER
At some point, I decided to add an arched border with a curved and thorny briar made of felt covered wire.

EXHIBITION
The next opportunity to see the original Rabbitat will be July 27, 2024 – March 2, 2025 at the Albany Institute of History and Art, Albany, NY. Bedtime Stitches and Social Fabric will be displayed together.

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Social Fabric exhibition in Greenville SC

Posted on May 9, 2021 by Salley Mavor

I’m excited to announce that my exhibition, Social Fabric is on display at the Upcountry History Museum in Greenville, South Carolina! It’ll be there for a good long while, through Sept. 5, 2021. Seeing the detail and 3-dimensional quality of my work up close is a very different experience than looking at printed or digital images. It feels like you’re peeking into the miniature stitched worlds from a side window, not just through the front entrance. So, I encourage those of you who live within a reasonable distance of Greenville, SC to visit the museum this summer. You won’t be able to miss the humongous banner hanging outside the building!

6 years ago, the Upcountry History Museum hosted my Pocketful of Posies exhibition and I’m pleased to have another opportunity to show my work there! In the near future, they will also be hosting the Bedtimes Stitches touring exhibition. We’re still working out the dates, but it looks like the show will be scheduled in late 2023 or early 2024.

SALLEY MAVOR: Social Fabric
April 3 – Sept. 5, 2021
Upcountry History Museum, Greenville, SC

The museum’s exhibition designer kindly sent photos of the display. I love how the cherry wood frames and the vinyl cutouts of birds look on the slate gray walls!

This exhibition includes a variety of pieces I’ve made over the past 20 years that interpret the theme of social connectivity. The works explore cultural diversity, migration, fashion, the natural world, and a range of social narratives, from the everyday to topical subjects.

The large pieces (24″ x 30″) average about 4 months to make, so it’s taken years to accumulate enough pieces to show together like this. That’s why I’ve decided not to sell my recent work, including Birds of Beebe Woods and Displaced.

Large pieces that feature portraits of people who are connected to each other in various ways include Whiskers, Face Time and Cover Up. There’s also Walking the Dog, Rabbitat and several original illustrations from the picture books, You and Me : Poems of Friendship (1997) and In the Heart (2001).

On Halloween from “You and Me: Poems of Friendship”

Dana Thorpe, the director of the Upcountry History Museum wrote this about Social Fabric, “Your work is breathtaking, emotional, and energizing. I have the pleasure of walking through the Mezzanine Gallery, where the exhibition is on display, every day and am inspired.”

The Social Fabric exhibition also includes Self Portrait: A Personal History of Fashion, which you can see in this film. I hope that you enjoy the nostalgic soundtrack!

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opportunities to see original artwork

Posted on October 11, 2015 by Salley Mavor

I am excited to share the news that there will be opportunities to see my original fabric-relief artwork in different parts of the country this fall and winter. The Pocketful of Posies exhibit, will be at the Upcountry Museum – Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, Oct. 17, 2015 – Feb. 14, 2016. Next month I will head down to Greenville to give a talk about my work on Thurs., Nov. 19th at 7:00 pm. This is the last scheduled exhibit on the 5 year tour and I hope that many of you can make the trip to see the show!

: “Hickety pickety my black hen” detail 2010

: Little Boy Blue

And, 2 of my larger pieces will be included in Insects to Elephants: Mother Nature’s Menagerie at the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Fiber Arts in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. Birds of Beebe Woods and Rabbitat will be displayed from Oct 21. 2015 – January 10, 2016.

Also, my piece, FaceTime is part of the group show, Entangled at Some Things Looming in Reading Pennsylvania until Oct. 24th.

Give-away: 15,000 views of Rabbitat!

Posted on April 6, 2015 by Salley Mavor

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I am excited to say that the Rabbitat video has been viewed 15,000 times! It’s been almost 4 years since Daniel Cojanu and Elise Hugus of UnderCurrent Productions started filming me working in my studio and scavenging for driftwood out at the Quissett Knob. This film was financed with prize money from 2 awards I received for my book Pocketful of Posies; the 2011 Horn Book Award and the 2011 Golden Kite Award. The film was a wise investment and continues to hold up as a great communication tool.

And now for the Give-away! This is a world-wide offer. To enter, please leave a comment telling about a favorite gift that you made for someone else. The prize is a box of fairy making supplies, which includes green wool felt, 12 wooden bead heads with faces painted by Salley, 12 acorn caps to fit, wool fleece hair and faux flower petal skirts and wings.

Follow the directions in my book, Felt Wee Folk and have a fairy making party! The winner will be picked at random on April 14th. FYI, I also sell faux flowers in my Etsy Shop here.

Congratulations to the Give-away winner, Terri from Redlands, California!

Birds and Rabbits at the Cahoon Museum

Posted on March 19, 2015 by Salley Mavor

The Birds and Rabbits seem to travel together as a pair these days. Ok, I’m talking about my two fabric relief pieces, Birds of Beebe Woods and Rabbitat. They were at the Chandler Center in Arizona last fall and now, they are part of Fiberworks Plus at the Cahoon Museum, Cotuit, Massachusetts until April 19th. I’m happy that they are being displayed out in public, so that more people can see them. That’s the primary reason I’m not selling them.

Posters are available from my Etsy Shop.

For those of you on or near Cape Cod, I will be giving a talk at the Cahoon Museum on Tuesday, March 24th at 11;00 am. The museum is undergoing renovations, so the exhibit and my talk will be in their temporary location in Mashpee Commons.

The two pieces will be traveling together again later this year, when they go to Winconsin, Oct 21. 2015 – January 10, 2016 for Insects to Elephants at the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Fiber Arts in Cedarburg, Wisconsin.

Here’s a mosaic of details showing the process, as well as the two finished pieces:

detail from Rabbitat 2011

12K Rabbitat Giveaway!

Posted on July 27, 2014 by Salley Mavor

Three years ago, I commissioned a local filmmaker to make a video about my artwork. In this day and age, moving pictures, with spoken word and music seem to be one the most effective ways of communicating information. Daniel and Elise from Undercurrent Productions did such a great job putting together RABBITAT, using material they recorded in my studio and outside. The film has been an indispensable tool in helping tell the story of my artistic journey.

And, I’m happy to share the news that RABBITAT has gone beyond 12,000 views on Vimeo! To celebrate, I am offering a worldwide Giveaway. To enter, please leave a comment on this blog telling me what subject or theme you are drawn to in either making or looking at art. Two winners will be picked at random on July 31st, to win an 8 x 10 print of Slow Work, Fine Work.

print – Slow Work… Fine Work

Rabbitat Giveaway winners!

Posted on February 1, 2014 by Salley Mavor

Poster – Rabbitat

Thank you to all of you who entered the giveaway to celebrate 10,000 views of the Rabbitat film! I found your comments fascinating and loved hearing about which materials you like to work with. I think that this was a good sampling of the kind of people who follow my blog. Most of you revealed your preferences for wool, yarn, felt, paper and fabrics of different kinds. A more eclectic group won my heart, when they picked a variety of unconventional materials, from wire to corn husks. All in all, you are people who like to set your hands in motion making things–my kind of people!

And now for the winners! They are Ava Genho, a girl who likes to make little dolls, Vickie Conmy who works with Angora, which she shears form her own rabbits and Jonquilly, who praises Tyvek paper. I will contact them and shall be sending them each a Rabbitat poster.

Rabbitat 10,000 views Giveaway!

Posted on January 22, 2014 by Salley Mavor

Yippee! the Rabbitat film has been seen 10,000 times since it was released 2 1/2 years ago! The number of views has surged in the last few months, since I finally saw the obvious and put it on this blog’s About Me Page. Before that, the film was assigned to its own page, requiring some rummaging around to find it. Many people have also found the film through my Facebook Page.

Poster – Rabbitat

To celebrate, I am offering a Giveaway to 3 people from anywhere in this sweet old world. To enter, please leave a comment telling about your favorite material to work with. The winners will be picked at random on Feb. 1st and sent an autographed18 x 24 Rabbitat poster, which is also available from my Etsy Shop here.

Find links to blog posts about the process of making my piece, Rabbitat her e. A great big thank you to filmmakers Daniel Cojanu and Elise Hugus from UnderCurrent Productions for encapsulating my work in such an engaging way for 7 minutes. For those of you who haven’t yet seen the film or want to look at it again, here it is:

8000 views of Rabbitat film

Posted on November 12, 2013 by Salley Mavor

I am happy to say that the RABBITAT film has been viewed over 8000 times! Find links to blog posts about the process of making my piece, Rabbitat here. A great big thank you to filmmakers Daniel Cojanu and Elise Hugus from UnderCurrent Productions for encapsulating my work in such an engaging way for 7 minutes. For those of you who haven’t yet seen the film or want to look at it again, here it is:

3 shows, 3 prizes

Posted on October 5, 2012 by Salley Mavor

Three of my fabric relief pieces are currently in three different shows in La Conner, WA, Framingham, MA and Falmouth, MA. I’m happy to say that they’ve all been recognized in some way. I tell myself that art isn’t competitive and that prizes don’t matter, but it sure feels good when one’s work is noticed in a special way. Thank you jurors and voters! It just so happens that all three pieces are available as posters in my Etsy Shop.

This is the first time I’ve entered a quilt show because without 3 layers and a hanging sleeve, my work doesn’t usually qualify. But, the La Conner Quilt Festival made me feel welcome. The quilt show structure (and culture) still feels alien, though, with its myriad of categories and prizes. I’m not complaining — it’s wonderful to slip into the “fiber art – not quilted” category.

Self Portrait: a personal history of fashion received 2nd place in the Masters Fiber Art – not quilted category, in the 2012 Quilt Festival, La Conner Quilt and Textile Museum, La Conner, WA. The show is this weekend, Oct. 5 – 7, 2012.

Rabbitat (see film here) was awarded Second Prize for its inclusion in the Danforth Museum of Art’s Annual Juried Exhibition of Children’s Book Illustration Picture This!. The show will be at the Danforth Museum (Framingham, MA) until November 4, 2012.

And I just heard that Birds of Beebe Woods was voted “Most Favorite Artwork” by attendees at the Beebe Woods Exhibit opening last friday night. That’s nice! The show will be at Highfield Hall in Falmouth, MA (Cape Cod) until Nov. 16, 2012.