Scotland – June 2015: sculpture & more Polly

Posted on August 23, 2015 by Salley Mavor

While walking the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Polly came close to being stepped on by John Knox and saw musicians playing under the gaze of Adam Smith.

Polly atop a wee head of hair in a garden outside of Glasgow.

King James V looks down from Stirling Castle.

A unicorn pointing high from a street in Stirling.

Polly meets some friends and gets into the action in Edinburgh.

A majestic deer in Edinburgh.

Polly pets a lion at Edinburgh Castle.

And steadfast Robert the Bruce guards Stirling Castle. See all of the archived posts with Polly Doll here.

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Scotland – June 2015: houses

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Salley Mavor

Coming from the land of cedar shingled cottages, it’s quite a contrast to see Scottish houses, which are all made of brick, stone and slate. I love their solid stance, with a touch of whimsy showing in the windows and roof lines. These photos were taken in the towns and villages along our hiking route in the Highlands.

Posies goes south

Posted on August 16, 2015 by Salley Mavor

Book – Pocketful of Posies 2010

I am pleased to announce that the Pocketful of Posies Exhibit is traveling to the southern United States! About half of the original embroidered illustrations from my book (28 pieces) will be displayed in Maryland and South Carolina for the next 6 months.

The show has traveled to over 20 locations since the book was published 5 years ago. I am happy that so many people around the country have had the chance to see the detail and sculptural quality of the originals. No matter how excellent the photos are, there’s nothing like seeing the real thing! I’m sorry that many of you who live far from past and future venues will miss this opportunity.

At this point, I’ve moved on to new projects and will no longer be personally searching for new exhibit locations. There will inevitably be suggestions to “please bring the show to my city”, but I am not in a position to make that happen with the wave of a wand. Unfortunately, I have found sending out proposals to seemingly appropriate venues ineffective for the most part. All that said, inquiries from museums, art centers and libraries who would like to host an exhibit are always welcome! That’s how many of the shows have come about, including the next 2. So, the exhibit may or may not continue to tour beyond this winter, depending on the interest from suitable venues. Also, the collection is slowly dwindling as pieces sell, so the touring exhibit will eventually come to an end.

For now, I’m excited to have my work shown in the mid-Atlantic area and as far south as western South Carolina. Perhaps we will meet when I give a talk in Greenville, SC on Nov.19th! See the schedule with links below:

August 22 – Sept. 25, 2015 at the Harford County Public Library, Bel Air Branch, 100 E. Pennsylvania Ave, Bel Air, Maryland.

Oct. 17, 2015 – Feb. 28, 2016 at the Upcountry Museum – Furman University, Greenville, South Carolina. Artist talk with Salley Mavor ~ Thursday, Nov. 19th at 7:00 pm.

Jerry hall 2010

Scotland – June 2015: Polly

Posted on August 11, 2015 by Salley Mavor

Polly doll came along on our trip to Scotland. She had a Highland dancer’s costume made for the occasion, complete with a Glen Garry bonnet. Yes, I know her kilt is not authentic in front, but she insisted on having it look more like a pleated skirt. I took her picture along the way, sometimes with my cell phone for Instagram, like the one at Urquhart Castle (above). The other photos were taken by Rob or me with a fancy Canon camera.

Wild mountain thyme was everywhere!

Polly learned the history of the Scottish Regiment in a museum display at Stirling Castle…

and admired the lush mossy ground.

She visited Edinburgh Castle…

stood amongst the flowers…

and peeked inside a cabinet at Argyll’s Lodging in Stirling.

Polly posed next to a primrose growing along the Great Glen Way…

and atop a bonny lass’s head in a garden near Glasgow.

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

Scotland – June 2015: landscapes

Posted on August 4, 2015 by Salley Mavor

Scotlandlandscape-1-8 We hiked the Great Glen Way through rain, fierce wind, fog and occasional sunshine. Every day, the scenery along the Caledonian Canal, from Fort William to Inverness was different and magnificent. Except for the iconic Urquhart Castle on Loch Ness (below), I have trouble remembering exactly where most of these photos were taken, but they are located somewhere along our route. I hope that you enjoy the tour!

fairy houses 2015, cont.

Posted on July 31, 2015 by Salley Mavor

This year’s Fairy Houses of Highfield Hall exhibit is larger than the 2013 show and it will be on display longer, too. The houses are holding up quite well and we’re confidant that most structures will stay intact until the closing on August 31st.There have been some instances of eroding moss and hot glue not holding parts together well enough, which backs up my personal bias against glue guns! But, the fairies have made repairs and are doing their best to keep up the neighborhood.

Each fairy house has a number, so visitors can identify the 32 locations around the Highfield property. Maps, with a list of house names and their makers are available inside during open hours. I hope that more of you can come see the show during its last month. A printable pdf file of the map is here.

Highfield Hall Open Hours: Mondays – Fridays, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm Saturdays & Sundays, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. Grounds are accessible from dawn to dusk, except during private functions For this year’s collection, I painted 10 more markers to make a total of 32. Earlier this summer, I took pictures of some house builders setting up their creations.

Cynthia Rose – Eilonwy’s Stan

Cynthia Rose’s house is surrounded by a growing landscape.

Cynthia Rose – Eilonwy’s Stand

Kim Sheerin’s ceramic houses have stained glass windows, with lights flickering inside.

Kimberly Sheerin – Kimberland

Nicole St. Pierre felted her house and devised a paper canopy roof.

Nicole St. Pierre – Enchanted Baa Baa Hollow Cottage

She also planted miniature succulents around the base.

Nicole St. Pierre – Enchanted Baa Baa Hollow Cottage

The fairy family raffle for the benefit of Highfield Hall will continue until August 30th, so there’s still a chance to win! You can buy 3 tickets for $5.00 online here.

Scotland – June 2015: roofs

Posted on July 27, 2015 by Salley Mavor

Throughout Scotland, the building materials of choice are stone, with slate roofs.The rooftop scene above was taken from Stirling Castle. And just a short stroll down toward town is Argyll’s Lodging (below).

Argyll’s Lodging

This joining of metal and slate roofs was in a village along the Caledonian Canal.

Chimney pots and pointy roofs with finials added a bit of whimsy to the solid structures. The rest of the photos were taken in small towns in the Highlands and in Inverness.

even more fairy houses 2015

Posted on July 22, 2015 by Salley Mavor

The Fairy Houses of Highfield Hall exhibit is well underway, with many visitors coming to see it daily. I run into people around town, from the supermarket to my Zumba class, who tell me how much they enjoyed seeing the fairy houses. The other day I saw a grandmother come into Highfield, accompanied by a fully outfitted pair — a little girl fairy and a boy with dragon wings.

When I see everyone’s smiling faces, all of the preparation and planning that went into organizing the exhibit seems totally worth it. And then there’s the time and dedication that each builder put into dreaming up and creating their houses! More than one of them admitted having symptoms of fairy fever, lying awake at night, conjuring up how they were going to make their dwelling. See the map with house locations here. This tour isn’t over yet, with even more photos to come in future posts!

Glendell Towers by Glen and Susan Carliss

Cordelia Butterdragon’s School for Magical Creatures by Angela Tanner

My fairy house, “Grate Hall” (shown below) has battery powered LED lights, which add a shimmer to the glass and mirrors inside. Read a post about how I made it here.

Grate Hall by Salley Mavor

Grate Hall by Salley Mavor

A few house are inside the building, including “Lichen Lookout”, my house from the 2013 fairy house exhibit.

Lichen Lookout by Salley Mavor

The houses on display were made by 30 people and are all very different from one another. Their construction of materials include wood, bark, stones, shells and moss.

Sparrow’s Post by Sheila Payne and Sally Egan

Glittering Glen #1 by Becky Deptula

Glittering Glen #2

Beech Front Cottage by Julie Child

Beech Front Cottage by Julie Chil

Le Petit Maison by Ramune Jauniskis

Scotland – June 2015: moss

Posted on July 17, 2015 by Salley Mavor

One fringe benefit of Scotland’s damp climate is moss. And we saw lots of it along the pathways of the Great Glen Way. What a magical sight!

more fairy houses 2015

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Salley Mavor

Please come along on a tour of the Fairy Houses of Highfield Hall exhibit. Since the popularity of the previous show 2 years ago, there has been much anticipation of this year’s display. The fairy house phenomenon has grown since then, so more people are familiar with the idea and it hasn’t taken as much explanation this time.

The houses will be set up all summer, but I suggest visiting sooner than later. Although most dwellings are quite sturdy and are holding up to the wind and rain, some are beginning to show their ephemeral nature.

Here are some of the many types of places where fairies live. Future posts with photos of more houses are coming…