4.17.2007

everything is not as it seems

It seems this is the theme to my life as it exists this week...

My latest tapestry, desert island - espíritu santo, woven for a local exhibit about the Sea of Cortez, may at first glance appear that I had taken great artistic license with mother nature's color schemes, but in comparing the tapestry to the actual photo taken by Patrick Fulton, seeing is believing...














Many thanks, Patrick, for giving me permission to use your photo!!!






What appears to be a pile of dead weeds in a scrap of garbage is in reality a treasure--

Dried sacred datura pods with some seeds still inside that I found on my walk this morning. I was also fortunate enough to find a scrap of old plastic to wrap them in to carry them home, so I didn't lose any precious seeds or get repeatedly punctured by their thorns. One of Georgia O'Keeffe's favorite subjects, the flowers are very beautiful. My hope is that Dennis will be able to coax them to grow so I can weave a tapestry.We often bring home "found seeds" & dead flower heads from desert walks to plant them on our 5 acres of natural desert... it is illegal in AZ to dig up wildflowers & cactus, but not to collect seeds... we never collect the whole plant, only a few pods or heads so that it may regenerate itself where we found it.

What appears to be a pile of rocks & gravel dwarfing our already small camper trailer is another treasure.... 14,000 lbs of beautiful sandstone flagstone in peaches, rusts, tans, & purples and 2 tons of "rosa grande" crushed granite to replace the crumbling Mexican adobe pavers in our courtyard & back door porch. Our dog , Roux, is quick to exit areas of apparent construction (or deconstruction, as the case may be!). Dennis has been hard at work...

Here are the stacks of old pavers he has already removed... they will be recycled into a low wall here along the small wash that runs through our property. Gambel's quail have already been making themselves at home, parading across them in the morning sun. It also has been sounding like we have 80 species of birds inhabiting our desert space, but it's really just mockingbirds & curve-billed thrashers competing to see who has the biggest repertoire of mimicked songs & noises.
I will be able to see the wall from here.... what appears to be our garage, is in reality a long held dream of mine that will soon realized several months from now: my new weaving studio!!! The new studio space will have 2 large windows & a sliding glass door where the old garage door is now & a ramada to shade it from the intensity of the summer desert sun-- desertsong studio will soon exist as a physical entity & not a scattered collection of looms & fiber in our house! Dennis will also have a dedicated area within the studio space for his pen & ink and watercolor pencil drawing (thank goodness his choice of media doesn't require the space that a weaver's does!!!). A new detached garage will be constructed in another part of the driveway at the same time.

1 comment:

Debbie Herd said...

Hi Lyn,
I love your tapestry of the Sea of Cortez.Congratulations and I hope that your new studio is ready for you soon.It is an exciting time planning and dreaming of your own space to work.
Best Wishes Debbie.