Wise Words

Text written on the first page of my agenda from 2006:

What's the biggest obstacle you've overcome in your life?

"Feeling that I ought to be doing something very important all the time. To feel that way is a source of energy, but the difficulty it presents is that it leads you to undervalue the time when you're apparently doing nothing. That kind of time is equally important in that it's a kind of dream time that allows things to get sorted out and re-shelved."

-Brian Eno

Dirge II

Here are some pictures of the Dirge II installation at League of Lovers and Thieves, taken late yesterday night. The installation is a part of this year's incredible City of Craft programming. City of Craft is happening tomorrow from 12-8pm at the Theatre Centre, so do come out if you can! Otherwise, my installation will be up until mid-afternoon Sunday, so if you haven't already checked it out, scoot over tomorrow at some point...

For more info on City of Craft, click here.

Wangechi Mutu

Wangechi Mutu on the weight of beauty, from a recent interview in Border Crossings magazine:

"...But we would have discussions about art (at Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art) and one of the worst words you could say in class was 'beautiful.' What in heaven's name is wrong with the word and why do people get a rash whenever they hear 'beauty' or 'beautiful'? I went from questioning to resenting why no one was willing to discuss why we wouldn't utter the word. I believe the reason is because beauty was actually available to them, their culture decides for the whole world what is beautiful, how beauty should evolve, where it begins and ends. So they were rebelling against the very thing that protected them. They didn't want to use the term beauty because they owned it."

"Females carry the marks, language and nuances of their culture more than the male. Anything that is desired or despised is always placed on the female body.”

For more, see here.

City of Craft

Only one week away! Here are the full details:

CITY OF CRAFT 2008

Come forth crafty citizens to City of Craft 2008 - an innovative craft culture event where craft shoppers & makers come together to celebrate the handmade spirit. No ordinary craft fair, City of Craft 2008 features free workshops, craft-based installations, and outreach by community arts groups & studios, all alongside a curated craft fair of modern handmade goods.

Details:

WHAT: City of Craft 2008
WHO: 50+ craft vendors, community groups, installation artists, workshop leaders & satellite participants
WHEN: Saturday December 13, 2008, noon-8pm
WHERE: Theatre Centre, located at 1087 Queen Street West at Dovercourt

Some show highlights to get you excited:

*FREE STUFF ALERT: the first one hundred visitors will receive swag bags printed by Studio XIX filled with coupons for the show, plus fantastic goodies from indie publications and local & international craft artists.
*AWESOME STUFF ALERT: Check out amazing handmade goods on offer by more than 40 talented makers: http://cityofcraft.com/2008/cityofcraft/vendors.html
*NEIGHBOURHOOD CRAFT CRAWL: City of Craft takes to the streets with crafty programming in local businesses and galleries. (Those of you with a sweet tooth should not miss out on cupcake decorating & knitting activities at the Knit Café.)
*CRAFTY-COOL INSTALLATIONS: Stop by the window of League of Lovers and Thieves to check out Tara Bursey's installation of hundreds or origami shoes made with tea bags, or have a Victorian silhouette portrait taken by Danijela Photography, featuring a papercut frame by artist Li Sui. Get lost in a landscape of fibre, photography and sound by Lynn Harrigan, Scott M2 and dreamSTATE.
*MAKE YOUR OWN HANDMADE GIFTS (FREE!): Workshops include origami star books by the Paper Place, fabric covered magnet sets by The Workroom, recycled felt ornaments by Mr. Sköna, and screen printed cards by Kid Icarus.
*AFTERNOON TEA: Eat treats from Yummy Stuff & sip tea by Tealish between 2-4pm

So there you have it, there is really no better place to be on December 13th, 2008.

Visit the show website at http://cityofcraft.com/2008/cityofcraft which is being continually updated with more details.

Dirge II

My installation for City of Craft! Be sure to check it out!

DIRGE II
an installation by Tara Bursey
at League of Lovers and Theives
1156 Queen Street West
Toronto

December 6-13, 2008.
A part of City of Craft 2008.

DIRGE II is part of a body of work originally inspired by the idea of the Chinese bound foot shoe as a metaphor for the ways individuals can be bound similarly by traditional and contemporary facets of society, particularly from a female perspective. The work explores and juxtaposes imagery relating to foot binding with ideas and materials which reference mass-production and the role of the body in industry and manufacturing. At the root of the work is an interest in visually and materially exploring past and present forms of oppression and de-mobilization.

DIRGE II is comprised of hundreds of origami shoes made of jasmine and green tea sleeves. The use of origami alludes to comparisons between hobby-craft and manual labour/assembly line work. The use of packaging is also central in it's allusion to package and product, garment and body, and the use of both the garment and the package as a cover or false front for what is truly contained.

Tara Bursey is a recent graduate of the Toronto School of Art's diploma program, and a former student at Ontario College of Art and Design. An artist whose practice encompasses sculpture and installation as well as drawing and craft, Tara's work is characterized by its use delicate sculptural materials such as eggshells, garlic skin, found garments and paper. During her studies at the Toronto School of Art, Tara was the recipient of TSA's Barbara Barrett Scholarship (2004) and Matthew David Stein Scholarship (2005). In the past two years, she has exhibited extensively throughout the city in a diverse range of venues, from storefront window installations and telephone poles to the Textile Museum of Canada, the Ontario Crafts Council, and in group exhibitions in Halifax and Copenhagen. Tara's most recent projects include co-ordinating The Portable Library Project and working as one-third of the Toronto Zine Library Collective. In addition to her work as a fine artist, Tara also operates actively within Toronto's independent music and small-press communities as a DJ, illustrator and designer. She was born and raised in Toronto, Canada.