The Glass Labyrinth

Unlike a maze, a labyrinth has a single path to the center, after which you turn around and follow it back out.  It is meant to be a slow meditative journey.  Robert Morris has constructed  a labyrinth of glass on the grounds of the Nelson-Atkins museum in Kansas City, MO. 

I entered the labyrinth close to twilight, there was no one else around.  I walked intentionally, searching for calm.  After a few steps, I saw the imprint of a face on the glass directly in front of me.  After that, I walked with a hand extended.  I quickly learned to look for the edges of plate glass, (the height was over my head);  but the sense of uneasiness began to build.  I think the fact that I can see through the walls adds to the tension.  I walk, and I turn, and I reach dead ends, but they are not dead, I am following a path.  By the time I reach the center of the labyrinth, I actually have reached a dead end.  The panic starts to rise in my throat.  "Oh my god, I am trapped in a glass box in Kansas City!  I am trapped here forever. The death of a mime is mine!!!!!"

Okay.

But then I realize, I just need to turn around and follow the path out. Breathe, Breathe, Breathe.  I resisted the urge to walk quickly or run, because that ends in a face print on the wall.  After a few more turns in the path, a man and a woman entered the maze and smiled at me.  "Don't worry. your almost out,"  they said through the glass.  What did they know?  But I was friendly and chatted with them as we passed each other.  With my hand on the wall, I finally made it back out .  I don't know if I have ever had a sculpture unsettle me so much.  The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in DC has a strong emotional effect, but this was unnerving.  

Breathing deeply, I was so relieved to be out.  As I walked down the brick path running through the fresh spring grass, I began to relax.  I glanced back over my shoulder at the maze just in time to see the man bouncing off the wall with an audible "SMACK'.

I'm glad I got out of there without a bloody nose.

Slow Dyeing in Kansas City

That is not slowly dying in Kansas City; that would be something altogether different.

During my week at the Educators Art Lab at Kansas City Art Institute my focus was fiber and the theme was Slow Cloth. Taught by the awesome Kim Eichler-Messmer, this particular class emphasized  natural dye techniques and the Japanese art of Shibori.

Shibori is Japanese for resist dyeing, so what we consider tie dying is Shibori, but the Japanese have a way of making everything more elegant and beautiful. Shibori is not splotchy colored blobs; it is more carefully considered than that. What follow are examples of different Shibori techniques.

Arashi

This is what I always thought of when I heard the word Shibori, but it is only one type. Fabric is folded and attached to a pole with tape. Thread or twine is wrapped somewhat widely around the fabric and pole then fabric is scrunched down, forcing some fabric to pooch out over the string. Once all fabric is wrapped and scrunched, it is moistened and then dipped in dye. (Look: here are my notes, not very readable, but the pictures help.)

It really goes pretty fast once you know what you are doing.

Oronui

Fabric is folded and stitched in a running stitch that is knotted at one end. Designs can be deliberate or random, sections of fabric can pinched and sewn. When stitching is finished, you grab the end tail of your thread and pull it tight, which bunches up the fabric, then it is made wet and dipped in the dye.

I tried to make a bird shape with this technique with some success, but not much.

Mokume which means wood grain is a variation this. In this instance threads are sewn in paired rows so that they can be pulled together for a wavy line effect.

Machine stitching

I am not sure what the Japanese term is for this.  Fabric is accordion folded and then stitched on a sewing machine. The trick is that the bobbin thread is cheap and flimsy so that after the stitched fabric is dyed, the sewn packet is ripped open. I played around with ideas of reflection when I "drew" them. I really enjoyed playing around with this process and if I possessed a sewing machine, would do lots more.

Itajime 

If you don't like sewing, this is the Shibori technique for you. Fabric is folded accordion style, either in squares or triangles, then matching wooden blocks are placed on either side of the fabric bundle and clamped into place. The fabric is then dipped in the dye, although it can be partially dipped in one dye, then rinsed and then dipped in a different dye bath. You could also clamp and dye in one color, then let it dry and then refold and clamp another set of shapes in place and dip in a different dye bath to build up pattern. 

This one was folded, clamped and dipped in ferrous sulfate then dried and refolded and re-clamped with a different shape and then dipped in Indigo. 

It was a great experience, and the only side effect is that your hands turn blue.

Art in Kansas City

During a week long teacher workshop at Kansas City Art Institute, I had the opportunity to visit two art museums.

One was the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. This is a very small museum, made even smaller by the fact that two new exhibits were being installed. The building is gorgeous and shows the art well. An exhibit called Deconstructing Robert Mangold placed his work alongside his artistic peers and influences in a satisfying way. There was also a nice little collage exhibit.  The cafe is supposed to be one of the best restaurants in town, but it was not open when I was there, so I cannot confirm that, (nor have I eaten at many spots in town.)

Robert Mangold Print

A little deconstruction

The other museum is the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art. The locals are really proud of this museum, and I wasn't sure if I could be impressed but it turned out that I was. The museum comes across as a mini Metropolitan Museum of Art. It's got a little bit of everything.

 I was told the collections of Asian Art and Native American Art were exceptional. Since I live in Washington, I thought: we have entire museums devoted to these areas how great can their rooms be?

But I was impressed with the Asian Art rooms, they give the Sackler and the Freer a little friendly competition. In fact my favorite part of the museum was the collection of pet cricket accessories. 

Tiny cricket feeding bowls in front of cage and cage cleaning brush, cricket fighting ring is to the left.

Horse in the Temple Room

And the Native American section engaged me more than the confusingly displayed National Museum of the American Indian.

Other favorites were the Nick Cave (a local and a graduate of Kansas City Art Institute) work, and a show of snapshot photography. 

Funny double exposure snapshot

Nick Cave Property

detail Nick Cave

Yinka Shonibare with Anselm Kiefer in background

Love this George Ault

Go Kansas City!