Out and about

After months of being essentially house bound, I am finally healthy enough to have a few tame adventures in the city.

(For those of you who have expressed your concerns about my health... In September I got a cold that decided to become a long term resident in my body. My doctor had thought that it might be a particular auto immune deficiency. It isn't-- which is both good and bad. Being able to slap a name on something, even if there is no cure, is comforting. I have no diagnosis. I assume that I will continue to just get sicker than most people when I get sick. This isn't going to kill me--- I will just continue living my life as I have since I was five and first got hit with this. People live with much worse.)

Sunday, a friend and I went to the Museum of Art and Design for the last day of Vera Paints a Scarf. Textiles by Vera Neumann were just a ubiquitous part of of the visual landscape of Mid-Century America. You might eat at a table covered by a table-cloth covered by cheerful drawings of strawberries designed by Vera, while you wore a brightly colored top with a different vibrant floral print. More casual meals might have you eating breakfast using vinyl place-mats with an abstract botanical print, and wiping your mouth with a matching paper napkin while you dressed up your solid polyester double knit dress with a cheerful  scarf all designed by Vera.

For my friend and for me it felt like revisiting a room in our childhood homes that we had entirely forgotten about.

For many Americans Vera's textile designed functioned as an accessible version of Marimekko which was then only available for sale in a few places.

 Her earliest scarves were printed on surplus parachute silk.

Vera was a friend of Alexander Calder's. I love her tribute to his work on these two scarves.

Vera and her husband were friends with Calder- they owned at lest one of his large stabiles.

Vera had trained as an artist as Cooper Union. Her husband was a textile manufacturer. Together they created an empire that helped define an era.

The Museum often has artists working in their top-floor studios.

  One of the artist in the open studios is a fiber artist.  Jennie Maydew .She weaves and sews.

Her work is both incredibly disciplined and also ethereal.  She uses buttons and buttonholes in ways that I have never seen before.

Buttons and button holes used to create smocking

Handwoven strips with woven in button holes are used to button pockets onto garments.

here buttons and buttonholes create pleats than can be released at will

Seeing Jennie's work was so satisfying my friend and I decided to leave the museum so her vision could stay with us.

The following day I had made plans to have a day out on the town with my friend Carol and her husband. Carol and I are part of a small team of women who have been managing an online sewing discussion group for the past more than twenty years. Seeing Carol and her husband is always a treat.

Carol had suggested that we attend this exhibit at the Grollier Club. I am embarrassed to admit that this was my first visit to the club. I can't encourage people enough to go. The building itself is so beautiful  it is even worth going to a bad exhibit. Admission is free.

The exhibit, 500 Years of Women's Work a selection of the collection of Lisa Baskin of books connected to women.  If you follow the link above you can virtually visit the exhibit.

The stitching on this memo book is not to be believed.

This sweet little book cover was embroidered by May Morris, the daughter of William Morris. it is just an incredible example of needlework. I would suggest that you go through the online exhibit.  It is a rabbit hole, so be sure to give yourself time.

The upstairs gallery had an exhibit of doodles by mostly writers as well as other people of note.

Below is Clara Barton's design for stationery for the Red Cross.

By William Saroyan

his drawing resembles his poetry

I was so delighted to be able to SEE so much after being home-bound for so long.. Hopefully I will have the opportunity to see a great deal more over the next while.