Dreams By Machine
Repurposed and Functional Art
Dreams By Machine
Re-purposed and Functional Art
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Why the Masks?
Posted on January 5th, 2012 No commentsWhy the masks?
Shall I tell you the inside reasons or the outside ones?
My brother deals in security clearances. My sister works with birth, but her former artworks were all about masks. And I chose to make and design costumes-disguises- for a profession. What does that tell you?
And I’ve already talked about how costumes fascinated me. The power that comes with changing your outside appearance. What I’ve come to know is how the disguises we wear tell more about ourselves than we might want the outside world to know. The fact that we choose to wear our masks is enough.
We all wear masks. Some of them are more obvious, and some of them are more interesting.
But what do we learn from masks? Ask any actor, performer, lecturer or teacher. We can put on any one we like. They lift us up and free us to become ourselves. Even those parts of ourselves we’re not as proud of. Wearing a mask is liberating.
The masks I make are flexible and comfortable. So many of the ones I’ve worn (both physical and psychological) are not. In these, the leather forms itself to the face beneath. It accents the eyes and calls attention to the mouth, so that what you see and say become instantly more important. You become both mysterious and bold wearing them.
And in them, I am the superpower I’ve always wanted to be.
You can be that too.
Glamour to Deadly Mask
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And now it begins…
Posted on January 1st, 2012 No commentsThe Pirate Queen steadily gathered, cajoled and convinced her companions to join in her quest. Once they decided, it took very little time for them to gather their goods and bring them to her ship- although some brought much more than others. The Princess and the Scholar, in particular, had more items than any 10 people could carry, and were teased mercilessly by the less laden of the travelers. The group (plus an entourage of servants to carry their various goods) set off at dawn down the stream towards the shipyards, picking their way past the ruins of a once-mighty dam.
Can you imagine it?
The Pirate Queen gambols in front, leading the way with her sword and pack strapped on. She excitedly runs ahead, but checks back regularly on her “troops”. The Dark Lady examines every corner and nook, searching for bones. The Creatrix clinks her bags of tools and regularly stops to examine a rock formation, a piece of wood, the flow of the stream. Wrath pushes the Daredevil’s chair smoothly and answers the Daredevil’s endless questions in short, odd poems of phrases. The Scholar has too many trunks of books and scientific equipment- he sets himself down upon one and offers the Princess wine and a seat beside him.
What battles will they find, what wisdom and people do they seek? What will make their various quests one?
This is the beginning of their tale. It is also my tale. And if you consent to become a part of it, here’s to you for joining in their/our/my quest.
May our paths to adventure be wondrous strange.
Dreams- the Designs
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The Language of Selling Dreams
Posted on December 29th, 2011 No commentsAccording to all I’ve read, I’m a terrible salesperson.
I can get people interested in and excited about my work, but when it comes down to it? I know that you don’t really NEED what I have to offer.
Of course you don’t need it. You can live, breathe and eat without my masks, my clothing, my designs.
But your inner child WANTS them.
You want them because you always wanted to be a superhero or a supervillain. (I wanted to be a supervillain, since they had the very best stuff.) You wanted to be an adventurer, a stylish rake, a fairytale, an image out of a dream.
We are trained to want what other people have, to fit in, to become part of the tribe and to not stand out. But our dreams know better.
So, yes. You may not need a mask in order to survive. But you secretly want one. Period. I see you looking at them in the craft fair, the artisan bazaar, the nightclub gallery- and I see you looking away. Maybe you’re embarrassed to be interested in a leather mask in front of your kids, your friends or your co-workers. Maybe the pieces seem too showy and extravagant, and you just aren’t sure where you’d use them.
We all want to stand out. Our dreams aren’t about blending in with the crowd.
And I will not judge you. I only ask that you try on a little bit of your own inner magic. And just in case you actually like it?
Yes, they’re washable.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/64824095@N02/sets/72157627118617302/
The Quest begins
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The Scholar
Posted on December 27th, 2011 No commentsThe Scholar was equally consumed by his love of knowledge and love of life. His appetites for both were enormous. He ate, drank, made love and studied with vigor and gusto. He could draw out information from the most unlikely of sources. The Pirate Queen admired his ferocious desires and his font of knowledge. He would make a most valuable companion on her quest- as long as the provisions held!
Designs for the Quest
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The Daredevil Dreams
Posted on December 26th, 2011 No commentsOf course he dreams of walking again.
In the absence of that? He dreams of wheeling in style. Of never being overlooked again. Of admiration instead of pity and avoidance. He may seek the impossible dream of re-binding and rebuilding his nerve tissues, but in the meantime he builds better conveyances.
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The Daredevil
Posted on December 26th, 2011 No commentsThe Daredevil in the chair might be wheelchair bound, but his bravery knew no boundaries. He flung fire, hung from ropes and iron crosses and performed aerial acts of derring-do. His welding was intricate, stunning and without any awareness of its dangers. In short, he was everything the Pirate Queen wanted to be. His courage inspired her, even as his fate terrified her, and she knew he could show her stories she couldn’t even imagine.
Daredevil coat
Daredevil in the chair
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Envy- the Absinthe of Evil
Posted on December 22nd, 2011 2 commentsEnvy was also known as the Absinthe of Evil. Her origins were unclear. She couldn’t really have been an embodiment of that Deadly Sin, but she did her best to live up to the legend.
The Queen did not want her along for the ride. But Envy (in one form or another) would haunt her and her traveling companions for the length of their quest and far beyond.
For we all want what we haven’t got.
The Absinthe of Evil
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The Fighter Wrath
Posted on December 21st, 2011 No commentsThe Fighter and the Pirate Queen had much in common. They loved the battles they fought, not for the destruction but for the sheer thrill of the fight. But while the Queen was skilled, the Fighter had spent his life in the study and practice of the fighting arts. His techniques were impeccable and his methods had the flair and style of a classically trained dancer. For all his grace, there was an undercurrent of anger and a burning desire to learn more, as though he could never be skilled enough. Fellow fighters, jealous of his abilities and lacking his fervor, called him Wrath- but never to his face. He was clearly an asset to any quest. But would he be willing to stay with her? She could not begin to guess his motives.
The Fighter Wrath
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Enter the Creatrix
Posted on December 19th, 2011 No commentsThe Creatrix fascinated the Pirate Queen. This artiste was infused with her obsession to create, and her imagination took over the details of her everyday life. Nothing mattered but making her art. When her pieces were
Dust on the Playa jacket
finished, she lost all interest in them and let them fly to the winds. The research, the brainstorming, the making, the process of creation inspired her more. Her loving carelessness had a vigor, generosity and beauty all its own, as she inspired and encouraged others to build their own worlds. The Creatrix was equally fascinated by the Pirate Queen’s longing for story, and knew that quest would become fuel for more artistic fire.
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The Ringmaster
Posted on December 18th, 2011 No commentsThe Ringmaster was a master of truth- that is, of finding the truth about others. His own methods were a little less savory. Brilliant, ruthless and devil-may-care, he was a charming blend of P. T. Barnum and a savage mercenary. He secretly led the guerilla forces that deposed the Princess’ father and despoiled her kingdom, and the price on his head was worth a fortune. The price on returning him alive, however, was 1000 times higher. The Pirate Queen didn’t trust him any further than she could spit whole watermelons, but knew his stories were sheer gold. And if all else failed, there was always that ransom…
The Ringmaster
Avarice as the Ringmaster
Gallery
Gallery
