 Hey! I thought some of you might be interested in an online make your own duct tape mannequin workshop I'm offering. It's free and will be on Saturday, March 19 from 1-2 PM or 2-3 PM. (I'm figuring out the best time for it, but will record the workshop if those times aren't good for you.)
Custom duct tape dress forms are great if 1. ordinary dress forms don't work for you/your size or 2. you want a more squishable, alter-able form without those adjustable mannequin gaps. Duct tape isn't a perfect solution, but it works well, and I can show you how to make it work even better. Thanks so much! Contact me to sign up. (Many thanks to Libby Pace, Gillian Efros, and Yvonne Guillen for joining in this long ago live duct taping session. Looking forward to meeting up and getting those forms adjusted and ready to use again!)
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 Robyn Heller makes a great duct tape mannequin model! I am making an online duct tape mannequin workshop and you are invited!
And hey, lovelies- what online classes do YOU want? I have too many ideas. Potential times: Saturday, March 18 from 1-2 PM or 2-3 PM Saturday, March 19 from 1-2 PM or 2-3 PM To sign up for the free duct tape mannequin workshop, pick a date/time and contact me. And... I have plenty of ideas for long form online classes, but I need your help. What sounds best to you? These are my top 3 options: Wearable Paper- make wearable paper art from paper and cardboard Knock It Off Pattern Making- pattern a well loved item and make it anew Politics of Pockets- why women's pockets are terrible and how to fix them Pick one, pick more, or tell me what I'm missing! Thank you so much. You rock. XO Laura  Dave and Laura exchange a ritual key chain and laugh. A lot. Thanks to Heidi Marie Photography for the lovely photos! 2022 is starting off with a bang! My beau Dave and I got wed, I'm an ACTIVATE LA delegate, and Wearable Paper Art and Opulent Mobility 2022 are in the works. And I am finding ways to keep it together.  I'm thrilled (and a little overwhelmed) about joining the ACTIVATE LA delegates. This 4 month course through Arts for LA is an advocacy lab for artists, creative sector workers, or anyone interested in the intersection of community organizing and the arts. I'll learn about arts advocacy, fundraising, and how to make Opulent Mobility programs grow. Good stuff!
 How do you keep it together?
Working on this triangle based rag rug is meditative, easy to fit into down time, and helps me keep sane. So far it has kept 6 worn out shirts, some pajama pant legs, and apron scraps out of landfill. Click on the picture for a video on making your own rag twine, and get in touch if you have old clothes or fabrics to donate to the cause. Yellows please! Maybe violets and pinks? Thank you. I appreciate you more than you know.  The artist and her work: Me and Melusine (in progress), photographed by Heidi Marie Photography Hello and good greetings! There's so much in the works.
1. Tomorrow from 5-7 PM PST is Stitch Therapy. Come and join us in the Zoom room as we stitch together and help ward off our collective woes! Send me a note for the link. (Oh yes, there have been some serious woes this week. I'm looking at you, Supreme Court.) 2. My online solo show Re-Imagining Mobility with the Ikouii Collective is up through December 17th and they did a marvelous job. Heidi Marie Photography and Ikouii make my work look spectacular. 3. Many thanks to Steve Silverman of the World Gone Good podcast! He interviewed me about Opulent Mobility recently, and the show will go up December 15th. Steve is delightful and it was such fun! His latest podcast is about Kristina Wong and the Auntie Sewing Squad, and I highly recommend it. And... 4. there are exciting new classes in the works!!! First up will be Wearable Art From 2D to 3D. I'm working out the details on a downtown LA studio, but expect this to go up late January/February. It's a 3 month intensive course meeting once a week online with optional in-person labs. All sessions will be recorded, so you won't miss a thing. Get in touch for more info! Starting from an inspiration image, we'll break down a design into its component parts, discuss the pros and cons of different materials, and build a wearable, functional work of art with materials you probably already have at home. Along the way, you'll also create your own custom dress form. These skills are in high demand in TV and film, live and themed entertainment, advertising, and anywhere folks want wearable magic to happen. This course will boost your technical skills and can give you a real boost into an arts-based career. I am so excited to share these things with you. Thanks for being part of my world! XO Laura  Wheel of A. Laura Brody's "Driven- the Edwardian Cyborg Wheelchair". Photo by Heidi Marie Photography Many thanks to so many folks!
Ikouii Creative and Heidi Marie Photography made my first online solo show look amazing. Click the picture to check out Mobility Re-imagined. Thanks also to everyone who made Opulent Mobility 2021 possible. You are awesome. It's always bittersweet to take down the exhibit, but you can still experience it online. And if you aren't signed up for my mailing list, check out this month's offering! You'll get all the updates, new art inspiration, and this time around a few recipes to boot. I'm off to get ready for Stitch Therapy and the very first Sunday Session of the Temple of Zymurgic Revalations with the Evangenitals at Wingwalker Brewery. If you are around this evening, join us! And thank you too. XO Laura  Folks gather around to admire A. Laura Brody's "The Kali Walker". Photo by Heidi Marie Photography So much news to report!
The opening of Opulent Mobility was a smash hit. If you didn't get to see the show in person, there is still time. I will be on site at Wingwalker Brewery Saturday and Sunday, October 23-24 and 30 from 1-5 PM. You can also listen in to the online artist talk on October 30th (contact me for details). And of course you can always check out the full exhibit online. The opening night performances by the Evangenitals and Diana Elizabeth Jordan were a delight, and you can experience those too! Many thanks to all involved, particularly the Deaf artists Chris Morton and Karina Baker and the ASL team of LOVE Communication Services for making the evening a real inclusive success. Coming up next, my online solo show with Ikouii "Re-imagining Mobility" will open November 5th at 8 AM PST with an IG live artist talk at 4 PM PST. So excited to be working with these fine folks again! I can't give you a sneak peek, but in the meantime you can check out Ikouii's "Without Labels", a show I took part in earlier this year. I'm also starting to develop 2 long form DIY classes that I'm really excited about: Wearable Art From 2D to 3D and The World Is My Fabric. These will be 3 month long sessions meeting weekly. More details to come! Thanks so much for joining me. XO Laura  "Series A" by Ellen Mansfield. Tile portraits of friends using American Sign Language to communicate. Welcome to Opulent Mobility 2021!
Opulent Mobility 2021 is a groundbreaking annual art exhibit that re-imagines disability as opulent and powerful. This year’s artworks include photography, sculpture, painting, printmaking, collage, graphic design, and dance. The opening event is October 2 from 4-7 PM with an after party featuring performances by "Pick of the Fringe" storyteller Diana Elizabeth Jordan (TBA) and the Avant-Americana genre-bending band The Evangenitals (from 7-9 PM). Masks are mandatory indoors. Food, drink, and the band will be in the outdoor beer garden. Opulent Mobility 2021 will run October 2-30 at Wingwalker Brewery in Monrovia, CA and online at www.opulentmobility.com. The artists of Opulent Mobility 2021 are Megan Bent, A. Laura Brody, Ciara Chapman, Katherine Chudy, Vanessa Cruz, Bronte Grimm, Francesca Hummler, David Isakson, Noel Malloy, Ellen Mansfield, Lisa Merida-Paytes, Teresa Shea, Katherine Sherwood, Annelies Slabbynck, Emily Tironi, and Jenni-Juulia Wallinheimo-Heimonen. Accessibility features: ASL interpretation provided for Deaf and HoH audience members and audio descriptions in large print and audio files linked to QR codes for our low vision and Blind audience. For our DeafBlind audience members, please inform us by September 25-26 so we can find Tactile/ProTactile interpreters.  "Diva" by Emily Tironi Opulent Mobility has a new venue and could use your help!
Opulent Mobility 2021 will be October 2-30 at Wingwalker Brewery in Monrovia, CA. The opening event is October 2 from 4-7 PM with an after party featuring the genre-bending Avant-Americana band The Evangenitals. The founder (me) will be on hand for the opening and from 1-5 PM PST Saturdays and Sundays during the run of the show. Can you help me get this show on the road? Your tax-deductible donation will make the show even more accessible! It will help fund ASL interpretation for the opening event, after party, and online artist talk, along with audio descriptions to make the work accessible to folks with low or no vision. Thank you to everyone who has helped make this possible. You are appreciated more than you know. XO Laura  Melusine and The Kali Walker by A. Laura Brody. Photos by Heidi Marie Photography. The artists of Opulent Mobility will be:
Megan Bent, A. Laura Brody, Ciara Chapman, Katherine Chudy, Vanessa Cruz, Bronte Grimm, Francesca Hummler, David Isakson, Noel Malloy, Ellen Mansfield, Lisa Merida-Paytes, Teresa Shea, Katherine Sherwood, Annelies Slabbynck, Emily Tironi, and Jenni-Juulia Wallinheimo-Heimonen. The artists this year hail from across the United States, Ireland, Belgium, and Finland, and the artwork covers disability in a myriad of forms. Many thanks to everyone who shared their work! My co-curator Anthony Tusler and I truly enjoyed going over the submissions and selecting the art. Now it's time for me to get to work mounting the exhibit. In the meantime, please enjoy past exhibits at www.opulentmobility.com.  This web site is a great way to find out the basics of what I do as an artist, a teacher, and a curator. The blog gets updated maybe once a month, and it'll keep you in the loop.
But what if you want to know more and keep in touch? Sign up for the newsletter for once a month updates on the art, classes, and all around inspiration. For links and information on disability arts, disability culture, and activism, check out the Opulent Mobility Facebook page and Instagram. To get links and inspiration for art, design, sustainability, and feminism (including the importance of pockets), go to the Dreams by Machine Facebook page or ask to join the Stitch Therapy group. There are tons of links and shares on my Making in the Midst Facebook group to give you great ideas for creating your own art, crafts, pet gear, foodstuffs, and a host of other options. It's a private group, so ask to join in. I use my Twitter account mostly for activism and art. And you can keep in touch in general on my personal Facebook page or through my Instagram feed. Fair warning: I am happy to block mean people and trolls are not tolerated. |
A. Laura Brody
I re*make mobility devices and materials and give them new lives. Sometimes I staple drape. Archives
November 2022
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