more san diego.

I am very excited to be included in this show that opens Wednesday in NYC. Spattered Columns is an incredibly beautiful space. I wish I could go to the opening, but I'm still in California for another 2 weeks, so I have to wait until I get back to town to go see it.

Emily Barletta, Judith Braun, Yadir Quintana, Houben RT

Awakenings

Curated by: Heidi Lee

Spattered Columns

491 Broadway Suite 500
New York, NY 10012

October 14th - December 16th

Opening: October 14th 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

On October 14, 2009, Spattered Columns will hold its inaugural exhibition with "Awakenings." New York Artists Yadir Quintana, Judith Braun, Emily Barletta and Houben RT push the boundaries of art by taking a non-traditional approach to art-making.

on the west coast for the first time. very lucky and excited to be here (in san diego) so i'm taking too many pictures.

Thanks to the super sweet and talented Lynette Andreasen for sending the news my way that my work was featured in the new issue of American Craft Magazine.

The cover features the work of Lauren Kalman who makes some pretty interesting sculpture/art/jewelry/photography relating to the body and ornamentation. I am especially interested in the Blooms, Efflorescences, and Other Dermaologial Embellishments Series.

studio update

So I'm an idiot because I thought this was a good idea.

Actually it probably was a good idea for me to remind myself why I do things the way that I do. There are reasons why everything I make ends up being a certain size. I am currently nearing the home stretch on the project, meaning I know how it ends and what it looks like when it's done, but instead of this part taking 2 weeks, it's taking more than a month, plus some (maybe 2 months). My brain is already onto the next idea or two, but I'm stuck still needing to do about 60 hours, or more, on the current project. So things feel slow and frustrating and the project is kicking my ass into commitment.

The other different part of the project, is that normally I make parts for a few months, and then I spend about 2 weeks assembling the parts (once I get sick of making them.) The current project is the size it will be when finished because there were no parts, it was made as one piece. Working on a large thing this is stationary makes me miss the parts. No subway crocheting. No park crocheting. No coffee shop crocheting. It can only happen in the studio in a committed location on my couch. I need the freedom back. But at least I have remembered that I need this mobility within the artwork. The location keeps the repetitive gestures interesting. If I'm going to do the same thing for 3 months at least I can do it in different locations.

So I have learned from this experiment, but I'm looking forward to it being over. Will keep posting pictures.

Oh and I will be traveling for most of the entire month of October so there will probably be little to no progress at all, but I will be back soon.

I have just finished my new website: emilybarletta.com
Please update your bookmarks. By the end of the month I hope to have added a 2009 folder with all new art in it that i will photograph using the beloved new camera.

Also I am excited to announce that I will have art in 2 shows coming up soon.

1.

Stitched, Looped, and Knitted: Contemporary Needle Art

Emily Barletta, Lauren DiCioccio, Laura Kamian, Aliza Lelah, Ruth Marshall, Lacy Jane Roberts, Lisa Solomon, Esther Traugot, Marina Vendrell.
September 21 - December 4
The Mills Building
220 Montgomery Street
San Francisco CA 94104

Once considered personal hobbies, embroidery, crochet and knitting techniques have crossed over from craft to contemporary fine art. This exhibition features highly skilled and thoughtful artists who are pushing these needle crafts to new heights in contemporary art.
The artists featured use a needle with yarn or thread to create fabric, embellish, or sticth together fabric with tedious handwork and obsessive are. From re-examining the found object, exploring memory and nostalgia, to using abstract design, these artists bring contemporary relevance to the long history of needle craft.

2.

Awakenings

Emily Barletta, Judith Braun, Yadir Quintana, Houben RT
Curated by Heidi Lee
October 14 - December 16th
Spattered Columns Gallery
491 Broadway Suite 500
New York NY
Openings October 14th 6-8

On October 14, 2009, Spattered Columns will hold its inaugural exhibition with "Awakenings." New York Artists Yadir Quintana, Judith Braun, Emily Barletta and Houben RT push the boundaries of art by taking a non-traditional approach to art-making.
This special exhibition also introduces Art Connects New York, a non-profit organization that connects curators with social service agencies and non-profit organizations to create inspiring, compelling exhibitions of New York City-based artists. Permanently installed, these collections offer recipient agency’s clients, visitors and staff the opportunity for reflection, dialogue, and aesthetic enjoyment.

traveling. new camera.
the end of the summer.
there are shows coming up to write about.
and I'm busy redesigning my website.
more to come.

Rachel Hayes - Rainbow Conversation

My friend Rachel Hayes just installed a public artwork, Rainbow Conversation, in downtown Manhattan at Louise Nevelson Plaza on the corners of Williams Street, Maiden Lane, and Liberty Street. It is quite inspiring to see. She has transformed a construction site into a thing of beauty and light in juicy colors. You can read more about it on her blog or on the BravinLee website.

Coney Island Again
Have I mentioned it's one of my most favorite places in the whole world or maybe NYC. Been doing things like riding the Wonder Wheel to tackle my fear of heights.

Christopher Davison currently has a show in NYC at Nicelle Beauchene Gallery that I can't wait to go see. It's up through August 29th.

Also really into the art of Kill Pixie (Mark Whalen).

summertime
1. taking the ferry to spend long days at the beach
2. exploring the city as if it were new
3. less blogging for a time

self portrait with 2 heads


the francis bacon show at the met was amazing.
i loved loved loved it and would recommend everyone go see it before august 16.

new ways of thinking and working - studio update - been a long while


So I have started this new project that I would like to see get really large, at least 6 x 8 feet or something crazy like that. I am curious to see how size can affect and transcend the medium of crochet. I think this is an important thing for me to explore right now. And this is a repeated idea I start with, it goes something like "I want it to be big." But I have never realized (until now) why I want it to be big or why big could be important to the work. And so it goes, without meaning, I always burn out and finish/quit around the 3 foot mark. Because, most likely, crocheting is tedious and time consuming and 3 feet can take 3 months. And without full understanding of what I am doing there is no point in continuing anyway.

So I'm trying something new.

Working on the new project I am accepting that it's going to take a long time and I am doing something I have never done before: I am pacing myself so as not to burn out.

Normally once there is something I'm working on, it is the only thing I can see or think about, I become obsessed. But not this time. I have set up rules about not working for too many hours in one day. And I'm still drawing and reading and getting out and not just holing up in the studio for days on end with a crochet hook in my hand. So I might be a little less productive than I used to be, but I'm all the more excited about reaching my goal because I am still not yet sick of the project. Wish me luck.

friday night in brooklyn

quite happy with this one.

My art is in this group show opening Friday night at littlefield.

Sadly, I probably won't be able to make it to the opening, but it's bound to be an awesome show curated by my friend Sergio, who makes some intense giant drawings.

New sketchbook = very exciting. I am back from Iowa where I had a lovely time as it is beautiful there and the air smells good and there are animals everywhere. (I saw deer, hummingbirds, turtles, frogs, fish, and a falcon.)

I can officially say now that I am very excited to have been chosen as 1 of 134 awesome artist types to have received a 2009 NYFA Fellowship.

my friend claire taylor made a website for her lovely art.

botanical gardens in des moines

airplane over iowa

love love love john casey's art

last weekend coney island