Interview 2 » Uncategorized

The Museum of the Plains Indian

cheryldineenferrin — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 15:36:46 +0000

David Dragonfly, Artist and Curator of the Museum of the Plains Indian

So, this is the Museum here. It looks incredibly governmental from the outside, as you would expect as it is a part of the Department of the Interior. There are some interesting sculpture outside near some pick-nick tables in the fron off to the side of this image but most of the art works are housed within. The Museum is open 7-days a week during the summer and through the end of September. David Dragonfly is the Curator of the Museum. He is a cordial gentleman, down to earth and quite knowledgeable. I had the opportunity to see a few pieces of his artwork: they were wonderful. I’ll see if I can get some images of them to post here.

The Museum of the Plains Indian, Browing, Montana

The Museum of the Plains Indian displays historic clothing, horse gear, weapons, household implements, baby carriers, and toys in one part of the Museum and the works of contemporary Native American artists in two others. http://www.doi.gov/iacb/museums/museum_plains.html

Browning, Montana

cheryldineenferrin — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 01:43:13 +0000

The drive from Browning to East Glacier, Montana

My time as Visiting Artist in Montana is really going fast. The people I have met have been fabulous, as has the scenery. I have been staying in cabins in East Glacier, Montana about 12 miles south of Browning. Let’s see, the first night I stayed in East Glacier Motel and Cabins, right across the road from a terrific restaurant called Luna’s Cafe and just about a quarter mile from Serrano’s Mexican Restaurant. I’ve been to both places before so it is no coincidence I stayed close by. Then I moved to Jacobson’s Cottages. The president of the local Chamber of Commerce said “they’re clean and cozy, you’ll like them.” And I did.
Browning is the headquarters for the Blackfeet Nation and the location of the Museum of the Plains Indian where I have been working. The Friends of the Museum of the Plains Indian have a good sized office on the second floor of the Museum that I have converted into a photo studio. I have been taking 30-50 reference shots of each of the invited artists so that I can go back to Michigan and create the sketches and then the final large format art quilt portraits. I went in with a number of poses in mind and just chucked them all out the window and let each individual get comfortable and talking before I started looking for the pose that was uniquely “them”.

Leonda Fast Buffalo Horse

The first person I worked with was Leonda Fast Buffalo Horse. I was talking with a tour guide from the Red Bus Tours when I was in Montana in July. He described the ancient Blackfeet women as ‘fierce”. Then he added with a cautious smile, “Contemporary Blackfeet women can be pretty fierce too.” These word echoed in my mind the first time I met Leonda despite the fact that she looks all of 5′ 5″ and 98 pounds. She struck me as the kind of person who would be a jewel of a friend. She has the ability to see to the heart of the situation and is willing to share her insights in an honest and direct manner. My husband is gifted in this way also. No wonder I liked her.
This information came from her gallery:
“Leonda was born in Browning, Montana and has been a full time artist since she moved back to the reservation from Seattle, WA in 1993. Her foundation is in painting, drawing and design, which fosters her flexibility to create organic forms as well as traditional geometrics. Adapting imagery of the Northern Plains, she enjoys the simplicity of the designs and primary colors, re-imaging cultural art forms in the medium of glass. She incorporates objects and traditional porcupine quillwork into stained glass designs to fuse old Plains Indian tradition with the media of glass into a new form of cultural artistic expression. Leonda was an instructor for porcupine quillwork at the Institute of Native American Art in Santa Fe, NM and has been a contracted teacher for glass mosaic work in the Browning School District, Since 1996, Leonda has attended art shows such as Northern Plains Tribal Arts in Sioux Falls, SD, Heard Museum Indian Art Show in Phoenix, AZ and the Native American Art Show in Great Falls, MT. In most of the shows she was honored for her quillwork. In 2005 she received the Artist in Business Leadership Award by the First Peoples Fund.”

Minot, North Dakota

cheryldineenferrin — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:17:23 +0000

Good morning from Minot, North Dakota. It’s overcast and a little cool – but lovely on the train. Our overnight had a real camp atmosphere. A couple little girls were just mesmerized by my brothers knitting projects yesterday. The older girl, Alysa, expressed an interest in learning to knit. So, brother Bill had some extra double pointed needles and yarn and we spent an hour or so going over the basics and knitting something about the size of a couple of postage stamps. When she started getting tired, I bound off her work and gave it to her as a memento of her trip. We are on the move again. Our little knitting admirers have all gotten off in Minot. We continue enjoying the scenery on our way to East Glacier, Montana.

The Indiana Countryside

cheryldineenferrin — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:03:57 +0000

Hi again, so, yes, I took the train to Chicago this morning. What an elegant way to travel. We passed a wetland just west of Porter, Indiana and I saw a bird that I thought was an egret-or a heron. I have a hard time telling them apart. I bet the artist Kathie Briggs of Charlevoix, Michigan would know the difference (www.kathiebriggs.com) It was a soft-white and slender bird just chilling in the marsh.
Despite the fact that we live in a rural county, it is characterized by farmland, orchards and vineyards, real wildlife is thin on the ground.
I am making this trip with my brother Bill who has never been to Glacier. You can follow his comments on Facebook at Bill Dineen. It has been quite enjoyable so far.

Visiting Artist gig

cheryldineenferrin — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 15:53:49 +0000

Hi all. I am on the train from Kalamazoo, Michigan to Chicago. But the journey does not end there. I have the honor of working with the Friends of the Museum of the Plains Indian as their 2010-2011 Visiting Artist. I’m heading to Montana to get started on a series of portraits of artists of the Blackfeet Nation. I feel very fortunate to have this opportunity to work with the “Friends” and share their office in Browning, Montana at the Museum.
Have wifi will travel. I will keep you up to date.

Upcoming exhibits

cheryldineenferrin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 20:51:01 +0000

Hi,
I thought we might take a look at some of the upcoming exhibits I will be participating in over the next few months:
going on right now through 09/19/10, 13 Ways of Looking at a Blackbird, Circle of Arts Gallery, Charlevoix, Michigan. This exhibit, curated by Kathie Briggs, is in a lovely town in the northern lower peninsula of Michigan.
Coming up:
9/04/10 to 09/26/10, Some Like it Hot, Schaumburg Prairie Arts Center,Schaumburg, Illinois
9/11/10 to 10/23/10, Midwest Meditations, Bloomington Park District Museum, Bloomington, Illinois
These exhibits are being curated by members of the Fiber Artists Coalition www.fiberartistscoalition.com. This is a growing and interesting group of artists from the Midwest who have come together to bring art quilts to the public.

So, yes, I’m back

cheryldineenferrin — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 22:06:18 +0000

Cheryl's NEW walking brace for her dislocated/broken/torn poor old knee.

Hi,
Glad to be back. I have been laid-up for a brief period recuperating from a motorcycle mishap. We are referring to it now as “the incident”. I would not normally show off my legs to just anyone, but since it’s just you and me . . . here is the new hardware that I am sporting while my knee heals up.
I am about a month away from starting any physical therapy but I am feeling well and want to get back in the studio and finish 30 or 40 works that I have started. I know, patience. And here for a rare appearance in my blog is my studio cat, Honey Bee. She is a good companion, very low maintenance.
I have shipped a couple of works off to be exhibited with the Fiber Artists Coalition at Circle of Arts Gallery in lovely Charlevoix, Michigan. Charlevoix is in the very northern part of Michigan’s lower peninsula, not too far from Traverse City. The exhibit runs from July 17th to September 19th, so if you are in the area be sure to check it out.
I have been working with a friend on some traditional quilts that we will donate to Binky Patrol for distribution to homeless shelters, crisis centers and local missions. It may seem strange to make these donations during the summer months but, last night it was about 45 degrees here. People who need assistance are still cold.
Thanks to everyone who provided words of encouragement and wishes for a speedy recovery. All that good vibe is working. More later. I promise, it will get more interesting.

The Reinvention Conference

cheryldineenferrin — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:02:58 +0000

I just got back from a joint conference of the Surface Design Association and Studio Art Quilt Associates. I am a member of both organizations. While this was not the first professional conference for artists I had attended, I thought it was the most useful. Rather than focus on techniques or professional development the focus of the conference was very much about identity. How does fiber art and the art quilt fit into the art world today.
I stopped asking myself why I wanted to work in fiber, as opposed to paint, a long time ago. For me the tactile and manipulative qualities of fabric perfectly mesh with my desire to create innovative and interesting works of art. I did, however, start asking myself “to what extent do I allow public perceptions of fiber artists and art quilts to influence my creative decisions?” There were many interesting speakers at the conference and I know I will be mulling over their comments for some time to come.

Lacey Jane Roberts, Dropping Stitches. (Detail) Hand-knit yarn. 10ft x 20ft. 2002.

Lacey Jane Roberts was one of the participants in a panel of emerging artists. Her work reflects her love for, and understanding of, the power of the word. She’s an interesting and motivating speaker who seems to have a solid bead on the art world. If you would like to see more of her work, please visit her website at
www.laceyjaneroberts.com
I thought LJ’s tools for working were just hilarious. She creates these knitted forms, not just with regular knitting needles, but with kids crank-style knitting machines – in particular, a lovely sparkly Barbie knitting machine. I thought I had seen every thing in knitting machines . . . how did I miss that? Here are a couple more great works by LJ. I just could not stop laughing at Armed and Dangerous. Hope you enjoy them too.

We couldn’t get in. We couldn’t get out. Detail. Installed in Clarion Alley, San Francisco, California. Detail. Hand-woven wire, crank-knit yarn, steel poles, assorted hardware. 10’ x20’. 2006-2007

Saturday Open Studio

cheryldineenferrin — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 17:24:08 +0000

Hi everyone,
Thank you to all of you who were able to drop by my studio last Saturday. The afternoon was great fun. Also, special thanks to the Log Cabin Quilters and my friend Cindy for the lovely flowers. (I have deftly managed to position them so they are not subject to cat attack.)

This is the quilt that Joyce and I put together. This picture was taken after the Open Studio guests had finished the quilting.

Among the guests were a number of traditional quilters, a couple of art quilters – also members of Studio Art Quilt Associates, Bill Lyth, a potter from Minnesota, and many friends. Everyone took turns using my professional quilting machine to pitch in to finish a quilt I am donating to one of my favorite charities, Binky Patrol. Yes, it is a funny name but they do great work in our local area. Binky Patrol supporters donate handmade quilts, blankets, hats and mittens for distribution to local homeless and crisis shelters, hospitals and missions.
I was fortunate enough to work with a friend – Joyce – on assembling the top for this donation quilt. It was such fun, we hope to continue to work together on bed quilts that we can donate to charity.

Motorcyclist Portrait Project: the Librarian

I also had the very beginnings of the portrait of Laura on display – the next work in my Motorcyclist Portrait Project series. I’m hoping to finish Laura a.k.a. “the Librarian” this week. Have a good one and I’ll check in with you later!
Cheryl

New Portraits coming together

cheryldineenferrin — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:29:37 +0000

Portrait of Brigid

Motorcyclist Portrait Project: the Librarian

Here are the final sketches for my next two works. I am working on them simultaneously. The dual processing has always presented challenges for me — I had difficulties keeping pieces for one work separate from the other. It was like throwing two 1000 piece puzzles together in one box and shaking it up before you tried to build them. Thanks to a revised coding system I should be able to manage two — or more works in the production stage.
The Librarian is Laura, a motorcyclist who was kind enough to model for me a while back during the International Quilt Festival in Chicago. As she stood at ease with one foot on her helmet and holding her gloves like a gauntlet, it struck me that she had adopted the perfect pose. This conquerors’ stance was something that was natural for her. While my original sketches showed her entire body, it quickly became apparent that a full body portrait, in the conquerors’ pose, detracted from the quiet grace of this young woman. With a few revisions, I got to what I believe is just the right amount of challenge and determination in her portrait.
Brigid is a young Chicago-area woman. I was struck by her calm and centered demeanor. It seemed the perfect homage to her youth to present her at ease, unconcerned about the hair falling in her face, as she contemplates her future.