New Work - Silk Mill #1

Silk Mill #1

I am delighted to share with you another new work, Silk Mill #1, 42”h x 44”w.  It is part of my architectural set of art quilts, The Structures, and the beginning of a new series based on the former Ashley and Bailey Silk  Mill in Columbia, PA. 

The mill was built in 1899 and was a working silk mill, and later a garment factory, until the 1970s when it was abandoned.  It became a rather spectacular ruin, open to the elements and with vegetation growing throughout it.  I took a lot of pictures of it just before it underwent renovation that transformed a portion of it into a tourist destination, The Turkey Hill Experience.  I posted them earlier here and here. 

Silk Mill #1, Detail 1

As a prelude to this series, I did three small, framed Studies, which were exhibited last fall at the Marietta Art House.  I’ve got the large versions of #2 and #3 in progress, and am open to seeing how far this series takes me.  I’ve got a lot of powerful and compelling images to work with, and I’m really enjoying the process of bringing them to life.  As a homage to the original purpose of the building, I’m trying to use a lot of silk fabrics as I’m working.

Silk Mill #1, Detail 2

For Silk Mill #1, I had my image burned into a Thermofax screen, which I used to print onto both white and hand-painted cotton fabric.  I also had the image digitally printed on to silk yardage, which I cut up and used in the patchwork and for the borders. 

Long term readers, and those who followed the links back, will noticed that years have passed since I first embarked on this project; further proof, as if it were needed, that art-making is not always a linear progression.  I’ve been mulling over these images, off and on, while I completed my Watt & Shand works, and began the Flora and Fauna series, and worked on various botanical art quilts that demanded my time and attention for various reasons.  But at last the time is right for this one to become further realized, and I am enjoying it very much.

Vintage India - Chennakeshava and Hoysaleswara Temples

 This set of vintage 1974 India photos are from two ancient temples in Karnatak State.  Chennakesava Temple in Belur dates from 1117 CE and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Above is the view of the tiered steps to the main temple; below is the Gopura at the entrance to the temple complex.

 I had forgotten this picture existed and was delighted to rediscover it;  I certainly look delighted to be there:

 Nearby is the Hoysaleswara Temple in Halebidu, which dates from 1121 CE:

 Both temples are renowned for their magnificent carvings.  Here are Siva and Parvathi at Hoysaleswara:

 I'm no longer certain which of the temples I took these pictures at, but I present them for your enjoyment nonetheless:

 I love the way the girl's hand mirror the sculpture in this photo:

 All the pictures enlarge when you click on them.

If you are new here and enjoying my blast from the past, you can see more vintage India photos in previous blog posts from Tamil Nadu, Bombay,  and the Taj Mahal and Agra.  And there's many more wonderful images to come, so stay tuned!

Acceptance into Tactile Architecture

 Still more good exhibit news!  Both my entries for Tactile Architecture, Watt & Shand #6 and Watt &  Shand #10, were accepted.  The exhibit debuts in Houston at the Quilt Market (open to the trade) in October, and at the International Quilt Festival in Houston, TX from Nov. 3 -6, 2011. It then travels to the Cincinnati Festival in April, 2012 and the Long Beach Festival in July, 2012.

 When I originally embarked on this series of works, I did so because I was so incredibly excited about the subject and had a driving need to make artwork pertaining to it.  I worked it obsessively for about a year, partly to meet the original solo show deadline, but mostly because it was all I wanted to do--the rest of my life had to fit in around it (and the important people in my life were extremely understanding and accommodating).  Part of the way in, I realized that it might have limited appeal outside of the local area because of the subject matter, but I was committed and it wasn't an important consideration at the time.

 But now I've realized that eight of the nine I have available (#2 sold to a local collector) have been or will be out and about in national exhibits this year.  I'm going to extrapolate two things from this astonishing run of luck:  A--  I should probably start playing the lottery, and B-- The work can stand on its own, purely on the strength of the design and execution, apart from the significance it has in Lancaster.  This is a hefty dose of timely encouragement.  I need to finish up my spring gardening so I can get back to more obsessive creativity in the studio.  There are always more and higher mountains to climb!

If you are new here, you can see the whole series on my website, and/or track it back as a work in progress by clicking on "Watt & Shand" under Labels in the right sidebar.  And if you've been following along, many thanks for your continuing interest and support.

Building Collapse in Lancaster

A building collapsed in Lancaster on Wednesday morning. It was unoccupied, and there were only a few minor injuries reported, to some riders on a city bus that was hit by debris (although I always feel that if it were me, I don't know how "minor" I would consider any injury!). Above is the view from the first block of East Chestnut St., below is the view turning the corner onto N. Queen. About a third of the front of building collapsed spontaneously, and more was demolished later in the day to temporarily stabilize the situation. I took these with my iPhone camera, and once again I'm impressed at how well it works.

For many years the building housed the Empire Appliance Store, familiar to generations of Lancastrians who shopped there before the big box stores came to town. Recently it was slated to become the new home of the Lancaster Museum of Art, but funding difficulties in the recession put the kibosh on those plans. The lot next to it is being excavating for a planned garage/condominium project, and there's speculation that the excavation contributed to the collapse; the insurance companies and lawyers will doubtless wrangle over this.

Aside from the morass of all the practical concerns in a situation like this, I am struck by the imagery. It's such a unexpected and unprecedented view into the interiors, that reveals both architectural/construction details, and glimpses of how the space was apportioned and utilized.

It's currently undecided whether the structure will be stabilized and rebuilt, or further demolished. Either way, I will be there with camera in hand.

The Dillerville Rail Yard Bridge

To feed my growing obsession with old rusty bridges, I stopped in Lancaster (PA) to photograph the footbridge over the Dillerville Rail Yard.

The bridge was originally built to provide a walkway over the tracks between several industrial/factory buildings, including a large Armstrong Cork complex. The industry is gone, and Franklin & Marshall College has expanded their campus at one end of the bridge. The rail yard is now in the process of being relocated and the whole area will be redeveloped with athletic fields for the college and facilities for Lancaster General Hospital. Below is a view from up on the bridge looking towards the center of the city; in the far right you can see the new convention center building. (If you are new here, you can track back my series of works based on this construction project by clicking on "Watt & Shand" under Labels in the sidebar on the right.)

The bridgework is rife with textured rusty patina:

Cool angles:

And great silhouettes:

Here's the view looking back across the bridge at the new F&M student housing. On the ground floor is a row of shops and businesses that includes the Iron Hill Brewery, and after my stroll on the bridge I meet friends to enjoy good company, a Biere de Mars, and a fine meal.

Lancaster Square Demolition

Cities can fall victim to fads as easily as individuals. In the late sixties and seventies, Lancaster (PA) underwent a spurt of "urban renewal", partly funded by the government, in which historic but neglected buildings were demolished and replaced by concrete boxes designed by urban planners. Unfortunately, it failed to stem the migration of residents to the suburbs and shoppers to the mall, and the new buildings never became the hoped-for urban hubs. It didn't help that they were, by any objective standards, ugly and awkward.

In the hopes of attracting developers to redesign/reuse the space, the worst of the facade of the concrete monstrosity on North Queen Street is currently being removed. Above is a partially demolished pedestrian walkway, that mostly served as an home to pigeons.

No one is going to miss this mess. You can go here to see the original Hotel Brunswick that was torn down in order to erect this--aah, the wisdom and twenty-twenty vision of hindsight!

I am getting some cool photos of the process--click the one above and see a shovel full of debris on its way down to a dumpster.

I don't think these images are going to inspire any artwork the way the Watt & Shand renovation has (if you are new here, click on Watt & Shand in the sidebar at the right to see a beautiful and creative demolition/reuse of architecture). But I applaud the efforts being made to further transform Lancaster City, and look forward to seeing what's next. Go here to read a local newspaper story about the project.

On a mostly unrelated note, I just realized that I've been blogging for exactly one year. In that time, I've produced 145 posts, shared a LOT of photos, talked about my inspirations, my travels near and far, my work in progress, and my work that has made it's way out into the world. I've enjoyed the process immensely, and I hope you are enjoying the posts and will stay with me as we journey further into this brave new world.

The Ashley & Bailey Silk Mill

I recently stumbled upon the site of the former Ashley & Bailey Silk Mill in Columbia (PA), built in 1889, and it took my breath away. I am enthralled with architectural ruins where you can see blue sky through the windows. That's what originally piqued my interest in the Watt & Shand renovations (if you are new here, you can follow that saga by clicking on Watt & Shand under Labels, on the left, or go here for the first post and a great blue sky picture.)

Silk mills were once a huge industry in this area, and a place where many women first found employment away from the farm. This one later became the Schwarzenbach-Huber mill, then the Tidy Products sewing factory, before it fell into disuse and disrepair.

I got as close as I could to the equally decaying barbed wire fencing and took a lot of pictures. There are areas where even the window framing is gone and it has a very open feel.

Parts of the roof structure have collapsed as well.

This building has been in the news lately as the proposed site for an interactive tourist attraction for Turkey Hill Dairy, to be called The Turkey Hill Experience. It would feature the usual gift shop and restaurant, but also have facilities to learn about dairy farming and make your own ice cream. You can read the details here. It would be a huge change in the neighborhood--I wonder, would the neighbors prefer to look at a magnificent ruin, or a tourist attraction?

It's well sited for tourism, right off an exit of Rt. 30, near the Visitor's Center, and smack dab next to a Burger King. The actual dairy is not amenable to tourist traffic; it's spread out on the farm where it originated, deep in the hills of southern Lancaster County. There's a nice hiking trail close to it, with a view of the Susquehanna River, and the basis for my work "View from Turkey Hill":

Watt and Shand Summer Update

There's been a lot of progress made on the renovation of the Watt and Shand building in Lancaster since I last posted about it in May. (If you're new here, or just want to refresh your memory, click on the Watt and Shand label to the right to track back.)

The biggest change visually was that by June construction had progressed to the point where the scaffolding was no longer needed to hold up the facade. It was a lot of fun watching them de-weld the joints--all those sparks!

It reminded me of taking apart an Erector set:

In July the scaffold continued to come down. I like all the angled elements in this photo:

I was sorry to see all of the cool angles and shadows of the scaffolding go, but it did free things up for better views of all the details on the facade. The workers often wave and watch me taking pictures:

By August the emphasis was on adding floors to the new construction:

Here's the curved window that so captivated me at the beginning of the project. The view into it has changed considerably. I'm beginning to wonder what it will be like on the inside, looking out. Hopefully it will be part of a public room and I'll get the chance sometime.

In September it continued to rise and acquire windows:

Yesterday they lifted the final beam to top off the structural work. You can read an article in the local paper about it here.

Pequea Creek Bridge Removal

We go hiking every chance we get in southern Lancaster County, and have crossed this bridge across the Pequea Creek countless times. It's a one lane bridge built in 1912, and this week it's coming down. Here you can see the iron bridge in the foreground, the arched railroad bridge behind it, and the creek flowing into the Susquehanna River, with the Safe Harbor dam and power plant in the background.

It's a picturesque bridge in a beautiful setting, and I've always enjoyed the mild trepidation experienced when driving across it. Today I learned that in the State rating system of 100 points, this one rates a 1! It's going to be replaced with a modern structure, not as picturesque but undoubtedly safer.

These pictures were taken this past weekend, a few days before demolition began. Local residents decorated the span with flags and balloons:

I like the angles in this picture, and the patterns of the rust:

Here's the view looking down through the floor (roadbed? platform?) of the bridge at the creek. It gives one pause....

Yesterday, workers used a crane to pick up the entire structure and move it to a parking lot, where it can be disassembled more readily. The local newspaper has coverage of the event, with video, here.