Farther's Opening Gala: A Pictorial

The work went all the way to the wire (the peep show was still being installed at 7:30 p.m.), but in the end the show's much-awaited opening went off without a hitch! There were homemade baked goods (moms are the best), a rollicking crowd, lovely tunes and a whole bunch of colourful freaks ready to entertain the masses.

For those of you who could not make it out last night, remember that the show will be up at Freedom Clothing Collective until Dember 9th!

Since I'm still in a bit of a haze (the week leading up to last night was, to put it mildly, hectic), you get a pictorial of the evening. Enjoy!






My darling Martha, the first freak to sell. I'll miss my mer-tiger ever so much!


A dim shot of the store window, all bunting'd and carnivalesque.

To follow: Peep show shenanigans...












Two VERY relieved bear-wranglers, thrilled that the thing works!


The jazz hands were out in force last night.


Spectators spectating.


The crowd at its zenith.

Thanks to all those who made it out last night - you made me a VERY happy lady!

Many thanks as well to the lovely ladies of Freedom CC who provided me with wonderful walls in a glorious shoppe and made the organization of this show easy as pie!

Ever So Soon

Sorry (again) for the extreme dropoff in blog-things - the past few weeks have been a leafy blur of hot glue fumes, paper cutting and workshop jaunts, which, when combined with my day job, made for little free time for keeping this sucker up to date.

I figured it'd be useful to drop in now, three (THREE?!?) days before the show opens to toss down (a) a reminder of the time/date/awesomeness of the opening, and (b) post a few shots of (hopefully) tantalizing trees!

First off, the deets on the show's opening (and tenure at the gallery):



Farther's Fascinating Freaks
New Paintings & Other Curiosities by Jessica Bartram


Please join me for the show’s opening
Friday, November 12, 2010, 8:00 p.m.
at
Freedom Clothing Collective
939 Bloor St. West, Toronto

Ph: 416.530.9946
www.freedomclothingcollective.com

Show runs November 12 - December 7

---

And, as an added bonus, you also get a visual essay (maybe more of a visual haiku, actually) documenting the last few weeks of work via sketchy cell-phone and photo booth photos:


The nearly-finished swan.


The swan's headshot - needs to find itself a better photographer.


First look at the facade of the peep show (pre-colour, post-primer).


Tibetan momos - one of my workshop-time staple foods.


This is my SAFETYFACE (preparing to make use of my friend the circular saw).


Starting the first tree...


...slightly mad at 2 a.m., post finishing the second tree...


...and completely done all three trees!


This is most likely the last proper post until the show opens on Friday - after that, I'll have a bunch of material (including a VIDEO of the peep show! Exciting!!), so make sure to check back sometime next week!

Power Tools & Progress

Eep. Sorry for the rampant neglect this blog has seen lately. I've been embroiled in the frantic balancing of my day job and final preparations for the opening (three weeks. THREE WEEKS. Help. Please), leaving little time for such frippery as blog posts.

BUT. I have recently written a bit about my forays into carpentry while building the box in which the bears will dance, so please allow me to offer you words in the place of photographs (though I'll try to snap some of those on Sunday during my next bear-box work session).

Now, without further ado: JESS' ADVENTURES IN POWER TOOLS & BOX-BUILDING.

I. In Which I Revel in the Glory of Power Tools

Today I, for the first time since high school, got my hands on a heavy-duty power tool (drills don't count, they're the lightweights of the kickass power tool world. Useful but kinda boring) - a CIRCULAR SAW.


ONE OF THESE.

The time has come to properly start work on my one show-project that involves a bit of carpentry, and, being determined to finally learn how to wrangle one of these saws (my dad has one, I've always been to scared of it to attempt any wood-cuttin'). Thankfully, my project-partner Anibal had confidence in my ability not to cut off any of my limbs (or his) and soon there I was, lining up the saw along the wooden 'fence' (a.k.a. flattish piece of ply) I'd stuck on the board to make sure my cut didn't look like the work of a drunk chimpanzee.

It took me a few seconds to gather the courage, but the moment I pressed the trigger and the saw started gnawing through the wood, I was hooked. I mean, I know they're called power tools because of the electricity and stuff, but man - the secondary meaning of the power part is all in the way they make you feel. It's feral, way the saw's teeth just rip through the wood, screaming and tossing up splinters, and the fact you can control it, guide the coiled potential of its chomping momentum and make a near-surgical cut, a perfect edge that will join with other perfect edges to make a perfect cube...man. It's one of those goddamn natural highs and now I want an excuse to do this regularly, cutting those silly pieces of wood down to size with my doom-tool.

Just two things, though. Next time I'm going to (a) wear earmuffs of some kind, and (b) NOT wear a lowish-cut shirt, to avoid ending the work session with tinnitus and a sawdusty cleavage. Besides that, I am officially hooked on power tools and I don't care who knows it!


II. In Which I am Surprised at my Ability to Actually put the Box Together

My forays into carpentry are coming along quite nicely. There have, of course, been some hitches, but overall I'm impressed with my ability to translate my slightly slapdash style of art-creation (both 2D & 3D) into the realm of wood and nails and things-that-need-to-be-much-more-exact-or-everything-will-be-terrible-forever.

I mean, not only is the majority of the box now constructed (all but the back door-bit, which goes on last anyways), it FITS TOGETHER almost perfectly and looks like a thing! I cut all those pieces with my own hands (and a bitey power tool) and somehow the edges are straight and the nails I hammered in are holding everything together and it LOOKS. Like a THING*!

Another accomplishment during this construction-adventure has been my mastery of the hand-saw. Anibal has a fancy schmancy Japanese saw called a Ryoba, which is much friendlier than normal hand saws (which regularly leave me slumped in a pile of defeat and failure), and, after some sketchy early attempts, I found myself sawing through 2x3" stud-boards with aplomb. It was fantastic.

I'm beginning to get a little worried about finishing the damn thing on time - there's still SO MUCH to do - but hopefully our next work session (on Sunday) will bring our progress to a less stressful level. I can't wait to get all the motor-stuff going (well, Anibal's putting it all together, but I'm hoping to help a bit, as I wanna learn all sorts of new things for future projects) and start decorating the insides of the box.

Man. Can't believe the show is in THREE WEEKS. Don't mind me as I sit in this corner and weep for a few hours.


*This was our refrain all yesterday evening after the box was together - "hey, look, it looks like a thing! It's really a thing! Look at it - a thing!"

BEARS!

I'm preparing a much more extensive post all about the most elaborate part of the show (mechanized peepshow, what what?), but until that's ready, here are some sketchy phone-camera shots of the main characters (bearacters?):


Bear #1, pre-eye application.


Bear #1, post-eyes (with bear #2 in the background).

The next two photos come complete with the original Twitter captions (yes, I Tweet. It's a weakness of mine).


"Bear #2 now has eyes & has already started trying to eat the other curiosities. Damnit, bear!"


"I mean look at him - this is NOT a face to be trusted. DO NOT VOTE BEAR ON OCTOBER 25th! (Or Ford.)


Overall, now that both are officially done, I'm thrilled with how well they turned out (it's always lovely when experiments go just the way you want 'em to!).

Whilhelm & the Bicycle

Whilhelm (Willie for short) had dreamed about riding a bicycle since before he had ears, fantasizing about the feeling of the wind ruffling his red fur as he flew down hills, the bike's bell ringing out a cheery tune.



One day, he came across a beautiful bike just sitting on the street as if it was waiting for him to happen upon it. Excitedly, he hopped up on the seat, but soon realized the fatal flaw in his long-desired plan...





...Willie had no way of touching, let alone reaching the handlebars.

It was a tragic blow to poor Willie, his dreams dashed upon the street as he clinked away from the beautiful bike and back to the freak show from whence he came, where he spent the rest of his jarred existence being ogled by the curious.



THE END

{This sad little merfox - who is thisclose to being finished - was made from wire, masking tape, fake fur, acrylic paint, paper and watercolour. He'll be starring as one of the main curiosities at the Farther's Freaks exhibit.}

Containment

In keeping with my Victorian theme, I've decided to, instead of having all my paintings framed in matching frames, seek out a whole parade of interesting (and sometimes antique) frames.

Thankfully, I live near a large number of antique shops, one of which provided me with four lovely additions to the frame-collection:









I also purchased a couple of gorgeous jars to house some curiosities at a nearby hardware store:



As you can see, things are chugging along - there's still a whole list of things to do, but at least I'm making progress!

Items of Note

In conjunction with some absolutely lovely wall space, the gallery at which my show will be up has also given me free rein of their front window. The moment I was told I'd have a window display, I started (a) dancing around in excitement, and (b) planning out the design.

Due to the Very Victorian nature of the show, the window, as it currently stands in my head, is starting to look like a deliciously jumbled, curiosity-full exhibit fit for a Victorian museum. Since November is approaching ever so quickly, I'm starting to amass a collection of potential window-items (and gain inspiration from some of the items - and displays - in the antique stores on my block).

Here are some items of note that I've accumulated thus far (some of these have been decorating my apartment -and past abodes - for years already. Hooray for curated clutter!):



Moth carcass found on cottage windowsill (currently gracing one of my typesetting drawers).



Butterfly who perished tragically in the windshield wipers of our car many years ago (with beautiful but rickety brooch).



Seagull skull, found at cottage.



Mystery skull - maybe from a tiny carnivore?



Harold Rooster Jr. III, esq, my glorious puffer fish friend.



A dress that once belonged to my mom (that has a beautiful patina of age that makes it look much older than it is), and a very circus-eqsue shirt, found at a junk shop on St. Clair West.

Cataloguing

Whew. Where the hell did August go? Suddenly autumn is creeping in (something about which I have no complaints - I'm done with summer's humid heat), the nights are chilly and I spotted a few early-bird leaves donning their fiery coats when I was up north last weekend.

Though I'm eager for it to be fall, the onset of a new season has kicked me into panic mode regarding the show. I forced myself to sit down last night with a giant piece of paper and a calendar and wrote out a giant to-do list, complete with (shudder) DEADLINES. Due to the fact I'm planning a catalogue to go with the show (featuring the full stories of all the characters, the history of Farther's Freaks, etc.), I have to be finished all my pieces by the end of September, as they all need to be scanned for the book.

Cue unadulterated PANIC. Agh.

Thankfully, the internet is a bastion of inspiring images, regularly spurring my brain into new flights of fancy, especially when it comes to the catalogue.

This lovely blog entry both reminds me of the long 'animals in silly clothing' tradition of which I am a part and makes me want to create some ridiculous endpapers for the book, kind of like this:



Besides the fantastic endpapers, the creature-characters are, in general, completely mad and hilarious. Proof:










I completely agree with the original poster that those creepy cats up there are some of the weirdest clothed animals I've ever seen. They will probably haunt my dreams.

She's got a few more page captures over at the original post, plus a link to the whole book in the Gutenberg archive (tasty). Check 'em out!

Dang. Now I'm all fidgety and wishing I was at home so I could keep working on the catalogue. Oh well. Coffee break over, back to my real job!

Chicken, Chicken, Swan

I've started working on the 3D curiosities that will accompany the watercolours for the show, starting with The Really Big One - a two-headed, "taxidermied" black swan (life-size - I actually looked up the average size of Cygnus atratus - 110-142cm long, for the curious - before starting to build).

To begin with, I had to wrangle some chicken wire, which is always a painful process. My arms and legs are still host to a myriad of little scratches doled out by the vicious stuff.



Oh look - six feet of aggressive, injury-causing swan-skeleton!



After much bending and wire-cutting and being stabbed, I ended up with a roughly swan-shaped conglomeration of wire:



I attempted to do the whole 'two swan necks making a heart' cliché. Ended up with a pathetic, wonky shape. Tragic.



After the creation of the base, it was time to add some substance to the bird. Since I'm not a fan of the mess (and drying time) inherent in the whole papier maché process, I opted for the easy way out - newspaper and LOTS of masking tape. After an evening of paper-ripping and tape-application, I ended up with a cream-coloured swan mummy. Spooky.



As much as I enjoy the ghostly visage of masking-tape swan, more steps lie in the future for this curiosity, as it will wind up covered in paper feathers, in the style of Sir Percival IV (a dapper raven-fellow I made a few months ago).




And yes, I do look forward to hours of cutting out feathers and battling the perils of the dreaded Hot Glue Gun. It's all worth it, I swear.