May 31, 2013 | Class Act, Latest Art Projects, Showing Off |
Sitting on my weaving bench I include important tools of the trade: laptop with remote, plate of scissors, needles, measure stick, and a notebook with pen
While I am weaving, I always have the necessary tools next to me to avoid having to get up from my bench; no one likes to be interrupted while in full concentration and when “on a roll.” I make sure my laptop is open to my email page, my necessary tools for tending to my weaving process are easily accessed and I have a small spiral-bound notebook and pen always at hand. This notebook allows me to immediately write down thoughts while weaving. Those thoughts can be about household and garden duties I must perform within the next day, week or month, or they could include another task to complete another project I am weaving or painting, or a reminder to contact another weaver to be included in a Weavers’ Gathering, or call the kids to remind them to send a birthday wish to their sibling. In fact, I carry one of this notebook on my person, in my purse and I place one by my bedside each night. Okay, call me a “type A” personality; am I offended? Only if I cannot make note of it!
May 27, 2013 | Adventures of Rear-Mirror Rissy, Honoring Others, Showing Off |
Clarissa sits next to her portrait by photographer/artist Rosalie Favell
During Indian Market 2012 in Santa Fe last year August, Rosalie Favell photographed many of the artists, including myself. Initially of course, when asked to participate, my automatic response is to hesitate and I begin to ask myself questions, but with a little bit of encouragement and because Rosalie is a Metis from Canada, I figured why not?
At the show opening last Friday in Santa Fe at the Insitute of American Indian Arts Museum, I recognized a few portraits of fellow artists and classmates or instructors at the Institute of American Indian Arts; to name just a few they included Jeff Kahm, Stephen Wall, Linda Lomahaftewa, Daryl Lucero, and Crystal Worl. The odd thing about these portraits that I realized soon after viewing the entire show was that outside of them being in B&W and the same format, upon first glance, I did not immediately recognize these people, even my own portrait. I found this very odd; like, okay what’s going on?
One of several groups of portraits taken by Rosalie Favell in her recent exhibit “Facing the Camera” – a growing suite of photographic portraiture that documents individuals from a growing indigenous arts community – IAIA Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico – May 24, 2013
Rosalie Favell is a photo-based artist born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba whose significant work has received international recognition for her mapping of self and community within a global society. Through these images, Favell sees the photograph as a performance space, where identity is constantly worked and reworked, represented, and perhaps hidden. —- hmmmm….”hidden” maybe be the key word here – maybe it is why I initially did not recognize myself and the others – maybe I saw the “hidden” part of our personalities…eh?
May 25, 2013 | Adventures of Rear-Mirror Rissy, Honoring Others |
Clarissa Rizal with artist friend Cecil Touchon at NuArt Gallery on Canyon Road in Santa Fe, New Mexico
I include Cecil Touchon in my blog posts on occasion because this is the guy that influenced me to get into painting and collage-making back in the late 90s. Here we stand before a two-piece painting he recently completed for his show opening May 24th in Santa Fe at the NuArt Gallery. The colors in this set jumped out at me bopping me on the head to paint my own rendition! Of course, it will not be anything like Cecil’s but, like most of the things that I “copy”, I do my own interpretation.
At the beginning of this year, I told myself this is the year for anything to do with Chilkat weaving; which by the way, is truly happening – let’s be careful what we ask for – however, I think next year it will be the year of painting, and I want to include my interpretation of Cecil’s painting above. Thank you for being a great inspiration and friend, Cecil Touchon!
May 15, 2013 | Honoring Others, Showing Off, Tlingit Culture Accentuated |
5 Tlingits each received a Rasmuson artist award including (L to R): Ricky Tagaban, Nahaan, Teri Rofkar, Clarissa Rizal and Norman Jackson
Today, 36 Alaskan artists received a Rasmuson Foundation award; check out the award ceremony at: http://new.livestream.com/rasmusonfoundation/iaa2013
I will be using the funds to help support me while I do several projects this year all having to do with Chilkat weaving, including the following: teaching an introductory Chilkat weaving workshop and spearheading the Indigenous Weavers’ Gathering and my art exhibit all at the Kwaanlin Dun Cultural Center in Whitehorse, Yukon; teaching apprenticeship in artist-in-residence in Haines, Alaska; helping weavers in Juneau, Alaska to begin weaving a Chilkat or Ravenstail robe in time for Celebration 2014; begin weaving my “Resilience” Chilkat robe, begin weaving my child-size Chilkat robe; and making the Chilkat weaving tour of Southeast Alaska and British Columbia down to Seattle, Washington this coming Fall.
The monetary support from this Rasmuson grant is invaluable for a (more than) full-time artist like myself. I have come to admit, my entire life is about creating art. And any and all monetary support is such a plus! Thank you, Rasmuson!
