The process of documenting is something that really interests me.  Also, I am realizing more and more that I am a process based artist.  For me so far this means that the process of making my art often dictates how my ideas evolve and sometimes -like with the installation above - is how the concept is conceived.

When I first began doing line rubbings my mother-in-law was visiting us in Montreal.  As she watched me use various objects she got more and more excited about what else I could use and began passing me textured items like tea towels and lace pillow cases to rub.  That's when I got really excited about the idea of making more line rubbings, but with other people involved in the process.  It was as if I was creating abstract evidence of our relationship.  Right away I knew that my first collaborative line rubbing project would be with my family for the purpose documenting our family relationships and celebrating our interconnectedness.

These pictures are line rubbings which have been layered as acetates to make a series of sculptures.  The unique thing about these rubbings is that they were a collaborative effort by my Mother Fiorella, Father Russell, two brothers Michael and David and myself.  Every page has one line by each member in my family making each page a family portrait of sorts.  Each member used objects of their choosing with pencil on paper.  When layered they create dynamic family sculptures, interlacing each story in ways which allows them inform and augment the meaning of each others stories.

It was such a joy to connect with my family in this way in a time when we are all dispersed throughout North America.  The common act of creating lines in the same book brought us together in such a unique way.  The sketchbook traveled from Montreal to Vancouver then to Hawaii, back to Vancouver and finally to Montreal again where I finished the sculptures.  In another post later this week I'll share more about the objects that were used by everyone - it was really interesting to see themes in each persons object list.  Some of the items made me laugh too like my Dad's Moose-mate-calling cassette tape.  I'll also share the original line drawings which are really interesting on their own.

I'm really looking forward to working more with these.  I already have an idea in mind which involves printing the lines on fabric to make a soft sculpture representing my mother; the matriarch.

Even though I was running around like a crazy lady getting ready for the Hung Up installation I managed to make something for the upcoming fibre art show/fundraiser for the artist run gallery Diagonale. The theme is Gris (or Grey en anglais).  I called mine Line, it was made using the beginning of (and later cut off part) of the painted warp sky weaving I did for Hung Up.  I then sewed over it with grey thread and bunched it together in a way that met the size standards.  Since it's a wall hanging I stiffened it slightly by spritzing it with medium.

Now for a response from the gallery.  fingers crossed. 

Here's a link to a blog I follow by Alexis Boyle who also applied for Gris.  I love her submissions.

Here's the time lapse video I did of me installing my pieces in the VAV Gallery last week, it's about five hours of filming crammed into just under a minute.  Believe me the installation took a lot longer than five hours, but I got sick of waiting for the battery to recharge every 45 minutes.  I'm on my way down there today to book an SLR camera to take some good photos.