Jazz Bird tribute to Miles Davis 2022
My paper works using antique sheet music seek to celebrate and repurpose the best and worst quality music from my great paper era collection of music which spans close to 300 years (1723-1945). My creative endeavours have focused on creating and celebrating language with a particular focus on universal languages, languages of healing and wellbeing. As a multi lingual and multi cultural person music was (and still is) a most tangible link to culture for me. I grew up moving every two years and although we were posted far (Germany, Gimli, Boston, the Gatineau hills etc) and wide, my parents, an Irish mother from the north of Ireland and a French Canadian military man with proud Métis heritage, made sure we were given strong links to our mixed heritage. I also use it because the wealth of printed music from the last several centuries has become obsolete for the most part. It was collected and shared with great care and love, from one generation to another, as such the quality of the paper was essential to its longevity. The greatest paper made over the centuries was made for music, which was to pass from hand to hand to hand. I have collected it since childhood, have a great love for it and have always yearned to use it in my work as an artist and artisan. A few years ago I stood at the threshold of moving from a production based life with my natural works- my twig letters- which focus on the universal healing language of nature and the nature of languages, to one of larger sculptural pieces. It would allow me to delve deeper into the dialogue of healing through artistic practice, and provide me with new challenges of materials explorations and subject matter. I began with a buffalo, a guide to protect me in my journey using a paper mâché technique though this was to be made of music paper that I cared for (and others had too) a great deal. It was very important for me to honour every aspect of each piece of music I used for this work. As such, the inventory of paper composition from different eras (linen, cotton, even “mummy paper” from the 1840’s), margins, print size, decorative whimsy and graphic patterns became components of my palette used to create and adorn my sculptures.
As a storyteller it was important that the journey of discovery in the paper sculptures be not limited to their creative component compositions but that explored other dialogues as well. As such my sculptures all have a male and female side as we must all care for and honour both in ourselves, there is movement, light and darkness and charged contrast due to the diversity of musical scores.
Owl is about seeing in light and darkness, knower of truth by seeing to the heart of the matter and I return to making owls often. Birds are ever present in my journey for many reasons. I often think of music as sonic wings, lifting me to beautiful heights. I listen to a vast amount of music, of many different genres and craft my listening with great care and excitement. I go through fazes of immersing myself in different artists, genres and create many playlists that accompany my pieces so that they are a soundtrack of the musical landscape that accompanied the making of my pieces. I was delving deeply into my love of jazz and it occurred to me that the deep love I have for jazz needed to be celebrated along with my favourite musical artists. The complexity and beauty of the music made by the great Jazz composers never ceases to elevate my soul to a higher place where I feel revelation and astonishment, every single time. So I share my bountiful love of the recordings of the great Miles Davis in this bird, and sketches of Spain in particular. The dappled complexity of patterns and colours, different on each wing echo the love I have for complex expression of the yin and yang, and found bountifully in the mastery of Miles Davis’ gift to humanity.
The pale white paper with brown edges are from 1802 and 1858, noticeably around the face. I think of the patterning as a male and female side as we all must learn to know and love both in ourselves. The 1723 paper with tiny gold edge can be seen on the tapestry of his tummy, with a background of the honey tones of papers from the 20th century. The blue starburst is hand dyed paper in the Florentine style and is an end paper in a piano song collection from 1876 -1892
My paper works using antique sheet music seek to celebrate and repurpose the best and worst quality music from my great paper era collection of music which spans close to 300 years (1723-1945). My creative endeavours have focused on creating and celebrating language with a particular focus on universal languages, languages of healing and wellbeing. As a multi lingual and multi cultural person music was (and still is) a most tangible link to culture for me. I grew up moving every two years and although we were posted far (Germany, Gimli, Boston, the Gatineau hills etc) and wide, my parents, an Irish mother from the north of Ireland and a French Canadian military man with proud Métis heritage, made sure we were given strong links to our mixed heritage. I also use it because the wealth of printed music from the last several centuries has become obsolete for the most part. It was collected and shared with great care and love, from one generation to another, as such the quality of the paper was essential to its longevity. The greatest paper made over the centuries was made for music, which was to pass from hand to hand to hand. I have collected it since childhood, have a great love for it and have always yearned to use it in my work as an artist and artisan. A few years ago I stood at the threshold of moving from a production based life with my natural works- my twig letters- which focus on the universal healing language of nature and the nature of languages, to one of larger sculptural pieces. It would allow me to delve deeper into the dialogue of healing through artistic practice, and provide me with new challenges of materials explorations and subject matter. I began with a buffalo, a guide to protect me in my journey using a paper mâché technique though this was to be made of music paper that I cared for (and others had too) a great deal. It was very important for me to honour every aspect of each piece of music I used for this work. As such, the inventory of paper composition from different eras (linen, cotton, even “mummy paper” from the 1840’s), margins, print size, decorative whimsy and graphic patterns became components of my palette used to create and adorn my sculptures.
As a storyteller it was important that the journey of discovery in the paper sculptures be not limited to their creative component compositions but that explored other dialogues as well. As such my sculptures all have a male and female side as we must all care for and honour both in ourselves, there is movement, light and darkness and charged contrast due to the diversity of musical scores.
Owl is about seeing in light and darkness, knower of truth by seeing to the heart of the matter and I return to making owls often. Birds are ever present in my journey for many reasons. I often think of music as sonic wings, lifting me to beautiful heights. I listen to a vast amount of music, of many different genres and craft my listening with great care and excitement. I go through fazes of immersing myself in different artists, genres and create many playlists that accompany my pieces so that they are a soundtrack of the musical landscape that accompanied the making of my pieces. I was delving deeply into my love of jazz and it occurred to me that the deep love I have for jazz needed to be celebrated along with my favourite musical artists. The complexity and beauty of the music made by the great Jazz composers never ceases to elevate my soul to a higher place where I feel revelation and astonishment, every single time. So I share my bountiful love of the recordings of the great Miles Davis in this bird, and sketches of Spain in particular. The dappled complexity of patterns and colours, different on each wing echo the love I have for complex expression of the yin and yang, and found bountifully in the mastery of Miles Davis’ gift to humanity.
The pale white paper with brown edges are from 1802 and 1858, noticeably around the face. I think of the patterning as a male and female side as we all must learn to know and love both in ourselves. The 1723 paper with tiny gold edge can be seen on the tapestry of his tummy, with a background of the honey tones of papers from the 20th century. The blue starburst is hand dyed paper in the Florentine style and is an end paper in a piano song collection from 1876 -1892