The linen table runner came in the mail from Anne. I immediately knew that I wanted to fill it up. All that white space was begging to be brought back to life again. The table runner was asking for reinvention, to be relevant once again.
This was either just after Gus died or just before, I honestly can’t remember when I started doing the drawings, but I know they were something I could do at the time. Something that held my attention and kept me in the moment.
Permanent markers from the Rite Aid in town and Grandma’s linen.
It would not have gone over well if I drew on my grandmothers linen with marker when I was a kid.
Now I see it as reclaiming. My interpretation of the ancient Goddess and her symbols combined with my own personal imagery from my life.
I think of the lives of the women who made and used table runners like this one. I think of the few, if any options they had to live a creative life. I think of the ways in which that creativity would have manifested.
What would Anne’s grandmother have painted or drawn on this linen table runner if she could have? I image her family and friends looking at it on the sideboard, like a painting in a museum. It would be telling her story, expressing her ideas her loves her frustrations.
For me this is a blending of histories, of women and of artists. And here I am, finding my place in that history.
Finding My Place is 16 1/2″ x 42″. It’s $200 + $10 shipping. If it speaks to you and you’d like it in your home, you can email me here at [email protected]. I take checks and PayPal.
I’m also going to put “Finding My Place” up for sale in my Etsy Shop if case someone is more comfortable buying it there. You can get there by clicking here or on the Etsy Icon on the top of my blog.
