Dia Duit Ireland!

06 May

Hello Friends,

As I write this, I’m preparing to travel to a remote part of the west coast of Ireland for an artist residency at Cill Rialaig. I can’t believe I’ll have two weeks of uninterrupted work time in such a beautiful place! The nearest town is Ballinskelligs, a small, Irish speaking village in Co. Kerry. I’ll be bringing watercolors and fabrics for hand sewing. And I plan to wander the area to make plein air drawings, paintings and textile studies. I’m also taking a trip to Cork, where my great grandmother was born. I really hope that a break from the chaos and stress of what’s happening in the US right now will give me some inspiration and give my work a reset. It’s been hard to focus these past few months with everything that’s going on.

Cill Rialaig, Co. Kerry Ireland

Current Mood, as captured by Jia Tolentino

“I feel a troubling kind of opacity in my brain lately—as if reality were becoming illegible, as if language were a vessel with holes in the bottom and meaning was leaking all over the floor. I sometimes look up words after I write them: does “illegible” still mean too messy to read? The day after Donald Trump’s second Inauguration, my verbal cognition kept glitching: …even the words that I might use to more precisely describe the sensation of “losing it” elude me.”

—Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker

Installation Views of Recent Exhibitions

My work has been in some wonderful shows in the past few months. Here are some installation shots for those of you who were unable to see them in person!

Dream Machine, The Middle Room x Good Naked: Group Exhibition, Los Angeles, California

Installation view of Dream Machine at The Middle Room Gallery

“Pass Into Nothingness” installed in Dream Machine

9×9: Contemporary Quilts and Containers, at Palos Verdes Art Center, Palos Verdes, California

Work installed in Palos Verdes Art Center

9×9: Contemporary Quilts and Containers, at Palos Verdes Art Center

Homage to Bojagi, Quilt Festival In Korea, Seoul South Korea

Work installed in QFIK in Seoul, Korea

Certified California Naturalist!

I’m proud to say that over the past ten weeks I’ve been taking a course with the Santa Monica Mountains Fund to become a Certified California Naturalist! Did you know that California is a global biodiversity hotspot? It has more endemic species than any other state! I learned terms like “California Floristic Province”, toured the partially constructed Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, planted tons of narrow leaf milkweed for Monarch butterflies, and learned about fire ecology and the importance of native plants for resilience and recovery. One of the most surprising things I discovered is the diversity and expertise of the work that park rangers do. They conduct studies on local wildlife, like the mountain lions that live in our hills; they organize thousands of volunteers to rehabilitate our public lands after fires; they are studying and facilitating the recovery of the red legged frog, a native California species that almost went extinct. Being a part of this program gave me hope and helped me remember how many people love our planet and want to heal it. For my final project, I made cyanotypes of a dozen native plants taken from my garden and my son’s amazing school. SAMO is able to make prints and cards to sell in the visitors centers and then will auction off the originals in an upcoming fundraiser. I plan to support SAMO fund and our National Park Service for years to come. As I’m sure you know, they are under attack right now from the current administration. If you’re able to donate, please do!

Four of the cyanotypes I made, Arroyo Lupine, California Sagebrush, Sacred Datura, and California Buckwheat.

New Work

I’ve completed a few new abstract pieces and am currently working on a new LA river piece.

“Bridge and Bay”, a new Commission for a friend in San Francisco

“Double Rainbow” a new abstract piece using a mix of naturally dyed and donated fabrics in bright colors.

When you’re trying to sew but there’s an adorable cat lounging on your work…

Thank you for being here! Please let me know how you’re doing, I love hearing from you. And if you have recommendations for what I should do or see in Dublin or Kerry please let me know.

Love, Caitlin

Reading: Just Kids a memoir by Patti Smith, The California Naturalist Handbook, Parade by Rachel Cusk

Heard in the studio: Japanese Breakfast, Haim

Inspiration: Schindler House, Elizabeth Talford Scott