Tag Archives: unusual materials

Shamoo Was a Good Cat

March 7, 2018 Amy Rich 4 Comments

My second piece for the Art Noir show at the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana was inspired by my cat Shamoo who died in December 2017. It is titled “Shamoo Was a Good Cat”.

For the piece, I wove some of his whiskers together to make an interesting shape. I had collected these whiskers as they fell out naturally and he left them around the house. My piece partly references the Victorian practice of braiding locks of a loved one’s hair after they died and then turning them into jewelry to use to remember that person.

The whiskers are suspended by a thread and hang in front of a whirling frame of black odds and ends. The collection includes vintage buttons, strings of beads, fake flowers, and cicada shells that I painted black.

The entire piece is enclosed behind glass in a shadowbox.

The piece is all in black and white, taking inspiration from the theme of the show. To me, it seemed fitting for a mourning piece. It is also perfect that Shamoo was a black and white cat.

One of the best compliments I have received about my art is that my style is “quirky conceptualism”. This is a good example of that.

This piece won third place in the 2D category. At first I was surprised that it was included with the 2D art, but now I think it’s pretty neat.

Works in Progress

Black and White In Progress

February 17, 2018 Amy Rich 1 Comment

I’m working on a piece to enter into a show in which the pieces can only be black and white. I thought my table was interesting and artful.

Inspiration

A Little Inspiration

February 17, 2018 Amy Rich Leave a comment

I haven’t posted anything in my art blog for over a year! That doesn’t mean I haven’t been making art, though most of what I’ve done has been photography for my job at Patchwork Central and for my garden blog. I’ve also been expanding my art garden environment, and I’ll share more on that in the future.

Recently, I’ve had a couple deadlines to inspire me to create some sculptures for exhibit. I’ve got inspiration tucked throughout my studio space. My inspiration makes an interesting photo, too.

Finished pieces

Dialogue

April 15, 2016 Amy Rich 4 Comments

Title: Dialogue

Materials: A stuffed cat, my real cat, bra under wire, pop can, toy and game pieces, old jewelry, fur coat, pop can, glitter, paint, thread

Dimensions: 10″ x 7″ x 5″

On exhibit now through May 6 at the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana as part of the “Another’s Treasure” art from recycled materials exhibit. Opening reception on April 22 from 5:30-7.

Works in Progress

Little Unnamed Birds

February 23, 2016 Amy Rich 9 Comments

I’ve been working on this series of little birds made out of parts of toys, broken jewelry, an old fur coat, and a few other scraps of things.

I’m working on a display for them next, and a name will come later as well, but they are fun little guys, so I tool photos of them individually before combining them into something bigger. They’re a work in progress.

Click on any of the images below to get a closer look.

Here’s the line up:

Bird A:

Unnamed Bird. 4″ x 4″ 2016.x 4″.

Bird B:

Unnamed Bird. 3″ x 3″ x 5″. 2016.

Bird C:

Unnamed Bird. 4″ x 4″ x 4″. 2016.

Bird D:

Unnamed Bird. 4″ x 5″ x 5″. 2016

Bird E:

Unnamed Bird. 4″ x 2″ x 6″. 2016.

Shots in the snow at a less-complete stage:

And at the beginning stages when you could see what they’re made of:

They move in a sweet and wonderful way that, unfortunately, can’t really be part of the final display. While I was photographing them, I noticed the way the wind would catch them and make them bob. Here’s a sample with chirping birds in the background: