Thursday, June 30, 2011

Not Just Paper Planes - Lizz Aston


Have you been by to check out our Not Just Paper Planes exhibition? Held in conjunction with The Japanese Paper Place's Living with Washi: Japanese Paper Inspiring Daily Life, it features wonderful treasures made from Japanese paper - a renewable and strong material full of possibilities.

The first three works from the left are by Lizz Aston, a Toronto-based textile artist and craftperson. Here is her extended statement on each piece:


PAPER BARK GROUPINGS

Details of Paper Bark Groupings, Lizz Aston, 2010, $300 and $500.

Inspired by the dynamic symmetries and patterns found in nature, Paper Bark Grouping explores the spontaneity of materials and processes. Working primarily in paper, I am interested in examining the composition, repetition and fragility found in naturally occurring formations. Through my work I am interested in experimenting with process and combining the results to create groupings that read as a whole. Paper is manipulated, bunched, starched, burned and pieced back together in an effort to take advantage of the material, making it appear to be something else; a dialogue is created.

FROM RAGS TO RICHES

Detail of From Rags to Riches, Lizz Aston, 2010.



Taking cue from historical craft practices such as the art of spinning shifu (paper-thread), and the gathering of discard material to make Rag rugs or Clootie mats; I am interested in combining each of these processes as I work to re-define the values we apply to common craft materials as well as domestic craft objects.

Both shifu and rag rug-making developed as practices once born out of necessity, where coarse paper thread would be woven into cloth for work clothes and other household items, while the rags of old clothes were coveted for their reuse-ability, being knotted back together in the form of much needed objects.
From rags to riches incorporate the use of paper ‘rag’ as it is laboriously hand-spun and crocheted into a delicate network of threads that make up the rag rug.
Through a sophisticated use of process and materials, the once ‘ragged’ and utilitarian object will be rendered precious and unusable, as emphasis is placed on re-evaluating the value of the materials and object at hand. Through my practice, I am interested in celebrating craft for love as means to continue to tap into the meaningful, intuitive and historical practices that employ the use of my hands.


From Rags to Riches is unfortunately not for sale, but if you wish to get a little taste of it, Lizz also makes these wonderful brooches. They are on sale for $55 for the duration of the exhibition, so get them fast as the exhibition closes on July 4th - that's in FOUR days!



To find out more about Lizz, you can visit her website here. Her upcoming exhibitions include Love Lace at Sydney's Powerhouse Museum - find out more about it here


Lizz is also teaching an exciting workshop on Polychromatic Screen Printing on Saturday, July 23rd at Freedom! Keep checking our blog for details.

Not Just Paper Planes has been receiving an outstanding amount of Oooh's and Aaaah's so please make sure you make it down here this weekend. We are open from noon to 7:30 pm, including Canada Day!

Monday, June 20, 2011

UpCycled & Re-Styled

Please note that this Series has moved to it's own separate page
located here >> 
upcycled-restyled.blogspot.com
or click on the UpCycled-ReStyled tab on the navigation bar above


The adventures of two creatives with different backgrounds, different techniques and totally different styles coming together to re-purpose old unloved goods and make them fabulous and cherished once again.

The designer behind PoppySeedliving (Jelena) and KooCoo Carrillo (Karen) are teaming up to share ideas, inspirations and ‘lessons learned’ about their industry in this new collaboration series called Up-Cycled & Re-Styled. What will happen when Poppyseed’s colour theory and “let me get my hands dirty” approach mingle with Koocoo’s “I can fix it” mentality and organic drawing style?

First on the chopping block:
 Half Moon Hall Table. Part 1

We decided to start off with a small project to get our bearings and give us some ‘starting off’ ease. Here is the lovely BEFORE picture of our latest acquisition.
Problems that need fixing: wobbly legs, huge crack on the table top, and very dirty stain



Thursday, June 16, 2011

Photos from the opening night of Not Just Paper Planes

Thank you everyone who showed their support at our opening night for Not Just Paper Planes. It was a delightful night!

For those of you who missed it, don't worry! You have until July 4th to see the fantastic pieces by Lizz Aston, Jessica Bartram, Carolanne Graham, Nadia Tan and our very own Karen Carrillo and Jelena Pticek.






Special thanks to Lisa Conway & co. of L CON for performing for us. (For those of you who would like to be on their mailing list, just let us know.) Here's a clip of their magical set...


See you next time!

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

YARDSALE!! SAT June 18th starts at 9am

something for you, something for a friend

ATTENTION all bargain hunters!! No, our yard is not for sale...but some great things are! Sail by (EARLY!) to find a treasure, and catch up on all our other exciting upcoming events while you are here. Be sure to bring some bags to carry your goods home!

and yes of course you can browse through the store as well :)

Thursday, June 9, 2011

June Newsletter

Click on image to view larger more readable version
then click on it again to magnify even more :)
a larger version of Must Haves

Monday, June 6, 2011

Not Just Paper Planes

NOT JUST PAPER PLANES
June 10 – July 4
  Opening reception: Friday, June 10 at 8 pm; Live music by L CON at 9:30 pm

Participating artists:
Lizz Aston, Jessica Bartram, Karen Carrillo, Carolanne Graham, Jelena Pticek, and Nadia Tan


Freedom is taking part in the Living with Washi: Japanese Paper Inspiring Daily Life - a celebration of the art of Japanese paper by The Japanese Paper Place.

We invited various artists and designers to create using washi to employ the versatility and strength of this sustainable material. The result is a collection of everything from wearable pieces to sculptural objects, blurring the boundaries between art and craft, paper and fabric.




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