dresstags on foreign shores

May this dress remind you to learn from the past and to savor the peppermint and thyme you find along the way (in Dougga, Tunisia)

For those of you not on Facebook I want to share lovely phenomena which has come from this cyber connection that social media allows us.

(Not that I am in anyway promoting FB.  As I have mentioned here I have a love hate relationship with social media, there is good and bad, as it is with many relationships.  But today's story springs from of the good.

dresstags heading to Asia

Thanks to social media my dresstagging practice has reach a much larger audience. That is very gratifying since I usually never see where or if my dresstags are found.  But with the wonders of Iphones, instagram and the likes, I can post pictures of these little parcels of goodwill and good fortune and their message is sent and received virtually, and usually to much enthusiasm. 

Guangdong Museum, Guangzhou, China

Clara's story: "This dresstag was left at the Guangdong Museum's small shop in Guangzhou. A little later I could not resist, went back there and saw the moment the young woman picked up the dress and looked very intrigued by it. She looked around and saw me, I guess she connected... and then she smiled. I smiled back and left."

This positive energy has been very important when inspiration fails or financial stress looms.  This cyber-encouragement lead me to doing my Daily Dress Inspirations blog/group, my daily morning meditation practice where I find a quote that I need to hear for that day/at that moment and post it with or without a dress.

May this dress inspire you to appreciate the art all around you. — Dar Ben-Gacem, Tunis, Tunisia

This practice has been invaluable to me during these past months and appears to be supportive to others as well.  Via Facebook I have received messages of how the quote I choose what perfect for someone to read.  Here is a comment that was shared on FB.  I LOVE  the idea that I live in a corner of her life:

"my experience has been that I/we are planted where we/I can meet those special people bringing in the light, lessons and love in unique ways that I/we most need at the time we/I are in need. Virginia Fitzgerald was introduced to me by my daughter the first year I lived in Massachusetts. Her creativity is the outward result of her inner beauty. It seems she shares each day exactly what I need. I have a feeling she lives in a corner of my life just waiting to provide these dresses just for me. So happy you have found her as well. We all make the world go round!!!!" G. Armstrong

The dress on the photo was left at a market in GZ, with the delicious dragon fruits. I left there and some 10 minutes later, when we walked back to that area, the dress was already gone and a young woman, that I think works there, was looking at us with a very big and friendly smile!!!! — in Guangzhou, China.

Social media has increased the reach of my dresstagging practice.   Because of FB one of my artist/friend/dresstag followers, who was heading to China asked if I wanted her to take some dresstags with her!!! YES!! and I posted on FB that my dresstags were heading to Asia, which lead to two other friends offering to take some to Tunisia!!!where they were going to spread dresstag inspiration in french!!! So very exciting!! 

So during the past week I have been receiving beautiful photos from abroad.  These pictures have been tremendously welcomed by me, amidst this times of holiday stress and some loneliness triggered by figuring out how these family focused time unfold when you are divorce.  I am continually amazed how my dresswork seems to go out into the world, just to return to help me.

left in the Alps

left at the Frankfurt Airport

May this dress bring you (and us) safe and sweet travels! This one was left on a shelf of maple syrup in the Montreal airport.

So here are some of these treasures, most received this month, and one from the Alps a few summers ago!! Thank you dress carrying world travelers, Martha Calderaro and family, Liz Gray, Jacqui Bloomberg and Clara Bohrer, I am truly grateful!!! peace

link to the FB photo album #dresstagsabroad  and you can follow my dresstagging practice on instagram, @virginiafitzart

'the dress to the rescue' . . . a tale of loss and redemption via the dress

how, once again, 'the dress' saved me . . . .

'moss' 2dec

As I headed into the month of December

 I was plagued with uncertainty and exhaustion.  

My long term substitute job at Dana Hall had ended, and

  'breaking open' was now a thing of the past.  

I didn't have anything on the agenda. 

'ties' 3dec

 In many ways it was a needed and healthy place to be

 for someone who has been in triage mode for years, 

but it also sent me into a petite free fall 

- I was feeling lost! 

'dusting' 4dec
Then one gray and dingy December morning, 
out with my trusty companion Scruffy, 
a clump on bright green moss caught my attention. 
 I have always wanted to make a dress of moss, and since I had no where to run off to or schedule to keep, I realized that I could stop and make a dress!
And, as always happens whenever I make one of my ephemeral dress, 
I felt better. 
I was outside, in the brisk, fresh, new england winter, 
finding the best pieces of moss 
with which to create a dress. 
 I felt myself righted a bit.

'poetic' 4 dec

And then the next day Scruffy and I discovered discarded, 

old, rusty and luscious railroad ties!!! Another dress!! 

 I had a series, 

posting the dresses on Instagram, 

with 'hashtag' no less (#decemberdress ).  

I was back, baby, eager for the next day

 to see what materials would call to me.

'lichen' 5dec

my lovely assistant, scruffy

I have been intrigued how this December experience 

is strikingly similiar to 

the week in August of 2006, 

when I started my infatuation with the dress, 

aka 'the dress project'.

'ever - green???' 6dec
I was on a family vacation in Wells Beach, ME 
and feeling out of sorts then too. 
 Earlier in the summer I had a successful gallery show of acrylic still life's at Natick's Gallery55.
One might wonder, 
why out of sorts after a successful show??
Good question!

'prints' 8dec. The Porches Inn, North Adams, MA

Well, first, this exhibit showed me that art, 

no matter what kind of art, 

has a voice and I wanted to give that voice more depth, 

put more substance into my art.  As well, 

I wanted my work to be more personal, 

have more to offer the viewers.

But I was not sure how to do all that.

'lathe' 10 dec, Dana Hall School

the lathe in action at the 'Makers' exhibit at the Art Gallery at Dana Hall

$econdly, $ince my painting$ '$old', my internal voices bombarded me; 'paint more garlic$, people loved the garlic$', 'more pear$', bigger canvase$',
blah, blah, blah.
This tainted my studio practice. 
I was thinking too much, 
the work was becoming labored and looked it! So I headed off to Maine artistically struggling.

'by the tracks' 15dec

Then I 'stumbled upon' the idea of creating a dress out of materials from the beach.  

(click here for an article about the beginning of the dress project)

With the first dress, the floodgates opened and 

I was back in that most amazing place where I am just creating and NOT thinking!! Nirvana!! 

'slush' 16dec

so patient!!

And as it was in 2006, when 'the dress' guided me onto this exciting creative journey I call 'the dress project',  this month, as Scruffy and I were out and about making dresses, things started happening in other parts of my life. 

I was called to do some more substituting at Dana Hall (money is always welcomed), and I got interviewed for a 'possible' feature article in a local arts magazine?!?! (more about that later :) 

I truly feel rescued!!

'snowed in' 17dec

I was back in the wonderful state of thinking about material and dresses on a daily basis.  I found myself following familiar self-imposed guidelines.  

First and foremost, 

I will not hurt or cut down any living plant for a dress!! 

All the 'material' is found, already discarded by Mother Nature.  

'kids' menu' 18dec

Second requirement: mix up my techniques; 

if I 'dug out' the dress one day I don't want to dig out another dress.  

I like to challenge myself! I like to make each dress unique!! 

'twiggy' 19 dec

I remember this requirement was very important for my dailydress journals; if I was doing a lot of collaging then I needed to draw, paint or do a subtractive process.  

'fallen' 20 dec,  Newton Public Library, Newton, MA

There were other similarities between this series and the Wells series. 

'digging in the dirt'  21dec.

I would head out to the beach with one preconceived idea of the material that I would be using for that day's dress, and then end up using something completely different. 

These december dresses are no different.  

I would head out into the winter landscape 

thinking today I'll use 'blank',  

only to discover a much more suited material for the day!!

'ginger' 21 dec. making the famous and delicious family recipe for
Anne's Scotch Ginger bread with Maya for a cookie swap

Also once I start to focus on a certain material and 

concentrate on creating the dress,  

I find wonderful treasures.   It is as if I suddenly 

had special, X-ray finder's eyes, 

discovering the tiny starfish at the beach 

or the empty cocoon of a cicada at Wellesley College.  

'everandalways' 22dec. 
this title references how my dresses are forever and always there for me!

 So here is my #decemebrdress series so far, 

made out of snow, slush, twigs and so much more.  

I have posted the picture of the dress and 

then a picture of the location where each dress was made, 

this helps give a sense of scale and place.

'christmas' 25dec. Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA

Below is a link to an album on Facebook if you are interested.

  Also if you want to follow this series of ephemeral dresses and my other practice, dresstagging, you can follow me on twitter or on instagram at virginiafitzart.  

Out of the world of social media 

Instagram is my favorite because it is visual, a cyber picture book. 

'vinyl' 26dec, Cambridge, MA

Hope you enjoyed this tale of loss and redemption via the dress ~

peace

You can use this link to share this photo album with anyone, even if they don't have a Facebook account. Anyone with the link will be able to see your photo album.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151893758928634.1073741867.127363913633&type=1&l=6612aa2530

Fitzgerald collaborates on ‘breaking open’ exhibit

'breaking open' got some press!!!

click on the below link to read the entire article!!! :)

Fitzgerald collaborates on ‘breaking open’ exhibit

'breaking open' is closing this weekend ~

'tethered and torqued' works so well in the space

The count down has begun . . . 'breaking open' at Fountain Street Fine Art will close on Sunday! 

I am sad this exhibit will be closing because I am very proud of how the pieces came together.  

And there are some of my pieces that are more like installations and which work very well in this space, and I appreciate that they won't be exhibited like this again.  

But it has been a great run.  I have had heard lovely comments from those who have been able to make it to the gallery.  

In fact a fellow artist, Catherine Carter, brought her Framingham State classes to the exhibit, and then wrote an insightful review on her blog.

students making notes 

Here is a section from Carter's post:

The most impressive takeaway from our visit, and the one which I think will provide an ongoing memory for the class, is Virginia's creative approach to LIFE. It was apparent from this exhibit that every day is an adventure to her. New artistic ideas are always flashing through her mind, new expressive possibilities are always suggesting themselves to her, and she is always seeking new methods and materials to communicate her ideas and visions. Her open-mindedness and free spirit are inspiring, especially to these college students whose lives at this stage are increasingly suffocated by deadlines, requirements, and responsibilities. It's important to remind them that one of the reasons we are here (The Reason, in my book) is the need to savor the sensuous, impractical events in our lives, and our field trip experience today provided that example.

click here to read more

And besides Catherine's wonderful words about the show, she asked her students to pick one of the pieces and write their reaction to it.  I am so curious to reads their thoughts.

Also last night I hosted an evening gathering at the gallery, which, despite the cold and rainy weather was well attended.  It was a great group of visitors with great interest and wonderful questions, and I am all too happy to discuss the work, my thoughts and my processes.  

Thank you to all that stopped by last night.

So, if you want to experience the exhibit,

it will still be  up and open for to more days.  

The gallery's hours are :

Friday 11-5pm

Saturday 11-5pm

Sunday 11-5pm.

and by appointment

And if you need extra incentive ~ I am gallery sitting Saturday afternoon from 2-5pm.  

Then as of 5pm Sunday I pack it up and make room for Fountain Street's next exhibit: Natural Selection. Hope you can stop by . . . 

going out with a bang!!!!

'tethered and torqued' detail

Incredibly 'breaking open' ends this sunday!!! Yes, a month has past, and although it feels as if I was just installing the work; this Sunday evening I will be packing 'tethered and torqued', rocks and all, back into my van.  All in the life of being an artists, which is all good.

But before this exhibit rides off into the sunset, there is still a chance to experience the show.
 Fountain Street Fine Art will be open its regular hours:
Gallery Hours Thursday - Sunday 11-5 and by appointment (508-879-4200)

And to add to the fun ~ we are hosting an evening reception tomorrow, Thursday Nov. 7, 5:30-8pm, for those who can't make it during daytime hours.  I appreciate this is a very busy time for folks so I hope to make it easy for people to stop by.  Because my work is more installation and if one gets to the gallery one gets the 'experience' of the work, which photographs can't convey.

So if you are in the area, please join us
~

 ‘break open’ the champagne- celebration;

‘break open’ a geode-exploration, discovery;

‘break open’ the safe- intrusion, violation;

‘break open’ a case-success, achievement.

‘breaking open’  ~ a provocative exhibit, by two mixed media artists, intended to ‘break’ or prompt a reexamination of old ideas or beliefs.

' breaking open’ comes to a close this weekend!!

but there is still time to come experience

this exhibit/ installation by

Virginia Fitzgerald & Anne Gilson

Join us, this Thursday, November 7^th, 5:30 – 8pm

for an evening reception of wine and good conversation.

Artist Virginia Fitzgerald will be there to chat about the work.

Also the gallery will be open its regular hours:

Friday	11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Saturday**	11:00 am – 5:00 pm
** Virginia will be gallery sitting 2-5pm
Sunday	11:00 am – 5:00 pm @ 5 ~the show is over!

we hope you can stop by & thank you!!

Fountain Street Fine Art

59 Fountain Street, Framingham, MA 01702

Phone:(508) 879-4200

www.fountainstreetfineart.com

'metamorphosis' in front, 'tethered and torqued' in background