PART TWO, WOMEN'S WORK/ WOVEN STORIES

Ruth tapes the trim on before gluing and stitching.

Ruth Greenberger had brought with her a beautiful striped fabric, and being a self-confessed "more of a writer" than visual artist. She had also imagined decorating it with all the hearts and objects she has collected, but it wasn't working. Then she applied an image of la Virgen de Guadalupe, a retablo by one of the Santa Fe artists she knows, and enshrined it with gold trim. As she worked on it further, and read more about la Virgen in a book she discovered in her room, she wrote on the lines of the fabric itself, and affixed milagros along the bottom. 

GRACIAS A LA VIDA, Ruth Greenberger, mixed media, approx. 35"

Her theme became "healing and gratitude" and she feels she will continue writing healing words on it even after she returns home. Good job, Ruth!

Norma begins making decisions.

The organizer, Norma, at first though she was too busy to join us, but after seeing the energy of our creative buzz on the first day, she showed up ready to play on day two. Her realistic self determined to start on a small piece, using raw canvas and some objects she had in her bag of tricks. 

MORE OR LESS, Norma Hawthorne, mixed media, 20" 

Among her tricks were cut out words from a magazine she acquired in the hospital where she acquired her new knee, plus a hammered metal bird that would symbolize the sense  of freedom she has gained in the last year. Her finished huipil, with its whimsical sleeves and fringe made of her own felting, is a story of liberation and the joy of living. Good job, Norma!