dong tai lu, shanghai
Color and texture have been lifelong motivators; inspiring me as early as my first steps
through the aisles of hardware, fabric, and antique stores. I've always been
easily enchanted; sifting through buttons, learning the purpose of a tool,
and discovering new art supplies are still magical to me.
A lifetime of hunting the lost or discarded keepsakes of others has kindled an equally
long running need to create something from nothing. As an art teacher in Maryland for over twenty years,
one of my greatest pleasures was nurturing my students’ creative endeavors; encouraging them
to see beauty and potential in something others may disregard or consider mundane.
Shanghai, China, was home for five years, so some of my work has an Asian influence. The city's sights,
sounds, smells, tastes, and tactile distractions caused sensory overload daily. A notebook and camera
were my constant companions; we foraged hidden alleyways and rummaged through
flea market stalls searching for treasures. Looking beyond the dust and dirt could reveal
a jewel in the rough, patiently waiting to be rescued and restored to its glory.
Stumbling upon a good find can be a gift offering numerous possibilities. Colors in an embroidered robe may
inspire me to record them first with camera and then on canvas; engaging their likeness with layers of
color-friendly fabrics. Another glance at the same robe may coax those colors to dance through my head
in the form of a necklace, begging to be beaded. They may request that a small souvenir-sized segment
of their loveliness be honored in a protective housing of glass and silver -
destined to be celebrated around the neck of a fellow adventurous spirit.
The celebration is ongoing, because each one leads to another...
"When I can no longer create anything, I’ll be done for."
- Coco Chanel
becky blair