The Rabbit Room

Last night I was in the Hatch for a good while. I sipped red, painted green, listened to blues and glowed gold in the spotlight. See, I have this clip-on lamp that hangs above my worktable (and directly overhead) which makes it possible to function in a shop that  was absolutely not made for working at night (or working at all, really — more of a storage kind of situation which I’ve forced into a different function). What I’m getting at, why I said I glowed gold, it’s the lamp, it makes my hair shine like in that four o’ clock sun. Like a dusty angel. I always digress.

By the by….this evening I’m going to be filmed while I create a piece of art. I’ll be featured in a music video for my fine friend and co-rabbit, Jason Gray. He’s tall, awesome, big-hearted, talented, sometimes saucy, always hilarious, and just a pearl of a guy. His song, called I Am New, centers around the theme of reclamation. Our tired souls and sad old hearts have been reclaimed, our Father makes us new. Then He stands back, admires, smiles, and calls us beautiful. A hard concept to swallow but I try to understand, fresh again, every day of my life. So if you know anything of my art, you’ll know that it naturally fits right into this scheme. I use any junky, rusted, worn, discarded matter (free is the best kind) I can get my crafty hands on and then undertake the task of creating something new, something bright, something touching and connective to the spiit, lovely to the eye.

The prospect of a camera on me whilst I do this tinkering work I do, well….it is unnerving and exciting at once. I might freeze. My movements might be halting and clumsy, affected or fake….but probably not. I’m curious to watch my own hands from another perspective as they classify the elements, plan placement, hover above the wood’s surface, cast shadows, saw and sand the wood, pause, drill the holes, tap the nails, correct the false moves. Hopefully the birth of a cohesive work of art will occur naturally and fluidly tonight.

Thankfully my face won’t be captured, but my hands and torso will…will my fingers look fat on camera? Maybe I should have cut back on the salt on my tomatoes at lunch… What shirt should I wear? Boots? Toms? Apron!? Oh gosh, the shop is a terrible  wreck. I want desperately to appear consummately artsy and innovative, totally with-it, hip, cool. Oh girl, silly girl…

What I really look forward to, though, is seeing how all of this varied footage comes together to the tune of Jason’s song, to watch the story that Grant Howard creates unfold. So many mediums colliding! It’s going to be a veritable combustion of our arts. Stay tuned.