Pairs
This blog post is about collecting images of my collage art and or my photography that narrate themselves in pairs.
sometimes its not just a pair. or two. sometimes another photo/ or art pulls the narrative together but hopefully you get what i mean.
i began collecting so to speak in June/2025. I keep adding pairs as they find me.
this 5x5 collage totally reminded me of a former photo i had taken. the collage a joyful experience. the photo…not so much. i was at the laundromat and at the beginnings of a long personal eradication journey of bedbugs. :(
These have SOLD
i met the remarkable artist anne scott in a group that had a desire to photograph nudes. she shot with a rolleiflex camera. a camera new to me. over time we got to know each other and she included me on one of her photography projects that was about members of the community. all of us without smiles and in black and white. a rather candid capture of me. i had just woke up. i felt a tad silly with my little point and shoot. for a time all the people prints hung together in a local coffee shop. i love that she let me capture her in her element. i miss her
rising sun. the local car repair establishment and the people that service my vehicle. i have tremendous gratitude for their care.
when i lived in sumas i discovered that i was near an area where fields of berries were grown. during peak picking season migrant workers were hired to tackle the task. in the news a young man died from the heat while picking berries. he left behind a new bride. the news spired a strike. i felt sad about the way this man died and it was reflected in this image pairing style of collage. many years later this collage spoke to my friend from HS and she purchased it to keep on her desk at work. It was her second purchase of my work. those purchases made me feel like i was part of her life somehow. My friend died in 2024 after a long long battle with cancer.
the sky the day i made this collage.
the photo above was taken on a moving day. a july 4th weekend. of course wicked hot. and the collage followed.
( expressing my subconscious mind )
The collage SOLD
the above BLUE new moon collage reminded me of this photo taken in Seattle at SAM
I was in a group exhibit where our prompt was resourced from local historical archives. 2018
on a bit of a road trek with a friend. i was photographing the glorious yellow in this field and my friend took this snapshot of me in her side mirror. ( thank you nancy )
when a friend and talented woodworker collaborated with me and created this stunning frame for my photograph. It was juried onto a group exhibit called: A Sense Of Place” Turning the image upside down to present it felt like a bit of creative brilliance on my part. The one of a kind framed photograph sold and helped fund my relocation to the midwest. 2015.
Both SOLD to the same beloved collector. journal collage 2016. the second includes stitching and ribbon. 2018 ( I think )
there is a story here. but it’s almost like you had to be there to fully get the scenario. when i lived in this work/loft space ( my most unusual living circumstance ever ) the only window that opened was above the garage door. and while that window could be open seasonally there came a time where it was best if it was closed. airflow in the space was stifling. i had some friends make this screen for me. it was in general a rather good idea but needed some help in its execution and design. and it probably wasn’t exactly safe. sigh
random graffiti on the other side of a bank parking lot. then painted over. to date. ( july 2025) there is now a new mural in that space. * that first capture was awarded a local photography award.
This 2025 version/mural in the same location doesn’t present itself as strongly as the other. at least from a distance. or through my cars windshield. It is impressive along the entire length of this building. I will try and capture it again next time i am near.
the neighbors flowers. 2010
the initial installation was titled “project runway”. It was comprised of 15 7ft long banners of individual collages. the space that it was shown in hung all the banners from the ceiling and you could walk through them. making the installation interactive. many shared how they loved the two sidedness of each collage and all the long dangling black threads. once the installation was complete. I sorted the collages into themes. Above is one said theme. “The eyes have it” these are pieced together with safety pins. as a whole the wall hanging is about 5 ft by 5 ft or about 25 collages. A few of the above SOLD
I strongly encourage my students to resist using words in collage art. i have no issue with vision or dream boards having words. in those instances words are a directive. but in collage art a word will direct the user experience vs letting the art speak for itself. above is a journal 5x5 stitched collage. it’s front. and its back. while making this piece the word “life” needed to be said. but had i placed it on the front side, the word would have taken over. so while i follow my own advice and keep words out of my collage art. i do allow them on the back side of art or on a page that just hosts words in the back of a journal.
above. for the serious love of seasonal tomatoes and the classic BLT sandwich.
below. more for the love of….tomato
i drove by these chairs often. i always wondered who sat in them. i loved the his and her element. I love how worn they were. i love how different they feel photographed in black and white vs in color. I took these photos a few days after a relationship of mine failed.
the next time i drove by the old chairs were replaced by the two in the photograph below.
i thought to myself. things change. couples change. i also thought these new chairs might not weather as well.
the artist above. lily emmerick requested friends photos during the pandemic. she used the photos as references to paint from so that she could keep her friends near. i found her painting of me so remarkably endearing.
the above pairing is child art created by my son. and by my daughter.
i love this little plate full of small bits of cut magazines. the round of green glass keeps them from blowing around. wish i had more of those. one can see top left the pic of the blue scale and how it finally became part of a 5x5 stitched collage.
local food truck. clearly serving tacos!
two collages representing time. one was for a local art call. the other is part of the kidney series. ( found here )
these are early stitched collages that i eventually tossed in a grommet for ease of hanging. the main focus are overexposed photos of geese that a friend sent along. i feel so very endeared to them.
I visited my daughter in NY. we always get a pedicure. its the only time i get them. which means the last time i had one was 2019. ( just saying) when i returned from my visit. this collage came to be. i love the parallel of it to the photo i took in NY
its called the drive by project. there is a post about it here. Our community is exploding with remarkable murals. on August 3rd this one was started on two sides of a highway underpass. it wasn’t until 3 weeks later that i was able to take more drive by captures of it. This one i took yesterday. 9/10 and i like how it shows up in bw.
I took this first photo of the same underpass in January of 2025. I had heard that a mural was going up in this location. As I glanced at this scenario I wondered how this particular part would transform. here we have it. before and after. it amuses me that these are drive by captures and that the artist seems to have seen me taking the photo
If you follow me on FB you are aware of the #emptyfridgeclub game that I play. Basically I use what i have in my fridge to empty. I do this partly to save $, partly so I can give the fridge a cleaning once in awhile, and partly because to me using what’s on hand is practical. the images above are from oct 2025. my last grocery shop was 26 days prior. I have many images of things fridge that should be a post at some point. i also started a fridge project some years ago of other folks and their fridge.
On FB I wrote: a full fridge = a sense of abundance, an empty fridge = a sense of resourcefulness and clean. during the pandemic grocery shopping was very triggering. for me the panic i felt and experienced physically/emotionally was very real, and sometimes i would have to leave and shop another day. it wasn't until june/july of 2020 that grocery p/u accepted EBT cards. shopping online these past 5 years now has literally saved me. saved me from panic. literally saved me so much $ and in theory helped me be prepared for the empty fridge game i like to play.
friendly tip: i wrap my produce in tea towels. it has produce keep longer. i call these plastic creatures “the gang” and they make me smile.
In 2015 I moved my life 2300 miles west. i secured a roommate circumstance through craigs list. that was thwarted 4 days after my arrival. said roommate said i couldn’t stay there. she became a roommate-zilla. it took me 4 months to find a new living circumstance. in a bit of a defiant act i unpacked some of my belongings. see stack of boxes. as an average it seemed i used 32 boxes every time i moved. sortof an interesting detail. the collage on the right represents two woman struggling to get along. it shows unspoken words and the stacks of bags look like my stacks of boxes.
I partly managed my 2015 move by packing my entire life in this 8ft by 8ft cube. it arrived by a date I specified. The guys who delivered my new mattress unloaded said packing cube, they were my heroes. I hired them for the move out of that first apartment. They witnessed things roommate-zilla. Things you can’t even imagine. The second move was a different kind of challenge and again. they were my heroes. In 2025 I purchased a new mattress and it was sold to me by the young man on the left. How small world and crazy is that.
My wonderful little compact car betty blue was struggling. my goal was that she get me west. and, she did that. she clocked 100,000 miles while here in the west. one day i was commuting to a class i was teaching. my brakes failed. like seriously no brakes. i was able to park her here. the second capture is of the man and dog duo who assisted me. another person drove my car using the handbrake to a mechanic. her brake lines were diagnosed with cancer or very severe rust. they crumbled to the touch. Below. I was collaging daily at this time and this was my subconscious mind acknowledging my need for help. i needed a new car.
when i lived in the little house that could, my property had the oldest tree on the block. it was a burr oak tree. in the autumn her leaf drop looked like the above. a friend shoveled it all to the curb. shoveled.
