Whodunnit?
Jenny Dowd
Whodunnit? is my favorite event & fundraiser at the Art Association, and it was last night! This yearly event is a celebration of tiny anonymous art. Around 200 artists create and donate 6x6 inch artworks that are signed on the back.
One reason I like this event so much is that I find the 6x6 inch format difficult. After my usual struggle, the final piece often marks the exploration of a new idea in my studio. The small canvas becomes a sketch for a new path or it helps me figure out a problem to work through an idea I've been mulling over.
I've made several pieces over the past years for this event, but haven't managed to photograph them all. Here's what I found...
2010
Tooth Fairy Notes
At this time I was trying out some new materials and working to make the canvas feel more like clay. I was also writing some funny little stories and haiku about the Tooth Fairy.
2015
Envy
I think this was the first time I made the "canvas" instead of using the provided canvas. But most importantly, this piece was the first time flowers or little mischevious vases showed up in my sculpture!
2016
Remember when?
I'm still mulling this idea over, of adding depth by combining drawing with sculpture. This was the piece that started me thinking about that idea.
2017
Books
This was a tiny version of a small piece I had made in 2016 for a book arts exhibition at the Laramie County Library. (See that piece Here.) I had lots of leftover little books and wanted to revisit the idea and keep the background open. I added the flowers because as much as I love having flowers around the house, they have to be put up on high shelves or else my cat knocks the vase over. So I'm often finding wilted flowers here and there.
2018
The flower stage
This time I wanted to make something that would change with different backgrounds (I only made one, but photographed it on a few different papers.) I've been thinking a lot about stages and invented settings. I've also recently discovered that I love working with cardboard and I like showing some of the "how" behind the craft.
I'm still excited about the ideas behind each of these pieces (and the ones I forgot to photograph) and am looking forward to seeing what these ideas lead to!