Shaun Kardinal

This new series takes a leap from the minimalist compositions made last year.

Simply embroidering postcards alone, I was able to achieve a wide array of compositions–but ultimately I wanted to work bigger and try more elaborate patterns and shapes with the thread. First, I needed larger imagery, which, most notably in this series, I found in the beautiful pages of 1950s LIFE magazines. A long-time fascination with radial compositions and mandalas led to these radiating layers of geometric collage.

Unlike most of  my previous embroidered works, which were designed and punctured from the back (almost arbitrarily in relation to the imagery the thread would overlay), these layered pieces required a lot of attention paid to every element, in order to keep things lined up and symmetrical.

I enjoyed distorting and juxtaposing these mid-century images. It was a challenging series, and I’m looking forward to creating more in this style.

This series debuted in a solo exhibition at Joe Bar in April, 2012. Available works in the shop!

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Created for ONN/OF, a two-day art festival of Light.

I was invited to contribute a piece of art and a drink recipe for the Visual Art Happy Hour of the ONN/OF art festival, which was all about providing Light in the midst of Seattle’s generally dreary gray winter. During one of these gray mornings, I took a photo from my living room window. While there was some digital manipulation in the textures of the clouds in the photo, there was not much further color-adjusting necessary–it really was a perfectly flat, gray morning.

I had two archival inkjet prints made of the shot. Still interested in embroidery, I decided to sew up the first, preparing a mandala pattern which generated a sun-like shape.

The second print, altered with a set of glowing orbs radiating from its center, served as a platter for the drink portion of my contribution: Das Hermosa Mimosa, an editioned set of mimosa gelatin shots, presented individually in 1.5oz paint containers–wee doses of delicious light and beauty. A tasty little treat, I thought.

I am happy to report that all 25 shots were snatched up during the Happy Hour. I hope they brought a glow to those who consumed them!

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A series created for my new shop!

I am very excited to launch a new online shop, featuring this series of nine new oversize postcards.

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A Troy Gua Production

Troy’s latest exhibition, The Sweet Life (Act Like You’re Interested), is a show ‘with many threads’–figuratively with its multiple intertwining core ideas and, with my contribution, quite literally. Troy asked three other artists to generate work for his show. Under his direction [thread], he provided me with a chosen TV Guide cover (after this set), which would rest on the arm of his father’s [thread] old recliner. Surrounding it: trash as art [thread], cleverly-arranged and -manipulated family portraits, art-negating-artworks [thread], and a plastic Jesus swinging from a toy helicopter [thread], among others. If that reads like a mess, it’s probably because it is a little–and it’s a mess I’m very pleased to be a part of.

The show runs through November 24 at NEPO House in Columbia City, Seattle.

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