Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation

Welcome back to the Shoe Diaries, our guest blog series in conjunction with the Morris Museum’s “The Shoe Must Go On!” exhibit.

Last week we heard from Linda Moore, Chief Operating Officer at the Museum. Today’s post comes from Jerilyn MacLaren-Hall who has visited The Shoe Must Go On! exhibition many times, and joined the party for Girls’ Night Out. She is an Experience Design (XD) Strategist at MISI Company.

Jerilyn MacLaren-Hall

Allow me to begin with: I love shoes.

I am obsessed with them and the obsession apparently started at a very early age. My mom often tells her friends that I changed my shoes 5 and 6 times a day when I was little to make sure they all got a fair chance to strut their stuff at least once before I grew out of them. My husband tells his version of my first time meeting his parents down in Florida and the confusion caused by my 2 large suitcases for a 3 day trip. His explanation to his Dad: “the first suitcase is what you would expect from a girl. The second? It’s all shoes. Shoes for every outfit and an outfit for every possible occasion…”.

Shoes from That’s Entertainment Section of the exhibition

When Linda Moore first told me about the exhibit, it was Christmas-time 2009. We were having a larger conversation about how visitors experience the museum and more importantly, how they become aware and engaged by it. The shoe exhibit was one of many Linda would tell me about that night as a hook for getting me engaged and ready to contribute. She had me at shoes.

Later on, I would come to learn that this exhibit wasn’t just about fashion shoes though – it was about much much more. This exhibit would take an age old discussion of what shoes say about the woman and expand it to really touch upon, what do shoes tell us about the artist who created them, the person who is wearing them, and ultimately, the society that is endorsing them. This exhibit would tell a story of patriarchies and matriarchies yes, but it would also tell us stories of national politics, global warming, the gold medal dreams of youth, and lastly, our human story and the steps walked to get us where we are today.

Mother’s Day at the exhibit opening : my Mom (Marilyn MacLaren) with Linda Moore, Morris Museum COO

I took my Mom to the exhibit on Mother’s Day (this would be the first of several visits to this exhibit for me). It was probably one of the most lovely and engaging afternoons I have spent with Mom – not because of the disco shoes that gave us a good giggle, but because of the sense of awe that a pair of bound feet shoes can always stir in any onlooker. This wasn’t my first time seeing shoes like those, but it was my first time talking with my Mom about what it must have been like to be so defined by an article of clothing, and an article that was hidden no less! Even at an early age, my Mom always made sure I knew – “NEVER be defined by what you wear, or how you look. Instead, define your clothes by how you wear them – and define yourself by how you behave and what you think.” But what about the women who wore those tiny shoes? Did the shoes really define them? Or did they just fulfill a societal / public duty that behind the scenes, in the private sphere, was completely different?

A proud moment for me shoe-wise, at Girls’ Night Out shoe party

This exhibit was striking to both of us because no matter which shoes we were looking at, our conversation focused on the “who,” not the “what.” Even as we purred over zebra, it was less the height of the heel and more its design (and its designer) that we talked about. We admired the sense of play he expressed in creating a heel that made no logical sense when you thought about wearing it, and yet – has a heel ever made sense?

I fell in love with Etu Evans’s zebra striped “Harp Heel” shoe – and was thrilled to meet him.

In my mind, shoes are a powerful weapon. They can reveal so much about who we are and what we value (and I don’t mean labels). My favorite pair? A pair of basic black patent leather Tahari pumps with heels so torn and chewed I couldn’t even give them to Goodwill if I wanted to. They are nothing special to look at (truth be told, they never were), but the memories of first sales pitches won, promotions earned, and most importantly, Friday evening 7pm dashes through Dulles Airport to get home to my family, give them a place in my shoe rack that could never be filled by a newer, shinier, pair.

Welcome back to our 4-part series, the Future of Fine Crafts, in which we’re following student-artists and their experiences at the Peters Valley Craft Center, a national center for fine craft education which is celebrating its 40th anniversary.

Today, we hear from Susan Kornacki, whose experience at Peters Valley reminds us that art and the act of creating can bring us together as a community.

Making paper (left) and sculpting with it in the Fibers Studio

Susan Kornacki

I recently graduated from the State University of New York College at Fredonia with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Visual Arts, a combination that tends to elicit raised eyebrows and questions like “And what do you plan to do with that?” I accepted an Assistantship position at the Peters Valley Craft Center Fibers Studio with the hope of finding some excellent, pithy answers to that key question – and, to my joy, ended up finding much more than that.

When I arrived in Peters Valley, dusk was settling and the day lilies were just beginning to close. I was awestruck by the natural beauty around me: unpacking was slow, as I kept getting distracted by the majestic pine forest across the street from Hilltop House, where I would be staying for four weeks. Bullfrogs chortled in a nearby pond, and gradually the fireflies began to illuminate the darkening air. That night I slept in a new bed in a new home, wondering what tomorrow would bring.

The next day I met with Fran, the Fibers Studio Manager. After a brief studio clean-up, we headed down to the kitchen to eat lunch. My nerves jangled as I contemplated meeting a host of new people. Any concerns were immediately erased as I settled onto a wooden picnic table bench with my plate full of food, however – pleasant laughter rang around me as the other people at the table gently eased me into their conversation. I was struck by the warm atmosphere, and the sense of community I immediately felt. As I reflect on my experience at Peters Valley, this first meal remains a vivid memory. Never have I felt so comfortable in a new place, on the first day of a new job.

Throwing a bowl in the Ceramics Studio

I had the pleasure of assisting Pat Hickman’s class, “Tensile Translucence.” As the studio assistant, I was responsible for ensuring that the students always had whatever they needed, and were comfortable and well-supplied; connecting Pat to any resource she might need; and keeping the studio pristine. Going into this experience, I knew I would learn about a variety of new materials and techniques, and would have the unique opportunity of meeting and working with a range of artists. As a sculptor, the former appealed to me, and as a brand new professional, the latter was essential, too. What I did not anticipate was how much I would learn about pedagogy at Peters Valley.

Observing Pat Hickman teach was an insightful, educational experience. By incorporating her knowledge of various cultures and textile traditions into her lesson plans, she brought an anthropological twist to her class on hog gut sculpting. I’d been wondering how to combine my interest in cultures and women’s studies with art education, and Pat showed me how to blend all three seamlessly. She shared anecdotes about Japanese women tying a thousand red knots in a war memento for soldiers leaving a village, and Turkish women communicating secret messages through intricate head scarf embroidery. These insights supplemented assignments created to encourage the students to explore their own definitions of home, breath, and power. By assisting this class, and learning alongside the students as I facilitated their working environment, I was exposed to a new teaching style that inspired me to pursue and overlap my interests.

Sculpting with paper, grass and light in the Fibers Studio

During my assistantship, I was able to continue creating my own artwork while assisting others in the creation of theirs. With Fran’s guidance and support, I learned papermaking skills and began sculpting with my homemade paper. I also experimented with hog gut, and at the end of my assistantship, was able to take the free class that assistants earn: I enrolled in “Firing the Noborigama,” and fell in love with the wood firing process. My already deep fascination with ceramics was strengthened by John Dix’s excellent workshop on this Japanese firing method.

Loading the Noborigama

Something magical happened in this class: we bonded. I’ve seen communities spring up quickly and unexpectedly in ceramics studios before, and should not have been surprised, but this was the fastest I’d seen it happen. In five days, we warmed up to one another, joked, shared stories. As I watched the boundaries come down between the students, I pondered the power of art to form communities. In a rapidly digitizing world that can isolate human beings, the development of community is becoming a fascination of mine. How does one create an environment where people feel not only inspired but also safe, a space that nurtures a sense of belonging?

Peters Valley is such a place. Through my assistantship and as an emerging artist, I was able to benefit from the warm and creatively active environment, and begin to learn how one might foster similar community art centers in other spaces. Peters Valley helped me hone my professional ambitions and sense of social responsibility into a cohesive plan: in the future, I will attend graduate school for either studio arts and art education, or non-profit arts administration. Thanks to Peters Valley, I am now equipped with a variety of tools and ideas with which to achieve my goals and dreams.

* * *

Located in the Delaware Water Gap, Peters Valley offers 2- to 5-day workshops in blacksmithing, ceramics, fibers, fine metals, photography, wood and special topics including printmaking books & paper, drawing, and glass. The Center provides immersion experiences that appeal to anyone who wants to be a part of a creative, learning, and solutions-seeking community.

Welcome to Shoe Diary Wednesdays!

We are pleased to partner with the Morris Museum on a guest blog series for the next four Wednesdays to highlight their current exhibition, The Shoe Must Go On. The exhibition includes over 300 different shoes and explores shoes from many different “walks” of life.

This first shoe diary entry comes from Linda Moore, Chief Operating Officer of the Museum and co-curator of the exhibition. Read more to discover how one exhibit can embrace such diverse individuals as Mary, Queen of Scots, Derek Jeter and General David Petraeus!

From the “Art and Sole” section of the exhibit: shoe artist Marina Dempster’s Immune (2008)

What comes to mind when you consider shoes? High fashion accessories that you love, and can’t get enough of? Athletic footwear that will improve your performance? Or perhaps it’s the unique footwear you’ve encountered in global travels?

In planning the shoe exhibition, I was intrigued by the fascinating stories embedded in this common object (which people have been wearing for about 40,000 years according to anthropologists). When you look at a shoe, it may excite you visually as a work of art; it may surprise you with the contemporary styling depicted in historical shoes such as Martha Washington’s slippers, or it may intrigue you that until the early 20th century, Chinese women had bound feet to fit in tiny shoes, 3” long, or that contemporary women squeeze their feet into high fashion shoes with 7” heels.

Because we all wear footwear, the shoes on view have universal appeal, and provide unique insights into design, work and entertainment, across time, culture and geography.

Chinese shoes for bound feet, on loan from the Newark Museum

The museum’s Costume Curator, Elizabeth Laba and I started planning the exhibition by exploring the museum’s historic costume holdings. We were fascinated by the way the humble shoe provided a springboard for more than 15 different themes for the exhibition, ranging from History and Politics to Celebrity Shoes to Sports and Recreation.

For example, for the show’s opening, we hosted a Girls’ Night Out party. One of our visitors, who is a self-proclaimed “shoe-aholic “ and an Anglophile who focuses on Tudor history, came to the event. Upon seeing Mary, Queen of Scots’ shoe, her reaction was, “Wow, that shoe is pretty small, considering that the Queen was 6 feet tall!” I learned something new about Mary, Queen of Scots, and my friend had a new perspective on someone about whom she has read volumes.

Another visitor came to the party looking forward to an all-fashion evening – and wound up texting her 13 year old son several times, with pictures of athletic shoes from sports greats such as Derek Jeter, Muhammad Ali and Mark Sanchez.

Shoes from famous athletes

While the Morris Museum has a significant costume collection, this exhibition was enriched by loans from other cultural and historical organizations, including the Newark Museum, Museum of Early Trades and Crafts, Morris County Historical Society at Acorn Hall and the National Park Service at Washington Headquarters, and Thomas Edison National Historical Park, as well as many individual lenders.

In curating the exhibition, we also reached out to many distinguished individuals with special ties to New Jersey. This enhanced the exhibition with contributions ranging from Yogi Berra’s athletic shoes; to Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s cast, which she wore when she broke her ankle during Senate confirmation hearings; to General David Petraeus’s army boot.

Please share your shoe stories with us! Post a comment about the most interesting shoes you’ve seen or the favorite pair you owned, or, if you’ve seen the exhibit, please tell us which were your favorites!

* * *

The Morris Museum is open Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sundays 1 to 5 p.m. We are closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Admission: $10 for adults; $7 for children/students/seniors.
General admission is free on Thursdays from 5 to 8 p.m.

Guided tours of the exhibition are offered every Saturday at 1 p.m.

When you visit the Morris Museum’s The Shoe Must Go On! exhibition, donate a pair of shoes and receive $1.00 off admission. All shoe donations go to “CUMAC – Feeding People and Changing Lives” in Paterson, NJ.

Please note, the museum will be closed to the public from August 9 to August 15, inclusive.

Welcome back to the Future of Fine Crafts Mondays, where we are following four artist-students during the month of July as they reflect on their experience, art medium, skill development and works of art created during recent classes at Peters Valley Craft Center.

Last week, we heard from Kristin Muller, Executive Director at the Center. Today, we hear from student/artist Kathe Brannon, who reminds us that you don’t have to be a professional to take classes at Peter’s Valley – they welcome anyone with a passion for creativity.

Kathe Brannon

A friend talked me into joining her in an intermediate felting class at Peter’s Valley. We rode together, and every night after class, I thanked her for encouraging me. I knew about PV but never considered taking a class. I thought it was for “professionals,” not avid amateurs like myself.

I’ve been involved with needlework and fiber all my life so I decided to try something new. The environment at Peter’s Valley was perfect: we were at Thunder Mountain in a studio with a beautiful view of the Delaware valley. Also, the lunches at picnic tables were healthy and delicious, the students and instructors were relaxed and pleasant to be with, and the learning experience was exceptional.

In my class, we had a small group of 5 people of all levels of competency. Each person brought their ideas to the group and shared their challenges as well as their successes with everyone. It was a very supportive environment, with humor added in as we worked the felt into vessels. The intimacy of the setting provided our instructor the ability to keep in touch with all of us in the large studio. It was tough work physically, and it was mentally challenging as well – going to the right side of the brain for 8 hours at a stretch was exhilarating. Pam MacGregor, our instructor, was so encouraging, knowledgeable, and positive that I’d take any class she taught.

What I discovered during my time at Peter’s Valley is the tremendous resource it is to our community. As we all struggle with overloaded schedules, a class at PV can be just what we all need to kick back, put on our jeans, and discover new skills. I love working with my hands and felting certainly challenged that! It’s an upper body workout that starts out a mess and becomes an object of beauty through manipulation of the wool. The overall experience was just so positive, I can’t stop telling everyone about it (plus showing off my accomplishments!).

You can learn more about the the Fiber Studios at Peter’s Valley here.

Welcome to the Future of Fine Crafts Mondays! Peters Valley Craft Center (a Dodge grantee), getting set to celebrate its 40th anniversary, is a national center for fine craft education where people’s lives are enriched through the exploration and execution of fine craft.

Located in the Delaware Water Gap, Peters Valley offers 2- to 5-day workshops in blacksmithing, ceramics, fibers, fine metals, photography, wood and special topics including printmaking books & paper, drawing, and glass. The Center provides immersion experiences that appeal to anyone who wants to be a part of a creative, learning, and solutions-seeking community. We will follow four artist-students during the month of July as they reflect on their experience, art medium, skill development and works of art created during recent classes at Peters Valley Craft Center.

Our first story comes from Kristin Muller, Executive Director at the Center who is an artist in her own right and was drawn to Pat Hickman’s workshop on Tensile Translucence.

Pat Hickman

On Friday evenings at 7:30, visiting instructors and students convene in the Bevan’s Church for an evening slide presentation. It is my favorite time of the week because I get to introduce our summer studio assistants who, in turn, introduce our visiting instructors with a brief bio. Each instructor presents images of their work and a ten minute lecture. Depending on the week, we have anywhere from 4 to 8 instructors presenting what they make and why they make.

Time seems to fly as you listen and see art history in the making. Our fabulous instructors come from all walks of life. They are teachers, makers, inventors, and innovators who work in mediums such as clay, fine metals, wood, fiber, photography, glass, encaustic, polymer, basketry, found objects and more. It is a treat to hear people speak about what has inspired a specific direction in their work.

Pat Hickman’s presentation of her knotted and stretched work simply blew my mind and here is why. She ventured to Alaska, curious about how the native people live and work and the materials they use. She shared what she discovered, a raincoat on display that was translucent, light weight and totally water proof made of walrus gut. Yes—walrus gut. The raincoat was very elegant and had an ephemeral quality about it. During her time in Alaska, Pat managed to learn more about how gut is processed and what it required to be worked.

Pat Hickman’s work with hog gut

Upon her return from the Alaskan adventure, she proceeded to investigate hog gut (common sausage casing) to see how it could be worked. Pat has developed an impressive body of work from wall installations to sculptural vessels, to architectural installations made of hog gut. I admit to feeling a bit squeamish about the subject but I was so taken by the delicate translucency that I approached Pat after the presentations and told her about a series of ceramic sculptures I had made two years ago. It was a breakthrough series for me. They are ceramic shapes that are very organic, almost cocoon like, that I call my ‘Papoose Series’. I had hoped to incorporate mixed media into them and was looking for a proper material to lace or close up the space left open in the forming process. I shared with Pat this spark of curiosity about the hog gut. She kindly invited me to join her class the following day.

I joined the group on Saturday afternoon and then again on Sunday because during the night I was seeing sculptures in my dreams. Pat set me up with a needle and a section of clean gut and showed me how to sew with it and how to stretch it. Students were using basketry materials to make shapes and incorporate knotted gut and stretched gut to the forms. In addition people were making pages for books, coloring the gut and making things such as jewelry to abstract sculptures. The group seemed entranced with the material. They had raided the metal scrap pile outside the blacksmithing studio and were redefining objects as they transformed into dancing tools with gut, and lace and paper.

What fascinated me the most was the simplicity of the membrane and it’s responsiveness. Most craft mediums are defined by a tradition. In clay for example there is a linear process through which one learns to manipulate clay on the potter’s wheel. There is a rich history to support certain aspects of the learning, but with hog gut, aside from the Native Alaskan traditions, there really isn’t an art tradition. Pat Hickman has been an innovator of sorts. Therefore the investigation took on a very free and abstract exploration.

Papoose by Kristin Muller

On the last day of class, during the final critique, I was simply stunned. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Six women had each made at least three significant, interesting, profound works.

Peters Valley students’ work

Every student seemed to have found new directions to continue investigating on their own. I for one have had dreams in which I see new work that incorporated the hog gut, and I was so grateful for the generosity from the instructor and the students who shared their materials, their support and their feedback with me.

As the Executive Director I spend most of my time in the office, on the phone, the computer or meeting with people. Sharing in this experience was a gift and an affirmation that Peters Valley Craft Center is a very special place. It is a place where you may be surprised at what will inspire you.