Love Affair, Ch. 3: And There Was Music

Before Pandora and Spotify, there was WBGO 88.3fm, a jazz radio station in New York City. The music evoked movement, and that in turn brought color to cityscapes that started appearing in my drawings and designs for tapestries. The shapes started stretching and interacting with each other in a dynamic and musical way.

Constructive Interlude, 60”x30”

The first of the series was “Constructive Interlude,” a 60”x30” tapestry that came together from a collage composition of various buildings in the West Village. The fire escapes brought in the graphic element of strong black lines which held everything together in a syncopated repetition. The vibrancy of colors and shading, which I was able to achieve by dying my own wool, was just thrilling!

Next, the saxophone's bent notes, the trumpet’s deeply penetrating sound, the percussion’s heartbeat and the melody carried by the keyboard all came together in the diptych “In the Mood” and “Building Jazz”.

The first public appearance of the diptych was in installation at The First Woman’s Bank of NY. They looked happy together making music!

As these two went on to a private collection, a commission for another diptych followed. I truly felt that I was on to something: identity crises! What is the driving force here – art? Music? Architecture? Tapestry weaving? Or maybe all of the above, and I was just fine with that!