construction of a childhood

i have been offered a solo show in san pedro in about a year and i've been pondering how to frame the work i have been doing.  most of my work for the past 7 years or so has been very autobiographical. my son iggy, and his life's story, experience, and the responsibility my husband and i now shoulder for those things is at the forefront of my waking moments, so i thought of the title: the construction of a childhood

i've been thinking more and more about gender and how color plays into that related to toys, clothing, and objects surrounding babies. it's such a commodified industry that i'm kind of enjoying playing with it, yesterday i went shopping at old navy in the girls' section hoping to find the right shades of hot pink socks

 i plan to use some of the photography and videos made while i was pregnant, in conjunction with some floral pieces and i'm planning on felting some larger objects (specifically objects i would never want in my home for my child to play with) rendering something horrifyingly aesthetically unpleasing or full of plastic toxins or most likely both into something cushy and curious and welcome

i've been collecting clothes and toys that i would have embraced without question had he been a girl. and conducting color studies based on what i am drawn to, what i recall being drawn to as a child, and what i see my son looking at, or what i suppose he might be looking at

 i also read this book thinking about the love i had for wild places (and for growing up near cannon beach as shown on the cover) and i am running through sketches of fort construction, and how to convey wildness within the gallery setting

part of that exploration has included reinventing the nature walks that my mom used to take us on, and ironing pressed plants between waxed paper. in honor of artists like yugi agematsu and candi jernigan i have thought about how much trash and detritus i should or could pick up within a few blocks or steps of my front door. the pink condom i found a few doors down was my first souvenir of nature walks

latex gloves are now a must