This White Mulberry Earthpod is one of two artworks-in-progress created for The White Mulberry Project: A Silk Road Runs Through It to be presented on August 26, 2023 in my studio's Eco-Garden in upstate New York. Why use a gourd? This form represents the roots of my artistic practice. My first Earthpod was created over... Continue Reading →
The Rise and Fall of an Industry: The Champlain Silk Mills of Whitehall, NY
Since the surprising discovery of (non-native) white mulberry trees in my backyard in Whitehall, NY, I began to research their link to the silk industry, particularly the Champlain Silk Mills in Whitehall which flourished from the late 1800s through the early 1950s. Silkworms arrived in Virginia as early as 1613 as the Chinese silk industry... Continue Reading →
White Mulberry Trees – Year 2 Explorations
Whew! My white mulberry trees are budding for their second year! After I pruned them last November, I was a bit concerned I may have over-done it. But here they are, having survived not only my pruning but having been underground in a yard that had been mowed for over 60 years. They are impressively... Continue Reading →
A $10,000 Rural & Traditional Arts Grant for The White Mulberry Project
EXCITING NEWS! I am thrilled to have been awarded a $10,000 New York State Rural & Traditional Arts Fellowship administered by the Arts Council for Wyoming County in partnership with the New York State Council on the Arts. I will create two sculptural works of art from my Eco-Garden Project and exhibit them in a... Continue Reading →
The Ravages of Winter, the Promise of Spring
This is my front lawn. Since we had such a mild winter the ground never froze, so every time I had my driveway snowplowed, the blade scraped up stones and dirt from the driveway, ripped up the lawn and deposited the whole, snowy mess in the middle of the front yard...right where I had carefully... Continue Reading →
Flower Wall – Year 3 – Winter Sowing
WINTER March 2023 We are still in the grasp of winter here in northeastern New York State. We had a few glimpses of spring which made me want to get out and start playing in the dirt - but alas, my cat Snowball (and the groundhog Punxsutawney Phil) both saw their shadows on Groundhog Day,... Continue Reading →
Hibernation and Transformation
Fall is a prelude to hibernation for many animals, myself included. Although for many it is a time for gearing up for the holidays, I always find the annual "Thanksgiving - Christmas - New Year's" bustle to be counter-intuitive to my natural rhythm, which wants to slow down in preparation for "a long winter's nap."... Continue Reading →
A Silk Road Runs Through It
By the end of August my little grove of surprise white mulberry trees were already as high as the windows on the house. They grew fast! Even more surprising, they appeared in a patch of lawn that had been consistently mowed for over sixty years! How did they survive that long underground? Plus they didn't... Continue Reading →
White Mulberry Discovery – The Rewards of No Mow May
It all began with No Mow May. Although it's a pollinator movement popularized by Plantlife in the UK and a very good reason to refrain from mowing until later in the spring, I had an ulterior motive for allowing the lawn to grow until June: I wanted to expand my Eco-Garden Project research to discover... Continue Reading →
Gourd Seeds Are Up!
I'm starting to work on larger sculptures, but finding large gourds is becoming a challenge - and shipping is increasingly expensive. So even though I live in the North Country of upstate New York where our short growing season makes it all but impossible to grow oversized gourds, I am determined to try growing my... Continue Reading →
Gateway to Hell: Exploring an Ecological Mystery
Scrolling through the internet for a research project late one night, I came across this jaw-dropping photo that practically took my breath away. When I read the accompanying story, I learned it was a massive flaming gas crater in the middle of a desert in Turkmenistan nicknamed the "Gateway to Hell." Conflicting stories abound as... Continue Reading →
Crocus Discovery
Five tiny crocuses appeared on my front lawn in March 2022. I remember seeing them from time to time throughout the years. No one had bothered with them for a long time and the bulbs are supposed to be separated every four years so they can continue blooming. I'm surprised they continue to come up... Continue Reading →
Snowdrop Discovery
These little white snowdrops appeared on my front lawn in March in 2022 once the snow left the ground. I remember seeing their green foliage in clumps scattered about the front yard where my Mom used to have a flower garden in previous years but never noticed any flowers since the lawn was always mowed... Continue Reading →
Creative Journey of a Riverbowl
EXCELLENT NEWS! I just finished Riverbowl III and am excited to announce the piece been acquired by The Folklife Center at Crandall Library in Glens Falls, NY for their collection. Thank you to Todd DeGarmo, Founding Director. I am celebrating this great honor! It took me three months to finish the piece. As I was working... Continue Reading →
A Coronavirus Christmas Card and a Wish for 2022
"What is the Coronavirus doing on my Christmas card?" I said aloud as I opened the envelope, immediately recognizing the familiar image of the virus. As we stand at the threshhold of 2022, looking warily at a potential third year of living with COVID, a fabric artist in upstate New York fearlessly tapped into the... Continue Reading →
George Forss: In Memory of a New York Street Photographer
George Forss was one in a million. When I heard of his recent passing at the age of 80, I crumbled in disbelief. George was one of those artists you just assume will live forever. He was a self-taught photographer selling his black-and-white photos on the streets of New York City in the seventies before... Continue Reading →
Lady’s Thumb Discovery
There's something special about finding a plant that one remembers from childhood especially when it's rather uncommon. I used to see this flower in the vegetable garden as a child (and of course, we'd pull it up!) but it was never as invasive as other plants. It was always a rare and magical find, its... Continue Reading →
Dandelion Wine – An Artful Adventure
This started out as a simple dream of making homemade wine. It turned into an exploration I never expected. My first taste of dandelion wine was disappointing. One of my cousins used to make it every year and it always tasted like pure rot-gut. It wasn't until I met a 70-year-old Italian in Montreal's Little... Continue Reading →
A Pandemic Project: Dandelion Wine
"What did you do during the pandemic?" As an artist, the expected answer was that I had plenty of time to create new art. Or work on my film. I did neither. Instead, I made wine. Most will agree that 2020 was the year from hell for everyone except Jeff Bezos. Mine actually started... Continue Reading →
Wild Mustard Discovery
This plant was among the original "weeds" I allowed to grow to maturity in my vegetable garden in 2020 to see what it would become. The leaves of the young plant looked quite familiar to me from my childhood - it was designated as a weed by my mom and always pulled up as soon... Continue Reading →
Red Clover Discovery
Red clover is among the oldest species on the property, dating back to at least 1962 despite having been weeded, mowed and otherwise ignored. As a child, I was fascinated by the white markings on its leaves, making it seem quite exotic for such a simple plant. As I dutifully weeded the vegetable garden, side-by-side... Continue Reading →
Red Raspberry Acquisition
The Eco-Garden Project is not only focused on the discovery of plants on the property surrounding my home and studio. It is also a "back-to-the-land" endeavour. Rather that caring for a lawn that is purely ornamental, I'd rather turn it into a source of food. My first acquisition in 2020 was a red raspberry plant.... Continue Reading →
Fleabane Discovery
These were among the first unidentified plants that appeared when I let my vegetable garden grow wild in 2020. They grew to be quite tall - as tall as me! Maybe they would be wildflowers? My neighbor laughed. "They're just weeds," she said. But by June they blossomed into exquisite little white flowers I remembered... Continue Reading →
Purple Fringed Loosestrife Discovery
This plant was a mystery for a long time. I first noticed it in the spring of 2020, its purple leaves interspersed among the bee balm and goutweed at the north end of my vegetable garden near the garage. Where did it come from? I initially thought it was purple lettuce that may have... Continue Reading →
BEYOND COVID: Exploring beauty in a coronavirus pandemic
Even though we are still self-isolating, there is a certain adjustment to this COVID lifestyle thrust upon us by this coronavirus pandemic. It involves Beauty.
A Crisis of Humanity: A photographer reveals heartbreaking personal items confiscated from migrants at the US-Mexico Border
Fine art photographer Tom Kiefer wanted to portray America. But when he took a day job as a janitor at a US Customs Border Protection Facility near the US-Mexico border, a disturbing discovery changed his photography – and his life – forever.
Art of the Yukon
Join us on a voyage without leaving home! Experience Canada's Yukon Territory through the eyes of its artists as Artful Vagabond's Serena Kovalosky takes you on an artful tour, in collaboration with international art magazine, ACS Magazine.
A Message for World Leaders…from the World’s Artists
If you had the opportunity to say ONE THING to a room filled with each of the world’s leaders, what would your message be? And if you were an artist, and you could present ONE WORK OF ART in an exhibition for these world leaders that might inspire them to talk to each other and... Continue Reading →
Serena Smoking Pot
In my research of the roots of sculpture, I became particularly interested in the figures and vessels carved from wood that were used for ceremonial purposes. After many years, particularly with pieces that came in contact with organic materials such as plant resin and animal fat while held over an open fire, a deep ebony... Continue Reading →
Interview with Angie Bowie: Inside the Creative Mind of a Pop Culture Icon
Angie Bowie is a pop culture icon. Née Mary-Angela Barnett, she met rock legend David Bowie in the seventies when she was only nineteen, yet her creative influence and marketing savvy helped contribute to the style, image and success of Ziggy Stardust in the emerging era of glam rock. Their ten-year marriage as an openly bisexual... Continue Reading →