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jenny fine

These two photographs inspired a colorful, dreamy, David Lynch-ish traveling performance piece by American artist Jenny Fine. I wrote about Jenny’s series, titled “The Saddest Day” a few years ago – a heartbreaking project she did with her dear grandmother, Sarah, shortly before her death. Almost all of Jenny’s work is an homage to her Granny, and the beautiful dedication continues! May I present Flat Granny and Me: A Procession in My Mind:

“Intertwining the historic narrative surrounding the plight of my South Alabama farming community at the hands of the Mexican Boll Weevil with the memory-scape of my grandmother riding in the annual Boll Weevil Parade as 1968 Woman of the Year; past meets present, reality and memory collide placing the viewer in a dream-like setting and state. Part cyclorama/part moving image, A Procession… was created in an attempt to “reverse the camera’s crop” – returning space and time to the still image; and doing so, attempts to redefine the form and function of the photograph in our contemporary, image-saturated world.” 

So beautiful. And that’s “Flat Granny” above — a life-size photographic cutout of her grandmother turned costume. A full video of this dreamlike performance piece can be seen on Jenny’s site. There are also gorgeous behind-the-scenes photos that go into detail about the gorgeous costumes, lighting, etc.  It’s all just so weird and beautiful.





jenny fine



So weird, and beautiful, and weird, and sad. Quite appropriate given that the title of this series, by American artist Jenny Fine, is titled The Saddest Day. It really was, and here’s why:

“In the throws of it, one hardly knows what to do.  It is a hard feeling to name. It’s a lump in the throat, a shortness of breath. It’s hands that tremble knowing that they must work fast. “This is it,” I kept thinking, I kept speaking under my breath, as if saying it out loud made the moment more real. She was leaving, we knew that full well, and there was nothing we could do.

I come from a family of farmers.  When my father was little my grandparents raised pigs.  On the coldest day of the year the hogs were slaughtered and their bodies were dragged to the roof of the house to freeze. One year the hogs took sick and the entire herd had to be slaughtered on the same day. It was my father’s job, together with the other children in the family, to help kill the pigs. This day was known as ‘The Saddest Day’.

This series of medium format photographs, entitled ‘The Saddest Day’, was originally conceived as a reenactment of this family narrative. However, when I arrived home that Mother’s Day weekend, I found my grandmother upside down on the couch, her head where her feet should have been. She was hurting. We rushed her to the hospital.

These photographs document the moments following our return to the farm after our first visit to the emergency room, two weeks before my grandmother died. ‘The Saddest Day’ explores my family’s collective experience of loss leading up to the death of the family matriarch: my grandmother. In this moment taking pictures seemed the only thing we could do to stop time. Putting on a costume, wearing a mask, even looking through the camera was a way to face each other, face this trauma and our vulnerability without having to look at each other straight on. ‘The Saddest Day’ portrays the beginning of our coming to terms with a looming goodbye; my father, sister and cousin dressed as pigs leading my grandmother into death.”

See? So, so sad… but at the same time, it’s also so wonderful and amazing that Jenny had that kind of relationship with her fabulous grandmother, Sarah. A woman who for years and years was a collaborative creative partner {she did this shoot when she knew she was dying – what a spit-fire, right to the end!}, and huge supporter of her granddaughter’s talent and love of art:

RIP, Sarah. I wish I had known you.





art for your ear : podcast

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Yes. A podcast! After quietly writing daily art posts for years, in the spring of 2015 I thought it was time to add a little audio to the visual.

Here’s the idea behind ART FOR YOUR EAR: When I studied art history in university, my favorite part was, well, basically the gossip. I loved hearing why artists did certain things. What was going on in their personal life, stories about other artists they knew and worked with. Up until the rumors, the cat was taking Viagra. ART FOR YOUR EAR is exactly that… inside-scoop stories from amazingly talented contemporary artists. Each episode is just long enough for you to listen while drinking your morning coffee, or during a weekend run, or while working in the studio. Ultimately it’s a chance for all of us to get to know these successful artists, who also happen to be regular people with hilarious stories, before they’re in the art history books. I post episodes every Saturday so that you can start your weekend with a bit of art… for your ear.

TO SUBSCRIBE:  CLICK HERE

TO SPONSOR: If you’re interested in sponsoring ART FOR YOUR EAR, we’d be happy to rate information. Please email: contact@thejealouscurator.com

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EPISODES

226. ANDY J PIZZA : kindred spirits
225. GEMMA GENE : artsy AF
224. MARY ELLEN MATTHEWS : live from new york
223. PETAH COYNE : a third, a third, a third
222. Talk Easy featuring Marina Abramović
221. PETAH COYNE : broken but beautiful
220. LEAH ROSENBERG : everywhere a color
219. GIO SWABY : love letters
218. SANDY SKOGLUND : believe you HAVE to do it
217. ASHLEY LONGSHORE : there’s no place like home
216. ANDREA LOVE : cooking with wool
215. JACQUELINE TSE : hey, sugar
214. SIRLI RAITMA : getting on with it
213. SANDEEP JOHAL : me in another form
212. CELINE GABRIELLE : fear is a theme
211. ANONG BEAM : tasting chartreuse
210. ELYSE DODGE : mountain ranges and valley girls
209. ANDY J PIZZA : breadcrumbs and allies
208. GIO SWABY : labor and learning
207. EMILY COUNTS : choose your own adventure
206. CARISSA POTTER CARLSON : people i’ve loved
205. KENESHA SNEED : many shapes of clay
204. ANTHONY SONNENBERG : don’t lose the joy
203. JUDI CUMMING : girls like farkles
202. LYDIA RICCI : using glue like a hammer ‘n nail
201. PAINT CHIPS : pennylane shen
200. PETAH COYNE : fifteen seconds
199. NNEKA JONES : the best work comes from experimenting
198. BEVERLY FISHMAN : never let the world define you
197. TREY SPEEGLE : NFT WTF
196. DANIELLE KRYSA : deep thoughts
195. PAINT CHIPS : martha rich
194. FABIOLA JEAN-LOUIS : create your own magic
193. ANN CARRINGTON : bending spoons (and medieval laws)
192. REBECCA HUTCHINSON : authenticity will never do you wrong
191. ANGELA GOBBENS : mermaid on ice
190. DEBORAH ROBERTS : i’m
189. SARAH DETWEILER : hidden mothers
188. ASHLEY LONGSHORE : re-finding joy
187. RACHEL BURKE : jealous of a spider
186. PETAH COYNE : just be wonderful
185. BISA BUTLER : children of the rainbow
184. DIANA WEYMAR : time capsule within a time capsule
183. NATALIE CICCORICCO : nesting
182. RONALD JACKSON : it’s about time
181. MIMI POND : mimi and the mitfords
180. CALIDA RAWLES : water, light, and infinite galaxies
179. DEBRA BAXTER : the fortress of solitude
178. AMBER VITTORIA : femininity. her way.
177. SARA SHAKEEL : from pearly whites to sparkly delights
176. WAYNE WHITE : fishin’ with santa claus in heaven
175. MEGAN KRZMARZICK : rituals and running away
174. ELISA VALENTI : people love tush
173. ESTHER PEARL WATSON : puff salad and the great pause
172. MARTHA RICH : microwave cooking for one
171. ASHLEY LONGSHORE : brush your fangs
170. THE KRYSA FAMILY : team quarantine
169. TARA LEWIS : trophies ‘n tiaras
168. DANIELLE KRYSA : numbers on a calendar
167. PENNYLANE SHEN : pennylane made me cry
166. ANDY J PIZZA : busting creative myths 2.0
165. PHIL HANSEN : silver linings and canned peaches
164. TERRENCE PAYNE : social media ‘n ketchup chips
163. NATALIE BAXTER : clearly confused about her role as a woman
162. ASHLEY LONGSHORE : muses ‘n more
161. ART FOR YOUR EAR : putting a bow on 2019
160. ESTHER PEARL WATSON : storytime with epw
159. MARTHA RICH : ask martha
158. PENNYLANE SHEN : too old, too young, too busy
157. ANDY J PIZZA : creative myth busters
156. KATE BINGAMAN-BURT : a little bit wonky
155. SMoCA : the universe is unfolding as it should
154. TERRENCE PAYNE : payne points
153. SAMANTHA FIELDS : sam gets schooled
152. ASHLEY LONGSHORE : optimistic as f*ck
151. HEATHER LENZ : infinite passion
150. SEONNA HONG : peeling paint
149. RICHARD HOLLAND : the tea boy sees mermaids
148. KELSIE GRAZIER : white noise
147. TREY SPEEGLE : warhol ephemera
146. OLA VOLO : there’s no time to be shy
145. ANNIE KEVANS : the recording of art history
144. CHARLES WILKIN : a mental list of dangerous things
143. CAYCE ZAVAGLIA : petrified and totally excited
142. SHANNON D TAYLOR : everything shiny
141. SARA KHAN : mythology and mounds of soil
140. CJ HENDRY : petrol. rent. snacks.
139. ESTHER PEARL WATSON AND MARK TODD : playing jenga under a fool moon
138. EKATERINA POPOVA : from pancakes to painting
137. DOUG MEYER : mowing lawns and making art
136. CLARE CELESTE BÖRSCH : dreaming of tigers
135. ASHLEY LONGSHORE : an artrepreneur’s fempire
134. KAYLEE DALTON : mixing magic
133. JANNA WATSON : finding wildness
132. TERRENCE PAYNE : stuff like that and quilts, ya know
131. SUSANNAH MONTAGUE : enjoy the now
130. STINA PERSSON : buckling can be beautiful
129. ROBERT TOWNSEND : my indiana muse
128. MICHELLE KINGDOM : where our happiness lives
127. AMY SHERALD : use it or lose it
126. AIMÉE HENNY BROWN : foxes ‘n’ hedgehogs
125. PIPPA YOUNG : free to be
124. EUGENIA LOLI : a gift
123. WENDY KAWABATA : paintings, pinholes, and pina coladas
122. LISA WRIGHT : really looking
121. SETH CLARK : on the brink
120. FAYTHE LEVINE : never say never
119. DAN LAM : ugly beautiful
118. ANDY J PIZZA : make waves instead of going with the flow
117. RACHEL DENNY : yak friends
116. VICTORIA VILLASANA : restless curiosity
115. AMBER COWAN : crashing the kiln
114. LEE BOYD : falling off the pencil
113. MONIKA FORSBERG : no one ever wants ducks
112. DAISY PATTON : nostalgia, lots of research … and a ghost
111. LINDSAY ARNOLD : what’s the why
110. SEAN WILLIAM RANDALL : balance, brushstrokes, burning cars
109. MARIKO PATERSON : the hustle is real
108. HEATHER DAY : inconvenient spots along rivers
107. CHARLOTTE KEATES : nothing in nature clashes
106. ANNE SIEMS : showers and shamanism
105. SUMMER CAMP 5 : bad art ’n good snacks
104. SUMMER CAMP 4 : captured through collage
103. SUMMER CAMP 3 : unconventional and absurd
102. SUMMER CAMP 2 : the first mark
101. SUMMER CAMP 1 : au naturel
100. MANDO MARIE : see you through it
099. ZEMER PELED : suitcase full of shards
098. NETTIE WAKEFIELD : bit of a pencil snob
097. MEGHAN HILDEBRAND : m is for mysterious
096. BRIAN DONNELLY : fire, failure, and fatty snacks
095. ANNA HOYLE : humor, how-tos, and hindsight
094. MOLLY HATCH : an opportunistic optimist
093. CAT SETO : a cat in paris
092. JENNY BROWN : starting from square one. again.
091. SAMANTHA FIELDS : if i’m in the zone, leave me alone.
090. AARON SMITH : no excuses, no regrets … lots of beards
089. LORI LARUSSO : cucumber shamu
088. NAOMI VONA : a fearless act
087. ELISE MORRIS : inevitably, it changes
086. JAY DART : greetings from yawnder
085. NATALIE BAXTER : warm guns ’n bloated flags
084. CLAIRE BREWSTER : more love, less fear
083. JANE DENTON : simply complex
082. JUDI CUMMING : hey, mama
081. SHANNON RANKIN : not enough hours in the day
080. TREY SPEEGLE : changing the rules
079. ESZTER BURGHARDT : lands of wool and cake
078. BUNNIE REISS : a disciplined free spirit
077. LISA CONGDON : imposters, egos, inner critics … LIVE in portland
076. KRISTEN MARTINCIC : a passion for process
075. TONYA CORKEY : experiments, risks … and dryer lint
074. ASHLEY GOLDBERG : patterns ’n positive passwords
073. MARTA SPENDOWSKA : starting in the background
072. MARTHA RICH : arma-dino
071. TERRENCE PAYNE : pastels, perfection, and prince
070. JIM BACHOR : ancient art … and potholes
069. RYAN HESHKA : pinups, pulp, comics, and canadiana
068. TINA BERNING : step-by-step. every day.
067. KATE ROHDE : don’t discount small opportunities
066. SANDRA ETEROVIC : i guess i better be an artist now
065. CATHERINE GRAFFAM : cheesiness aside, art gave me purpose
064. AMANDA BRAZIER : red bank red is from my yard
063. ALI CAVANAUGH : modern frescoes and micro evolutions
062. REBECCA LOUISE LAW : painting with flowers
061. EMILY BARLETTA : art. therapy.
060. KATHARINE MORLING : drawing with porcelain
059. REBECCA CHAPERON : magical portals and secret painting parties
058. ERIN M RILEY : comfortable in my skin
057. JAIME ROVENSTINE : jellyfish in a trifle
056. GUNJAN AYLAWADI : take your pleasure seriously
055. SALLY TAYLOR : a giant game of telephone … with art
054. KIRSTIN LAMB : cute and poisonous
053. RACHEL CASTLE : castle in the car
052. SCOTT LISTFIELD : astronauts and dinosaurs
051. ZOË PAWLAK : chance favors those in motion
050. LOLA DONOGHUE : lola, don’t be precious
049. ARIS MOORE : big mouths, ukuleles … but no chins
048. AMANDA HAPPÉ : defiance is my favorite motivator
047. BROOKS SALZWEDEL : who doesn’t like a dinosaur
046. SARAH GEE MILLER : organizing the fray
045. JOËL PENKMAN : it began with biscuits
044. NIKE SCHROEDER : nothing is a mistake
043. ANDREA D’AQUINO : discipline … and a bit of chance
042. CAMILLA ENGMAN : distant friends
041. STEPHANIE K CLARK : painting with thread
040. SUSANNA BAUER : i’m a bit impatient
039. XOCHI SOLIS : paper nerds unite
038. SAMANTHA FRENCH : ebb and flow
037. HAGAR VARDIMON : hunting for paper
036. CASEY ROBERTS : nature nerd
035. KIANA MOSLEY : late one night …
034. LEAH GIBERSON : hello, me?
033. AUTUMN REESER : soul of a rose, skin of a rhino
032. MARYANNE MOODIE : textiles, treasures, and a new tribe
031. HAPPY HOLIDAYS : the best gift ever …
030. WAYNE WHITE : hoozy thinky iz
029. BOBBIE BURGERS : welcome to boburg
028. ESTHER PEARL WATSON : ufos, diaries, and underdogs
027. SIDNEY PINK : what charms you
026. JESSICA BRILLI : big salad
025. ASHLEY MISTRIEL : fill the whole ream
024. JESSICA BELL : you can’t make art in the cracks
023. MICHELLE KOHANZO : a nod to creativity
022. KATE BINGAMAN-BURT : make piles of crap
021. DEBRA BROZ : a really slow magician
020. KELLY PUISSEGUR : almost happy
019. JAIME DERRINGER : design milk by day & sketchbooks by night
018. TIFFANIE TURNER : blossoms & burlesque
017. KATE WOODROW : a pitch on a silver platter
016. MAX WANGER : photography was not in the picture
015. HOLLIE CHASTAIN : i sandwich everything in that stuff
014. RACHEL RYLE : latte foam, goop, and gumption
013. LISA GOLIGHTLY : if it scares you, do it
012. MARK BRADLEY-SHOUP : walk the walk
011. ROBERT NOVOGRATZ : how much for the tape measure?
010. LISA CONGDON : push through the messiness
009. VINCENT SERRITELLA : painted into a corner
008. MARY KATE MCDEVITT : you’re in cider town
007. BEN SKINNER : equal or lesser value
006. AMANDA SMITH : girls are my vocabulary
005. PEREGRINE HONIG : on the other side of pop culture
004. TREY SPEEGLE : good luck with that
003. STEPHANIE VOVAS : comfort zones and lack thereof
002. ANTHONY ZINONOS : if it buckles, it buckles
001. MARTHA RICH : meat and cake and lobsters and wigs

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dear 2013…




Dear 2013,

This is our last day together, so I just wanted to say… you were amazing.

You were filled with art that was delicate, mysterious, funny, touching, strange, controversial, and breath-taking.

You were there when I finished my first bookand started on my second.

You took me to all sorts of lovely places like Salt Lake CityChattanoogaAustinLA, and Maui. {ps. In January, Stefan Sagmeister kissed me in SLC, so that was a pretty great way to kick off the year!}

You gave me the chance to guest write for lovely folks like Victoria Smith on sfgirlbybay, Emily Henderson, and Anthology Magazine.

You were the first year that I really gave my own artwork a shot… even if I resisted. A lot.

You were the year I spent settling into a new town, and home, with my amazing husband and super sweet little boy. We had twelve months of adventure ~ making new friends, swimming in the lake, fishing, jumping off docks, and eating more ice cream than three people should ever consume.

You were also the one that introduced me to so many lovely new friends {like Stephanie, Emily H, Ginny, Leah, Emily LSamantha, Mark, Alyson, Melinda, & Diana}, and gave me time to visit with some really wonderful old friends {Autumn, Kathleen, Jessica, Mary-Jo, Janette, Melanie, Meleny, Christy, Janna & Jason, Kira … love you guys!}. AND there are so many more of you who I plan to catch up with in 2014… I’m talking to you Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, New York, Toronto and Vancouver friends! I might even make my way to Paris and London {fingers crossed!}

And finally, you did a pretty good job of teaching me how to slow down, so that I could truly enjoy everything along the way. Thanks. I needed that!

So, with that I’ll say bye bye, 2013. I can’t wait to meet your pal, 2014… I’m pretty excited to see what she’s got in store for all of us.

~ danielle xo

Happy New Year, everyone. I hope you have an amazing, fun, safe night tonight! Thank you so much for being part of my little world, I appreciate it more than I could ever put into words.

Ok, are you ready? 2014. Let’s fill it up with creative genius… GO!

{1. Prospect Goods 2. Rachel Castle 3. CONFETTI SYSTEM 4. Max Wanger 5. ROTGANZEN}





i’m jealous of “the exquisite book”

This book is amazing… well, exquisite actually. Julia Rothman, Jenny Volvovski,  and Matt Lamothe of Also, a small American design company, are the creators of The Exquisite Book {which, fyi, just became available for purchase two days ago}. The book features 100 contemporary fine artists, illustrators, designers and comic artists, each of whom were “given the page that precedes theirs to connect their own image to. They needed to extend the horizon line of the last page onto their page.” Such a great collaborative idea, with absolutely gorgeous results! Oh boy, that Christmas list of mine is just getting longer and longer by the second.





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I have always been jealous of people who can truly fill a sketchbook. Pages that are thick with paint, found objects glued on haphazardly, images drawn over and over and over until the artist’s vision is figured out. It feels very voyeuristic to me, like you’re seeing images that you weren’t meant to see. The mistakes, and the hope of creative potential. The really bad ideas, and the little seedlings of fantastic gallery-worthy pieces. ‘Peep Show’ takes you inside the beautiful and inspiring sketchbooks of seven very talented artists. If I could cover an entire gallery in pages from these books, I’d have to change my name to ‘The Happy Curator’.

{Most of these sketchbooks were found on Julia Rothman’s fantastic book blog, Book by Its Cover}

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Martha Rich:

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Isaac Tobin:

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Ben Finer:

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Jenny Volvovski:

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Tina Berning:

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Sonja Ahlers:
{*Note. This is a ‘fur book’, not a sketchbook… but close enough!}

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Julia Pott:

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