Walk Don't Walk, 1990.
Collection of artist. $450

44"x30" plus hanging objects
Mixed media.

Text on reverse reads:
A piece of art done in an apparently uninspiring city/part of the country-Portland/Northwest over a long period of time-nearly five years-after an initial thrill with the simple graphic symbolism of the walk/don'twalk signs in downtown Portland, a city which to me blends beautifully the old and new elements of architecture and which I thought would inspire me to do art as the palm leaves in Florida had inspired me to use them as stencils to spraypaint on various surfaces of clear vinyl with objects sewn and drawn inside the layers. The stop hand and walking person sent me into an idea of death and witchcraft symbols and a combination of embroidery and velvet painting (the death symbols being a common thread in my art even though one might not notice them-I feel I come to terms with the inevitable death by facing my morbidity and being friends with it. And the genetic thread of witchcraft is also a familiar companion, pleasantly expressed through art rather than organized religion ie Satanism). But yet the potential enthusiasm for this piece fell flat. Either or both: Portland life doesn't inspire me as St. Petersburg, Florida life had; or my soul is indeed used up by working at a full time creative job. In any case a little space away from my job and some privacy and coffee in my studio have urged me back to it. A darn good feeling too. No hiatus from art seems to be permanent and that is ressuring. You can see on the other side now a finished art work with my whimsical juxtaposition of media erasing any concern I may have had about my enthusiasm for creating and completing complex story-telling art. Susan Cox

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