sugar spankhorn

thank you for asking about this, i genuinely really appreciate it. it’s absolutely no trouble at all. you weren’t asking for proof but i’ll lightly touch on it for others: there is an active and publicly available thread discussing their claims, but i definitely don’t want to doxx anyone on tumblr dot com so i will not be sharing that. it’s info for people who are in their circles.

as to misinformation, it’s not so much a singular statement of theirs that is misleading, it’s the context under which they are posting. all of their posts come with the spoken and unspoken claim that they are Native American; it’s an act of harm to speak from that place when you are non-Native. it’s a huge breach of trust to begin with, and it calls into question each post of theirs that speaks to that identity and topics surrounding it with any authority. it’s difficult to point to a specific post when the whole lot comes from that place. 

this is all alleged, of course– an opinion formed based on publicly available evidence. but when Native people are asking for you to point to a relative, it’s an interesting response to instead say that something has been missed along the way instead of just naming that relative. it would be great to walk this back if they come out with facts that contradict pretendian claims, but they have not been forthcoming with that information when asked by those who are in community with them. i recognize that they’ve since made a post saying they’ll talk about it at some indeterminate point, but it’s surprising that they haven’t been able to talk about it already. asking how you’re connected is a very basic question in Native communities that people are able to answer without much difficulty.

man, what a night!! my first solo exhibit “birthdays for the still world” opened last week and is closing tomorrow. i’m absolutely over-the-moon about the reception to this show. it was amazing seeing everyone’s reactions to the work, and hugely relieving hearing so many people connect with it. it was such hard work (i created these 16 pieces in 8 weeks??) but the payoff was tremendous. thank you to those who attended the show, kept tabs on what i’ve been up to, or otherwise expressed interest. it really means the world to me!

this weekend i debuted my first “on-the-wall” gallery piece! the exhibit is called LORE, a yearly show hosted by &gallery about folklore from your personal culture. this year’s theme was “creatures” and i did mine on the czech vodník, a water goblin (who looks more like an old man in czech stories) who drowns passersby and stores their souls in teapots. i had a lot of fun playing with the storytelling i could achieve in the area outside of the primary image, deeply inspired by slavic illustrator ivan bilibin. what do you think?

i wrote a little story to go with the piece as well, to keep with the theme of folklore being all about storytelling

SUBSPACE RESIDENCY WEEK 3: otherwise titled “oh boy am i feeling it now”

dear reader i’m suddenly realizing the deadline approaches and i’m getting a wee bit nervous! ironic that it’s happening at the sight of a few items approaching their end-- you’d think having a couple essential pieces finished would ease my nerves a bit but... well! sometimes that’s how it is. but it eases my heart to know that if (well, WHEN) i need help i have a group at the studio space to assist, and good friends who have my back! 

almost done with my first party guest (my finest creation legitimately) and my first cake sculpture-- just needs writing on the side and it’s done! the idea with the cakes are... yknow when you have a happy birthday sign and you start out too big and can’t fit it all? well... what if you just didn’t stop and said everything that was on your mind anyway? that’s the sculpture lol. the cake is made of cardboard, paper mache and spackle with needle-felted candle flames. i think it’s cute! i like it!!

almost done with painting the face on party guest 2/3 and sculpting 3/3! next project is to get going on the BIG PARTY HAT INSTALLATION!!! which is going to be the photo op background. i think it’ll be fun if i can get it done in time!! so many fingers in so many pies... 

SUBSPACE RESIDENCY WEEK 2 

lots of groundwork is being laid down this week. i’m working on the centerpieces of my show right now-- it will be a load off my shoulders to be certain that this part is done if nothing else. so i built the bones of a cake, frosted it, created a slice of cake with carpet, and started inviting party guests... by cutting their faces off and sculpting new ones. these things happen from time to time. you’ve been to parties, you know how that goes!!

i think there’s a lot to be said for the thankless nature of foundational work. it’s not really the greatest to share with people and you feel like you’re making such little progress! but it’s very essential and, god willing, you’ll be able to make a tumblr post about it by the end of the week. to be honest, half of what i did this week appears so liminal that even talking about it would be... Boring at best, nonsensical at worst. but boy does it ease my heart to look back at my week and say... yeah, we’re comin’ along after all!! i’m really happy with looking at what i’ve accomplished. it’s a nice feeling. 

the final party guest (stuffed animal) will be arriving shortly and then they’ll really look like a team! i’m particularly excited about this one, but they’re all so darling. i hope you like them too!

SUBSPACE RESIDENCY WEEK 1 is done!! 

i painted the outside of my studio, made this cute little sign (the letters are tape and pipecleaners lol), and turned the inside into sprinkle/confetti town. the theme of my upcoming solo exhibit is going to be visually themed around birthdays, so it felt fitting! 

to elaborate, the theme of the show is going to be grief as it pertains to the passage of time, and how that passage of time is experienced with Trauma (which is to say-- wonky and weird). i have a more eloquent writeup for when i formally announce the show, but i feel there’s a certain melancholy that comes with trauma-versaries and just generally watching it all tick by. the pressure to be celebratory anyway but feeling very... separate from it all. so i want to throw a tongue-in-cheek birthday party with weird art and also some cake. if you’re in my neck of the woods i’d love for you to come lol

starting on the 26th i’ll be an artist-in-residency at tucson’s historic steinfeld warehouse! this is my first ever residency (wow!!) and i’m so so excited to have the space and community to curate a solo exhibition (WOW!!)

🍊citrusy summertime🍊