Last week I delivered work to the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum and first priority was the installation of "Rescue".
I knew how the pieces needed to be executed and assembled and in the couple of days prior I set to work with finishing the components. Silicone needed to set, connections sealed, tubing filled. It all seemed "relatively straightforward", which if you have ever used the term, you know is the kiss of death and a determiner that it will just not be so. In the end it was a success piece and I am very happy with the completed work (The image here was a quickly, but will be professionally shot next week)
You would NOT believe the mess my studio was in. It
seriously looked like a crime scene. Feeding the coloured water into the long tubing with one end sealed was a exercise in patience and buffoonery. I would try to straighten the tube to allow it to glug down only to turn around and see a red shower from the other. Fine if it happened only once, but it happened repeatedly. I really needed an extra set of hands. When I clamped the other end, I carefully positioned the clamp and collar, holding the tube in one hand and the clamping tool in the other only to realize that I needed 2 hands to get enough leverage to squeeze the collar shut with the tool...the tube that was filled to the brim was quickly emptied of the last 8 inches. Add this to the fact the kitten was fascinated and Patti was very thirsty for red water and the mess was ridiculous. Even I did not take a picture because I was freaking out that the mess could not be cleaned up. I did not want this red mess on my floor (table, arms, ceiling, etc.) for the spare second it would take to capture. You will have to imagine!
The rest of the work was left in the capable hands of the curator and his assistant and I shall see it all hung soon!
Visit my site www.andrea-graham.com