When I put the piece up onto the wall for its final grooming before the photo shoot, I noticed some bulging and undulations that hadn’t been there before. Another accident to deal with. Actually, I liked the additional dimensionality this added to the piece.
Now for the story behind the title. The process for titling work could definitely be another blog. Since I initially envisioned this piece as an artist book, the first tentative titles had book-like allusions like Devotional and Elegy. But then I read a novel that took place in Ecuador and had a bird watching theme, Accidentals by Susan M. Gaines. I learned that Accidentals is the term for birds who appear in a habitat where they are rarely seen.
And so I chose the name Accidentals for a project whose entire process appeared accidental and random. I learned that I don’t need to micro-manage a piece. Once it’s underway, it has an inner intelligence which pushes the piece along. My job is to listen and follow the unfolding and trust the process. Since this piece was so different from my other feather pieces, I thought it was a one-off piece. But I am so entranced by the fluttering feather streamers that I want to do more of them.
I’m starting a new piece like this one but in whites. The shape will be based on a huipil, the traditional women’s garment worn in Chiapas, Mexico and Guatemala. Maybe I’ll name the new piece Devotional!