Mallory Donen

Looking Back at 2021 and Moving Onward to 2022

A few weeks ago I broke my left (dominant) arm while riding my bike, so I will keep this review of 2021 short and sweet (since I’m typing one-handed)!

Notable Moments from 2021:

Still image from video recording of artist talk, Feminist Craft of Care for Times of Crisis, 2021

  • Remnants of the Manmade series was shown as part of the virtual group exhibition, "Seeking the Periphery" at the Paul H. Cocker Gallery

(Cover) Invisible Labour: Cross-Stitching, Feminism, & the Collective Strength of Women, 12” x 12”, hardcover book, 2021

Installation shot, Society Reboot: A Guide for Humans, video, 2021, ArtRich 2021, Richmond Art Gallery

Installation shot, Society Reboot: A Guide for Humans, video, 2021, ArtRich 2021, Richmond Art Gallery

Coming up in 2022:

  • Moving in to my first private studio space!

  • Preparing for two solo shows:

    • Back to the Future: Digital Art Through Embroidery, Doris Crowston Gallery, Sechelt, BC (October-November 2022)

    • Womanmade: Crafting Architecture and the Mundane, Morey Family Gallery at Art Reach of Mid Michigan, Mt. Pleasant, MI (February 2023)

Uncanny Cross-Stitch (2), 7 x 5.5 inches, embroidery floss, Aida cloth, 2021

I’m truly excited to see what this new year will bring. But for the first month or so, my focus will be on recovery (due to this darn arm injury!) and getting set up in my new studio. Can’t wait to share more about the studio and all the new work/explorations that will surely take place within it!

Until then, wishing you all a healthy and happy new year!

 
 

Glitch Series 01

Since returning home after the completion of my MFA thesis I've been taking it pretty easy and trying to allow myself some sort of break. I've recently completed a new project titled Glitch Series 01, which involved converting a series of digital image glitches (sourced from images generated in Photoshop) into a cross-stitch pattern which was then completed as a cross-stitch work. 

The images used for this project were a series of glitches that occurred one day while I was working on another project in Photoshop. The file that I opened did not appear the way that it was supposed to, instead it was a collaged mashup of several files which I had opened within the past week or so. Instead of dismissing this unexpected moment as a computer failure, I accepted it as a gift. It was as if the computer had gotten frustrated with the overwhelming amount of information and data I had given it within a short span of time and this was its way of materializing that frustration. The computer had spoken and I wanted to savour every last moment of it that I could. 

I proceeded to save and alter these strange glitches that reloaded and occurred each time I saved the file. I adjusted the curves and colourations of some of the images before saving them, in order to enhance the artistic, almost painterly qualities. In the moment it was a highly energized, playful interaction, a constant wave of communication that fluctuated between myself and the computer.

I stored these glitch images in a folder on my hard drive, unsure of my future plans for them. It wasn't until I began integrating cross-stitching into my thesis projects that I realized this is what the glitch series would become. 

I selected 9 cropped sections (below) of the single glitch image (above) to create a series of images that would then be converted into a series of cross-stitches. 

The 9 selected images above were then uploaded onto a website called StitchFiddle.com, where they were converted into cross-stitch patterns. Below are the resulting cross-stitched works.

Each piece is approximately 3.5" x 3.5". I'm still working out the kinks for final display but currently my plan is to frame each digital image with its corresponding cross-stitch partner in a 20" x 20" frame with a double window matte. Below is a rough mock-up of what each of the final pieces will look like framed. 

This project evolved and developed over a long period of time, but I am extremely happy with the results. I wouldn't be surprised if I continue doing more cross-stitch works with a digital aesthetic in the future. 

End of Semester Critique

Yesterday I had my final critique of the first year of the MFA program at U of M. I installed new work I had made since my midterm critique in one room, and I installed the work that I made in the first half of the semester inside of my studio.

 

Staying within the medium of digital art, I've been pushing myself even further with this new approach. I am using the computer to make complex patterns from drawings, paintings, and photographs. There are multiple layers with varying degrees of transparency. Sometimes I cut and paste sections into random places on the image or I delete sections altogether. My process has become very collage based and I like to recycle old works into new ones. My practice continues to surprise me and it is in a constant state of transformation and development. 

I'm so happy with the work that I have produced during my time in the MFA program. I never could have imagined this is what my art would look like. One of the most valuable things that I've learned this year is that artists need to take chances and try new things. I believe that this is the only way artists truly reach their full potential.

I'm excited to return home in 9 days! I can't wait to spend time with friends and family. I'll be working several jobs including sports photography, coaching indoor and beach volleyball. The rest of my summer will be spent playing beach volleyball, hiking, running, biking, and making art.

Coming Home

My first year in the MFA program is almost complete. I will be home in two weeks and I couldn't be any more impatient. I find myself missing the mountains, especially since everyone from BC has been posting photos of the nice weather all over social media. This longing for the mountains inspired me to paint a landscape in my studio the other day. Here is how it all came together. 

I started by using a paint brush and india ink to create an outline of mountains, a lake, and some trees. I visualized a scene from my camping trip last summer in BC. Next I added line details using coloured micron pens. 

Coming Home, India Ink and Coloured Micron Pens on Bristol, 11"x14", 2016, Mallory Donen

Afterwards I scanned the above image using a flatbed scanner. I used Photoshop to generate the panorama landscape image below. 

It's amazing how much you can miss things from home that you often take for granted. Can't wait to come home and be reunited with the mountains. 

Familiarity, Intrigue, and Beauty: The Mundane Urban Landscape

Sunday, December 6: 

Yesterday I spent a couple of hours roaming the streets around my neighbourhood. I walked along Corydon, Osborne, River, and Wellington Crescent. Although I am often inspired by my natural surroundings (don't get me wrong the trees in this area are large and beautiful), I found myself being drawn towards abstract shapes and lines found in the urban landscape.

The Royal Crest: Photo-Walk, Winnipeg, MB, Digital Photograph, 2015, Mallory Donen 

I began by walking along Corydon towards Confusion Corner when I found myself bored of looking at the storefronts on the main strip. Every time I walk down this street I find myself drawn to the alleys and spaces in between the buildings.

Untitled: Photo-Walk, Winnipeg, MB, Digital Photograph, 2015, Mallory Donen

The alleys and hidden sides of buildings are filled with bizarre imagery that make for interesting documentation of architecture. While photographing these types of images, my goal is to capture unique perspectives that juxtapose elements of nature and the man-made. Alternatively I also attempt to combine various shapes, textures, and patterns, that exist within the immediate urban environment.

Untitled: Photo-Walk, Winnipeg, MB, Digital Photograph, 2015, Mallory Donen

Although these things often seem mundane and functionless, they are strangely interesting to me as I can read a sense of character, animation, and life within them. They're intriguing because they are uncanny elements of the urban landscape that seem unfamiliar yet familiar at the same time. These shapes/structures are repeated within various architectures within the urban setting. But we do not pay attention to these often hidden components, therefore making them seem unique to us when we eventually take the time to notice them. 

For some reason I have always been fascinated with taking photographs of fire hydrants and fire hose connections on the sides of buildings. No matter where I am in the world these are two objects or shapes that are always present. They often look slightly different in shape or color, but it is something I immediately look for when travelling or visiting a new place. Now some may think this is totally strange and there must be something wrong with me right?! Wrong! The reason I do this is to feel connected to home as well as feel more comfortable in my current surroundings. There's satisfaction in knowing that these are things that connect all of us around the world. Some may think this is far fetched, but I truly believe in the power of these mundane signifiers as a way of bringing about a sense of comfort and belonging.

Untitled: Photo-Walk, Winnipeg, MB, Digital Photograph, 2015, Mallory Donen

Untitled: Photo-Walk, Winnipeg, MB, Digital Photograph, 2015, Mallory Donen

While on this photo walk I found myself discovering the mundane urban landscape by seeing things with a new and unique perspective. This meant I was looking up, crouching down, tilting sideways, and basically every other way of looking imaginable. Looking is a powerful thing, but sometimes you need to remind yourself that just because you can see does not mean that you see things.

Windows: Photo-Walk, Winnipeg, MB, Digital Photograph, 2015, Mallory Donen

I was walking past this building when I noticed something beautiful. I walked across the street so that I could get a better angle of what I had just seen. The photograph above (Windows: Photo-Walk, Winnipeg, MB) is what I had seen, a window within a window, within a window. The moment was filled with lines, windows, shapes, and all in all a very interesting pattern formed by architecture, design, and destruction. A man walking by the window looked up in curiosity and confusion. He asked me why I was photographing the window when it was cracked, old, and in his opinion not very beautiful or nice to look at. I simply answered that I thought it was worth photographing and that I'm not interested in what everyone thinks should be photographed, but rather things that get overlooked or forgotten. He seemed happy with my answer and continued on his way, while I continued photographing the moments in the urban landscape that I found intriguing, familiar, and beautiful.