Thank you for this insightful, beautifully written piece on artepaño. I am not an artist and so i was quite stirred by this insider view of the meaning and experience of making art for someone, and how that very personal art affects the maker and the holder. There are many valuable ideas here that i am glad to have turning in my head. Thank you!
Oh Kathy, I'm so glad! I do think we put our energy into a gift a bit differently than we do something we're making for ourselves or to be out in the world. I'm fascinated by this process so I'm glad it resonated!
I've not thought about 'private' art before. Sketchbooks are new to me and I have a clumsy relationship with them. I do collage though and make little cards - which are, I suppose, little private art pieces that I can send to people, carrying greetings or thanks, or just a wish for good health, peace of mind. This has inspired me to reconsider my relationship with sketch books. The potential of a visual diary of immagination.
The fans are beautiful Sarah... Cheers to you in the desert! I guess heavy paper might be a good start if wooden fans are not available. I think I would want to hang them up like a mobile so the back is seen. Hmmm.
Hi Nancy, thank you! You know, I'd use cardstock or mat board for the fan shapes rather than just heavy paper as that will hold its shape better if you make a mobile. I made mine so that it would sit on a table top, so people could touch it and open and close it if they wished...part of my obsession with fans I think--their movement. Let me know how it goes!
Thank you for inviting us to contemplate what it means to publicly display art that was made for private use. I too have mixed feelings. I don't want to invade someone's privacy, and yet I am grateful for the opportunity to see it, as it gives me a window into what other human beings are experiencing — particularly, as you note, people who are so "unseen" in society — people in jail. I can only imagine their pining and longing — and that of their loved ones on the outside.
There is so much here to take in and ponder, and I am grateful to you for it all. I had never heard of paño arte, and I am touched to learn about it. I find that one aspect of it that sits with me is the resemblance to tattoo art, and how both skin and cloth are things we touch. It's interesting to me that this aspect is resonating so much with me, because I have no tattoos and little sense of connection to them. And yet this touches me.
I also think about how many of these people making paño arte are likely men, and how textiles have been predominantly seen as the realm of women in so many cultures. It makes the gesture -- of the person making it privately, to send to a loved one -- that much more tender somehow.
This was a joy to read! I love the connection to art as a reclamation of humanity. This post speaks so eloquently to the true power of art, regardless of the monetary value of what is made. Having a mode of expression is so important for everyone.
Thank you Jeremy--I was just watching your video for the attic prompt this morning in your own substack and thought--wow, I agree with absolutely everything he is saying here. I think we are kindred spirits!
This both lifted and hurt my heart: “I imagine this act of creating gave them a way to assert their humanity to themselves while stuck inside such a deeply dehumanizing environment.”
In a different but related context, this got me thinking about how art connects us to humanity in general—across the ages. I guess this is pretty elementary to those who study art! I just haven’t thought about art in terms of, perhaps, one of the most “human” things a human can do.
You always put forth so many things to ponder and integrate. Stirs my soul.
The photo album fan is fantastic. Begs to be touched!
I so agree Nyla-- I think that art as a fundamental universal human gesture has been forgotten in contemporary society in general--like the consciousness of its importance has gotten buried beneath all kinds of other beliefs and attitudes about art--art as product, art as specialization, etc., and then, in examples like this, of art making in extreme circumstances like prison, we get to see afresh, art as a necessity of being alive.
Thank you Lynn--I hadn't heard of it either until I read that article. I'm so interested right now in this whole idea of privacy and art--making for oneself, making for another, drawing upon our art as a means of feeding our souls or understanding the world or connecting with another without making a presentation somehow....it's not even all that clear to me, just a need I feel..
Cool! If we get enough people interested, I'll do an online class. And I do have wooden fan pieces as well as cardboard actually, if you like to have a set of blades to play around and make your own. Just hit reply on the newsletter email you got this morning and we can discuss!
Sarah,
Thank you for this insightful, beautifully written piece on artepaño. I am not an artist and so i was quite stirred by this insider view of the meaning and experience of making art for someone, and how that very personal art affects the maker and the holder. There are many valuable ideas here that i am glad to have turning in my head. Thank you!
Oh Kathy, I'm so glad! I do think we put our energy into a gift a bit differently than we do something we're making for ourselves or to be out in the world. I'm fascinated by this process so I'm glad it resonated!
I've not thought about 'private' art before. Sketchbooks are new to me and I have a clumsy relationship with them. I do collage though and make little cards - which are, I suppose, little private art pieces that I can send to people, carrying greetings or thanks, or just a wish for good health, peace of mind. This has inspired me to reconsider my relationship with sketch books. The potential of a visual diary of immagination.
The fans are beautiful Sarah... Cheers to you in the desert! I guess heavy paper might be a good start if wooden fans are not available. I think I would want to hang them up like a mobile so the back is seen. Hmmm.
Hi Nancy, thank you! You know, I'd use cardstock or mat board for the fan shapes rather than just heavy paper as that will hold its shape better if you make a mobile. I made mine so that it would sit on a table top, so people could touch it and open and close it if they wished...part of my obsession with fans I think--their movement. Let me know how it goes!
Thank you for inviting us to contemplate what it means to publicly display art that was made for private use. I too have mixed feelings. I don't want to invade someone's privacy, and yet I am grateful for the opportunity to see it, as it gives me a window into what other human beings are experiencing — particularly, as you note, people who are so "unseen" in society — people in jail. I can only imagine their pining and longing — and that of their loved ones on the outside.
There is so much here to take in and ponder, and I am grateful to you for it all. I had never heard of paño arte, and I am touched to learn about it. I find that one aspect of it that sits with me is the resemblance to tattoo art, and how both skin and cloth are things we touch. It's interesting to me that this aspect is resonating so much with me, because I have no tattoos and little sense of connection to them. And yet this touches me.
I also think about how many of these people making paño arte are likely men, and how textiles have been predominantly seen as the realm of women in so many cultures. It makes the gesture -- of the person making it privately, to send to a loved one -- that much more tender somehow.
This was a joy to read! I love the connection to art as a reclamation of humanity. This post speaks so eloquently to the true power of art, regardless of the monetary value of what is made. Having a mode of expression is so important for everyone.
Thank you Jeremy--I was just watching your video for the attic prompt this morning in your own substack and thought--wow, I agree with absolutely everything he is saying here. I think we are kindred spirits!
This both lifted and hurt my heart: “I imagine this act of creating gave them a way to assert their humanity to themselves while stuck inside such a deeply dehumanizing environment.”
In a different but related context, this got me thinking about how art connects us to humanity in general—across the ages. I guess this is pretty elementary to those who study art! I just haven’t thought about art in terms of, perhaps, one of the most “human” things a human can do.
You always put forth so many things to ponder and integrate. Stirs my soul.
The photo album fan is fantastic. Begs to be touched!
I so agree Nyla-- I think that art as a fundamental universal human gesture has been forgotten in contemporary society in general--like the consciousness of its importance has gotten buried beneath all kinds of other beliefs and attitudes about art--art as product, art as specialization, etc., and then, in examples like this, of art making in extreme circumstances like prison, we get to see afresh, art as a necessity of being alive.
And thank you about the photo fan. :)
I loved this - truly . Never heard of it , and it’s so interesting. The privacy part is so special
Thank you Lynn--I hadn't heard of it either until I read that article. I'm so interested right now in this whole idea of privacy and art--making for oneself, making for another, drawing upon our art as a means of feeding our souls or understanding the world or connecting with another without making a presentation somehow....it's not even all that clear to me, just a need I feel..
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Hi Sarah, I would love to learn how you made the photo fan, or if you decide to sell the fan pieces I would be interested.
Cool! If we get enough people interested, I'll do an online class. And I do have wooden fan pieces as well as cardboard actually, if you like to have a set of blades to play around and make your own. Just hit reply on the newsletter email you got this morning and we can discuss!