rational beauty Q&A/kay sekimachi

The lovely Jeanette Abbink of Rational Beauty has just posted a Q&A with me so I thought I would share that today. The link is here for all for you that are curious. I had fun answering her questions...

It made me think of the project Jeanette and I worked together on for her last issue as creative director of American Craft Magazine - a story on Kay Sekimachi. This image is one of my favorites of her upstairs loft. Kay has an exquisite eye, doesn't she?...

kay sekimachi/collections

a couple more images of Kay Sekimachi's collections. I have to say, I find people's collections fascinating. And with Kay, she takes so much care in the way she stores and displays them, that I feel like they are an extension of her artwork. It shows how she thinks.

kay sekimachi/

Yesterday I mentioned Kay Sekimachi's wasp nest in her living room. But look what she can do with the paper from a wasp's nest. I love this picture because it one of Kay's wasp paper bowl's with one of her late husband, Bob Stocksdale's hand turned wood bowls. I think of it as kind of a portrait of both of them. And I added another image of more of Kay's work just for fun...

kay sekimachi/

I've been thinking about Kay Sekimachi's home lately because of this comfortable little nook under the stairs. It seem like the perfect place to curl up, which no doubt, kay does. Yes, that is a massive wasp's nest hanging on the right - a gift to Kay from friends in Vermont (?). Kay's collections of beautiful rocks, shells and such is rather remarkable. But this wasp's nest is the prize of her collection I daresay.

american craft/kay sekimachi

Just back from new york and I FINALLY got my hands on the new issue of American Craft magazine with my images of Kay Sekimachi's home, studio and beautiful work. And I got the cover! I have never been so happy with how my images were used and layed out in all my career. Creative Director, Jeanette Abbink, did such an amazing job...I really have no words. Isn't the cover lovely? It is hard to take a bad picture of Kay's beautiful work, though.  Anyhow...I am really proud of this.

kay sekimachi/fiber artist

All over Kay's home are beautiful little groupings of found objects from nature and artwork by friends. This first image is what happened to one of her perfect little arrangements when I walked by too quick....whoops!

See how it was originally arranged below.

kay sekimachi/fiber artist

Last Thursday and Friday I began my new project on American craftspeople. There is such a resurgence of craft right now, but I feel like much of it is really trendy with no knowledge of the incredible tradition it comes from. Kay Sekimachi is a master fiber artist. She is in her 70's I would guess and still works everyday at the loom or on other projects in her home studio. I am continuing the work I started with Handcrafted Modern, documenting houses, so I shot the entire house. But today I thought I would give you all a little taster of Kay's work. These are all hanging in the upstairs loft studio. I have included a detail of this long hanging piece. It is made entirely of fish line. The result is incredibly beautiful. It almost feels like some amorphous creature from the sea....

kay sekimachi/

Pic of the day. One more from Kay Sekimachi's home in Berkeley, CA. What is it about this photo that I love so much...I keep coming back to it.

The woven piece on the wall is from Japan.

kay sekimachi/

I have been thinking quite a bit about craft lately. It seems to be very of the moment, but also harkens to the past in so many ways. In particular, I have been thinking about pottery and fiber arts. Why you might ask? Well, the answer is easy. Tonight I went to an open house at Greenwich House Pottery and a couple of weeks ago I met with Kay Sekimachi at her home in Berkeley and saw many of her incredible pieces that she has made on her loom and through other knotting techniques (I hope that is the right way to phrase that...). Thought I would share an image from my quick scouting photos of Kay Sekimachi's home. I will be returning to do a proper shoot in the coming weeks and really cannot wait. These necklaces are from a series Kay is working on where she incorporates pieces she has collected on a beach in Hawaii (wish I could remember which beach!) over the last 40 years.