The Brooklyn-based artist Swoon, who may know from her beautiful wheat-pasted cut-out street art (and the following flotillas:
Miss Rockaway Armada, Swimming Cities of Switchback Sea, Swimming Cities of Serenissima) is bringing a landmark, permanent
sculpture to the Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans. This “house” also functions as a musical instrument. A growing group of
local and national sound artists are creating interactive instruments that will be built into its walls and floorboards so that visitors
can bring the house to life through their touch. How does a house sing? How does it keep a beat? Can a house be played like a trumpet?
These are the kind of questions will be answering this fall when we launch The Music Box – A Shantytown Sound Laboratory, which is the
first incarnation of what will evolve into Dithyrambalina. Our prototypes will gather together in a musical village of singing shanties!

Swoon’s “Ice Queen”, (currently debuting at MOCA, Los Angeles’ Art in the Streets exhibition).
Screen print on paper, coffee stained and hand painted, 2′x3′, signed in an edition of ten.
Happy to say that all three of these beautiful pieces went to each of our awesome Kickstarter backers who pledged $3000 or more!

We are very excited to be collaborating with Elizabeth Shannon, a hero of the New Orleans art world since the 1970′s on the shanty
that will shelter our piece TINTINNABULATION STATION. This temporary installation will run from October thru early January and will
be built on the future site of the Dithyrambalina in the New Orleans Bywater neighborhood. Over the course of the exhibition we will
welcome visitors, hold children’s workshops, and present a three-part series of performances featuring local and national musicians who
will orchestrate original works on the devices. Check out our fellow artists, also – we’re amongst great company of some dear friends and many future friends! I’d love it if you’d take a moment to go read more about this project – the whys and wherefores, the inspirations, and the spirit behind it. I’m so proud to be a part of this beautiful thing! The Dithrambalina Kickstarter Campaign ends Thursday Jul 28, 8:49am,
and not only did meet our goal, but nearly doubled it! However – any and all additional pledges are appreciated and needed! Additional funding will go towards build costs for the Dithyrambalina house, developing more instrumentation, and paying our artists and musicians
for all their hard work. We would all be so grateful for any donations, and for any help spreading the word about this project!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Swoon and Sound Collaborator Taylor Shepherd Discuss the Project

P.S. Have you been wondering why Swoon calls the musical house Dithyrambalina?
The root of the name comes from the ancient Greek work dithyramb. A dithyramb
was the chant of wild abandon sung by the devotees of Dionysus to call for their God.

Dionysus was the god of the grape harvest and wine, and he connotes ritual madness
and ecstasy in Greek mythology. He is generally depicted as an enchantingly beautiful
man attended by a debauched procession of animals, dancers, and music makers.
Suffice it to say that Dionysus has never missed a Mardi Gras in New Orleans!
– from the Dithyrambalina blog, which is chockablock with good stuff – go see!

I made two pieces for the Carnival of Saints + Souls, an exhibit
of doll-art and photography curated by my dear friend Miss Christy
Kane. It was held at Poet’s Gallery on Magazine St. in New Orleans.
I was delighted to show pieces with the following fine ladies:
Jennybird Alcantara
Loopy Boopy
Dame Darcy
Sheri DeBow
Christy Kane
Pandora Gastelum
Miss Oblivious
Liz McGrath
Molly McGuire
Angela Raney
Darla Teagarden
Lateefah Wright

I knew I wanted to do a piece honoring Nita + Zita as patron twin-saints
of New Orleans, and of dancers, costumers and immigrants. I knew at
once that I had to turn them into paper dolls, and luckily the piece came
together basically as I had imagined it, with much help from my sweetheart
in the carpentry department (though I did get very handy with the puzzle
saw and sandpaper!) The main trick was trying to paint it in their distinctive
folk-art style, without worrying that it might just look like I didn’t know how
to paint. That’s the hard thing about making art specifically for shows: the
embedded audience, with their imagined opinions. Unfortunately, I have
a bit of a tree-falls-in-the-woods complex, and most things I’m interested
in doing involve some sort of audience. It’s just the way I’m wired, I reckon,
but I don’t do many projects just for my own pleasure. It’s all about the
interactive experience for me – case in point, this Gazette! So, on that
note – thank you for being here, for experiencing this with me, for reading,
for looking. I think about you more than you might know, and I don’t think
that’s a bad thing. Back to Nita + Zita, though: you can take their little outfits
off the tiny hangers and dress them! My inner seven year old was thrilled.

My second piece was a bit more cathartic, as I’ve been experiencing
some pretty intense dental trauma this year. Maybe I’ll write about it
at some point, but for now I’ll just create patron saints to help me through
it. Reading about Saint Apollonia on Lady Lavona’s Cabinet of Curiosities
made me think of it – I knew immediately that I needed to create an icon
to house the pain and distress of having super-involved dental work done,
and to perhaps, through the act of making, offer some succor. I think she did.

“Saint Apollonia was one of a group of virgin martyrs who suffered in
Alexandria during a local uprising against the Christians prior to the
persecution of Decius. According to legend, her torture included
having all of her teeth violently pulled out or shattered. For this reason,
she is popularly regarded as the patroness of dentistry and those suffering
from toothache or other dental problems.”
– from Wikipedia

I was so happy to find that I already had everything I needed to make her come
to life already in my possession: marbles, a broken porcelain doll, hanks of human
hair, red thread, teeth molds and color model teeth to make her halo/crown, and then
the perfect fragment of old lace to make her skirt from. Love it when things come together
like that, don’t you? It also feels good to take old things and pull them into new forms.

I so, so wish I could’ve attended the opening party! Alas, it was the same night as Tranarchy!
Miss Angie Raney made this incredible spread of delectables – aren’t they incredible? Want!

(Photo by Christy Kane)

Oh! I almost forgot to mention, but I had the pleasure of interviewing Miss Melora Creager
for Coilhouse recently! Christy Kane took some beautiful portraits to accompany the piece.
So, between travel, art-making, Tranarchy and a dozen other projects, I’ve had my hands quite
full! Hoping for a bit of a lull at some point, so that I might catch my breath, and even recount
more of my San Franciscan adventures, but we shall see what the cards hold for my autumn!

Melora Creager: Sweet Sister Temperance

Jewels from the shop. Sometimes I cannot resist the sparkle.
Okay, I admit that I have a problem- my bijoux collection is getting a bit out of hand!

Also from Uncommon Objects- this man is made of wax.
He looked sad, so I gave him a skunk-skin to wear, and a silver acorn collar.
He seemed more hopeful after I styled him. I think he’s looking for love.

The other day, I came to work only to discover that gremlins had been cavorting
in the night and knocked my shelf down, thus destroying pretty much everything
that could be broken in my booth. Total bricolage carnage. Glass everywhere.
The universe is being a little heavy-handed in hinting to me that maybe I need
to be a little more zen with the material objects. Trying to learn that lesson.
Between the hurricane, the renovation, and the destructo-dog, I think I’m
getting the picture! Breathe, and let it all go. Yes, it has memories and magic.
Yes, it is just stuff. Oh, and by the by- to everyone who recommended a crate
for Grrizelda: You were all totally right, and I wished I listened sooner!

I loved this freaky nekko-cat vase from guess where.
It barfs flowers at you. I find a bouquet brightens a room, don’t you?
Especially when upchucked by a tiny ceramic kitty.

This is just wrong. It’s a chocolate covered Twinkie from Big Top Candy Shop.
You know you want it. I ate half, and I thought I was going to die. Crazy.

My sweetie cleaned out his closet and discovered all these punk shirts he
silkscreened when he was a kid. I’ve been feeling like dressing like I did when
I was 14, so I adopted his handmade Wind Chill Factor shirt. We went to see
Inglourious Basterds that night, so I felt I had dressed very appropriately.
Holy crap, it was so amazing. It affected me much more than I could have
ever predicted. Absolutely Tarantino’s masterpiece. So many good films out
this year! For the first time in forever, I feel like I might actually watch the Oscars.

All of the attention to detail in the film was impeccable. The rhinestones studded
shoes and fabulous hats, and the women all wore the same shade of red lipstick.
Pretty damn certain it was my own favorite, M.A.C.’s Ruby Woo. So perfect!

I love this embroidered flamenca. A gift for one of my favorite ladies!

This is my summer drink of choice lately. Redcurrant + rose syrup + soda.
It’s from Poland. If you ever see another bottle, please send one to me!

There’s been a brutal drought here, and our garden is torched.
The guardian of the succulents is protecting these hardy babies, though.

My beloved Grampa told me recently that he wanted to go shopping for a new
wardrobe. He asked to go to Banana Bay, inexplicably, which is a military supply
store. We found him a new Greek Fisherman’s cap, in dove-gray, very dapper.
He was into the camo, so I picked out this jacket for him. The print was the best,
but I don’t know what it’s camo for, exactly. Night-hunting? My Grampa is 95
years old, and he has mad style. Incidentally, he is also the least military kind of guy
ever, (he’s an intellectual!) so who knows- he said he liked the look! Tough!

Admiral Fox is also sporting the mode de guerre!
Spiked helmets are the new black, didn’t you hear?

The day we went, it was bright and dusty and smelled like
engine oil and the ozone tang of storms, though the sun beat down
through cotton fluffs to us. The fellas + forklift managed to get two
enormously heavy bookbinding machines from the 1800′s into the truck.
I read my encyclopedia of serial killers, and snapped pictures of rusty things.

As we were leaving, we noticed this very fancy turkey buzzard, proudly
displaying his resplendent plumage to yon prospective mate- who feigned
disinterest on a nearby pole. He stayed like that for the longest time,
looking like an eagle on a coin- except with a head that looked like skinned meat,
and a perfume to match! I love vultures. They are majestically scrappy birds.

These gulf fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) butterflies have taken up residence in the bog.
They’ve found the dried pitchers to be ideal spots for chillaxin,
and showing off their silvery spots. For this, I forgive the caterpillars their
taste for my fuschia and passionflower vines. I watched one crysallize.
It was beyond belief. To turn from worm to horn to winged thing.
really is magic. How could I forget about that? Thanks for the reminder.

Believe it or not, I had to contort myself into a bizarre backbend, in the dying light,
carefully avoiding crushing the irises or becoming entangled in the sticky tendrils
of the sundews. I had to try, though- because they were all so chic, sipping
nepenthe dew at the Carnivore Cafe. Ooh la! Paparazzi! The trio took turns
preening and lazily flapping their wings as the sun sunk behind the projects.

You can see from the blur, that it was already really too late, but I had to capture
these venus flytrap seeds before they dispersed. Don’t they look exactly like caviar?

In our garden- everything is coming up bit by bit. Check out the crazy-thick kale stem!
Proud of what we grow, and ready for more. I want to pick it, not buy it.

Also, tomorrow evening I’ll be headed to this:

FINGERS – TENDER AND TRUE, NIMBLE AND MOBILE,
OUR HAND IS WIDE OPEN UP, WAITING FOR YOUR TOUCH ON OUR LIFE LINE.
THESE ROVING FINGERS ARE ANXIOUS TO TAKE YOU
TO THE BACK ROOM GAY VAUDEVILLE OF YESTERYEAR,
A VISION OF CAVES AND PARADISES WE HAVE IMAGINED INTO REALITY.
WE BRING YOU A NIGHT OF PERFORMANCES IN THE STRUGGLE
AND THE SPLENDOR OF QUEERTRANSFEMINIST BODIES,
A RAINBOW OF HALLUCINATED AHISTORICAL REENACTMENT.
OUR FINGERS ACT DEFTLY, SLIGHT OF HAND AND SLIGHT OF WEIGHT,
SHADOW GAMES, PALMISTRY AND CARPAL FEELINGS.
WE PRESENT A WHOLE SORDID SMORGASBORD
OF INTUITIVE MAGICAL PRACTICE:
TO YOU, FROM THESE FINGERS, A GIFT:
DIVINE EXTRAVAGANCE, SCENIC OVERLOOKING,
FARCE, FANTASY, FANCY FACADE,
CABARETS OF DECADENCE, CABINETS OF CURIOSITY,
PASTICHE, REVELRY, OASIS, MIRAGE.

You come, too.