Renee Vaughan

Kurbits Folk Paintings

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 04:08:00 +0000

Jonah 4:6
And God prepared a gourd, ("kurbits," in Swedish,) and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd.

Kurbits painting, (also known as Dalmålnings or Dala painting,) is a distinctive form of Swedish folk art painting, (circa 1750-1850,) with imaginative fantasy plants, and the paintings frequently depict religious motifs in local settings and folk dress. Each parish had their own distinct style, but shared many similar design concepts.

"Jonah Sat East of the Town of Nineveh and a Gourd Grew Over Him.”
Snarf Anders Andersson, (1795 - 1850) Ullvi, Leksand. Sweden.

Her Blacks Crackle and Drag

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 20:12:00 +0000

"The moon has nothing to be sad about,
Staring from her hood of bone.
She is used to this sort of thing
Her blacks crackle and drag."
--- Sylvia Plath, "Edge"

ARTIST NOTES:
Sylvia's hand rests on the curtain cord as she readies to pull. Her back is turned from the life force of God, and on the table she has laid out bread and milk for her children as they sleep peacefully in the next room.

The last poem Sylvia Plath wrote, (or at least the last one found on her desk,) before she took her life, was “Edge.” I read it about 12 years ago when I was muddling my way through postpartum depression. I kept mumbling the final phrase, "Her blacks crackle and drag,” over and over, like a doleful Rainman. I liked the imagery of big black velvet curtains slowing drawing to a close, dragging along the stage, creating static which crackled, and then the curtains closed, the show was over, end of story.

I pushed it out of my head for a few years, until Paul Westerberg wrote a tune titled “Crackle and Drag.” My doleful mumbles returned, and I painted this in a desperate attempt to make it all go away. I hang this painting above my fireplace to remind me that things can always be worse.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:
Casein and acrylic on canvas board. 24" high and 18” wide.
NFS

Ted Gathers No Moss

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:52:00 +0000

Poet Ted Hughes carries a traditional Swedish grave marker, which he plants in a bed of burial stones.

ARTIST NOTES:

Ted was a rolling stone, a cad, a notorious philanderer who caused great pain to many. His wife Sylvia Plath, (the kurbits on the right,) killed herself in 1963, and his mistress Assia, (the kurbits on the left,) killed herself, along with their young daughter, (small sprout on left,) in 1969.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:
Casein and acrylic on canvas board. 24" high and 18” wide.
NFS

I Am a Wormy Hermit

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:40:00 +0000

"I Am a Wormy Hermit in a country of prize pigs so corn-happy they can't see the slaughterhouse at the end of the track."
--- Sylvia Plath, "Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams."

ARTIST NOTES:
Painted during a time personal and economic depression: Ponzi schemes, banking bailouts, unabashed corporate greed. I know I should have cared more, but a dark gnarled mass of ugliness coated my insides. I could barely leave my room without crying from overwhelming anxiety. The times I did make it to the outside world, I looked around and hated every single "shiny," person I saw. You know the type, all showered and make-upped, size 6 Ann Taylor outfit, and always sportin' a new faux handbag. They speak as though they are constantly updating their bloated Christmas card, "Johnny loves the 'gifted and talented' program at school, and Susie is the star player on every team." Me? Most days I strive for mediocrity. Other days, I just try to not fuckin' lose it in the grocery store again, a primary source of my anxiety/panic attacks.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:
Casein and acrylic on canvas board. 24" high and 18” wide.
NFS

"Don't be no yes man, no get by."

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:38:00 +0000

olk

My great aunt Mary lived on LaFond Avenue in St. Paul, and we'd drive past Tiger Jack on our way to visit her every weekend. He always smiled and waved his bony, crooked finger at me. (Boxing injury perhaps?) One time Mary and I walked to his shop, I bought Juicy Fruit gum and Tiger Jack asked me if I behaved myself at school.

ARTIST NOTES:
Tiger Jack waves near his bench and bible. His wife Nurceal and nine children are nearby.

Here is a video of Tiger Jack made by sixth graders at Capitol Hill School.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:
Casein and acrylic on canvas board. 20" high and 16” wide.
NFS

Min Cherry

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:37:00 +0000

Min Cherry is Swedish for, "My Cherry"

ARTIST NOTES:
A copy of the first original canvas painting I ever sold. No story behind this one really, I just made it for pretty.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:
Casein and acrylic on canvas board. 20" high and 16” wide.
NFS

Mary Greets Elizabeth, (after Kers Erik Jonsson)

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:30:00 +0000

"When Mary entered the house of Zechariah, and greeted Elizabeth, the baby leaped in Elizabeth's womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb" (Luke 1:41-42).

ARTIST NOTES:
This is based on a traditional Swedish kurbits painting by Kers Erik Jonsson, 1812-1852, from the Leksand parish in central Sweden.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:
Casein and acrylic on canvas board. 20" high and 16” wide
NFS

Saint Lucia

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:25:00 +0000

Sankta Lucia, ljusklara hägring
Saint Lucia, bright illusion

ARTIST NOTES:

I was raised Irish Catholic and have always loved saints. When I was a young girl, I chose Dymphna, the daughter of a pagan Irish king and his Christian wife in the 7th century, to be my confirmation name. It's a bit ironic that she is the patron saint for those with mental illness.

Saint Lucia is the favored saint in Sweden. When my daughter was younger, I cajoled her on December 13th to wear her crown of (battery-powered) lights, and bring me coffee and sweet rolls in bed. She would walk in and whisper, "Lucia brings the light." Now that she is older, the only thing she brings me on December 13 is an amazing display of eye rolling.

ABOUT THE PAINTING:
Casein and acrylic on canvas board. 20" high and 16” wide
NFS

Homage to Piet Mondrian

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:24:00 +0000

Colonoscopy #17

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:21:00 +0000

Homage to the Smitten Kitten

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:17:00 +0000

12 years after I earned my graduate degree, Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:13:00 +0000

On my knees I scrub
dried pee chunks off the toilet
I inhale the bleach.

Shoe Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:11:00 +0000

My boots took a walk.
Tonight, I feel like a heel,
who has lost her sole.

Flu Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:03:00 +0000

"Mom, I don't feel good."
Lucky Charms spewed to the floor
The dog thought, "A snack!"

Bra Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:57:00 +0000

New underwire bra
digs in my delicate flesh.
Vampire underwear

5-7-5 Handcuffs, Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:50:00 +0000

I'm through with Haiku.

It’s time for only the rhyme.
No restricting time.

Palin in Comparison, Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:38:00 +0000

Sarah Palin has
pulled back her beauty queen mask
It's Phyllis Schlafly!

The 44 pound Ringer, Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:34:00 +0000

Madeline “Socks” Vaughan
Smallest player on the team
Knocked the cover off

Burned by the Midnight Sun, Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:30:00 +0000

You made me happy

I was Icarus, flying

then crashed to the sea

Apples and Oranges, Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:25:00 +0000

Electric Blanket

Silicon and Batteries
Replaced you in bed

I do, but who are you? Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:05:00 +0000

My Quasimodo
resurfaced last Saturday.
Lest I forget him.

Two Blue Haiku

renee@reneevaughan.com (Renee Vaughan) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:01:00 +0000

1.
The best part about
Clinical drespression is
He expects much less

2.
It’s a stunning trait
I will always let you down
Consistent, at best