More About Long View Designs
I run Long View Designs out of my studio in University Park, Maryland. I work in dyed fibers, mosaics, and metals to hand-make offbeat usable things that add color and texture to life. These endeavors are a creative counterpoint to my scientific career as a Professor specializing in plant conservation at the University of Maryland. The patterns, forms, and colors in nature influence my esthetic.
My obsession with dyeing fabrics began in 1998 and the joy of seeing plain white fabric transform to a riot of color has never diminished. Experimenting with the chemistry of the dye process appeals to my scientist side, but the element of chance in how any particular effort will turn out requires that I let go of expecting any specific outcome. More recently I have been expanding my fiber repertoire into making paper and dyeing paper fibers at Pyramid Atlantic Art Center in Hyattsville, MD.
I love the broad palette of intense, long-lasting colors offered by commercial aniline dyes as much as the earthier palette of dyes from plants and insects. Natural dyes are less permanent than fiber-reactive dyes, so I opt to use only natural materials that are relatively colorfast and lightfast and can withstand use. I dye with plants I grow in my organic garden (e.g. marigolds, brown-eyed Susans, zinnias, safflower) and with plant materials I collect sustainably from the local region (e.g., sumac, dock, and black walnut). However, there are too many gorgeous and trusty colors from plants that either can’t grow in Maryland or that I won’t grow here because they have invasive tendencies. For these colors I buy dye materials from sustainable sources.
My metalsmithing habit includes hand-forging copper and silver into “rustic chic” jewelry. I use recycled or upcycled metals to a large extent and often embellish my pieces with semi-precious stone beads and cabochons. Specific techniques include fold-forming, air chasing, surface texturing, and flame painting. This practice legitimizes an addiction to scouring estate sales and the like for old hand tools that can be used to put patterns into metal.
Making mosaics lets me apply hammers and chisels to breaking things before making things. I am a fan of abstract designs and enjoy using vivid Mexican Talavera tile and stained glass that I run through a rock tumbler to remove the high gloss. Adding mosaic tile to old door from our local architectural salvage store Community Forklift yielded a high top table for our kitchen. And then there are the basement stairs…
The name Long View Designs captures several threads. First, as a conservation biologist I have had to repeatedly learn to take the long view as individual policies or human actions lead the plant species I care about towards extinction. It is easy to become overwhelmed with sadness and anger at the state of the world and the science progresses more slowly than I would like. Practicing at keeping my eye on long-term goals despite short-term setbacks is critical to peace of mind. A second thread is my history of doing ultra long-distance bicycling. When you are riding your bike for 1200 kilometers in 90 hours, you simply have to settle in and take the long view rather than being caught up in what is happening at the very moment. If you feel bad, it will change. If you feel good, well unfortunately that will change too. Taking the long view means having patience to know I will come through the bad spells. It also means enjoying but tempering the over-exuberance during good spells that could overtax me and spell disaster. The third thread is that each of the media I work in take time to learn and creating any given finished product is a slow process. The discipline of keeping the long view of the goal, but enjoying the process is a common thread.