I hear the blast of a pistol, shooting at some creature unknown.
The crickets don’t flinch, they continue their song.
The black has covered everything, trees dripping in sultry, sweet tar.
An owl calls in the night.
A fox screams in lonely fright.
And the night begins in the swamp.
We’re having a rare snow day here in the Lowcountry, so we took a short walk around to see the swamp swathed in its white snow blanket.
Stay warm!
As Santa finished his last delivery, Joseph and I went right back to work to prepare for a very exciting opportunity. The lovely Leigh and Tim McAlpin of Charleston, SC’s leading eco-friendly design and furniture store Dwelling chose Joseph Thompson Woodworks and Black Swamp to open their new LOCAL Maker’s Series, featuring the work of talented local furniture makers.
Invitation made by Dodeline Design
We were so thrilled to kick of 2014 with an exhibition in our hometown. Since we wanted to give our friends and family the best we had to offer, there were many a late night spent in preparation, especially after we had not one, but TWO boards for table tops blow up in the planer during construction.
We did manage to document a bit of the construction process despite our hectic schedule: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd4RgZDnDcc
Once the dust had settled, the show opened beautifully and we were happy to celebrate with our friends and family.
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, Courtesy of Dwelling
New Black Swamp cuff bracelets and necklace styles were launched to a very positive reception. This piece features local South Carolina Black Walnut wood.
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, Courtesy of Dwelling
Charleston’s new High Wire Distillery provided their delicious locally crafted spirits, making the event a fully local event.
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, Courtesy of Dwelling
A few more of my favorite snaps from the opening…..
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, Courtesy of Dwelling
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, Courtesy of Dwelling
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, Courtesy of Dwelling
Photo by Sea Star Arts photography, courtesy of Dwelling
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, courtesy of Dwelling
Photo by Sea Star Arts Photography, courtesy of Dwelling
Thanks to the talented Jeni Becker of Sea Star Arts Photography for the wonderful photos, see more snaps from the party here. Thanks also to High Wire Distilling, Dodeline Design, and of course, Leigh and Tim McAlpin of Dwelling for hosting us.
In addition to the opening, we also held a “Meet the Maker” session at Charleston’s first Second Sunday on King for the new year. It was a beautiful day and I loved meeting new people and seeing some old friends, too.
Courtesy of @JWTWoodworks
The show will be on view at Dwelling until Sunday, February 9th, which will close with another “Meet the Makers” session from 12 p.m. – 5 p.m. Dwelling is located at 165 King St, Charleston, SC.
Check out some wonderful press the show has received from the Charleston City Paper, The Scout Guide, Post & Courier, and Design Feast’s Design Feaster.
Thank you to all of our friends, family, fans, collaborators, and everyone who had even the smallest part in making this show possible. We have been overwhelmed with the support from our hometown, we are so grateful and blessed to have such love in our lives.
Happy New Year Everyone!
Since I haven’t posted to my blog since November, it’s safe to say the past few months were a total blur and as well as a blast. I did manage to snap a few photos and explore some awesome new things since November, so here is Part I of the great Katie Thompson Ketchup of 2014.
I recently started a new series of “wood paintings” using my beloved wood shavings. I developed this technique from my Art with a BANGS project in which I first used the process on a pair of tennis shoes.
We celebrated a wonderful Thanksgiving with our families and had a lot to be grateful for. We enjoyed a week of “rest” before Joseph and I headed off to…..
Chicago! One of my favorite places in the world. Joseph and I exhibited our Joseph Thompson Woodworks designs at the One of a Kind Show at the Merchandise Mart again this year.
We did manage to sneak away to find some fun and inspiration during our visit. We enjoyed a comedic performance over a cold beer at the famous Second City, and upon our arrival we were promptly placed in the front row and both heckled accordingly by the comics. Our faces hurt for the next 24 hours from laughing so hard.
We also saw some really interesting wooden items during our stay. A delightful visit to our space at the show wore this amazing Big Leaf Maple Burl vintage top hat:
Also spotted at The Field Museum was this breathtaking woven shawl made from tree bark. It was exhibited back at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago.
While at the Field Museum we also enjoyed an exhibition of rising contemporary Native American artist Bunky Echo-Hawk’s work, “Modern Warrior.”
Other highlights of the trip included a magnificent meal at Chicago’s new Peruvian delight, Tanta. The Clasico Ceviche was amazingly balanced (I actually ENJOYED eating a habanero pepper) and the service was outstanding. Also on the walls are some amazing work by the talented contemporary muralist Jeff Zimmerman.
Upon our return, we dashed down to SpaceCraft Studios in Charleston for the Avondale Holiday Winterfest. While torrential rains shook the event up, we made the best of it and had a blast meeting new local makers and sharing some Black Swamp jewelry.
I also had the pleasure of making a quick day trip with friends to Columbia, SC to enjoy Annie Leibowitz’s “Pilgrimage” exhibition at the Columbia Museum of Art (no photos were allowed, sadly.) We also enjoyed a unforgettably delicious and locally sourced lunch at Motor Supply Co. Bistro.
Finally, the Christmas holiday arrived and Joseph and I enjoyed out very first Christmas tree together. After speaking with friends who have purchased potted trees for years, we decided to get a potted Deodara Cedar from a local grower for our Christmas tree. We bought our first set of vintage recycled Christmas ornaments from maker Beth Dalton of Charleston, and will be planting the tree before winter is over so we can enjoy our first holiday together in our new place for years to come.
Phew! That was quite a few weeks. I’ll be back to share updates from the new year next.
Joseph and I had the awesome opportunity to participate in a recent group show Art with a BANGS at Redux Studios in Charleston, SC. Produced also by our friends at Gris Galerie and the Charleston Shop Curator, a small group of artists were enlisted to customize a pair of BANGS shoes to be auctioned off for charity.
BANGS Shoes is an amazing tennis shoe brand Founded by Charleston Local Hannah Davis. BANGS’ slogan is to Stand on Issues, with sales from each shoe going to different types of nonprofits focused on empowerment in their respective fields (education, etc.)
What our pair originally looked like.
Including a DJ, the event also featured a special SpaceCraft Studios sponsored area where attendees customized their own pair of BANGS on site.
This project was especially fun and challenging. I enjoyed combining ideas and techniques generated by my accessories line with a slice of contemporary art and fashion using my favorite medium at the moment, wood shavings.
I also enjoyed returning to Redux to show my work for the first time. I had the great opportunity to intern at Redux during my last summer at the College of Charleston. In the blistering heat of July in that old piano warehouse in Downtown Charleston I learned so much about the fundamentals of managing a nonprofit arts organization. I also gained experiences and insight into studio practices of various types that helped formulate my own fundamentals as a designer and maker. I couldn’t help but get nostalgic when I stopped in to drop off our work for the show.
The finished product.
The shoes ended up being a hit at the silent auction! Several bids were made before we left, so I am happy that the shoes brought in money for a great cause. We also hung a piece from our Joseph Thompson Woodworks Sunken Pecky Cypress series, and a new Black Swamp necklace design made it’s debut as well.
There were also some other amazing artists and dear friends in the show, including Johnny Pundt, Sarah Stewart, Greg Colleton, Greg Hart, Patch Whiskey, Flooded Streets, Michelle Jewell of Finkelsteins Center, Becca Barnet, Allison Merrick of SpaceCraft Studios, and more.
Sarah Stewart
Becca Barnet
Thank you again to Elizabeth and Greg at Gris Galerie, the amazing Stacey and the team at Redux, BANGS Shoes and the Charleston Shop Curator for having us! We had such a great time and were pumped to be included with such an amazing group of artists and makers.
As a busy summer draws to a close and Labor day nears, I wanted to take a minute to share some upcoming events and also new work from the past month or so.
As many of you already know I recently launched Black Swamp in June. Black Swamp is a naturally inspired accessories line that features my jewelry creations using recycled wood shavings from our furniture designs for Joseph Thompson Woodworks, as well as copper, sterling silver, brass and other fine materials. As of now my designs are available through my online store, blackswamp.co.
Photo by Jen Ray for Black Swamp.
Black Swamp received some great press over the summer with an inclusion in Charleston Magazine’s print issue for August 2013 as well as a divine feature by Elizabeth Bowers for CHARLIE Magazine in July.
I also had the opportunity to shoot this amazing portrait for Black Swamp with Joseph Nienstedt of JWNPhoto a few weeks ago!
I told you it was a busy summer! And I’m just getting started.
Next weekend, I am thrilled for Black Swamp and Joseph Thompson Woodworks to team up with Gris Galerie for the OPEN Arts Expo at the College of Charleston Cistern Sunday September 8th from 12 p.m. – 4 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
This will be Black Swamp’s first event ever! I am so pleased for my designs to be making their official debut in Charleston. In addition to Black Swamp baubles, we’ll be bringing a few furniture, decor and wall hanging pieces for Joseph Thompson Woodworks. Click over to our Current Work page on our website or our Etsy shop to get a sneak peek at a few items that might make an appearance.
Again, I couldn’t be happier to hang out with our hometown crowd and show some new designs for the very first time! The support we’ve received from our home base has been incredible, and we can’t wait to celebrate in gratitude with you!
In other news, for those that do not know I am also the Membership Coordinator for a local SC Community Supported Agriculture program, Pinckney’s Produce. We’re gearing up to start our fall harvest season Tuesday, September 17th. If you’re in the Lowcountry or Midlands of SC and are interested in having over 45 different varieties of fresh, local SC grown produce delivered to a convenient location once a week for three months, then definitely give Pinckney’s a look! We have a great food community growing across the state, come be a part of something fun and tasty with me.
Phew! Okay. Just looking at what lies ahead this month has got me tired! I am looking forward to an exciting and busy month ahead. Thanks for all of the support, and I hope to see a few of you out and about over the next few weeks!
