Liar Liar

 "Liar Liar",  Large wool pants, hand embroidered, extra long red tie, custom measuring tape to read the chart data.  Created for CUNY Graduate Center Data Visualization class, December 2019. 

The current occupant of the White House lies.  All. The. Time.  This is so far beyond 'politics as usual.'  When he was inaugurated in January 2017, the Washington Post started tracking his lies in their Fact Checker Database and as of October 2019 he has lied over 13,000 times.  In comparison Obama factually lied 18 times in 8 years.   I'm not talking about exaggerations.  These are factual lies.  Trump lies more in a single day than Obama lied in 8 years.  Here is the link, read for yourself: 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/trump-claims-database/

I'm in a class this semester titled Fundamentals of Data Visualization ( for a Master's degree)  and most of the work is done using a tool called Tableau.  But I'm a textile artist, so I have to do it this way. 

First I collected the data off the 
Washington Post site.  Although I asked for a downloadable file, I was not able to get that, so I manually recorded monthly data (32 months) in the various categories recorded at WaPo. 

Next I entered this data into Excel, then combined the categories into 4 - because I learned in my class that less is more.  



I worked with the data in Tableau, creating a stacked bar chart and I wanted it to look like flames.  Although I knew I needed Yellow, Orange and Red colors, I had to refer to a piece of flame clip art to get the colors right: 

Then I had to create a scale to transfer the stacked bar chart into centimeters of embroidery stitches.   I tooked the highest and the lowest data lines (October 2018 and February 2017) to make sure they would fit on the pants and look reasonable.   My scale is 15 lies per centimeter.  I used formulas in Excel to create my pattern: 

I found these pants at a local Salvation Army Thrift Shop, looking for pin-striped men's suit pants in as large a size as possible.  The pin stripes helped keep my data lined up and also gave it that old-timey businessman look.  I started embroidering on a Saturday evening, and this project was due in class 12 days later.  

Floss colors to get this to look like flames:

Marking the data lines using tailor's chalk and centimeters on a ruler:   

Chain Stitching in the 4 colors.  The wavy lines are random as I wanted to keep on the right side of the pin stripe at the top and bottom of the line.    

Adding the month abbreviations to the hem.  (oops- what happened to MAR?)  There was lots of unstitching going on. 

Here is the legend, where you can see how all the categories from WaPo are grouped and translated into the 4 colors I stitched.    (Note:  My data goes from Feb 2017 to October 2019 - the Washington Post continues to update this database, so it is possible there are more categories now.) 

 I stitched the title of the piece on the waist band, and this hangs using 2 hangers, drawing attention to the waist size.   I also made the extra long red tie, which if I get a chance to hang this again and photograph it, should be sort of waving off to one side, rather than hanging down between the pant legs   (OR, if I can make that tie again i would make it twice as long, so it puddles on the floor) 

This tie is in response to class feedback where one classmate wasn't sure who 'he' is.  So following the lead of so many editorial cartoonists, I use the super long red tie as shorthand to indicate that this is Trump, like this: 

In Tableau, the graphing software, outlier data can be annotated with a call out text box.  Since so many people wanted to know what happened in October 2018 to generate so many lies, I created this 'price tag' shaped text box, that connects via a string and is stored in the pocket. 

"Midterm Elections - 1189 lies" 

That's nearly 40 factual lies each day in the month of October, 2018.

No wonder we are fatigued.

The final element created with this piece is the lies measuring tape.  I considered including a regular tape measure with the pants, but my scale is 15 lies per centimenter, which is hard for the audience to interact with.  (How many lies is 13 centimeters??)   

So instead I created a scale in excel, which I carefully sized so that the 30 lie tickmark would be at the 2cm mark on a ruler. 

I printed this in sections using inkjet printer fabric, then constructed a 1500 lies long tape measure: 

Visitors to the piece are encouraged to measure any line they wish to discover how many lies in that category he made in that month. 

Also, in proper data viz scholarship fashion, the tape measure includes my data source, the Washington Post web site. 

We are all tired of the lies and the shame this liar has brought to our institutions and reputation around the world.  At the time of this posting the Democrats are impeaching this President, however its clear the GOP in the Senate will acquit him.  Shameful.   We will have to vote him out in November 2020.  Vote them all out.  All those senators who normalized this level of dishonesty.  I can remember disagreeing about policy with voters who supported the other side of the aisle.  But I can't remember a time that felt like this - where one side lies so blatantly, and its casually accepted.     

Liar Liar Pants on Fire ! 

We won't forget. 

  

25 Million Stitches

The 25 Million Stitches Project is collecting fabric panels with stitches to represent 25 million refugees.  From the project website:  

"The world is in flight. 25 million people across the globe have been forced to flee their homelands as a consequence of genocide, war, poverty, natural disasters, targeted violence, and other grave threats. They leave behind everything they’ve known, possessed, and been a part of in order to live; they face immense struggles, misfortunes, and perils on their journey; and, though it all, survival, much less successful resettlement, remains but the slimmest hope."

I chose to stitch the phrase 'Are We There Yet?" to highlight my privilege.  It is so different travelling with children who's only complaint is 'getting there', compared to these families who are escaping violence and may not know where 'there' is.  

I started this project without knowing where 'there' is either. 

The letters are hand sketched, and I started by outlining the letters, then making these equidistant lines 'behind' the letters.  But it all disappeared into the background. 

Next I started filling in the letters with these concentric curved shapes in blue/green embroidery floss. 

And finally added more background stripes in red/orange/yellow colors.  

I don't have any idea how many stitches are in my panel, and I don't know how the project estimates the stitches. 

But I do know that its a lot. And I do know that there are too many refugees on earth.  Anything we can do as a nation to help is the right thing to do.  Our country is not 'full'; we need to find a way to welcome people. 

This project will be on display in the Sacramento, California area starting in June 2020, then hopefully it will travel to other parts of the country.  Perhaps you can see it when it gets to your town. 

Peace, 
Paula 

In Memory of cousin Pablo

Four quilts made from Pablo's shirts. 

Cousin Pablo passed in March 2019 too young.  I offered to make memory quilts for his wife Nancy, son Kelby, daughter Solange and mother. 

Nancy sent this box of shirts, and I got to work cutting them into squares and strips to be used to make blocks.  Mostly I wanted to preserve the sense of 'shirt', as much as possible, so I kept button plackets and pockets.

Once all the large squares were cut, I cut strips to be used in making blocks such as this one:

 

I also found a way to keep sleeve cuffs whole and attached only on the 'arm' end. 

Next I started embroidering a personal block for each recipient.  Solange sent me this phrase: "Remember to breathe so you can laugh" which was something her father wrote to her on her last birthday card.




Kelby called his dad "Papi", Nancy called her husband "Chuchi", and his mother called him "Pablito", each of which I transferred to fabric and hand embroidered:

This is the first time using Sulky Solvy as a way to transfer a pattern to fabric, and I really enjoy using this stuff, rather than writing directly on the fabric.  

Once all the blocks were created, I booked open sewing time at my local quilt shop - Gotham Quilts - so i could use their design walls.  These are batting covered walls to which you can 'stick' blocks for arranging a quilt top.  Here are a couple in progress: 

After sewing all 4 tops together and also creating backs for each (using left over squares from the front, combined with quilting fabric sections) I again booked time at Gotham Quilts, this time on their longarm quilting frame.  This was a marathon quilting session, where I spent 5 hours meander quilting all 4 quilts.

Then the binding.  I created over 1000 inches of scrappy binding as each quilt required about 250 inches (that's the measurement all around each quilt) 

As luck would have it, Nancy and Kelby came to visit NYC so I could deliver these quilts in person.  It was wonderful and emotional to have them see Pablo's shirts this way.  They can hide little keepsakes or notes in the still operational pockets and wrap themselves in the love Pablo had for each of them. 

"Pablito" quilt for Pablo's mom

Kelby with his "Papi" quilt:

 Quilt for Solange with "Remember to breathe" quote:

"Chuchi" quilt for Nancy

Nancy and I have been cousin-friends since I visited Argentina in 1978 when we were both teenagers.  She was learning English and was glad to have a pen pal in the USA.  In her early 20's Nancy's family moved to the US, and she married Pablo.  They had 2 beautiful children, whom I had the pleasure of knowing when they were young.  What an honor to be trusted to make these memory quilts after Pablo passed.  He was a sweet, smart, honorable, loving man.  He died too young and will be remembered forever. 

love, 

Paula 

Flying Squirrel in the Goldberg house

Embroidery, piecing, pillow.  12" square.  Completed Mar 23, 2019 

for Steve Goldberg and Ann Ball, New Jersey 

Steve and Ann are long time friends (Neil and Steve have known each other since they were 3 years old!).   They moved into a new home last year and I created this as a housewarming gift.   

On one side of the pillow, I printed an image of their home, drawn by Ann.  Then I embroidered details, adding plants and home details.  The house is surrounded by 4-patch posy blocks, created with the floral print you can see on the back. 

The other side of the pillow has an embroidered flying squirrel, because Steve and Ann tell a very funny story about the night they found a flying squirrel IN the house. 

Here are some close-ups of the embroidery: 

We wish you many happy healthy years in your new home.  We love you. 

Peace, 

Paula