Happy Holidays!

Seasons Greetings! I just wrapped up a ceiling installation which I adore and am very proud of. Before I dive into sharing all about that, I owe you a big THANK YOU!!

Y'all helped me reach my goal of selling all 100 of my iridescent diamonds which were apart of my summer public art installation Vital Cloud! Happy Dance!!

That public art installation was a mini-version of a major suspended art installation which I recently completed in Carrboro, NC. 

I signed the contract for this installation in July of 2022; Both the scale of the project and the upcoming income was something which really motivated me to keep going when I wasn't sure whether Folded Poetry could realistically be my full-time gig.

This project is an alternative to the “buy-a-brick” concept, and is a fundraiser for the ArtsCenter, an arts education non-profit in Carrboro, NC. Donor names are engraved on the “Lumens” and integrated into the installation.

October and November were GO TIME for fabrication and installation!

I'm about to design-nerd-out on you, so if you just want to see the pretty photos of the final installation, feel free to scroll to the bottom of this email!

I began the fabrication process by creating a massive grid on brown contractor's paper which would serve as the template for the ceiling hanging points, and laid lengths of aluminum C channels down for sizing.

I cut the aluminum to length using my neighbor's miter saw, drilled holes at each cross point shown in the image above left (representing the points where acrylic would be suspended), and spray painted the aluminum to match the ceiling color of the space. I then cut 200 wires to length, and threaded them through the drilled holes, referencing my 3-D model to determine the various heights. Finally, I terminated each wire with an acrylic “gripper”.  

On site, I laid out the brown paper template, positioning it on the floor where I wanted the ceiling installation to live directly above. I then began the tedious task of hanging the aluminum channels.

The process went as follows:

1 - Within the positioned length of a single aluminum channel, locate the mounting points on the ceiling using a laser level pointer tool. Mark this point on the floor grid paper

2 - Attach wires to the ceiling at the laser point - either wrapping it around existing joists or conduit, or screwing / adhering it into the ceiling membrane 

3 - Drill holes into the aluminum channel directly at the point marked on the paper

4 - Hang each aluminum channel from the two mounting wires ready on the ceiling, and secure it level with its neighbor

5 - repeat 29 times (each aluminum channel took me about a half-hour on average to hang) 😅

I then laser-cut and hung all 200 iridescent “Lumens” on the acrylic grippers.

This was the most labor-intensive installation i've ever completed, with lots of work done on a ladder 10ft in the air 😬

I'm so proud of this work - it turned out even better than expected.

To see the full collection of images of this installation captured by the photographer-extraordinaire Matt Ramey, visit my website by clicking the button below.

Would you like to see you or your loved one's name included in this installation? You can do so by supporting this non-profit and becoming a Luminary today.

I will be honored with an artist reception at the ArtsCenter for this piece next month: tentatively planned for January 26th, 5-7pm. I'll be confirming the details with a formal invitation in an email next month!

I'm looking forward to what 2024 has in store! Wishing you a very happy Holiday season from my studio to your home!