This election year, “Vote Blue Sky.”
This installation by artist Claire Drennan consists of overstuffed letters spelling out the word “V-O-T-E,” displayed in the converted storefront window of BOX 13 ArtSpace on Harrisburg Avenue in Houston’s East End. In an array of blues, each letter is fashioned from a quilted patchwork of found textiles, stuffed with more found textiles. Viewed from across the street, the piece blurs the line between street and sky.
Blue sky is a recurring theme in Claire’s work, a shorthand she uses for taking the long view. Since moving to Houston’s East End in 2014, she has been captivated by the city’s saturated skies and exuberant vegetation against an urban backdrop. Originally from rural Tennessee, Claire grew up on thirteen acres of woods and fields, adjacent to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In her family, the natural world was both ubiquitous and sacred.
The timing of this exhibition coincides with the 2020 presidential election, the coronavirus pandemic and the continued struggle for racial justice in our country. “Vote Blue Sky,” with its patchwork of materials, is an invitation for us to choose hope over despair and become active participants in building our shared future.
Claire Drennan is a multi-disciplinary artist, working in contemporary craft. Originally from the Appalachian foothills of East Tennessee, she has made her creative home in Houston’s East End since 2014. Claire discovered her love for textiles and fibers while working as an educator in South America and went on to study Fashion and Textile Design at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Claire uses recycled and found materials to create colorful works that are both exuberant and restrained. Her work has been exhibited at Lawndale Art Center, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, and AMOA. Claire recently completed an HAA funded virtual art series, “We Are Friends,” together with artist Eepi Chaad.
