Grass Skirt Serenade / ukulele sculpture

 barn timber, leather skirt, vintage trophy,
mallet handle, goblet  

Grass Skirt Serenade 
is # 6  in my series of 
stringless instruments.

This ukulele's body was cut long ago, but sat waiting for me to choose which of its painted vintage sides to use. I also needed my muse, the neck piece. 
The burgundy-red side of the barn timber won out after I sifted through leather for the grass skirt edging design. 
An old croquet mallet's turquoise- striped handle swam perfectly with the sarong-wrapped, garland-carrying trophy winner to cap it off.  
A tarnished goblet was twisted off its stem to take center stage and toast the special ceremony. 
Memories of a Hawaiian vacation and my niece's bohemian wedding serenaded me as I collaged the array of hardware on the uke's body. 
This assemblage took awhile to come to fruition, but then some love songs do.

*Dedicated to baby Kawika.

Bits of Books Produce a Whodunit

Whodunit, is third in this particular series of my found-object assemblages.  Much of the series' content originated from discarded library materials.

Whodunit, 7x24"

 Musty books were sliced-n-diced to create this patchwork drama, including tintype portraits of mysterious ancestors, and a vintage delivery crate from Funk and Wagnals. 

Page curls are due to a wispy bandsaw cut

 The worm-worn timber substrate was salvaged from the dark underbelly of a century-old barn. Its lengthy intricate texture and bronze patina have earned unexpected exposure after a gingerly cleaning and sealcoat of varnish. 

Notice the character in the hat sharing her un-portrait-like hand gesture
---not withdrawn at all.

 A footnote from this gumshoe:  --- Train your eye to spy.  Seemingly tattered and tainted minutia  ---covertly rich in uniqueness, often goes unappreciated by the untrained eye and left on the cutting room floor. Clue in to rough edges, stains and doodle marks; they add character.