Penny Richards' photos

This was the chalk at my house on April 30; by May 1, it was blurred by an unexpected overnight rain. But for one day, it looked pretty good!

Working on a chalk drawing this week based on a portrait of Sibylle of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, Margravine de Burgau (1557-1628).

Based on a Japanese woodblock print from the 1930s by Shoson Ohara, but not even close to as elegant or subtle as that. I did this quickly on the first decently warm morning with no rain in the forecast.

For a brief break between storms I made a chalk drawing based on Princess Mononoke for my daughter's birthday.

For a brief break between storms I made a chalk drawing based on Princess Mononoke for my daughter's birthday.

We had rain this winter; this is not always the case, so we're very grateful. But it isn't kind to chalk art.

We had rain this winter; this is not always the case, so we're very grateful. But it isn't kind to chalk art.

I crocheted a little Thirteenth Doctor doll at Gallifrey One this year.

I crocheted a little Thirteenth Doctor doll at Gallifrey One this year.

There's a quilt of 35 chalked hearts on out front walk today.

I'm hoping to make it to 35 but it might rain tonight--and 5x5 makes a good square photo.

This is my shadow, in a doorway, wearing Hat #6.

This is me wearing my Warfield Island Hat #6 at Fun-a-Day LA 2023. It's made from various bits of wool and has conduits for my covid pigtails.

This is the Warfield Island Hats display at Fun-a-Day Los Angeles 2023.

THis is the brochure I made for the Warfield Island Hats display at Fun-a-Day Los Angeles 2023.

This was as far as this one went, unfinished, before the rain came again. Based on a woodblock print by Takahashi Shotei.

These are hats I made in January 2023, as part of Fun-a-Day Los Angeles, and also inspired by #FashionFictions on Instagram. Along with making the hats, I made a faux ethnographic report about them, as if they were artifacts of an island culture under quarantine. I'll add the text of that to individual photo descriptions, but here's the introduction: Ethnographic Reports on Warfield Island Appendix 3: Hat traditions on Warfield in the Quarantine Years Introduction: “Warfield Island” (not its real name) is a small island which has declared itself to be under quarantine, not because of any illness in the inhabitants, but to protect themselves from a pandemic in the outside world. The resulting isolation, including limited access to outside goods, has resulted in some specific adaptations in the island’s culture. In this appendix, several examples of this in the island’s material culture are discussed, specifically, the unusual hats worn by the inhabitants. Note: Warfield hats are prized by some collectors, and have become somewhat known beyond the island. However, our team proposes that some of the reported “ancient folklore” surrounding these objects, as collected in oral histories and reproduced here, is probably intentionally fictional, created to entertain the teller while mocking the interviewer. Readers of this report should proceed with caution, understanding that the Warfield hat makers enjoy a prank-based storytelling practice.

Fig. 5: The List Bucket Materials: Scrap fabrics including denim and bridal crepe; lace; printable sheets; thread, vintage buttons, elastic, wood, pin back, modpodge, paint, paper collage

 Construction method: sewn, printed, appliqued; based on a pattern by @chikuchikutianqingre in ソーイングブック (Souingu Bukku, or Sewing Book), a Japanese magazine Description: This hat’s existence may be based on a mishearing or mistranslation of the phrase “bucket list”. A simple lined denim bucket hat is embellished with two lists, on the band and as a pinned embellishment. The band lists the names of women; the pinned list seems to be ordinary social activities. These lists may recall past or lost events and people. The quarantine culture of Warfield Island has turned many daily objects into sites of memory and mourning.