Dykie Dolls

My Rosie the Riveter action figure arrived in the mail today. I already have a smaller Rosie, equipped with a lunch box and drill. But the Rosie I received today is a 9" action figure with blue overalls, a red bandanna, and gloves!

For those of you who may not know, Rosie the Riveter is an icon of the WWII era. She represents the thousands of women who went to work in shipyards, aircraft assembly lines, and weapons facilities while 'the boys' were away at war.

The icon of Rosie the Riveter and the "We Can Do It" posters of the time helped spur the women's movement decades later. After the war, the women were removed from their jobs so the men could return to work. Not surprisingly women received lesser pay for the same jobs and skills as men. These injustices precipitated the first stirrings of the Women's Rights Movement in the 60's and 70's.

The Rosie I received today is part of a series of dolls made by the Minnesota Historical Society called "Eleanor's Girls," to pay tribute to the valor of women who served in varied capacities during WWII. I also bought a WASPS (Women's Air Force Service Pilots) doll. Eleanor Roosevelt, of course, was a champion of the rights of many, including women. She also was a model herself of women serving in nontraditional roles for the time.

Despite all the history and honor, I bought the dolls mainly because they are truly unique. I have never seen such dykie dolls in all my life! They even beat the bastardized scooter barbie dolls I made last year! Look at the pilot's boots!

New Art

I went to JP Open Studios last weekend, and bought 2 pieces from an artist named Amy Hitchcock. In January I will be taking a class with her called "Assemblages With Found Objects" at the Eliot School of Arts & Crafts in Jamaica Plain.

Tamara Lempicka

Apparently there is a goddess in heaven, because this woman Tamara Lempicka existed. I can't fathom how incredibly gorgeous her work is, yet she is relatively unknown. If I were to conjure up sleek, Art Deco era images of women in my mind, her paintings would be my dream come true.




Briefly, she was born in Poland and emigrated to Paris in the 1920's, later escaping the Nazi regime. She settled in the United States in her later years. Tamara lived to be an old lady, heartily disapproving of the Sixties generation, because she thought the hippies weren't radical enough. There's nothing like the Roaring Twenties and early Thirties in Paris. What an era!

Tamara Lempicka was bisexual, hence she painted alluring images of mostly women, though she was married to several men. To add to her decadence, she became a Baroness through one of her marriages! Lempicka was influenced by the Cubists and Surrealists. Naturally she hobnobbed with the likes of Vita Sacksville West, Djuna Barnes, Picasso, Gide, Cocteau and others.

Artist friends: is she one of the few female artists in history to paint naked, sexy, and in some cases very masculine women?

Don't You Know The Law in Massachusetts, Masshole?

Here's my catz LOL. Click on for website:
http://icanhascheezburger.com/

Trash Talk

Here's my friend Jonathan acting in a short movie he also wrote. It's called "Trash Talk." He's the handsome devil with dark hair.