Inspired by deep dives down the rabbit hole into online craft tutorials, Artist Studios resident Rhonda Weppler and artist Trevor Mahovsky evoke elements of DIY and ASMR videos to create the surreal and meditative world of Crafts Abyss, a video series that explores the fuzzy boundaries of the World Wide Web. In a virtual crafting bee inspired by the fourth episode of the series, (itself inspired by Allan Wexler from MAD's permanent collection), watch and discuss the making of the video series with the creators, share your own home craft (finished or in progress, all materials welcome!), finish previous Crafts Abyss projects, and learn how to build a model home.
Optional materials:
- White glue
- Toothpicks
- Scissors
- Cardboard (cereal-box cardboard is perfect)
- Markers or acrylic paint
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Rhonda Weppler makes sculptural still lifes using the centuries-old technique of repoussé, in which a malleable metal is shaped by hammering from the reverse side to create a design in low relief. Embossing aluminum, brass, and copper foils on objects, Weppler creates residual shells that serve as commentary on the ephemerality of all things. Weppler presented an exhibition in collaboration with the MFA Boston’s Community Arts Initiative, and has exhibited extensively across Canada with her frequent collaborator, Trevor Mahovsky. Weppler received an MFA from the University of British Columbia and a BA from the University of Toronto.
Trevor Mahovsky is a Calgary born, Toronto-based artist, with an MFA from the University of British Columbia. He has worked collaboratively with Rhonda Weppler since 2004; much of their work looks to reach outside of gallery settings. He has also written on art for journals such as Artforum.
Watch Crafts Abyss
Crafts Abyss
Rhonda Weppler and Trevor Mahovsky
Digital video, 2020
Crafts Abyss, co-hosted by artists Rhonda Weppler and Trevor Mahovsky, is an artwork taking the form of a series of meditative DIY and ASMR influenced videos, in which the artists demonstrate the creation of copies of handmade craft objects they have sourced on the internet. The videos include links to downloadable files so that anyone can make their own clones of these craft objects, all of which have been manipulated by the artists to become a hybrid digital craft object that serves a new functional–if strange–purpose.