This month, Jackalope Ranch opened its first curated exhibition, You Are Here: A Collection of Maps of Phoenix, at Regular Gallery. While you still have a chance to check out the show, which will be up until November 12, we'll give you a little background on each creation.
1. What were the inspirations for your map?
I always paint what I know, so it isn't surprising that my map came from the tight surroundings of my world. I choose to paint a map of the street where I live and the treasures found there. Treasures that run the gamut from the blackberries in the alley behind my house to the basketball court in the side yard of the house across the street. 2. Give us a childhood memory of a map.
Around ninth grade, I saw a 3-D drawn map of New York City in a magazine. The map showed all the important buildings. I loved it, so I decided I would make it into a poster to put in my bedroom. I carefully copied it on to a piece of tag board to make it bigger and proudly displayed it next to my desk. I never doubted my ability to do it. I wanted it so I made it. In grade school, I would look in my social studies book and make contour drawings of the maps within. In fifth grade, I showed a teacher what I had drawn and she told me that I was lying and I had not drawn it. I never showed her anything else I did.
3. What are your map's boundaries and how did you choose them?
The boundaries of my map are East Montebello Avenue on the north, East Missouri Avenue on the south, 14th
Street on the east and the alley behind Luke Avenue on the west. I started in the middle (my house) and
expanded outward as the paper allowed. 4. Would you create another map?
I will always create maps of states of being. Maps organize life and break down information into bite-size pieces. They also provide a matrix for thought.
See Chenoweth's work, along with pieces by Safwat Saleem, Melinda Bergman, Monica Aissa Martinez, Angela Cazel Jahn, Marshall Shore, Sarah Hurwitz, Breeze, Sue Chenoweth, Carrie Marill, and Luster Kaboom, visit Regular Gallery during gallery hours (Fridays from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturdays from 1 to 5 p.m.) or email [email protected] for a private showing.
