Welcome...

This blog serves as a behind-the-scenes peek into the life and journal of an interdisciplinary artist. Learn more at merliguerra.com or luminariumdance.org, and thank you for reading my thoughts on setting the visual and performing arts into motion.

Sunday, August 16, 2020

Creative Projects for "Framily"

Over the past two years, I've managed to squeeze in some additional artistic projects not for my career, but for my "framily." Enjoy this sampling of creations that brought me joy to make, while pushing me to continue trying new things as an interdisciplinary artist. Simply click on each image to enlarge!


Botanical Seating Chart
Botanical Seating Chart. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

It isn't every day you get Elizabeth Taylor as your client! But at the point my college roommate Ellie saw the finished product hanging on the wall of her gorgeous barn wedding reception, she was now "Elizabeth Taylor." Perhaps it was three years of living within candy-throwing distance of me, or helping me with art projects around the campus, but for some reason, Ellie got it into her head that I could create a hand-painted, garden-themed seating chart for her upcoming wedding, despite the ever so small hurdle that...I'd never once painted. Lucky for Ellie, it turns out painting and drawing are two very different skills, and I quickly caught my stride. Voila! A hand-painted seating chart with garden beds mapping the table layout, and vintage botanical sketches denoting who sits where. Truly one of the most enjoyable design projects I've ever had the pleasure of taking on!

Garden Bed Painting. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.
Botanical Seating Chart. Design © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Botanical Seating Chart. Design © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.


Cozy Turtle Nap Mat / Sleeping Bag
Cozy Turtle Nap Mat / Sleep Bag. Turtle Design © Merli V. Guerra, 2018.

In late-2018 I had the honor of helping two of our closest friends decorate their Hawaiian sea-themed nursery for their very first child. Not only did they trust me enough to design a full-wall mural, but Sean and I have had the joy of watching this little cutie grow into an adorable, active toddler. So what better way to welcome this smiley lil bumpkin than with a custom designed, handmade sea turtle nap mat that's also a sleeping bag? I'll admit this sucker was quite the challenge to build from scratch, but in the end, I wished I'd made it a wee bit bigger so I could thieve it for myself! With a plush pillow head, padded nap mat body, and blanket shell, this turtle is ready for daycare, preschool, and beyond. The tail might actually be my most favorite detail—allowing the turtle to button up into a bundle for easy transport. It's amazing how much smaller this cozy turtle seems to be getting every month, as this sweet boy keeps on growing!

Detailing. Turtle Design © Merli V. Guerra, 2018.

2.5 Weeks. Turtle Design © Merli V. Guerra, 2018.

4 Months. Turtle Design © Merli V. Guerra, 2018.



Whimsical Drawer Knobs
Whimsical Drawer Knobs. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Not long after discovering I had basic painting skills, I offered my new-found services to another set of friends. They, too, were expecting their first child, and had scored a gorgeous, all-wood nursery bedroom set for a steal, minus the fact that it needed painting. While they tackled painting the dresser white, I offered to spruce up the old wooden knobs, as they'd been considering buying new, prettier ones. Using paint from my art supply closet and a clear lacquer spray, I dove into painting a sweet little collection of fanciful drawer knobs to welcome Baby T. into her nursery. The end result was far from a Monet, but paired with the whimsical animal prints above the dresser, they looked just perfect. Can't wait to see this chubby-cheeked cutie—and her brand new nursery—post-Covid!

Blue Pansy Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Butterfly Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Dragonfly Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Iris Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Marigold Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Sunset Peony Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Cornflower Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Pink Poppy Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

White Pansy Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Daffodil Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Glory-of-the-Snow Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Orange Echinacea Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

Plumeria Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.

White African Daisy Drawer Knob. © Merli V. Guerra, 2019.




Custom-Tailored Growth Chart
Design © Merli V. Guerra & Lovisa Lane, 2019.

Covid has prevented us from visiting Scruffy the bassador and his little sister for the last six months, so it's a good thing we gifted her a growth chart! With the inspiring and ever-enthusiastic Lovisa Lane as my partner, we embarked on creating a custom-tailored growth chart, choosing colors that matched the nursery, and creating stencils that tied in our friends' love of science and all the neighborhood pups—including actual heights of each of the dogs when playing, begging...and yes, counter surfing. The best part about a growth chart is you can take it with you when you move, which Team Scruffy has done three times in the past year alone!

Design © Merli V. Guerra & Lovisa Lane, 2019.

Design © Merli V. Guerra & Lovisa Lane, 2019.

Design © Merli V. Guerra & Lovisa Lane, 2019.

Design © Merli V. Guerra & Lovisa Lane, 2019.

Design © Merli V. Guerra & Lovisa Lane, 2019.



Rustic Boats: "Fetching" Home Decor
Rustic Sailboats. © Merli V. Guerra, 2018.

Long before tiny humans came on the scene, our pups had already brought us together with local neighbors who soon became fast friends. On one particular trip to the Poconos, I distinctly remember Sudarshan teasing me as Banksy, Ollie, and Scruffy raced around the lake fetching sticks, with me collecting them too! Driftwood DIY boat decor had been circling Pinterest for a while, so I decided to take it for a spin and make some pup-fetched keepsakes from our Poconos adventure to gift our friends. Now, we're the last family still living in the old neighborhood, while these sweet little (slightly chewed) boats have sailed out to NYC and Pennsylvania with Mr. Ollie and Sir Scruff.


Meet Me at the Nest Pillow
"Meet Me at the Nest" Pillow. Design © Merli V. Guerra, 2018.

Thinking back to when the first of our neighborhood friends moved on from a condo to a full-fledged house, I was beside myself. Ira and Shaina were moving from a home literally 20 steps away from ours to one 45 minutes by car. It may not seem like a large distance—and truly, it isn't—but nothing can replace the joyous spontaneity that arises when your friends are a short jog across the street... To help ease the disappointment, I stayed up one night cutting stencils and making them a house-warming pillow to remind them of their framily at "The Nest," as we all lovingly refer to our neighborhood. Now, this sentimental pillow sits invitingly (and colorfully!) against a stunning red chair in our friends' forever home. 



Banksy [Piranha-Puppy Nala] Guerra Connolly

It should be noted that in all but one of these instances, our friendships were initially started thanks to our sweet pup Banksy introducing herself and getting the conversation going. Thank you, Lady Banks, for continuing to bring such wonderful people into our lives, and for being patient with me every time I take over the living room floor with a new creative project.

Want to become Banksy's friend too? Follow her shenanigans @BanksySighting on Instagram!


Thursday, August 6, 2020

Something borrowed, something blue...

For me, marriage is about commitment and partnership. I never grew up dreaming of the perfect wedding nor what my dress might look like, and for a proposal, I insisted a Ring Pop was all I needed. (And a Ring Pop I got!) In my eyes, marriage was about the act of promising permanence, rather than the materialistic flourishes of a pricey wedding. 

But when Sean insisted on a traditional wedding rather than an elopement, I decided (in my typical scholarly manner) to research the origination of the popular rhyme "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue."




First off, American brides are missing out on arguably the most exciting line of this old verse! It turns out the original English version includes a final line, "and a sixpence in her shoe," signaling financial prosperity. You better believe I found a sixpence to add to my conveniently hollowed shoes...though being the rebel I am, I went with an Australian sixpence boasting a kangaroo and an emu. (Because who doesn't want a kangaroo in their wedding?)


For something old and something new, I turned to jewelry—with a fresh pair of earrings and sophisticated bracelet by Kendra Scott for the "new," and my great-great-grandmother's bracelet for the "old," symbolizing lineage and family who could not be present at the event.



Yet "something borrowed" had me stuck. The tradition calls for brides to borrow an item from someone in a healthy marriage, in essence a role model. Meg and Bob Marsden immediately came to mind. As longtime neighbors of my parents (and essentially a third set of grandparents for me), I grew up popping by their home regularly to show them my latest Halloween costume or, in later years, to chat with Meg about the latest fashion trends while she pointed out the "handsome young men" jogging by (who she had stopped with her walker earlier that week to casually inquire if they were single!). Meg was a role model of brains, humor, and tenacity. Her sharp wit never left her, even as her body deteriorated with age, and the supportive steadfastness of her marriage with Bob never ceased to amaze me. I particularly recall one occasion in which Meg discussed this and even proffered me advice: "Wait until you're 30 to get married," she advised, "That's what I did. You don't know who you are as a person until you're 30, and that's the most important thing to know before you marry."

Fast-forward many years later to Sean and me driving down the highway to visit my mother in Concord, MA... I had just told Sean how I wished I had something physical to "borrow" from Meg beyond her excellent advice; something tangible. Not being a member of Meg's family, I had no physical token from our friendship after her passing, only the memories of moments shared. Sean heard me, and it was because of this car-ride conversation that we both stood eerily stunned in my childhood home a few minutes later when my mother handed me a perfectly preserved envelope, saying, "Look what I found in my stack of old files today! I was just about to shred everything, but decided at the last minute to sort through it—and look, somehow this note from Meg was in there!"



I couldn't believe the timing of its unburial. There, in my hands, was the physical token I had hoped for in this cheerful note from Meg (dated 14 years prior), allowing my fingers to touch the indentations of the ever-familiar luscious handwriting.




That night, Sean and I enjoyed Restaurant Week at a Concord restaurant neither of us had previously tried, and I ended the day by emailing my father in Paris to tell him of the note's synchronous unearthing. In the morning, I awoke to a reply with yet another overlapping—my parents had dined at that same restaurant only once: the day of Meg's funeral.

Wanting to keep Meg close during the wedding, I dashed to my local Joann Fabrics, and immediately spotted a beautiful blue lace that would be perfect for making a simple pocket on the inside lining of my dress to hold Meg's note during the ceremony. Without reading the label, I walked up to the cutting counter, was handed a slip of paper and my folded blue lace, and headed for the register. It wasn't until I began getting antsy in line that I finally noticed the name of the color blue I'd selected: "celestial" (synonyms: "heavenly," "ethereal"). "Ok, Meg," I whispered under my breath, "You don't have to be quite so obvious."



So although my desire for elopement was thwarted by my ever-traditional husband, I am grateful to have delved into the symbolism of this traditional verse to bring good tidings. The strength of Meg and Bob's marriage was present physically and metaphorically that August day, and as I tucked Meg's note into my dress that afternoon (while Sean waited under a celestial blue sky), I remember laughing and shaking my head upon finally realizing—in a matter of weeks, Sean and I would both be turning 30.



This entry is lovingly dedicated to Meg and Bob Marsden of Concord, MA. 

My Marbles on a quiet floor entry from 2012 speaks more about my wonderful friend Meg.