Well, here we are. It’s Friday November 6th, and I thought we’d know who the 46th President would be. But we don’t. I’ll wait though. COUNT EVERY VOTE. My guest today is Diana Weymar, an American artist based in Canada who happens to be the woman behind the Tiny Pricks Project. It’s a public art project that “counterbalances the impermanence of Twitter and other social media, and Trump’s statements by using textiles that embody warmth, craft, permanence, civility, and a shared history.” Yep, this episode is gonna be political, because that’s the entire point of Tiny Pricks. If you’re not familiar with the project, listen to this episode! And if you do know about it, listen to this episode! You can hit play right up there under Diana at her 2019 show at Lingua Franca, NYC, or subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

First, not only did Diana create this ongoing project, she also kicked it off with her own work, AND continues to make new pieces. Here are just a handful of my favorites:

Sigh. These are all documented quotes. Seriously, you can’t make this stuff up.

Now, Diana also uses her needle and thread to capture other important moments, quotes and people. Enter these three beautiful works in honor of Ruth Bader Ginsburg:

RIP RBG ♥

So, this project is now up to almost 5000 pieces that have been contributed from people all over the world! Again, here is just a small sampling {artists Instagrams listed below}:

Artists shown above:  1. @justine.twina  2. @notyoureverydaymary  3. @lazygalmartha  4. @jlsully25  5. @valbee  6. @mldugan1  7. @peggyearle8  8. @jlillywerth  9. @yoginigb {nasty woman} 10. @artphotogirl {i’m speaking}  11. @daniellekrysaart  

Look at that pile of mail… those boxes and envelopes are full of work! Ah-mazing. And, as I promised her at the end of the episode, I made a piece too! That’s mine just above the pile. “MOVE TO CANADA” – right after the first debate between Trump and Biden, I read that “move to Canada” was the most searched phrase on Google. Well, as a proud Canadian, I’m not surprised at all. ; )

Speaking of proud Canadians, here’s our Prime Minister Justin Trudeau receiving an embroidered piece from Diana, delivered via the guys from CBC’s “Infoman”:

It’s a combo of two things Trump said about Justin… “He’s two faced / He’s a nice guy.”

Next up, the big, beautiful ‘Tiny Pricks Project’ show hosted by the Lingua Franca shop in New York. The entire space was literally wall-to-wall with embroidered quotes:

So, so, so good! And, to wrap things up, I had to share this personal piece Diana made for me. Apparently I said this on a podcast at some point, and she messaged me to ask if she could embroider it:

Obviously I said yes! But wait, then she took it one step further… she asked me to write the quote on a piece of paper and email it to her. I did, and voila, my handwriting was embroidered onto one of her grandmother’s lace handkerchiefs. What? Yes! She mailed it to me, and it now hangs in my studio. Amazingly wonderful, yes? Thank you to Diana for this beautiful, personal work AND for being on the podcast today; thanks to you for listening, and I’ll see you back here next Saturday with more ART FOR YOUR EAR.

Other links:

1. Participate in the Tiny Pricks Project
2. Tiny Pricks on Instagram
3. Diana Weymar on Instagram
4. Lingua Franca, NYC
5. Late Night with Seth Meyers
6. The Smithsonian