Welcome

Ahoy Matey, and Welcome to REPTIRE, an intermittent ‘ship’s blog’, chronicling the slow rise in the South Easterly skies of Reptire Designs; a studio that designs and crafts always artful, and sometimes useful THINGAMABOBS from old Indian Cucachou, aka ReTired Rubber.

Down Below, Ye shall find a permanent 'flagship post' marking the Maiden Voyage of Reptire Designs.

And below that, in the ‘hull’, can be found more recent posts chronicling the daring new adventures of Reptire Designs, dashed with small bits of whimsy, spotted pickerel, local color, and lizard lore..

In fact, on the right, in pale purple, ye shall find the Captain's Log’s Table of Previous Posts, which ye can peruse by year, month, and title to ye hearts content.

If ye haven't gotchyer sea legs yet, My Pretty, Ye can take a gander at our website at www.reptiredesigns.com, to get a proper Landlubber's Introduction.

Thanks for stopping in, I do hope you enjoy your visit aboard this ship! HARHARHARHAR.......

Sincerely, Travius Von Cohnifus

Captain, Founder, Indentured Servant, Rubber Alligator Wrestlor Extraordinaire a' this here ship.

enter the treadknot

Welcome
On September 26th, 2006, I launched my tire art/design business, Reptire Designs, with a solo exhibition of my artwork in The Green Gallery at The Scrap Exchange Center for Creative Reuse, in Durham, NC. For many reasons, it was a night that I will always remember, and I am grateful to Laxmi (my girlfriend at the time) and Edie (my mother, still) for dutifully documenting while I shmoozed, so that I may now shmare a taste of the evening with anyone who was not able to attend...



On a cool but lively autumn night-before-Center Fest, a stream of friends and curious strangers trickled (like pebbles through a rain stick) through the forest of odds and ends (that roost at night in The Scrap Exchange), out into the warm light of the back savanna, a scene utterly glopped with bizarre rubbery hybrids. Tentative and curious, the visitors craned their necks, nibbled, pecked, stood back, moved in closer. From the walls, glassy mirror eyes gazed back through black unblinking eyelids, while beneath the visitor's feet, in a steamy drainage cistern, a mortal drama unfolded. Primordial forms, with no eyes at all, sat puckered on stoops. A cascade of glittering steal droplets formed a curtain, to which clung a colony of tiny tire knotlettes.

Vito D., a long-time collabator down from the Asheville area, caressed the warming air with his Strange Little Folk music. I bobbed and I flit, and at an increasing clip-someone must have opened the faucet a bit....for soon I was swooning, I just about lost it! As the evening progressed, to my delight and amazement, 'family' from Durham, Chapel Hill, Pittsboro, Hillsboro, Siler City, Asheville, and Fresno all made it! From the Cohn Clan to the Steudel Clan to the CFS Clan; from the WWC Clan to the Duke Ac Pub Clan to the SAF Clan; from the Bike Shop Clan to the Ninth St. Clan to the Scrap Clan... and every one in between, guys, they were all appearing before my stunned, blinking eyes. While I spun and I splayed, Vito now played-CHURNED- up a torrent of gritty ditties; while a staff volunteer (Brandon's a photographer, I swear) whipped up pitchers of Mango Lassies. And The 'Scrap Exchange girls' worked the door, the counter, and the floor, going "cha-CHING!", cha-CHING!","cha-CHING!".!.



By the end of the night, hundreds of friends, acquaintances and had-been-strangers had poured in, poured over the work, and partaken in, what was for me and my art, a monumental communal feast. And on top of it all, I got to place many of my preemies in hands that I love and trust, and in several instances, hands that fit them like gloves. What a privilage to be able to connect with people this way. Heading into the turbid seas of small business, I can confidently say that if I drown tomorrow, I am at least blessed today with the memory of (as Vito later put it) one authentically good Durham night.



Thanks to all of you who were there; in body and/or spirit.





Reclaimed-wood Builder and Reptire Collector Howard Staab enjoying magwi knot at the Scrap Exchange

Reclaimed-wood Builder and Reptire Collector Howard Staab enjoying magwi knot at the Scrap Exchange
I can't think of anything more rewarding for an artist than to see someone interacting with their artwork. Photo by Laxmi Haynes

Sammy and Dannette contemplate

Sammy and Dannette contemplate
Photograph by Laxmi Haynes

Cascade Colony of Knotlets

Cascade Colony of Knotlets
They would go with your jacket, would they not Claire?

Laxmi Resplendent

Laxmi Resplendent

Mavis In The Mist

Mavis In The Mist
Photograph by Laxmi Haynes

Tire Amazement

Tire Amazement
Photograph by Edie Cohn

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Tirarium Finds A New Friend at Chatham Democrats Party!


Boy oh boy, am I behind on my blogging.....woweee.

Whose to blame? Well, of course, I am. But I'm gonna go one further and pass this bill on to our NC General Assembly. 'Cause these guys have been keeping me BUSY!....

To make a long long story short, this evening the Chatham Democrats hosted a very nice (delightful actually) party at the offices down the street on Chatham Avenue.

The headlining speaker was Representative Robert Rieves, a wonderful human being, and a valuable advocate for the people of NC in our House of Representatives.

However, we had several other great activist and/or candidates there as well. Among them Diana Hales, Del Turner, Jim Crawford, Jane Allen Wilson and Gary Franks!
Officer Gary Franks studies The World According To Tyler

One of the largest presences there (in many ways) was Carl Thompson, who served as a Chatham Commissioner for 16 years! (I learned just tonight).

Aside from being quite a large man in stature, in talking with Mr. Thompson, seeing him in action, and knowing the work that he has gone on to do since his tenure as a Commissioner (co-forming the Chatham Community Development Corporation), I come to find that Carl is also large in heart, and this shown through this evening loud and clear in the way that he introduced Robert Rieves, a young man who he actually knew as a young man, and has encouraged on this path (thank you Mr. Thompson!), as Mr. Rieves described this evening.

Mr. Thompson is also large in family, and I have had the privilage to run into his wife and daughter often around Chatham County. But tonight, I got the special privilage to meet two of his other family members; his son, Carl Jr. and his sister, Reval.

I had a really good time talking with Reval, and was not too suprised to see that the warmth that I have  seen in  Mr. Thompson, also glowed in his sister, Reval.

And not too suprisingly, this I also found in his son, Carl Jr, a young man, who, in addition to his father's patient disposition, also inherited his father's bearing and stature, which are formidable! (though Carl Jr chalks this up more to cornbread than to genes).

When I introduced Carl Jr. to a treadknot Tirarium that Elizabeth had 'commissioned' for the headquarters, he confessed that he had in fact been wanted to check it out all evening!
As a tactile person myself, I could definitely relate to this impulse, and was greatly gratified that the treadknot had evoked this impulse in him! (also, in retrospect, I am little bit touched that this big guy was too polite to reach out and inspect this wierd thing, as I probably would have..).

Anyways, Carl was very cool about allowing me to capture on camera his own tactile exploration of the tredknot. And I am grateful for this, because I think this is an awesome picture!
The Treadknot meets The Incredible Hulk! Hallelujah!


Thanks Carl, Good meeting you Bro.


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