Update

Vermont is finished! The outline of Maine is finished as well. This is going quicker than I had imagined.
Thanks to Lizzy, Lola, Martin, Sarah and David for offering stories and hair. Welcome aboard!

Soon I'll be posting images of the map in progress, so you can see what the system of construction looks like. The map itself is quite simple: state borders formed by six strands of hair laid in side by side, with a fine gauzy netting of hair filling in the space. Roads are not included yet: they will begin to appear as your stories trace their paths across the country. I'll include flight paths as well!
A road is a road because someone has travelled it.
It would be lovely to have intercepting paths, as well-perhaps to get people who have travelled the same roads at different times to talk to each other...

Food for thought. It is nice when there is give and take in art.

It lowers the risk of alienating viewers.

More Hair Lace Photos

Here are some more photos of some pieces of human hair lace I have made. The photos were taken by Blue Rider Design of Portland, Oregon. They did a beautiful job--these things are so detailed that they are hard to photograph!

This one is a detail shot of the portrait I shared in a previous post. You can see how the netting is constructed one hair at a time. The outline is several hair-widths across, being made of 4-6 strands,

wrapped around with another:

This is a "handkerchief" made from my hair and my former girlfriend's hair.The reference is to Victorian wedding handkerchiefs, meant to collect a bride's tears.It is a comment on how frustratingly improbable same-sex marriage seemed at the time I was constructing it. Ironically, while I was working on it Vermont (my home state) legalized gay marriage! I'm no longer in a same-sex relationship, but I still think about this piece quite a bit:

...And a couple of detail shots of the handkerchief. The center is pretty insubstantial--not very good for tear-collection purposes! The edges are more detailed. Dimensions when stretched flat are about 12"x12". It took me about 40 hours to make:

Is there anyone from New Hampshire who wants their hair to be part of the map?

Started on the map. I am 2/3 finished with New Hampshire!

Hair Lace Portrait

This is an example of human hair lace. It's a portrait I did of a classmate at RISD.

The outlines are made using several hairs laid parallel, and for the netting I work with one hair at a time, strung on a size 16º beading needle. For anyone who wants to do super-fine work, these needles can be purchased from Lacis. They are a lace museum and retailer of quality supplies, located in Berkeley CA. If you are impressed by delicate handwork and have a chance to visit them--DO SO!! They have some very excellent historical pieces of handmade lace on display. Don't be shy--they are super friendly.

More on this later.

The frame is complete, and the pattern is ready. Time to begin sewing down the outline of the map with my hair.

Making a map of USA out of hair. Seeking hair and stories to weave into it