Gustave Collage was made from two pieces of plexiglass, some handmade paper salvaged from Hurricane Gustave, acrylic paint, part of a book cover, , scraps of wood, and a rusty washer.

Portal II was created from a piece of plywood, a fragment of fine furniture, an opium bottle from China, and a fragment of a steel door which I picked up on the beach road a couple of weeks ago. The steel and wood has been stamped with Chinese characters. I swore to myself that I was not going to gather any debris from Hurricanes Ike and Gustav, but I could not resist this piece... 24" x 32"

Gustave Series

Just a few days after the third year anniversary of Katrina, Hurricane Gustav blew into Louisiana. While the Mississippi Gulf Coast was spared the worst of the storm, we did not escape the storm's effects entirely. In Clermont Harbor, where my husband and I were still living in a Katrina Cottage and also maintained a workshop, four feet of water covered our slab. The workshop was a shambles, and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency evicted us from the flooded cottage. As we began cleaning up the mess, I came across several bags of small scraps of handmade papers, left over from my workshops. Even in their soggy, smelly condition they were too beautiful to throw away. I rinsed them, let them soak in some bleach water, and laid them out to dry on my slab. The collages I created from them are all approximately 12" x 12", and are available for sale.

Gustav/ Wood Nymph

Gustav/Trees

Gustav/ O

Gustav/Landscape  SOLD

Gustav/Figure

South by Southeast  has at its center a wonderful, horn and wood carved face of a Buddha I acquired from some folks who were cleaning out a storm damaged building. The figure was paired with two carved Chinese panels, a piece of embossed sheet metal, a circular Chinese platter from that same sale, and a rusted Mexican frame. The frame was a survivor of Hurricane Rita, which blew through Mississippi and Louisiana just weeks after Katrina. My interest in humanity's religious beliefs surfaces often in my work, and the Buddha is a favorite theme of mine.  Sold

This month marks the three year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. I decided to try and find a way to make some small, very affordable pieces to mark the anniversary. I made prints on canvas of several pieces of The Katrina Collection, and used them as the focal points of small collages which incorporate actual pieces of storm debris. These pieces range in price from $75- $150. Email me at lorikgordon@gmail.com for prices and availability of any particular piece.

Three Years 10 combines an image of a piece of the collection with two pieces of painted plywood salvaged from debris piles. 8" x 12"

Three Years 9 starts with an image of "Early Hours", mounted on a piece of wood flooring and a bamboo basket. 14" diameter

Three Years 8 incorporates an image of the Mumford Award for the Environment that I created for ADPSR, mounted on a salvaged piece of wood with metal, and a strip of metal banding. Approx 8" x 8"

Three Years 7 starts with a print of "Eyes of the Storm", to which I added stained cheesecloth and copper wire, and mounted on a piece of scrap plywood. 9" x 10"

Three Years 6 has an image of a piece of the collection mounted upon a salvaged fan blade and a piece of scrap, painted plywood. 18.5" x 9"

Three Years 5 features a print of "Full Moon Kitty", to which was added several pieces of metal banding and two scrap pieces of plywood. 18 " x 12"

Three Years 4 started with an image of a piece of the collection, mounted on two pieces of salvaged plywood. 8" x 11"

Three Years began with an image of "Universal Mother", a piece I did for the March of Dimes, a piece of salvaged plywood, a painted piece of canvas, a floor tile, a feather and a piece of beach glass. 17" x 17"

Three Years 2 has an image of a piece called "Darling Saint", a photograph of Ramoneda Street in Bay St Louis, copper tacks, canvas from one of my ruined paintings and a piece of salvaged plywood. 8.5" x 10.5"

Three Years 1 started with an image of a piece of the collection adhered to a painted gallery wrap canvas, to which I added yarn, dyed cheesecloth, feathers, copper wire, and a strip of metal banding. 10" x 20"

Virgin in the Temple was created with a carved wood Santo in a structure, a Mexican window guard, a piece of painted plywood and the base to a piece of fine furniture from a debris pile in Pass Christian. 19" x 27"  SOLD

Uptown Saint was created from window guard, a painted piece of plywood, two forks, a kitchen slicer, half of a furniture leg, two wheels from another piece of furniture, a metal fleur de lis that was once on a napkin ring, and a plaster head from Cyprus. 12" x 30"

Gulf Coast Egret is made from a couple of pieces of painted plywood, a metal serving tray and wood frame. 16" x 16"

Dreams of the Ordinary Man is a really fun piece I created from painted piece of plwood, a Mexican window guard, a fragment of someone's front door with the doorplate and latch still attahed, two old forks, a piece of cabinet hardware, a polymer face, metal "hair" and a cow horn. SOLD

Doggie of the World was created from a small metal dog I salvaged from the debris outside an antique store in Bay St Louis, a battered circular piece of metal, two other small fragments, a Mexican window guard and a painted piece of plywood. 27" x 27" SOLD

Camel Chop was created from a bone chop, a small painting on canvas, and a painted fragment of furniture. 13" x 24"

China is composed from a carved piece of soapstone, part of an Asian basket, a bamboo tray and a plastic frame mounted on plywood.

Nicosia Saint 3 was fashioned from a piece of oak flooring, a plastic piece which once embellished a piece of cheap furniture, the bottom and one of the ribs from a small barrel, a pottery shard, plastic wings and a plaster head which I picked up on my recent trip to the island of Cyprus. 12" x 24"

Nicosia Saint 2 was created from tw0 pieces of salvaged board, a metal cross and another of those wonderful plaster heads from Cyprus. 12" x 29"

Gabriel's Mask 4 was made from another Gabriel Q mask, a wood tabletop, and a decorative , circular piece of metal. 21" diameter

Ceramic Cross starts with the cross mounted on a piece of wood which I recently purchased. I layered it with a rusty piece of metal and a painted metal platter.

Cairo's Bayou starts with a small acrylic painting on plywood and three pieces of bamboo mounted on a drawer from a jewelry case. 17" x 11"

Church Music is composed from a piece of beadboard which I painted and distressed, a wonderful picture frame with four fleur de lis in the corners, a Mexican window guard, and the pieces from a smashed saxophone.

Asian Story is a very simple piece which combines a carved Chinese panelwith a bamboo tray. 39" x 13"

Saint Mary was made from one of those little car statues that can be found in New Orleans shops, a fragment of molding, a small cigar box, a lid to an oval powder case, and a metal serving platter.

Altar: Mother Mary was made from a a plaster Saint, a sewing machine drawer, a fragment of molding, and a rusted planter box which I salvaged from what was left of a craft supply store in Waveland. Two candles fit on either side of the figure. 11" x 17" x6". Wall piece or freestanding.

Fate of the Coast is a new favorite. The backdrop for this piece is a very large silver platter which was recently given me by my friendNancy, who lost her home in Pass Christian. She held on to her salvaged silver for 17 months, and finally decided to give it to me. This kind of thing has happened many times, and it never fails to touch my heart. The fact that people can give up things which meant so much to them so that they can be reincarnated into something beautiful again is, to me, a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. The platter is mounted into a fragment of furniture-a base of some kind. Standing in front of the silver is a gorgeous old scale which comes from post-Katrina New Orleans. More fine silver in the form of goblets and a cylinder complete the piece. 22" x24" x 8" freestanding.

Orient was created from a beautiful piece of Asian furniture, two pieces of molding, a picture frame and another fragment of furniture. 52" x 18" SOLD

Caribbean is an involved piece whose color scheme was inspired by a chance meeting about 4 years ago. A woman came in to the gallery with a purse in these colors, and they have stayed on my mind. Underneath all that acrylic paint is a cupboard door, two halves of a furniture leg, three brass knobs, a displaced carved wooden head, a metal bowl, and two more wooden furniture fragments. 20" x 38"

Chinese Panel  SOLD

Summers at the Beach House is something many people remember about the Bay. This piece was made from a fragment of a painted wood welcome sign, a picture frame, and a cupboard door. SOLD

Carousel II. I had intended for this to hang horizontally but for some reason blogger likes it this way! This piece was created from a wood and metal window guard, a piece of scrap plywood and a wonderful old carousel horse. SOLD

The Teacher 18" x 30" SOLD

Offering was created from an elegantly shaped brass piece from India, a piece of moulding, a fragment of a mirror, a drawer and an acrylic charger. 13" x 18" x 5"

Liberty is created around a replica of the Statue of Liberty, which I saw for the first time a couple of months ago. It is mounted inside a shadowbox with a gilt frame added on top. Behind Liberty is a curved piece of glass with a metal grid, and a fragment of one of my paintings. 12" x 15" x 7" deep. Free Standing.

Love Angel is a small piece which consists of an oval piece of wood, a plaster butterfly and an acrylic angel. 11" x 7"

House of Katrina is very much about the serendipitous joining of unrelated objects to form a piece that has a strong visual impact. Its elements include a lopsided disc of plywood; handmade paper; acrylic paint; parts of a wooden chair; hand painted paper and fabric; an old knife and fossilized ammonite. On another level it points to the special difficulties faced by the Asian communities in the aftermath of the storm. As difficult as it was for us to cope with the scarcity of information immediately after the storm, it must have been much worse for people who did not speak English. 21" x 22"

Dreadlocked Angel is made from a wooden carving of a human body and another, mismatched wooden head. The pieces are layered on a cabinet door, which is mounted on a boogie board. Plaster wings and some wonderfully textured yarn finish the piece. 20" x 35"

Mexican Copper incorporates a copper pan which I purchased in Mexico many years ago. Katrina flattened it for me, and left it in my backyard for me to find. It is paired with a ceramic lid to a lost pot, a shredded piece of plywood, a placemat, and a boogie board. 19" x 37"

Treasures is made from a beautiful, chubby porcelain doll leg given to me by my friend Kevin Fitzpatrick. The leg is mounted on a framed mirror and accompanied by a ceramic wing. The round element is a piece of woven plant material, and the support for the piece is a cabinet door.

Abstracted Angel is constructed from a board, a violin bow, a chain, a rusted metal piece, a fragment of an air conditioner unit and another piece of copper and tubing on board, and a furniture fragment. 21" x 70"