Oxford Show
October 5th, 2011
Oxford, Mississippi 2011
Karen Bottle Capps
These pieces are portraits of life in rural Mississippi. From dramatic skies to towering kudzu, these pieces are made from my observations and imagination. I love Mississippi for its musical heritage, complex history and hospitable people. I used trash collected in and around Oxford. Rusty bottle caps, vintage items and various hidden surprises for you to enjoy.
Red Banks
Birds play in the sky, cows feed on grass. The farm house windows and door glow with life inside. This piece is peaceful and happy.
Arkabutla
My friend Mary and her husband Benny live in Arkabutla. Benny is in tune with the fish of this muddy lake. He catches crappy and catfish mainly. He is also a truck driver. Although I’ve never met him, I can imagine the man he is. I’ll bet he can “run a trot line too”. In this scene the sun is coming up while the fishing has begun. The dog was left behind to keep the lake fairy company. I actually found the spark plug at the lake; they are commonly used for sinkers in Mississippi.
Oxford
I love my Fat Possum Records. Great blues. This is my fantasy of their recording studio. A vintage truck sits dangerously close to the kudzu’s monster shapes. The water tower has the Fat Possum label painted on it. There’s a ladybug ready to fight, as if to say, “Stay off my dirt farm!”
Tupelo
Elvis’s birthplace, heavily embellished. This is the house Vernon built and Elvis was born in, learned to crawl and swivel his little hips.
Sardis
I used pea gravel from my backyard to create the shoreline. The purple lake house sits happily on a bluff of bottle caps with metal flowers, bordered by a chain fence. Fourteen miles of dense woods were cleared by thousands of men started in 1936, to create this lake we now enjoy.
Vicksburg
The cotton is ruined and birds are circling, but this shack has survived. It’s giving rise to butterflies; a copper bird is the only witness. The farmland around Vicksburg was so washed out that this growing season was a total loss for many farmers.
Greenville
When I found this smashed wasp and hornet killer bottle, I knew it would make a great silo. This place seems already abandoned; then it gets another one-two punch of floods and tornados. The ghostlike figure in the doorway is taken from a series of door pieces by Arkansas artist V.L. Cox, who grew up a county over from me. I am very proud of her success.
Oil Trough
If you ever drive through Oil Trough, I suggest you put the pedal to the metal. This north-central Arkansas community has it all. Storms, floods, tornados, landslides, high winds, drought and earthquakes. Here the waters have receded, revealing a good looking tractor.
Fish
All these fish were made from trash I picked up after the great flood of 2011 waters receded. They are funky and make the ultimate trash art souvenirs.
Karen Bottle Capps, Memphis, 2011 www.karenbottlecapps.com 901-497-0819
Po Monkey's near Merigold Mississippi
December 4th, 2010
Mollie Riggs and I went on a day trip to Po Monkey's to explore the area, take pictures and pick up junk for my art. I left the directions and my laptop at home, so, we had no clue where to find it. I drove to Merigold Mississippi. Stopped at a convienience store and Mollie asked the most obvious expert on the area. He kinda explained how to find it. We took back off, crossed the highway and began driving down gravel roads. Luckily, it didn't take long to find a mailbox that said Po Monkey Road.