the art of mom | style.above.beyond

as she was singing her own special rendition of "i did it my way,"

an angel appeared to her and threw finely chopped colored

paper about her head in celebration.

(monique duval #86}

Adrienne asked me if I would come to her parents home and photograph her mother's art. What I didn't expect to find was a gem around every corner and a story to go along with it. Woven beautifully,through the snippets of her mother's studio and all throughout her home. Adrienne, now a college graduate, wanted to turn the tables so to speak on her mother. To show her the beauty she has always created and to encourage her to continue on with her new business of making the most beautiful lampshades, clever pieces of furniture, upholstery and mosaics (to name a few). A tribute to her mom on this Mother's Day - a digital portfolio as it were and a very big bravo. xo.

Words from a daughter:

I knew Marge Kaczala first as “mom.” She has always made the seemingly impossible, possible (the way moms do). She helped me and my twin brother realize our visions: turning our couch into a hideout, our stairway into a fashion runway, and our living room carpet into a performance stage. The walls of our bedrooms changed as frequently as our moods. Pink. Or yellow. Or purple and turquoise, or blue, or green... She fashioned the most appropriate attire for my ever-changing career path as a mermaid, princess, Dalmatian, fairy, and ballerina.

And throughout my childhood our house has transformed too. Always equipped with her "do-it-yourself" attitude. She stripped wallpaper, tore down walls (and built them up again). She tiled, grouted, and caulked. She sanded and finished floors, measured rooms, and built furniture. She sewed pillows and curtains and constructed lampshades. Everything fits into our lifestyle seamlessly.

After twenty-one years (we've been selfish long enough), I’m ready for her to share her talents with the world. 

A jewelry-maker. 

Then (and always) a mom. 

Now a designer. 

I can’t wait to see what beautiful thing she will produce next.

Words from a husband:

Marge Kaczala’s journey as an artist probably began in her subconscious, as she took in all of the shapes, patterns and colors that surrounded her in the urban and natural places of Toledo, Ohio. She learned sewing and a love of fabric and color from her mother; her machinist father imparted his mechanical inclinations. What emerged in high school, and later at Bowling Green as an art major, was a torrent of creative energy, that found its way into wood working, sculpture, painting and decorative precious metals. Eventually, she pioneered a new media for creating jewelry of dazzling shapes and colors, from plastic resins that she colored, catalyzed, shaped, sanded and polished, until they evoked gems and stones that are otherwise found only in natural, or supernatural worlds. These beautiful, yet inexpensive objects won acclaim as they made their way into juried craft shows, boutiques, and most significantly, adorned many hundreds of bodies nationwide. A button manufacturer even approached her about her methods, proposing a business venture. However, another man, a social worker, made a different proposal, and her energies soon turned to procreation, with the result that she had twins, a girl and a boy, and imbued each with an artistic perspective. Her income from making art was put aside; instead she fostered the creativity of her own, and others children, and mounted a children’s art show that rivaled a New York opening! Our family home has abounded with fabrics: handmade quilts, curtains and lampshades; also, fine cabinetry, mosaics and painting remind us of the experiences that we all hold dear, and the places we’ve been, and can also now imagine going: the twins have graduated this year with degrees in architecture and filmmaking. As we walk the new path ahead, we will look back frequently to the beauty that brought us here.

{Marge's beautiful lamps are available at MPG Home + Design in Newburyport}