William the urban tree man is almost done! His character was conceived by my friend Colleen, who helped me to write my Minnesota State Arts Board grant application. I promised to make him in trade for her expertise. I imagined him as a very skilled mouse, cutting down diseased trees and planting new life. He has his tool belt for his shovel and ax (the ax is not pictured....still need to add the loop to his belt.) He wields a chain saw when necessary. He keeps his headgear close by. Colleen said he also has a german shepard, but I think I have done enough accessorizing. I am still futzing with a large shovel trying to get the proportion right. And he still needs his tail attached. The whiskers are from my cat Bug; everything else is paper clay covered in sewing pattern paper and painted with acrylic. I hope she will love him. Thank you so much Colleen for believing in me and insisting I apply for the grant!
total impulse buy.....
at Barnes & Noble. I was there trying to find party favor gifts that a seven year old might actually enjoy and that their parents wouldn't want to throw away immediately. After I found the Ninja Mad Libs, I was walking to the register and found the paperback "Zen Confidential: Confessions of a Wayward Monk." I grabbed it and a review by Leonard Cohen on the back called the author "a punk of a monk." And with that I took it to the register.
I have let my own sitting practice lapse for far too long. There are fits and starts, and I remember why it is so necessary, and then life gets in the way. But life will always get in the way. That is why sitting helps. Right inside the cover is a quote by Dogen that gives me hope...."A Zen master's life is one continuous mistake." I'm no Zen master, and if he can't get it right, why do I have to try so hard?
Art Bash and Paddle8....
Tonight is the fall fundraising event at the Rochester Art Center, titled "ARTBASH 2013: The Silver Factory" in honor of receiving funding from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. In addition, the Art Center will be screening Andy Warhol's "Screen Tests" and creating their own black and white film "Rochester Screen Tests." These are one minute portraits edited together of Rochester community members. I already did my portrait sitting for the Paddle8 launch, but couldn't talk my boys into participating. Also at the big bash tonight is all the work that was donated by 28 artists for the Art Center's first national auction. I am fortunate enough to be included in that group. Check out the Paddle8 auction and bid if anything strikes you! I'll be headed out to the party soon.
William the urban tree man....
how we work....
My son was old enough to go to art summer camp this year. I am not sure who was more excited. I just found his projects in the craft closet as I was looking for something else; one of which was a bean mosaic on cardboard. When we were viewing the class work on the last day, there was quite a variety of approaches and styles, and I asked him how he made decisions about his image. He said, "I just look at it and glue a bean down, then look at it some more and glue some more beans down." I asked if he had an idea of what he wanted to look like before he started, and he said no, that he just "kind of did it." It was all I could do not to laugh out loud. That is exactly the way I work. It almost always has been. There hasn't been a sketch for a collage drawing, embroidery or doll in 20 years. I make it because I want to know what it looks like. I keep lists of ideas/physical attributes, and then I just start. Once i have made a decision, that informs the next decision, and so on. I would probably get myself into a lot less trouble with the work and its installation if I could think things all the way through, but I have yet to change the way I work. I think that quality of "being there" with the work is important for me. Apparently it is for my son too.
look what I found....
I was poking around in some boxes for work I needed to get quick photographs of, when I rediscovered my "Flower Girl." I had totally forgotten about her. I pulled her out and put her on the post for a photograph and realized why she had been tucked away...she can't balance on the post as she is too top heavy. I need to insert some sort of counterbalance in her pelvis, which means making a hole and filling it with something and then closing her up again. I wish I knew how to think these things through before I made them, but apparently that is not my learning process. Luckily, I have a very experienced colleague who is kind enough to offer advice. Looks like she will be going to school tomorrow!
"Flower Girl"
she's finished!
Just some quick pictures, and not terribly detailed. But I couldn't wait to get her posted:
I made the cupcake over a year ago for another doll, and decided not to use it. Then I decided I wanted her to be sitting on the cupcake like she had just commandeered a mountain. Let me know if you think there should be more of them.
and I'm done....
with two new dolls, for my October online exhibition at buysomedamnart.com. "Candy Thermometer" and "Compass." I even had my new flex shaft drill out to insert the sleeve in the back. It was so slick. I can clamp it right to my table and have it done in minutes. Here's a quick look:
"Candy Thermometer"
"Compass"
Flex shaft magic!
You can see in the above pictures the back post that supports their sitting. It slides right into the metal sleeve inserted in their back. All it takes to install them is an 1/8 inch hole in the wall and the post. Installation shots will have to happen this weekend.
I had hoped to get more done, but with rethinking my drawing class and getting everyone back to school, these two were all I could manage. If I can get my cupcake girl finished next week, maybe she will be available too. Will post a link when the exhibition goes live.