Look Ma, It's a Chrysler

Chrysler Hubcap

Life is good! I got my hubcap for the Landfillarts project. Be sure to

check out the artist gallery-164 images to date. I didn't see Jafabrits

hubcap posted yet; you'll have to check out her blog to see her art

reclamation. Ken Marquis, the organizer of Landfillart hopes to

find 1000 artists to reclaim hubcaps for art. Ken's goal is to use

any profits from the project to fund reforestation through

Carbonfund.org. Now to the drawing board or shop.

Dad's truck and shop

My father left dust bowl Nebraska, moved east and started

an auto body shop. Long before I knew what art was I was

welding old auto pieces into creations. I shouldered plenty

of chiding from my dad and his brothers. Generally it was

along the lines of if spent as much time on my trade as I did

on junk I might make something of myself. Lol, I think they

may be looking down and probably haven't changed their

minds. Notice our phone number was 38M.

Thanks to Mineke Reinders for the "I Care" keepsake. Mineke

publishes her breathtaking watercolors as well as song and

poetry on an almost daily basis.

Journals

Bamboo Forest Installation

Yesterday I ran out to pick up some blank refills for my

journal. So this morning I'm sitting and procrastinating

other work and looking over past entries and sketches.

'03 Script for video (and reminder to service car)

Perhaps I need to look back more frequently because

I've got a backlog of art ideas. On the other hand maybe

the little books are just fine by themselves. In any event

they are a way for me to show up for my art each day.

Text Messages from the Dead (excerpt)

I find time most days to journal or sketch. Yesterday, of all

things I felt a short story evolving in my head in relation to

the "A Book About Death" project. Strange that I wanted an

image to pop out but it was a narrative. I pulled over, tore

the shrink wrap off my new refills and wrote.

March Hares

March Hares and White Rabbits

Vernal Equinox, the beginning of Spring, and not a moment

to soon. A change from shoveling our "mixed precipitation" to

to working our gardens (mind gardens included). March Hares

or White Rabbits - what suits my mood today? This morning "I'm

late, I'm late" but yesterday I was at Alice's mad tea party during

my visit with my 93 year old mom. My ancient ones dementia

has me puzzling the fragile nature of memory.

Kali Devours Time

(Tibetan wall hanging - collection of the artist)

I was following Sarah Elizabeth's blog yesterday as

she presented a link for artists to participate in

the "A Book About Death" project. This is an open

invitation to submit an image in postcard format

concerning any aspect of death. I'm not quite which

old wounds to reopen but I will be contributing to

the project. Perhaps it may be time to replay one of

the saddest times in my life. Karen and I had just

moved to NYC and three of our best friends there

died within a year. Two were artists and one a

musician. One from leukemia, one suicide and one

auto accident. All so different, all so sad and so much

guilt over being alive. Perhaps time to make an

art memorial and let it go.

Making Comparisons

Breeze

What a difference a few decades make. I continue to scan slides of

older works and it provides a great opportunity for comparisons;

to chart my journey. The piece above (1978) consists of five steel

plates holding individual sheets of foam packing material. The sheets

are light and easily blow in the wind. Very simple. Approximate size

is 6' x 15'. The piece clearly shows my minimalist roots. While I

actually began with welded steel constructions, I soon came to

use the steel in a more "original" state.

Totem (close up)

"Totem" is from only a few years ago. My choice of material here

is more eclectic; pennies, cloth, wire mesh, words and strips of wood.

The earlier piece is experimentation but within a certain academic

construct. Over the years I unlearned as much as I learned in order

to find an authentic "face" to my art. My years in NYC opened up

my eyes to artists working conceptually, Fluxus artists, Happenings etc.

My approach is also more eclectic as I pull from more experiences

and systems.

OBEY your art

Obey the Art

This morning I just felt the need to OBEY the suggestions of

fellow artist Jafabrit. If you follow the "obey" link you will

discover an ongoing dialogue concerning "fair use" in

artistic expression. Of course if you follow Jafa you will find

more disobedient links. It's a very slippery slope if either individuals

or corporations are allowed to copyright words or phrases

in common usage. Free use has many ramifications. It only remains

for critics to give lawsuit art a name, perhaps "The New Hypocrisy". I can

respect Fairey's art but can't understand why he is concerned

by copyright infringement in this case.

Recycle

Glass Baskets

Technology weekend. Finally I got sick of my procrastinating.

I've got way too much work that hasn't been digitized, so I'm

relearning slide and negative scanning. Oh how I hate manuals.

I started with this neon, broken glass and wire mesh basket

piece. I made this quite a few years ago and only exhibited it

once. It might make more sense in our new "green" culture if

I hadn't sold the neon tubes and generator to fund other work.

Back in business

It was also technology crash week. I was using my point and shoot

Canon this week to photo a wall piece and tripped the wrong

lever on the tripod. The camera ends up on the floor with a

severe bend to the zoom. Its' replacement came yesterday; a

Canon SX10 with 10 megapixels vs 5 and a 20x optical zoom vs

3x. Bad timing for our finances. I had hoped to save for a digital

SLR with all the bells and whistles but they are too far out

of my range and this seems to have most of what I really

need. Strangely, Karen's happy not to think about a birthday

gift.

Mini Mini

Front of "Stage Fright"

I mailed off my submission to Spraygraphics Mini Mini Show

last week. Just in time, I hope. All works are to be 4" x 4" only. A bit

of a challenge for those of us unused to constraints. The piece is a

folded paper book work with an interior bamboo fence.

Inside

The works will be exhibited at Cartel Coffee in Tempe, Az during

March and move to Conspire Art Gallery in Phoenix during April.

Sketchbook Show

Final page of my journal

The Sketchbook Show opens tonight in Atlanta at the Art House Gallery.

The first in a series of eight venues through out the east. Tonights (Fri.27th) opening will

be broadcast from 7:00 - 10:30pm Eastern. They warn that only 50 can view at once, so 

check in for awhile if you can but be patient.

thericeshow

Karen and I visited the Rice Show at Wesleyan University's Zilkha Gallery

yesterday. This is a very unique installation/performance by Stan's Cafe of

Birmingham, UK. The exhibit consists of mounds of rice that depict the

difference between various statistics.

Interested in the number of people killed in Rwanda vs the number

of UN Peacekeepers deployed? The results are displayed as mounds of 

counted rice grains. The displays are at times grime and sometimes

humorous but the best part is that at the end of the exhibit the

rice is donated to soup kitchens.

Or Children Soldiers vs children in a local school system? The exhibit

puts a graphic and physical sense to the sometimes mind-numbing

numbers we encounter as we sort through our own life priorities. 

The huge pile in the rear left represented the number of viewers

for this seasons American Idol premier.

Sketchbook Project

I just sent off my journal to the Sketchbook Project.

I first learned about this from Corrine's great blog.  The project, co-ordinated

by Art House Co-op, is set to travel to eight venues this spring. They're supposed

to set up a link to the opening Feb. 27th, which I'll repeat here when it is up.

Artists were asked to submit small journals about 3.5 x 5.5 to

the project.

Although only loosely themed on the topic "Everyone I Know" it

soon became apparent I was going to tear out every page I worked on.

I ended unbinding the journal so I could use my own papers as well

as work in a more sculptural manner with cutouts, constructions 

and fold outs.