Adventures in Debris

Update: 8/17: pushing to the edges of with these little compositions. Trying to figure out what they're about!

Original Post: Keeping with the theme of Making the Ordinary Epic, I've been noodling around with discarded and used-up art materials to make these little assemblages. 

So that you get a sense of size-- here are my first four. Still in progress.

They're mounted on small, cradled wood panels (5x7"). The little creatures are molded out of nearly dried-up paint (I don't always treat my paint jars with properly lidded respect). The rest includes scraps of glue, tape, nearly extinct markers, paper, etc.

Volcano! In progress

Made this one first. Lots of dried up gesso.

Does this little dragon guy resemble an intestine?
Made with dried red paint, rolled into a putty.

This one's got way too much going on-- maybe I'll paint over some of the details? I'm enjoying these though!

Stan Francisco

I painted this Portrait du Jon, Fiance' and Working Stiff, at our fancy hotel (gouache, 9x12)

a week in:
Stanley
Fran
Cisco

Ahh, sweet vacation! The city was engaging, I was really able to engage with the art scene... also I got engaged. 

   Guffaw!

(I've never really worn a ring before. Do engagement rings have magical powers? I assume they probably shoot rainbows). STAY TUNED FOR
FURTHER INQUIRY!

BACK TO BUSINESS: Saw some terrific art at the Berkeley Art Museum, the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and a SFMOMA Show called "Spirituality in Art"-- mostly an excuse to show lots of famous modern stuff at the Contemporary Jewish Museum while the MOMA was closed for renovations.

Nicole Eisenman at Berkeley 

Wangechi Mutu

Saya Woolfalk

FAN ART: Steph draws Nicole Eisenman

FAN ART: i-phone homage

Philip Guston at the CJM (SFMOMA). Such amazing texture.

back in the studio: Cats, Kids, Castles

Feeling a little aimless here in the studio, but making sure to work steadily every day. I'm giving myself a few more days to noodle around and then I'll set a schedule for the rest of the semester.

There are three major threads running through the stuff I'm making at the moment:

1. CATS--

Old faithful- painting on the apartment floor. The BEST.

Kitty, queen of the Stinkeye. She really paints herself.

2. KIDS
I have a huge stash of discarded kids' drawings. Started collaging them into this ornate, glossy book-- it's called THE POPES. I shall not rest until every human head becomes a five year old's smiley face.

Sacrilege? Probably, but I'm really just interested in questioning 'what is valued'. I flippin' love my students' drawings... why shouldn't they be framed in mosaic and gold? Perhaps this could become the bestiary I wanted to compile.

More experiments.

3. CASTLES-- 
Messing with these old photos from my 8-month stay in Venice, Italy in 2006. Some time ago I collaged them into the shape of a large structure and mounted them on wood. I've been pulling the film off certain pictures with an exacto knife and finding the shapes are even more interesting blank, without the photographic image. It could become an exploration into a cache of half-distorted or absent memories... Oh grad school! you've got me all conceptual, baby.

Photos on the left, a large watercolor version on the right. 

First Friday, Kid! on Harrison Ave, Boston

Finally made it to a First Fridays in Brunston! Deb Davidson works at the Kingston gallery--she invited me to the opening via Facebook. Besides bumping into a couple of AIB comrades, it was terrific to see some fresh, shiny work on display and read what artists had to say about their pieces.

I developed particularly strong crushes on these galleries:
Samson Project
Caroll and Sons (thinking about submitting to the Boston Drawing Project)

These pics are from Caroll and Sons. Damien Hoar de Galvan and Robin Dash both work with lowbrow materials (crayon, highlighters, PBR bottles, aspirin bottles, discarded wood). But they've managed to present the objects in a gallery-friendly, 'cleaned-up' manner that doesn't take away from the wonky, indie aesthetic. Hoping to suck up some inspiration from these displays. 

Damien Hoar de Galvan

Robin Dash

ALSO:

Super exciting bonus news flash! I'm in a show! Dropped this little guy off-- framed tastefully using green painter's tape-- at the Washington Street Art Center. The show: "Me and My Friends Make Art II". Sadly I'll be in San Francisco for the opening on Friday the 12th.

"You Ruined It"--- at the Washington Street Art Center from July 12-27th, 2013

Residency Doodles

late night, tired audience

AIB folder, featuring Aaron Lish's head.

Yeah... there's no way I could sit still for 12 days without doodling the whole time. 

(Especially surrounded by such creative people).

Here are some byproducts of the residency:

My group 3 classmates! I draw them every residency. Who wouldn't? We're an attractive bunch. 

DON'T CROSS THE STREAMS!!!

Brian's sculpture looked exactly like the Stay Puft Marshmallow man. Clearly an artistic intervention was necessary. I added ghostbusters, 'lasers', and hat. Brian was very good natured about it. Took him a while to notice.

Lecture book: In preparation for critical theory class, I folded a large piece of paper into 8x11.5" chunks, punched holes in it, and added it to my binder. Doodled on it alot just to see how the pictures would interact with each other.. Unfolded, it makes a 33"x22" composition.

A couple more:

  

Collaboration with Britt Snyder and Wil. We're a genius team.