I went into a New Jersey high school classroom last week via Apple's Face Time for some "assemblage" video chat with the art students (see the original blog HERE). I just received a few photos from art teacher, Mrs. Carradori, of her class working on their own original assemblage pieces...have a look: There's lots of very inspired work going on here as you can see, with a seemingly wide variety of materials being used. I really enjoy seeing the "process" of these kinds of projects. Nice job, New Jersey!
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More puppy play...Gracie, and her best friend Henry (the neighbor's puppy), take full advantage of their afternoon romps every time they get together. Today was no exception. Even with all those flashing teeth, they seem to know enough not to actually hurt each other.
Trash Talking ArtistYes, folks, it was two years ago that I began my "gleaning" art residency with four other local artists, digging for six months through the mountains of trash at the Metro Transfer Station (the city dump). I often continue to make reference to my own experience, and I continue to follow each new group of select artists who make their way into the "belly of the beast" to dig for materials that can be re-visioned into art. The five new Portland artists for 2014 have now been chosen, and they've begun their own adventures with trash...you can read about them HERE and follow their blog. They will have a group show in mid August, showcasing their work that was made entirely from the garbage of the Transfer Station. I continue to use many of the treasures in my own assemblage work that I uncovered in the trash a couple years ago. I've shared much of it with other artists, and have been on a continual path of needing to reorganize it often so that I can have easy access to all of it. In those six months of residency, I brought home more "stuff" than what I would probably ever be able to use in a lifetime. The city dump is a place of untold treasures for any mixed media artist. There is a similar "artist in residence" program at the San Francisco Transfer Station. I also follow their website for the latest information on artists and projects, etc.
The KeyboardI was given an old organ keyboard yesterday (many thanks to Liz Cohn), and have been carefully deconstructing it for parts. This keyboard is an assemblage artist's dream! There are so many unusual kinds of pieces here that can be worked into an assemblage project.
Save The DateI'll be participating in a group show at Gallery 6 PDX with nine other artists in April. If you live in the area, plan to join us for the First Friday Reception...April 4, 5pm to 8pm. I'll be showing three pieces, along with the work of the other artists: Gallery 6 PDX
131 NE 6th Av. Portland, OR 97232 April 4 - 27 2014 Afternoon Tea and Cookies Sunday, April 20, 3:00 pm I live along the Willamette River with a nearby wilderness area and little island (great for hiking) that juts out into the river-about four blocks from my house. We're seeing a lot of visitors with binoculars in the area right now...everyone wanting to watch the bald eagle nest. I heard the "scream" of one of the eagles early this morning as I was walking Gracie, so we headed in that direction, and paused to watch one of them land in the nest, take a few photos, etc. There are several folks who live right in that area with direct day-long access to this free nature show. One of the neighbors told me last night that there are, indeed, eaglets now in the nest. I may have to set up a lawn chair with my own binoculars so I can watch the comings and goings of the parents and maybe catch a glimpse of the babies. I took these photos this morning...yes, it's a little difficult to see the eagle (and the nest) from these photos, but I could easily see a part of the eagle's body and white head popping up from the nest. One of my favorite streaming cams is this nest from Minnesota...two eggs have now been laid:
Face TimeUsing the "facetime" app, one can make video/audio calls over Wi-Fi from one iphone/ipad/ipod or Mac to someone else's. That's exactly what I did this week as I connected with a high school class in New Jersey ( a "few" miles from Portland, OR). I received a "Visit Our Class" invitation from an art teacher-a request for me to share an "assemblage" lesson with her students. A flight from Oregon to N.J. (with the turbulence, bad food, small economy seats, etc.) is really not a dream vacation (although a good way to accumulate "miles"). So, through the magic of Apple's Face Time we were able to connect in a much easier fashion with me sitting (comfortably) at my studio work table here in Oregon-my ipad air on a stand facing me...and N.J. teacher, Joey Carradori, in her classroom with her students, watching me from a laptop with a projected screen image. Wi-Fi technology at its best! I could see and hear them...they could see and hear me! What a great way to collaborate over the thousands of miles! This is my ipad (with a view of the N.J. classroom) from here at my home during our visit: In New Jersey...their view of me: During this hour, my visit was fairly simple: I shared a little bit about my own background, we talked about the assemblage artist, Joseph Cornell, and I demonstrated a few techniques that work for me in the construction of my own assemblages. Yes, the hour went by quickly. I'm hoping for a Face Time invitation to go back into their classroom when they have all completed their own individual assemblage pieces. I'd like to possibly highlight some of their work here on my blog...stay tuned!
So, folks, it appears we may have some young, new assemblage artists in the making...woohoo!! |
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