Catching up on Sculpture by the Sea stuff

It takes a while to sketch out for others what is ofter already in my head. This is a picture with more specific dimensions of "Pillumn" I will be getting my materials this week to start fabricating the piece. I can't wait to get my hands dirty!

The last couple of days (off and on), I have spent working through the logistics and paperwork involved for the exhibit I am a part of on Bondi Beach in a couple of short months. Below are some thoughts I sent off to the Education manager of the show. I will be talking to some school kids about my work and and answer questions etc. At their request, I also sent a bunch of process/working images of me making art.

 

materials and techniques, processes involved

In my art I use many different processes. If I am making something for myself without a place in mind for it to go, first I go out hunting for my materials. I used salvaged industrial steel that I repurpose into sculptures. I usually think of the pieces I choose and put together to make sculpture as a puzzle to be solved. I like to make the form interact in ways that make you question how they are standing. I play with the tension between the heavy steel and gravity. I try to make the steel appear light. 

When I am working on piece for a specific purpose, I will start at the drawing board and sketch out ideas. I like to know where something is going before I design a sculpture so that it reflects the environment in the right way. After I sketch it, I will create a maquette and this becomes a more solid model for the bigger piece that I will build. and always remember measure twice cut once!

To make the sculptures, I weld, cut, paint, grind, smooth, prime, spray, clean, move, package, hang, bolt down, drill, plan, sketch, deliver, wire brush etc.

I make my sculptures out of salvaged industrial steel. I want to expand my materials and work more with stone and wood in the future.

ideas and inspirations, practice as an artist

I never am "off work." Many people leave work and 5pm and don't think about it until the next morning. I am constantly seeing and reacting to things that affect me and work their way into my aesthetic. I do not mean this as a bad thing that I am never off of work, because I love what I do, so it isn't really like  work to me. Thanks is the trade off of being an artist – you get to wake up each day inspired and full of passion for your life's work.

I am interested in making art to go in public spaces. I think that many people like art, but feel that museums and galleries are stuffy. I think art can and should enhance your day by seeing it when you walk down the street or at the park. I also think the most successful pieces of public art are those that engage the viewer.  Humans are naturally curious and so please feel free to touch my art! If I make something that makes someone want to feel it, then I think that I have made a good sculpture

What? It's July?

Whew! It has been a long while since I made time for this little blog. Whoops! So here is the first update of what happened in the last few months...a lot of cool stuff!

I am excited to be in this year's Lakefront Sculpture Exhibit. My sculpture is named Five. In keeping with my series of pillars or columns, Five is another tribute to my family. I am fortunate to have four siblings and this sculpture has one ring for each of us. We may look like we are going to topple over, but welded together, we make a balanced unit.

Alderman Tom Tunney was kind enough to sponsor my sculpture in the garden that he donated to the city, Ann Sather Garden (Irving Park and Seminary in the 44th Ward of Chicago). It is a beautiful public space that has lovely plantings and plenty of room for you to go and enjoy the outdoors and my sculpture.

Below is a story in pictures of the process of making Five.

 

Once again my handy gantry helps to make another large scale sculpture. I'd say the hardest part of building this piece was getting the right angles in place to make it sturdy enough to stand but also still appear lighter that the .5" steel wall.

 
Sincere thanks to the guys at Commercial Pallet for their help lifting Five onto the trailer.
The opening at Sedgewick Studios was a huge success! Every artist was present and there was a great turnout. Everyone had a lovely evening and I met some nice new people that went out of their way to talk to me and tell me about how they liked my work (we had to wear name tags with a picture of our sculpture on them to identify us as artists). It is always a nice complement when children talk to me about my art... I can trust them more, ya know?

All in all I am thrilled to be a part of this wonderful exhibit and very thankful to everyone who helped make it possible. Please frequent the businesses that sponsor this event! Below are some photos of this year's brochure.

Installation at the Mart and a bunch of links!

Saturday (4.17) morning started quite simply. Up and at 'em and out the door by 6:45am. I had to be on the Merchandise Mart property at 8am to begin the installation of Scrape which is exhibiting in Countercurrents for Art Chicago. Once again I am thrilled to be exhibiting with the big names in the Chicago Sculpture scene and the world over.

When I ask my older and wiser sculpture buddies for advice on install days, they consistently say to be prepared and to expect the unexpected. I was all set. My sculpture was strapped into the trailer and I just had to hook the trailer up to my Explorer and drive to the Mart. Easy, right? Well, I walked into my studio to find a giant van parked in front of the trailer. Hmmm. Didn't expect that one? I looked up and Adam's (the guy who lives in an upstairs apartment at my studio) door was open – this typically means he is gone. Shit.

I am already thinking about breaking into the van, putting it in neutral, pushing it into the street and hoping for the best. Well, I took a step back, called Adam and he was upstairs. Turns out the owner of the van, Billy, was passed out in the back and he moved it out for me. False alarm.

Now I just had to drive on over the to the Mart. So, when I rounded the corner onto Orleans Street sculpture in tow, I couldn't help but feel that nervous excitement feeling and get a big goofy grin on my face. I think the security guard thought I was happy to see him, but not the case. I was putting up one of my sculptures in the thick of the concrete jungle! Merchandise Mart is perhaps the most traffic-ed spot in Chicago...WOW!

The install of Scrape and all the others went off without a hitch. Plop and drop! Special thanks to Terry Karpowicz and Ted Sitting Crow Garner for generously volunteering their time and expertise to help everyone with the installations. You two are the bomb dig-gity!

I was happy about how everything went and happy about how my work was received. Above is a picture of Al Podgorski's son. He tagged along while his dad took pictures for the Sun Times of the installation. I was told later by Mimi that he told her my sculpture was magic. That felt good to hear! 

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These people in the pictures are professionals. We finished eight installations before noon. The remaining three were done on Sunday and Monday. Orleans Street has become an corridor of sculpture that opens up onto the Chicago River and the city. It's beautiful. One of my sculpture buddies, Terry, told me to just imagine this multiplied by 15 and from sculptors all over the globe and on Navy Pier. That is what used to happen for Pier Walk. I wish I could have been a part of it.

The Art Chicago folks already said this could and should be repeated every year. I have a feeling that this might be the start of something.

We were lucky to have some good connections and there was a media blitz about the event. We had Channel 7 and 5 there and the Chicago Sun Times and Public Art in Chicago Blogger. There are links below to what I could find below.  Monday I was interviewed for a feature article about this exhibit in the art section of the Sun Times.  I was lucky enough to be one of the three artists chosen to be interviewed. I can't wait see how the article comes together! I have heard from friends that they saw me on Channel 5 and 7 over the weekend, but I can't find a link to the newscast online and my sculpture buddies don't have Tivo. Nevertheless, it's still fun to know someone saw me and my sculpture and all the other sculpture!

This is Mimi Peterson: AKA the brains of the operation! I have been working together with her since January helping to make all of her ideas come to life. She had a wonderful vision and it is so satisfying to see all the pieces coming into place.

Here are some links to the media stuff:

Countercurrents 4.17.2010 installation on Orleans from the Public Art in Chicago blog by Jyoti.

Chicago Sun Times photos from the installation by Al Podgorski.

CSI Event Page for Countercurrents on Facebook

Here is a printed bit about the installation from ABC Channel 7:

"April 17, 2010 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- Some Chicago area artists were spending their weekend installing 12 monumental sculptures outside the Merchandise Mart building.

They range in height from 6 ft. to 16 ft, and one even incorporates Chicago's favorite activity: road construction.

This is part of an exhibition for Art Chicago 2010, which officially starts April 30. But you can check these sculptures out anytime along Orleans Street." (Copyright ©2010 WLS-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

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Finally, when I returned home I found these lovely tulips waiting for me on my desk. Thanks so much Ashley and Tricia! Y'all rock!

Press Release for Countercurrents: An Exhibition of Chicago Sculpture International Artists

 Hello there!  I have spoken often about Chicago Sculpture International which is an affiliate of International Sculpture Center (who produces Sculpture magazine) both of which I am a member. We have a booth at Art Chicago to exhibit Countercurrents, a show curated by Mimi Peterson (one of our members) and our "booth" extends down to Orleans where we are installing 11 large scale works on 4/17 (in case anyone wants to drop by and watch, there will be cranes and welding so it will be fun). I am one of the outdoor exhibiting artists and am thrilled to be part of such a wonderful exhibition! Please let me know if you have any questions.

Below is the Press release as prepared by Mimi Peterson:

PRESS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ART CHICAGO - SCULPTURE BY CSI
MARCH 22, 2010

What:        "Countercurrents", an indoor and outdoor exhibition of sculpture
Where:      Art Chicago, an art expo
                  The Chicago Merchandise Mart
When:        Thursday, April 29 - Monday, May 3, 2010
Who:         Chicago Sculpture International artist members

        Mimi Peterson, Curator
        Terry Karpowicz, Advisor
        Dusty Folwarczny, Graphic Design
        Toby Zallman, CSI Logo Design

Why:        Art Chicago serves as the CSI platform to raise public awareness of sculpture with appeal for placement in the built environment and natural landscape.

        "Countercurrents", the thematic CSI exhibit, aims to offer an overview of all aspects of member artists - not just their physical work but also philosophy, material and conceptual innovations.

        The idea behind the project means to design a radically different exhibition in which the processes actually happen for the ARTIST, in which the AUDIENCE can personally experience their efforts.

One of the most interesting aspects of the project is the dynamic relationship between the collective cultural identity of Chicago Sculpture International, a non-for-profit organization and the economic and social context associated with Art Chicago at the Merchandise Mart.

While the CSI exhibit is composed of multi-layered works, each expressing original forms of visual language rich with personal experience, the artist faces the challenge of exhibiting in privately owned public space as a non-for-profit, of asserting their value in the two distinct worlds of private and public sectors. After strategic collaboration with Tony Karman, Vice President, Art Chicago, while demonstrating his respect and vision for the arts, he made outdoor installation sites available to CSI.

The gallery space shelters works and visual images in human scale, providing an intimate biography of CSI artists. The work suggests moments from the:
        1980's with color splash, embellishment, optimism
        1990's with an archeological, post-rust belt narrative
        2000's exploring the futuristic, technological in search of new allegories

By contrast, the presence of the outdoor works express a monumentality linked to it's Orleans St. urban landscape. The outdoor site will essentially present itself as an island surrounded by concrete, an element that does not merely serve an ornamental purpose, but also serves to provide a sustainable form toward establishing the character of the "Countercurrents" theme.

As curator and artist, in transforming the exhibition concept into a reality, I focused on:
        1. A Sense of Equality
         Each artist has the chance to have a  presence with equal dignity and identity.
        2. A Change of Paradigm
        From the iconic exhibit and display to that of the artist's vision made tangible.
        3. CSI Characteristic
        A sensitivity to sustainable and ephemeral materials, reflecting the post-industrial, post-consumer effect.

Mimi  Peterson,
"Countercurrents" curator and artist

CONTACT: MIMI PETERSON
    anagramimi@gmail.com             
    773.286.4464
       





   
                 

CSI Board, CounterCurrents and "Give"

This week I was given the wonderful news that my newest sculpture, scrape, will be included in the CounterCurrents Outdoor Exhibit at the Merchandise Mart for Art Chicago! I am thrilled to be exhibiting with fellow members of CSI. This is the best picture I have of it right now. It is about 7.5' tall to give you an idea of its scale.

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I was also officially voted in as the new secretary for the CSI board of directors. I am very excited to be able to help with the organization add my ideas to serve the membership.

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On a trip to Winfield via Belleville this week with fellow sculptor and curator Tom Scarff I was able to find an amazing new (old) piece of metal. We made the trip to repair Tom's sculpture Echo Comet at Southwest Illinois Community College and to pick up some materials. Below is Tom looking up at the transformer that needs to be replaced. This piece is made with neon and LED lights and paints the side of the building with light when it is on at night. It is really a beautiful, light Echo Comet!

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The picture below is a piece of 14' in diameter pipe that was left behind at Victor Pipe & Steel. Really you ask, someone just left 1000+ lbs of steel around? Well, yes and lucky for me I found it. I am going to clean and polish it up and turn it into a proper sculpture. It has this wonderful bounce in it when you give it a little push. Here is a link to a video I uploaded to YouTube. Another fun thing about this piece of sculpture is that I get to research things like harmonic vibrations and different ways to transport it. I think I will call it Give.