Too Far

Now that I'm back, I've realized that driving from Boulder to LA (in either direction) is not ideal if traveling by myself or without stopping for the night. After each drive I felt like a zombie. Despite that element I enjoyed the trip quite a bit. I was able to see many friends (though not all), discuss potential galleries to connect with, eat good food, and see a couple of exhibitions.

I was impressed by the show at MOCA "WHAK! Art and the Feminist Revolution" as well as the accompanying show "Andrea Zittel: Critical Space". The first show had virtually every important artist associated with the feminist movement from the 60s through the 80s. I was surprised by how many video pieces were there as well. That may be the most I've seen in one show. The second show "Critical Space" was also interesting. I enjoy Zittel's work, but it was more interesting when viewing a large number of pieces together. The earlier work helps to get a better idea of how her ideas have progressed to the current work. Now I feel inspired to build similar pieces to make my living space more dynamic and space efficient.

In the moment

So next week is spring break. I'm getting ready to leave for LA on Saturday morning to delliver some prints for a show, but I still feel like there is so much to be done here at home. It just recently dawned on me that my situation has dramatically changed from life in Los Angeles. While there, my plans always revolved around printing schedules. I was rarely able to afford travel and couldn't plan too far in advance based on project schedules. However, within the past 8 months (since I have moved) I have been to New York, New Mexico, Arkansas, Texas, and now back to California. Assuming all goes well, I will be in Mexico for 5 weeks this summer. I hope this comes through since the trip to Mongolia, which I was approved for, was cancelled due to lack of enrollment. In any case, I know that this summer will be a great time to photograph and print with no one in the art building (currently scheduled to be demolished and rebuilt).

Beyond the stories of travels, I have had a few very productive critiques in the past few weeks. First, I met with performance and installation artist Tania Bruguera. She had a lot of interesting feedback. She pointed out the strength of a number of images and the challenges in viewing the massive wall of images I had construced (primarily due to lack of space). Next, I have been meeting with or scheduling critiques with many of the CU faculty. As we become more familiar with artistic and personal communication styles the conversations become more interesting. Finally, I met yesterday with Josiah McElheney and had a very inspiring meeting. So far, he has been the most analytical and direct critique I have had. He challenged me on my main body of work. He appropriately pointed out how I was stradeling a line between two differing philosophies and should be more commanding of one or the other. I was appreciative of his directness and agreed with his assessment. In addition, he suprised me by being attracted to two other bodies of work I was not considering. He was strongly attracted to two images I which had only been sculptural sketches to explore my fascination with absurdity. He felt they were very successful and best illustrated the concepts I was exploring. Also, he was drawn to the series from the museum. He felt that a merging of the two may be an ideal to explore. What I found most interesting about this is that I agreed with virtually everything he said. Later I realized his ability to listen and analyze was equally inspiring among every other member of the class. Once I return from LA, I have quite a number of photographic ideas to explore.

Now the challenge is to feel rested after having vacation time. Somehow I'm not convinced that will happen. Either way, at least I will be able to connect with my friends on the West Coast.

Significance

I'm thinking quite a bit about the power of signifiers (i.e. labels, price tags, listings). Ultimately anything that quantifies your experience with an object has the power to determine your interaction with it. Maybe I need to read more about the Structuralists, but I think my brain is getting in the way of my art-making. Analysis and interpretation have taken over intuition and the tactile aspects of image making. Maybe instead of reading I should only make mud art for the next two months. Not only does it have cultural, political, and nutritional references built in, but it is also a cost-effective way to create … and fun for the whole family (i.e. me and my dog).

New things/ideas/stuff

It has been a while since I have written anything. It's not that I don't have anything to say, but more that I have too many things to process at the moment. First, I would like to acknowledge my meeting with Karyn Olivier. Through the Visiting Artist program, I was able to meet, introduce, and have lunch with her. Karyn recommended some readings that I found very inspiring (specifically "Invisible Cities" by Italo Calvino and "Poetry, Essays, Opera" by Anne Carson). Unvortunately, I had to leave for New York the same day she arrived, but I hope to continue our discussions some time in the near future.

Next, my trip to New York was interesting and enjoyable. I have traveled quite a bit, but somehow never visited New York until a couple of weeks ago. My impression was that it has the energy of Paris with the cleanliness of Rome or parts of Los Angeles. The view from the hotel was the stereotype of a scenic view of a brick wall.



I went for a conference, but due to my inability to preregister (i.e. discount) and the boredom factor involved in the few lectures I attended, I decided my time was best spent in the museums and galleries. During my 5 days there, I saw MoMA (twice), the Guggenheim, Cooper Hewitt, Museum of Folk Art, the Museum of Art and Design, and the Whitney, as well as way too many galleries in SoHo to count. From this art overload, I left with an awareness of a couple of good photo galleries, the memory of a small number of interesting work in museums, and a sense that painting is far from dead in the Art Metropolis of the US.

Now that I am back (and appreciating the mountains and clean air so much more), I am back to a lot of work, presentations (mine and prospective applicants), critiques, and reading. Right now, I am thinking quite a bit about drawing. I'm struggling with other ways to activate still photography and interject a sense of immediacy. I feel the most effective way to do this is through humor, but I am also inspired by an urge to reintroduce process and marks of the hand into the work. With this in mind, I have just learned the simple act of sewing. Two days ago, I sewed my first pieces onto a collaborative painting I am working on with one of my professors. This idea of collaboration was initially inspired by this new painting faculty and has now expanded to a conversation within the graduate student population. I have begun a number of collaborative projects with my studio-mate, as well as with a fellow grad student in sculpture and discussions about similar projects with others in painting and photography. In the longer-term, a few of us have discussed the possibility of a large-scale collaboration in transforming the current art building just before it is demolished at the end of the summer. This seems a logical direction based on the dynamics of the current graduate students as well as the impending relocation that will last the duration of our education. This is an interesting challenge for the group and an interjection of uncertainty into our scholastic future. I guess I will have to wait and see.