Nathan Cummings Travel Fellowship Competition

I just recently had the opportunity to participate in a travel grant competition at ASU.

"The fellowship is awarded annually for the purpose of enabling a current Master of Fine Arts candidate to travel during the summer between passing the 15-hour review and preparing their thesis exhibition. The experience of The Grand Tour has long been an established tradition in the education of the whole person. For the visual artist, it has been a virtual necessity rather than a tradition. The benefits accrued through this experience by the young American artist has been well documented in modern art history. The fellowship is awarded to the student whose work and written statement best exemplifies the intent of The Grand Tour."

Each student makes a piece for the exhibition and writes a one page proposal stating what they would do/where they would go if awarded the money. I think the award usually ends up being about $5,000. There is also a second place award that is about $2,000.

Here is the show info:

March 9-20 Monday-Thursday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Friday 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

Award Announcement and Reception: Friday, March 20, Noon. Harry Wood Gallery

I took photos of the installation and each piece. I wish I could have the proposals here as well, but its just not feasible. It helps understand the pieces, but its just too much to read! Basically though, everyone wants to go somewhere different (ranging from LA to India) with hopes of being inspired and doing research for their work and thesis. This competition is a really big deal and is the most prestigious award for MFA Candidates to receive.

This was my piece for the show... (see better pics on my flickr here and here)

Trace

Lynette Andreasen

Area: metals

Found Antique Silver Platter, Embroidery

(above and below)Upward Embrace

Jesse Armstrong

Area: Ceramics

poplar, porcelain, kanthol wire

(below)

Surface Exploration
Jana Evans

Area: Ceramics

Glazed Porcelain

(above and below)

C-Cucumber

Suching Chen

Area: Ceramics

Glazed Porcelain

(above and below)

Peter Bugg

Area: Photography

40 lbs. of Tabloid Magazines and Physicians scale

(above and below) Exit

Sungyee Kim

Area: Drawing and Painting

Sumi Ink and Mixed Media on Panel

(above and below)

Momentary Conversations

Whitney Korstange

Area: Printmaking

Handmade paper, screen print and lazertran

(above and 2 below)

Frameworks

Natalia Jaeger

Area: Intermedia

video on canvas, the sounds of chocolate making, cocoa dusted frame, and artisans chocolates
(below)

Octophone

Damian Johnson

Area: Sculpture

bronze

(below)

Emergency Meat

Nathaniel Lewis

Area: Sculpture

fabricated aluminum and silicone

(above and below)

Five Specimens in a Collection

Zac Zetterberg

Area: Painting and Drawing

Oil on Panel

(above and below)

I'll let you know who wins after noon on Friday!

Sneak Peak: Love Letters

Finally finished my piece for the Love Letters show today...after weeks of frustration and things gone wrong! Sometimes I have such a hard time with theme shows. AND, I felt a lot of pressure to make something good for this show because its the first time I am really participating in First Fridays downtown, and serveral friends that I look up to are in the show. Both reasons gave me tons of anxiety resulting in a mental block. Anyway, I figured it out and it feels good to be done. Part of my own personal closure when I complete a piece is getting it photographed. I never feel really done until I take photos. Im still not great at taking pictures of these wall pieces, but its getting a little better. Anyway, here is a sneak preview of my piece for the show. If you want to see the whole thing you will have to come to Modified Arts, or wait until the show is over and I post the full photos!

Upcoming Events

I have two shows coming up very soon! Please come and say hello and see my new work!

Mesa Contemporary Crafts Exhibition

"Highlighting the finest in contemporary crafts from around the country, Mesa Contemporary Art’s Annual Contemporary Crafts exhibition has become a benchmark for innovation and quality. This year represents a milestone for the museum as it celebrates the 30th anniversary of this popular juried exhibition. Representative of traditional craft mediums including ceramics, fibers, basketry, metals, wood, glass, jewelry, papermaking and book arts, this exhibition showcases 58 artworks by 39 artists from 14 states."

The opening is January 23rd from 6-8pm. The show runs Jan 23-Mar 15, 2009. Mesa Arts Center is located on the corner of Main Street and Center Street in Downtown Mesa. For more info: http://www.mesaartscenter.com/

LOVE LETTERS
In the spirit of Valentine's Day, "Love Letters" is an exhibition of art created by current ASU graduate students and recent graduates of the program. Artists working in various media including paint, ceramics, video, woods, fibers, metals, printmaking and photography each received a letter of the alphabet and made a piece in response to that letter. Work by 29 different artists will be presented.

The show will be at Modified Arts .
407 E. Roosevelt, Phoenix, Arizona 85004
Third Friday, January 16th – Artists’ Reception
First Friday, February 6th – Closing Reception
Sunday, February 15th – Show officially closes

Dad's Old Gloves

There is something to be said for deadlines. As much as I have been cursing them lately (I have had SO many SO close together) I am actually pretty grateful for them. This semester I have just been so slammed and have been working too many 16 hour days at the studio. But because of that, I have been pretty productive lately...which will be good when I have my review in less than a month (eek!). I finished this piece at 4am on Thursday night (or Friday morning if we are being technical). I had critique on Friday morning. The motivation for this piece actually came from a paper I had to write in my "History of the Decorative Arts in Interiors" class this semester. We had to design a container to hold something of significance.

Something of significance to me is the gloves that my dad used to wear when he worked in our yard. My dad taught me from a young age how to work with my hands. We raised livestock and had pigs, sheep, chickens, dogs, and rabbits. I was a member of the 4-H club and raised these animals to show at the county fair (my favorite week out of the whole year as a kid was that week I got to spend out at the fair with my dad!). Each morning before school , and every night before I went to bed I had a lot of work to do to take care of these animals. My dad was always there helping me, showing me what to do and assisting me with what I couldn't do alone. I feel like I really learned a lot during these times spent working with my dad. This is where I learned what good work ethic is, and it has translated into all other aspects of my life. When I think of these times spent with my dad, I remember the smell of his leather work gloves. These gloves had the smell of leather, sweat and dirt. They were worn, tattered, and stained. Each mark on the gloves tells a story, they are the history of these times we spent together. When I think of my dad, I think of a man who worked hard. He was a good teacher and taught me what is important. When I smell the scent of the old, worn and weathered gloves, it reminds me of the days spent out in the sun working with my dad. I remember how much we sweat to get our chores done. I remember the smell of the lanolin in the wool when we sheared our sheep. I remember the smell of WD40 that we used to oil the shears so they would run smoothly. I remember the smell of the sunscreen we rubbed on our pigs so that they wouldn’t get sun burnt. I remember the smell of dirt as we planted new trees that are now full grown. I remember the smell of alfalfa hay that we fed the animals. I am reminded of all these things when I smell those old leather gloves. I love my dad a lot and am grateful for all the good memories I have of spending time with him. This piece is about those memories.

I couldn't find a good picture of me and my dad with our animals, but I guess this works (I was in high school when these pictures were taken, no laughing!). Yes, my hair is big, but not as big as this pig:)

The piece is made of copper, an altered silver plated platter, embroidery, glass pearls, glass lens, and leather from old work gloves. The leather is set under the glass lens in the center of the piece. The back plate measures about 12" across by 7" wide and about 1.5" tall (I'm guessing on all the measurements) In this piece I was also experimenting with the addition of other elements with the found platter, and using the shadow (back plate) as a frame for the piece. I am still having a really hard time photographing these wall pieces, but I think you can at least get the idea of the piece. I am pretty happy with how this one turned out and am looking forward to making more along these lines.

Third Annual Intercollegiate Metals Exhibition

Announcing... 3rd Annual Intercollegiate Metals Exhibition
Dates: Oct. 6-17
Hours: Monday-Thursday, noon-5:00 p.m.; Friday, noon-3:00 p.m.
Opening Reception: Monday, October 6, 7:00-9:00 p.m.
Tickets: Free
MAP

A national juried exhibition of jewelry and metalwork, selected and organized by Herberger College faculty member Becky McDonah and the Metals program in the School of Art. Participating schools include:
Arizona State University
Bowling Green State University
Cranbrook Academy of Art
Indiana University at Bloomington
Kent State University
Rhode Island School of Design
San Diego State University
University of North Texas

We set up most of the show today, and I promise it is full of AWESOME work! Come out and see the show!

Off to Mobilia

I finished one more piece for the show at Mobilia Gallery (read more here). They asked for 2-5 pieces and 2 is all I was able to get done. I am a little sad about that, but sometimes you just can't do everything. Here are some shots of the piece and the pair. I have to send them off tomorrow (the opening is on Saturday)! It's always hard to part with things...especially when they were so much work and are so new! I like to give myself time to warm up to the idea of my work leaving me...its just so much a part of myself. You invest so much time, work, and emotion into something, you can't help but get attached. Anyway, I hope they find good homes:)

If you are in the Boston/Cambridge area you should drop by the opening on Saturday (or anytime) and let me know how the show looks! If I didn't have my 15 hour review coming up so soon I would totally be there!

Big News! Contemporary Visions in Metal Show at Mobilia Gallery!

About three weeks ago I was invited to participate in the upcoming Contemporary Visions in Metal exhibition at Mobilia Gallery. Mobilia is putting up the show in conjunction with The “Imperishable Beauty: Art Nouveau Jewelry” exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. The art nouveau show "includes about 120 works by the leading designers and fabricators of late nineteenth- to early twentieth-century Art Nouveau jewelry. Although many of these artists acquired their skills in traditional, high-style jewelry houses, they found inspiration in the work of the Pre-Raphaelites, the philosophy of John Ruskin (1819–1900), the paintings and poetry of the symbolists, and the arts of Japan. For motifs, they looked to the flora (orchids, lilies) and fauna (dragonflies, butterflies) of the natural world and the sensuality of the female form. This new aesthetic was, in large measure, a reaction against nineteenth century historicism, industrialization, and the “tyranny of the diamond,” and these Art Nouveau artists chose to interpret nature rather than imitate it.

René Lalique (1860–1945) was the most renowned Art Nouveau artist, whose one-of-a-kind pieces were often large and made of unusual and inexpensive materials such as horn, enamel, and glass. Art Nouveau designers/jewelers also employed a pastel color palette much like the Impressionists. Color was, for the most part, achieved through the use of enamel, and plique à jour (open to light) enameling added a delicacy and level of technical sophistication not previously seen in jewelry. In addition to works by Lalique, jewelry by Georges Fouquet (1862–1957), Eugène Feuillâtre (1870–1916), and Lucien Gaillard (1861–1933) is shown, as are paintings, sculpture, prints, posters, textiles, and decorative arts from the period. "

Mobilia Gallery is hosting the "3rd Annual Conference on Jewelry and Related Arts: Ahead of Its Time: Jewelry in the Milieu of 1900", which the show will be a part of.

The exhibition will open Saturday, October 4th and run through the end of the month. I have been asked to send 2-5 pieces for the show, so I have been frantically trying to make time to make work for the show while also teaching, focusing on school (upcoming metals intercollegiate show, and printmaking critique), studying for art history midterm, and getting ready for my 15 hour review (and trying to sleep at least a little bit in there somewhere). I don't have any idea how I will get it all done, but somehow I will make it work! This is an image of the first piece I have completed for the show. I really am so excited about this opportunity and just hope that I can get some nice work done. I wish I had more time!!

Now, back to work!

Sterling silver, 14K gold, pearl, embroidery

Etched, fabricated, sewn

Stitchalicious: Mindy Sue Meyers

My friend Mindy Sue Meyers, has an opening reception for her thesis show tomorrow! The show is titled "Stitchalicious" and is going to be absolutely FABULOUS! Mindy is a fibers grad who creates wonderful sweet things. You must see this show! Pictured below is a view of some work in her studio and just a small taste of the sweetness you will be treated to if you attend the exhibition! Mindy says this about her artwork:

"In my artwork I explore themes of comfort and security by making sculptural objects that represent sweets. I make large quantities of treats from household items that may look tempting at first, but their materials, abundance, or size can leave one feeling quite sour. I draw inspiration from vintage cookbooks, Betty Crocker, and Martha Stewart."

Read and see more about her on the craftzine blog. Also, if you live in the valley, you may have recently seen her work at the Arizona Museum for Youth, or the Eye Lounge.

Here are the details:

When: OPENING RECEPTION Monday, Spetember 22nd from 7-9 pm.

Where: Harry Wood Gallery, Art Building, 900 South Forest Mall(west end of campus near intersection of Forest and Tyler malls)
Hours: Monday-Thursday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Friday: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Weekday Parking: Metered, short-term parking along Forest Avenue and Gammage Parkway; Parking Structure 1 (Apache Boulevard).
Evening Parking:Parking Structure 3 (Myrtle Avenue).

Here is a MAP.

Craftsmanship Opening Reception

Please join me for the opening reception for the Arizona Designer Craftsmen Juried Exhibition, "Craftsmanship" on Monday, September 22nd from 7-9pm. I will have two pieces on exhibit. There will be lots of work in media including metals, ceramics, glass, fibers, wood etc. Fellow graduate students Victoria Altepeter (metals), Nick Deford (fibers) and Erik Bogner (metals) will also have work in the show, as well as my metals professors Tedd and Becky McDonah. Awards for the show will be announced at 8pm. The show is located at Gallery 100 on ASU's Main Campus. Here is a map to the gallery. Hope to see you there!