Day Three

This is a beautiful installation alongside the River.  Apparently created quite a stir for a bride who had contracted with the city to have her wedding here and  she wants it gone.  From across the river it looks incredible.  I vote FOR IT!

The KEYS to the City!

You're really looking at the Keys to the City here!  You probably know Earle, but the two with the red t-shirts that say "ask me" are part of a team of scads of volunteers.  Meet Char and Lowell who serve as ArtPrize "wayfinders".  Then there's the volunteer ArtPrize store associates, the registrars, the guides, security and so many other behind the scene's people.  It's not like going to a store and never being able to find someone to help.  All these folks are on it and they are that midwest kinda friendly that makes you feel right at home.  Turns out Char has a cousin I went to school with in '67  back at Richfield High - home of the Spartans! Our colors were red and white - just like the shirts!  My feet are killing me but there's still no way you could keep a smile off my face.

Opening Night

At 10:00 PM, over 10,000 people had registered to vote  and  the bigger venues were packed to the brim, but we still had a good turnout at San Chez.   I was mistaken that we had to be finished by noon - it was actually six and we finished just in the nick of time.   The artist from Atlanta got her work in time and  we were happy to give her a roll of monofilament to help with her install.  Although we haven't seen her work yet, here's just a few photos of some of the work we did see.  Please excuse some of the snapshots and excuse me for not posting  the artists names tonight.  I hope to get back in later with that critical information.

The little objects inside the arrows appeared to be white capsules (pills) and the work was one of my favorites at the Old Federal Building.

This is a set of encyclopedias that have been sculpted with cutouts and  inlaid with imagery.

The photo doesn't do this justice - it's a futuristic cityscape made out of donated wire and tiles.   You can click on these images to see them expanded and you might be able to get a better idea of details, etc.

This is one of a series of 3 large cut paper panels.  The paper looks similar to the photo backdrop paper I use, but it's a larger size and the artists paints the backside which causes the color to reflect on the wall and shine through the filagree.

I'll add more tomorrow and now it's time to hit the hay!

Three hours to go!

San Chez Bistro occupies the ground level of this building and we're  installing our work in the entry in front of the vast expanse of windows on the right half.
We worked till we nearly dropped last night and then we headed to the Hobby Lobby for some install incidentals.  My GPS gal, Gretchen,  is beginning to annoy the heck out of me. "You are now off track, turn left at  Suchandsuch Street and make a U-turn.  Proceed right.  Blah, Blah, Blah."   But she got us to the midwest's crafter's paradise eventually,  we found what we needed and dropped it all back at San Chez so it would be ready for us in the morning.   I was so tired I headed back to Tom and Deborah's and we chatted. She made me popcorn.  The night I arrived she made me the best cinnamon toast.  She and Tom have been really wonderful at making me feel at home - plus we've had some good hard outright prolonged laughter which is one of the best things in the world, if you ask me.

We have three hours to get'r done today and Ric will be back on board to hep us pull it off.
He has been busy helping several artists hang their work.   He told us a real tear jerker yesterday about an artist he's helping whose art is stuck in Atlanta.   Everything has to be hung today by noon, so we're keeping our fingers crossed for her.  Can you even imagine?

How do you do?

Ric Carroll goes to amazing heights to introduce himself to Earle

Work in Progress - Step 2

Yes, Beth, Earle's working really hard.  But it's nearly time for lunch -  see you soon!

Work in Progress - Step 1

The bottom of Earle and the top of Rick beginning the install.  San Chez is wonderful and we're breaking for lunch!

Warning!

Remember that old Betty Davis line and her husky,  blasé  voice as she entered her soiree and warned “fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride?”

Not so of my Delta/NW flight.  It was a long flight to Minnie, but I did have my choice of Peanuts, Pretzels or Cookies.  Shud’da had the peanuts for the protein, but I took the pretzels for the carbs and a Virgin Bloody Mary straight up!  There will be a mini-compact, el cheapo car waiting for me at GR to whisk Earle and me to San Chez Bistro and then to our respective lodgings.  I’m sitting on needles and pins with anticipation to witness all 1262 works of art.  The cool thing is it’s all contained in a 3-mile radius and within walking distance. And when one of my 8 pairs o’ packed shoes start pinching, we’ll have the ArtReach shuttle option that makes a circuit of the venues at regular intervals.   Maybe they’ll even roll out the Blue carpet!            

Oh, my bags are packed, I'm ready to go

I know, I know, that's been done a g'zillion times, but it's my belated ode to Mary Travers.   And long, longggggggg ago she made a sentimental, sensitive, overly romantic, fantasyland teenager weep with that song - and after all I will be flying through Minneapolis today, where I first heard that memorable song.  And it is true, I am packed and I am ready.

April came over last night and watched me pack and repack while we desperately tried to catch up with each other's escapades.  She'll be driving me to the airport in a just a few minutes, but I wanted to get my last Boise post in before the journey to Grand Rapids.

This is the last site I will see  before I head down the steps to the door - it's our Bassett Louie, who I refer to as mighty "Lucifer" waiting for me to leave so he can  sneakily jump on the bed.     And you thought Bassets were dumb!  Wish me luck.

A Steady Diet of Non-Leafy Greens

Or should I say a steady diet of leafy non-greens? I missed a day of posts while I was at ISU installing.  Earle had a conflict, so Kirk and I loaded the truck yesterday morning. The Gallery Director, Amy Jo Popa, arranged for 3 great grad students, Kristen, Lee and Mike to help with the install and they were a godsend.  Plus it was great to meet new artists and talk the talk.   Got me in shape for the days of dialogue ahead.

During our installs, Earle’s the main man for the network of overhead cables. So he sent me off with a toolbox and bolts that gave me the impression I could single-handedly repair the I-35 Bridge in Minneapolis, if it ever collapses again.   When I say I was equipped, I was EQUIPPED.  (Just another growth opportunity waiting to happen, I silently fretted.)   Well, I think the grad students immediately intuited my feigned aplomb and rushed to my rescue.  The wires went up, the panels and castings were hung and Amy Jo deserved a standing ovation for the lighting.

So this is what I looked like doing last minute finishing on the leaves this morning.  And this is what I’ll look like day after tomorrow doing last minute finishing on the leaves that morning.  Like I said earlier:  some things never change.

By the way, if you're ever in Pocatello don't miss Buddy's Italian Restaurant.  Took me to Rusciano days in Minneapolis.  Bene, bene!

Standing in the shadows

That last post sums up the main stimulus for creating this blog.   I'm enrolled in the MA, Art Education program at BSU and had planned on taking two classes this semester.  Then ArtPrize happened and I approached Dr. Keys about doing an independent study. So, one of the many things I will be doing in GR is brainstorming and looking for inspiration for art education opportunities.  The blog will serve as a visual and written journal of my time there.  And between you and me this blog is really forcing me to buck up, bite the bullet and shove myself in front of an audience. This is WAY outside of my comfort zone. I can't tell you how many rewrites it took to make my first post. A friend once told me about AFGO.  Stands for "Another F#$@*#! Growth Opportunity. Looks to me like a whole lotta growin' go on!

Wipe that grimace off your face

Woke up this morning after an icky dream and felt just a little crummy inside as I tried to remember what it was about.  Then I opened an email from an old friend that wiped that uneasy feeling right off my face and replaced it with a smile that started out as the tiniest of grins and grew to a full blown, close your eyes, lift your chin, light your face smile. The sun's up, the birds are chirping  and I'm on my way to make art in my classroom.   When I return from GR, this is what my students will find in our studio:

It's my re-creation of the stone age cave walls. Made out of leftover kraft paper and single face corrugated used to package my panels.  The students will get to carve into the corrugated with little stick twigs, draw figures and animals with  earthy pastels and use their hands as stencils as we spray the outline with school paint.   I hope they'll be as awed, overwhelmed and ecstatic as those four boys and their dog who fell through a hole in the ground and discovered the caves of Lascaux.   Watch out! That's what art can do to you!

100th Artist

Speaking of 100 artists, I forgot all about this incredible post that appeared on the June 9 ArtPrize Blog.  I had just returned from Tahoe and a reunion with my family.  And imagine my excitement that morning when I clicked open the page and found this Jan Boles image front and center.   Talk about serendipity, Earle's timing was impeccable!  He would have had to have submitted our online contract at exactly the precise moment.  What are the odds of being the 100th artist of 1262?  Apparently not bad I guess Earle, not bad.

First Sculpture to Appear in Grand Rapid's ArtPrize

Take a look at New York sculptor John Clement's piece Jelly Bean in this photo by Adam Bird from the Grand Rapids Press.

I got to thinking it will be impossible for me to get to all 1262 entries, photograph them and post them all on the blog.  Good news:  Freelance photographer David Lubbers will be doing the job for me in a book he will publish of the top 100 entries. He hopes to have it out before Christmas.   Santa, can you guess what I want to find in my stocking Christmas morning?

I'd like to make an announcement

I've been googling ArtPrize images to see if I could get some sneak peaks at some of the entries and get them posted to the blog.  This one caught my eye because I used to sell those

types of banners.  But that was before, like I mentioned earlier, before I took that artfork in the road.   You might call it the road less traveled.  

I'll try to get more sneak previews in the next few days.

It's about the ART!

I know, I've been yakking and gabbing about shoes, potato chips, my ugly suitcase, and it's really time to talk about ART, right? Well, Grand Rapids has been an important art city for quite a while. This 1969 Calder piece, La Grand Vitesse sits in Calder Park - right behind the City and County Admin Building. Compare it to the size of the adjacent tent and you'll get an idea how massive this piece is. I can't wait to see it. And I was just thinking, maybe out of the 1260 plus ArtPrize artists I'll meet another Calder, another Egon Shiele, another Kathe Kollwitz, another Kiki Smith, another . . . ? Stay tuned.

Meet ArtPrize Founder Rick DeVos

This Brian Kelly photo of ArtPrize founder Rick DeVos is from the latest feature story of the online publication Rapid Growth, a bi-weekly periodical that focuses on everything Grand Rapids. It covers lifestyle, the economy, jobs, development and much, much more. It's the perfect place where interested people can quickly be "in the know" about this exciting city. I was lucky enough to happen on to it because Deborah, my housing benefactress and hostest with the mostest, is a writer for this great resource. The feature article offers great insight into the genius behind ArtPrize and DeVos' energy, enthusiasm and commitment to the arts.

A Table for two, please.

If we were driving to Grand Rapids, we'd pass through Twin Falls, Salt Lake, Laramie, Lincoln, Omaha, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Chicago, Kenosha, our final destination and all those little American heartland towns in between. But we're not. So I will miss seeing some of those towns along the way - many of which I've never seen. If I had the time, I'd do it and take my time so I could do the Jane and Michael Stern road trip - stopping at all the famous little eateries along the way. Darn! But I'll still be getting my three squares a day and many of the days will be at our host venue, San Chez Bistro. Looking at the menu is almost like reading an issue of Saveur magazine; I may even forget what else I'm supposed to be doing in GR. Take the first appetizer (entreme) on the menu: Pan a la Plancha - a grilled baguette with a tomato and garlic rub and olive oil - served with either manchego, serrano or white anchovies. Mmmmmm, mmm! I'm a huge anchovy fan. Nuff said.

Knock, Knock

Earle and I have been so very fortunate in securing venues for our exhibition. I think because the work addresses issues of immigration, it resonates with people and quietly challenges the viewer to consider their personal ancestral immigration story. After our show at the Rosenthal I took on the task of investigating additional venue opportunities. Besides the obvious choices, I researched venues with interests in immigration and Latin studies. Well, I did the same for Grand Rapids two days ago. Grand Valley University offers a Latin Studies minor, there is a robust and vital Hispanic Center in the city and the GR museum is currently featuring an exhibition on immigration. I sent off an email to all three yesterday offering a conversation about our work, and 2 of the 3 came back with enthusiastic and positive replies yesterday. Cool Beans!

photo: Jan Boles

My Grandma Called this her GRIP . . .

. . . I call it my new suitcase. Thirty-four bucks at Ross plus I got the Senior Tuesday Discount. Couldn't afford NOT to buy it. Plus, I'm gonna need more than my little 21-incher since I'll be gone two solid weeks - and we decided to stuff our suitcases with the new bookmarks to avoid shipping costs and insure on-time delivery. Nobody's gonna confuse this monster with their little black American Tourister at the baggage carousel. Nix on the hatbox - I just couldn't resist throwing it in this post to mix it up a little bit. I would never, ever, combine monochromatic geometrics with vintage florals. Would you??? The hatbox has been been hanging around on a shelf since we brought it back from Manhattan Beach - it really deserves a fresh start. But, believe me, it won't be at ArtPrize and c'mon . . . who wears a hat?

The anticipation is really building with the latest YouTube Video of ArtPrize 2009. Check it out to see a hint of the extraordinary work that's already been installed - along with a bonus peek at some of the city. Oh, and by the way, we made some interesting inroads to opening up the dialog about our work today. Details soon!