gotta blog

Hey Beautiful People!

Well, had another mellow but successful day here in what's boiling down to my last week in Philadelphia. The first priority on the agenda for today was to check out the ICA, otherwise known as the Institute for Contemporary Art. The ICA is affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania, and since the mid-1960's has featured emerging and contemporary artists. This seemed like a "not-to-miss" thing to see in Philadelphia, so I made the trek across the Shuylkill River to see what all the fuss was about. My college buddy Eric accompanied me on the journey, since it fit right into the window of time when he needed to be out of his house because it's being sold and the realtor was having an open house this afternoon
. (Anyone in the market for a rowhouse near the Italian Market? Let me know and I'll give you all the info.)

Here's an experience I have had a number of times in my life: I don't always pay attention to the pop media, so it's not uncommon that a movie will be released that I haven't heard about, especially if it doesn't hit the public radio radar. Every once in a while, I'll make plans to go see a movie with a friend, and just go into the theater not having a single inkling about what I'm about to be faced with. It's about completely surrendering to someone else's whims, and I have rarely been disappointed in this experience. I do the same thing probably more often with food, but I think I've made my point.

It was similar going to the ICA today. I knew I had to go, but I didn't know a bit about the what they were showing. I arrived ready to be educated. Always a good position to embrace, in my humble opinion.

So the first show was titled "Make Your Own Life: Artists In and Out of Cologne." Unbeknownst to little old me, Cologne, Germany was an art hub in Europe a few decades ago. This show brought together artists from the past thirty years. To be honest, most of it didn't do much for me. I want to be drawn in, and when work is more conceptual, I really appreciate when a museum makes the effort to have good support material, namely signage that explains a little about what's going on. I know that this is controversial in the art world - some people want to figure it out for themselves before being told what it's about. I'm the opposite. I love to look at a piece of art briefly. If it speaks to me in some way, I will take the time to read what's written about it on the wall. Then I feel some sort of connection with the artist, or not. From there, I can decide whether or not I like it.

One piece I liked was by Christian Philipp Müller. It was a curtain like the ones you see when you go into some fancy restaurants in the winter, where the function of the curtain is to keep the cold out of the restaurant. It's in the doorway. Know what I'm talking about? Good. Let's move on.

Next to the curtain is one of those waiter's stands with a pile of menus, a phone, other ephemera that you would expect - there's a "menu" open on top that is the part of the installation we're allowed to interact with. The menu is a hilarious rant on modern art, listing artists and their work with prices, as if it was a real menu. The work listed is all imaginary, as far as I can tell. It was such an "insiders" piece, and I honestly felt like I needed to brush up on my art history, but I could get enough of it to really appreciate the piece and its commentary on the art market and linking it to the exclusivity of high culture.

The other piece that caught my eye was a video performance. It was a woman who was obviously a little drunk, standing between two paintings and talking about contemporary art. It's hard to explain, but it reminded me of the way I feel when going to crowded art openings or hearing non-artists talking about art.

Then we went up to the second level. The transitional space is referred to as the "Ramp Project" where they had the work of Philadelphia artist and 2006 Whitney Biennial chosen one Zoe Strauss. I really liked this show - she took these really intimate photos of city streets. From a distance, the pictures all looked like low-class scenes, but her eye was really keen and I appreciated her sensitivity without being heavy handed.

Then we saw the Project Space where they had a show called "Soft Sites." This term is about site-specific work that relates to globalization and the environment, so of course I was really interested in seeing how others interpreted the format.

This piece by Mary Ellen Carroll is called "Late" and here's how it goes: This is a performance piece. She had this car and she actually arrived late for her opening at some museum. She drove her car up on the steps and left it there for the duration of the show. Yeah, kinda silly, but her photo documents of the piece were beautiful and I really loved how she made such a silly stupid idea into a contemplative experience. Have I proven my point? Maybe not. Oh well. It's not my problem really. This is my blog so deal with it.

The last show was the best, in my opinion. It was also a surprise, one that really unfolded by reading about the work on the wall signs. It was the photography of Candida Höfer and the show was called "Architecture of Absence." She has been taking photographs for over 30 years of public places that are devoid of humans. When this "landscape" is viewed in this way, the patterns start to emerge, as well as the stories about "who usually inhabits this space?" We are accustomed to seeing such places teeming with bodies, so there's a definite curiosity about the work. As with all great photography, the use of high-resolution film and a Hasselblad camera creates such sensuous detail that it makes the desolate scenery come to life. As Eric pointed out in a photo of a projection booth in a theater, "you can see the fibers on the seats." Yum.

Eric made another interesting comment when we were looking at the first show of the Cologne artists. He said that this made my work seem so tame. I cant' agree with him more. My approach on this residency has not begun from the hand, but more from the brain. I guess my normal work is like this too - I have to make sure I have a good, fresh idea before I want to start making something. I don't have any judgments about other approaches to art making, where an intimate relationship between the tool and the maker evokes form, and that's all that's necessary. Both approaches are equally valid, and there are many other nuances that fit between the cracks of these extremes.

The rest of the day was spent doing necessary, but mundane tasks that I will not bore you with, gentle reader, but rest assured, I know exactly what I'm going to be wearing next Friday night.

I know this past week has been a blogapalooza since I haven't had my co-residents about to tempt my agenda. Tomorrow I leave for D.C. bright an early, and don't expect to report back for a few days. This will be a busy week wrapping up things around here. In many ways it will be bittersweet. Stay tuned for details. Don't worry - I won't give you too much information about the bitterness. It'll be all about the sweets. Mostly.

Liminal Space

So I've now posted the images I took the other day of all of the individual pieces in my installation for the Wood Turning Center. They're off site in a scrapbook so you can see them as a slide show which you can access oh so easily by clicking here.

I wanted to take images of the individual pieces because I think some of them in particular stand alone as forms, especially since they were painted. They are all small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, but I could see many as big as 2 feet tall.

I apologize for the quality of these photos. I didn't look at the images on my laptop until it was too late. I hope it's not too annoying.

The title for this installation is "Liminal Space" It will be at the Wood Turning Center for at least the duration of the AllTURNatives show, possibly longer. I'll be at the opening next Friday night to discuss it with anyone who's interested.

and here's my statement. enjoy.

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This project actually began in late winter of 2005. I came to Philadelphia to visit the Wood Turning Center in anticipation of my residency the following year. Albert took me on the Grand Tour. As we walked past the light well outside the conference room, he mentioned in passing that he’d always wanted someone to create an art piece to go there. It was appropriate for me to work on an installation during this residency, so I kept it in the back of my mind.

When I returned to Philadelphia this summer, I began to look at the space with a closer eye. My first reaction to the lightwell was that it was ugly. It was not preconcieved for the current building, but rather, it was created by three waves of architecture coming together. There’s the original brick of the Wood Turning Center’s exterior, but the wall of the apartment building across is a hodgepodge of various materials: brick, concrete, wires and vents and conduit, leaves and trash, air conditioners. A more modern red and glass brick addition closes in the space from the west. The more I looked at the space, however, I started to feel that in its ugliness, it was also incredibly intimate in its vulnerability.

I feel that this light well was a gift to this conference room and the people who use it. The large apartment complex obscures the view you once had from the building. Rather than filling this real estate with utilitarian space, or even bricking up the windows altogether, it was left open so that there would still be natural light in this room. This part of the Wood Turning Center’s three buildings is the oldest structure on the entire block, so the allowance for natural light seems respectful of its seniority.

The term “center” became very important to me as this project unfolded. This space is in the Wood Turning Center. It is also the center of the mass of buildings that inhabit this city block. “Centering” is also a term used with the lathe--we “find center” when we are making a form round with this machine.

I decided that the pieces in this installation should be stopped at various moments of “finding center.” I turned on and off the lathe many times, eager to see what form had emerged between turnings. Certain things would intrigue me when I halted the process in this way, such as the aesthetics of an almost rounded form and the way it would reveal a different silhouette in the flat space that remained. Some of the pieces have multiple centers. I fell in love with the process of discovering forms in a similar way I do in my studio at the sander.

In life, we are constantly finding our centers. I was the least experienced with the lathe of all the chosen artists, which, I’ll admit, made me feel somewhat insecure before I got here. I came willing, however, to explore this tool and see if it could affect what I already do. To me, I feel centered when I am able to embrace a simultaneous knowing and not knowing in my relations with friends and lovers, and this residency allowed me to spend some quality time in that liminal space.

Another Day, Another Adventure

Well this was the first day since I've gotten here that I haven't had anyone else around or anything pressing to do. So nice. I spent the morning writing and getting that slide show together, and just generally hanging out and relaxing in my room. I am looking forward to returning to my cute little home in a little over a week, but am savoring my last bits of being here as well. Today and tomorrow are the only days I have completely to myself, so I want to do some of the things that nobody else in the group would want to do.

My original plan was to go to see a public performance by William Pope L. but I looked at the Institute for Contemporary Art schedule and it was taking place way far away at Bartram's Gardens, not at the ICA as I'd hoped because I wanted to go there too. Furthermore, I noticed that admission is free at the ICA tomorrow. The other big place I have been wanting to see is the Fabric Workshop. Their schedule said that they were closed tomorrow. Well, that decides that.

The Fabric Workshop was within walking distance, as I'd wanted. I looked at the weather report and it said 95 degrees. Ugh. But it wasn't even a question NOT to get out of here and see things, so I just went for it. It was about a 20 minute walk to get there.

I took the elevator up to the 5th floor, where the Museum entrance was located. The Fabric Workshop is a place I've been dying to check out for years. They are the "only non-profit arts organization in the United States devoted to creating new work in new materials and new media in collaboration with emerging, nationally, and internationally recognized artists," according to their website. I would only add that the new work is related to fabric or fiber in one way or another.

When I was at Oregon College of Art and Craft, I always regarded the fibers department as our "sculpture department." In many ways, it was a practical degree with classes like silkscreen printing, weaving, dyeing, felting, the usual suspects. But there was the most conceptual work coming out of that department in particular because they embraced a very broad spectrum of what was fiber-related It could include hair, or found objects like wool blankets or clothing, and any format was fair game. I didn't know about the Fabric Workshop at the time, but seeing what they had going on was right along the lines of my art school memories.

Their artist-in-residency program is very prestigious and one of my favorite artists Jim Hodges created the first of his artificial flower curtains here. The Fabric Workshop has been in existence since the late 1970's and so many famous artists have come through, each allowing fiber to influence their work in some way. It's a lot like the way I've approached my residency at the Wood Turning Center.


So first I checked out the Louise Bourgeois show. It was mostly work she'd done prior to her residency, but they recreated a performance piece based on an excerpt from a short story she wrote in 1947. It was printed on a 245 foot long scarf that was displayed wrapped around the gallery walls. You had to work your way around the whole exhibition in order to read the text, which was cool. I've always wanted to do a show with that idea myself, where the viewer had to take a little journey in order to see it all. They had a video of the performance in the other room, which was helpful.

Anyhow, I also liked this fuzzy little terrycloth pregnant woman, which she made at the Fabric Workshop a few years ago. I wonder if it's squishy?

Then I wanted to see the studios, so two of the interns took me around and showed me what was happening in there, since the artists were all gone. There are at least a dozen artists having overlapping residencies at one time, but the giant room was empty. There was plenty to see though - beautiful yardage hanging on the walls, and a little display case with descriptions, artist renditions, and photos of the current work being produced there. Jean Shin is creating a giant cloth out of computer keys. So they have been collecting hundreds of discarded keyboards, washing them, taking the keys off, then sorting them by letter. When it's done, it will not only be stunningly beautiful (I saw a little sample of how it will be assembled) but you can actually use it - the outer perimeter of this cloth will be functional, and you can type words and they will appear on a screen at the end of the gallery. The interns who were escorting me around had been helping to some of the grunt work for this project.

The bathrooms at the Fabric Workshop have also been decorated by past residents. This is the men's bathroom, where the artist took images of the boys who beat him up when he was a child and made them into blacklight wallpaper. It was so much fun. Kind of reminds me of my glow-in-the-dark bathroom back home I guess, so of course I'd dig it.

Up on the 6th floor was another exhibition, and then some pieces from their permanent collection. There was a lovely Anish Kapoor piece that I wish I could show a photo of here, but NO PICTURES. The highlight for me was getting to finally see Maria Fernanda Cardoso's flea circus that I read about years and years ago when I was an art student. The circus stage was there, and also a really hilarious film of the fleas performing, complete with sound effects and dramatic lighting.

When I got out the door, I saw this really cool thing - it's a metal sign that had letters affixed to it with the parking rates for the lot. The sun has taken its toll on it, so the letters have all curled up but are still clinging on somehow. It kind of looks like the English font that you sometimes see that's supposed to look like Chinese brush painting.

So then I decided to start looking for some shoes to wear with my woodgrain skirt. Last night Eric and I had walked past a shop that looked good, but it was a 25 minute walk from where I was in the sweltering heat. Even the Fabric Workshop wasn't cool enough to help me fully recover from the walk over there. I ducked into Macy's to see what they had. Ahhhhh - it was perfect. I guzzled at the drinking fountain and looked at the shoes, but it was so crowded I didn't want to be there for too long. I have never been such a good shopper. The building was quite lovely - had a huge atrium in the interior that was gorgeous.

I got a cup of ice and ate that as I made my way across town. Along the way, I happened to pass this building I've been meaning to get on the blog. It's completely covered in mosaic and there are a lot of other buildings in the city that are obviously done by the same person. When I came to visit last year, I was told that this is the work of Isaiah Zagar, and his signature style is the mirror in the mosaic. You can read about him on his website. This is one of the things like the mural project that makes Philadelphia a really cool grass-roots kind of art town.

So....that's it so far. I'm back now to rest up a little bit more - was out late last night with Eric. We're going to hear his friend play music tonight so it'll be another late one. I need my beauty rest.

the fruits of our labor

I'm off to visit a few museums today, but first, this important news flash! Apparently the originator of the Philly Cheesesteak passed away last week. He apparently had a heart condition, but at the same time lived to be 90, so you can draw your own conclusions about that. His name was Harry Olivieri and you can read all you want about him by clicking right here. The picture of him above is with "South Philadelphia Heartthrob" Bobby Rydell! You go, Harry!

Also, I finally posted the images of everyone's work during the residency. Everything is at the Wood Turning Center right now, awaiting our big opening next weekend. Note: if anyone is interested in any of these pieces, you need to contact the Wood Turning Center, who has first dibs on all of it. Works will be available for sale after 5:30 pm on Friday, August 4. You can email them with any questions at turnon@woodturningcenter.org or call the center at 215.923-8000

okay here it is - click here to see the fruits of our labor!

here's a themed sneak preview first. Neil turned these little forms that I lovingly call "squirts." He gave each of us three blanks to embellish as we wished. This is the trio I did, which I call "lengua" which is the Spanish word for both tongue and language.

Here's Marilyn's trio, which she lovingly calls "Fetish Family"

Here's Liam's trio, which he carved and painted with a thin wash of white acrylic. Liam gave this trio the hilarious title "The Silence of the Squirts." Wouldn't that title make YOU want these pieces?

And last, but not least, Neil carved and painted a set of his own.

Neil also gave a trio to Jo who took hers home to finish, and Vince who painted his. Vince's are at the Wood Turning Center, but I completely forgot to take a photo. Alas.

ta ta - will report back later on about my day.

surprise....it's done!

Well....wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles.....I finished the installation today. And I most definitely have a tale to tell about the final day. So grab the beverage of your choice and sit back 'cuz I got some 'splainin' to do.

It actually begins yesterday afternoon, which I have a slightly new perspective about after having a bit of much deserved sleep. I need to elaborate on the events at the end of the afternoon, when Albertina came to my rescue. As mentioned in the last blog entry, Tina escorted me to Grainger and the other hardware store, but neither could help me. She spent at least half an hour on the phone prior to that, calling woodturner/boardmember/veryimportantpersononmyselectioncommitteeforthisresidency Jack Larimore to ask where the "real" hardware stores" were in town. It was Jack who suggested Grainger. She then got on the phone with Grainger, trying to locate my coveted ferrules.

After we returned from our unsuccessful field trip, Albert was back in the center and ready for action. He looked up the company on the web who made the ferrules I had and found out what stores carried them. (pretty much the major chains like Home Despot, Walmart, Lowe's, Sears, etc.) He then got on the phone and persistently asked the right questions until he found a Home Despot (do I even need to mention that the typo is intentional any more?) in North Philly who seemed to have the quantity I needed.

I really needed the help at that point. The setback, in addition to being in the heat all day installing the yellow group had really exhausted me. I don't know exactly what I would have done to resolve the problem, but it was basically solved by 6pm last night. I decided to go home and do the errand in the morning before going to the Wood Turning Center for another day. I am so thankful that they came through when I really needed it.

I'm also thankful for my new tool, which I unfortunately can't find the name for, but here it is. It's like a giant pair of clippers, except that the cutters have various size holes for the various size ferrules that you can crimp. Oh baby! This was a great purchase for this project and I hope I will have some future need for it.

So....back to my story. This morning, I drove all the way up to the Home Despot in North Philadelphia. This makes the third Home Despot I've visited in Philadelphia, and the sixth time I've visited this store this week, if I'm not mistaken. Besides the treat of getting to blast my new Imogen Heap album in the van all the way there, I was rewarded by this really cool old smokestack that Home Despot had taken the brilliant opportunity to add their logo to. This could be construed as disgusting consumerism, but I actually felt grateful that they hadn't torn it down. It made me realize that one of the biggest things I hate about Home Despot is the atmostphere. This made it feel more personal. So there. From hereonout in this blog entry only, I will remove the "s" in the middle of their name.

I got my ferrules and returned to the Wood Turning Center by 9:30 a.m. By 11:30, I had completed the entire red group - with the newfound energy of the morning, the fact that I finally had all my hardware, and the giant cup of coffee I had earlier, as well as the experience gained from yesterday, I was cranking! As I mentioned before, this is new territory for me, so I had a steep learning curve yesterday while I learned to work with steel cable, ferrules, and turnbuckles for the first time. Not to mention the heat. I've never had to work with the weather in this way before.

So I also realized at this point that I didn't have enough cable to complete the project. I did some quick math, and ran out to the nearby Home Depot to get it before Vince showed up to videotape me. I have been making friends at this particular Home Depot. It didn't hurt that on this trip they were playing Fatboy Slim AND Prince on the muzac system in the store. This could be just a little bit sad, but I chose to see it as an omen and bopped and sang my way through what looked like my last visit to Home Depot for this project. Whee - life is goooooood!


When I got back, Vince was there in the light well, filming some detail shots of the installation. I am so glad that we have a videographer on this project. I have only begun to have some photos taken of my installation process in general and since it's one of the biggest components of creating this kind of art, it's so important. Vince has a really good eye, so I'm definitely glad to have him on board.

Okay, I'm now realizing that I hadn't gotten all of the way done with the red group, so Vince filmed me while I did that. I can't wait to see the footage he got. I think Tina took this great photo of me and Vince working together. I've had experience working with people documenting my work on video and photos, but it's still always curious to me to be there in that moment. I was determined to finish the installation today when I saw how fast it went this morning, so I had no problem slipping into "work mode" for the camera. I basically made sure I was facing the camera as much as possible, which is a funny thing to have to be conscious of, in my opinion. But really important, so I will try my best to accommodate.

I finished the red group. Onto the last group. I looked down at the pile of wire and it looked a little sparse. Oops - I should have multiplied the amount by two this morning. Ugh. Back to Home Depot. As I said before, I've made some friends there this week and so they made it a little better to be there for the third time that day. I was in such a good mood today since I knew I would have the weekend to see some of the other things on my list, so nothing was going to faze me.


I was about 2/3 of the way through the blue group when I noticed that leaves were swirling into the light well and it was getting dark fast. I looked up and it appeared a storm was brewing. It has been the norm here to have an afternoon or evening thunderstorm, and I had managed to escape that all week. I yelled into the Wood Turning Center for whoever could hear me "I'm just letting you all know that if it rains, I'm staying out here and working and somebody will need to come take photos for the blog." You never know how long these storms will last, and there was no way I was going to let it get in the way of progress. What's an Oregon girl to do - run for shelter? Puh-leeeeeeez! I am embarrassed to carry an umbrella in public most of the time! I have my pride!

The nice thing about the rain here, is that it's so humid that it doesn't even matter that it's raining. When it rains in Oregon, it's usually cold, so you don't want to be in it for too long. This summer, I have had a number of walks through the rain showers and it's been quite lovely. After spending the last three days sweating in this light well, it was actually quite comforting to have the rain come.

I think the shower lasted less than thirty minutes. Enough to get me wet, enough to make my fingers pruny, enough to make my sneakers squeak and the staff giggle when I walked through the Wood Turning Center. It just made my hot soapy shower at the end of the day all the more wonderful.

So.....then it was done. Wow. I cleaned up my debris and took some photos and movies to document it. This picture of the installation from inside is the best I can do from one position. One thing I like about my past installation work is that the viewer has to move their body in some way in order to appreciate it, and this is no exception. You really need to walk along the windows to see each piece centered and then move in to see the detail of each group. I love the way the color draws your eye out of the interior space. So much of what's in the building is, well, wood colored. I know this should come as no big surprise, but it certainly does help my work to have some impact around here.

This piece feels pivotal for me. It really pushed my boundaries in so many ways. First of all, the experience of working with a historical space and letting that inform the concepts. Then working outside was a big one. Using the lathe as a big part of my concepts was also new. I was making the comment to Vince today that "it looks like my work, but it's different." I think Suzanne was outside the window and laughed when I said that, but this is what I feel--it's one thing to find a voice as an artist, which in my case has been as strong a verbal as a visual voice. This is the first time the visual voice has changed dramatically in seven or eight years. And yet, I think someone who knows my work would guess that it was mine. This makes me very excited. I have spent a lot of time this week thinking about how much this residency has pushed me, which of course has a lot to do with my willingness to push myself. How can I create that environment in the future? Will it take more residencies, or are there other ways I can challenge myself when I'm home alone in my studio? I am interested in cultivating this more intentionally in my life. Stay tuned for details and then you can be the judge about whether or not I'm successful.

This final image is from the end window, an angle I hadn't considered when designing this project. I love the way it is so chaotic from here, am also interested in the primary color mix. This is one thing that I want to work into my statement after the experience of installing, as well as something that I thought of in a conversation with Vince today where I linked this installation to the practice of espalier in gardening. I'm always coming back to the Man vs. Nature thing, aren't I? Well, it's such good fodder for a simple girl like me. Simple Life. Hah. Paris Hilton, move over.

Okay - it's time for me to go. It's Friday night and there's a martini out there with my name on it. Hendrick's Gin, up with a twist. Yee Haw.

one yellow hover

okay....just wanted to post an update on the progress of this project. I started putting up the pieces today - takes a long time to get it all going, but I'm starting to get the hang of it. Bought another new tool today. Hooray! This time it's a special tool to give me more leverage when I crimp the ferrules for the wires. It's hard enough being on a ladder and having to work with wire tension, etc. It has a really funny name that I can't remember and I didn't take a picture of it - will try to remember to do that tomorrow. So here's the first stage. The high ones are hard - it's not easy getting the strength to crimp on a ladder. But then again, I was just getting used to it. I am working from the top down for each hover.

At one point, a little mouse slowly crawled out of.....somewhere. I guess a dryer vent? This light well is completely enclosed so I have no idea where this little guy has been. He didn't seem too well. I thought maybe he was frightened, or rather hoped he was because he sat in the same place for an awfully long time. That place happened to be the place where I was measuring and cutting the wire, so I decided to scoop him up in a little box and then release him out front at lunchtime when I would crawl out of the light well.

So back to the installation. I got about halfway done before lunch. Then I pushed through and finished it by around 3pm. I had run out of ferrules and the two Home Despots I had already cleaned out. I walked down to the hardware store in the hood and they didn't have any either. Oh-oh.

I checked where I released the little mouse at lunch on my return from the hardware store. It was curled up and sleeping and I could tell its eyes were moving. I am hoping that the journey through the dryer vent was exhausting and that he doesn't have one of those yucky rodent diseases. (I didn't touch him when I scooped him into the box)

So the rest of the afternoon was spent trying to figure out where to get these stinking ferrules. Tina and I dashed off to Grainger, and then to another hardware store. To no avail. When we returned, Albert got on it and found two more Home Despots in the area who claim to have more than I need. So tomorrow morning I will embark on that journey. I am really hoping to get this all done tomorrow and Saturday. There's museums to see, and Monday/Tuesday I'm returning to Washington D.C. to see the curator at the Renwick and also to talk about an installation that Fleur Bressler is commissioning me to do for her husband Charles' office. After that, things will really go into high gear as we have our final meetings and tidy up the shop, and then get ready for the big openings on Friday and Saturday of next week. It will be a big shebang at the end and then....then.....then it will be all over. Sigh.


So.....how do I feel about seeing the first part of the installation up? Well, it's pretty cool. I love the way you can really see all of the elements, and the way it draws you out the window when you're inside the Wood Turning Center is nice too. I can't wait to see the other parts when they're in place. It will feel like a major accomplishment, I'm sure. Here's some pictures so you can get an idea of how it looks.



It just started pouring rain. It will be the first test of the pieces for how they can handle the elements. They should do fine. Well, I gotta run - Eric and I are going to go see the new Amy Sedaris movie. I hope I can stay awake for it - I'm exhausted.

One last bit of news before I go - the woodgrain skirt arrived today and it fits me just fine. Guess I can't back out of it now!

life in a light well

(note to readers: I wrote this entry and attempted to post it on July 26. Sometimes Blogger won't let me download images, so I decided to try again this morning. I don't want to take the time to change the text to the current day.)

Now that I've fully recovered from my Philly Cheesesteak experience, I can move back into the wild and wacky world of art. I have a big day ahead of me tomorrow and I just felt that I should update you on the progress of this installation, since it's a pretty significant part of the process. So I'm posting it tonight rather than in the morning.

My pARTners in crime are all away this week. Neil and Marilyn have gone up to a collaborative art week extravaganza called "Emma Lake" in Canada. Liam is off traveling in upstate New York. I am staying here to do my installation. They felt sad for me, but really, things are great around here. I usually spend a lot of time alone, and it feels kind of nice tonight to be able to just write and not feel that I'm under the usual time constraints between work and play with this fantastic group of people. I have had such a great time - a few nights ago I noted that this was probably going to be the last time the four core of us were together and I wanted them to know that they were such a great group of people to spend my summer with. From the first instant I met them, we became fast friends. But even after spending over six pretty intense weeks in each others' constant company, I have not tired of these people. I feel so lucky that we were picked to be together right here and right now.

Originally I was planning to return to Portland this week, to be honest. I knew I was not going to participate in Emma Lake and figured I'd just go home. Soon after arriving early last June, I realized that I really needed to be here for our opening on August 4 and be accountable for the things I made this residency since they're not really the norm in this field. We have met so many amazing people and made such great connections with them--many of whom will be there for that final weekend's events-- that it seemed like I should complete the journey the way it was meant to be.

I'm so glad I decided to stay. I really needed the time to get this installation up because it's new territory for me to put my work in a new setting, particularly outdoors, suspended on wire, and secured into brick and concrete. A new challenge that I am ready to embrace. Would you expect any less from me?

So Neil was very generous in helping me figure out how to get this project realized. I had some ideas and he figured out exactly what hardware would work, then we went to Home Despot (typo still intentional!) to get it all. The guy there at H.D. actually had an even simpler solution so I ended up getting tiny L-brackets, masonry screws, and some turnbuckles to tighten the whole thing.


And then of course, I had to get a new tool. The suggestion was to get a hammer drill, and boy was it ever a good suggestion. I got a sweeeeee Ryobi drill that really saved the day today. I had to drill 80 holes in the light well to secure the entire installation in place. I put the brackets up, but tomorrow is when the magic will start to happen.



Yesterday was the first day I actually went out the windows of the Wood Turning Center and into the light well. Here's a photo I took looking up - the space does get a bit of direct sun during one part of the day, but mostly it's in shade. And as you can tell, it will get some rainfall. My pieces are completely sealed with aluminum tube and Plastidip, so it's really no problem.

Here's a picture of the inside of the Wood Turning Center looking out into the light well. In front of each window will be a "hover" of 42 objects. One window will be red, one blue, one yellow. I decided primary colors were fitting for this project. This is also the only access to this space, so I have to shimmy up over that file cabinet to the left every time I want to enter and exit the light well. After two days of this, I'm getting a lot better at my shimmying technique. It must be all that practice dancing to Neil's cell phone ring tone.


Yesterday was spent mapping out the holes. Here's an image of the masking tape I put where each hole should be drilled. The hovers will be ten high, spaced 6" apart, and the mass of objects will taper at the top and bottom, suspended on wires that will criss-cross diagonally in front of each window. Well, at least that's my plan. Can you visualize that?


The light well is located between the large apartment building and the shortest dark brick building in this picture. It's truly in the center of the block. I just wrote my artist's statement which I'll share with you sometime soon.



There have been a few technical difficulties and other minor slowdowns in getting this installation done. First of all, the drill bits that I have to use to screw the screws in wear out (strip) so quickly - that was unexpected. Then today I was about to start installing the actual work and realized that I didn't have a tool strong enough to crimp the wire together. Urgh. I have been to Home Despot four times this week already. But that's to be expected to some extent, and I do take some relief in the fact that it's only a fifteen minute drive from the Wood Turning Center.

Other slowdowns are social, but important. I was trying to get the blog entry together about the Philly Cheesesteak Experience when Suzanne called me from the center to tell me that a photographer from the City Paper was coming in less than an hour to photograph me working for Robin Rice's article. And then Vince was there this afternoon. In both cases, I understand how important it is to help these people out, but it definitely changes the way I work. Likewise, it's so nice to finally be hanging out at the actual Wood Turning Center (our residency has been situated a few miles away at the University of the Arts) because they are the people who have made this all possible for me. Of course Albertina are there - and they have been great about grabbing my camera and documenting for me. And then Suzanne, of course, and also Bender who are the staff.

I feel great that I have finally titled this installation. Eric was the one who came through with that last night. I showed him the images of my work and told him about the project and he knew exactly what I needed. I will reveal that privy information later. For now, I've got to hit the hay. Big day tomorrow.

the Philasteakadelic Experience

What does it take to get some feedback on this blog, I ask? Well, I guess it's proudly proclaiming the Philly Cheesesteak to be disgusting while admitting you've never eaten one. The feedback came from an anonymous source, which means they were either too scared to reveal their true identity or they were too lazy to sign in proper. Either way, you can read the comment at the very end of the preceding blog entry if you so desire. Or I can give you a little recap:

"you were doing so well....bla bla bla.....but then you had to go and assail the single culinary contribution that philadelphia can claim as its own..... bla bla.....it is in fact a heart attack waiting to happen. what great foods are not...bla bla bla....no philadelphian worth his salted pretzel would be caught dead eating a cheesesteak in reading terminal. it would be like going to mcdonalds for a good hamburger...bla bla bla.....there are shrines where you must go to worship (leo's, jim's, john's roast pork...bla bla bla.....somewhere out there is a glob of cheese whiz with your name on it."


Okay okay....sheesh....point taken. Honestly, I was delighted to have any feedback because it appears that I have hundreds of readers each week but not much of an idea who is outside my circle of family and friends and co-residents and a few of the people I've met in the past six weeks. And I'm always up for an adventure, so I decided it was time to walk my talk and try out the food that makes this city's heart thump. (And thump and thump and thump and thump and thump and thump and oh my what's that shooting pain going down the left side of my body everything's getting dark pitter patter plop.)



I had plans already to go out with one of my dearest friends Eric Zolov, who I met at Colby College about 20 years ago. He teaches at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, but lives, for the moment anyway, in the city. His first reaction when I told him I wanted to do this was "Awwww - I was hoping to go out for some good food tonight!" But he quickly came around because he's also always up for an adventure and it certainly sounded blogworthy.


I looked at the list of suggestions that "anonymous" gave me and picked Jim's, which is located on South and 4th Streets. Eric wisely suggested that we go to the bar across the street to have a few drinks to prepare ourselves for the meal ahead - so we went to the Copacabana, which was deemed to have the best margarita in Philly a few years back. And a fine margarita it was.


Finally we braved it across the street to Jim's. There's something about keeping this blog that makes me take different photos than I usually would. Everyone sees me as a dopey tourist and politely answers my queries, and I secretly laugh to myself that they have no idea they're going to be on the blog the next day. Gotta usurp my power when I can get it!


So anyhow, there's no mystery about the cheesesteak here - the kitchen is wide open with a line of jaded but obliging cooks waiting to mass produce your meal. We asked to have the most traditional version of the cheesesteak, which ended up to be the one with Cheese Whiz on it. Well....here we go! I guess I've lived a full life now that I've been an ITE resident so if it's my time to go, I may as well go eating Cheese Whiz on South Street. We decided to split one, and accompany it with another Philly foodie legend: Yuengling Beer.



Now, I'm not even going to go there with the Yuengling. Nope - I'm resisting the urge to talk frankly about this beer. Let me remind you that I come from the beer mecca of the United States. Do you hear this, "anonymous?" Okay...I can't resist. Yuengling is a mighty tasty beer (especially in a can) and I'll knock anyone down who says otherwise. I would never stoop so low to insult Philadelphia's malty hoppy pride and joy. Nope, not me. It's the BEST.

But I digress.


Jim's doesn't make the claim to be the first cheesesteak. Jim's only wants you to know it's the best cheesesteak. And to prove it, their walls are plastered with testimonials from "famous" celebrities. And everyone knows full well that when Miss October 1979 says that this cheesesteak makes her hot, you're definitely in the right place.


The only thing more greasy than a Philly Cheesesteak is Bruce Willis with blonde hair!

We spent some time wondering how one would get their picture up on the wall here. I guess many second or lower-tier celebrities go around waiting for someone to recognize them and then they can reward them with a signed photo. But some of these celebrities were clearly not really that famous - one of the band photos on the wall that I'd never heard of had one member's eyes shut in their promo photo. How does that happen? We surmised that some of these people came into Jim's and announced they were celebrities and presented Jim's with their signed and commented photo. It made me think about getting my own set of 8x10" glossies made and see how many places will post it? I will sign it: Thanks for giving me a REAL Philadelphia experience!!!!!! -Hilary Pfeifer ITE fellow."


Another thing that we noticed at Jim's was framed photos and signs about eating records that had been set there. Man, half of one of these sandwiches was enough for me - I can't imagine eating twelve sandwiches in 90 minutes.


So.....I guess you're probably wondering if I had a life-changing experience at Jim's last night. If eating the sandwich revered across the city of brotherly love made me regret my last blog entry? Well, it was basically not as heavy a sandwich as I'd feared, but still not the kind of food that I would normally order. I didn't HATE it per se, but some experiences are worth just keeping in your mind as a happy time in your life and you should never go back. Just like when I was in my early twenties and requested my favorite birthday cake of my childhood - angel food cake with vanilla frosting. One bite and I decided that it was good to be a grown-up and have a more sophisticated palate. I did have a really great time with Eric - we took a nice long walk down along the waterfront afterwards and then up through Olde City and then back down to his place near the Italian Market. It was a great night for a long walk to work off that cheesesteak. Here's a few more things I saw along the way that I thought you'd like:


This tree was on South Street. Everyone has stuck their chewing gum into it. Yeah, kinda disgusting, but also a by the people for the people multicolored abstract public art experience.



And then in Olde Town there were these three sculptures made for the blind so they could feel what it's like to be in a few little areas of Philadelphia. I thought this was such a cool thing. I'm assuming this was part of the new construction that went on prior to the big bicentennial celebration in 1976 when I know a lot of new buildings came in around here to accomodate the throngs of tourists. The building next to these sculptures was clearly built in that era, at least.

Okay - this is the week to install the pieces in the lightwell. It's going slower than I'd hoped, but I have the time to do it right so I'm going for it. This morning a photographer from City Paper came to shoot me working - Robin Rice is writing an article about the ITE residency and show that will be published in a few weeks. Then Vince came in the afternoon to continue his video documentation. Apparently we got a mention in the latest American Craft as well as some other magazines. It's great that we're getting so much good publicity because I think it's a good show and worthy of some attention.

Stay tuned for slide shows of the individual pieces in my installation and the work of everyone. Hope to get to that in the next few days.