I've Moved!!!!

Hi All--

Just want you to know that I've started a new blog in a new location.

Come visit the new blog "Broke(n) Artist" at

www.karenfriedland.wordpress.com

See you there--

Karen

WALKING THE WIRE

I have recently been doing research on one of the greatest artist/sculptors of our time, Alexander Calder. Not only did he create a whole new form of art--MOBILES, he also was responsible for making us understand that art did not always have to succomb to the pull of gravity, that sculpture could be "light," it could take flight. (I put light in quotes because many of his monumental mobiles weighed tons.)

One of the things I love most about Calder is his joy. He delighted life with a vibrancy frequently seen in children but that gets lost when we reach adulthood. But not Sandy because he played all his life. He made things, out of wire or tin cans and bits of cloth. He created a circus that he performed hundreds of times. You can click the link and see him perform it, or go to the Whitney Museum and see the actual circus. He was the original performance artist.







He also created wonderful wire sculptures that were "space drawings," using wire to create a "drawing" in the air, but one that could expand the limits of the two dimensional surface and take it into 3D. I have been fascinated by these for a long time and decided to try my own. Here you see Zebra Drinking and Lizard. They each respond with wiggly jiggling when touched, a ripple that makes them feel more alive.

These are joyful sculptures. They are not profound. But they are unique, ingeniously crafted and original.



I don't understand why the art world is so reluctant to find value in play, joy and humor. I feel any way I can bring more laughter into this life, it is a good thing? What do you think?

INTENTIONS

We all know that what we intend directly impacts what we achieve. Sometimes knowing the intention behind an act or creation can help us understand the whole thing better. Sometimes what we intended and what we end up doing, (like when I say hurtful things that I didn't realize would hurt) are two very different things. It helps for the other person to know where you were coming from.

In my artist coaching group, we plan our goals and try to make ourselves aware of our own intentions. Uncannily, it is frequently the case that what you put out to the universe, the universe will deliver to you. "When one is fully committed, then providence moves too." So, I decided to put a message out to the universe.










I decided to put my intentions into tangible form. But first, I wanted to follow the admonition of the founder of the Artists Conference Network, Beverly Cassell, and "go shopping for possibilites."







So I made a shopping bag from my own personal Possibilities Shop!




















I then went about creating my intentions--literally! Firstly, I wanted to have public recognition for my work--seen here with the crowds cheering and applauding. Next, I would like to have critical acclaim, seen right there in my "revue" written on that cute classic typewriter and last, but definitely not least, I created the intention of financial success. Note those are one thousand dollar bills; anything less seemed unfit.


Now I know just saying it, doesn't make it happen. But speaking up and recognizing your own intentions, is the first step to making them a reality.




What are your intentions?

We saw a really lovely movie last night called TiMER. A romantic comedy with a sci-fi twist. Funny & sweet & compelling questions rolled together in a film that both Gary, Ari & us chicks enjoyed. Plus it's an independent film, directed & produced by women. It's starring Emma Caulfield of Buffy fame. The story asks "what if a clock could count down to the moment you meet your soul mate? In this alternate version of present day Los Angeles, a revolutionary device called the TiMER fulfills this very fantasy." Really good movie--try to see it!



Would you want to know when you would meet "the one," your lifelong soulmate?

WIRE WILDLIFE

As I may have mentioned, I am in school completing prerequisites toward my MFA that I hope to start next year. Along with a variety of studio classes, I am taking a course in the history of modern sculpture. Since I was eligible to take this course with honors if I did some extra work, I decided to do so, figuring that it will look good to graduate schools. It was a pretty easy decision as I reviewed the work of modern sculptors I admired. The work of Giacometti is cool and I love Miro and Matisse in any medium. Lots of others appeal to me but not one can match the joyfulness of Alexander Calder.
I love his mobiles, some recently on exhibit at the Gagosian gallery here in NY. But what first drew me to him was his Circus at the Whitney Museum. It is on permenant display there but he used to perform it and you can watch him perform it on youtube, much as he did in Paris in 1929.

Anyhow, his wire sculptures have always enchanted me and I have made them in the past and taught them to my young students. Here you see my most recent effort, Drinking Zebra (3 views)that is part of my honors project. I wish you could see how he jiggles and shakes!

New York Gallery Week

While it's not quite a week long, the first New York Gallery Week will be held this weekend from May 7-10th. It's a series of art events held in galleries across the city, celebrating the most vital gallery community in the world. You can take a look at their website: newyorkgalleryweek.com to find out which galleries are participating and what special events are planned. Also take a look at the video interview on Artlog's website, as well as more info there: artlog.com.

Maybe they got the idea from the Flatbush Artists Studio Tour, yes?

Jersey Barriers

It's a funny thing that a competition for jersey barriers is conducted in New York. But that's what the NYC Department of Transportation offered and I went for it. A jersey barrier is a concrete divider that is 15 feet long and 30 inches high. They are used to reroute traffic when road construction is being done.

So New York wants to beautify their jersey barriers. If one wins the competition, you will paint it with the help of volunteers. Seemed like a fun way to get good visibility and make some cash. Unfortunately, my entries did not win the competition but I had a good time creating them. The top one is called "New York Footsteps" and the lower is "New York Blocks." They are both painted to scale.

I still think they should have picked mine and that my shoes would have been especially charming on a jersey barrier. What do you think?

Back Again

February has flown by & I've gone month without writing to you. My very deep apologies for this lapse. I was exceptionally busy working on my drawing with my cool teacher, Gregory Paquette. If you are at Kingsborough and seeking a powerful teacher, he's your man. I'm trying to incorporate drawing as a regular part of my practice. Discipline is not my strong suit. But I am working at it. Our model was clothed one day and these are the pictures from that day.

On a more personal note, my birthday was this week and my wonderful, darling daughter, Shayna, known to the blogging & knitting worlds as Knits McGee wrote me a beautiful tribute. Take a look at it.

CAPTURING THE ESSENCE

It's a really interesting thing about drawing, and I guess it's true of other art forms also, but sometimes it takes only a few lines and moments to capture the true essence of something. What is the essence? Is it a movement, a moment in action? Or is it perhaps a look, the position of a foot or hand, the gesture? I think it is not a portrayal but rather a moment of truth. It is holding onto something that is fleeting, that for one moment, or even a nanosecond, was the absolute reality of your subject. I find that I frequently capture the essence quickly, as I did in these drawing that took less than two minutes. The model struck a pose and I was able to see into the very core of it. It is not about drawing; it is about seeing. I saw it as soon as I looked. Had I spent longer on these drawings it might well have been lost. The drawings might have been more fully developed, would certainly have had more detail. But the centrality of these drawings might have been lost in all the additional labor.

AT THE METROPOLITAN

While my sister, Davina, was visiting from California, we visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She really wanted to see classical European art, much of which left me dry. But after we had a bite of lunch, I went in search of something 3 dimensional that I wanted to draw for my drawing class homework. He said to do a minimum 10 minute drawing. (No problem for me, they always take much longer.)

We went to the Egyptian section (really great collection, I'd certainly recommend it.) and to the Temple of Dendur. Decided to draw the Sphinx. Here is my homework drawing.

MORE DRAWING

I am trying to make drawing a part of my regular practice of my art. Here is a drawing of a cloth bag atop a book. This drawing took me about 1-1/2 hours to complete. Does this little guy have personality or what?

DRAWING VASES & VOLUME

Drawing has always been the bane of my existence, artistically that is. Art teachers in school threw me out of their classes, saying I had no talent, basically because I couldn't draw. In recent times, mentors and teachers have consistently critiqued that I needed to work on my drawing. I bought books to work on it myself, but there is just so much you can get while trying to draw with your right brain from a book. So last semester I took a drawing 1 class with a great teacher, Irina Danilova, who delivered the basics in a way that no one could mess up. Now I am taking the next drawing class with another excellent teacher, Gregory Paquette.

He had us working with ellipses to be able to draw rounded objects in perpsective.

We drew rubber bands placed around vases and even invisible vase, made only of wire. It is amazing to feel the roundness and volume of something when it is merely a drawing on paper.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!! VISIONS

Hope all of you had a fun-filled holiday and that 2010 brings great adventures, happiness & health to all!

I've been thinking about what I'd like to accomplish in this coming year, as well as this dynamic decade. Having returned to school this past Fall, it has stimulated some feelings of opportunity that had lain dormant for a while. One of the conclusions that I've come to is that I'd like to get my MFA. The courses I've been taking have been directed at fulfilling prerequisites for admission. A number of people have asked why I want it, saying that in this job market it may not be a ticket to good employment, or that I'll just have to unlearn in order to keep my own style. But I realize I am serious about wanting to expand my work and working in a vacuum, as studio artists do, is not conducive to that. I am really excited about this prospect.

This will be the year of representation for my work. I have stated this goal for a while but have not really pursued it with seriousness. I will take the intimidation I feel at contacting some galleries and put it away, to reflect on in private. I will not let it have my power. This is the year my work will find either a literal or metaphoric home.

I also want to continue teaching. I have strong art skills and I am an interesting and effective teacher. Being in an academic environment let's me see how others communicate and educate about art. I can do that well and will find ways to reach out to students.

So those are some of my goals for this year. From here, I will form an action plan.

What are yours?