Off the Grid

What a busy time it has been! Many things to report, but without an internet connection for about 3 days I was left without. So this will be a great time to reflect as I reach the mid point of the residency.


Well after the excitement of arts birthday and dinner with LUM I was about to leave for Calgary and my little dreamweaver wasnt having it. She didnt start up all weekend :( I think it was an issue of some condensation in the lines because after an entire morning of attempting to get her going nothing was working. So I instead caught a ride in to Calgary with a gentleman who is working as a work study here at the gallery... very generous of him. We ended up all going to the Ian Baxter& installation at the Glenbow, but I have to admit that I was much more excited to see Laurie Andersons work, incredible installation. Of course, there was Edward Burtynsky there as well and his work is alwasy interesting to see.

Ended up catching a ride back home with Stephanie (thanks again steph!) just in time to see a screening of a movie from LUMs private collection. He is showing movies every Sunday night here that are rare art movies from all diferent eras. This past Sunday he showed The House Maid by IM Sang-soo I believe. Great movie, created some contraversial convesation afterward.

Monday we were reading Walter Mignolo Bilanguaging Love: Thinking between languages. This was one of my favorite readings this far. I really enjoyed the ideas Mignolo brought up about colonialzation and the way it changed language, as we still change it today. Bilanguaging is not to be confused with bilingual. It is a mixing of languages to create a third catagory. I enjoy these ideas as I am somewhat applying them withinmy work, more so as material mixed with language creating a third language.

LUM hosted a chinese new year dinner just last night for everyone here at the Banff Centre. Truly amazing kindness for him to celebrate with us. He made 6 courses! I dont even know if I can remember them all, we had shrimp with tomatoe sauce, fried rice, teryaki chicken wings, pork with cabbage, some of the ladies in the residency made dumplings, I made a coconut quinoa salad dont ask me how that is chinese... and then we had a red bean dessert with red bean cakes. SO GOOD!

Earlier that day I got to do some RAKU here at the centre. RAKU is a form of pottery making, so I decided to give it a try. I attmepted to make a small watering pot for my small plant that was gifted to me on my house warming in Calgary... Lets just say that it has struggled to stay alive with me. I thought I would have no problem keeping a plant alive. I thought wrong. So this small pot (if it makes it through the firing) will help sustain this poor life that was left in my hands. Turns out I am equally awful at RAKU as I am with sustaining plant life.

Today I was locked out of the shop (where most my project is) so I worked in my studio a bit. It has been nice to have two worlds to work in. If one is not working or their happens to be a certain distraction there, I can just seclude myself in the other world. Turns out this distraction has become overwhelming and I must not focus on it, although it is hard not to. The lack of discussing this distraction is necessary.

I will blog again before Sunday, with pictures, and more time to elaborate as I am somewhat caught up on my doings now.

When did I lose it

That part of me

That loved you

I fear that it is not lost

If all else fails, add cream cheese

Please disregard the horrible cuticles here but admire the beautiful nail art done by Miss Richelle! In lou of ARTS birthday. Yes that is correct ART has a birthday, and it happened to be yesterday night here in Banff. Celebrations were had during ART's 1,000,049 fantastic party, many art productions occurred during the night and Richelle's Nail Station was one of them. Happy Birthday ART!

Tonight's dinner, there is a beautiful lounge in the bottom of our residence and we have been using it pretty much weekly for get togethers where someone always volunteers to cook. Tonight LUM (above right ) made a pea and pancetta risotto, Lisa and Nick (above left) made two very delicious salads, and I had the chance to make some dessert (below)

A fruit crisp! Meagan style of course. aka there was cream cheese involved...

Francois

Far left here is my roommate Joy and to her right is Candace Hopkins. Candace is the artist and curator running the Trading Post Residency which is concurrently happening with our residency. Candace gave an artist talk yesterday which was quite lovely, its always great to hear how our mentors came to the point they are in their respective practise's. I am looking forward to another artist talk tomorrow afternoon with Janice Kerbel, she is the artist currently working with the Walter Phillips Gallery here at the Centre. Janice's show KILL THE WORKERS opens this Friday evening.

Space Time Delusion

My week in Banff :) This wasn't even accurate, it was more like -30 since Sunday. Had a cold drive back from Calgary Sunday night, but with some good company. Dreamweaver was a trooper.

Posted on our bulletin board.

I had some company during breakfast on Saturday. The best part was the deer actually using the pathway and stairs to travel down to our plateau where the first deer was.

Some interesting things happening in my studio. Which now has heat, just in time too.

Couscous Tuesday with Richelle! An apple and blood red orange couscous with dried cranberries, almonds, and spices.

Had the chance to see one of the great shows here a the Banff Centre put on by one of the other residencies, it was a puppet residency. They had two intensive weeks to learn/make/perform puppetry. It was a fantastic performance and they actually were not allowed to have open dialogue, the language was within the movements of their bodies and enacting them within the puppets. I cannot even describe some of the amazing moments of pure brilliance in the ability to give an inanimate object life.

The seminars have been going good, Monday we covered a lot of ground in the excerpt from Greenblatts text Marvellous Processions. It was a really interesting read in a historic sense but its crossover to the way we understand image and culture is quite concerning and opened up a great dialogue within the class.

Overview:

Monday w/Greenblatt

New Historicism being a new way of understanding the histories of art in the context of not just the artwork itself but also bringing into relevance the things that were outside of the frame that influenced its creation. Such as politics, race, location, material accessibility...etc. Surprisingly, this is a newer concept.

Anecdote Understanding what an anecdote is... perhaps my blog is a form of anecdote

UR moments

Being faced with opaque language

Treasures for trifles

Lessons in relationship to otherness in terms of art today

There will always be limits in art, we must know what they are and at that point also thoroughly understand how they work and function

Wednesday: Open dialogue

Understanding a decade: 1960

Pop art - Minimalism - Conceptualism

Conventions - Tendencies - Movements

Ahistoricism - fetish of the new

European vs American regarding movements tendencies and conventions

DeCentering

Media Specificity

Formalism

Now I am off to create a delicious dessert for a group dinner with Lum and the gang...

One Day

To Day

Yester Day

Some Day

If everything were connected

and you

and I
together
made sense



Mid Week Fragmentation

I made something!

Seems silly but I had a huge block when it came to creating anything even with this beautiful studio I have. Took a little talking to from LUM to get me going. I had my first studio visit with him yesterday and it went fairly well, I wish I could have had something to show him but as I mentioned before, lack of production in my studio recently. We chatted about my approach to art and why I am here, since I was questioning that from the beginning and it was clearly evident beyond my own self knowledge. He made some things clear for me and just in speaking with him I felt a bit more confident ( although you may disagree, I am constantly self doubting (perhaps one of my best/worst qualities)) So, I made some things and it felt good, although I am not happy with them as pieces they are out of me and in front of me to critique. Now, I can finally move forward.

On another note, my proposed work is moving along just swell. Most of it is in the wood shop so I have been down there a few times now making fine strides. I was hoping to push forward yesterday but the shop was closed due to a safety meeting of some sort. Photos to come :) ps. if anyone has a 6V adaptor to donate please let me know.

Odd news today though, I some how got an eye infection! I just don't understand how and the doctor of course didn't help me out much. I had to go to the emergency room, waited some length of time which did not bother me as I have over time acquired skills in sleeping at a vertical. Had to do an eye test which has been years for me! Funny enough I was 20/16 then and I still am now which is reassuring and an interesting personal factoid you can now know about me. I got a drop that stung, and a drop that dyed my eye orange (stand back boys) he took a look and decided there was nothing in my eye, diagnosed it as an infection (ew) and away I went with some drops in hand and a big orange ring around my eye. My only complaint (thus far) is that he sent me out of the emergency room giving me no knowledge of the orange cyclops I had become, seriously help a sister out! I walked a few blocks and even ordered a coffee before I realise my horrid new choice of eye make up.

In Regards to the Seminar:
We had a good conversation today with LUM in the seminar. We have two seminars a week with him, the first entailing conversations around a specific reading we are given and the second on any topic of the groups choice. Today,

• we started with how art was affected within the recent Occupy demonstrations
• progressing us to attempt to describe the Art World in a contemporary light and our positions within it or rather our cultural position in society
• We discussed queer art, and the reality that if there were no queer art the Art World would be quite dismal
• mid way it was stated that all artists are prostitutes
• which led us to an ending question of doyou want your art to be in the context of high contemporary art... to which LUM stated our answer could only be YES otherwise why were we here?

Which as you have all seen in my past post I am sure, that I was questioning why I am here. It is healthy I guess, since if I were not questioning, then I would not be moving forward.

And I leave you now with some writing, poetry perhaps, I am unsure of what it is other than my own thoughts. Recorded in small books which you will see me carrying - always.

Onward

There must be a reason

Why I am still here

and you are not

I just wanted you to know

That I don't know

And I think that is ok

A sweet reunion with reality

So I had forgotten my cameras and was deterred from posting because of that. I feel rejuved in the ability to write but left quite daunt in my position at the residency. Lets back up a bit though...

I left you last with our orientation and introduction day. From there we were given the day or so to finalize a 10 minute artist presentation for the multiple areas within the center to view and learn a bit about us and our practice. This seems like a simple enough task, and I wasnt too concerned but I was overcome with stress because of it and the more I found out about the people I am participating with. They are all so well versed and dynamic in their education, I think I am one of the few that does not have a Masters. I know I am one of the youngest. SO I believe I put together a constructed presentation but do not believe it was my best showing, as nerves got the best of me and the inability to speak without people questioning if I had parkinsons definitely left me doubting my credibility.

After the presentation, I ended up travelling back to Calgary to be sure I got to the gallery openings. Fantastic shows going on in Calgary right now and completely amazing to travel back with Richelle and see everyone I did this weekend. A small reunion with an old friend who just arrived back in Calgary from Texas made the weekend exciting and unfortunately caused me to attach to the city in a way I never thought possible. I know now that in the future when I choose? to leave it will not be as easy as I once thought it might be.

In arriving back to Banff, I was able to bring much of my supplies from home so I can get started on my project! (I even rememebered my chargers for both cameras) So below you can find some images from the last week or so. I have organized the mechanics and slowly my brain is opening up once again to the world of motors, servos, positive, ground, and bread boards. Cant wait, I am starting with something called a geneva gear. I need to actually create the gear before I go anywhere. Oh, and I need to find mirror/mirrors/mirror like products. Any ideas?

Today was our first day of formal seminar with LUM. All I can say is I feel unworthy, and much more research and preparation will need to be done on my part to anticipate the questions and conversations for these discussions. I will have to really work on my memory skills which I feel is a battle I have been recently avoiding. Again, it will be a struggle keeping up with the fabulous minds surrounding me here. I question why I am an artist, but perhaps that is a good thing?

 

The Drive from Calgary

My room? I cant believe how nice they are. They make my bed for me everyday... I am spoiled rotten here

This is my studio?! Its massive! Apologies for the orientation of the picture, my computer is being snooty.

 This is the building my studio is in, right above the Walter Phillips Gallery and right below the rockies

This was my drive back last night. Full moon, no wonder I am questioning everything right now.

The Rain

A slow moving day today organizing studios and touring the facilities. Finally got to meet Mr. Lum and had a great conversation with him. Already, we have been given a reading assignment which I am about to get started on.
My studio.... MASSIVE! I heard it is the same one that Matthew Mark had while he was here.... small world lol.
I found a letter press in the print studio today.... enough said? EXCITING
Really though, that is all, had a little meet and greet with everyone tonight. Realized that I will have to review my witty and casual humor levels, for they are very low and it is not helping me in the mingle and meet process. I do have to admit that I am quite intimidated by some of the people here, and I dont have the patience for that. Why cant we all just get along? Or maybe its just me? Story of my life...
Plus it rained the entire day, I wish it had snowed.

Windy Arrival

Well I believe my tercel had its first test of wind endurance today as I made my way to the Banff Centre. There were a few times where I feared the hood of my car was going to fly off into the mountains. But dreamweaver (Car Name because it was the first song I heard driving in it) and I made it safe and sound. It was a beautiful drive down I have to say, the sun was shining and you could see a snow storm working its way through the mountains. Thankfully it was not in Banff!

Not much happened today really. It was just check into housing and we had a dinner orientation with a couple of the ladies here that work with registration. Havnt met Mr. Lum yet but that I am sure will happen tomorrow.

Briefly got to see Richelle! We had a little gift exchange, so cute! I am so happy that she will be here with me during the residency. She is doing a work study with the Walter Phillips Gallery at the centre. Very interesting stuff and I hope to learn more about what she is doing. She gave me a notebook to start off the time in Banff with a small quote that of course is completely related to my work/life its - Love is not consolation. It is light- Friedrich Nietzche.

I unfortunately have no photos to share, the one thing I forgot at home was my Iphone cord, and my camera charger... So photos to come!

Ended up having a beer with a few people from the residency after dinner and we watched the Juniors lose their semi - idiots. Anyways, some very intersting stories from people here a lot have their masters degrees already and of course they all come from very interesting and diverse backgrounds. Cant wait to meet everyone tomorrow and see who I am working with. Also did I mention I have to give an artist talk on Friday?! Scary

I am off to bed, my roommate just arrived and its time to work out some of the living arrangements together.

Twas the night before Banff...

Twas the night before Banff

And my head was a mess

Not a single thing was organized

Not even my proposed projects!

But I managed my budgets

And showered to prepare

For 7 weeks alone

In the midde of no where

My things were still packed

From christmas in the valley

But unfortunately for me

I still have laundry!

Pulling things together

As I somehow always do

I remembered to start a blog

To keep in touch with all of you

So here you will find

daily updates of my course

Lots of photos of adventures

And, well, a source

To know I am still alive

That I havnt fallen off the grid

To also keep in touch

And to keep me motivated

Thanks to all of you

For helping me along this ride

My time in Banff now awaits

So Im off! Au Revoir Calgary, Goodbye!