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I started the day by doing a test with two different crackle mediums. They take a couple days to dry, so I will make my decision on my next visit.  Then I created a box for casting the prescription pill. Next visit, I will construct the retaining wall, however I may not need it if I decide to cut the mold afterwards.   Next I started experimenting with the clear eyecaps. I tried several different combinations, but decided that just one pearl inside was enough.  
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Today I started preparing a Power Point presentation for "Organizing Your Art". This is a class that I've thought about teaching for quite some time. I may incorporate some professional development topics as well.
I created four hair flowers today, but only like three of them. 
Hungry-Mind Anxiety
(pg. 24) Hungry for what exactly? Just hungry! Famished. Hungry to understand. Egoistic. Grandiose. “Curious” hardly captures this hunger. Ravenous–to understand the universe. Anxious to make worlds out of words, pictures, sounds, ideas…. ...What were you supposed to do with that shadow? In pain on the sofa, confused, failing yourself, you feel the vision evaporate, the moment pass…. ...Too many people end their art careers here, before they’ve begun them, because they mistake this moment for a tragic one. This is what must be tolerated if you are to be alive: data taken in, deep connections made out of conscious awareness, projects begun in a split second and abandoned in the next split second. This is pain, but not tradegy. This is hungry-mind anxiety… (pg. 26) ...The productive artist lives with this. She knows that something wonderful and terrible is going on, something difficult, something important and uncontrollable. She also knows that this will happen again and again, and that she is lucky if this happens again and again, for it means that she is oriented correctly toward her own wish to create, that she is a creator at the ready… Exercises: 1) Affirming Your Appetite Today I spend an hour glutting on pictures of Victorian mourning pins and the amazing dark packaging. Afterwards I sat down with three books on the medical field in art. I marked some of my favorite pages and made a few notes. 2) Imaginatively Analyzing
3) Meal Planning Appetizer
Goals for this week:
Goals for next week:
This was a rough test of the first design version of the mourning armband. I used hook and eyes, but the next one will feature straps and vest buckles.  Today I worked for a little bit on the armband mockup. I'm still trying to decide if I should offer two or three rows of fasteners.  One of the exercises in Eric Maisel's book is to have a "hungry mind" and spend some time absorbing voraciously. I got three books the medical field in art from the library and spent an hour perusing and admiring the pages. 
Exercises:
1) Work naked I worked naked for a while, but it did not feel wild or challenging. Nakedness does not inspire wildness in me. I did not encounter the work differently and most of the time I kept trying to imagine a different scenario that would challenge me more. I want to “nurture wildness”. 2) Your wild faces - I shared my four drawings. 3) Healthy tameness Before I go into a situation where I know I will be likely to get caught up in sheer energy, I will spend a minute to breathe and sit quietly. Afterwards, I will create a list of things I wish to accomplish, so that I can keep clear about my goals. I will breathe and then begin working. I will continue to support this quality by having occasional check-ins with awareness. Goals for this week:
Goals for next week:
I woke up especially early today and worked on an exercise in Eric Maisel's book Fearless Creating entitled "Wild Faces". He suggests drawing your wild faces and naming them. He then asks, "How does wildness manifest itself in your life?" Craving for Drama - I have drama for tortured and suffering, while manifesting this trait as rebelliousness.  OCD - I created 50 rows of 50 pinpricks on top of this drawing while counting each one. During my creative process, I have problems letting go of perfectionism, which can sometimes interfere with experimentation and discovering side projects. Conversely, I sometimes use this trait when the art piece involves repetitive actions or multiple objects.  Anger and Rage - I created this drawing by roughly scraping paint straight from the tube. I then crumbled it up and used the drawing as a stress ball.  Sheer Energy - Late at night, as I settle down to sleep, I will suddenly get a vivid creative vision that I then must sketch or make notes. Although I cherish the trait of imagination and creative energy, it can feel like getting caught in a whirlwind. In my studio, I will sometimes experience this as a tornado of spinning energy, thus the tangled and spiraling thread on the drawing.  Met again at the public library for a day of creating collages. We had a newcomer named Joe show up.  My collage for the day  My works in progress  Mark's work. He set himself a goal to only work on a collage for no longer than one hour.  Mark working  Mark's work in progress  Alex's collage  Alex's collage that one opens it to reveal a polar bear.  Joe's work I started today by conducting a test on the plastic eyecaps I recently purchased. The adhesive worked perfectly and then sat for awhile thinking about different design ideas.   I decided to experiment by trying a photo transfer onto a black background. Although I could see using this technique for a subliminal effect, the colors and definition are not pronounced enough for this upcoming project.  Then I experimented by painting black the back of a piece of glass.  Finally, I completed my recreation of an old mixed media piece I created several years ago. I was never able to photograph it before it sold, so today I took pictures.  Tonight, I was reviewing the exercises from Eric Maisel's book Fearless Creating. I started the exercise by sketching a couple of self-portraits that I will make into large pieces.  I started tonight by attending an artshow that John Waters curated. I got to briefly meet him, which was really nice. I was not impressed by the show overall, but took a few pics regardless.   This "art" completely annoyed me and left me feeling angry.   Afterwards, I headed over to my friend, Andy Vogt's art opening for his 20 + long installation that I helped install. Another artist featured her art as well.    Notice if you can, the moments where the chalk is very bright yellow. Wonderful!
I loved this exercise so much, I acted on it again. This time the potato began to fall apart and I suddenly had a sinking feeling that the task had been ruined. Then immediately, I changed my mind to one of playfulness and ended up with chunks of potato flying everywhere around the room. It was hilarious and a great analogy for my thinking process when it comes to creating projects. I sometimes hold myself back from "failing" and making a big mess.
2) Hushing A deconstructed hospital gown has been re-sutured back together again. There is a portrait of Aesclipus painted on the front. Perhaps the sutures are also featured on the front by replicating the constellation. 3) Act: Holding I did not complete this exercise. 4) Baby steps - Write one sentence, look at blog of paint, just picture one scene, etc. Friday - symmetrical white kitchen, white shirts for Dad and Lawrence, Dad places blood hand on shoulder and blood runs down, both take off shirts, boy kisses Dad when he straddles, both take off pants Saturday - pictured the actor that would play Lawrence and downloaded many pics of Asa Butterfield Sunday - all white kitchen, white tablecloth, actors in white Lawrence and Dad wear the same thing. Long-sleeve white shirt with slick black hair. Armbands? Dad wears class ring...perhaps the boy wears it when spilling milk? Bright overhead light shining a spotlight directly down. When boy puts his hand on Dad’s shoulder, one notices that the boy also has a bite mark on his hand. He pushes Dad onto the floor and straddles him, kisses him, looks for knife. He picks up the knife and holds in palm(?) Perhaps the boy looks and stares at the knife and it begins to shake. Or film backwards and knife flies into his hand. Overhead CU shot of Dad and milk begins to form a puddle around his head. Monday - Thursday: did not complete Friday: Instead of walking to a van, Lawrence walks down hallway to a door. He opens the door and walks down to the basement where Dad is standing. Basement: subconscious, taboos, hidden, hell, lust Kitchen: nourishment, mother, feminine, love Saturday - Dad digs in the basement floor dirt to find a plate of food. Sunday - When Lawrence straddles Dad, he grabs Dad’s blood hand and places it on his chest. Dad’s hand lowers out of frame, smearing dirt and blood down the boy’s body. A medium CU of Dad’s head reveals a puddle of milk forming around his head. Goals for last week:
Goals for next week:
Today I cast another headblock using a mixture of Ultracal and Hydrocal. I now have four complete casts and can take a break from this task. Next task is to starting creating the gold contraption that hugs the bottom feet. Note to self: I can get 4 casts from a 10 lb. bag.  I spent about 40 minutes tonight organizing one of the binders that I have entitled "Sculptures: Tangles". Most of the work has aesthetic qualities that are somewhat chaotic with knotting, hanging, and interweaving.
Today I spent over an hour sorting through pictures and placing them in sheet protectors. I also printed up labels for the spines. I still have quite a ways to go in placing more pictures into their proper binder.  Our art group decided to reschedule for next week, but in the meantime we are to check in about our week's goals.
Goals from last week: 1. Spend 15 minutes on Artist in Residency programs I spent 30 minutes today researching and creating a deadline schedule for upcoming AIR's. 2. Pour first casting I've pour three now! Plus another that was a disaster...I learned a lot from it though. 3. Sharpen knife for 20 minutes I spent 20 minutes sharpening and then took it to a professional to get their opinion. 4. Carve one torch I carved one torch, but left the end undone. I made a decision to wait on that until I several to do at once. I will use a belt sander instead of doing by hand. 5. Mock up armband I did not mock up armband because I need to first purchase fasteners. Andy and I went to fabric store, but they did not have the correct size. I will have to buy on-line next week. 6. Work on art binders for 15 minutes I've been putting this one off for a long time and once I got started, I ended up working for 1 hour and 15 minutes! I still have a lot to do to complete this chore. ----- Goals for next week:
As I suspected, the casting did not turn out. However, I'm using the section that did set up properly as a test for faux finishes. I applied some crackle paste to a small section to see what that would look like. After cleaning up the mold, I poured another casting and this photo shows what it looks like before I clean up all of the flashing.  I also worked on a better pour spout for the prescription pill. It is made from plumber's putty.  This week I committed to working on my art binders for 15 minutes. Once I got started, I kept going and ended up dedicated to the task for 1 hour 15 minutes. I made a small dent, but still have a long ways to go.  Tonight I attempted to pour a third casting, but I added too much plaster and started to stir it too early. The result was I'm sure a mess, but will find out next time I visit the studio to open the mold. I must admit that I was already tired and really hungry, so my frustration level was extremely high. Then I started working on a small mold for a prescription pill. It is so tiny that not sure how it will turn out. On my next visit to the studio, I will began by making a pour spout out of plumber's putty. This will attach to the pill in the mold.  |
AUTHORTerrance Graven is a San Francisco artist whose installations incorporate sculptural elements, performance art, costumes, sound pieces, and theatrical lighting. CATEGORIES
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July 2023
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