A Final Onward Ideas, Creating Space

objects found while walking around Richfield Springs

I need more room for my things... Those bits and pieces I brought back from Iceland this year, and last year; the objects I collected in Sweden; the stuff I found over the winter and the pieces I picked up yesterday while walking. My well-curated collections grow and change constantly and I like having room to spread them out. I also like arranging them just so and altering the arrangement as I acquire more or just want to rearrange the pieces. My sweet studio is not very big and there isn't a lot of room for everything so I got a great idea to move my dresser out of storage and into my studio. Now it holds objects instead of clothes and each drawer contains pieces from a specific place. I also painted a panel of wood and now have a flat, white surface where I can create arrangements and photograph them.

Working with my objects like this is a great way to exercise my mind, play with spatial relationships and create mixed narratives. It's also a fantastic way to come up with new ideas as I contemplate form, material and memories. I think of it as one more method of my practice and the perfect way to further cherish these sentimental souvenirs.

Read more about my thoughts on objects and collecting here.

See more collections and arrangements on Flickr.

Thanks for reading.

Onward Ideas, Big Thanks

Transitioning back into life in the US after being abroad is not easy, although, I'm getting better at it. One of the best ways to acclimate is to connect with all of you through this blog, Facebook, and the other social media I use. For the past two weeks I've posted my series "Onward Ideas" as a way to work through some things I'm thinking about and to share these thoughts with you. Your response from the first post on has been wonderful and heartwarming and has really helped me as I settle back into my studio and life in the US. I just want to take a moment to say thanks for reading my posts, for "liking" them, and for posting comments and sending me emails. Your support is incredible and I'm grateful! Onward, my friends!

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Guest Star Friday #138…Adrian Paci

Last Gestures

April 1, 2014 was a really good day, one of those days that unfolds in the most natural, wonderful way. It did not start out that way, though. I was in Gothenburg, Sweden for my exhibition and feeling stressed. Jet-lag was taking its toll, I was struggling with a new piece for the opening, and I was trying to maneuver in an expensive city on very little money. I knew a good, long walk would make everything better so I left my hostel to find the place where the river meets the sea, marked by a suspension bridge and the contemporary art museum, Röda Sten konsthall. This is when things got so much better… The weather was beautiful and I saw many interesting things along the way. When I got to the museum I was delighted to discover it was free that day! I had a lovely talk with one of the staff members and then slowly moved my way through the museum, and things got even better. 

The main exhibition, "Of Lives and Tales," was a retrospective of Adrian Paci, an Albanian artist I had not heard of before. Paci's work includes installation, video, photography and painting and focuses on memory, loss, nostalgia and displacement. I was drawn to his work immediately and had powerful, emotional reactions to many of his works. I found "Last Gestures," in particular, to be very compelling. The piece is composed of four televisions that loop video images of movements and expressions made by a family as they spend a precious last moment together. There is no sound and your attention becomes focused on singular movements. The work is poetic and succinct and I cried as I sat alone in the dark. 

As I spent time with the other pieces in the exhibition I become increasingly excited to find an artist working with things I'm just beginning to discover my own interest in: the use of light and shadow, conveying complex narrative and emotion through simple visuals and the impact of using the human experience as a way to connect artist and viewer. 

Britma, 2009, color video still

Back Home #2, 2001, painting and photograph

Noise of Light, 2005 installation with 10 transformers, metal, crystal, bulbs

See more of my favorite Adrian Paci pieces on Pinterest.

Thanks for reading.

Onward Ideas, California Reality, Part 2

another favorite photo from California,

this was taken somewhere between Healdsburg and San Francisco

"This is How I Remember It" opened in 2011 and now, three years later, I'm thrilled to say I'm returning to Velvet da Vinci in San Francisco this October! My gallerist, Mike Holmes, and I have been talking for awhile and finally decided to host what we're referring to as "a conversation with Amy." On October 18 I will give a lecture about my latest body of work, "I Live Here Now," and will have a selection of the pieces on hand. Then I will follow my talk with a casual question and answer session.

After my exhibition at Four in Sweden, I realized I wanted more people to see it and this special showing came from those thoughts.  "I Live Here Now" is the most personal work I have made and, I believe, the strongest. I really like the idea of having a dedicated conversation about the work, something engaging and warm. I'm excited for the opportunity to share "I Live Here Now" in the U.S and honored to have this chance at such a great place. Mike and I are still working on the details and I will tell you more as the event develops. Please mark your calendar for October 18. I would love to see you at Velvet!

Since 1882, Since 1976 from I Live Here Now

Mike and I hanging Collected Memories from This is How I Remember It

standing in front of the completed installation

Thanks for reading.

Onward Ideas, California Reality, Part 1

a favorite photo from my last time in California

Last year I taught a spray painting workshop at California College of the Arts and had a wonderful experience with all the great students there. At that time Marilyn de Silva, chair of the metals department, invited me to be a resident artist at the school and we began planning. Now I'm very pleased to say I'm going to CCA in October for three weeks!

talking with a student at CCA

As a resident, I will get a dedicated studio space with the grad students and have access to all the tools and equipment in the metals studio. I will give weekly critiques and/or demonstrations and give a public lecture. I'm looking forward to talking with students one on one and in groups about their work and I imagine all those sessions will make me better at communicating during critiques.

As for the work I will make, I'm working on ideas for an installation, of course. I'm questioning how I can translate my jewelry techniques and experience into a different form and I'm planning to use techniques I can't do in my own studio. I'm moving around ideas of repetition, accumulation and layering. I'm contemplating creating volume through multiples. I'm wondering about combining metal with other materials on a larger scale. I'm thinking about establishing a feeling through the creation of a space. Three weeks is not a lot of time so I will try to develop a (flexible) plan before I arrive and aim to use the limited time to my advantage.

demonstrating how to use spray paint on metal

I'm also looking for a place to show what I make. Perhaps there is a space at CCA that will work? It could be indoors or outside. Or, I wonder if there is a space in Oakland or San Francisco? I know it's probably too short notice to find a gallery because they schedule shows months in advance, but I'm asking around just in case. If you live in the Bay Area maybe you know of a gallery or space that might work for me? Please leave a comment here or send me an email (atavern@gmail.com) if you have any suggestions.

Thanks for reading.

Onward Ideas, A Complete Thought

Making thoroughly considered jewelry is the challenge of my upcoming class at the Penland School of Crafts. In a few weeks I'll head up the mountain to teach "A Complete Thought" during Session 7 and I'm busy putting the finishing touches on my lesson plans. I'm also busy developing a challenge for my own art practice: I would like to create something while I teach. I don't really make my own work while I'm teaching because it's hard for me to separate the making mindset from the teaching one. However, I do believe it's good for students to see their instructor work and I like the idea of talking about my process as I make something right in front of them. So, I'm thinking about creating an installation or series of installations using simple, predetermined parameters while students work independently. I would like to treat these pieces as large-scale, ephemeral sketches that echo and complement what is happening inside the classroom.

The class will happen August 24-30 and students will work on one piece of jewelry during that time. As they work, I will ask students to really consider the piece from all sides, placing equal importance on the front and back and creating jewelry that has a presence both on and off the body. Since my interests are leaning towards installation and sculpture, and I'm thinking about ideas so much, I'm looking forward to sharing fresh thoughts with my students as I lead them through the process of creating their own new works.

Thanks for reading.

Guest Star Friday #137…Sol LeWitt

Wall Drawing #57

With all this talk and thinking about ideas, I knew Sol LeWitt was the right choice for today's GS post. I mentioned him last week in a post about my new work, relaying a quote about ideas that is important to me: "[the] idea behind the work supersedes the work itself." LeWitt's exploration of things like volume and repetition through lines and geometric forms, often on a huge scale, are very appealing to me. The ideas are simple, the scale can be massive, and the accumulation of lines manipulated in all sorts of ways is inspiring to me. But, what really gets me is this idea about artworks, that the idea is the most important part. Recently, I began reading about LeWitt's use of instructions--eventually his ideas led him to writing instructions for making his work, believing that with clear directions, his work could be recreated by anyone anywhere. This is an impressive idea to me, too, and leads me to think about the importance of the following: trusting in one's ideas, accessibility on a large scale, and the connections that art creates between people.

Instructions for Wall Drawing 305

[no title], From The Location of Six Geometric Figures

Open Geometric Structure

Wall Drawing #289

See more of my favorite LeWitt pieces on Pinterest.

Thanks for reading.