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Cathedral of the Wind Project - Launch announcement
Sean is honored to announce the creation of a new BIG PROJECT - "The Cathedral of Wind." Planned for 2013.
This project is at the beginning of the process. The idea is created. More concrete details will follow as the project develops.
The idea is to use the Cathedral in the mountains of Sancy last summer (see below) as a sketch for a larger project. Made of cables, so it will be long-lasting, it is imagined as being 30m high. The place is yet to be selected, but could be on the plains of Western Kansas, where Sean was born and raised, or in a forest in Europe or on a lake in Scotland, for example.
The funding will come, in part, from public participation through the sale of hand-embroidered patch t-shirts. Each person's name who purchases a t-shirt will be included in the final project in a ceramic mosaic floor.
Stay tuned for developments and let us know if you want to volunteer.
Use the QR reader on you smartphone to follow the project :
Expo "Synergy of Art and Fashion" for the Sound World Charity - Hôtel le Meurice, Paris
from 4-7 march 2011 - created by Cara + Co. Concept Store, Moscow - They invited 12 fashion designers to create one of a kind garments and an accompanying art work to be exhibited in Paris, Moscow, and Sydney with an auction at the end, with all proceeds going to charity. The Paris exhibition was organised and produced by Cristofolipress and Vendome Luxury, Paris.
Sean was invited to create an installation in cord to both unify the exhibit and to create a fusion of art and fashion. He used the garments as "artistic material" both deforming them/redefining them and suspending/giving them form.
The first time Sean has made an installation in a luxury hotel. The contrast between his handmade/knotted work made of vibrantly colored industrial cords and the gilded-framed-white-paneled site was rich. The first time, as well, to combine his work with "fashion." His goal was to use only cord to suspend and fill-out the garments, but also to use them purely as "material" and not treat them as clothes. The result is fresh and allows for a different way to see fashion. The designers who were present were all radiant in their praise for seeing their work presented in a new way.
The final work was a hybrid of Sean's previous work which uses only cord and creates simple monolithic form and a new form born of the constraints of it's location and its need to include clothes. One sees clearly Sean's hand in the final piece, but it is unlike anything he has done before. Daring and spontaneous.
Press for this event :
vogue Italy "Una sinergia di arte e moda" (italian)
yeeyan "Synergy of Art and Fashion by Cara & Co." (english)
"This ethereal installation of strings and industrially woven ropes made by the American sculptor and art director of the exhibition is magnetizing! It’s not only an installation, which transforms the inner space where the garments will be presented but it also provides a welcome theatrical addition to the designs themselves. The strings and the woven ropes offer an unparallel movement to the garments, which are like as they start to live and breath within the exhibit."
port / folio magazine "SYNERGY OF ART AND FASHION" (english + french)
triba / space "Synergy Of Art And Fashion Hits Paris With Cara&Co" (english)
centro moda "art + moda emergente en paris" (spanish)
vendôme luxury blogspot - mars 2011 (French)
noovo editions "CARA&CO Synergy of Art & Fashion Paris Fashion Week" (english)
the mode.fr "Moscou et le luxe alternatif" (french)
Yatzer "synergy of art + fashion by cara + co (english)
gogoparis - "synergy of art + fashion charity exhibit" (english)
superfuture - "paris, synergy of art + fashion" (english)
POLLOCK-KRASNER Foundation Grant - News - Nov 2010
Sean is honored to announce that he has awarded a $25,000 Pollock-Krasner Grant for 2011 based on the quality of his artwork for professional development.
Sean a le privilège d'annoncer qu'il a recu une bourse de $25 000 pour l'année 2011 de la prestigeuse Fondation Pollock-Krasner, New York, pour le qualité de son travail et pour lui aider a le developper.
Horizons - Rencontres "Arts Nature" - Massif du sancy été+Summer 2010
Article - Le Monde 21 Juillet 2010 (FR w/ Eng translation)
Article - Artension Juillet/août 2010 p. 15
coup de coeur de presse - "cathedral" chosen as press favorite -
Article - Lintern@ute nature + animaux
blog fransca "il faut visiter cette œuvre plusieurs fois en une journée pour voir le jeu de la lumière"
May 21 - Finished yesterday at 10am. As was so beat and overextended that all I could think to do was to go home... so we packed up and left. Got back to Paris about 9pm/21h.
Finished is a relative term. I used up all the orange rope I had and will pick-up some more when I'm in the States next week when I'm there for my neice's wedding. The arches are all in place and the walls are only filled in every other arch. So I will have to go back down for at least a couple days in June to do the finishing touches. However, even though exhausted, it really pleases me. It's about 9 meters/yards tall, 7 meters/yards wide and 15 meters/yards long.
The thing I love about it is its subtlety. The forest is of massive ancient ash trees with delicate bright yellow-green leaves which are the same color range as the orange and the baby blue ropes/cords I used for the installation. The thickness of the rope recalls the thickness of the branches. The density and color are in perfect harmony with their environment. So, it does not stand out violently or agressively.... rather one sees it clearly but it's elusive as well. The play of changing sunlight through the trees is nothing less than magical. It changes every few seconds. It can disappear and reappear without notice.
The director of the exhibit is pleased and I had the best compliment in the world Wednesday morning, when two 60 year-old construction workers came down the path and one of them said "c'est très joli !" "It's very pretty"
I love this about the Horizons exhibit... it's in a farming area, in a place that isn't known for contemporary art. The locals, the public in general and tourists are the main viewers. I find that really honest and direct and you know a farmer will tell you he doesn't like it if he doesn't, and a compliment should be taken at face value.
Got in three good days of work, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and the weather was nothing less than beautiful. Sunny, warm... amazing how much easier it is to work and advance when it isn't 40 degrees.
May 18 at 4:44pm end of the day report : pretty much got all of the arches up. Now I need to go back and retighten - adjust them all, and add the "walls." Good day... lots of sun and warm. Really advanced well.
19 May at 4:09pm Sid Kramer : Thanks for the update, sound like thing are moving along well. Glad you had some nice weather.
May 18 - 11h briefing : about 3/4 of the arches are installed.
May 17 - end of the day report : completed 18 of estimated 48 arches... just as we were leaving the sun came out and played light across the structure... it's starting to really come together
May 17 at 13h - la nacelle est réparé et on a travaillé tout le matinée. même s'il fait pas moche, il fait pas bo non plus. il y avait du soleil trois minute, qui a transformé l'installation. comme l'isle d'avalon elle s'est dévoilée d'un coup comme par sorcellerie. les cordes que j'utilise reflettent bien la lumière... il e...st plus subtile à la demie lumière et se distingue moins contre les branches et feuilles. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -1pm The firetruck is fixed and we worked all morning. Got about 1/4 of the arches up. Although not beautiful, the weather is not bad... no rain, the sun came out for a couple minutes and transformed the installation. Like the Isle of Avalon, it suddenly appeared as if by magic as the cords I use catch the light very... well. it shown for a minute, then receded. the total effect is more subtle under gray skies.
May 17 - Good news : the truck is fixed, we can start work as soon as I send this message !!- - - - Bonne nouvelle - la nacelle est reparee... on peut bosser today !!! :)))))
May 16 So the firetruck's hydraulics are broken, and will need to be repaired - hopefully monday, but as it's a holiday weekend here, nothing to be done Monday, so, happily, friends arrived on Friday, and as I couldn't get any work done. I spent the weekend exploring the area with them, eating great food (see photo album) and driving to Cantal to visit
friends and pick-up twine that was salvaged from the dump after being used by local farmers.May 14 - forgot to mention that when the firetruck broke down, we were 30 feet in the air, had to wait for Christophe to come and try to fix the truck, which he couldn't, so he sent us up a ladder and we climbed down! a bit dramatic, but it makes for a good story :) who knows if we'll ever get the sculpture finished or not !!!
May 14 - okay, the lift is definitely broken and won't be fixed until monday at the earliest, but, hey, two of my very good friends drove down from Paris for the weekend. We ate cured ham and sausage from auvergne, beouf bourguignon (made by an american) (and the frenchies loved it)....cantal and tome (french cheeses from the region), and a apple/blueberry
cake surely made by a mountain grandmother !!!! all washed down with alittle champagne, and red wine... so things aren't so bad after all :)May 14 - it's official, la bourboule is cursed as far as transportation goes !! the lift broke down again today... this time the hydraulics went! the first time i came down on train in may, the return train wasn't a train it was a bus, so i missed it and had to take a taxi. driving down, the car broke down and now the lift h...
May 13 - Over the hump! the worst/most difficult part is past... AND it now looks like something.... getting into the rhythm.... :)
May 12 - end of the day report : very little rain today, which made progress easier. The framework is in place and we can start doing the arches. bilan : moins de pluie, donc plus facile a travailler. "le cadre" est en place, donc demain on peut commencer faire des arches!! :)
May 12 - this morning the lift stopped working, while I was 30 feet in the air. the guy from the construction company came and saved me - - long live the iPhone (gave me something to do while I was waiting) !!! :)
May 12 - Did I say, I hate the first few days of installating? Well, I do! :) Beginning a project is already difficult, and when it's big like this it takes three days to a week of hard work, before it even starts looking like something! plus all the glitches and "murphy's law" incidents :
May 11 - the firetruck (the lift) arrived this morning ! it really is a former fire truck... the rope arrived from the states this morning too, so other than it's pouring rain, we will start this afternoon! we have to start rain or shine anyway!
May 10 - Arrived in la Bourboule yesterday after a long trip. The broke down, three hour delay. It rained cats and dogs. However today despite weather forcast of more rain, it was a stunningly beautiful day. Took care of a replacement car and picking up string today. Tomorrow pick up the lift and start installing!! :)
RUBAN VERT - Installati on 59RIVOLI, Paris 5-15 mai 2010
Une collaboration d'artistes internationales sur le sujet des événements récents en Iran.
vernissage : samedi 08 mai 2010 59RIVOLI 17-20h - - - - - - - - - - art opening : saturday 08 May 2010 59RIVOLI 5-8pm
la prochaine intervention en fils aura lieu 59, rue de Rivoli, Paris 01 sur la façade du 59Rivoli. Installation dimanche 02 mai du 13-20h. (venez si vous voulez regarder ou si vous voulez en participer!)
Expo 5-15 mai 2010 www.rubanvert.org
Horizons - Rencontres "Arts Nature" - Massif du sancy
PROCHAINE GRANDE INSTALLATION - NEXT BIG INSTALLATION
05 april 10
If you want to come and lend a hand, I will be installing from 5-22 May. The opening ceremonies are 21 June and you can visit the sculpture all summer.
Vien d'apprendre que j'étais séléctionné (un de 11 artistes) pour l'expo d'art contemporain - Rencontres "Arts Nature" au parc naturel de Sancy dans la ville de la Bourboule. Installation en mois de mai. L'expo dure tout l'été.
Si vous voulez venir aider, je serai sur place du 5 au 22 mai. Le vernissage et le 21 juin et vous pouvez visiter l'installation tout l'été jusqu'en septembre.
Mairie du 2e Arronissement dec 2009 jan 2010
21 jan 2010 décrochage !! elle n'existe plus !! "Ashes, ashes, it's all comes down"!!
10 dec 2009 - La sculpture est quaisiment terminé. j'ai quelques details/éléménts à rajouter demain, et elle sera accrochée demain... disponible a voir, dès vendredi 11.
the sculpture is nearly completely finished. I have a few details, I want to add, but it will be suspended in place tomorrow, so will be ready for viewing.
Article dans MUUUZ
jolie petite article dans MUUUZ, Blog, Architecture, Design, Tendence, Inspriation
nice little article in MUUZ, Blog, Architecture, Design, Tendence, Inspriation
"a lotus for Noreen," installation in String, 2m x 1m x 1m - 6,56' x 3,28' x 3,28'
Lots of contacts, new exhibits, and commissions.
Their website : MACparis
Hays Arts Center Installation, Hays, Kansas, USA, August 2009
"Maelstrom" 10x16x12'(3x16x3,66m) Entirely made from about 3 miles of string and cord
Great Series of Photographs done by students at Fort Hays State University's Elements of Photography Class taught by Andy Stanton
The exhibit dates have been extended through the 16th of Nov 2009. It now has officially become the longest running exhibit at the Hays Arts Center in its entire history!!
Started the installation on Monday 17 August by repainting the gallery very dark brown, almost black. Which took two days and then I started stringing on Wednesday August 19.
Photos of the process can be found at this link : HAC PHOTOS
More info can be found at the Hays Arts Council Website
Front page article "Artist Strings Talent, Work Together" on the installation in the Hays Daily News 26 Aug 2009
Article in "The Leader" F.H.S.U. 10 sep 2009 Lynn Spann
The piece started by building a string cube 10x16x12 ft (3x16x3,66 m), built in the very center of the room, with a walkway all the way around.
I'm using the thick orange nylon cord that I found in Colorado but didn't use there. It is MUCH thicker than any string/thread I have ever used before, and has subsequently caused some technical difficulties. I had to reinforce the frame, especially on the top, to handle the extra weight.
The most interesting thing for me in this installation is the "super collider" psychological aspect of my two lives, the one of my childhood and the one as a sculptor in Paris, suddenly meeting, overlapping, and reacting. My parents, my family, my teachers from university, my mentors, my classmates, my friends, everyone I grew-up with getting to know the person that I have become.
Anyone in town or in the area who is interested is welcome to come down and see the installation in process of construction. for me, the process is an integral part of the what I'm doing and the piece is not just about being finished and perfected... Hays Arts Center, 112 East 11th Street, Hays KS 67601. Come by during business hours (10-4) weekdays or call my cellphone to make arrangements to come by when I'm working on the evenings or weekend.
Green Box Art Festival, Green Mountain Falls, Colorado, July 2009
"Crepuscule" sphere : 8m - 25' diam / structure : 14m haut - 45' high
More photos can be found at the following links : Otherwise updates on the project are below :
Green Mountain Falls String Installation Photos on Facebook (photos updated daily)
Photos of Colorado Summer 2009 on Facebook (mises à jour ts les jours)
Sid Kramer's photos of the installation
Article "String Theorist" on the Installation in the Colorado Springs Independant 16 July 2009
Photos du projet se trouvent sur mon profile chez Facebook, sur les liens au dessous : sinon les dernières nouvelles de l'installation se trouvent ci-dessus. (pour l'instant en anglais)
The piece will have a public opening 13 July 2009 at noon.
Le vernissage aura lieu le 13 juillet 2009 à midi.
for more information : http://greenboxarts.com
mon 13 july 2009
If you are nearby come to the opening for the sculpture at noon!
There will be refreshments and bbq and local dignitaries.
Otherwise the sculpture, now that it's launched, will be on its own to survive the elements and will last as long as it lasts. Who knows how long that will be?
It will continue to be photographed by Katie Walker as it declines and desintegrates.
My deepest and heart felt thanks to everyone who has made this project so enjoyable and successful especially to Christian Keesee, who had the vision to make it happen and supported me in every way along the way to get it done!!
sat 11 july 2009
I have access to a MAC this morning, so will use the occassion to get caught-up.
The big news of the week is that I finished the installation at 12h30 on thursday. (photos are online)
Monday, I had the extended-family crew helping plus the dedicated and continuing help of Sid. My sister, Erin drove up for a two day stay and she and my cousin Kelly finished the pink band at the bottom. This band for me is the "family band" - Dad worked on it, then my sister and Kelly.
Julie Schuvie and Pete Schuvie lent a hand as did Kevin Koerner and his wife Kelly (afor mentioned). My cousin Cyndi Pigg lent moral support too!!
Tuesday, Erin was back and my neighbor, Shawn Meyers, a sculptor from Oklahoma came by with her family. (They are here to wed their son Blue on Saturday, with both families staying in all the cabins around my parents'). Shawn's parents, Forest and Iris Weirick, own the cabin next to ours, and in a typical Green Mountain Falls way, the story is generational as Iris' father remodeled our cabin and the surrounding cabins in the 1950's, so our place used to be theirs.
Shawn was delighted to stay and help, and the four of us on Tuesday got a lot done... finishing all but the last (middle) band... !!!
Wednesday, there was just Sid and me and we managed to get all but the last square of the final band done that day. Judy from the Pantry, who is also a next-door-neighbor of the sculpture came by late morning and offered to make us fried-egg sandwiches, which she did and brought snacks and drinks!! Thankfully as that ended up being the only thing we had to eat until that evening... Must say that that was the first fried-egg sandwich I've had in 30 years and it was even on wonderbread !!! what a flashback!!
So Sid and I worked against the clock and against our stomachs until almost 7pm. The weather held both Tues and Weds without rain, so we were able to get in long days. We wanted to get done that evening, but finally just couldn't push ourselves to go any further, so ended-up eating a tasty and hearty meal at the local Mucky Duck (and, hey, the local Colorado wines were very drinkable!! - two glasses plus fatigue and I was cooked!!)
Thursday, I spent an hour retightening and reshaping the overall form, then I attacked and finished the last open square and was done with that by the time Sid got there at nine. We then spent the next three hours going back through and readjusting/tweeking the details and getting it finalised.
Then a celebratory lunch at the Pantry and ended the day with margaritas and quesadillas at the creekside patio of the Pantry!! Live music, good company... great evening !! thank you Ben!
We could hardly get any work done the last two days, people stopped by every ten minutes : the rest of Shawn's extended family, other neighbors, and we had a great conversation with Ted Bell, a 79 year-old local, with a great life philosophy who didn't know what I was making but liked it anyway. !!!
Thank you Sid for your unwavering and very capable assistance. I couldn't have finished it so soon without you!! and thanks for the delightful company!
and thank you to everyone who followed the blog and gave me such delightful encouragement and feedback!
Friday, I came up with the title : "Crepuscule" which means twilight in French.
Now, that I'm done, the project is "yours." I've done my part. I leave the interpretation up to you. Please spread the word about it and make sure to show it to every gallery director you know, and every museum curator, and every art collector in your address book. I make my living selling either the table-top size ones or the gigantic ones. I can't wait to do the next one (in Hays, Kansas in August - stay tuned) and then to imagine another even bigger one after that!!! This one is just the beginning!
List of "firsts" and "bests"
First string installation in the States
First time I blogged while installing
First time to work in the great outdoors!
This is the biggest and most involved project to date : 6 miles of sting, 25 foot high, 45 foot-high support guide wires.
First time I've had a professional photographer to document the construction, final result, and "decline" of the piece.
First time my family has helped (and seen an actual installation)
First time to use heavy equipment
sun 05 july 2009
Took the day off for the Schuvie Family Reunion. Anyway it POURED DOWN rain all afternoon, so I wouldn't have gotten much work done.
This will be the last blog entry until I get my computer situation figured out. I have to give this Mac back and haven't found a replacement. I'll be back once I have.
Otherwise, I'm figuring that I will finish the sculpture sometime midweek or Friday at the lastest.
sat 4 july 2009
Happy 4th of July everyone ! and Happy Birthday Mom !!
A crazy day... got to the site early and started stringing. Sid Kramer joined me and we strung some together, and then the journalist, Bree, from the Colorado Springs Independant (look for the article on 16 July) and her boyfriend Dean came and interviewed me for a couple hours. then Dad came and kept adding to the pink band at the bottom of the sphere that he started yesterday.
Then the visits just kept coming. Mom, Uncle Marvin & Aunt Nancy came, then Chris & Blake Keesee, Larry Keigwin, Amir and his girlfriend arrived for a short visit, then the "Schuvie Clan" got there : Kevin + Kelly Koerner, Julie Schuvie, Pete Schuvie, + Cynthia Pigg.
Sid worked the whole time and showed the new volunteers "the ropes" that being Kelly and Pete, who both caught on fast and were a big help.
Katie, the photorgrapher showed up in the middle of all that. Dad and I worked on an orange section together and then it threatedened rain (yes, again) and so we all headed home to play dominoes and celebrate my mother's birthday. (I had already baked a carrot cake with cream cheese icing)...
The project advanced a great deal, but I hardly did more than a couple sections and some retouching of the form.
I'm looking to be finished by mid-week. Stay tuned.
btw, it poured down rain all afternoon into evening.
fri 3 july 2009
Line-up another productive day.
This was the first morning that was cloudy. It stayed that way until about 1pm. Sid joined me about 9 and caught-on quickly how to "weave"... and greatly helped me advance the work.
Mom and Dad came by as did Frances (at the same time). Dad stayed and added to the row of pink.
Later Scottie came by with her dog, Draco, at about the same time as a doe came and settled-in in the brush on the hill above the installation (that is, until Drace saw her and chased her off!!)
Jason, from Bill's Equipment Rental, dropped-off a new 24 foot scissor lift and explained how to use it. Which meant that Sid could use it to contintue fill-in/weaving and I used the cherry picker/boom lift to finish all exterieur structural work as well as finish all the zig-zag white guide-lines which help maintain the horizontal guide-wires... so now all that's remaining to do is fill-in the rest of the orange and the pink.
Katie, the photographer, came by when the sun came out in the afternoon.
By 3pm the skies were getting dark and I simply was too tired to go on, so I called it a day.
When I got home I fell into a deep sleep and woke-up very groggy! (feeling clearer headed now).
I went with Mom to get supplies to make a birthday cake for her birthday tomorrow !! (YES, the 4th!!) On the way back from the grocery store, the skies let loose and it POURED down rain!! there was even hail! It's all blown over by now (7pm).
I plan on working tomorrow morning, so we'll see you here tomorrow! (send me an email if you are following this, so I have an idea who I'm writing to! thanx)
btw, I will have to give my MAC laptop back on Sunday, so if anybody in the Springs area has a MAC to lend me for next week, that would be great. I will look into what I can do to replace this one... but there might be an interuption in blogging if I don't get a replacement computer right away!
thurs 2 july 2009
A very productive day today. I used the cherry picker (I've subsequently learned it's called a boom lift) to reinforce certain supports and to correct the shape of the sphere... plus i put in all of the lateral cords and the installed the final 8th rib (and, yes, i can still get the boom into the sphere even though the entry is now half the size.
Cecil remains an enormous help and started a band of pink filler thread on the first row, at the bottom of the globe.
A local artist/stuntman/handyman, Sid, came by and offered his services, which I accepted gladly and he joined us for lunch at the pantry. We had Maxi again as our server and Sid introduced me to Ben the owner of the restaurant, who not only was delightful, but was delighted about my project.
I worked from 7 to 12h30, and was chased out AGAIN by threatening weather. It started pouring down rain before we even were served and rained right up til 4 o'clock. No rain at the moment, but the sky is dark and there is thunder. so there's no going back right away.
My parents arrived for the weekend at about 3. So helped them bring their things up, then met Hunter from Bill's Equipment rental at 3:30, who came to see what kind of lift would work best for the next stage. He brought his charming fiancé, Katie, with him and was very helpful and generous! The guys at the rental shop have been most enthusiatic and helpful !!!
Today has been the most productive day. I finished all the last structural ties and additions, plus Cecil started to add the new bright pink color, which is more than great !!! Plus Sid volunteered to help. We got the next scissor lift worked out and it will be delivered tomorrow!
Not much "visual" advancement, but now all that is left is the visual part, and just in time, with Sid offering to help, my cousins arriving tomorrow and offering to help and my sister arriving on monday and offering to help too! I think even with all the volunteers I still have a good full-weeks work ahead of me!
Deadline - Monday 13 July - Noon - Art opening !!!
Got lots of work to do before I get there, but sounds reasonable that I can get it done in time!!
weds 1 july 2009
It wasn't supposed to rain, but it did anyway at about 2pm... I still got-in a good day of work and with Cecil's help the project advanced quickly! The form is starting to appear and it can now be seen clearly through the trees from the road.
the big surprise is how the light plays on the orange thread... it's magic
more and more people are stopping by, including a surprise visit by Paola Nix, who used to live in Tucson, as I did. we actually both worked at Pima Community College. a mutual friend told her she should look-up my project and we both thought that the other was living in Tucson... when she told me she was now living in Colorado Springs, I couldn't believe it. So she drove up with her two delightful children (Ben + Bella) and we re/connected.
Lunch again at the Pantry, with the same delightful waitress : Maxi! (I had a french dip sandwich, which you can't find in France, if you can believe it)
Worked again after lunch, but the rain chased me out... so I went in to the Springs to Bill's equipment rental, to look at new "lifts" to replace the cherry picker, which has now become too big to use inside the sculpture.
Got back after the storm and did some more work and the fox came by again. He ran right under the sculpture and seemed to have an egg in his mouth.
tues 30 june 2009
it still rained yesterday but not until about 10pm, and it woke me up several times ! lots of wind and thunder. and just at sunset the western sky was pumpkin orange, like the whole valley was on fire - photos
the installation took a little beating... one of the main guidewires gave way, but Harold came to the rescue as usual and provided me with winches, so I got it put back together. (amazing how the structure doesn't rely on any one string... it's held up a little bit by ALL of the strings).
today, i got my regular start at 7am and had help from Cecil, a local ceramic artist, four hands and a new knotting technique really made things go fast (see new photos). luckily there were extra hands, because the threatening weather hit at noon! So we ate a BIG and delicious lunch at the local PANTRY (which has been there for over 40 years, and I have eaten there at least once every year since 1969) : meatloaf, mashed potatos, fresh greenbeans and cinamon raison toast (i couldn't finish it!)...
Chris, Blake, (his son) and Larry (the choreographer, who will be presenting a dance performance on the 16th) came by in the morning to say hi.
the weather finally cleared, so i headed back down to the site around 4:30 and got in a couple hours of good work! It's getting exciting now!
AND, i finally got to see a visitor, who i've heard a lot about but never seen, who apparently comes by every afternoon to the park : the fox! I got some good pictures they are online!
supposed to be good weather tomorrow, so hope to get in a good day!
mon 29 june 2009
didn't have to stop for rain today (there isn't any), but i simply couldn't go any longer than 3pm... too tired !! boy, could i use a massage !!
new photos on-line give an idea what the completed piece will look like... but it's slow intensive work... i'll be needing all of the next two weeks to get it done (thankfully friends/relatives are arriving on thursday and have promised to lend a hand !!)
sat 27 june 2009
8 1/2 hours straight!! Okay a break for a bagel... but I finished when I was too tired to do any more. No storms in sight.
Recommendation : Listening to Casta Diva at 30 feet in the air amid the mountain pines!!
Remark : It's wonderful using a diesel powered, four-wheel drive, power machine that goes 45 feet in the air to do a very delicate sculpture made entirely of string... the contrast is just too much !!. It's fun finessing such a powerful machine to avoid strings and trees. I can even get inside the globe and maneouver around!! Takes all the hard work out of it! (so why am I so tired ????)
Finished all but one of the "ribs" of the sphere. Left it undone so I can get the cherry picker into the middle of the space, otherwise if I close it off now, there would be no access. And I started to fill in the spaces between the ribs. It's slow going, but the final effect is quite beautiful!
Taking tomorrow (Sunday) off. See you back here on Monday!
fri 26 june 2009
14h30, just finished lunch, which I took late today on purpose... In light of the fact that the last few days, it has stormed starting about 2-3 pm, I decided to work straight through from 7am til it started to rain, or until I was going to pass-out from hunger, which ever came first. They both hit at the same time, about 14h. The wind started coming in really strong, which meant that I couldn't be 45' (14m) up in the air on the cherry picker (too dangerous) and there isn't much to do at ground level at the moment. Othewise, the other days this week, I was working four hours until 11, stopping to eat and when I was ready to go back to work, it was threatening rain, which meant I lost the afternoon to work. This new way I got in 7 straight hours of work instead of the 4 of the last two days!
As I write the rain is starting to come down in sheets and the wind is really blowing! (I was able to work last night AFTER the rain, so I might be able to today as well)
Yesterday was the hardest and most discouraging day. It was the most physically demanding and yet the piece didn't seem to be advancing at all. I spent the day putting in all the guide wires at 30-40 feet (9-14m), which are necessary to hold up the structure but don't really show... Today, I assembled 5/8 of ribs of the main structure, so it now looks like something and the work went relatively fast !! I should finish the structure tomorrow and can start working on filling in between the bones of the skeleton, either tomorrow or Monday.
tues 23 june 2009
The big Colorado Project is underway since Monday! Took me until today to get the right hook-up for my hard-drive so I could have all the software I needed to update my blog... so that's done. I can update here from now on.
I have been posting photos and some comments to facebook (mcginnis.fr) and you can see photos of the project and some photos of my stay in Colorado.
The big news for today is that reinforcements came today! In the person of Chou Chou le Joujou (see photo) a 45' (14m) high cherry picker. A BIG TOY!!!! So I can string in the tops of the trees with ease. It took all morning to get the thing picked-out and delivered. I had just enough time to take it for a spin and fling myself 45' (14m) up in the air, when it started to thunder and then rain, so I had to put my toy away.
Monday and Tuesday, I spent laying out the basic form on the ground which the rest of the piece will be built on and then hoisting it into the air at an angle... The circle's high end is about 3 meters and the low end is about 1 meter. The total height of the main object, floating in the middle of the clearing will be 23 feet/7 meters. The guidelines which will support the structure are at about 10 meters above ground (which was a piece of cake using with the help of Chou chou!!!)
sun 03 may 2009
next big project : outdoor installation in the woods at the Green Box Arts Festival, Green Mountain Falls, Colorado (in the mountains near Colorado Springs).
installation from 23 june to 15 july 2009. Festival the week of the 15th july.
followed by a large exhibit at the Hays Arts Center Gallery, Hays, Kansas - art opening 28 august 2009.
Will up-date here as more information is available.
prochain grand projet : installation à l'exterieur dans un bois à la Green Box Arts Festival, Green Mountain Falls Colorado (dans les montagnes pas loins de Colorado Springs).
installation du 23 juin au 15 juillet 2009. Festival la semaine du 15 juillet.
suivi par une grande installation à la Hays Arts Center Gallery, Hays, Kansas, USA - vernissage le 28 août 2009.
Dernières infos ici dès disponibles !!