Art Education and Artist's Statement

I studied art. I make art. I teach art. This semester, I enrolled in the newly founded art education program at the Kansas City Art Institute, in order to bring those interrelated disciplines together - in my life and in my mind.

So far, I am loving my first course - the theories, the history, the looking into myself and reflecting on what art and teaching art mean to me. Despite my enjoyment of being back in the classroom as a student, I have a lot less free time nowadays. Maybe that will help me become more organized, so I can keep track of everything I have going on?

We were recently assigned to bring our artist's statements to class. I revamped mine a bit before turning it in, and I would like to share it here:

                                                                                                                          Swoop and Stream, 2012. Digital photography.

“When we consider the movement of form in space over a certain time, we are entering the realm of geometry and mathematics in the same way as when we construct a machine.”

                                                                                                                                 -  Marcel Duchamp, concerning “Nude Descending a Staircase”

Time. Motion. Repetition. Addition.

I repeat. I make by employing repetitive processes, such as knotting, tearing, piling, picking, purging. Repetitive bodily gestures, actions and movements send me on an intimate tour of myself and my surroundings. These motions transport me beyond the confines of my own body. Or, rather, they redefine or extend its boundaries. I become fused with the materials within, on and around me.

Where does self end and other begin? What is mine to manipulate? I consciously explore the connection between bodily repetition and creation, motion and ecstasy/disengagement. I am fascinated by the genesis of intelligence. Abiding by specific rules can result in an entity that is more than the result of its instructions*.

My art acts as metaphor, not simply (simple) geometry. Through non-rational, or inexact, repetition (spiral not circular) people may rail against the discontinuous, nonsensical nature of existence.

***

People rarely see or have seen without some sort of additive implement (in other words, tool). Even the use of a pencil reshapes the human body, its desires, functions and ways of interacting with the self and other. Human interaction with machines, then, also re-purposes human boundaries – it alters the ways in which humans experience.

Sight remains impoverished without lights to see by. Tools light the night skies. Now machines have taken on new mutations. They can learn from humans and one another, act autonomously, read emotions, give the semblance of humanity and intelligence, and are otherwise self-evolving.

If a gaze could be based upon the simulation, mediation, connectivity and artifice these new machines exercise, then it would belong to a cyborg.

According to Donna J. Haraway, a cyborg is “a hybrid of machine and organism, a creature of social reality/lived experience as well as a creature of fiction.” (Haraway, Donna J. Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature. New York: Routledge, 1991. Print.) Humans possess a bionic gaze, which is a way of knowing the world through electronic, mechanical, digital and other enhancements.

Because of the technology we have invented and to which we have access, the bionic gaze is entirely plausible and definitely employed. So, we are hybrids of man and machine. We are synthetic communications systems; our bodies have become virtually re-crafted. We have been entranced by the exchange of intelligence.

Enhancement, though, does not mean we are privy to the right information – just different sets of information.

*Sometimes, it just makes a mess.

My goal is to set up an art/art education website. A personal website is LONG overdue. I will definitely report back when it is in working order and fit to be seen.

Alison :)

In Search Of...

The lovely and talented Rachel Frank, Dustin Dennis and Amanda Lechner at the opening of In Search Of...

With Amanda. I was so EXCITED to see this girl!

Full disclosure: I think my friends are the most talented and wonderful and brilliant and kind and amazing and fascinating and phenomenal and gorgeous people in the whole world. It may come as no surprise, then, that I might display just a tad bit of bias when I share the details of In Search Of..., a traveling exhibition organized by Dustin Dennis, Christopher Ulivo and Amanda Lechner. Dustin and Amanda are longtime friends, who I have known since my days as a student at the Kansas City Art Institute (and before, in the case of Dustin). I will share details about the exhibition without even attempting to give a strict analysis. I was too darn excited to see Dustin and Amanda, who were in town from New York, to wear my critic's hat. And believe me, Dustin and Amanda are just as wonderful and brilliant and kind and amazing and fascinating and phenomenal and gorgeous as I say they are. 

***

Mike Peter Smith, Untitled (Cyclops), 2012. Cast urethane, epoxy putty, brass, cyanoacrylate and paint. 9 in. x 6 in. x 5in.

In Search Of... is a speculative exploration of natural, and unnatural, history. Its take on how we explain and understand that which is beyond explanation or understanding runs the gamut from the frightening and weird to the idealized and fantastical. The world and the answers at which humans arrive are not fixed, or at least they don't have to be. In this exhibition, at least, creative inquiry is not only permitted, but encouraged. According to the curatorial statement, In Search Of... takes its title from the 1970s speculative documentary TV series of the same name, which was hosted by Leonard Nimoy and covered a wide range of strange phenomena. The statement goes on to say the "artists in this exhibition create images and abstract scenarios that engage transformative moments, look to alternate histories or imagine other realities, creatures and lands. They are not interested in finite possibilities but instead look to the strange, fictional, and unknown to emerge with material that posits new scenarios, alternate conclusions and yet more questions."

Overview of In Search Of... with work by Betsy Odom in the foreground. Betsy Odom, Bulldog 2 (Spacesuit), 2009. Mixed media, Gatorade coolers, tube socks, mesh, nylon. 60 in. x 30 in. x 28 in.

Overview of In Search Of... with work by Leah Beeferman in the foreground. Leah Beeferman, 1201.2280v1, 2012. Laser etched plexiglas, formica tabletops, speakers and audio. 96 in. x 24 in. x 30 in. Dimensions variable.

Featured in the exhibition are works by Carl Baratta, Matt Bollinger, Dustin Dennis, Leah Beeferman, Rachel Frank, Erin Harmon, Frank Heath, Jackie Hoving, David Humphrey, Amanda Lechner, Sean McCarthy, Ryan Mrozowski, Betsy Odom, Andrew Prayzner, Ross Sawyers, Mark Shetabi, Mike Peter Smith, Christopher Ulivo, Phil Whitman, and Brian Zegeer.

The exhibition opened on the first cold and icy day of the season. That didn't stop a crowd from gathering for the opening reception at the University of Kansas, Art and Design Gallery. I knew many of the visitors, as many old school pals showed up. KCAI is represented in the exhibition by Matt Bollinger, Rachel Frank, Ross Sawyers, and Frank Heath, in addition to Dustin and Amanda.

Here are few pieces by KCAI alumni:

Ross Sawyers' piece is a poetic vision of a phenomenological experience;

Ross Sawyers, Untitled, 2011. Archival print. 24 in. x 36 in.

I have always admired Matt Bollinger's drawing style, and Double is no exception - the texture and tones appeal to me, and the applied movement makes me feel a little queasy;

Matt Bollinger, Double, 2012. Graphite on paper. 30 in. x 22 in.

and Frank Heath's framed prints are two versions of the same thing, separated by nothing but time (and all that goes along with that).   

Frank Heath, Rerun TELEPHONE OPERATORS (Village Voice, June 2, 1987 / June 2, 2012), 2012. Classified ad. Pigment 2 prints. 13 3/4 in. x 12 1/2 in.

Rachel, who was in the same graduating class as Dustin, Amanda and I, was in town for the opening. Her piece is absolutely beautiful. Her cowhide beaded with a Rorschach test-like pattern makes me want to sit in a field and read stories from the flanks of cows. It also shows just how mindlessly we humans slaughter animals and use their body parts, including skin, for our own pleasure.

Rachel kindly let me photograph her with her piece.

Rachel Frank, Hide Stain, 2012. Glass beads, thread, cloth, wood and Holstein cowhide. 60 in. x 53 in. With detail.

Amanda's contributions to In Search Of... are two intimate narrative paintings. Lone figures enact scenes of (pseudo-) scientific research and discovery, seemingly with endless patience. Amanda has a deft hand and paints with skill and precision. 

Amanda with one of her highly detailed scenes.

At left: Amanda Lechner, Magnetron Plasma Ball, 2011. Egg tempera painting on panel. 14 in. x 11 in. At right: Amanda Lechner, Gaiter Pratt Delegates, 2011. Egg tempera painting on panel. 14 in. x 11 in.

Dustin presents a mysterious looping video featuring a man, a woman and an over-sized eye. This disturbing science fiction sequence is still on my mind. What is ethical? What are the limitations of human development? To what lengths would you go for scientific discovery?

Dustin striking his "serious" pose. Gotta love the beard, besides.

Dustin Dennis, Untitled, 2012. Digital video. 5 minutes (Stills). Do you recognize the actress? That's right, it's Rachel!

I spent at least two hours at the exhibition, and I could have stayed longer, even if I hadn't been chasing my friends around with my camera. Other pieces I was taken with include the following:

Jackie Hoving's highly patterned collages of people with what struck me as bionic add-ons;

Jackie Hoving, Vision, 2010. Mixed media collage. 30 in. x 22 in.

Ryan Mrozowski's sleek installation - with his visual punning, he's definitely a man after my own heart; 

Ryan Mrozowski, Illuminated Book page (#26), 2011. Single book page, light bulb, artist's frame. Dimensions variable.

and Christopher Ulivo's fanciful vision of Pete Seeger as the Robert Johnson of folk music. Do you see hints of Bosch, too? Plus glitter.

Christopher Ulivo, The Last Thing They'll Take From You Is Your Banjo, 2012. Egg tempera on panel. 13 in. x 10 in.

Overall, I found In Search Of... to inspire thought and the desire to make things. That's a powerful combination for any artist who is out viewing art. I highly recommend this exhibition. In Search Of... will be exhibited at the University of Kansas, Art & Design Gallery, until December 7, 2012. Be sure to check it out if you are in town! If you can't make it to Kansas City, some of the work will be on display at North Branch Projects in Chicago, Illinois, in January 2013.

Congratulations, Dustin, Amanda and Christopher!! 

Check out the exhibition, and tell me know what you think. Have you been to any exhibitions I should see? Let me know.

Alison :)

Hyperkewl: Relics Project

Placing organic materials, including the dirt and brick pictured here, in my reliquary.

In addition to working on Altar for Women, I have also been involved with Hyperkewl's Relics Project. According to the project statement written by Rosemary Barria,

"A walk will take place in Fall 2012 in various cities, such as Chicago, Kansas City, and Lima to place reliquaries created by people in community.

People were asked through facebook, email and by word of mouth to fill a provided reliquary with relics.

A relic is traditionally important to many religions, including to Buddhists, Christians and Hindus. They are typically remains of saints, bones, and pieces of clothing or other objects, placed in a church, a temple or shrine. Pilgrimages are made to them to give honor or to receive magic from them.

Hyperkewl re-appropriates the power of reliquaries beyond traditional religious context and asks the participating to place their own magic inside and to gift it to a place of importance to them, regardless of what it is. Each participant leads their own walk and decides if a ritual or some other delivery is appropriate.

After the walk, a map will be available online for the community to revisit these reliquaries. Each reliquary, becomes a new point on a map from where our special experiences are acknowledged.

We are re-accessing our environment and imposing our personal relics. This is magic."

Hanging my reliquary.

Adjusting my reliquary.

My reliquary in place and still unfilled.

Each participant was either created from scratch or was given a blank form to use as the basis for a reliquary. After the reliquary was completed to the specifications of each artist, then each artist could fill his or her reliquary with relics. I, of course, chose a tedious and time-consuming process, which gave me time to reflect upon family, home, safety, and the importance of having a place to call home.

I wrapped and wove string around my reliquary to create a safe space to fill with relics from my past. It occurred to me that every place I've lived has its own special blend of materials, so I chose to relocate bits and pieces from my first home to my parents' current house.  My Safety Ne(s)t acts as a sieve to sift organic materials from my first home into the stuff of my parents' current home. By doing this, I am hoping to compress the organic materials of the two homes from my childhood into one space.

Placing my relics in the reliquary.

I carried my materials from my old house to my parents' house in a red bowl I recall from my childhood.

Green maple leaves from "my tree."

  

Here's what I said about my project:

Home is a powerful symbol. For me, the word evokes comfort and safety. Home is more than the family that resides there; it is a location, a geographical and sentimental coordinate that exists outside of linear time. Although my parents, siblings and I moved from our first home 20 years ago, "the old house", its goings on, and the land on which it was built still feature often in our conversations, my thoughts, and certainly in my dreams. 

For my reliquary, I relocated organic elements from the site of my first home to the land where I grew into adulthood. These materials include the following: brick, grasses, dirt, bark, twigs, leaves from "my tree," and flowers that still bloom, despite my mother's yearly inattention. The materials I gathered are now nestled in a netted nest-like structure, not only for safekeeping, but also to be filtered through the gaps between the woven strings, picked up and re-utilized by animals, and to eventually join the site of my family's current home irreversibly. 

I look forward to following the progress of these relics, as they wear and blow away. I expect them to leave stains on the structure of my reliquary as time passes, just as home has shaped and molded me over time.

Alison L. Miller

Below are images of the final piece:

The star-shaped opening occurred as a natural result of my weaving technique.

I was so excited to find flowers in bloom at "the old house."

I know this post is photo heavy, so I'll call it a night. In another post, I will highlight some of the other participants' reliquaries. They are all incredibly personal and beautiful.

What relic would you put in your reliquary? Where would you place it?

Alison :)

*My awesome mom took the photos of me, and I took the rest.

Day of the Dead Altar

As a calaca for the Day of the Dead festivities at Mattie Rhodes. My eye makeup was a little scarier than intended.

I can hardly believe it is so close to Thanksgiving. The past couple of months have just shot by. This fall has been filled with back problems (a story for another day), ACED classes, political ads, stressed out and exhausted students, new coworkers, fun family times, art projects, too many mochas, and good times with friends. 

Altar for Women by Maureen Baker-Barria, Rosemary Barria, Liz Black, Amy DeSitter, Anna Cathleen DeVore, and Alison L. Miller, 2012. Materials: Cardboard, fabric, sugar, newspaper, paper, paper ephemera, plastic beads, glass drops, dried flowers, and plastic figures.

One of the best experiences I have had this season was working on Altar for Women with a group of creative ladies for the Dia de los Muertos exhibition at the Mattie Rhodes Center. Mattie Rhodes, which is located on Kansas City's West Side, is an educational center dedicated to Latino arts and culture. I enjoyed working on this project tremendously. My partners and I often seemed to be of one mind, which simplified the decision-making process. I would be delighted to work with any of these women again. Our altar subtly referenced the attack on the rights of women, both in the US and abroad - cue the creepy arm crawling out from under the altar. 

The piece was exhibited under the group name Hyperkewl. Hyperkewl Projects was founded by Rosemary Barria while she was living in Chicago. According to the description on Hyperkewl's facebook page, "Initially a sound and video show in Chicago, IL, the heart and mind of Hyperkewl has become a collective of people interested in community endeavors and collaborative creation. Hyperkewl exists as an online information hub, a monthly event, and takes on various projects that we come up with. The identity and endeavors flux and are open to new ideas from anyone." Luckily for Kansas City, Rosemary has returned her talents to the area. 

Details of our altar are below:

Glittery doves and paper flowers.

Combative arm.

Blind Justice as Mary, or Mary as Blind Justice? You decide.

Vaginal references, paper flowers, candles and sugar skulls.

More sugar skulls.

Most of the altars were dedicated to family members. Because the altars referenced the daily lives of people who are now gone, they struck me as bittersweet reminders of both life and death. They were funny and moving at the same time, which put the viewers in a predicament. We were happy to celebrate the lives of those who had died, but we mourned the fact they were no longer here with us. 

Here are a few of my favorite altars:

This altar is gorgeous. Apparently, it's a permanent installation.

How beautiful is this altar!?

I found this to be an inspiring altar (detail).

The skeleton possesses so much personality! Plus, you could blow the horns attached to this altar.

I loved this quiet and delicate altar.

The altar below moved me to tears:

Adding a note to a loved one.

The instructions atop this altar encouraged each viewer to write a note to a loved one who had died. I wrote to my Aunt Vickie, of course. The simple process of hand writing a note to Aunt Vickie and then "delivering" the note into its cubby brought out so many emotions.

Did you do anything to celebrate Day of the Dead? Have you participated in any group efforts lately? I would love hear about them.

Alison :)

Black & White All Over: Aubrey Beardsley

A forgery (at left) accompanying the real deal.

I happened upon the book The Collected Drawings of Aubrey Beardsley while thrift store shopping. I adore Beardsley's deft hand. I cannot get over the line quality employed in each illustration and throughout his entire body of work! Sometimes beautiful and sometimes grotesque, Beardsley's stylized drawings appeal to me.

According to the editor Bruce S. Harris, while Beardsley died when he was just 26, he had reached such fame beforehand that work in his style was often produced. I have included a piece here that was included in an exhibition of forged pieces attributed to Beardsley. Can you tell the difference?

Have you found anything great during a recent thrift store visit? I would love to hear about it.

Alison :)

The Real World

A couple spring days off work? Can life get any better!?

I'll be rejoining the real world tomorrow, but I sure enjoyed my long weekend. I spent it 1) shopping, 2) looking at art, 3) spending time with family, 4) reading, and 5) getting a pedicure.

Evan-Piccone Dress now in my closet - I know, I know. It's not exactly what I thought I was looking for, but it really suits me! Plus, black-and-white is oh, so versatile. I can add colored accessories to suit any mood or situation, not to mention this baby is washable and wrinkle-free!

1) My mom, sister and I went shopping for Easter dresses/spring staples on Friday. We all found some springy wardrobe updates, and my sister and I both found Easter dresses. Because the one I found (a really pretty American Living dress) was dry clean only, my mom and I went back out on Saturday, where I found a more user-friendly dress. Yay for dresses that are washable and don't wrinkle! Looking for dresses can be trying, so I am grateful I found more than one option! 

My cousin really enjoyed Jennifer Onofrio's work on display at Sherry Leedy Contemporary Art. Her work is gorgeous and inspires me, too. Above: The Space Between, 2010, Silver gelatin print with ink, 38 3/4 in. x 27 3/4 in. x 3 1/2 in.

2) On Friday night, my sister and I took my 16-year old cousin Robert to his first First Friday. I felt really good about introducing him to the modern art world. Oddly, enough, there were lots of skulls and skeletons featured in the exhibitions we saw. This was great, because that is one of Robert's favorite art subjects. After we walked around taking in all the art, we treated Robert to dinner at Rosedale Bar-B-Q. Rosedale's been around since 1934, but it was our first time. The meat was divine (especially the pulled pork), although the sauce was a little spicy for me. The baked beans also had a little kick, which I liked. All in all, I think Robert had a good time. It's hard to read teenage boys.  

I felt a great deal of responsibility while sharing art with Robert. My goal is to impress upon people, and especially young people, the value of art in and to our society. If more people grow up learning and believing art is meaningful, then art programs will be valued even when things get tough economically. Maybe. Hopefully.

Easter Eggs!

3) I stayed with my parents over the weekend. I always feel recharged after spending time with them. It's true, there's no place like home. I also saw all my cousins on Easter Sunday. After a really thought-provoking church service, we drove down to my cousins' home in Raymore, MO. They live on Silver Lake, and they know how to throw a party. We had good conversation, a delicious potluck and an Easter egg hunt. Growing up, we always collected candy during our Easter egg hunts, but my cousins fill their eggs with money... Aaaaand, I am still considered a "kid." Maybe I'll be one until I have kids of my own?? Or perhaps until I have a few noticeable wrinkles? 

Enjoyable read.

4) I have made it about a quarter of the way through The Girl Who Played with Fire, the follow-up to Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I am really enjoying the series. It's dark. It's suspenseful. It is filled with intriguing and "human" characters. The first book hinted at Lisbeth Sander's disturbing past, and in the second book we begin to learn how and why Lisbeth is who she is. From reading the book jacket, I know there's another large-scale mystery or two to untangle. As soon as I finish here, I am going back to reading!

5) My mom treated me to a pedicure today. What more can I say? Thanks for the luxury-treatment, Mom! Now, my feet are fit to be seen (but no pics to prove it).

How do you fill your time off of work? What do you do to treat yourself when you have a few days of your own?

Alison :)