Artist: WAFA Collective

Arlie told me about the WAFA Collective early this week, and I was pretty excited to see their collage books. Each piece in the series is a mixed media collage on a child's story book. They are all collaborative works passed back and forth from artist to artist, and each one is completely unique. I love the amount of adding/removing, tearing/gluing that is visible in these images. I think it must be amazing to make something and completely surrender it to someone else to modify. I wish I could let go like that!

This is an unusual artist post in that I cannot really provide information about the individual artists. However, I wanted to post this excerpt from the WAFA website:

"WAFA is a global artist collective dedicated to the support and development of emerging artists. We are a global network of working artists with members in Vancouver, San Francisco, Portland, Rome, Seattle, North Carolina, St. Paul, Sydney, Brighton, and Norwich. Our hope is to bring together a community of artists, united by collaboration, to inspire one another. To have the sense of family and community restored, where we can belong and continue to give value to what we believe in. To have an open dialogue about everything we experience, and the free exchange of ideas, knowledge and tools."

Awesome stuff. See some of my favorites from the collage books below. Please note: titles and dimensions for works are not available on the WAFA website.

Extra Post: Image Update

I just wanted to post two new collages that I finished tonight. At least I think they are finished - we'll see how I feel about them in the morning. Better yet, how Tom feels about them at our meeting on Tuesday.

I heavily manipulated the background in one, and was hoping to represent a daydream or fantasy with the other. . . Check it out!

Research: What kind of sync cord will work with my Canon?!

The question is in the title. Now to answer it...

I have had a set of studio lights for years now, but have yet to invest in a cord that will sync them to my digital camera. Silly, I know. So far, I have used them as hot lights (total waste of a strobe!) or had varied success with turning the flash on, blocking it from hitting my subject with my hand, and trying to direct it at the strobes to trigger them. Sometimes it syncs magically, sometimes I get a completely dark image. Inconsistent and inconvenient.

Now that I am re-photographing my collages, it is very important that I be able to use my lights. Using them as hot lights just isn't good enough - even shooting in raw and correcting for white-point, it seems like I can never really get a good white balance on images shot with hot lights (is this just me?) I want more control of my lights, and a true white in my images.

This week, I've been researching the best kind of sync cord to go with my outdated Canon Rebel. I've had trouble with it in the studio in the past - the Nikon hotshoe adapter/Canon combination seems to be very picky about which cord to use. Happily, while researching this week I found a universal, totally wireless option, and it won't break the bank. I'm psyched!

This is what I found: the Wein SSR Unichannel Pro-Sync kit. This kit consists of two pieces - an infrared trigger and sensor. The trigger connects via hotshoe on board the camera, and the sensor plugs into the back of one strobe. This sends an IR signal that triggers the strobe in perfect timing with the camera, and there are no cords to trip over! I'm about to place my order after I shop around to see if I can find a used one.

Artist: Gilbert and George

So far, Griffin is the only one that has commented on my most recent post to the class blog. In his comment, he mentioned that my new work reminded him of Gilbert and George because of the new grid layout I'm using for my collages (see post below.) Tom introduced me to Gilbert and George a year or so ago, but Griffin's remark inspired me to take another look at their work.

Gilbert and George were first recognized for their Singing Sculpture - they dressed in suits covered with metallic powder, stood on a table, and sang outside, sometimes for a day at a time. They refer to themselves as "living sculpture" and refuse to disassociate art from their everyday lives. Pretty cool (and a little crazy, perhaps?)

When I think of Gilbert and George, their body of work The Pictures is what comes to mind. These are large-scale photoworks that often include the artists themselves, religious iconography, and what some would consider graphic or offensive imagery. These images are so complex and full of meaning that I think the grid becomes necessary for our ability to understand them. I would like the same to be true about my work. For now, I'm enjoying the visual similarities and differences, and trying to figure out what this stuff means! Check out a few of their pieces, as well as a portrait that I'm posting below.

Gilbert and George, England, 1980
118 3/4x119 1/3 inches

Gilbert and George, Life, from Death Hope Life Fear,
1984, 94 1/4x119 1/4 inches

Gilbert and George in their London home, 1987 (Photo: Derry Moore)

I also found this video about their Retrospective on Youtube. It will provide more information and a broader understanding of their work.

Extra Post: Image Update

I finally have a new image to post for this semester! I'm very excited about it (read about my awesome meeting with Tom here) and happy with the way it turned out.

The Bath, 2010, Paper Collage, approximately 3x5'

Lecture: Hank Willis Thomas

Hank Willis Thomas' lecture this afternoon was difficult at times - particularly the short film Winter in America from which I'm posting stills below - but he was clever and his work was interesting/thought provoking overall.

Thomas' work commonly deals with issues of race, discrimination, and violence through unconventional methods. I was most moved and saddened by Winter in America - a stop-animation film depicting the last five minutes of his cousin's life before being murdered. In collaboration with another artist - Kambui Olujimi - Thomas used GIJoe action figures to re-create the scene of Songha Thomas Willis' tragic death. Of his decision to use toys for this work, Thomas said he hoped it would be a "goofy, disarming" way to comment on our desensitization to violence, particularly through our toy choice for young boys. He said "In child's play, death isn't concerning - you can always pick them back up."

Though their content is depressing, I find the photographs from Winter in America to be beautiful in their own way - through composition, color, and prevalence of gorgeous lens flares - so I'm posting them below. I'm also including a video interview with Hank Willis Thomas that I found online tonight. Definitely watch it; he's a smart guy and an interesting speaker.

Hank Willis Thomas in collaboration with Kambui Olujimi
Lawrence Watching, 2005, lightjet print

Hank Willis Thomas in collaboration with Kambui Olujimi
Down in the Snow, 2005, lightjet print

Hank Willis Thomas in collaboration with Kambui Olujimi
Here they Come, 2005, lightjet print

Unfortunately, I had to leave the lecture early to take a quiz in another class today, so I was not present when he showed Along the Way, a beautiful photo/video mosaic. I'm glad Arlie told me about it; it's interesting to see how his work seems to be taking a turn towards happier things. Check it out here.

Artist: Thomas Allen

In Alternative Processes and Techniques on Thursday, Tom gave us a few artists to look to for inspiration. As a result, I fell in love with Thomas Allen. I adore the way he cuts out figures from book covers and constructs - often sultry - scenes around them. What makes them so brilliant and beautiful is the way he lights and photographs them, which is something that I am starting to play with in my own work (hoping to post images of photographed collages soon!) Naturally, I was sitting in that class brimming with inspiration for Senior Portfolio.

I checked out Allen's blog and I was sorry that I could not find out more about him. I'd love to read a statement about his work - if anyone knows where to find one, please let me know. In the meantime, I'm posting some of my favorite images below, and I'm debating over ordering Uncovered - the book of this series - from amazon right now. Check out how amazing these are:

Research: GLUE!

In light of what happened with my collage before my last meeting with Tom (the glue wasn't flexible and it fell apart when I rolled it up), I thought types of glue would be a good thing to research this week. I mentioned in my post on the class blog that I may not be using glue anymore. However, nothing is certain at this point, so I want to know which kind would be best if I do decide to stick with a more permanent application of myself and Henry on the plane of my images.

Tom suggested checking out Gac by Golden. I searched the Golden website and found that a gel (basically acrylic paint minus the pigment) would likely be the best. The website says: "Soft Gels - Thinner than GOLDEN Heavy Body Acrylic colors, Soft Gels are moderately pourable. Hold only slight peaks. The recommended acrylic to function as a glue for collaging. "

Through my own research, I stumbled upon Yes! Paste by Gane Brothers & Lane. This one sounds too good to be true. According to the Gane website, Yes! Paste is water soluble, non-toxic (very important for lots of reasons, but most importantly because of Henry), and dries clear and permanently flexible. The description even says "It is slow-setting, allowing crafters to reposition and adjust their crafting materials. In addition, is is 100% acid free, making it perfect for archival work, such as scrapbooking. Clean-up is a breeze with Yes! Paste; simply dilute excess glue with warm water." It also claims that it will not wrinkle or curl even delicate materials. And, it's available at Michael's if not Plaza.

Armed with this information, I'm heading out to Plaza and Michael's later today or early tomorrow. It's time to tackle a new collage and (hopefully) head to my next meeting tear-free.

Artist: William Steinman

I struggled to find someone to blog about this week. I seem to spend every weekend searching for a new collage artist, when I should probably look at more than that. This week I decided to go for a more general criteria - mixed media - rather than strictly collage. After all, mixed media often involves collage, and I'm considering allowing Henry to draw and paint on my collages, which would throw them into that category as well.

This week, I found William Steinman. It's funny that I'm drawn to his work, because it all seems to stem from things I'm not interested in - like graffiti and comic books. However, his Comic Flesh series caught my eye and held it. I'm particularly interested in the function of color in this work, and how all of the various elements mesh on the plane. If I hadn't read the titles, it would have taken me a very long time to realize that these works include images of comic book heroes and villains (look close - they do!)

Steinman explains his process and the origins of his work in his statement:

I have always been addicted to street culture. When I was young, I would take my skateboard out all day and ride around downtown Phoenix. As I explored the city, I began noticing the incredible array of graffiti around me, and seeing all of this sparked something in me. Soon I merged right into the world of graffiti art. I focused on nothing but painting and photographing graffiti. Eventually I began to feel that graffiti was becoming increasingly dangerous and redundant, and then I started studying painting.

Given my early obsession with graffiti, I made a natural progression to the bold lines and appropriated images of Pop art. I found myself more attracted to Warhol’s prints of fatalities and Lichtenstein’s blown up comic images, than to the Keith Harring and Basquiat pieces that my high school art teachers were always pushing on me. Moving to New York after college got me very interested in the work of artists like Richard Prince and Christopher Wool, as well as the everyday art I see on the streets.

I call my work the dark side of Pop. I employ blown up images, modern store bought objects, found materials, lots of comic books, and combine it all together with industrial glue. My work relies on my reaction to the images I find, and my intention is to make each image louder and not so easily overlooked. Just like as with the ready-mades, I let anyone do the work of manufacturing the image, but my work begins in observing and altering it. These newer images can make me nauseous, while at the same time conjuring a feeling of nostalgia—I want to present them this way.

A few of my favorites from Comic Flesh are posted below. Please see Steinman's website for more images and information.

William Steinman, Comic Flesh E
mixed media on acrylic sheet, 26.5x19.5 inches

William Steinman, Comic Flesh D
mixed media on acrylic sheet, 26.5x19.5 inches

William Steinman, Comic Flesh B
mixed media on acrylic sheet, 26.5x19.5 inches

Idea Post: Escapism

Is escapism bad, or is it a healthy option for a single mother and her child?

Yes, this is my idea topic! I have been thinking about my collages a lot recently (especially because I am working on some of the biggest ones I've ever made for my upcoming meeting with Tom) and I can't help but think of them as a means of escape. Within the confines of a 2-dimensional image, I can play out any scenario my heart desires. I can climb out of the window, run away, eat my child, be tiny, be huge, be lazy, be ... whatever. So, all of this leads me to the question: Is it wrong for me to search for a means of escape, and does it make me less of a super-mom? That question leads to a million more, but I am going to try to stick to the one.

I LOVE being a mommy, even though it is the hardest job I've ever had. However, there are times when I do want to fantasize for a few seconds that I do not have this immense responsibility - at least not all to myself. So, I take these collages as my chance to play out that fantasy. I struggle with this. I don't want people to think that I am looking for a way out or anything like that; I feel bad for even admitting that I look for an escape. But what if it isn't bad? I started researching this question, and I think I have come to the conclusion that it isn't. Maybe I'm just trying to make myself feel better, but I can't help but believe that without an occasional break, we would all lose our minds.

"Retreating to fantasy helps people gather strength to face the real world. It keeps the spirit alive and kicking—and inspires us to confront our problems." - Ethan Gilsdorf from Is Escapism Bad for Us? No. In addition to this very comforting quote, I found the definition of escapism to be encouraging as well. Although escapism is largely considered to be a negative thing, it is also mostly thought of as escape to a technological otherworld, but I am immersing myself and Henry in a real, tactile activity. Through making these collages, I am not zoning Henry out while staring at a glowing screen, but rather involving him in a thought-provoking process, largely made of thinking of our relationship to each other.

Conclusion: I don't have to feel guilty for escaping through my work, especially when I'm taking Henry with me. The process is therapeutic and rejuvenating, and helps me to work through all of the rollercoaster thoughts and feelings that come along with single motherhood. Now, to think of a better word than "escape"...

Artist: Lena Wolff

I was first drawn to Lena Wolff's paper works because I thought they were gorgeous, somewhat whimsical, and made with impeccable craft. On closer inspection, I have become very interested in the process and meaning behind her collages. I have been toying with the idea of piecing together small collages to make something much larger, and I love that she has done exactly that, to create what she calls "paper quilts." Please read an excerpt from her statement below:

"As an artist I'm informed by an interest in folk art, anthropomorphic fables, allegory, organic abstraction and veneration for the natural world. Working with mixed mediums on paper, I draw from philosophies of the Arts and Crafts Movement and the re-contextualization of textile traditions as much as by contemporary drawing and painting practice.

Using paper-cut, collage and pinpricks on paper, I work to construct textured and layered images that appear otherworldly and fantastic. The pieces with darker backgrounds can appear black in reproductions but are actually a dark metallic gray that is affected by light. These surfaces are made by building up thin layers of dark gray paint on paper which is then rubbed with powdered graphite. The paper is punctured with a needle to create pinpricks and finally hand-painted cut and pasted collage pieces, along with various minute sizes of hole-punched paper are laid on top. By working on the front and back-side of the paper, the surface is handled by hand like fabric as much as paper itself, and often multiple panels are joined in a single piece to make paper quilts. "

I'm posting a few of my favorites from her portfolio below. I highly recommend checking out her website to view them larger, as well as to learn more about her.

Lena Wolff, Twilight Gathering, 2006
Paper quilt: acrylic, graphite, pinprick and collage on rag paper, 84x70 inches

Lena Wolff, Blue Peacock, 2006
acrylic, graphite, pinpricks and collage on paper, 30x22 inches

Lena Wolff, Night Mountain, 2007
Paper quilt: acrylic, graphite, pinpricks, and collage on paper, 44x48 inches, nine panels

Lena Wolff, Untitled (Five Bird Gathering), 2007
collage on paper, 44x44 inches