Zine Dream 3

I am doing Zine Dream again this year...it is happening next Sunday, August 29th from 11am-5pm at the Tranzac.

For more info and for the list of exhibitors, check out the Zine Dream website.

The T.A.M.I Show in Border Crossings Magazine

Anyone who knows me outside of the world of art and craft knows what a music head/record nut I am-- more specifically, a 60s music head. Because of this, it was especially pleasurable when I happened upon the short article Rock of Ageis: "The T.A.M.I. Show Directed by Steve Binder by Robert Enright in the latest issue of Border Crossings (which most know is an art magazine as opposed to a music magazine).

The T.A.M.I. Show is a feature-length concert film from 1964 showcasing some of the most popular rock'n'roll/soul groups and artists of the mid-sixties such as The Beach Boys, James Brown, The Stones, The Supremes and Lesley Gore as well as a few minor garage acts like Boston's The Barbarians. Enright argues that both the film's visual style and the artists represented captured that very particular period of early/mid-sixties innocence and idealism just before the civil rights movement, Vietnam and a general sense of social unrest and cultural upheaval in the U.S. The article emphasizes the idea of the performances foreshadowing future events, with nicely articulated asides on Leslie Gore's "You Don't Own Me" as a proto-feminist anthem and a potential early assertion of her identity as a lesbian, and the fact that the Beach Boys performance on T.A.M.I took place only two months before Brian Wilson's (first?) nervous breakdown.

A cool article well worth reading if you dig music. Also, search The T.A.M.I. Show on Youtube for some excellent footage from the recently released deluxe DVD edition of the concert.

Photos: The Supremes and The Beach Boys on the T.A.M.I Show

Garlic "Recipies"

I made this zine a few weeks ago. Aside from that, I've been swamped working 8 days (some 9.5 hours long!) straight at my two jobs and wading through (many fantastic) applications for this exhibition. Simply not enough hours in the day these days...

The garlic zine is available to purchase on Etsy at this link.

Drawing with Scissors and People Place Thing at the TMC

I went to the Textile Museum on Friday afternoon and finally saw the exhibition Person Place Thing, which showcases the work of Lia Cook, David R. Harper and Stephen Schofield. I saw David R. Harper's work earlier in the year at MKG 127, and was wondering how a reading of his work would change in a much bigger space.

Though I enjoyed seeing Harper's work in a larger space and appreciated the supplementary exhibition texts to guide me through his conceptual concerns, the real stand out of this show was Stephen Schofield. His work involves the stiffening of salvaged fabric with sugar water to create amazing three-dimensional inflated figures that not only have integrity to real human proportions and anatomy, but are also expressive, quirky, and incredibly playful.

Also up at the TMC is the exhibition Drawing with Scissors: Molas from Kuna Yala. This utterly packed exhibition showcases the decorative panels from the blouses of Kuna-- an autonomous ethnic group that is native to a small island off the coast of Panama. The molas are intricately embroidered and reverse-appliqued with handsewn geometric patterns and imagery as diverse as roosters, baseball players, labyrinth-like designs and Tony the Tiger. Through the history and subject matter/imagery of molas, the exhibition touches on themes such as colonialism, craft, spirituality, matrilocal customs and globalization.

Images, from top:

Stephen Schofield, Dibutade 1

Example of a Mola (A reimagining of the Victor/RCA logo?)

Lia Cook, Big Maze

David R. Harper, The Last to Win

ECG Drawing

I've been working on this drawing for the past week or so, but my overhead projector bulb just burned out! What now? This is the first of 5 large scale drawings of documents from my medical file. If anyone has a overhead projector I can borrow....let me know!

More on this series of drawings soon.

Ink and coloured pencil on mylar.

29.07.10

24 Hour Zine Challenge Tomorrow at the TRANZAC

This just in from the Toronto Zine Library...a 24 Hour Zine Challenge! It's tomorrow, so throw some supplies together and get thee to the TRANZAC for 5pm! Thanks Amy Leigh for the heads up!

Happy International Zine Month!

To celebrate, the Toronto Zine Library is participating in the 24 hour zine challenge and we would love for you to join us! We are hosting a kick off event this Wednesday, July 28th starting at 5pm and going strong until the Tranzac Club closes.

What is the 24 hour zine challenge, you ask? A yearly event where one attempts to make a 24 page zine from start to finish in 24 hours. From initial idea right through to photocopying/collating/stapling your zine. More information, list of this year's participants and sign up can be found here:http://24hourzines.com/

(Please note that you dont *have* to register and/or send your zine in when its finished. We encourage you participate to whatever degree you are most comfortable with. Or, you are welcome to just come and hang out at the TZL and cheer participants on!)

Bring your ideas and if youre able a snack to share while we hang out, listen to music, and get a start on our 24 hour zines! Some supplies will be available (paper, glue, scissors, magazine clippings, a couple of typewriters, a long arm stapler) but please do bring your favourite or necessary zine making supplies. Conveniently, there is a 24 hour Kinkos a half-block away!

Also, similar to the event folks at the Independent Pubishing Resource Center (http://www.iprc.org/) in Portland Oregon held a few days ago, we will be streaming our 24 hour zine challenge event live! If you're unable to join us, bookmark http://www.ustream.tv/channel/toronto-zine-library-24hr-zine-challenege and tune in on Wednesday starting at 5pm EST and participate alongside us from wherever you may be.

Ok, to recap:

WHEN: wednesday july 28th, 5pm until close

WHERE: the toronto zine library -- 2nd floor of the tranzac club -- 292 brunswick st. just south of bloor. close to spadina subway station

COST: free!

WHAT: 24 hour zine challenge kick off BRING: yourself, your friends, snacks, creativity, zine making supplies, ideas

Holler at us if you have any additional questions or concerns. We regret that the TZL is not a wheelchair accessible space.

The Toronto Zine Library 292 Brunswick Ave, 2nd floor

torontozinelibrary@gmail.com

http://torontozinelibrary.blogspot.com

Call for Submissions: The Wunderkabinet

Here is a really great call for submissions, organized by City of Craft alumnae, Leah Buckareff! This is a really great way to get your work overseas! If you would like to submit handmade objects for display/sale in a rotating multiples exhibition cabinet, take a look at the Wunderkabinet website.

The Craft Reader

I've been reading this on and off for the past few weeks in an effort to expand my theory deficient and unedu-ma-cated brain, as well as to get some ideas to put toward the Love and Money show. I particularly enjoyed the essays Building Materials by Adolf Loos and The Revival of Handicraft by William Morris. Adolf Loos wrote the infamous essay Ornament and Crime, in which he proclaimed that ornament was a sign of degeneracy(!).

More on The Craft Reader here.

I like your work: art and etiquette

I bought this pamphlet/book at a bookstore in Brooklyn while I was there two weeks ago, because I both found it's concept hilarious and figured it would be an added bonus if I actually learned something from it, as someone who often feels like vomiting before her own openings. I once took the day off of work to go to an afternoon reception of a group show I was in, chickened out, and sent my parents into the gallery while I waited in the car! I agonize over the most basic of interactions that happen at openings, and judging by this book, I'm not the only one who does this by miles...

Here are some highlights from the book, which offers both biting criticisms of and honest advice and tips for navigating the art world, an oftentimes bizarre and complicated parallel universe which has it's own unique code of conduct and unspoken "rules."

ANONYMOUS: "Wait until you are at least six blocks away from a show before expressing a negative opinion about this show-- this is known as the "six-block rule."

ANDREW BERARDINI: "You must attend art openings. When you're Bruce Nauman, you can be a hermit in New Mexico. Until then however, you must attend art openings."

DAVID LEVINE: (When asked what constitutes bad manners...) "Getting so caught up in your own social discomfort that you fail to attend to the comfort of others."

RYAN STEADMAN: "If you're a skinny artist, be clean and neat. If you're a fat artist, be crazy looking and disheveled. Not sure why, but this seems to work best."

JESSICA SLAVEN: (When asked what the role of etiquette is in the art world...) "That the art world should have a separate code of behavior from civilized society serves to indicate its self-impressed and savage nature."

More on I like your work here.

Call for Submissions: Love and Money

The following call is for a group show I'm organizing for this year's City of Craft fair that will take place at the Ontario Crafts Council Gallery. Help spread the word!

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

Love and Money

At the Ontario Crafts Council Gallery

December 16-31, 2010

Reception: Thursday, December 16, 7-10pm

City of Craft (in partnership with the Ontario Craft Council) is seeking submissions for a group exhibition that will take place at the Ontario Craft Council Gallery as a part of City of Craft’s 2010 off-site programming. City of Craft is Toronto’s largest independent craft sale and weekend-long event featuring craft-based installations, free workshops, and craft-related programming.

This year’s exhibition will explore the broad relationship craft and crafting has with commerce. Craft(ing) is currently a multi-billion dollar industry. From mainstream craft media personalities and the DIY Network to hipster how-to guides, mega craft fairs and fabric designers du jour, the commercial nature of the contemporary “crafting” movement often seems to starkly contrast the idea of crafting for necessity from days gone by. On the other hand, there are people who turn to craft and craft processes for a sense of transcendence and autonomy. Many would argue that there is more of a need to craft for crafts sake now than ever-- either to re-skill ourselves for an uncertain future, or simply to learn to slow down.

Are money and craft strange (or natural) bedfellows? How does craft transcend issues of commerce? How do you navigate or perceive the dichotomy of craft for love/craft for money? Work that addresses any facet of the above ideas is welcomed as a submission. Submissions of fine craft, indie craft and art are encouraged.

Love and Money is curated and coordinated by Tara Bursey.

The official call for submissions and the online application for Love and Money can be found on the City of Craft website.

Submission Deadline: Sunday, August 15^th

Shredded Money photo by Becky Johnson

Dead or Alive

Saw the exhibition Dead or Alive at the Museum of Craft and Design during my trip to NYC and Brooklyn. The show was incredible-- much of the work in the show reminded me so much of my own work, to the point that it made me feel a little weird. I ended up buying the show's catalogue, which is also gorgeous.

More on the show here.

From the top:

Keith Bentley, Cauda Equina

Helen Altman, Balsam Fir Skull

Tracy Heneberger, Cool Water

Kate MccGwire, Sluice (detail)

Alastair Mackie, Untitled (+/-)

Brooklyn

Went to Brooklyn Museum on Wednesday and saw these amazing shows:

http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/extended_family/

http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/kiki_smith/

http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/dinner_party/

From top: Brooklyn Museum, Kara Walker, Judy Chicago, Kiki Smith, Cheese fries at Coney Island.

Shrimplace

Two new Shrimplace shadow boxes, made as a wedding present.

6"X6"

16.06.10

PLP at Mixed Media, Hamilton

And now for a rather late update on last week's PLP reception at Mixed Media in Hamilton. The opening was loads of fun...the James Street Art Crawl was incredible, with hoards of art-hungry observers packing the streets and galleries until nearly midnight. I can't recommend the Art Crawl enough to Toronto artists starved for a little art-related enthusiasm and a sense of community often times hard to come by in a city as large as ours. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to see The Portable Library Project, and for all the kind feedback. Thanks also to Dave Kuruc of Mixed Media for hosting the project in his incredible store and for all his help along the way, as well as PLP artists Stephanie Vegh, Sheila Jonah and Fiona Bailey for coming out to see the show! And...thanks again to Fiona and her partner Patrick for the ride back to T.O!

The Portable Library Project is on view at Mixed Media until July 3rd.

Photo courtesy of hamilton.ca

PLP at Mixed Media, Hamilton

The next showing of The Portable Library Project opens this Friday at Mixed Media in Hamilton. The opening will coincide with Hamilton's monthy James Street Art Crawl. See above (and below!) for all the details. Hope to see you there!

The Portable Library Project is a multi-dimensional mail-art/bookmaking project involving the creation of small works exploring ideas surrounding archiving, ephemera, journalling, libraries and incorporating an art practice into everyday life. The 18 participating artists span several artistic disciplines, from performance art to fibre-based art; from photo-based art to craft to sculpture and installation. Artists involved in the project are based across Canada, and are from as far away as Seoul, Korea.

Invited artists were sent/delivered an empty cigar box, roughly the size of a hardcover book. Over the course of one week, participants were expected to create a 'book' a day, reflective of each person's day-to-day activities and artistic process. Books were ideally made while on the go; boxes were intended to be carried with the participant, where books were to be added and collected each day for seven days.

Participating artists:
Aimee Lee (Seoul, Korea)
Amber Landgraff (Toronto)
Cara Spooner (Toronto)
Daphne Gerou (Toronto)
Debbie Danelley (Winnipeg, MB)
Deborah Margo (Ottawa, ON)
Fiona Bailey (Toronto)
Jen Pilles (Oakville, ON)
Laura Calvi (Halifax, NS)
Laurie Kang (Toronto)
Margaret Flood (Guelph, ON)
Margaret Legue (Forest, ON)
Morag Schonken (Halifax, NS)
Sheila Jonah (Toronto)
Simon Rabyniuk (Toronto)
Stephanie Cormier (Toronto)
Stephanie Vegh (Hamilton, ON)
Sylvia Ziemann (Regina, SK)

The Portable Library Project is organized and curated by Tara Bursey.

Poster design: Tara Bursey

Drawing on Washi Exhibition at the JPP

My work is going to be included in the above group show, which opens this Friday, from 7-9pm. Drawing on Washi: The Presence of the Void is part of this year's city-wide washi birthday festivities, organized largely by the Japanese Paper Place. For more info on other going's on-- which include exhibitions, talks and workshops celebrating Japanese paper-- take a look at this website.

Click on the image above to view the info larger.

Sonja Ahlers' The Selves on TCA

A review I wrote of Sonja Ahlers' exhibition The Selves (up until Tuesday at Magic Pony) was just posted on Toronto Craft Alert. Check it out here.

The Selves is also the title of Sonja's new book on Drawn and Quarterly.

Cornsilk Pinback Buttons

Posted on Etsy here, and also available at Art History as of last week. Made of 100% Kozo Japanese paper (Mura Koban) and real cornsilk.

Neat Little Press Mention...

My Ninth Grade Notes and Plaster Fingers got a nice mention in a write-up about Art History in the current Design Lines Annual Guide Issue. Check it out here.

Both my Plaster Fingers and Ninth Grade Notes are for sale at my Etsy shop, which can be found here.

From Russia with Love on Etsy

Last night I placed a new listing on Etsy for From Russia with Love custom mail order bride drawings. I had the idea to do these a long time ago when asked to contribute the FRWL project to a group show that never came to fruition. Below is a short description of the project, along with ordering info.

*****

From Russia with Love Mail Order Bride-- MADE TO ORDER

Your very own mail order bride...made to order! For $30, I will send you your own mail order bride portrait, drawn in archival ink on a postcard-size (4"X6") piece of heavyweight cold press watercolour paper. Drawings can be made (from actual "mail order bride" websites) either at random, or made to order from your specifications. Specifications can include any combination of the following:

-Age
-Height
-Eye Colour
-Hair Colour
-Weight
-Hobbies/Special Interests

Each drawing comes with an info sheet that includes information about each portrait subject-- name, country and city of origin, age, etc.

From the original FRWL artist's statement:
From Russia with Love is a project based around a series of 72 portraits of Russian “mail order brides” drawn from photographs on internet sites. This project is an extension of previous work exploring serial portraiture- yearbook photos, WWII military portraits- and the idea of portraits of this nature serving as “human catalogues.” Using the laborious act of drawing each woman’s likeness by hand, the project attempts to subvert the idea of these women being catalogued, while alluding to their commodification through their presentation within storefront installations and supplementary bookwork/pinback button multiples.

*****

If you're interested in purchasing a drawing, buy one through the listing on my Etsy shop here.