And We Have Moved

David and I moved to Orlando, FL back in October of 2011. We have spent the last 4 months renovating our house and planning our wedding (are we nuts? yes. yes we are.). I have not had much time to explore the art scene in Orlando yet, though I have learned enough to know that yes, there is an art scene in Orlando. It’s just a little spread out.

First off I found Burnt Oranges, the local Burning Man non-profit. They put on 2 local burns a year and provide grants for local artists. I also found the local Maker Space, FamiLab right around the time they were moving in to a new and larger space and starting to build a metal studio. While it’s still in the works, it is super exciting to see it coming together. They are also hosting the first ever Orlando Mini Maker Faire May 26, 2012 in which I am a featured maker with Propolis. I have also been told about but have not yet visited the Crealde School of Art, a community organization that provides classes and studio space for local artists.

Now that I have some more free time I need to explore and get involved with the scene here. I will also be making in out to San Francisco in May for Maker Faire and hopefully later in the summer to help out with some Burning Man projects. David and I are not planning on attending the Burn this year, and while I do feel  a little sad I am excited for what comes next. And no worries, we’ll be back on the playa soon enough!

Back from the Burn

Flaming Lotus Girls, Tympani Lambada crew, photo by Joe Dacanay

I had the most amazing Burning Man to date (though it seems that happens every year). I had the distinct pleasure of helping build Tympani Lambada with the Flaming Lotus Girls over the past summer and then installing it on playa during build week. It was hot. Really hot. It was a lot of hard work. A lot of late nights. But oh-so-very worth it. I remember last year when I brought Propolis I felt so much more connected to the event as a whole. Well, working with a large crew on a collaborative piece only developed an even deeper connection to the event and the community.

That would have been amazing if that's all I had done, but I also helped build the Serpent Twins, two amazing serpent cars by Jon Sarriugarte. Seeing these two cars roam around the playa is just fantastically wonderfully delightful, not to mention that my heart melted when I got to drive one.

Burning Man Projects

Grinding the Serpent's fins, photo by Kyrsten Mate

Since May of this year I’ve been spending much of my time down in San Francisco/Oakland helping out with a couple of Burning Man projects. After having brought my own piece last year I wanted to just help out someone else and not have to worry about the logistics, funding, etc. Also, having mostly worked on my own I wanted to see what goes into a large scale art piece. The first one I am helping out with is the Serpent Twins by Jon Sarriugarte and Kyrsten Mate. They make beautifully crafted and whimsical art cars, and these ones are no exception. I’m learning a lot about what it takes to make a well-made and detail-oriented piece. Check out some photos from the studio.

I am also helping out the Flaming Lotus Girls with their piece, Tympani Lambada. The FLG are one of the main reasons I ever started working with metal in the first place so I am quite excited to have come full circle and be working with them. They are a fully volunteer group and in fact, anyone can come help out whether or not they have any metal working experience. Their pieces are a small miracle, and a testament to the hard work that they put into their pieces. It has been an incredible experience seeing what goes into a large scale fire, LED, and sound sculpture built in the desert. So much love and dedication.

It's Alive!

Photo by Neil Girling

I’m back from the Burn and it was everything I envisioned and more. Bringing a piece of art enhanced the experience in so many ways and I felt a lot more connected to everything. It was, not surprisingly, more work than I had expected  (the rain on Monday night DID NOT help me out in any way), but it was completely worth it. We frantically installed the lighting in the two days prior to leaving and only saw it complete for the first time on Tuesday night. That moment was such a relief and an overflow of excitement. It was more beautiful than I had imagined. Throughout the week I got a lot of great feedback from people and enjoyed hearing different interpretations of the piece and its meaning.

I was determined to take a break and decompress but I’m already finding myself taking note of the lessons I learned from this and brainstorming ideas for next year. Creating is addicting.

Almost Done

Installing Covers

We leave for Burning Man in five days and it looks like this is all going to come together. The frame is done, the plastic is all cut out, I’ve drilled the million and three holes, and while the lighting will be done a little last minute I have a feeling it will all work out just fine. Speaking of which, I should really thank my friends Rachel and Brian for helping me out so much with the lighting. They are both professional lighting designers in New York City and they volunteered to help me out (as in do all the work) with the lighting. It has been a bit of a logistical pain in the butt to collaborate long-distance, and I have to admit to a few hysterical freak-outs, but I think it will all come together.

I just have a couple of small things to complete before we leave – shellac one one of the pieces, drill a couple more holes (drilling seems like  a never-ending task), and finish up the stakes – but thankfully I’m no longer in ‘oh holy crap I have to work 16 hour days or this will never  get finished’ mode. I’ve got some time to think about packing and I have even already brainstormed about ideas for next year (but then and realize that that is completely insane and make myself stop).

Propolis

Propolis Frame Completed

I’m officially done with the first stage of my piece. The frame is complete and now I’ve just got a million other things to get done. The next step is to make plastic coverings for the hexagons that will have lights in them. I’m anticipating that this step will somewhat short and sweet but the next step, installing them, will be quite time consuming. Thank goodness I’ve got a lot of time (in theory at least – it’s amazing how time flies when you’re immersed so completely in something).

I finished my forge building class last week but I’ve still got some work to do on it. We worked on the gas and air supply but now I’ve got to install some ceramic insulation and put it all together. It shouldn’t be too much work, I just need to take time away from Propolis to complete the forge and I have a hard time doing that. I’ll happen.

I also need to submit my piece to Burning Man this weekend so that it’s placed on the map and in all the literature. At that point I’ll be all official and really have to complete this thing (though I’m sure there are quite a few projects that never quite make it to the playa despite the best of intentions).

Burning Man's Fault

This whole thing started with Burning Man (like so many other things I’m sure). It’s Burning Man’s fault that I’ve got burns up and down my arms and hands (and oddly enough, boobs) from welding and forging. It’s Burning Man’s fault I’ve organized my life and my job so I can spend my days in the studio. And it’s Burning Man’s fault that I couldn’t be happier.

It first attended in 2006, and for those who haven’t been, simply put: it’s inspiring. The amount of time, love, hard work, dedication, and resources that people put in this event is mind-blowing. People share because they care. Or something less cheesy sounding than that.

Every year that I’ve gone I’ve been most drawn to the art. Massive, interactive, fire and LED lit sculptures dot the playa and create quite the surreal landscape. I love it, and I’ve wanted to contribute since I first saw it.

It took me awhile to get to a place where I could start – a move to a new state, a new job, and other personal whatnot got in they way for awhile. But come 2008 I was able to take my first welding class at Pratt Fine Arts Center and I loved it. I made a box, not the most exciting thing in the world, but it still sits on my shelf holding my poi. I continued to take welding and forging classes over the next couple of years. Now I primarily rent out their sculpture studio for my own personal use. I spend my days making art and answering to no one but me – it pretty much rocks.

Every year at Burning Man it seems like the Flaming Lotus Girls bring one of the most beautiful and creative pieces of the year. After last year’s piece, Soma, I decided I wanted to work with them and hopefully learn something about fire installations and the logistics of making a larger scale piece in the process. I got in contact with them and it looked like it was all going to work out until they sadly did not receive a grant from Burning Man for their piece (apparently they asked for too much money – this makes me wonder how awesomely huge and fiery their idea was). I looked into helping out some other groups both in the Bay are and here in Seattle but nothing intrigued me quite like the FLG – I like their aesthetic, the fact that it’s mostly women, and their come one, come all approach.

So, what’s a girl to do? DIY of course, as that’s sort of the whole point of Burning Man. So do it myself I did. And am doing. And still have a lot of hard work doing ahead – which is all Burning Man’s fault.