These are the books I looked at for background on what Woodblock printing actually is. I had originally crafted the gallery around images from these books...unfortunately I couldn't find most of them online and I recreated my gallery selection.
Books:
Farmer, Jane. American Prints from Wood: An Exhibition of Woodcuts and Wood Engravings. Smithsonian Institute Press, Washington, D.C. 1975
A small volume filled with examples of western woodblock printing. Essentially an expanded showguide for an exhibition held at the Smithsonian Institute in the 1970's. The introduction had lots of information about the western development of the craft.
Fern, Alex. The Wood and the Graver. Crown Publishers, New York. 1977
Large coffee table book featuring the biography and collected works of artist Fritz Eichenburg (who I featured in my show). The end of the book gave a nice explanation, as well as photographs, about Eichenburg's process of creating a woodblock. Beautiful full page illustrations-- great to see the intricate detail of his work, which can sometimes get lost on fuzzy online pictures.
Gregson, Wilson. A Student's Guide to Wood Engraving. B.T. Batsford, LTD, London. 1953
First half of the book talks about the history of Woodblock printing coming to America (1st printer in America was Dr. Anderson in1793). Gregson also talks a lot about Bewick, who considered a master of the craft. Bewick invented the "white line style" as well as crosshatching. He did a lot of people and animals rather than landscapes so I didn't feature any of his work in my show.
Illing, Richard. The Art of Japanese Prints. John Calmann and Cooper, LTD, London. 1980
Mostly used this to look at various prints. Didn't end up using the ones that I marked, but I got a nice sense of the ukiyo-e style.
Mannering, Douglas. Great Works of Japanese Graphic Art. Shooting Star Press, New York. 1995
This little book was awesome. Featured a great introduction on the Japanese style of woodblock printing. Beautiful color illustrations. Lots of information on the "masters" of this style.
Smith, Henry (II). Hokusai: One Hundred Views of Mount Fuji. George Braziller, Inc. Publishers, New York. 1988
Information on Hokusai. Only skimmed through it. Illustrations weren't in color. This is where I got the information for his biography though. The rest of the artists I used websites.
Websites (artists biographies):
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/hiroshige/
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Bundle Three, Talk to Someone/Go There
The two people I used as sources were Ashlea Heck, the PR person aboard SeaFair as well as Lee Ann, one of the owners of the boat. Lee Ann asked me to set up a small gallery of her personal collection to fill an unoccupied space. I learned that galleries need to number and list all the paintings before they're even hung. Do do this, you simply put labels with a number on the back of the painting and a corresponding numbered list. Lee Ann wanted me to list them (the numbered list is eventually turned into a price list fopr buyers) as Artist Last Name, First Name. "Title of Piece" medium, year. After that's done you have to create the labels for all the pieces, which should read:
"Title of the Piece"
Artsist's Last Name, First Name
Medium, Date
(note: really obnoxious to rearrange the order from the price lists, but hey, apparently that's how it's done)
The other thing I learned at the gallery was how to make a proper Press Release. Ashlea is the press liason here on the boat and one afternoon she was talking about writing up a press release. I jumped at the opportunity and asked her to forward it to me when she was done so I could see how they were set up. This is what she sent to me (There was a simple square border around the release as well, but I can't seem to copy that into this blog):
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
"Title of the Piece"
Artsist's Last Name, First Name
Medium, Date
(note: really obnoxious to rearrange the order from the price lists, but hey, apparently that's how it's done)
The other thing I learned at the gallery was how to make a proper Press Release. Ashlea is the press liason here on the boat and one afternoon she was talking about writing up a press release. I jumped at the opportunity and asked her to forward it to me when she was done so I could see how they were set up. This is what she sent to me (There was a simple square border around the release as well, but I can't seem to copy that into this blog):
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Ashlea Heck
239.949.5411/ aheck@ifae.com
ModernMasters Fine Art Joins Art Newport- aboard America’s Megayacht Venue- SeaFair
Newport, RI- July 7, 2011- SeaFair will be joined today by ModernMasters Fine Art & Brokerage, an Indianapolis-based fine art company that specializes in modern and contemporary masters ranging from Picasso to Warhol (http://www.modernmastersfab.com/) and will exhibiting over fifty works for purchase aboard SeaFair.
ModernMasters will feature an exhibit that explores modern and contemporary art by decade rather than genre. Beginning in the 1930s with etchings created by Pablo Picasso, the exhibit will next feature rare works from the 1950s by Andy Warhol and Salvador Dali. The 1960s segment will include one of Warhol's iconic screenprints of Marilyn Monroe, along with works by Roy Lichtenstein and Joan Miro. The 1970's grouping includes a small original painting by Alexander Calder, original drawings by Jean-Michel Basquiat, and prints by Dali, Motherwell, and others. A strong presence of pop art is featured in the 1980s, including a coveted screen-print created by Keith Haring (Silence = Death), an original Warhol drawing, along with a small oil on canvas painting by Robert Motherwell. The 1990's fittingly ends with Roy Lichtenstein's print "Art Critic." The new millennium works feature, among other things, diamond dust pieces by Russell Young.
The ModernMasters exhibit will be open July 7th, and will run through July 19th. Three contemporary established Indianapolis-based artists they represent under the moniker of Indy Contemporary (http://www.indycontemporary.com/) will also be exhibited. The Indy Contemporary portion of the exhibit has a high tech twist. Collectors will experience the works of Indianapolis-based artists Walter Knabe, Constance Edwards Scopelitis, and Lois Main Templeton in both an active and interactive exhibit space - a concept which would have been impossible only a few years ago. They will be able to see the artists physically create various works, as well as being able to call up the artists' descriptions of their creations; all of this will be possible without being in the artists' studio or presence.
The duration of ModernMasters exhibition on SeaFair will include two special “Meet the Artist” events:
JULY 8, 2011, Friday
MEET THE ARTIST: WALTER KNABE
5:30pm - 7pm
MEET THE ARTIST: WALTER KNABE
5:30pm - 7pm
Chosen in 2010 as the official artist of the Indianapolis 500, master screen printer Walter Knabe specializes in painting and printmaking. His name is also synonymous with artistic luxury, as evidenced by his 2011 selection as the "Legend IN Design" and the worldwide demand for his hand-created wall coverings and fabrics. Knabe received his formal education at Columbia and at the University of Wisconsin, Madison; he has since taught at the University of Wisconsin, as well as teaching at New York University, the School of Design (NY), and the Fashion Institute of Technology (NY). Among others, Knabe's early projects include working with Thomas Hart Benton on Benton's last mural in Joplin, Missouri. Knabe's works have been exhibited in the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Art Museum, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, and the Richmond Museum of Art, among other venues. His creations are in the homes and offices of film, sports, and m usic legends.
JULY 14, 2011, Thursday
MEET THE ARTIST: CONSTANCE EDWARDS SCOPELITIS
5:30pm - 7pm
MEET THE ARTIST: CONSTANCE EDWARDS SCOPELITIS
5:30pm - 7pm
Touted as one of the "exceptional" artists of 2010 (Studio Visit Magazine, Vol 11), painter extraordinaire Constance Edwards Scopelitis began her career studying under American figurative painting legend Isabel Bishop, and continued her study alongside other notable figurative painters such as David Leffel and Peter Cox. Thrice given the nod by American Art Collector (most recently in 2011), Scopelitis was also chosen, along with 24 other international artists, to attend an exclusive fellowship invitational in Holland in 2010. Scopelitis' mediums of choice are oil on linen or charcoal on paper, and she specializes in contemporary figurative works. Her fine art education at Indiana University and the Art Students League in New York served as the foundation for these accolades along with museum exhibits and notable corporate collections.
For more information on the artists please visit http://www.modernmastersfab.com/ or http://www.indycontemporary.com./
Art Newport, aboard SeaFair will be open daily from 11am-7pm at Perry Mill Wharf. For more information please visit http://www.expoships.com/ or call 239-273-1455. To purchase tickets, please visit http://www.expoships.com./
To visit our online press room and to download press images, please click here.
.... And that's how it's done. I guess I'll have to create my website first so I have stuff to link to in my press release. Which is cool, I like when the documents all inform one another.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Bundle 3, what I know
Okay, so I'm super excited for this bundle because I'm working at a gallery this summer (bizarre coincidence)! It's this very large yacht docked in Newport from June-September. You can learn all about it here. I'm technically an administrative assistant hired to chase down artists/gallery owners for their contracts, but I've been snagged by the owner of the ship and I've basically been doing her bidding for the last few days. What I've learned: galleries are super-duper nitpicky and very detail oriented. I spent today unpacking, numbering, and cross referencing 40 or 50 paintings (there was a translation issue with some of the titles of a Mexican artist, Rufino Tamayo). Definitely using this experience [I've never worked for a gallery before, it's incredible] to influence/ shape this project. Promise I won't "borrow" any of the galleries I'm working on, only using them as inspiration for my own!
And if anybody is in the area and wants to visit the boat for the "go there" COME! It's beautiful! tickets for a day pass are $15 online. Also, we change our galleries out every one or two weeks so you can come throughout the summer and see something new every time.
Or, try RISD museum. I go there at least once a year if not more. They have pay-what-you-want Sundays from 10am-1pm (hello free admission) as well as student discounts ($3 with ID). LOVE their impressionist collection and their Japanese woodblock collection. The whole place is pretty awesome.
loooooving this last bundle!!!
And if anybody is in the area and wants to visit the boat for the "go there" COME! It's beautiful! tickets for a day pass are $15 online. Also, we change our galleries out every one or two weeks so you can come throughout the summer and see something new every time.
Or, try RISD museum. I go there at least once a year if not more. They have pay-what-you-want Sundays from 10am-1pm (hello free admission) as well as student discounts ($3 with ID). LOVE their impressionist collection and their Japanese woodblock collection. The whole place is pretty awesome.
loooooving this last bundle!!!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Bundle 2, Read more (part two)
I could not find enough information for a substantial "history of the quahog" but I did find some fun facts about chowder that I incorporated into my menu. The information was taken from these two books:
Voorhees, Don. Why Does Popcorn Pop? and 201 other Fascinating Facts About Food. MJF Books, New York, 1995. p 188
Herbst, Ron & Herbst, Sharon. "Chowder", The New Food Lover's Companion. Barron's Educational Series, New York, 2007. p 157
Herbst, Ron & Herbst, Sharon. "Clam", The New Food Lover's Companion. Barron's Educational Series, New York, 2007. p 162
I also looked at Flo's Clam Shack's Online menu for inspiration for my own-
http://www.flosclamshack.net/
Voorhees, Don. Why Does Popcorn Pop? and 201 other Fascinating Facts About Food. MJF Books, New York, 1995. p 188
Herbst, Ron & Herbst, Sharon. "Chowder", The New Food Lover's Companion. Barron's Educational Series, New York, 2007. p 157
Herbst, Ron & Herbst, Sharon. "Clam", The New Food Lover's Companion. Barron's Educational Series, New York, 2007. p 162
I also looked at Flo's Clam Shack's Online menu for inspiration for my own-
http://www.flosclamshack.net/
Friday, June 24, 2011
Bundle 2, Read more (part one)
I found this awesome article about quahogging in Rhode Island. It has a lot of technical insight into the equipment used for digging, as well as a substantial overview of the community of quahoggers in Rhode Island.
Another great source I found was the article up on the wall at Andrade's Catch. It was from the March 1997 issue of Rhode Island Monthly on page 31. There was a lot on the encroachment of Aquaculture (farming of shellfish) into the quahogger's territory. It also incorporated several interviews with old timers who've been quahogging all their lives.
The types of documents I'm producing has definitely solidified over the last few days. Instead of a collection of recipes I'm going to focus on the one I'm the most comfortable with (my mom's quahog fish chowder) and make it look like a step by step blog entry. One of my most frequented websites is Tastespotting. It's essentially a photo collection of incredible dishes linked to various food blogs from all over the world (most are in English but sometimes you'll find ones in Italian or Portugese, Ukrainian...).
What I like about this site is a photographic aspect of all the recipes. It's one way the internet has improved the age old cook book. Where as most cookbooks will have a large color photo every few pages (if any at all), the internet allows for photos documenting the preparation step by step. What better way to know if you're doing it right than by looking at a picture? I recently tried this recipe for frozen strawberry squares and it was delicious. As I was following it I really like the easy to follow step by step guide. Tonight I'm making my mom's chowder in the style of Amy's recipe. I hope it turns out okay!
The other thing I'm altering a little bit is the "history of the quahog" I'm still doing that but it seemed kind of disjointed or rather..like it was an element of a bigger document but not really one all on it's own. I was thinking of the menu for the Atlantic Beach Club, a restaurant on the beach in Middletown, and they had a History of Newport on the back of their menu for a while. Since the option of "menu" had been mentioned by Jamie I thought, "Why not have a simple menu (like a chowder shack you'd find on the beach) with the history of the quahog included? Short list of delicious seafood options, couple beers in tap and some summery desserts and you've got yourself a menu!
I had also planned to include a advertisement as a mock battle between New England and Manhatten clam chowder for a made-up seafood restaurant. To relate two of the documents I'll have it be an advertisement for the seafood restaurant.
Whenever my family would have a bonfire on the beach and cook up clams, mussels, sausages and the like we'd call it "The Clam Jam". I'm thinking this is gonna be the name for my new restaurant... :)
Another great source I found was the article up on the wall at Andrade's Catch. It was from the March 1997 issue of Rhode Island Monthly on page 31. There was a lot on the encroachment of Aquaculture (farming of shellfish) into the quahogger's territory. It also incorporated several interviews with old timers who've been quahogging all their lives.
The types of documents I'm producing has definitely solidified over the last few days. Instead of a collection of recipes I'm going to focus on the one I'm the most comfortable with (my mom's quahog fish chowder) and make it look like a step by step blog entry. One of my most frequented websites is Tastespotting. It's essentially a photo collection of incredible dishes linked to various food blogs from all over the world (most are in English but sometimes you'll find ones in Italian or Portugese, Ukrainian...).
What I like about this site is a photographic aspect of all the recipes. It's one way the internet has improved the age old cook book. Where as most cookbooks will have a large color photo every few pages (if any at all), the internet allows for photos documenting the preparation step by step. What better way to know if you're doing it right than by looking at a picture? I recently tried this recipe for frozen strawberry squares and it was delicious. As I was following it I really like the easy to follow step by step guide. Tonight I'm making my mom's chowder in the style of Amy's recipe. I hope it turns out okay!
The other thing I'm altering a little bit is the "history of the quahog" I'm still doing that but it seemed kind of disjointed or rather..like it was an element of a bigger document but not really one all on it's own. I was thinking of the menu for the Atlantic Beach Club, a restaurant on the beach in Middletown, and they had a History of Newport on the back of their menu for a while. Since the option of "menu" had been mentioned by Jamie I thought, "Why not have a simple menu (like a chowder shack you'd find on the beach) with the history of the quahog included? Short list of delicious seafood options, couple beers in tap and some summery desserts and you've got yourself a menu!
I had also planned to include a advertisement as a mock battle between New England and Manhatten clam chowder for a made-up seafood restaurant. To relate two of the documents I'll have it be an advertisement for the seafood restaurant.
Whenever my family would have a bonfire on the beach and cook up clams, mussels, sausages and the like we'd call it "The Clam Jam". I'm thinking this is gonna be the name for my new restaurant... :)
Bundle 2, Go There/Talk to Someone
On a personal note, my computer is virus free! It's going to be so much easier doing my documents now I have photoshop back and a non-sticky keyboard.
So...on to the interview. One of the documents I wanted to include in my bundle is an article on quahoggers of Rhode Island. I wanted to learn what the process was for gathering these shellfish and who was doing it. I figured I'd start my search for a quahogger at two of the local seafood stores on the island, Anthony's Seafood and Longwarf Seafood.
I went to Anthony's first to ask who their quahog supplier was. The guy working behind the counter was very nice and ran to the back to get his boss. He returned a few minutes later with a torn scrap of cardboard (he apologized and said he could find paper if I really wanted it) with "Andrades Catch, Bristol, Wood Street, 1st left" scrawled in red ink. After an explanation of the directions for how to get there, the guy behind the counter wished me luck and I was on my way.
I arrived at Longwarf seafood just as they were unlocking the doors. It's much darker and dingier than Anthony's high-ceilinged, white washed front display room but they sell local wholesale so I figured I might luck out on finding a local supplier. The man seemed really interested in my project when I explained it and told me he has one quahogger who comes in as a supplier.
"He'll probably be in today around 2 or 3, that's usually when he comes in. If not today then tomorrow for sure." Thankful for this direct lead to a digger I passed on my information with the promise that I'd be contacted by the quahogger when he came in. (That was Wednesday and he still hasn't called so I'm glad Andrade's in Bristol turned out to be a good spot...)
To be honest I got a bit lost trying to find Andrade's, but eventually after a few loops around downtown Bristol I found the small white building up the hill from the water. Inside was a whirring machine that seemed to be sorting clams. A young teenager was pouring them into the top and a deeply tanned man in a sleeveless T-shirt was at the bottom holding open a mesh bag to catch the clams as they tumbled down the chute. Shouting over the machine I asked if I could get in contact with some quahog diggers for a quick interview. A young girl about my age jumped up from a back desk and yelled to shut the machine off.
"Hi," she said. "I'm Julie. My dad owns this place. What did you say you needed?" I explained the paper I was writing and my need for a quahogger to interview.
"Well, my dad was a digger for a long time, there are some articles about him on the wall. And he's a diver," she said pointing to the tanned man on the floor catching clams in a bag. "There's a guy coming in about our age in like two minutes if you want to talk to him. He digs. Read the articles while you wait, there's a lot of information all over the shop if you're interested in quahogging".
So I did--one was a newspaper article and the other a Rhode Island Monthly article from '97. Before I got to the end of the second one a young guy walked through the door and walked into a back room. He returned with a cup of coffee and started chatting with the teenager. The machine had begun sorting and whirring again. I shouted over the noise and introduced myself.
"Are you a quahog digger? I'm writing a paper and the girl at the front desk said I could interview you". He looked surprised.
"You wanna interview me about quahogs?" he laughed. "Well why not?" We stepped outside into the drizzly rain so we wouldn't have to shout over the sorting machine.
I had a list of questions I'd written out as a rough guide:
-How long have you been shellfishing?
-Do you only dig for clams or are you open to other shellfish?
-What's the difference between the different clams?(cherrystones vs quahogs)
-Who taught you to do this?
-How often do you go out?
-What do you consider a good catch for the day?
-Is there a limit to how many you can pull in per day?
-Is there a certain technique to the raking/digging?
-Do you feel like this is a dying art?
-Are there any new technologies that you're competing against?
We talked about a lot of other stuff besides the questions I had down and I ended up with two pages of written notes from the interview. For the record his name is Bryan Aldrich, he's 27 years old, and he's been quahogging since he was 17.
I'll save the rest of the information for the paper, but that was the process of getting the information.
So...on to the interview. One of the documents I wanted to include in my bundle is an article on quahoggers of Rhode Island. I wanted to learn what the process was for gathering these shellfish and who was doing it. I figured I'd start my search for a quahogger at two of the local seafood stores on the island, Anthony's Seafood and Longwarf Seafood.
I went to Anthony's first to ask who their quahog supplier was. The guy working behind the counter was very nice and ran to the back to get his boss. He returned a few minutes later with a torn scrap of cardboard (he apologized and said he could find paper if I really wanted it) with "Andrades Catch, Bristol, Wood Street, 1st left" scrawled in red ink. After an explanation of the directions for how to get there, the guy behind the counter wished me luck and I was on my way.
I arrived at Longwarf seafood just as they were unlocking the doors. It's much darker and dingier than Anthony's high-ceilinged, white washed front display room but they sell local wholesale so I figured I might luck out on finding a local supplier. The man seemed really interested in my project when I explained it and told me he has one quahogger who comes in as a supplier.
"He'll probably be in today around 2 or 3, that's usually when he comes in. If not today then tomorrow for sure." Thankful for this direct lead to a digger I passed on my information with the promise that I'd be contacted by the quahogger when he came in. (That was Wednesday and he still hasn't called so I'm glad Andrade's in Bristol turned out to be a good spot...)
To be honest I got a bit lost trying to find Andrade's, but eventually after a few loops around downtown Bristol I found the small white building up the hill from the water. Inside was a whirring machine that seemed to be sorting clams. A young teenager was pouring them into the top and a deeply tanned man in a sleeveless T-shirt was at the bottom holding open a mesh bag to catch the clams as they tumbled down the chute. Shouting over the machine I asked if I could get in contact with some quahog diggers for a quick interview. A young girl about my age jumped up from a back desk and yelled to shut the machine off.
"Hi," she said. "I'm Julie. My dad owns this place. What did you say you needed?" I explained the paper I was writing and my need for a quahogger to interview.
"Well, my dad was a digger for a long time, there are some articles about him on the wall. And he's a diver," she said pointing to the tanned man on the floor catching clams in a bag. "There's a guy coming in about our age in like two minutes if you want to talk to him. He digs. Read the articles while you wait, there's a lot of information all over the shop if you're interested in quahogging".
So I did--one was a newspaper article and the other a Rhode Island Monthly article from '97. Before I got to the end of the second one a young guy walked through the door and walked into a back room. He returned with a cup of coffee and started chatting with the teenager. The machine had begun sorting and whirring again. I shouted over the noise and introduced myself.
"Are you a quahog digger? I'm writing a paper and the girl at the front desk said I could interview you". He looked surprised.
"You wanna interview me about quahogs?" he laughed. "Well why not?" We stepped outside into the drizzly rain so we wouldn't have to shout over the sorting machine.
I had a list of questions I'd written out as a rough guide:
-How long have you been shellfishing?
-Do you only dig for clams or are you open to other shellfish?
-What's the difference between the different clams?(cherrystones vs quahogs)
-Who taught you to do this?
-How often do you go out?
-What do you consider a good catch for the day?
-Is there a limit to how many you can pull in per day?
-Is there a certain technique to the raking/digging?
-Do you feel like this is a dying art?
-Are there any new technologies that you're competing against?
We talked about a lot of other stuff besides the questions I had down and I ended up with two pages of written notes from the interview. For the record his name is Bryan Aldrich, he's 27 years old, and he's been quahogging since he was 17.
I'll save the rest of the information for the paper, but that was the process of getting the information.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Bundle 2, What I know
My family is very, very into cooking so it was kind of difficult for me to pick one thing to focus on. I was thinking of all the recipes my vegetarian sister has perfected over the past few years and her process of completly changing her diet. I thought of my mother's experience working as a chef. My mind snapped to the 4 inch thick recipe book in the cupboard, stuffed with recipes from my mother, her mother, and her mother, as well as friends and relatives everywhere in between. I could go beyond the safety of my family and venture out into Newport where there's enough restaurants to eat at a different place every night for a month. There were just so many directions I could go in, I decided to pick a dish and create a project around it.
My mother's fish stew, a deliciously brothy chowder (or chow-dah, if you prefer). Oh quahogs, what a quintessential New England food. Using quahogs as a central theme incorporates my family, it incorporates my home, and I hope it will open me up to a new culture (shellfishing) that I have yet to discover. I've dived for them on my own but I think it'll be really cool interviewing someone who harvests them professionally. I remember reading a great article last summer from RI monthly about oyster harvesters and I'd love to do something in that style focusing on quahogs. Besides that I'll include my mom's chowder recipe, a brief "history of the quahog" explaining their cultural significance, and a mock advertisement for a seafood restaurant pitting Manhattan chowder vs. N.E. clam chowder.
Today I'm going to a local seafood restaurant to ask them who their supplier is. I'm hoping that way I can get in contact with at least one guy who collects these delicious bivalves for a living.
My mother's fish stew, a deliciously brothy chowder (or chow-dah, if you prefer). Oh quahogs, what a quintessential New England food. Using quahogs as a central theme incorporates my family, it incorporates my home, and I hope it will open me up to a new culture (shellfishing) that I have yet to discover. I've dived for them on my own but I think it'll be really cool interviewing someone who harvests them professionally. I remember reading a great article last summer from RI monthly about oyster harvesters and I'd love to do something in that style focusing on quahogs. Besides that I'll include my mom's chowder recipe, a brief "history of the quahog" explaining their cultural significance, and a mock advertisement for a seafood restaurant pitting Manhattan chowder vs. N.E. clam chowder.
Today I'm going to a local seafood restaurant to ask them who their supplier is. I'm hoping that way I can get in contact with at least one guy who collects these delicious bivalves for a living.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Bundle 1, Read More (cont.)
Two things I researched to include in my documents:
1. I have a lot of musician friends so it wasn't difficult to find hypothetical bands to play at my concert. I'm good friends with all the members of Vejadu, particularly the drummer Julian Ciany. They're a cover band play in bars around Newport in the summer. I actually talked to Julian about the project and he said it was a cool idea and he'd love to do that if it ever happened. He even wanted to take a look at my poster to use for one of his shows (with the info tweaked of course). Jon Janis is a local musician who plays shows solo with an acoustic guitar. I thought he'd be an interesting addition to the concert--perfect for folksy 60's music. Paperplanes is another local band. I hadn't really talked to any of them about the project, but I'm sure they'd be excited for it.
2. I didn't actually know how much signs like the ones I was envisioning cost. I searched around on the internet for what I was looking for. I imagined one of those signs like the ones you see at parks and zoos with a lot of written information on them. Like this:
I called a company in Ohio for a quote, without the cost of design. They said it would be around $1000 depending on the size. I'm sure if I looked around some more I could get someone either more local or a lower cost. I just wanted a general figure for the cost of such a project.
So I guess that's it for the first bundle. It's all submitted now and my postwrite is done. Now onto bundle 2...
1. I have a lot of musician friends so it wasn't difficult to find hypothetical bands to play at my concert. I'm good friends with all the members of Vejadu, particularly the drummer Julian Ciany. They're a cover band play in bars around Newport in the summer. I actually talked to Julian about the project and he said it was a cool idea and he'd love to do that if it ever happened. He even wanted to take a look at my poster to use for one of his shows (with the info tweaked of course). Jon Janis is a local musician who plays shows solo with an acoustic guitar. I thought he'd be an interesting addition to the concert--perfect for folksy 60's music. Paperplanes is another local band. I hadn't really talked to any of them about the project, but I'm sure they'd be excited for it.
2. I didn't actually know how much signs like the ones I was envisioning cost. I searched around on the internet for what I was looking for. I imagined one of those signs like the ones you see at parks and zoos with a lot of written information on them. Like this:
 | |
| http://www.creo.ie/signage-outdoor-pedestal.html |
So I guess that's it for the first bundle. It's all submitted now and my postwrite is done. Now onto bundle 2...
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Bundle 1, Talk to Someone/Read More
After I went to Braga I headed over to the Newport Public Library. My sister had said there was an article about Braga in the newspaper last year so I thought it best to start with Newport Daily News micro films. Little did I know that quick trip to the library turned my entire project on its head.
Bundle 1, Go There
This morning I walked down to Braga Park. I've been there hundreds of times since it's literally down the street from my house, but I wanted to get some photos of the important areas I'd be referencing in my bundle (where the memorial would go, the area where the band would set up, etc).
 |
| A Panorama I constructed of the Kay Street entrance view |
 | |||
| The sign |
Monday, May 30, 2011
Bundle 1, What I Know
I've spent the last couple days thinking about parks around my town. I had some sort of vague idea about an event held at a park (Ballard Park does a lot of this sort of thing in the summer, but I didn't want to copy directly from their calendar of events). I asked my younger sister and she suggested using Braga park which is right down the street from my house. She told me it was actually named after a soldier who died in Vietnam (J. Paul Braga Jr.). She said he was fairly young when he was killed in battle.
I went down to the park to see if there was any kind of information on Braga (like a placard) but there was only a sign reading "J. Paul Braga, Jr. Memorial Field" in large white letters. My sister said the Newport Daily News had featured an article on the fallen soldier within the past year or so and that's how she know about it. I was mildly disconcerted that the park featured no information about the man it takes its name from.
The idea behind my proposed bundle would be to erect a Vietnam Memorial dedicated to the soldiers who fought and perhaps died in The Vietnam Crisis from 1964-1975. This memorial would also feature a placard with information about the life of J. Paul Braga, Jr. My four pieces would be:
1. a letter to the editor about why the park should install a memorial for Braga/Vietnam soldiers
2. a proposal/action plan outlining the necessary measures for funding and installing such a memorial
3. the placard about J. Paul Braga, Jr. (to be erected next to the memorial)
4. a poster for the celebratory unveiling of the memorial (or possibly a fundraiser for the memorial?), featuring a concert on the park lawn with Vietnam-era music played by local bands.
A memorial like this does not--to my knowledge--exist in Newport. The only war memorials that are erected are in front of city hall. WWII and WWI have very large stone monuments, however, Vietnam only has a small square of granite in the ground with a bronze plaque. Although the list of deceased soldiers is significantly shorter than the world wars, I feel like there should be something even better put in place. The park is such a beautiful and often used area: there's a playground, a basketball court, a soccer field (which doubles as a lacrosse field), baseball diamond used by little league, as well as a picnic area under the trees.
What I need to further research is Braga's biography (interview opportunities?), costs of statues/gravemarker type memorial stones, and possible bands that could play at the concert on the lawn.
* Both photos taken from Newport Patch
I went down to the park to see if there was any kind of information on Braga (like a placard) but there was only a sign reading "J. Paul Braga, Jr. Memorial Field" in large white letters. My sister said the Newport Daily News had featured an article on the fallen soldier within the past year or so and that's how she know about it. I was mildly disconcerted that the park featured no information about the man it takes its name from.
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| The memorial would be on the left as you entered the park* |
1. a letter to the editor about why the park should install a memorial for Braga/Vietnam soldiers
2. a proposal/action plan outlining the necessary measures for funding and installing such a memorial
3. the placard about J. Paul Braga, Jr. (to be erected next to the memorial)
4. a poster for the celebratory unveiling of the memorial (or possibly a fundraiser for the memorial?), featuring a concert on the park lawn with Vietnam-era music played by local bands.
A memorial like this does not--to my knowledge--exist in Newport. The only war memorials that are erected are in front of city hall. WWII and WWI have very large stone monuments, however, Vietnam only has a small square of granite in the ground with a bronze plaque. Although the list of deceased soldiers is significantly shorter than the world wars, I feel like there should be something even better put in place. The park is such a beautiful and often used area: there's a playground, a basketball court, a soccer field (which doubles as a lacrosse field), baseball diamond used by little league, as well as a picnic area under the trees.
What I need to further research is Braga's biography (interview opportunities?), costs of statues/gravemarker type memorial stones, and possible bands that could play at the concert on the lawn.
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| Braga has a large lawn, perfect for a blanket/lawn chair style concert | * |
Saturday, May 28, 2011
First Post
This is my first post. I'm just testing everything out so when I have to *actually* post something I won't have to spend a lot of time trying to figure out blogger's format.
This is the reading we just did on Foucault.
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| Me and my sisters |
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