Museum
A documentation of my works as they are being created for the production of Museum by Villanova Theater.
A documentation of my works as they are being created for the production of Museum by Villanova Theater.
One of the strangest series of happenstance lead me to have the distinctly exciting opportunity to work with the Theater Department at Villanova University on their production of the play Museum.
I was introduced to the Director of Marketing & PR before the musical Bat Boy, and she asked me what kind of sculpture I do. I always have difficulty answering this question because of the nebulous answer, and the reactions I get - but my boyfriend (a Villanova Theater alumni from their Master's program) interjected "Taxidermy. She makes art out of dead things." Instead of drilling me for descriptions of the gory details - she asked me to send her my portfolio. The department had just decided to put on a show where one of the characters in it is a young woman artist who's medium is taxidermy.
So I joined a team of some of the most inspiring artists and creative directors that I have ever met. I am constantly being surprised and humbled by the people who are helping this show come to life.
Prometheus Singed, under natural light and stage light. It is amazing how different they look!
Metaphysics Revisited
The Holy Wars of Babylon Rage Through the Night
The Temptation and Corruption of William Blake
Reviews:
Creatively Speaking interview with Director Joanna Rotté, and a look at Villanova's production of Museum
"Tina Howe's Museum, her first play, still has legs in Villanova's revival, smartly and effectively staged by Joanna Rotté. If anything, this witty satire is even more relevant to America's commercialized art culture today, especially in Philadelphia."
"Villanova's 'Museum' confronts impact of art head-on"
"A brave exhibition on display at Villanova"
"Technical aspects of the production are top-notch, including Parris Bradley's sleek set and Jerrold R. Forsyth's versatile lighting. And it's nice to see the real life artists who made these works - Lawrence Anastasi, Heather McLaughlin, and Ward Van Haute - make cameos as their fictional counterparts during the play's final moments."
Feb 6, 2012
Feb 1, 2012
"When I'm an artist, I'm the director and my materials are my actors. When I am an actor, the director is the artist and I'm the material," she said. "It's really interesting to be on the oIt's really interesting to be on the other side of the creative process, extending myself to help someone else's vision come to life. And I don't think my materials have ever had stage fright, which is more than I can say for myself."
Museum is a play about the final day of a group show at an art museum, and the kinds of reactions that people have to "modern" art. It also breaches the issue of interactive art and no-touch art in a world of laser alarms and security guards. Everyone comes to a gallery with a different background, and can have completely different experiences when presented with the same works. Some people have a background in Art History,and see the work in the larger scheme of time. Others are angered by modern art and the liberties it appears to take. Still others are attracted, repulsed, confused, and delighted. The show covers all of the emotions that art can invoke.
The process of creating Museum has been one of the strangest and most exciting projects I have taken part in. I was introduced to the production staff during a chance meeting after seeing Bat Boy on Speaker's Night. When I was asked what kind of art I made, I struggled to explain because reactions can sometimes be polarized. Their reaction was explosive and positive! It turned out that they were going to be putting on a show that included bone sculptures made by a young woman artist. My portfolio and personality turned out to be a perfect match. The descriptions in the play of Agnes Vaag uncannily mirror my own life. My hair stood up the first time I read the script! Joanna Rotté and the other two artists Larwence Anastasi and Ward VanHaute have been extremely helpful and inspiring, and I feel lucky just having been able to met them let alone work on this project together!
I create things as a way of describing the way that I see the world around me, or as another way of communication. My personal bunch of neurons thinks that vacant vessels - nests, bodies, cracks in walls - are beautiful. There is so much that they have to say! Like a skull that hasn't been home to its original owner in a very long time, but a colony of bees has made a nest in its cranial cavity. The cyclical nature of life and the heart breaking happiness that can be found in the saddest of places. There isn't a word in English to describe those stories. Working on Museum I came across words like Saudade and Yugen. I like those things, and I want to find a way to show it to other people. If there isn't a word for a feeling, I make art for it. If I need something and it does not exist in this world, I make it.
Art is communication to me. It is a way of knowing, and away of sharing knowledge.
The interview process itself was actually much longer... Here is the gist of what I had to say:
Museum is a play about the final day of a group show at an art museum, and the kinds of reactions that people have to "modern" art. It also breaches the issue of interactive art and no-touch art in a world of laser alarms and security guards. Everyone comes to a gallery with a different background, and can have completely different experiences when presented with the same works. Some people have a background in Art History,and see the work in the larger scheme of time. Others are angered by modern art and the liberties it appears to take. Still others are attracted, repulsed, confused, and delighted. The show covers all of the emotions that art can invoke.
The process of creating Museum has been one of the strangest and most exciting projects I have taken part in. I was introduced to the production staff during a chance meeting after seeing Bat Boy on Speaker's Night. When I was asked what kind of art I made, I struggled to explain because reactions can sometimes be polarized. Their reaction was explosive and positive! It turned out that they were going to be putting on a show that included bone sculptures made by a young woman artist. My portfolio and personality turned out to be a perfect match. The descriptions in the play of Agnes Vaag uncannily mirror my own life. My hair stood up the first time I read the script! Joanna Rotté and the other two artists Larwence Anastasi and Ward VanHaute have been extremely helpful and inspiring, and I feel lucky just having been able to met them let alone work on this project together!
I get my inspiration from the little things in the world around me. Dust motes.
I create things as a way of describing the way that I see the world around me, or as another way of communication. My personal bunch of neurons thinks that vacant vessels - nests, bodies, cracks in walls - are beautiful. There is so much that they have to say! Like a skull that hasn't been home to its original owner in a very long time, but a colony of bees has made a nest in its cranial cavity. The cyclical nature of life and the heart breaking happiness that can be found in the saddest of places. There isn't a word in English to describe those stories. Working on Museum I came across words like Saudade and Yugen. I like those things, and I want to find a way to show it to other people. If there isn't a word for a feeling, I make art for it. If I need something and it does not exist in this world, I make it.
Art is communication to me. It is a way of knowing, and away of sharing knowledge.
Everything I do is sculpture. I grew up as a dancer, but that is sculpture with the body (performance art). I also grew up drawing, but those are just very flat sculptures. I sew, and that is textile sculpture. I have picked up photography after studying in Japan, and that is digital light sculpture. Now I also do kung fu, which is contact and sense sculpture. I chose sculpture because it could be everything that I needed it to be. I am not limited by a medium.
Being an artist and being an actor have their similarities and their differences. When I'm an artist, I'm the director and my materials are my actors. When I am an actor, the director is the artist and I'm the material. Actors and materials carry a lot of their own weight but depending on the context they are put in, they gain true power. It is really interesting to be on the other side of the creative process, extending myself to help someone else's vision come to life. And I don't think my materials have ever had stage fright - which is more than I can say for my self!
I am constantly creating. For every project I have going, I have 10 others waiting in the wings - or even all going at the same time. It drives me nuts when I have nothing to do! Photography and cinematography have become part of my daily routine. Sculpture has become a way of life. Dancing has given way to kung fu, wing chin, and tai chi, which I take at I.E.F. Martial Arts Academy in North Wales PA.
Jan 30, 2012
Moving into tech week and dress rehearsals! I am still a little bit nervous but the more time I spend with the cast, the more that nervousness wanes away. We will have our first audience this weekend, and the show opens on February 7th.
I still have enough to do that I am busy but confident. A full install will happen tonight or tomorrow (Ward has made the most amazing pedestals for me!), and as a sculptor on stage, I now need to consider sight lines - something I have never encountered before. I usually install pieces according to their voices and how they talk to each other.
I also need to finish printing out 400 business cards, and the photo prints I will be selling during the show. I have it narrowed down to 45, and I will pick the best ones to mat and frame.
Countdown: 8 Days
Emily Dickinson is done! I am so glad I re-made her. I am really attached to this one.
Emergency work on a new Ode to Emily Dickinson. There is a wonderful surprise in this one!
I had to start over on it and one other. Not boney enough ;)
That is ok by me, I prefer working like this!
This is a typical weekend. If I have a material that I need for a project, I will wander off in parks or along the side of the road until I smell something dead. Sometimes I will crowd source on social media for things like wasp nests, cicada skins, or fresh roadkill sightings.
Titles:
Lucretius, Dreaming
Abraxas
Siu Nim Tao
Aphelion
Saudade
when the tide meets the moon
it), but are now directly derived from my world.
Edit -
We are going to go back to using the original titles, minus two. They are now:
Abraxas
Ode To Emily Dickinson
The Holy Wars of Babylon Rage Through the Night
The Temptation and Corruption of William Blake
Metaphysics Revisited
When the Archangels Abandon Their Grace
Prometheus Singed
Some of my materials
Part of original Ode to Emily Dickinson.
A drawing for The Holy Wars of Babylon Rage Through the Night (Had to smudge out my grocery list on the previous page)
My first attempt at Abraxas
Part of When the Archangels Abandon Their Grace
Part of Metaphysics Revisited
