drawing (droodling)

3" x 8"

ink on paper

I'm onto some new-ish things in the studio. This drawing above is the start of something. It's primarily serving as one of many studies for some larger paintings I plan to do with polyurethane and oil paint... so we'll see about that! I've been looking at a lot of photos online of skin... all kinds of photos... but the really zoomed in ones of skin layers are by far the best. I found these at sciencephoto.com 

WOW!

herb & dorothy

I finally watched this film... and I highly recommend it!

"HERB & DOROTHY tells the extraordinary story of Herbert Vogel, a postal clerk, and Dorothy Vogel, a librarian, who managed to build one of the most important contemporary art collections in history with very modest means. In the early 1960s, when very little attention was paid to Minimalist and Conceptual Art, Herb and Dorothy Vogel quietly began purchasing the works of unknown artists. Devoting all of Herb's salary to purchase art they liked, and living on Dorothy's paycheck alone, they continued collecting artworks guided by two rules: the piece had to be affordable, and it had to be small enough to fit in their one-bedroom Manhattan apartment. Within these limitations, they proved themselves curatorial visionaries; most of those they supported and befriended went on to become world-renowned artists including Sol LeWitt, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Richard Tuttle, Chuck Close, Robert Mangold, Sylvia Plimack Mangold, Lynda Benglis, Pat Steir, Robert Barry, Lucio Pozzi, and Lawrence Weiner. "

CLICK HERE or HERE to lean more - or watch the trailer below

rocks that wow

I think it's time I learn some more about geology. It's more aesthetic than I ever realized.

Yesterday I spent some time with the rocks in DC's Natural History Museum. I've been to the museum twice since moving to DC, but for some reason the dinos and dead animals always seem to take precedence. My friend Julia and I ventured upstairs this time to catch a glimpse at the Hope Diamond (though I still don't know what's so great about it) and found ourselves amongst the most incredible rocks/minerals/crystals we'd ever seen. I could've spent ages in that room just ooh-ing and ahh-ing at all the gorgeous forms and colors. It's amazing to think that all these things have formed naturally over time. So outrageous. Seeing them all has given me lots to think about - especially concerning the idea of the "organic." I've always thought of rocks as being so stationary (contrary to my impression of the organic) but after seeing how they grow into such incredible forms, I can't help but consider them organisms themselves.

I saw a lot of things that reminded me of elements and materials used in my own work. For example, there's a striking resemblance between this lava rock and this "Folded Flesh" painting I did last year...

wim delvoye

This video by Belgian artist, Wim Delvoye (of Cloaca Factory fame) came up in conversation last night. I'll refrain from extrapolating... but I must admit that I like this... a lot.

CLICK HERE to read a great interview of the artist

some drawings

I've been messing around with some new approaches, and I somehow ended up with a few drawings, which is something new for me. I started with a slice of this...

(the result of many layers of polyurethane-soaked fiberglass insulation made into a ball, dried, and sliced on a band-saw)

... and then I began drawing from observation. I based the forms off of the above image, but allowed them to evolve as I continued. And they eventually grew to become these organ/tumor-ish objects...

graphite on paper

appx. 5" x 4" each

Perhaps I'll do some more...

hans bellmer & unica zürn

Wow! I can't believe I'm seeing these images for the first time. The one above, in particular, really grabs me... SO good. My friend Michelle suggested I check out Zürn's drawings after I mentioned my interest/fascination with orifices (in my own work). Her drawings are neat (as are Bellmer's sculptures) but these collaborative photographs between the pair are juuuust right. A perfect balance/blending of informality, performance, documentation, manipulation, seduction, deformation, etc.

speaking of books

I recently finished Seven Days in the Art World, an entertaining, non-fictional look into the various facets of the "art world" and all of its complexity. I highly recommend it - especially for artists, but not exclusively. Many artists, and art professionals, have loved ones who know nothing of the hard-to-explain world we inhabit (or hope to one day) - I can't help but think that reading this book may be an entertaining way to help them understand - or at least make them realize that they don't.

"Art and business, personal quests and personality cults, big bucks and the triumph of concept over beauty, being cool and in the know—these are the cardinal points in the contemporary art world. Enter Thornton, an art historian and sociologist with moxie and a brilliant game plan. Willing to ask obvious questions, she infiltrates the seven circles of this competitive realm. An astute observer and stimulating storyteller whose crisp sentences convey a wealth of information, Thornton marvels at the military precision of a Christie’s auction and the wild improvisation of an art-school critique.  On to Art Basel, a major international art fair where the “hard buy” rather than the hard sell is the rule since an artist’s reputation is tied to those who own his or her work. Thornton witnesses the final stage in the judging and presentation of the Turner Prize, watches editors at work at Artforum, attends the coveted Venice Biennale, and spends a dizzying day with the wizardly artist-entrepreneur Takashi Murakami. Thornton’s uniquely clarifying dispatches from the art front glimmer with high-definition profiles of artists, dealers, critics, and collectors, and grapple with the paradoxes inherent in the transformation of creativity into commodity." --Donna Seaman's review for Amazon.com 

While we're on the subject... Steve Martin's (yes the actor!) fictional, brow-raising tale of the art world is equally as entertaining (perhaps even moreso). It follows the exploits of a young, ambitious female art dealer and offers a slightly more cynical view of that side of spectrum. A great read! CLICK HERE to read the NY Times' review of the novel.

art as experience

I'm currently reading this book, Art as Experience... it's beautifully written and seems to relate to my work in so many ways. I've only read the first few chapters, so I can't give it a full review just yet, but I can tell already that I'm going to need to get my own copy - it's a text I'll be referring to often. I find it to be so relevant to the art of today, which is quite impressive considering it was written in the 1930's! This wikipedia article is quite informative if you're interested in learning more about the book!

 

 "Impulsions are the beginnings of complete experiences because they proceed from need; from a hunger and demand that belongs to the organism as a whole and that can be supplied only by instituting definite relations (active relations, interactions) with the environment. The epidermis is only in the most superficial way an indication of where an organism ends and its environment begins. There are things inside the body that are foreign to it, and there are things outside of it that belong to it de jure, if not de facto; that must, that is, be taken possession of if life is to continue... The need that is manifest in the urgent impulsions that demand completion through what the environment - and it alone - can supply, is a dynamic acknowledgment of this dependence of the self for wholeness upon its surroundings."

from John Dewey's Art as Experience

chapter 4 - The Act of Expression - p. 59

installation detritus

 

I took down my installation from the 1st-year show this week, which has been (and tends to be) a fairly refreshing and energizing experience (contrary to the belief of many). By taking it apart, I'm no longer tied to the piece - I don't have to worry about how to move it, where to put it, etc. And I automatically have lots of left-over material with which to make something entirely new! I'm definitely going to be re-purposing a majority of the material... I like what's happening in the piece of detritus pictured above. It's scab-like... which, ironically, is something I've been thinking about a lot lately. Hmmmm

detritus (dɪˈtraɪtəs)
—n
1.	a loose mass of stones, silt, etc, worn away from rocks
2.	an accumulation of disintegrated material or debris
3.	the organic debris formed from the decay of organisms

a panoramic view of my studio

a palette cleanser of sorts

oil on canvas

8" x 15"

it's taken many forms thus far...

And this is where it is right now. I think, rather than trying to perfect these guys, I'll be better off doing a bunch of similar small pieces in the same vein.

 

made of polyurethane-coated landscaping fabric, burned (recycled from Or)

appx. 1.5' x 1.5' each

how it grew

Concravity

Here are some images of my most recent undertaking... a site-based installation for Prologue, our 1st-year MFA show. So far this semester, I've been working on a smaller scale in my studio, so this was a great chance for me to go big!

In my work recently, I've been thinking about the similarities between "home" and flesh. Through the use of these re-purposed materials used in building a house (insulation) as well as turning a house into a home (moving boxes), this installation is an exploration of the barriers created by both home and flesh. The form was built with the following juxtapositions in mind: interior/exterior, comfort/discomfort, and attraction/intimidation.

 October 2011

cardboard, hot glue, fiberglass insulation, and polyurethane

PROLOGUE: a first-year MFA show

my sculpture is in a music video

I just found out that my sculpture, Vessel, has been included in a music video that was recently filmed out at Franconia Sculpture Park. What a great place to shoot a music video! The appearance of my sculpture is brief, so be on the lookout!

The band is called Pert Near Sandstone and you can learn more about them HERE

and just in case you don't know which sculpture I'm talking about...

it's this one!

so much to see

In the few weeks I've been living in Maryland, I've made it into DC (a 20 min drive/metro ride) a few times for some minimal sightseeing and maximal art-seeing. There's so much to see/do in this city, and I'm just getting started! Some highlights include...

 

Artists in Dialogue 2: Sandile Zulu (right) & Henrique Oliveira (left)

at the National Museum of African Art

This exhibition deserves a post all to itself. I couldn't be more thrilled to have seen this work. I have been a huge fan of Henrique Oliveira for quite some time and this was the first time I've had the chance to experience one of his incredible installations in person. WOW! Sandile Zulu's work is pretty crazy too (I was unfamiliar with him before this exhibition) and the two of them make for a very dynamic pairing. Bravo!

The Guerrilla Girls Talk Back

at The National Museum of Women in the Arts

Washington Color and Light

at the Corcoran Gallery of Art 

I brought Steve to the Corcoran during his visit last weekend specifically to see this exhibition (because he would have loved it) but unfortunately it had come down the day after I saw it!! Bummer!

A. Balasubramaniam: Sk(in)

at The Phillips Collection

WHOA - I found this small body of work to be much more interesting/exciting than the 2 solo exhibitions of Kandinsky and Stella's work - also on view at the Phillips Collection.

Dinosaur Hall

at the National Museum of Natural History

DINOS!!

the start of something

Last week, all the new grad students (there's only 4 of us) met up for an informal orientation of sorts. We got the basic run-down of the program - where to go, what to do, who to talk to, what to expect, etc. Now it's up to us to get to work in the studio. Allow me to introduce you to my fellow incoming grads...

 Lauren Shea Little

Jason Hughes

Claire Girodie

For those of us with assistantships in the department (of art, duh), our contracts began last week as well. We were each assigned duties to help prep the studios for the coming semester. Selin and Michael and I put a fresh coat of gray paint on the floors of painting studios (see below). It was a good way to break into the program and to get to know some new faces. I feel welcomed here and certainly not greeted with the anxiety of feeling like I have to prove myself or find a place to fit in. It feels natural. Perhaps that's due to the size of the program (I believe there are 14 of us total), but irregardless, it feels just right.

I'm lucky enough to be starting off with a Full Graduate Assistantship, which, in exchange for 20 hrs of service to the department, pays for my tuition and provides a not-huge, but not-so-bad stipend that covers most of my living expenses. Contrary to the belief of many... grad school doesn't have to mean mounds of debt! Not all schools have the resources to fully fund their students, but there are lots of programs out there like UMD that offer generous assistantships and fellowships. Thank goodness! For my assistantship this semester, I will be a Teaching Assistant for four different sections (each with a different professor) of ART-100 - 2D Fundamentals. I'm excited about learning, in such a hands-on way, how to be a teacher (at the collegiate level). The program is structured so that, by my 2nd/3rd year, I will be teaching my own classes here at UMD, if I so wish. Let's hope my "students" aren't put off by the fact that I'm practically the same age as they are ;) Perhaps if I act really mature I'll have them fooled... that is... until they see my student ID!

a little something

This week I've been continuing some research for a project that I've been working on for the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art. I've been serving as a research assistant ("Special Projects Associate" to be specific) to the Halsey's director and curator Mark Sloan for a book proposal/traveling exhibition that's in the works. The project involves the work of Mr. Don ZanFagna, a multi-talented man in his 80's currently living in Mt. Pleasant, SC.

  CLICK HERE to learn more about Mr. ZanFagna

As part of my research, I've been reading up on "Organic Architecture." I've read cover to cover Javier Senosiain's Bio-Architecture, as well as heavily skimmed several others on the subject, and I've come across some ideas and quotes that are particularly relevant in my personal studio work (which shares some aesthetic & conceptual qualities with ZanFagna's). I can't seem to get the following quote, by Frank Lloyd Wright, out of my head. It's taking me somewhere I have been headed for some time... 

Every house is a mechanical forgery of the human body... the whole inside is a sort of stomach that attempts to digest objects, objets d'art perhaps, but objects nonetheless. Here is where the feigned affliction installs itself, always hungry for more objects or plethoric because of excess. It seems like the whole life of the common house is a form of indigestion, an unhealthy body that suffers slight illnesses, that demands constant repairs and remedies to survive. It is a marvel that we, its occupants, are not driven crazy in it and with it; perhaps it is a sort of insanity we have put into it.

 I'm thinking a lot about that quote and how Wright's ideas fit into my body of work/area of interest. I'm excited about the possibilities. Oh yea, and I pulled out some materials today. I've been sitting on my hands for the past few weeks, but I think it's time to start playing around - to see some ideas come to life. The above image is the result of today's toilings.

mmmoving

The past 2 weeks have been a whirlwind. I drove to Atlanta and back to pick up my mom who graciously drove the 16 ft rental truck crammed with my belongings (who knew one 22 yr old could have so much stuff?!) all the way to Maryland. Steve was my slave for a few days... he packed and shoved and lifted without complaint, stopping only to go to the City Gallery to de-install my portion of the Contemporary Charleston exhibition - while I was at work, hosting a 3 yr old's ballerina birthday party on the day before the big move. We went far too many days on much too little sleep, but thankfully are still here to talk about it.

Taking things out of boxes has proven to be much less stressful (except for the few hours that I couldn't find the coffee grinder). I quickly filled my 2nd floor Silver Spring apartment with room to spare - it's much more spacious than my Race Street abode. After helping unload the rest of my belongings into my (also spacious) UMD studio, Steve headed home to Philadelphia, and after 2 days spent in the North Virginia Mountains at my Uncle Keith's, my mom and I met him there. Our parents met and Steve gave yet another magnificent tour of the city (if you're ever there, call him up!) Mom caught a plane south-bound and I hung around with the Evans' only to sleep through the next 2 afternoons - finally catching up on all the running around and lack of sleep of the previous week.

This week has been spent slowly... getting my apartment set up, little by little. I'm just now starting to learn my way around this place- this place is huge, especially compared to itty bitty Charleston, which has made for lots of wrong turns and missed exits. Yesterday I found my way to the University of Maryland campus again and organized my things in a way that makes me feel much more at home in my studio. I briefly met 2 of the new grad students, Lauren and Jason, who were also getting settled into their new spaces.

Below are 2 shots of my studio so far... much more talk is in store. I want to elaborate on my program, professors, my assistant-ship, etc. But until then...

my homage to charleston

As most of you know, this past spring I graduated from the College of Charleston with majors in Studio Art and Business Administration. Charleston has been VERY good to me for the past 4 years and has provided me with a number of fantastic opportunities that very likely would not have been possible elsewhere. Its small, youthful, and encouraging arts community has made it a great city in which to come of age, to discover a calling, and to grow as an aspiring artist. In just three weeks I will be relocating to the DC area to attend graduate school at the University of Maryland, College Park, but before I say goodbye to this lovely city, I'd like to recognize some of the artists and arts organizations that have been most influential to my development while I've been here.

CofC Studio Art Department

As a student, I've had the opportunity to work closely with some super cool, endlessly encouraging professors. Some of the most supportive and influential include...

 Herb Parker

encourager and motivator who knows how to do everything - always has a humble (and helpful) recommendation or two

 

Jarod Charzewski

non-stop sculptor and perserverant collaborator - will go to lengths for his students

click here to learn more about our collaborative project

Michael Morrison

studio manager and foundry extraordinaire - made me apply for an exhibition as punishment for leaving a mess

 Lily Kuonen

not your typical painting professor - an intellect and a source book for all things art

click here to see a blog post I wrote on one of Lily's shows

---------------------------------------------------------

Local Arts Organizations

I've worked closely with the following organizations in a variety of ways...

Redux Contemporary Art Center

known for its diverse exhibitions, subsidized studio space for artists, educational programming, and multidisciplinary approach to the dialogue between artists and audience - I have exhibited here as well as taught classes

click here to see previous blog posts about the classes I taught and the exhibition I was in

Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art

In addition to producing exhibitions, lectures, film series, publications, and a comprehensive (kick-ass) website, the Halsey serves as an extension of the undergraduate curricula at the College and as a cultural resource for the region - I have been a pseudo-intern, gallery attendant, helping hand, and research assistant here over the past 2 years - Director and curator, Mark Sloan, has served as my adviser and mentor this past year (he deserves a post all to his own)

click here to see images of my work in the Halsey

The City Gallery at Waterfront Park

owned and operated by the city of Charleston - a venue for contemporary artwork that is new, vital and innovative, with a focus on broadening Charleston’s arts outlook - host of the annual Contemporary Charleston exhibition, in which my work was included this year

click here to see images of my work in Contemporary Charleston 2011:Under the Radar

google analytics

I recently signed up for Google Analytics, a free service offered by Google that generates detailed statistics about the visitors of a website. I've attached it to my portfolio site (laurenfrancesmoore.com) and can now learn all kinds of things about the people who visit my site. It tells me how many visitors I have each day, where they're from, how many pages they view, how long they stay on my site, how they got to my site, and so so much more. It's a remarkable tool, though I feel slightly narcissistic when I dwell on these details for too long.

I found it particularly interesting that several people have found my website through various tumblr accounts. After doing some digging, I discovered that this image (seen below) of the large steel sculpture I made last year at Franconia Sculpture Park, has made the rounds on tumblr. I'm not too familiar with tumblr and all of its ways, but the fact that this image of my sculpture has 90 "notes" seems pretty cool.

Vessel

fabricated steel

17' x 31' x 22'

CLICK HERE for more images

The blogs I've been featured on all seem pretty cool... I look forward to checking them out in more detail! A few of them include rerylikes, Tumbleword, and ArtPropelled.