The FIRM, Visiting Artists at VSU.

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 14:56:45 -0500

Valdosta State University is hosting 4 ceramic artists for a 2 day workshop, lectures (at VSU) &
an exhibition opening at the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts in Valdosta, GA.
http://www.turnercenter.org

The Artists - (The Firm):
Shane Christensen (UT) Brian Jensen (UT)
Stephen Heywood (FL) Michael T Schmidt (GA)

When:
Workshop - Monday & Tuesday, November 17 & 18th, 2008 - 9am-4pm, Lecture TBA

Where:
Valdosta State University - Fine Arts Building - Room 136 (Ceramics studio)

Exhibition Opening at the Turner Center
Monday, November 17th, 5-7pm

For Who and How Much:
Open to the Public. Students, Faculty and Community. Free, Free, Free...

For images and to learn more about “The Firm:”
http://www.michaeltschmidt.com/ceramics/thefirm.html

Parking on Campus: Visitors passes will be available in rm 136 of the Fine Arts Building.

* This event is sponsored by VSU Art Department & Ceramics.
* For information call 249.4913 or e-mail: mschmidt@valdosta.edu

Alternative Industrial Complex #003

Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:19:51 -0400

Last year I made a piece for the 2007 Faculty Exhibition, titled “The Industrial Complex.” Since then I have continued to make a variety of work including a recent piece for the 2008 Faculty Exhibition titled Alternative Industrial Complex #003,

This piece is a continuation of concepts that are consistent and fluid in my work. Visually inspired by grain silos and exhaust vent systems, conceptually inspired by politics, the History channel, NPR and a series of books - this piece speaks about the growing concern and need for alternative sources of energy. Corn and ethanol have been debated for some time now, the benefits, economic viability, environmental consequences, etc, makes this “complex” crop a real sore subject. Books have been written about it, politicians lobby for it and against it, farmers praise and curse it. It has been engineered to do so much, we don’t realize just how important a piece of corn truly is. That said, this piece is not pro corm for use as ethanol, it’s about fuel, consumption, addiction...hopefully it is visually interesting as well.

The bags of feed corn on the floor have a wonderfully designed logo and package. “Producer’s Pride,” it says, “Quality, Value, Nutrition.” I could not have designed it any better myself. This coupled with a post war, idealized and glorified image of a farm landscape and a series of tags with barcodes and batch numbers made this a pivotal part of the piece. I found it at a local feed store, originally I was looking to fill the silo with corn, but when I saw these bags I had to have them, I think the piece is much stronger with them included.

Pure Oil is printed on the tumbler, filled with alcohol, by the way. An entire silo filled with corn, bags waiting to refill it, the cup only half full, illustrating just how inefficient the corn to ethanol fuel process really is. Do the research, you’ll see. Read a great book by Michael Pollen titled “The Omnivore’s Dilemma.” It’s about the Industrial Revolution and the roll it has played in farming, food production and how we eat. I use the Pure Oil logo often in my work, I like the design, and play on the word as well.

Lastly, the frame (made of welded and fabricated steel) and the concrete column are rough, weathered, rusted, so is the cup - a relic, an antique. A contemporary idea already past. Maybe next year I’ll make something more upbeat, when gas is under 4 bucks a gallon.

The VSU Art Faculty exhibition: September 22 - October 10, 2007.
>> e-mail your comments: mschmidt@valdosta.edu

Face Jugs, a student assignment

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:45:00 -0400

Original Post Fall 2007 - Here is a piece that I would never have made if not for an assignment/demonstration in my ceramics 1 class - Face Jugs. Built using a variety of soft stoneware slabs, 1 wrapped around a piece of pvc pipe as an armature. The entire piece is constructed from slabs, coils and a press molded spout from an old gas can. After the 1 hour demo I was planning to destroy what I had started, however, a student said that I should finish the piece and complete the assignment myself. So I spent another 2 hours over then next day - this is what I ended up with. No sketches, no research, just spontaneity. While this piece will certainly not win an award in the next Whitney Biennial, I enjoyed making the piece, as most of my work is tight and refined. It was actually fun to let loose and make something “silly.” The pictures of the piece are leather hard to finished. It is sprayed with porcelain slip and 2 Soda flashing slips, fired to Cone 10, in the Cross-draft Soda Kiln.

Some History - North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia have a long tradition of making ceramic bottles and jugs with faces on them, face jugs or “ugly jugs.” Often times these images/forms reference religious imagery (specifically “devilish” imagery to ward off evil spirits), and are fired in low tech salt or wood kilns or are sometimes pit fired.

The tradition of pottery with faces dates back to Egyptian times and appears in many other cultures throughout the ages. Research has shown that both white and black potters created these vessels - not just the slave potters. The vessels sold well because there was a need to store moonshine in a container that didn't look like every other jug in the house pantry. Children were strongly warned against touching that jug or "the boogie man would get ya!" Consequently the jugs were made as mean looking and ugly as possible, and generally the faces were crudely fashioned. After the Civil War, pottery production in South Carolina declined. Itinerant potters, who hired out their skills, moved on following the westward expansion of our country and the tradition of "ugly jug" making continued in North Carolina and Georgia with some generations of potter families who farmed and threw pots to make a living...

ART 3061 Ceramics 1 - Assignment 3 Summary: Face Jugs
Create 2 handbuilt forms. Scale: minimum 10” - 24” tall
- These forms will incorporate a narrow neck, a strap handle and bottle-like main body.
- Emphasis should be placed on image, and content...DRAWINGS!!! RESEARCH!!!
- Use a digital camera to document your facial expressions, source material.
- Use any and all techniques: slab, coil, pinch,...or a combination of these techniques.
- Combine Stoneware& Porcelain for varied effects.
- Remember, these must be signed and have a finished foot.

Links:
http://gallery.mac.com/schmidty55#100047
http://www.si.edu/Encyclopedia_SI/nmah/facevess.htm
http://www.claytonbailey.com/jugheads.htm
http://barnwellweb.com/pawprintpottery/face_jugs.htm
http://www.blackpotter.com

VSU Faculty Exhibiton

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 16:26:58 -0400

This year the VSU Art Faculty Exhibition looks back into the history of the art department and includes a variety of faculty who have contributed so much to the growth and success of the program over the years. The picture above was taken in 1978.
From left to right: Joe Pember, Bruce Wallace, Don Penny, Irene Dodd, Lee Bennett, Claud Singer, Russell McRae, Bill Martin and Ruth Kahler. 1978 Art Department

Inspired by the Past - VSU Art Faculty Exhibition
September 22-October 10, 2008   Opening Reception: Monday, September 22 7-8:30PM  Sponsorship by, MORRIS Orthodontics

The Dot and the Line and Steve Schofield

Mon, 1 Sep 2008 15:51:46 -0400

This is a great animation by Chuck Jones from the 60’s...narrated by Robert Morley. I shared this with my students. This 10 minute animation has a fantastic concept, witty writing and is a great example of simple illustration/animation which really gets the point across. It is clever, funny and entertaining.
Click here to watch the video on YouTube >

My firend Mike Davey in the English Department at VSU sent me this a link to Steve Schofield’s site the other day. I think the images are fantastic, perhaps you will enjoy as well...I couldn’t resist putting the Star Trek photo together with the Dot and the Line still above, both visually and conceptually.

Steve Schofield, from the statement-
My practice is concerned with exploring the fascination that the British public has with American popular culture and the sub-cultural world of fandom. In the images, I have shown people in their own homes and environments wearing costumes that they would be dressed in to attend events with other like-minded individuals. It seeks to offer a glimpse into seemingly ordinary lives of my subjects and allows the private to become public. The work hints at the depth of people's fantasies and the methods they employ to adopt this culture as part of their own lifestyle as a means of escapism. Web - Steve Schofield >

Mario at it again.

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:44:33 -0400

A Culinary Road Trip with Mario Batali...

If you like food and you like Mario, then you should check this out. An interesting show with some great ideas and wonderful recipes.

http://www.spainontheroadagain.com

Arizona - WOW, need I say more.

Wed, 21 May 2008 09:43:03 -0400

It has been a long time since we have taken a vacation of any significant length, so earlier this month Nance and I headed to Arizona for 8 days, what a fantastic time we had. Thanks to her parents, we stayed at the Sedona Summit Resort which was very nice...Thanks Jim & Mary.

First we flew from Jacksonville, FL to Phoenix, AZ; rented a rock’n Dodge Caliber (spared no expense) and drove 100 miles north to Sedona. This is a place that I think everyone should see at some point in their life, words cannot describe. Friday we familiarized ourselves with the area, had a beer at the Olde Sedona Bar and Grill while we watched some blues, not a bad start. The next few days we spent driving, visiting many state and national parks in the area, such as Oak Creek Canyon and Slide Rock State Park. Using our Red Rock State Pass, we hiked - Boynton Canyon, Dead Man’s Pass, Long Trail, Devil’s Bridge, Airport Mountain Vista, Cathedral Mountain and Slide Rock. The terrain was incredible. By the way, saguaro cactus stop growing at 3,000 feet, so outside of Phoenix, you really don’t see them.

The weather was great, perfect actually, except for Tuesday. It rained in the morning, but that paved the way for a spectacular evening and sunset. We spent the gloomy morning doing a short hike then headed for Jerome, a small copper mining “ghost town” set up in the mountains at 5,200+ feet. We ate at the Haunted Hamburger, not sure if the food was possessed, but it was tasty indeed. Did I mention that it snows at this elevation? Yup, snow in the mountains, Flagstaff (only 25 miles north of Sedona) had 10” of snow, as did parts of the Grand Canyon.

Wednesday we went on a 3 hour adventure with Pink Jeep Tours, on Broken Arrow trail. You would not want to drive your precious Hummer here, no way. We rode in a revved up Jeep CJ-7 with wicked tires, suspension and an 8” lift kit, it climbed some serious terrain, the driver was great, funny and super knowledgeable, it was fun and we learned a lot about the history of this area.

Thursday was the icing on the cake, Grand Canyon National Park. We left Sedona, drove up Oak Creek Canyon to the top of the Colorado Plateau (Second largest plateau in the world apparently) to Flagstaff, past Humphreys Peak (tallest point in AZ at 12,000+ feet), stopped at Wupatki National Park to check out Sunset Crater, black lava fields and mountains, then headed up through the painted desert to the south rim of the Grand Canyon. This was a truly spectacular day. While at the Canyon we saw Mule Deer, Elk and California Condors - beautiful. The trip with my wife was sweet, the sites amazing, the experience unforgettable. We did not want to leave and I’m certain we’ll go back. All I can say is go.

Links:
For pictures of our trip (2 pages) >>

Art - an interesting dicussion

Thu, 1 May 2008 19:36:34 -0400

I received a few emails from my Department Chair, Blake Pearce about a Yale University student’s “art” which is stirring up some conversation, if not controversy, to say the least...Rather than typing some lengthy “blog” ranting of how appropriate or inappropriate it may or may not be, I’ve tagged a few articles written intelligently and informatively by ”the pros.” Feel free to read the links below, it certainly is an interesting “discussion” that is taking place, and will continue to - as long as “art” is made.
Links:
Aliza Shvarts >>
For Senior, Abortion a Medium for Art, Political Discourse - Yale Daily News Article >>
An Artwork at Yale May Not Be Real, but the Furor Is - NY TImes Article >>
Yale's abortion artist is the latest to try and fail to start a conversation - Newsweek Article >>
More Than Shock Value - Inside Higher Ed Article >>
Revealed as HOAX: Yale Student Did Not...- Life Site News Article >>

Fascinating Video

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:07:43 -0400

My friend Richard Peterman sent me a link to some very interesting art/installation/videos the other day. Made by Arthur Ganson and Theo Jansen, they are incredibly serene, simultaneously complex and simplistic in their design, beautiful and engaging in their aesthetic, and perplexing in their “function.”

Arthur Ganson is a renowned kinetic sculptor. Ganson makes mechanical art demonstrations and Rube Goldberg machines with existential themes. Ganson has held residencies in science museums, collaborated with the Studebaker Movement Theatre, and been featured in one-man shows at MIT Museum, Harvard’s Carpenter Center, the DeCordova Museum, and the Ricco/Maresca Gallery in New York. He has a permanent installation at the National Inventors Hall of Fame. He was a MIT artist-in-residence. and some of his work is on permanent display at the Gestural Engineering exhibit at MIT Museum in Boston, Massachusetts.
Links:
Arthur Ganson - web >>
Machine with 23 Scraps of Paper - video >>
Homage to Tinguely - video >>
Another House Fly - video >>
Japanese Rube Goldberg Machine - video >>

Theo Jansen (born March 17, 1948, in The Hague, Netherlands) is a Dutch artist and kinetic sculptor. He builds large works which resemble skeletons of animals and are able to walk using the wind on the beaches of the Netherlands. His animated works are a fusion of art and engineering; and in a BMW television commercial, Jansen says, "The walls between art and engineering exist only in our minds."
Links:
Theo Jansen - web >>
Strandbeesten- video trailer >>

Ron Mueck, a must see

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:56:04 -0400

So I was gone for a week to Pennsylvania, flew Val-Vegas to PIT, met up with the Firm and rented a Chrysler 300, cruised up I-79 to Edinboro, PA about 2 hours north for a 2 day workshop at our ‘alma mater,’ Edinboro University of Penn. It was a good visit and workshop, hopefully the students enjoyed our work and lectures. The weather was cold, gray, rainy; typical Edinboro weather for this time of year. Chuck and Kathy Johnson (and their boys Eric and Andrew) and Lee Rexrode were very hospitable and gracious, the four of us split up and stayed with them. The french toast and fresh apple cider was a real treat, Chuck and Kathy have a great place, an old (now restored) farmhouse on 40 acres or so, it’s beautiful. Lee’s place is great too, new, in the woods, his ceramics collection made us drool a bit.
EUP Firm Workshop Pics >>

It had been 7 or 8 years since I had been back, still the quite town I remember, only with a Wal-Mart now (too bad). We drove to Erie one evening, visited the Erie Art Museum - Clayspace on State Street, what good memories many of us had there, most of us getting our only teaching experience there, while in graduate school.

On our way down to Pittsburgh for the NCECA conference we stopped at Bill Campbell’s pottery, He gave a us a personal tour of the facility, which is quite impressive. The Firm is having a show there in August at the Stonewall Gallery, watch for that this fall.
Clayspace + Campbell Pottery Pics >>

Ok - To the Ron Mueck stuff...We saw a lot of ceramics shows while at NCECA, we took a lot of pics while there, we saw a ton of exhibitions, walked miles, ate local food, it was great. The Andy Warhol Museum had a great show of sculpture - it is truly indescribable, REALLY. You just have to see it. I watched a video, on Mueck, bought a book...still nothing compares to seeing it. Click the link below or the image above if you want to see the video, it’s 30 minutes or so, but well worth it.
Update 4.1.08 - the full length original video, approximately 30+ minutes long has been removed from BlipTV...COME ON BlipTV!!! That was a sweet post! So, I searched on a variety of other sites and found most of the original video divided into 2 parts on YouTube:
Mueck Part 1 >> Mueck Part 2 >>
Another short video at the Brooklyn Museum >>
Cool Links to Ron Mueck’s work:
http://www.nga.gov.au/mueck/director.cfm
http://blog.kavefish.com/archive/art/ron-mueck-hyperrealist-sculptor.html

Workshop at University of North Florida - JAX

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:24:24 -0500

I just returned from a 2 day workshop at UNF in Jacksonville, Florida. My good friend Stephen Heywood teaches ceramics there. This semester he is co-teaching a print and clay class with Emily Arthur, the printmaking professor - That’s how I was invited down.

It was a good visit, Jacksonville is a great place, the campus is beautiful; the weather, fantastic. Steve has a good facility, (clean, orderly and efficient as expected), and he continues to push the ceramics area in a positive direction, I’m sure it will continue to get stronger.

During my 2 day workshop, I make a variety of “clay items” (ranging from cups, plates, teapots, oil cans, bowls, etc) and did an extensive presentation regarding image on clay, specifically - laser transfer techniques using xylene and decal paper. The lecture was Tuesday evening and had a very good turnout, I was pleased. The ceramics students (and several faculty too) hosted a potluck just before the lecture, it was good fun, food was great, and we were able to visit more informally, which was nice. My thanks to Stephen, Emily, the students and the Art Department for the invitation, support and hospitality while there.

Click here to see images from my visit >>

Type - helvetica 101

Wed, 6 Feb 2008 10:03:57 -0500

Do you enjoy type? You should. You read it everyday without giving it a second thought. Commercials, ads, newspapers, websites, magazines, sign-age, billboards, menus, etc, etc. Every single letter designed by someone - historically by hand. Helvetica is among the most widely used sans-serif typefaces. It is a sans-serif typeface developed in 1957 by Swiss typeface designer Max Miedinger.

Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface (which is celebrating its 50th birthday this year) as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives.

See this website and video at: http://www.helveticafilm.com

Design Boom = Cool Stuff

Fri, 1 Feb 2008 10:42:48 -0500

“As part of the london design festival designboom curated an exhibition of contemporary ceramic wares from 163 established and upcoming designers from 35 countries. The 500 + pieces on show express subjects and details of everyday life, their departure from tradition, and the current conflict of ecology and consumerism.”

“The search for the experiential, the pleasure in making extends beyond the 'design of form'. Since their origin, ceramic works have expanded the functional dimension and contemporary production engenders ornamentation, sculpture and installation. context does change. no technique is inert or ahistorical.”

See this website and video at: http://www.designboom.com