KATHRYNARNOLD
8th Street Studio
My 8th Street Studio and its day to day, or maybe it will be week to week digression on my studio issues, art thoughts, and the duality experience between conceptual/rational and nonconceptual/intuitive. Grid and ground contained all within.
Studio Log
2_6_2010
I am still working with building the stretchers as i needed to route some of the corssbars and had given away my rip saw. In the studio I have been perparing to work with some golden acrylic paint mediums that i have never use. I am nos in NYFA's fiscal sponsership program and am delighted. Since I am on the west coast i cannot make it to the february 8 orientation but hope to get started on my project soon. A bit of work gos into this but i hope it will be a blast.
1_20_10
It has been a long time since updating this page. I began building 4 larger stretchers today for 4 large canvasses. Hopefully more will happen tomorrow. I have also been preparing for classes and looking forward to the upcoming semester. I am very excited about my teaching schedule and courses. I am working with podcast and videocast technologies for my online course and it is good to have the time to develop this aspect.
There is a lot of new work I need to shoot and then will post here in the near future. I completed my "After Cortazar" work and am going to be researching digital technologies to make it into some sort of interactive text. I have a number of ideas but no application development experience so I hope to meet the right people soon!
8_21_09
Working in the studio this afternoon after a day of planning the fall classes - putting information up online and more. Especially working on the new online course.
Beginning work at completing the nonlinear book plus the Ring series...5 are complete and i have aounrd 5 small ones in process. They have been in process since the beginning of the year but I hope to complete them before involved in fall courses or at least before they get too involved.
Pastel set has been fun - and divergent for me. Need to write a statement as to what they are about.
Visited SF MOMA yesterday saw Robert Franks and Avedon - photography of course, really excellent exhibtions - was surprised how much I appreciated the work and the layout. Giant Avedons - all in one place.
Last night went to NYFA program and am going to try to get into their fiscal sponsership program - forget thinking about artwork as something that will make a profit, move away from that and work at developing some projects related to these large 100 piece sets.
I have 3 pieces going up throughout the fall - putting some of my best work out there to see what happens.
8_14_09
Completed 4 small paintings that i have been working on awhile - may go back into them and adjust a bit after they sit with me. Today hope to complete the other 2 and then can begin finishing the non-linear book.
Today went to visit samurai exhibtion at the asian art museum - saw copied original text of Miyamoto Musashi's Book of 5 Rings and a couple of his brush paintings - felt overwhelmed.
No i am here at the studio setting up to work - feel small, but that is good.
8_8_09
Returned from trip to the midwest and have been working in the studio and visiting galleries, writing short clips on what I see for my own blog and also Alan's artbusiness blog that shows tons of images of the exhibitions in san francisco. Saw this very nice photogram at Rayko's (sf) that had the photogram and then an inverse of the photogram image (subject = leaves) that I loved as well as Ryan Martin's paintings at Mark Wolfe Contemporary - love color handling, paint handling and the haunting creation of feeling. Was able to go back into the office area and see "Lucky Star" where he destroys the pristine quality of his supra-real sruface with AE brushmarks - really enhances the emerging from submerging quality. Plus got a really good image of the one in the gallery - might post it on my blog www.kathrynarnold.wordpress.com when I process these images for Alan. I would encourage every artist to 'get out' more - it has been inspiring and an enlightening experience to begin to be a part of sf art community.
Studio work is in process - going well. Changing the white paintings quite a bit but keeping the layers of whit as they felt too minimal - and gives me some experiential understanding of the minimalists' attitudes and theories - realizing they are not mine per se, so the works are evelving. I am always surprised how much goes into making one of these pieces - quoting from kerry james marshall ' They don't appear by magic" as he explains why he likes to look at unfinished masters in the chicago art institute museum.
Last evening at Triple Base the curator is the artist - I will try to requote her curator statement in the near future but you may find it online at their website. Kind of a fluxus appearance to the selection of pieces she selected for the show. I will write more on that on the artbusiness.com openings area in the near future - just rather encapsulating my thoughts here.
7_2_09
Thoughts on ideas of invention(s) on the way over to the studio this morning. Love this! experiencing a sense of the new and innovation in my own work. perhaps this is what i have been excited about in the work of others, the sense of new and innovation - the excitement of the now/new. Yet not new just to be new, but new in the sense of exploring avenues in own work, rather like exploring in nature - may have seen a blue spruce before but not 'this' blue spruce. The grid is providing a formal structure to bounce against and to create a way of relating to the surface.
6_30_09 #2
i began to see today that since these works are so large, i need to go in and make some additional formal contrast and i can barely wait to get into the studio again tomorrow to create my invention...sometimes when one finds oneself at the end of a path, a new one will appear. i have lots of white paint now!
6_30_09
I have been working with the set of 4 4' x 5' oil paintings that are in particular white. The feeling that this would be an easy problem to work with has left and yet i am experiencing an involvement with the work, an involvement that feels as if there could be openings for further explorations. The works are connected to an idea i have of 'an unknown sensei' and i am allowing some attributes to be visible within these works. i find things are coming in and then i have to send them away. these are not complete but i photographed them to get a sense of what changes happen and my decision making processes as i continue. there is a lot to working with white and yet i experience this thing coming in that feels like i need more, want more. i do not know if that is true or if it is a personal boundary i am pressing against. These are pretty large pieces for 'studies' but yet that is what these are, at least at this moment.
6_14_09
It has been a great 3 weeks in the studio. I completed the 4 earlier works that I had begun awhile back and now have begun a set of 4 4'x 5's. Have been interested in a minimalist more formalist strategy and inspired by one of Robert Stanley's recent works that is mainly in whites and a surface that appears like a Tapies (online). (See Delineation acrylic, charcoal, and collage on canvas, 24x20 in. on the left side about 18 images down at http://robertstanleyart.com/Studio%20Happenings%2010.html.
Whether I can experience these limitations in a powerful way will wait to be seen. I have 2 in process, beginning with marks and then a layer of white on top. I hope to continue this process over and over until I begin to sense some immersion in the white field. It still is working with The Ring concept that I have been exploring but with a more subdued end experience. Right now they look like my paintings in a blizzard which creates all sorts of avenues to explore if I want to and is pretty exciting.
I will post some images up later. Have been exploring idea of cost comparison - sharing my space and renting storage - or continuing as is. The amount of $ spent and/or created would be the same after precise cost calculation. I would like to share my space but really would need somewhere for the works to go since they cannot fit in the living room, unless we give the living room up!
6_1_09
Busy days with the semester over. I am wrking on a set of four 4' x 5' oil paintings in the studio and 2 smaller works that are 20" x 20". They are connected with literary ideas as understood in The Ring - both Wagner's and Tokein's. An element that everything else relates to, at times creating adventure, narrative, disorder - the sense of nature capital N.
Here are 3 small images of the 4 x 5's, 2 more to come later:
Here are the 2 20" x 20"
4_26_09
The new website is up - it is to be a continual record of my work. It took more than 12 hours to put the entire thing up; began last night around 10 pm and it was still uploading this morning...http://www.kathrynarnold.com
It has links to this website, my wordpress blog and my twitter feed runs live into the blog!
Have been working in the studio now for days on a few works that are about 4x5. some new things happening in there. Also, received tenure which is a milestone in my life. The hard work pays off.
Next time I am in the studio will write down what is exactly going on with the works and what is informing my decisions. Perhaps also an image or 2 of the works in process.
Tomorrow evening another program over at SFSU - this one is on Strategic Planning for artists and may be about how to develop a realistic strategy.
On Thursday evening I will hear Kerry James marshall speak - it will be the third time since I began making work that I have heard him. I am interested to hear what has changed - in the Art 21 series on him he is involved with multiple projects.
On Wednesday, the artworks are picked up for my upcoming exhibtion "Defining Chaos"
4_11_09
I have been finishing up my new website revision and soon it will be ready. ... am stressed at the 'stand by' all week on jury duty so I cannot plan anything. And also cannot let my students know anything ahead of time... disregard for others
So much for frustration.
My exhibtion Passages looks good and I want my website revision done before I send out the cards and announcements. Hence the day at my computer.
I am working with using Twitter to develop written text for my nonlinear book. This does seem to be working well and a more randome way to create the text. Too bad if people don't have the context of Cortazar's Hopscotch - perhaps it will help them investigate it. I may call this work "Hopscotch, after Cortazar - an experiment in nonlinearity,
This is probably all for now - I am only here to update the exhibitons I have curated :-)
4_2_09
this week have been furthering my works in progress - takes some time to create a painting. tomorrow will be back there. have become a part of facebook and it is fairly addictive but also i think it is amazing i can get information so fast and not have it be in my email - especially for events, occassions etc. I hate to delete anything in the email. also twitter where i am putting in daily text for my nonlinear book - for 100 days in a row. This gives new meaning to the idea of one liners and the idea they can become combined to create a story that can read in any order...i put some of them up on my book on Monday and hope to do even more tomorrow.
other events, have been attending a program on grantwriting for artists and had to submit a sample narrative/letter...took me all morning to do it and will discover on next Monday night more about it - hope for feedback...felt like i was doing it for real
exhibition at sansome is up and work is ready for the end of april so i am ahead of myself temporarily
well, what i am doing on my works in the studio is building up the surfaces; they are working with bits anjd pieces and will be a part of the passages group unless something happens
also the grid pieces that have been sitting in the studio just waiting, the small ones, are getting ready as well - many things i could do so need to narrow my focus, more on that later on
3_23_09
Followed michael damm around on Saturday assisting him with installing my Passages exhibtion. He is an artist and will be doing a residancy up in Oregon. I must look up his work - wish I had seen it in LA as he had some work up there when I was there at the end of February.
Had a work up in the artspan auction. and preparing works for the exhibtions have kept me busy.
http://artslant.com/sf/events/show/47280-kathryn-arnold-passages
you are invited!
have set up a group
kathryn arnold
on facebook - please join
and also created a twitter account
i am hoping to give more immediacy to what i am doing in the studio and the art openings and exhibtions i go to
can send twitter from on site; very immediate
and what AM i doing in the studio :-) well, contemplating my large book and have begun 4 works that are around 3.5' x 4.5'
and preparing to do a spring open studio
and put works in the sfmoma artists gallery auction
the exhibtion they have up right now that works through the foreclosure effect i thoroughly loved, more on that later
more coming at the end of the week!
2_14_09
Another one :-)
"In Memory - Mallarme" , 555 Second Street (Nova), curated by Matt Mckinley/ McKinley Art Solutions, San Francisco, Ca., April 29 - July 29, 2009
2_14_09
Things are getting busy :-)
Please go here http://artslant.com/global/artists/show/35231-kathryn-arnold to vote for my work :-)
Passages, 505 Sansome Street (The Transamerica center), curated by Casey and Associates, San Francisco, CA, March 21, 2009- May 30, 2009
College Art Association Members' Exhbition, February 2009, Los Angeles, CA.
ArtSpan, Spring Auction, San Francisco, March 2009.
"Lake Shore" Cafe in Pacific Heights, curated by Rachel Steinbeisser , San Francisco, February - April 2009.
ArtSoup 18, SF CA, curated by Mckinley Art Solutions, San Francisco, Dec. 2008 - March 2009
I am revising my website also but the images may be too dark. The revision location is www.site301.com and once completed will move to www.kathrynarnold.com.
Also in the studio a few works are in process!
1_26_09
A new year and I feel behind in a way. Working at the studio yesterday and on Friday with a few glazes and glanced at the acrylic on silkscreen to see how they are going. I began 2 24 x 24 inch works but they are not very far and will take a number of days to work with them. Have been in the process of determination on the large paper work and the large oil on canvas piece and still not where I feel comfortable.
Here you can see where I am...
Work is going on but need to cloister myself in here for awhile to make any progress or resolution (sorry about those Modernist words :-)
The one on the left is my non-linear book (you can see where I am working by the missing square - each piece/section is resolved on its own and then put back, around 34 to go!, and then the text) and the one on the right is my silver lining piece. The pieces scattered around to the left on the floor are related to the silver lining work and the one on the easel is from a new set of 4 that are around 4.5 x 4 feet and similar.
My sketchbook is listing my possibilities and including rationale, ie...if i do this, wht might it mean and if i do that, how will it alter its meaning. Nothing got solved yesterday but it was good being in there to work.
Considering developing a month residancy program in my studio with a gallery and am beginning to research it.
I saw the martin puryear exhibiton at the sf moma, a lot of similarities to tuttle but the materials used seem to strongly tie into african-america history. Not sure they would have at the time he made them, but now this is all I could see.