Facilitating projects. Energies. Individuals. Dreams.

frida@artyardbklyn.org
Jul 17, 2020
2 min read

Updated: Jul 18, 2020

“Facilitating, you know, projects. Energies. Individuals. Dreams. Every day, I wake up, he wakes up, and we’re like, ‘O.K. How can we be of service in a time of need?’” ~ Nick Cave

ree — American artist Nick Cave with one of his Soundsuits. Fully concealing the body, the Soundsuits serve as an alien second skin that obscures race, gender, and class, allowing viewers to look without bias towards the wearer’s identity.

Watch a clip of Nick Cave's Soundsuits in action!

Our second week of ART YARD Summer Session was deeply satisfying and wildly successful! Teaching Artist Claudia Alvarez prepared inspiring presentations for each session which had us discussing some of the most inspiring contemporary artists working on socially responsible ideas, alternative forms of sculpture, with communities and in performative work including Nick Cave, Vic Muniz, Siah Armajani, Annabeth Rosen, Mary Mattingly, Peter Burns, Eleni Giannopoulou and Marina Abramović.

Environmental concerns are paramount to many of the Summer Session Artists. Thus the work of Brazilian artist Vic Muniz which delves deeply into the topic of garbage hit an important cord with us.

ree — Vik Muniz, Still from Wasteland, a documentary piece that tells the story of his installations in Rio de Janeiro’s largest garbage dump

This week we continued to investigate the topics dear to us from many trajectories, some with more drawing, Eden even using digital process, most of us ventured in to creating sculpture.

Like the artists we investigated, there were no limitations on what materials we employed. In the manner of Iranian-born Architect/Artist Siah Armajani and American performance artist Mary Mattingly many of used the detritus of our lives — available scraps, recycling bin finds and what not.

ree — Siah Armajani, Dictionary for Building: Open Dormer

Finishing up this excellent week we watched a video of Serbian conceptual and performance artist Marina Abramović’s performative social project The Artist is Present. Summer Session Artist Marilyn August wrote to express her enthusiasm for the video clip describing it as “incredibly moving”.

Marina Abramović, The Artist Is Present (2010), Museum of Modern Art, New York. Abramović's former partner Ulay joins her during her performance at her career retrospective.

Likewise, the ideas, focus, and artmaking of ART YARD Summer Session participants are deeply creative and incredibly moving:

Nayarit Tineo, The City of Yemin - Past Beauty and Destrution of the Old City

ree — Eden Moore, The Story Never Changes (Mass Incarcertation), digital drawing

ree — Evelyn Beliveau, Language, What is "Correct", drawing

ree — Evelyn Beliveau, Language, What is "Correct", sculpture in progress

ree — Zeke Brokaw drawing during Summer Session on Zoom

ree — Sarah Gumgumji, Ecology and reform for use of Plastics, drawing

ree — Sarah Gumgumji, Ecology and reform for use of Plastics, sculpture

Marilyn August, Tree of Knowlege, cardboard version in progress

ree — Jordan Wolff-Cho, at work on oragami scuptural version of her Animal Rights project

ree — Jack Brokaw, The Harmony of Nature, paint on music score

ree — August Levenson, Save the Planet, completed ink drawing

ree — Riley Philipan, in progress - Aquatic Animal Rights

ree — Delphine Levenson, Respect for all People

Meridith McNeal, Eat Well, Get Well. Provide Healthy Food in Hospitals, watercolor on sculpted paper (front view)

ree — Zahir Prudent, Black Lives Matter, cut recycled cardboard and paint

This week in CREATE Sarah has us thinking about our Community Heroes. The thread is just gathering steam. Go on over and add your thoughts and images!

Sarah starts us off with a tribute to medical professionals:

Dennis pipes in with a link to a New York Times article about service animals.

Mohammad reminds us that ANYONE has the possibility of being a hero!

Claudia's painting sparks us to remember that those people may be children!

In fact, this is a painting I did of a medal my grandfather received in the fifth grade from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Who are YOUR heroes?

ARTYARDBKLYN@instagram now has 99 followers! Are you one of them?

In other news:

Tonight at 7pm ART YARD Artist Ailey Haynes performed the role of Ryder in Lucky Girl on Zoom! I am so happy to have caught the show. Ailey was fantastic! Check out her solo:

I am thrilled to be participating in the Brooklyn Arts Council’s Mutual Aid Art Sale. The sale benefits both this fantastically supportive organization and artists directly.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend full of art and inspiration,