Cloud Turn – a performance

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Cloud Turn

Aniccha Arts premieres Cloud Turn the performance component of The Weather Vein Project. Cloud Turn reflects on current and future capabilities of human weather manipulation, a power one could consider to be Godlike. Aniccha Arts, renowned for their originality, brings detailed, sinuous, and percussive Indian based dance movement integrated with their highly manipulated media style. This performance is constructed with content from workshops conducted at various locations throughout the Twin Cities as well as from the blog at http://wecanchangetheweather.org.

Tickets

Tickets: Adults: $12; Students (with ID): $10
Dates: 7:30 p.m., Friday, June 5, – Sunday, June 7, 2009
Venue: Pillsbury House Theatre, 3501 Chicago Avenue S., Minneapolis, MN 55407
Box Office: (612) 825-0459; http://pillsburyhousetheatre.org

Credits

Director: Dipankar Mukherjee; Lead Artist: PramilaVasudevan; Performance Media and Technology: Jennifer Jurgens; Audio Installation: Mike Westerlund; Lobby Installation: Mark Fox; Lighting Design: Mike Wangen; Graphic Design: Ryan Michlitsch; Photography: Jeff Ferguson; Stage Manager and Costume Designer: Romina Takimoto;  Dance Collaborators: Sarah Beck-Esmay, Chitra Vairavan

The Weather Vein Project


Aniccha Arts, led by Pramila Vasudevan, and driven by Mark Fox, Jennifer Jurgens, and Mike Westerlund present the Weather Vein Project. This project consists of a blog, workshops at various performance and educational locations, a performance at the Pillsbury House Theatre (June 5-7, 2009), and an installation at the Weisman Art Museum (July, 2009).

Support

The Weather Vein Project is a commission of Northern Lights’ Art(ists) on the Verge program with the generous support of the Jerome Foundation. Additional support provided by the McKnight Foundation, the Weisman Art Museum, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and Pangea World Theater.

Sustain your public art practice

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Map to Vesper College: 201 6th St. SE, Minneapolis 55413

More about: Vesper College | NEMAA | Institute for Advanced Study

Shop ‘n’ Mix

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Matt Roberts and the Mobile Performance Group performed at the 1st 01SJ Biennial/ISEA2006 Symposium and made a great impression. Below is a clip from one of their latest roving public art projects, an interactive shopping cart. Very cool.

A Manifesto for Public Art

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Mind map for a Manifesto of Possibilities by Sophie Hope
Cameron Cartiere and Sophie Hope, researchers on public art from Birbeck College, University of London, have developed a Building Cultures wiki, including A Manifesto of Possibilities: Commissioning Public Art in the Urban Environment, for which they are requsting input, writing:

“Increasingly, people working in diverse aspects of contemporary urban society, from developers to park wardens, are turning to the arts for new ideas, regeneration, problem solving and community bridge building. The employment of artists in these (traditionally non-cultural) fields, where there are other non-art issues and agendas at stake, is becoming the norm. This manifesto is a chance for you to address the uncertainties of commissioning art in areas of urban change, discuss crucial concerns, and devise tangible solutions, knowing they will be presented to key decision makers.”

The manifesto includes thoughtfully pragmatic advice for all parties in the process of commissioning, creating, producing, and presenting art in and for the public sphere and is divided into six sections:

  • The Commissioning Process
  • The Artist
  • The Curator
  • The Community
  • The Art
  • The Evaluation

The wiki also incluses a list of resources and links to other manifestos, such as Mierle Laderman Ukeles’ 1969 “Maintenance Art—Proposal for an Exhibition. [pdf]

The introduction to the project and manifesto is here. Add your experiences and opinions to the wiki here (registration required).

via Marking Place

Join the Gratitude Guerilla Action Walk on May 24th!

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Gratitude Guerilla Action is a walking “Thank-You”  being performed in various cities as a simple, non-dogmatic gesture of gratitude and a reminder of our collective good fortune. An elegant iridescent balloon with the words “thank-you” printed in white is carried by participating walkers as they experience the sublime peacefulness that results from giving gratitude to no one in particular.

Lead by artist Krista Kelly Walsh with start up support from Forecast Public Art, the Gratitude Guerillas have taken 762.2 steps, given away 900 balloons, and hosted 64 walks in four cities!

I was lucky enough to participate in one of these walks last summer. It was dusk and it had been raining all day with the clouds clearing just long enough to form a striking sunset to reflecting the slick sidewalks. I will admit public performance art is not always something I am comfortable with but after a few moments if felt more like meditative practice than an attention grabbing gesture. It was truly amazing how just the tiniest bit of consciousness of gratitude for the world around you grows into an overabundant rush of appreciation for all that we take for granted in our everyday lives.

If you are in the twin Cities metro area I encourage you to take the time to walk with Krista. This will be the first of two actions that are planned for 2009. In the spring , a “thank-you” Balloon Give-a-Way on Como Lake in St. Paul and A Sunset Walk on Raspberry Island

MAY 24TH 4-7PM COMO LAKE ST. PAUL, MN
(Rain date MAY 25TH 4-7PM)
see the web site for further information and weather updates:  http://www.gratitudeguerilla.webs.com/

Art-a-Whirl’d

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Avye Alexandres, prototype of "Once." https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/alexandres/
Avye Alexandres, prototype of "Once." https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/alexandres/
Avye Alexandres, prototype of "Once." https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/alexandres/
Mark Fox, prototype for interactive sound sculpture, The Weather Vein Project. https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/aniccha-arts/
Mark Fox, prototype for interactive sound sculpture, The Weather Vein Project. https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/aniccha-arts/
Mark Fox, prototype for interactive sound sculpture, The Weather Vein Project. https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/aniccha-arts/
Andrea Steudel's mobile shadow puppet projection project on the Thorp building. https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/steudel/
Andrea Steudel's Mobile Shadow Projection Theater on the Thorp building. https://northern.lights.mn/programs/aov/steudel/
Forecast Public Art
Forecast Public Art
Northern Lights / Forecast Public Art
Kaitlin Frick, Forecast Public Art

Art-a-Whirl opened last night. Northern Lights and Forecast Public Art shared a great warehouse space in the Thorp Building with Minnesota Mosaic Guild, Free Arts Minnesota, and some amazing sculptures by Carey Netherton, a recent transplant to the Twin Cities.

Later in the evening, Andrea Steudel and some students from the Ali Momeni’s class at the U of M projected on the outside of the building. Pramila and a colleague did a preview in the projection of Aniccha Art’s preview of Cloud Turn today.

Art-a-Whirl this weekend

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Northern Lights and Forecast Public Art at Art-a-Whirl

Friday, May 15, 5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Saturday, May 16, noon – 8:00 pm
Sunday, May 17, noon – 5:00 pm

Join Northern Lights and Forecast Public Art for the annual Art-a-Whirl event. We will be presenting previews of the Art(ists) on the Verge commissions and umbrella artwork for Forecast’s 2009 auction, along with other special events and programs.

Visit us at the Thorp

Northern Lights and Forecast will be exhibiting in the historic Thorp building and Central Business Center at 1618-1620 Central Ave NE, Minneapolis MN. Map to the Thorp Building. Download a map of the dozens of studios and artist installations at the Thorp [pdf].

Art(ists) On the Verge

Prior to their exhibition at the Weisman Art Museum, July 5 – August 24, Aniccha Arts, Avye Alexandres, Christopher Baker, Kevin Obsatz, Andrea Steudel, and Krista Kelley Walsh will be previewing their work. Come for a sneak peak. Tell them what you think.

Special Events

Friday, May 15 at 9:00 pm on

Andrea Steudel will present her Mobile Shadow Projection Theater, and members of the internationally-acclaimed Minneapolis Art on Wheels will present a special set of projection performances on the side of the Thorp Building. This will be one of the premier events of opening night.

Saturday, May 16, between 4:00 pm and 6:00 pm

Members of Aniccha Arts will perform around Mark Fox’s interactive sound sculpture excerpts of their dance Cloud Turn prior to their ticketed performance at the Pillsbury House Theater, June 5-7.

Sunday, May 17, 1:00 pm

Krista Kelley Walsh and friends will be performing webcam action on Northrop Mall at the University of Minnesota, part of her Public Eye Action, which will be streamed live to the Thorp Building.

Be a beta tester

Friday, May 15, 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Saturday, May 16, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Sunday, May 17, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Northern Lights and mnartists.org recently commmissioned Michael and Abigail Mouw to create a public art iPhone app to be launched by the summer of 2010. Come by and find out more about it, including how you can sign up to be a beta tester.

Art-a-Whirl

Art-A-Whirl is one of the largest open studio and gallery tours in the Midwest, with more than 400 participating artists drawing in more than 35,000 visitors to Northeast Minneapolis each year. The Thorp Building and the Central Business Center are in the heart of the Northeast Minneapolis Arts District, and with over 65 artists and several group shows, it is a must for your Art-A-Whirl tour.

Art-A-Whirl is organized by the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association (NEMAA) and each year it publishes an artist directory which is distributed through out the metro area in the weeks leading up to Art-A-Whirl.

Support

Location. Location. Location.

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“Just after the opening of my solo show at Charlie James Gallery in Los Angeles we loaded up a rented pick-up truck with the arrow sign I included in the show. When I came across various locations in the city, we untied the sign, carried it over and snapped some shots – each time improvising a message for the face.”

via Steve Lambert

Still learning: the art of the drive by

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Margaret Crane, Dale MacDonald, Scott Minneman, Jon Winet, Sunset Boulevard

I’m not sure today’s NYT article, In Los Angeles, Art That’s Worth a Detour is a trend or even particularly new, but it is a nice slide show. Isn’t the effect of the automobile on architecture and messaging one of the central themes of Venturi, Scott and Izenor’s 1977 Learning from Las Vegas? And Margaret Crane, Dale MacDonald, Scott Minneman, and Jon Winet’s 1997 Sunset Boulevard (pictured above) allowed drivers-by to advance a dual-screen narrative using their garage remotes. Electroland’s Hollywood Shadow Project used billboards silhouette of clasic movie scenes to cast shadows on nearby buildings approximately 90 minutes from sunset (get it?).


Photo by Alison Inconstanti

And, and, and. . . .

Ice age street art

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“Edgar Müller – a Master of 3d Pavement Art – needed 5 days to the completion of this huge picture. Together with up to five assistant he painted all day long from sun rise to set. The enormous illusion is reached by applying the anamorphic technique to a huge pavement painting. Around 250 square meter large this picture is part of Edgar’s newest project. He paints over urban areas to give them a different look and thereby challenge the audience’s perception.”

via streetpainting.tv and Street Art

Delete private public space

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The mission of the Public Ad Campaign reads, in part:

Public Ad Campaign acts on the assumption that public space and the public’s interaction with that space is a vital component of our city’s health. By visually altering and physically interacting with the public environment, residents become psychologically invested in their community.

According to reporter Barbara Celis, the Public Ad Campaign recently found out that a number of NYC billboards are illegal, telling Celis:

“the agency that owns the ‘attacked’ billboards operates on an illegal basis. “NPA outdoor operates over 500 street level billboards in NYC ranging in size from about 4’x4′ to 50’x12′. All of these advertising structures are illegal. I found this out by talking to the NYC Department of Buildings which has no permits for the NPA outdoor structures but has its hands full dealing with the rampant illegal billboard situation. I have also spoken directly with NPA outdoor employees who have told me that the NYPD will jail them from time to time at which point NPA lawyers bail them out and they are compensated 500 dollars for the nuisance of spending the night in jail”.

On April 25, Public Ad Campaign organized the New York Street Advertising Takeover. Over 80 artists – and others “including an architect, a bio-physicist, a sports writer, a software developer, and countless others” – whitewashed 128 of the illegal signs and painted their own artful messages. Celis’s video is below and more information about the action is here and here, with lots of images on flickr.

They’re different but the NY Street Advertising Takeover reminds me of these remarkable photographs from Sao Paulo, when in 1997 city officials banned billboards, neon signs and electronic panels.

via Cool Hunting, Cronicasbarabas.com Public Ad Campaign, and Art Threat.

Is your emotional weather report from cloud 9?

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Art(ists) On the Verge, Northern Lights’ Jerome-funded commissioning program, will be exhibiting at the Weisman Art Museum July 5 – August 23, 2009. More about this soon. In the meantime, one of the commissions, The Weather Vein Project led by Pramila Vasudevan, and driven by Mark Fox, Jennifer Jurgens, and Mike Westerlund has launched a blog and website, which will feed into the performance of “Cloud Turn” at the Pillsbury House Theater June 5-7.

an interactive dance performance, which is a reflection of humans playing God with regard to weather. Renowned for their originality, Aniccha Arts bring detailed, sinuous, and percussive Indian based dance movement integrated with their rich, colorful and highly manipulated media style. This performance is constructed with content from workshops conducted at various facilities throughout the Twin Cities as well as from the We Can Change the Weather blog.

“Cloud Turn” will be previewed at Northern Lights’ installation with Forecast Public Art at Art-a-Whirl and an exceprt performed at the Weisman exhibition reception on July 9.

Beautiful Light

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FOUR LETTER WORD MACHINE – 2009 Scottsdale

Forecast ran across this project while researching for its upcoming issue of Public Art Review on innovative technologies in public art.

A detailed description of the project can be found at D.A. Therrien’s web site beautifullight.org and here is a brief overview.

“FOUR LETTER WORD MACHINE displays either 4 letter words in standard Roman alphabet or up to 4 billion+ word combinations as a graphic digital display device. It is essentially an entropy machine – it is designed to break, a product of unnecessary complexity.

The display itself is designed as a 30 meter high x 150 meter wide array of linear quartz lamps, 3,500,000 watts total power. The first full installation will be on a cliff face in the Northern Arizona desert (a 10% scale model is currently under construction for use in smaller venues.)

The human body and mind are integral to the control system, essentially a 64 channel mechanical relay control that is both state of the art and archaic in design. A computer reads from a “book” and passes instructions to 4 bodies (performers) in rotating cages (actually large drum type
switches), who in turn pass information to 32 bodies via an eye tracking system.

Also on the Beautiful Light website Therrien talks about the piece.

Installations in the BEAUTIFUL LIGHT series are derived from ideas that I have been fascinated with since childhood, most specifically, the phenomema of light and electricity and the role of light in our belief systems, language, biology, natural world and cosmology – light as illumination, energy, information – and as a metaphor for good and evil. It is also one of our earliest technologies – fire to drive out the night.

The term “Beautiful Light” is double edged, describing both the observable physical nature of pure light and representations in various belief systems and cultures – Egyptian, Greek, Judaism, and later, Christianity. In Egyptian mythology, the god Taht (Apollo in Greek) was represented as a “beautiful light” and this light represented knowledge itself. In the Bible, angels are described as beings of light – messengers of light.

In addition to my interest in light and electricity, I have a fascination with language and the codes that represent it, both analog and digital. The 4 LETTER WORD MACHINE, the first installation in the BEAUTIFUL LIGHT series, explores the purity of white light, the mystery of language, the precision of digital codes and the magic of 4 letters – A, C, G, T – representing the DNA code, and consequently, all known life.”

via beautifullight.org

The new Ars Electronica Center

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I’m looking forward to Ars Electronica this coming fall now that the new Center is open.

“The new Ars Electronica Center is a one-of-a-kind facility. Its uniqueness is betokened by its external form. This bold architectural statement is an instant highlight within the Linz cityscape’s ensemble, yet it still sets itself apart at first—none of its edges run parallel, everything appears skewed, elements simultaneously pulling apart and merging together. A structure that’s constantly assuming new forms depending on the perspective from which it’s viewed. And one that withholds revelation of its scope and dimensions until the moment of direct physical encounter.

“More than 5000m2 of glass facade covering the new Ars Electronica Center was assembled with 1,100 LED light strips (RGBW – Red, Green, Blue and White High Power LED`s) . Each of the approximately 4,400 channels (depending 4 Channel light bar) is individually adressable and adjustable between 0-100%. Imagery from patterns to homogeneous color surfaces are possible.”

via media architecture

Poeme electronique

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Interesting vid about Le Corbusier’s Poème électronique pavillion for Philips at the 1958 Brussels World Fair. According to interactive architecture.org

The whole project was initiated and directed by Le Corbusier, who also created and/or selected the images for the audiovisual show, with the organized sound composed by Edgar Varèse, and the stunning surfaces of the building designed by Iannis Xenakis. The result was a ground breaking immersive environment, since the space of the Pavilion hosted the audio and the visual materials as integral parts of the architectural design.

via interactive architecture.org