I am happy to announce I have been selected as a finalist for Critical Mass 2015, an international competition organized by Photolucida. The 200 jurors will select the top 50 this month. Awards are a possibility, but the main benefit is exposure. Wish me luck!
Update: I wasn’t selected for the final 50, but it was an honor to have been a finalist.
Finalist (1 of 6), Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, Kansas City, MO. Art in Transit project, artwork on glass of bus shelters, 18′ x 21″ total per shelter. Graphic interlayer laminated safety glass. Proposal to shoot imagery from the neighborhoods along the transit route. January, 2010. Budget: $90,000.
I am proposing the application of transparent photographic imagery to the walls of the bus shelters for the proposed sites. The imagery chosen would ideally come from the immediate environs of that station and help give an identity to that location. I visited Kansas City in December and shot generic pictures of the city as well as wandered the streets around the three designated sites along Troost Ave. The images presented could be the final artwork, or more visits to the city could be made and additional imagery created for final design selection.
My primary site of interest is the 31st Street station. What spoke to me most about this location is the existing piece of public art occupying the wall to the rear of the proposed site. It became clear to me that this mural has to be a beloved neighborhood treasure and that whatever artwork we now propose should honor this painting and treat it respectfully. So I began to photograph this mural and then the other Alexander Austin murals around the city. These murals have already begun to decay (hopefully there will be restoration efforts), and my pictures could in part act as a record of what these murals looked like should circumstances cause them to further crumble or even disappear. I would want to credit Mr. Austin on any plaque included at the site. In addition to the 31st Street mural, I photographed the Martin Luther King mural one block away on Linwood Boulevard and the other large one near 18th and Vine. I also learned about the Disney connection to the site and included images of his old studio around the corner.
I am honored to be included as a featured artist on the Holga Inspire (now defunct) website… a promotional site by the manufacturers of the Holga camera. The site and associated traveling exhibition is organized and promoted by the effervescent Christine So. Thank you Christine!
From the website: “Holga Inspire is an initiative of Holga Limited, a company of the Universal Electronics Industries group co-founded by Mr. T.M. Lee, who invented and continues to manufacture and develop the Holga range of cameras. The mission of Holga Inspire is to support creative artists and professional photographers who use the Holga as their medium of creative expression. We seek to connect professionals throughout the arts, media, and academia through exhibitions, events and educational programs. We want to reinvigorate classic photography and inspire creative originality. Holga Inspire strives to demonstrate the extraordinary artistic potential and the wide range of creative expression that can be realized with a Holga camera.”
From 2010 – 2013 the Holga Inspire, an International Exhibit of 10 Holga Masters was been shown at these galleries (many now sadly closed):
Umbrella Arts Gallery, 317 E. 9th St., NYC. 12/9-1/16/2010
Hallmark Institute of Photography, 85 Avenue A, Turner Falls, MA. 5/7-6/6/2010
Brooks Institute, Gallery 27, 27 E. Cota St., Santa Barbara, CA. 9/2-10/1/2010
Icon Gallery, 5450 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA. 3/5-4/1/2011
Center for Fine Art Photography, 400 N. College Ave., Fort Collins, CO. 9/30-1/14/2011
Soho Photo Gallery, 15 White Street, NYC. 3/7-3/31/2012
Open Shutter Gallery, 735 Main Ave., Durango, CO. 6/8-7/17/2012
Photobooth, 1193 Valencia St., San Francisco, CA. 8/30-9/27/2012
Chicago Photography Center, 3301 N. Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL. 10/12-10/28/2012
Interlochen Center for the Arts, 4000 Highway M-137, Interlochen, MI. 11/30-1/11/2012
Arts Eye Gallery, 3550 E Grant Rd, Tucson, AZ, 8/20-10/31/2013
Finalist (1 of 3), Sunset Park High School mural, Brooklyn, NY. Commissioned by NYC Department of Education Public Art in Public Schools Program and the NYC Percent for Art Program. Proposal to shoot imagery over a period of a year in the ethnically diverse neighborhood of Sunset Park. One large-scale porcelain enamel mural (4′ x 74′), a pair of murals composed of porcelain tiles (6′ x 12′), and bands of porcelain tiles. Fall 2007. Budget: $175,000.
I am proposing photographic-based murals for the first floor lobby and corridors of the new Sunset Park High School. I am presenting a primary proposal and an alternate one, the difference being in the materials used. These materials vary greatly in price and therefore in what can be done for the same budget.
The primary proposal includes three items. The dominant piece is one large mural to be done in porcelain enamel on steel. This would be a 4′ x 74′ mural (composed of ten 48″x74″ panels) to be mounted on the wall of the primary art site, the long 78′-2″ wall that faces 35th Street and is visible through the ground floor windows. Second are two side-by-side 6′ square pieces that would be mounted on the wall between the two auditorium entrances. These face the public entrance to the school and are composed of 6″ square tiles (each a grid 12 tiles by 12 tiles). Lastly this proposal uses the residual budget to run a 6″ high band across the neighboring walls, estimated to transverse 8 walls and be about 166 running feet of tile. This band is composed of the same porcelain tiles as the second mural. These tiles are produced by the same fabricator as the porcelain enamel and have the same durability.
Pilsner Urquell International Photography Awards: Third Place Award, Category: Non-Professional Editorial, Sub-Category: Sports. Online exhibit and inclusion in 2007 Lucie Awards coffee table book. Competition had 20,000 entries from over 90 countries.
Finalist (1 of 6), Frisco Heritage Museum, Frisco, TX. Mural celebrating Frisco history. Proposal to shoot images of historic trains in motion or reenacted cattle drives (two topics of historical importance to the area). 3′-6″ x 65′ mural broken into three sections. Digital fiber reinforced laminate. City of Frisco Public Art Program. Fall 2006. Budget: $20,000.
Note: Presentation elevations are conceptual mockups using images found online.
I am proposing a photographic-based mural for the eastern side of the first floor hallway that runs between the north and south lobbies of the Frisco Heritage Museum. This is a 12’ high by 56’ wide wall flanked by 11’ of angled walls on each end. The long segment of wall is broken up by the wooden doors to two bathrooms, the water fountain alcove, and two flush doors to storage and back-office rooms. The mural would overlap these flush doors, as the adjoining rooms would not be accessible to the public; the doors would typically remain closed. The mural wall can be seen from within the museum gift shop, which has windows looking out into this hallway.
I’m proposing digital Fiber Reinforced Laminate for production of the piece; it is a very durable material that can be glued directly to the wall. The mural would span the various sections of wall and overall would be 3’-6” x 65’; it would be composed of thirteen panels of varying widths.
Proposal for a Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada public art project; proposal for bus-wrap graphics. Images of historic Fremont Street, the older area of Las Vegas. Entire composition is from a single roll of film. October 2005. Budget: $2,500.
Didn’t win but this is my favorite proposal!
Finalist, Airport Arts & Culture Program (Public Art), Indianapolis, IN. Proposal for four 10’x96′ curved panoramas in the central Civic Plaza of the new airport. Shot for several days in Indianapolis and rural Indiana. Murals proposed for central plaza of new airport (on an upper mezzanine level). Images celebrate the city and the state’s agricultural roots. Adhesive-backed vinyl applied directly to the wall. April 2005. Budget: $40,000.
This proposal for the New Indianapolis Airport concerns the four long art panels to be located on the curved upper level/mezzanine walls of the Civic Plaza (site opportunities # 22 – 25). The architecture as it faces and defines the 200 foot diameter circular skylit plaza creates two separated arcs, joined only by the suspended upper level walkway. The inner edge of this walkway/catwalk will have a glass railing, through which at times the lower portion of the artwork may be viewed, depending on the angle of sight of the viewer on the plaza below. The walls upon which the artwork will be mounted are about 19′ tall and the floor is 16′ above the level of the plaza. On the wall of each arc there will be two long murals (10’ x 96’) with an 18′ gap between them. Offices will be located on this floor, and the public will have no access.
I am proposing creating digitally produced photographic murals using the style which I call “overlapping exposure panoramas”. This photographic technique is well suited to both to the physicality of the site as well as to the usage of the Civic Plaza. The unusual proportions (about 1:10), the horizontal focus, and the large scale of these panels are a good match for my work, and my pieces should further enhance and enliven this open and inspiring architectural space. My panoramas will express the vitality and motion of the many bustling travelers crossing the plaza and say something about the adventure of travel and the discovery of new places. They will also hopefully convey a sense of excitement about being in Indianapolis (and Indiana) specifically.
