Tag Archives: making stuff

words to live by…

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chicken

i received john cage’s list “some rules and hints for students and teachers or anybody else” when i was an undergrad.  i think my teacher gregg moore said something along the lines of rule “check out rule 4″ (rule 4: consider everything as an experiment”) because that rule has a box around it and the class he was teaching was about surface experimentation but but i think he knew that the other rules would stick with is as well and they did… even when i was overseas for 3 years and that piece of paper was in the u.s..  those especially sticky rules were

rule 1: find a place you trust and then, try trusting it for a while

rule 7: the only rule is work.  if you work it will lead to something.  it is the people who do all of the work all of the time who eventually catch on to things.  you can fool the fans but not the players.

and

helpful hint: always be around.

it’s funny to put them in a list together because over the years they have applied to life in different ways depending on the context, time and country i was in but those are the ones that have been bouncing around my head the most all these years.

i still have the same piece of paper that was handed out that day.  not so surprising since (among other things) i still have a box of freshman biology 1 AND 2 notes but i do think it’s funny how you come to rely on things that come to you through positive experiences.  i just googled “john cage some rules and hints” and the list came up first thing.   hard to believe i ‘ve never googled it before.  i just pull out the folder i keep with various readings i’ve picked up over the years and pull out this old peice of paper when i need a reminder of all the other great rules that are on this list.  lately i’ve come across this list in other people’s collections.  “hey, you should look at this…” they say and i’m pleased to see what it is.
the list in it’s entirety is below (you can also click the title).

SOME RULES AND HINTS FOR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS.
OR ANYBODY ELSE.
By John Cage
Rule 1: Find a place you trust and then, try trusting it for a while.
Rule 2: General duties of a student:
Pull everything out of your teacher.
Pull everything out of your fellow students.
Rule 3: General duties of a teacher:
Pull everything out of your students.
Rule 4: Consider everything as an experiment.
Rule 5: BE SELF-DISCIPLINED. This means finding someone wise or smart and
choosing to follow them. To be disciplined is to follow in a good way. To
be self-disciplined is to follow in a better way.
Rule 6: FOLLOW THE LEADER. Nothing is a mistake. There is no win and no
fail. There is only make.
Rule 7: The only rule is work. If you work it will lead to something. It is the
people who do all the work all the time who eventually catch on to things.
You can fool the fans – but not the players.
Rule 8: Do not try to create and analyze at the same time. They are different
processes.
Rule 9: Be happy whenever you can manage it. Enjoy yourself. It is lighter than
you think.
Rule 10: We are breaking all the rules, even our own rules, and how do we do that?
By leaving plenty of room for X qualities.
Helpful Hints:
Always be around. Come or go to everything. Always go to classes. Read
everything you can get your hands on. Look at movies carefully and often. Save
everything. It may come in handy later.

getting amped.

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tomorrow is j’s closing reception.  the show has been open all week.  if you haven’t seen it yet i would definitely recommend coming out tomorrow.

monday the show will come down and i’ll get down to the business of installing.  can’t say much at this point except that i am very appreciative of everyone who is helping everything along.  i am highly stressed!  but so much awesomeness is happening simultaneously.  i got a very exciting invitation to show in march as part of a four person show.

my brain is getting ready to explode, but in a good way, often.  just need to get through this week.

ok, here is a little preview from the kiln i just opened…

wall peice peeking out.

wall peice peeking out.

wall piece...

wall piece...

this one will hang...

this one will hang...

work for sale at st. pete clay.

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the garden and flower sale was a success.  everything ran smoothly and i even sold some of my work.  today was great as plenty of friendly faces came out to support the cause.  it’s so awesome to see people buying handmade (and hand grown) products.  with the economy continuing to tank i think it is our responsibility to keep buying handmade objects.  walmart may be able to sell everything under the sun cheaper than a bag of clay, but when walmart tanks too, where will we be?  let’s keep supporting each other, bartering and doing it ourselves!

planters with succulents (separated and rooted by my mom from her own collection of succulents) still available at st. pete clay for a limited time.  anyone interested in some free plants or trees for their yard should plan a visit to the gugliotti’s house in sarasota county.  my dad loves to share his plants.

flower pots 030

flower pots 033flower pots 027

lazy lazy but thinking…

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this has been a month of gathering.  i’ve continued work on my wall pieces at a snail’s pace, but taken time a few evenings each week to flip through books and websites, researching for my next body of work.  i selected a few books from my shelf: college biology text, microscopic photography, louise bourgios exhibition catalogue as well as the global feminisms catologue and a contemporary art text, also from college.  i learned a few things.  almost every page of the global feminisms catalogue features figuritive art.  robert arneson was a pop artists working directly with clay in the 60’s.  jason briggs’ work is freaking amazing and i wish i could see him demonstrate.  i remembered how very attractive eva hesse’s forms and materials are.  reading the abc’s of louise bourgeios presents art about you familial obsessions as rather favorable, i mean, since i’m obsessed with it anyway.

i guess in a way family is biological.  the way we are tied to people genetically is disturbing and uncomfortable.  the way we are tied to people who do not share dna with us is biological as well.  maybe this is why the figure factors so prominently in feminist work, or, you know, art in general, because people are obsessed with other people, the way they shape up, nurture us (which could be a good thing or a bad thing), mess with us, etc.

it’s like you spend the first half of your life figuring out why things are the way they are and then the second half realizing that it doesn’t matter because you just have to play the hand your dealt regardless of why…

but i’m not sure where this leaves me.  there is a lot going on in my brain but it hasn’t puked itself out yet into images to be assembled.

a problem i had with the garden path was that it was too pretty.  working in such a rapid way allowed the process to become more important than the concept.  i’m not very prolific generally and maybe that’s why.  the process is important, it’s the fun and the flow of the peice but the process is not the point.  the process is a tool which allows the peice to make it’s point.

i could make a sign that says “the world is fucked up” or “i’ll vacuum my uterus if i want to” or “racists are so lame and boring” but that wouldn’t be very much fun would it?

in production mode…

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wall pieces drying

wall pieces drying

i’m going into production mode with these wall peices.  my goal is to get my etsy store open by january 1st.  i’ll feature these peices initially and move into offering more work.

i’m enjoying production, but with the new year will come new work…..

wednesday 7 pm-10 pm:big bush officially firing.

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finally saw s in his studio and asked for his advice on what kind of firing schedule to use to fire the bushes.  i had also written to my former professor and asked r.  i didn’t really feel comfortable trusting my research alone.  most of the studio work gets fired at standard schedules, but they would be a bit too fast for my work, since it so big and also still quite wet.  s went through a detailed schedule with me and even programmed the kiln on his way out.  one of the reasons i am doing this residency is to learn  technical skills i’ve never gotten.

so r helped me put the big bush in the kiln (unfortunately they wouldn’t both fit) and i started the first of two 24 hour soaks.  it might be a a little overkill, especially after picking up the bush and realizing that it was far lighter than it looked but at least this way nothing should crack.  knock on wood.

n and friend were in the studio tonight.  it’s such a different atmosphere when other folks are around.  i don’t always get as much done, but it’s nice.

notes: it’s freezing.  i biked today and my bike is in great shape, post tune up.  also, dinner tonight: organic veggies and my new favorite grain, kasha.  yum!

chugging right along.

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yesterday after work i stopped at tijuana flats, thinking i’d pick up something real quick and head to the studio.  a dish of flautas later i was so stuffed i could barely make it home.  i always forget with american food you can only eat half.  you must take half home or your belly will burst.  you think, oh it’s so good, and there’s only a couple more bites.  no, you really have to take that bit home don’t you?

i finally made it into the studio at about 9.  i tried watching pushing daisies on tv, but my mind kept floating back to the bush and the big, as of yet unnamed, pile of coils in the studio.  i was itching to get the bush done, so it can start drying and getting ready to be fired.

i worked for three solid hours.  i got a lot of height on the coil monstrosity.  this is going to be kind of a tree, but i haven’t made any leaps yet as to how it’s going to look.

the bush got some new pods on it.  i left about 7 pods on a ware board hardening up all day and they got a little too hard, so i had to pitch them.  i pinched out four more pods, and some “leaves” to fill in space around the the pods.  I’m going to add a texture to the rest of the bush that will not make it too hard to move.  i also decided to add 4 cut outs to the bottom of the bush to help with moving it.

here is a shot of my studio space.  it’s full!