Installing in New York - The Ghostly Heart Atelier

On the 12th of the month, I headed out to Lowville, NY where I was to put together an installation for the Ghostly Heart Atelier.  The next 3 days were filled with thermoses full of coffee and sack lunches that my mother made me, and steady work in a 3 1/2 foot by 6 foot space creating a site specific installation.  My original ideas for the space bordered upon incredibly offensive to the populace, which my mother was quick to point out.  Unlike instances in the past, I chose to listen to what she said and create an homage to my father and grandfather.  My grandfather used to drive into the Adirondacks from his home in New Jersey in order to hunt and fish.  My father trekked from New Jersey to Wanakena, NY where he went to Ranger School.  He later became a forest ranger in northern New York.

Generally my work does not address these two men, but since I was making a piece in the same area that I grew up, it made sense to change that.  I painted cartoon portraits of my grandfather, father and myself wearing checked woolen jackets and tuques.  I used found wood that had weathered and carries the same sort of patina that my entire home area boasts.  I also incorporated empty ammo boxes and a few squirrels.  No matter what you are hunting it seems you see more squirrels, unless of course it is squirrels that you are hunting.

Below are a few images of the installation.

I was very pleased to include the ammo boxes and very interested at how they interacted the same way that the block constructions had earlier this year.  Yay for rectangular prisms.

 

Squirrel glamor shot.  He's so perty.

Here's the image of the portrait of my grandfather as well as the country portion of the hand-painted text that I incorporated.  The installation is titled Going up the Country after the Canned Heat song of the same name.   This text was included from the upper left hand corner of the wall to the center.

It was very nice to get some real time in painting on this installation.  I've been painting the entire time that I've been in graduate school, but it seems a little more obvious when the final product so very much features my brushstroke.  The stroke also seemed to mimic the paint on the walls that was chipping. 

There will be some more images coming.  I took some better photos that I will be scanning in soon.  Tomorrow the summer intensive starts.  We'll see what we can get done then.
Peace
-Mike