the goings on

Apologies for being so absent here (i know that my throngs of readers..all 3 of you have missed me). Some craziness going on, and lots of work, which includes a deadline at the end of the month, before I leave to coo over my niece. This would be a fine deadline for a piece somewhat similar to something I've done before, but that isn't the case. I'm making a giant waterfall. A water wall, in fact, of steel and copper. It's a big undertaking, at 16 feet wide and 6 feet high, and quite difficult to maneuver. It's also totally fun. My favorite thing to do when asked about making something completely new and different is to state unequivocally "Sure, I can do that", only to pretty much freak out for the next week or 2, while trying to figure out how I'm actually going to pull it off. Today was the clarification day...the day where the seeming impossible creation begins to take shape and the form and function become clear. It's my favorite part. So that's the good news.

The bad news: building department is still so far up our collective asses over at the studio that I didn't actually get any real work done until after everyone was gone, around 5pm. Our contractor who built the walls dividing the floor into separate studios used the wrong sheetrock, so there is a possibility that we will have to start from scratch. It's daunting and annoying and our landlord is so clueless and nervous about the whole thing, that it's just adding more stress to all.

Worst off by far is my neighbor at the studio, Jim. Jim is the coolest guy and he's the one who got me into the space. Need a random tool? Jim's got it. Need someone to help you move the 300 Lb metal delivery that just came? Jim will help. Need a glass of wine and someone to bitch to? Jim's got ya covered.

He has spent the entire time since we've moved in (just over a year) preparing his space. He works in print, on very large paper, and builds his own frames and stuff, so his space is huge and divided into 2 rooms: His shop room, in which he has the mac daddy of all cool woodworking tools and gadgets. There is literally decades of machine accumulation. That man could build a fallout shelter with the stuff in there. The rest of the space is the clean studio space, everything is white and bright, and clean, because his medium calls for that. He has yet to actually create art in the space because he has so meticulously set everything up. He was just getting to the finish line in all of his preparation, needing only to do a final coat of paint and to move all of his machinery in place. Next week, he was all set to work. Now that we all may need to start from scratch, my heart breaks for him because he has, by far, spent the most time and effort in making his space perfect.

Any strong, able bodied men out there wanting to donate their services to 5 artists in need of laborers? After spending 2 years in a construction zone that I moved out of when it was finally finished, I don't see how it's even possible that I am now back in the muck and mire of building bullshit.

On that note, I was at the ex's place yesterday, and they just hung the giant metal warehouse doors, and are staining all the other interior doors and molding. I will be back soon, taking pictures, so those of you who followed that saga from the previous blog can see the results of my 2 years in hell.