It was really an amazing night. if you haven't seen this video (which is weird because it seems like the entire world has), then check it out: it's Hampshire College in the best spontaneous community art project ever. I should have just yelled out, right before CNN reported Obama's win, "HEY EVERYONE, LET'S ALL GO OUTSIDE AND BE PART OF A LARGER COMMUNITY OF PEOPLE AND CELEBRATE EACH OTHER AND BE EXCITED ABOUT LIFE" and then when everyone came out and did just that, it would actually have been my idea and part of my Division III. In fact, I'd be done and I could just write about squash recipes for the rest of this blog/year. The down side is that now the whole world knows what I sound like screeching.
In other news, my first community art project didn't go so well. I tried to throw together some election-day-map-related-art and it was disappointing. I first learned some things about the graffiti wall: you must paint whatever you're painting all in one session. None of this planning ahead business. I painted the wall blank the night before, and about an hour later went out and found these kids painting it with lame smiley faces or something. I was visibly and audibly disappointed. And they painted over it for me, and made an official sign asking everyone else to leave it alone for one day too! I felt really great about that. But then the next morning, it had some robots and an umbrella on it. LAME.
And then I was crazy for the whole day -- trying to drive vans to the polls, go to class (which was super lame and I should have skipped), go to my other class, and finish everything for my 50 states project, and get my house ready for our elections party. So, in the end nothing got fully accomplished -- everything just almost there. The 50 States project was going to use my coat-hangar map of the USA and we would paint a map on the graffiti wall, and then people gathered could add stories, memories, things to the map and make it our own. But it just kinda looked lame. Everyone there was trying to be supportive and encouraging, and I really appreciated it and enjoyed making it, but it wasn't what I had imagined. So either I need to be more accepting of whatever happens, or I need to be more intense about planning and setting things up and testing my processes. The map we made looked really small on the big wall, and the delicate edges of the wire were totally lost. so, next time I guess.
I also had a committee meeting on Wednesday. Which was really great because I've been feeling really lame and not wanting to do any work. Mainly because my Listening Booth literally collapsed, and is taking up so much room in my art space that I have no room to not look at it and not see how much I hate it. BUT! My committee said that it's OK TO JUST PUT IT ASIDE, AND START SOMETHING ELSE! I knew this, but it's really gratifying to have someone else tell you that it's really fine to put aside/take apart/stop working on something that you've already put a lot of time and money (and joann's coupons) into, and that it's ok and you can use the parts later and you're still awesome. So I'm going to tackle that tomorrow. wow. how exciting.
Other projects started (which the whole art barn is pumped about which makes me even more pumped!!) is the Art Barn Post Office:
In other news, I get very lonely when I stay up too late. Also, I've been feeling homesick. I'm really excited for Thanksgiving. I really can't wait to see my family. and my brother who's really too cool at school, on the bowling league or the social chair for his house, or the cool physics dudes, and going to grant park the night barack obama is elected... geeze, call a sister once in a while, huh?
But in good news, I'm writing this right now feeling pretty great. I went to an art show tonight at UMass and it featured work of both a family friend from New York who introduced me to the curator, but also an Elsewhere Artist! Someone (angela z.) who was at Elsewhere last summer and I never met, but saw her work and heard about. And it was so great! I saw her piece, a sprawling cardboard cave with kintted eyes peeking out of every corner, and I immediately knew it was her work. I peeked inside the cave and she's in there, knitting with three foot long needles. And she is wearing a costume and embodying the character of the "spacemaker", but she breaks character to talk with me. and it's really just so lovely. So nice to indulge in Elsewhere-speak. And best of all, I saw all these parts of her work, that were like little clues back to Elsewhere, or reminded me of a certain ribbon I saw everywhere, and it made total sense! All those pieces were things she did! It really reinforced how much that place both holds on to pieces of you, but also lets them go. because while the pieces are still there, without people who know you, the pieces don't always make sense and just become part of the mess. (metaphorical/philosophical conclusion approaching:) maybe it represents life; we are messy, and until we can understand or at least glimpse at meaning and stories behind each other's actions and residue, things just look like a heap of junk.
I've been hoping each day since Tuesday was Saturday, and tomorrow I will wake up and it will indeed be Saturday. maybe I will finally fix my bike. And have lunch with the girls. And get started on a new art project.
sweet dreams. lets talk soon, ok?
aliya
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