Patrick Dougherty

The other day I was headed into City Hall when I noticed these structures up in the trees right in the plaza. It immediately brought back memories of college in Ann Arbor and how the the same, twisting nest houses greeted me as I entered the Diag, and I could wander my way through them. This time they are up in the trees, floating above the tree line, as if they had fallen out of the sky. I was so happy to see them, almost 15 years later.

Patrick Dougherty has been creating these environmental sculptures since the early 80's, some are more complex than others - I personally love the more simplistic forms - as if they somehow formed themselves.

His latest installation will be found in Connecticut, at the Florence Griswold Museum.

Flora Grubb

For most of us living in San Francisco, Flora Grubb is a household name by now. She has a beautiful nursery in SF which has an abundance of rare, exotic plants, succulents, and palms. No matter how much I see or read about her, I cannot help but get completely inspired each time I visit the gardens or see a new project somewhere... her work is absolutely beautiful. I adore the composition & texture of her "living art" made of succulents. (And anyone who has been to my house knows I have a certain obsession with succulents - maybe because it's the only thing I am successful at growing...?)

Recently I paid a visit to the nursery and found my new favorite project: the Vertical Garden in a Woolly Pocket. Apparently they are inexpensive (probably not the one featured here), lightweight, and can go indoors or out. Even more - they are made out of recycled water bottles. What is there not to like?

Third Annual UofM Alumni Show

Last week I visited Michigan and paid a visit to Ann Arbor and The University of Michigan. The Art & Design School holds an annual Alumni Show each year, which I have been participating in since the beginning three years ago. This year I was lucky to have attended the show and to see all of the great artwork in person. It was so fun to see so many alumni - graduates from so many years ago through recent - all coming together for this event. This year I was fortunate to win a "People's Choice Award".

Spring Open Studios

This weekend was Spring Open Studios in SOMA. Slowly over the years the artists of SoMA are putting ourselves on the map. It's nice to have consistent participation from a core group of studios in the area. Although I went on a solo mission this weekend and was the only artist in my building participating, a surprising amount of people made it by to say hello. It's always a bit slow when you go it alone, but I find it important to continually open my doors whenever possible in order to heighten awareness of the artist spaces in our neighborhood and keep people coming back. More importantly, it is a great chance to get together with friends and hear feedback on current work. Thanks to everyone who stopped by!

working on some new collage pieces here, incorporating influences of scientific illustration

Dana Harel: Kin

I accidentally stumbled upon this artist, Dana Harel, the other day while walking past Frey Norris Gallery in downtown San Francisco. I was instantly drawn in by the large scale, very intricate, and extremely scientific nature of these drawings. Upon going inside, I learned that this artist was actually trained in Architecture originally, and her precise draftsmanship eventually evolved into this. She seamlessly combines human hands with various animals, and the barriers between human and nature become quite blurred.

ArtSpan Auction

Thank you to everyone who made it out to support the ArtSpan Benefit Auction. Given the state of the economy, there was an amazing turnout. For the first couple of hours there was a line out the door, and we packed the house. The live auction portion was a huge amount of fun as usual, (featuring yours truly as a live auction runner!) with some very active bidders and all artwork sold! The Auction continues to be a very successful and extremely fun event each year that I am happy to be a part of.  

Ginkgo Gallery

The Nature of Art

The goal is to break things down in to the most basic of elements. Nature, object, anatomy & composition. The development of these objects in relation to one another, yet somehow find a way to make each of them integrate into one another. Inspiration is drawn from the simple elements which we find in nature, yet rarely take the time out to enjoy.

The famous novelist, Ayn Rand, responds to the question: "What does art do?" by answering: A concept is a mental integration of two or more units which are isolated according to a specific characteristic and united by a specific definition.... The act of isolation involved is a process of abstraction: i.e., a selective mental focus that takes out or separates a certain aspect of reality from all others.... The uniting involved is not a mere sum, but an integration, i.e., a blending of the units into a single, new mental entity which is used thereafter as a single unit of thought.

Isolation and integration are the core processes involved in both concept formation and artistic creation.

development for a new year

I've been working on a new series of collage type pieces. These incorporate ink, collage taken from pieces of old textbooks such as botany, meteorology, anthropology, etc., and drawing. It's been nice to get back into drawing and the scientific side of things.

Academy of Sciences

Yesterday we visited the new California Academy of Sciences Museum in Golden Gate Park designed by Renzo Piano. It's great to see such a nice example of a green building - The Academy is now the largest public Platinum-rated (highest LEED rating) building in the world, and also the world’s greenest museum. Inside the museum houses a planetarium, aquarium, natural history museum and a 4-story rainforest.

The coolest part of the museum is the 197,000 square foot "living roof", growing native California plant species. The plants are kept from sliding off the undulating slopes by using 50,000 porous, biodegradable trays made from tree sap and coconut husks as containers for the vegetation. These trays line the rooftop like tile, yet enable the roots to grow and interlock, binding the trays together like patchwork.

The more typical black tar-and-asphalt building rooftop leads to a phenomenon called the “Urban Heat Island” effect. The endless swath of black rooftops and pavement trap heat, causing cities to be 6 to 10 degrees warmer than outlying greenbelt areas. One-sixth of all electricity consumed in the U.S. goes to cool buildings. The Academy's green rooftop keeps the building's interior an average of 10 degrees cooler than a standard roof would. The plants also transform carbon dioxide into oxygen, capture rainwater, and reduce energy needs for heating and cooling.