August Digest

all fact! no fancy!

DIRT PALACE AUGUST: GREEN PUMPKIN NIGHTS

ALL THE NEWS THAT'S FIT TO PRINT (INTERNET VERSION)  People from the old days keep coming by and saying things like "oh my god i can't believe how clean it is!". That's the first piece of important news! The 2nd piece of important news is that it's time to spin the wheel of fortune and swap a beloved resident for a future friend. Cold hard logistics: Artist residence member spot available at the Dirt Palace October 1st. Rent around $350 not including utilities. Most pets not allowed. If you own a pet other than a cat or dog there may be a possibility. Included in rent: A good size "private" ** room with a loft. ** ( No guarantee that you won't hear someone from the New York System coughing up lugees in the parking lot) Access to shared studio space (the ballroom), print shop (screen print and letterpress), small wood shop, space for largish (sic) project fabrication, film (yes film not video) editing and animation, fabric studio/glorified costume rack with washer/dryer, band rehearsal space with a decent P.A., SSCOWL library, and a giant naturally lit kitchen space with many appliances -( ie. waffle maker, blender, espresso machine, george foreman grill, 5 juicers, etc, and an organ). Member responsibilities include weekly dinner meetings where we discuss our collectively run projects (studio logistics, storefront window gallery, etc), a monthly "workday" where we all work on the space together, and a highly likely possibility that you may be addressed as "OVERLORD" of something. Want to know more? Contact us at dirtpalace at yahoo dot com THE WINDOW This month's window artist was David Higgins (bio): My name is David Higgins and I write things for humans and puppets to perform. Some of that performance happens alongside puppet shows made by a wide range of folks at the Blood From a Turnip puppet salon. Before figuring out how to make it work Even before pulling the what from the dreamspace Before the next word, magnet, string staple or screw Before bringing the world behind you in front of yourself and others Before putting gears into motion Before pulling strings To make something spin, dance, hang, float, fly, mimic, speak, or live Two questions: Why This? Why Now? And after impulse, inspiration and ingenuity, still Why This? Why Now? So, why this collection this august in Olneyville? Why this exercise in site-specific writing with objects? It’s time for a summer holiday for the objects, a little retreat for bits of different shows to hang out together. It started with objects that were from a show that featured taking a holiday in one’s own town simply by becoming delusional. It was time for the objects inspired by parts of Providence to see another neighborhood. I started playing and this is what happened I wanted to tell the story of creating a puppet show I took some intentions into the window and when responded to the space, those intentions were mutated by the interaction of the objects in that space I’m not quite sure, but I continued to ask the questions Why This? Why Now?, and what y’all see is the result. Hope you enjoy. ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? XANDER MARRO Past: Xander spent the past months summer as the Foo Fest Artist in residence. Too many highlights/adventures for one newsletter but here are a couple of pictures and maybe you saw this commercial already...but did you see the version for Telemundo featuring Dingo's deep booming voice over? Future: Xander is putting her blacklight cars into her car and heading to NYC to do a play with Ric Royer, G.Lucas Crane and Jesse Heffler. Niagara Falls: The city so depressed it jumped over itself. The Fête of Mistakes:  Beneith Naigra Falls flows the Love Canal, and under the Love Canal hides the Cave of the Winds, the humbug attraction that blows life into the lungs of the greatest sideshow of lies called The The Fête of Mistakes! The only thing that can live under such fantastical lies are desperation, the songs and dances of true love, and bargain DVD’s. And we give these to you. Or rather we sell these to you from haunted folding tables of merchandise, because this a love/horror story about exploitation. Or rather a musical about the insidiousness of capitalism, but you will hate the music. Get in line. There are free donuts*. * Free with purchase of ticket and t-shirt. (discount tix coupon code: bingo) ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? JR URETSKY THE PAST!!!! Read what people wrote about J.R.'s performance, Bromance, and other artists' amazing works at The RISD Museum's Locally Made exhibition. Look! J.R. in her underwear on TV THE NOW!!!!  See J.R. load large objects into an old coal bin at MASS MoCA for Megan and Murray McMillan's newest work. THE FUTURE!!! J.R. Uretsky is included in the 2013 deCordova Biennial! The show opens to the public October 9th, but here is a little sneak peak at what she's been working on... ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? MIMI CHRZANOWSKI Mimi is letting the wind catch under her pastel-colored gargoyle wings. Off she glides on the smiling breeze. Roughly three blocks away from the palace she bumps into a brick building- after blood, before flowers- and there she lies now, continuing to make pictures, animations, and whatever with pieces of abandoned coach foam and chipped paint. By crashing her fists into the ground Mimi sends seismic waves of big love and thanks to everyone at the DP forever! Don't worry Klaus, she'll be back to play "Kitty Jail" on weekends... XOXO!!!!!!!!! ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? PIPPI ZORNOZA The Dirt Palace Facade Project has received support from the Citizens Bank Foundation and LISC RI as part of the Growing Communities Initiative.    Growing Communities is part of Citizens Helping Citizens Strengthen Communities, the bank's program to help contribute to the economic vitality of its communities. The Growing Communities initiative is designed to foster neighborhood revitalization and economic development activities across Rhode Island. LISC empowers neighborhood residents and community leaders to become active partners in creating goals and objectives for their neighborhood, and then connects them with the right resources and experts needed to implement the projects identified. This program is focused on the Olneyville neighborhood and is intended for projects that foster neighborhood revitalization, economic development and incorporates collaborative partnerships. Wold is performing in the Hopscotch Festival in Raleigh, North Carolina at the Kennedy Theater, Thursday September 5th. ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? JIEUN REINER Jieun Reiner is still hanging out at The Learning Curve. Feel free to visit her if you want! She's hoping to be spending less time there soon, but it can be a hard place to leave… // Here are some new things in progress: // Here is a cool thing she saw in Vermont: ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? MUFFY BRANDT Muffy has two upcoming events that are supposed to be funny. On August 29th she will be doing an Artist's Lab called "Yes, &" as part of the RISD Museum's One Room  Yes, & is an experiment in improvisation that, like improv, may bomb.  Check it out from 6 - 8 pm Sure, everyone is doing something at the museum between June 18 and November 3rd, but even though everyone has peed at White Electric it still feels good when its your turn. Come early for TIMEGHOST's 4 hour performance! On September 4th the one and only Randy Bush is debuting LuLz! at AS220, 8pm LuLz! is a new monthly(fingers crossed)show at as220 hosted by local comedic connoisseur Randy Bush! This month show features not only your host, but the talents of: Will Smalley Walkeer Mettlling Cyrus Leddy Muffy Brandt and Mandy Roman Christa Weiss Emily Ruskowski and Andrew Mayer Doors will open 8pm and the show will start at 9pm. Though this quote came from Channel 10 News in a piece about the foam floating down the Woonie this week I think it applies to Lulz!: "I've been over here for the past 15 years, and I've never seen anything like this," said Providence resident Freddy Niebes. Am I forgetting something?  Probably. Well, here is a pic of my Mom with Bob Dole and one of MISS RI TEEN who wore her sash on our whole Providence to Baltimore flight.   Muffy still has a store, www.muffybrandt.etsy.com ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Alison Nitkiewicz Alison is busy working on art for her upcoming show with Julia Moses, called Dry Socket.  The opening is on September 5th, from 6:30 - 9:00 at 186 Carpenter Street in Providence.  It is free and open to the public and there will be snacks/drinks. Please come!!!  Dry Socket is a follow-up to the show the two put on together in the fall, and will feature large-scale silkscreened prints and installation. If you can't make it to the opening, it will be up for several weeks! In order to make a specific piece for the show, Alison has been learning how to dry roses and thorny foliage to maintain life-like appearance using glycerin and cornmeal.  It has been an interesting and informative experience and she has been pleased with the results. ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Thea Ulrich Thea has spent too much time this month fully moving into her studio...but is finally almost there! She has been starting some sketch studies for her next series of paintings calledLooking for Space: Thea is also a part of The Assembly of Light choir, and they have been working with What Cheer? Brigade this month in preparation for a first ever collaborative show, which they will be performing at the RISD Museum as part of the Locally Made events that have been happening. The show is on September 1st at 12 o'clock in the One Room - come check it out! Lastly, she has been getting ready to head to MASS MoCA for the last week of August to perform in Megan and Murray McMillan's newest work. She will be boulder riding, ladder climbing, and hanging out with JR - it will be great. Check out the McMillan's awesome work and follow the piece at www.meganandmurraymcmillan.com ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ***DIRT PALACE LIBRARY HI-LITES*** MONTHLY PICTORIAL TREAT FROM THE DUSTY SHELVES OF THE DIRT PALACE FURTHERING THE QUEST TO SPREAD FUN LIKE GIN AND JUICE, MOSTLY GIN Check this out! Freaky Osamu Tezuka, AKA da father o' manga, "Black Jack" comic, that illustrates scenes of painting on a beach with animal friends as well as a human/robot? brain being operated on....... >>>>>>>>>>>>>>

far out dude /// but now you've gone too far /// forward to a friend  Copyright © 2013 dirtpalace, All rights reserved.   unsubscribe from this list | update subscription preferences

July Digest

DIRT PALACE J U L Y

THE WINDOW July's Window installation was by Rachel Blumberg Rachel Blumberg is a visual artist, film maker, and musician/composer. As a visual artist she makes paintings, drawings, found object pieces and other work inspired by dream land, folklore, history, nature, and people's stories. She shows her work regularly as well as creating many commissioned works.  As a film maker she creates stop motion animated shorts and music videos, including a recent music video for the New York based band Nada Surf (Barsuk Records).   As a musician she has played, recorded, and toured with many widely acclaimed artists including The Decemberists, M. Ward, Bright Eyes,  She and Him, Tara Jane O'Neil, Jolie Holland, Mirah,  Michael Hurley and many more. She recently relocated from her native home of Portland, Oregon to Providence, Rhode Island.  Rachel is currently working on paintings and films that explore our notions of home, what defines home, the decline and death of bees, inside/outside perspective issues, and other themes.  Musically she is playing shows with her own projects, Arch Cape and Manzanita, as well as with Death Vessel and  will be touring with the band Califone in the fall. She has several film projects stuck in her noggin that hope to get unstuck. She also likes gardening and teaching drums and art to creative young humans. She writes about her installation: "I've been experimenting with different ways to present narratives to people with painting, to explain stories and history, fact and fiction. Several themes have been repeating lately, one which is based on dreams of the after life, and one which is a recurring image of a character i call The Beekeeper, which is based on the death and decline of bees, which is related to the dreams of the after life.  After visiting the Museum of Jurassic Technology in Los Angeles, CA I was inspired to come up with a way to present stories as archeological artifacts, and started putting images into tiny circles, reminiscent of looking through a telescope in order to see a slice of something played out telescopically and also magnified, something far away, and long ago. These are the paintings I am showing as well as a few based on ancient Jewish fairy tales, another world I've been exploring.  I am really happy to be showing work at the wonderous amazing Dirt Palace!" But what of the June window? June's Window installation was by the Sophia Academy  "Founded in 2001 by the legendary Sr. Mary Reilly, Sophia Academy is the only independent middle school in Providence that provides a gender specific, holistic educational experience that focuses on the intellectual and emotional growth of its students and families. Sophia offers girls facing economic inequities an empowering educational program in a vibrant community where they learn to live and lead their lives as confident, compassionate young women." - Gigi DiBello, Head of School In this installation for the Dirt Palace window, the students of Sophia Academy wanted to visually depict their school culture by modernizing the goddess of wisdom, Sophia, into versions of a superhero flying over the city of Providence. Each student participated in the brainstorming, planning, and execution of the project- reflecting their spirit of collaboration and community.  To learn more about Sophia Academy, please visit sophia-academy.org Creed:  As a new day begins I will keep my head held high I will open my eyes and heart So I'm ready to expand my mind I will let my wisdom shine I will hold on to the gifts inside of me Our arms are like a dove's wings Hugging the world's every opportunity  I will join hands with my sisters In this community with Courage, Respect, Responsibility and Peace We know we will succeed The Dirt Palace Storefront Window Gallery is seeking proposals for our summer/fall exhibitions. For more information contact dirtpalace at yahoo dot com ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? XANDER MARRO Having one of those summers where everything seems creepily too perfect. Cherries, waist high basil plants in July, swimming and still managing to get stuff done: *Solo show: "FootApple Parade" up for a little bit longer at the Craftland Gallery (Through the 20th!). Or ok...if you're not going to make it down there, you can read Greg Cook's reviewhere.  * Got back from living at PS1 in NY ecstatic and bruised (from climbing in and out of the window in the middle of the night). Had the total magical luck to get to spend a week living with new and old friends hand processing 16mm b&w reversal film in the museum basement at the "Colony of Light" as part of the colony module at the EXPO1.  * Working on a million things for Foo Fest, where I'm the artist in residence this year. (Dream come true!) ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? JR URETSKY J.R. Uretsky will showcase her newest video and performance work titled, Bromance (an exploration of American masculinity through performing objects and video) at the RISD Museum’s Locally Made exhibition on July 18th ... 6:30 pm (come early to get a good seat!) at the Lower Farago Gallery. The whole event is free and so much cool stuff is happening!     Also! Uretsky will be discussing Bromance on a masculinities and creative practices panel on Saturday, July 27, 2013 from 2-3pm. Other panelists include Thomas Page McBee, Mary Wilson, Jason Tranchida and Matthew Lawrence. What cute gal made that poster????? Speaking of cuteness and posters. J.R.'s artist assistant Noel is fundraising for college!!! Check out Noel's fundraiser .... or go to a brunch or maybe even kick them a few $$$ for this awesome print ... ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? MIMI CHRZANOWSKI oh me, oh my, oh Mimi???????? has re-stocked her shop with brand new stickers! as well as the 2nd edition of babytown newsletter #2! and made a poster in the spirit of cataloguing for a library in st. paul, minnesota! and has been watching cartoons about mermaids which lead to funny gif-daze! sweaty summer! WEBSITE: http://www.welcum.net BLOG: http://www.bbytown.tumblr.com SHOP: http://www.bbytown.storenvy.com   ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? PIPPI ZORNOZA Pippi Zornoza is in NYC getting her MFA as a participant in SVA's Art Practice Program She'll be back in Providence mid August to continue with the Dirt Palace Facade. ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? JIEUN REINER Jieun Reiner has had some unfortunate technical difficulties but is working thru them. In the mean time she is still 'working on stuff', 'going for the gold', and she's about to try her hand at teaching for the first time-- case-bound bookbinding at As220. ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? MUFFY BRANDT Muffy has been wrapping up her contribution to the Dirt Palace tea towel subscription series,check it out on the DP Etsy, there is a Providence pick up option with free shipping: She is so pumped about her new additions to her online shop, including summer finery printed with classic composition school notebook designs!   See all her hand printed clothes at www.muffybrandt.etsy.com     You can follow her tumblr at www.blooddivine.tumblr.com, and her scatological rants on twitter @muchfuhc   throw this gif in your browser for full effect! ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Alison Nitkiewicz "IT'S GREAT TO BE HERE!!!" - Al After her college graduation and a few weeks of sleeping in an SUV, at friends' parents' houses and in a room she is helping build, Alison is thrilled to call the Dirt Palace home.     She is working on a show which opens in early September at 186 Carpenter St with friend and partner Julia Moses.  This a sort of follow-up to the show they did together last October.  More info about the opening coming soon!    She also updated her website with pictures of her RISD Printmaking degree project and complete thesis writing/book. Check it out!     In the spirit of having a new lease on life, she has dyed a portion of her hair black.      Alison is currently reading craigslist job listings, and about Angry Women, lighting design, and The Occult.   ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Thea Ulrich Thea Ulrich has been spending all of her weekends at weddings recently....so to spice it up she has been wrapping up all of the gifts in canvas and sewing them shut. She also has been working with a female pilot (who is part of the 99's) to design and fabricate textiles and dresses out of her images that she takes while flying across the country. Check out some designs! She also has been blowing up a lot of balloons while working with artist Janice Lee Kelley...check in soon for some collaborative performance work! (Big apple circus may be involved...) ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

June Digest

DIRT PALACE JUNE Never fear JUNE IS HERE!!! AND IT'S HOTTTTTTTTT!

Dirt Palace Teamed up with members of Recycle-A-Bike during the neighborhood cleanup Olneyville Shines organized by the Olneyville Housing Corporation!!! Go TEAM!!! THE WINDOW May's window installation was Austin Julian!!!!   "In my visual work I have always been striving to physically convey a kind of Kinetic unstable energy that I feel exists within the technological environment that society is in. I try and bring about these abstractions that result from this energy through visual, sonic and moving medium. I try and bring this mode of working to all aspects of a piece, from the actual detritus of the material I use, to the treatment of structure, gesture, and form. This feeling instability is important for my process because through it two different situations come about. On one hand, I try to create large, jagged, overpowering gestures, be it in sculptural or time based medium. On the other hand, these same structures are falling apart in the same gesture. I am attracted to the aesthetic that is created by this dichotomy between rhythm, structure and total collapse, and strive to keep the viewer in a limbo between those two feelings.   In my pieces, I use this method of conveyance as an outline, or frame, to hold the thematic content of my pieces. I draw from concepts in science fiction, time travel and physics theory, history, conspiracy, and new media language as influences to create themes to place within this framework. These kinds of influences have always shaped my view of the world and evoked the feelings of anguish, frustration, conflict, and human error in me that I try to bring out in the art I make. I want an audience to be able to find these feelings that exist in all our day-to-day lives through my work, and confront the ugly instability that is our condition as humans. I feel that it is important as an artist to acknowledge and react to the realities that exist in their contemporary situation. I want to do this through the dirt and noise that covers all other ideas.   In this piece, "Quantum Bog Mummy Relief Map,” I am trying to execute this instability through the physical warping of the cross section of a bog mummy. this piece is representative as a bog mummy cut and stretched through fractures in it’s space. I treated the materials to represent these fractures, being organic and mechanical and jagged at the same time. my main goal with this was to emote an existential feeling of particle alienation, abstraction, and kinetic flow." More of Austin here! Thea Ulrich   Thea Ulrich is psyched to have just moved into the Dirt Palace! She is a sculptor, painter, multi-media installation/performance/video artist who spends her days trying to figure out what exactly that means, while also starting and running an online store called U.R. Unlimited. Check out her art, videos, and U.R. Unlimited respectively, at:  http://dulrich.carbonmade.com/  http://vimeo.com/user6077947 http://www.u-r-unlimited.com/ XANDER MARRO The Foot Apple Parade is an annual event that I learned of from the legendary San Francisco co(n)median team Coil and Sharpe.  The "Foot Apple", as their would suggest, is a variety of apple that grows with legs dangling beneath their cores. The apples for some reason can not ripen in the same location where they grow, so they march in great herds to get to the place where the sun will coax them into their rightful maturity.  Along the way they stop at a bar, which is actually a worm saloon run by snakes, or possibly worms dressed up like snakes. It’s difficult to say.   And suddenly we are in the Garden of Eden, except for that the sin is not original, but rather cheep imitation, and the trunk of the tree of knowledge is not bark covered and made of wood, but actually fleshy legs leading up to a blemished ass and made of paper mache and time has been made to run in all kinds of cockamamie directions.   Come see the Foot Apples! Thursday June 20th 5-8 Craftland Gallery 235 Westminster St JR URETSKY   J.R. has been busy drinking coffee and shooting videos for an upcoming performance in July.   When she is not crying dusty piles of what once were tears into her coffee and then lapping them up again for nourishment she is installing sculptures and shooting videos in curators bathtubs! Take that impenetrable art market!    More on what J.R.'s working on here! MIMI CHRZANOWSKI   Mimi is taking a quick break from the east coast to exhibit at the Chicago Alt Comics Expo and visit family in the midwest but will be back at it in Providence in a week to go to the beach on rainy days! Keep checking out GIF-DAZE on  her tumblr  posted once a week on Thursday or Friday! PIPPI ZORNOZA The Dirt Palace Facade project is going forward as scheduled.  Installation is planned for the fall of this year! To find more information on the project here Wold has announced performing at the Hopscotch festival in Raleigh, North Carolina this September.  Information about the festival here     And finally, Pippi will be in NYC for 2 months beginning her participation in the SVA Art Practice MFA program this summer JIEUN REINER Alright everyone, it's been a long time coming. This is the last update that will say some arrangement of "Jieun has been working on the same thing as last month and it's almost ready!" But for now: Jieun has been working on the same thing as last month and it's almost ready!    Seriously, it is almost ready. Pictured below is a sneak peak of one prototype that is hopefully being made into a mold in this very instant.  Picture! MUFFY BRANDT Muffy has been a printinf machine, getting reasy for the Bizzare Bazar Union Madd craft sale this Sunday, June 23 in Boston. Check her online shop for new items soon: www.muffybrandt.etsy.com On Friday Muffy and Mandy debut a comedy video! Where? Ask on Twitter @muckfuhc

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