The Fourth of July Comes Early This Year

My first show in 2013 will likely be the Black and White show at the Boatworks, assuming that renovations are completed on time.  A lot of work going on there, both cleaning up damage from Sandy, but also doing a little remodeling as long as things are being fixed.  I'll have more details about that show by the weekend.  However I was there at the Boatworks this morning laying the groundwork for the show that will be installed after Black and White.

Last year I took top prize in the 8th Annual Jersey Shore Juried Show in Belmar.  In addition to a small cash prize, I get to be part of a special exhibition for the 5 prize winners for the show.  That annual winners exhibition (and idea that I suggested and have benefited from twice now) is traditionally held in late winter just before the following year's Annual Juried Show.  We winners were asked to come in this morning to have a preliminary discussion of what was expected by the BAC, what they would provide, etc.  The problem was deciding what to put in the show.  I don't like showing things more than once in a given location, and looking through my records, I've shown something like 45 pieces in the Boatworks over the past several years.  I have some framed works that haven't been there yet, but I would like to keep a few things in reserve for future shows there.  It doesn't help that a lost a bunch of older work in the flooded basement this past fall.

Knowing that the usual size limits wouldn't apply this time, I thought it might be cool to install the Fourth of July.  I have two complete copies of the whole series- the original set of proofs (printed diptychs from the blocks) and the better printed and trimmed prints that I showed in Carbondale and removed from their plywood mounts (see above photo) earlier this year.  To install the latter, I'd have to do it the same way they were on the wood, with linen tape hinges.  I did a test at home and it was possible to stick them right to the wall that way.  But those are the best copies I have of those prints, and with about half the blocks destroyed by Sandy, I can't make a replacement set.  So I decided to go with the first proofs, not quite as well printed, but still worth seeing.  It was these that I installed at Kean several years ago, tacked to the wall with push pins, just as they had been displayed in my grad school studio for the year I was making them.

I brought the bound photocopies of the whole series, along with some photos of the installed set, to this morning's meeting.  They didn't need to see art today, but I wanted to make sure that everyone would be ok with my plan before I put in the work to prepare it.  As it turned out, the BAC would prefer that we fill the whole building (front and back rooms) and since we have just four artists (the fifth is a sculptor who won't need any wall space), they love the idea of me putting up a very large work.   So that's the plan.  I have to make sure I have all the prints in order and have enough steel push pins, and come up with planned dimensions that will work on whichever of the large walls I end up with, but I have about a month to get ready.  The installation will be a bit of work, but I've done it before, and I can spend up to a week getting it done if I need to.  Plus, it's a chance for a new audience to experience this body of work, and it could lead to more interest in my BAC woodcut class.  I'll post dates and times as we get closer to the mid-Februray show.