Achluophobia part 1

 Time to start a new block I think.  Not much I can do with the Robert Johnson prints right now, and the open studio thing happens in about a month. It would be better if I had something to work on that day, which means I have to get a block started. 

So I set out for Ocean Grove this morning, with plans to draw.  I had gotten an email yesterday from the open studio organizer, requesting that we let the office know if we were planning to participate in the event.  So after dropping off my stuff in my space, I went to the office and let Elyse know I would be there. (I figured she already knew, as I am on the postcard for the event, but as long as I was there...) Another thing I had realized was that the postcard for the event could not be mailed as a postcard, but she knew that already.  I also asked about whether she had contacted Lisa Bagwell regarding an Earth Day event.  She had been in touch, and there will be an exhibition now, as Lisa is not available in the appropriate month.  Well, as long as things work out for everyone.  She also gave me the news that Molly may be part of this open studio thing (her studio, too, so she is certainly welcome to be there) and she finally signed the lease.  Good to know I am not being thrown out of there right now.

All that settled, I could get to some work.  I had brought my jazz/blues set with me today, and from that I ended up listening to some John Coltrane while drawing.  Two of his sixties albums, when he became most famous.  I started with A Love Supreme, probably the work he is most known for, and definitely something that shows his individuality more, and a sound that only he had.  When that ended, an earlier album, My Favorite Things, which includes a cover of the title song and 3 other songs, which I think were all standards, though my original copy is in storage like most of my stuff.  All good performances, and he and his combo arranged the songs the way they wanted, but not quite as ground breaking or unique as the other album.  I found I have not written about either album before, so here's something new to everyone here.

This new block has roots in occurrences over the past few years, some written about here, no doubt.  For example, as I took the elevator ride to the third floor for a Christmas volunteer luncheon in the cafe place,  I was questioned by three older women, going to the same place, who weren't sure if I belonged in the building, through I know I had been renting space for more than a decade.  Why?  They had never been to the basement and had no plans to go there.  At the last open studio, I shared the elevator again with people who took the ride with me to the basement, but didn't get out there, going back up.  As I left the elevator, they talked about how creepy the basement was.  and I heard more after the doors closed.  Even in the office a few days ago we talked about how people who are from the upper floors never go down there.  The basement was not as fixed up as the rest of the building (I have said that it has kind of a 'Silence of the Lambs' vibe), but I've been working down there for 15 years, and I'm not bothered by it.  But obviously some people are.

I went to google and looked up fear of basements, and found that there is no official psychological disorder for it, though it is the most commonly feared room in an given building.  (is there no Greek word for basement?)  However, it gave four related fears that are recognized and may relate to a fear of basements.  There was xenophobia, or fear of the unknown.  Well, there may be some of that, but the term is often used for fear of foreigners, so I'll skip that one.  Another was kenophobia, fear of empty spaces.  That doesn't apply, as the basement of our building is full of furniture, tools, boxes, garbage cans, etc- definitely not empty.  Next was cleithrophobia, or fear of being trapped.  This one is maybe a little closer, as the basement can be a bit confusing.  Our new director has been there in a basement office for months (there is an outside entrance to it) and is only now learning her way around all the hallways down there. Molly painted a yellow path down the hallway from the front lot staircase to our space as it could be hard to find.  However, I don't feel trapped down there.  Our studio has two doors to the hallways, both accessible, and windows on the ground level outside-just climb a chair, open the window, and you would be in the back parking lot. Our space is also just steps from a central staircase to the first floor, and from a back staircase that leads to the back stage and a back parking lot, steps from the loading ramp that also leads to the back parking lot, down the hall from the front staircase, down another hall from the office (with it's door to the outside), not to mention the elevator, but in a fire I wouldn't take that to escape.  No, I never feel trapped in my space, so that one is out.  The last option was achluophobia, or fear of darkness (not to be confused with fear of night, a very different thing), which could apply.  Individual rooms are lit inside, but the hallways used to be dark.  Now there are motion sensitive lights in the hallway that come on when approached, but otherwise it's pretty dim down there.  So that's the one I'm going with.

Another factor may be the recent Robert Johnson prints.  All involve some darkness and shadows, either at night or interior spaces, and I liked those black and white prints with a lot of black in them.  It works for me as art, so maybe that's why I'm doing another black and white print set in a dark space.

I started preparations a few weeks ago, drawing aspects of the basement in my sketchbook. A partly open door to a boiler room. An unfinished (or partly broken) brick wall.  Dark hallways. Lots of overhead pipes, which may be part of the original plumbing, or something worked out later by Herb and his co-conspirators.  Wall mounted furnaces that date from the 19th century.  Electric lines leading to switches and unknown devices.  Later I worked out a basic composition, combining many of these elements, and others (figures will have to be in this, lurking in the shadows) again in the sketchbook.  I also cut a block to the right size, same as my supermarket prints.  I have frames and mats that size, so I might as well use them. 

With nothing else to work on, today I began the block drawing for this piece.  Results are below:

I didn't get too far today, just some basic composition.  There will be a lot more detail in this one eventually.  Next week is a busy one for medical appointments, but I expect to get in there at least once, and can continue filling in parts of this drawing, or change things around completely if I'm not satisfied with it.  My self imposed goal is to get it done in a month, so I'll have something to cut at the open studio.