Samantha Scherer at Davidson Contemporary Nov. 1

DAVIDSON CONTEMPORARY
Hours: Tue - Sat, 11:00am - 5:30pm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - OCTOBER 2007 EXHIBITIONS

SAMANTHA SCHERER - Mad, Hopeless and Possible

November 2 - December 1, 2007
Reception for the artist:
'First Thursday', November 1, 6-8pm

This exhibition consists of moderate sized watercolors inspired by the Antarctic expedition of
Sir Ernest Shackleton and the crew of the Endurance in 1914.

"My work seeks to simplify our fluid popular culture by focusing on
legend, celebrity and the line between truth and fiction, especially as it is
blurred by history and personal narrative... These investigations have led me to
focus on historical personalities whose acts of heroism have been revived and
explored through recent films, biographies and memoirs."

It is Shackleton's crew's fruitless efforts to free the ship from the crushing
ice and their leisure activities in between these efforts that is the focus of
the work in "Mad, Hopeless and Possible." The artist has used watercolor and the
broad expanse of white paper to create a cinematic landscape. The spare
drawings reflect the vast frozen sea punctuated by an ice-bound boat and men
frozen in motion. The contrast between black watercolor and white paper mirrors
the impossible task of keeping up morale in the face of insurmountable
odds. It is this ultimate underdog story, so much a part of our current popular
media, that is essentially at the core of the work in "Mad, Hopeless Possible".

Image:
Pack (I) (detail), 2007, watercolor on paper, 10 x 22 inches

(Quotations drawn from the artists' statements for the exhibition)

Deadmandave

Here's what first-year work in Oak Ridge, Tennessee looks like. Welcome to Jackass

Cornish Mid-term conferences

Hello everyone,

As we discussed in class, I've scheduled your mid-term conferences to coincide with the conferences that Jacob has scheduled with his class, so that you and your partner will (ideally) be meeting with Jacob and I simultaneously. So, here's the conference schedule

Mon, 10/29
9:20 Ryan
9:40 Heather
10:00 Erin
10:20 Hana
10:40 Alex
11:10 Nick
11:30 Kassie

Wed 10/31
9:20 Katie
9:40 Faith
10:00 Dani
10:20 Kevin
10:40 Cady
11:10 Liz
11:30 Riley

As outlined on the Mid-conference overview sheet I provided to you last week, please bring your work samples and anything else that may assist us in discussing the development of your practice.

These are cardboard

here

Riley took these

Martin Creed saying, thinking, writing, saying

I was actually looking for something else, but came across this
***
I don't know what I want to say, but, to try to say something, I think I want to try to think. I want to try to see what I think. I think trying is a big part of it, I think thinking is a big part of it, and I think wanting is a big part of it, but saying it is difficult, and I find saying trying and nearly always wanting. I want what I want to say to go without saying.

Martin Creed, 2001

Evergreen Art 2D Practices portfolio?

First off, let me start by saying how amazing the progress has been so far in class. We've covered a substantial amount of territory, and I'm enthusiastic to see new works being made. Responding to the progress we've seen in the collage work (and looking at how it relates to the drawings we're doing every class), it may be helpful to discuss the syllabus (again), as we move further in building a portfolio.

So, as an introduction, THE PORTFOLIO:

In designing the framework/calendar/syllabus for this course, one of my objectives is to identify (to you, with you) your own processes, and how they inform the work products you make. To this end, I would like to unfold some of the characteristics of the portfolio that I introduced (briefly, as though you were passing it in a party) in our syllabus. What is becoming evident (to me, and hopefully to you as well) is how independent your solutions are for the series of works we make together in class-- whether collage, perspective drawings, nature studies, or abstract design problems. Working effectively as a group, your works nonetheless chart very individual responses to the projects in class.

Beginning in the next class, I would like us (as a group) to assess your work output to date, discussing the progression of the pieces you've already made, and noting/analyzing how works may share commonalities while also diverging greatly (in subject and form). From this discussion, I would like for you to design (in very broad terms) what your portfolio could look like, or where and how you see your work moving over the last half of the quarter. Which is to say, my thought has always been that you would be designing the portfolio yourselves, reflecting (in visual terms) your experiences during this time, looking to further (for many of you) investigations and works you began well before ever taking this course.

In shaping the syllabus, I have been using 2D art practices (drawing and collage to date) to frame our discussions and work. As we will be working with some printing techniques (most likely frottage, stencils, and monoprints) and painting strategies (water-based), I'm interested in discussing how you see these processes informing your work; what do you need to do to make the work you want?

Are there specific tools, techniques, concepts that are emerging in your practice?

Are there specific subjects that you find yourself returning to, or questioning repeatedly?

We've been meeting for a month now, and looking at ways to integrate drawing into your everyday life; you're making drawings in class, on the phone, on the bus, at home, and at school. How can a portfolio give a viewer a sense of you interests, and how you work?

What does ten (10) weeks of production look like?

Tom Sachs, the Eagle (has landed)

In the spirit of follow-through, Tom Sachs (re)created the lunar landing last Saturday night at Gagosian Gallery in LA. Here is the write-up from Catherine Taft in Artforum.

Show titles

Ah, although history may be written by the winners, it seems necessary at some level to list all of the show titles that didn't win for this project. So,

"It's me, your new best friend"-- Faith
Something is amiss (a miss)
What next?
Overload
Look at it and think about it
Conglomerated cardboard catastrophe (& metal & plastic & etc.)
Dumpster Diving, a true art form
Shoes, cars, trashcans
Out of the recycling bin
Batmobile
Mr. Roger's Neighborhood
Childhood
Block the Burn
Drunken Toddlers
Pass it on!
What is this place?
Ragdoll
Aerosmith, think about it

Process book for 10/17

For the process book due Wednesday (Cornish), please respond to the Alumni Sculpture Invitational in the Cornish Gallery. Like your field work at Suyama Space, these recordings may take multiple forms-- drawings, sound, writings, collage, photographs, or some sort of hybrid.

How do you navigate the exhibition/space? In addition to the works, please also be aware that biographies and statements from participating artists are available at the entrance to the exhibition. If there are images you would like posted to the blog, please feel free to email me.

Ahahahahahahaha

Take on me

Cluster 2 timeline REVISION

Just to clarify (for those of you I didn't get a chance to speak with this morning):

Fabrication on your cardboard projects should be concluded by the beginning of class on Wednesday morning. As you may notice walking around the 6th floor, all of the pieces from the entire Foundations class will be sited around the 6th and 7th floors, beginning on Tuesday.

While Wednesday 10/17 will be a studio day for us, we will be focusing on the documentation of your projects through drawing, photography, and writing. We will also be viewing Der Lauf der Dinge, a video by Peter Fischli & David Weiss.

Welcome Evergreeners!

Hi, I just wanted to take a minute and say hello to everyone at Evergreen who may be seeing the blog. My plan is ultimately to have this set-up as a forum to exhibit works from both Cornish and Evergreen, and consider possibilities for collaboration across programs. Go team(s)!

Whiting Tennis is coming

Tracks from their new album can be heard here

An interview with Whiting is here

And some of the things he makes can be seen here

Process book for 10/10

For next Wednesday, 10/10:

Track your chosen object over the course of the day, recording it's changes. Like Monet exploring the Rouen Cathedral or haystacks, this project lends itself to a serial approach: what (if anything) is different in the multiple drawings/photographs/collages/writings?

Choose at least two different times (more is probably easier) to record the object. Record the time, the place, the atmosphere. Why now? Why later?

Cars for Riley

Okay, here's a shortlist of some car art I've been thinking about lately (not exhaustive, but as an introduction)

Damian Ortega (Moby Dick, 2005)

Gabriel Orozco (we'll watch some video in class soon, but here it is-- "La DS")

and

Santiago Sierra ("Four Black Vehicles with the Engine Running Inside an Art Gallery", 2007)

oh, and who could forget

Ant Farm (Media Burn and Cadillac Ranch-- cornish has this DVD available in the library-- DVD FA 33)

also, projects by Chris Burden and Survival Research Libraries may be relevant for discussion