When it Rains it Pours.... Or a function that is not a function.

Last month was a very busy one for me. I began working in Orlando Fl on the parts for Legoland in Winter Haven Fl, produced a multiple for PYT Tampa, painted the bus for Blue Bird Books and continued to work on the "Sugar Shanks" for Current Space Baltimore. 

Young Philanthropic Tampa, founded by Anneliza Musoke Taylor and Hampton Dorhman ( pictured below at a meeting we had at The Bricks in Ybor City Tampa), is always looking for ways to connect people with the arts in Tampa. We came up with a membership premium that would also be a multiple art object as a strategy to boost memberships. This idea eventially became the Tampa Nazar.


The work i produced is part charm part trinket and part sculptural object. Based on the Nazar amulets popular around the world to "protect against the evil eye" this work has the  latin words- "sedem tueatur a malis artibus" embedded in it which translates to "protect this place from bad art". This phrase is has a double meaning that can be taken in the original function of these amulets, protect this place from evil magic (black art) or protect this place from bad art (which is subject to the tastes of the owner of the amulet). This brings up an interesting argument in that even though the member owners of these amulets are all part of the same organization they will all have their own take on what is "bad art". Perhaps the Nazar itself could be considered "bad art" by some which means its function would be to negate itself.

I kind of like that possibility.
The first 10 Nazars (pictured above) are translucent resin with the central eye tinted the color of the PYT member that owns it.
5 gift Nazars were also made for PYT and are solid copper cold cast with aluminum iris.

For the last month or so i have been also painting a bus. This is not just any bus though- It is the Blue Bird Books Bus. The blog connencted with this project can be viewed at http://bluebirdbookbus.blogspot.com/- The idea is to create a mobile project space that focuses on artist books, rare books and book-like objects. Blue Bird Books is the creation of Mitzi Gordon and she has been working hard to make her dream come to fruition. I look forward to working with Mitzi and BBB on future projects after the completion of the bus's

transformation.

Above the bus is taped off with its original orange and black school bus color.
Here the bus has received a caot of epoxy primer after much prep work (sanding, degreasing, taping......)
And the base blue for the bus.