--Home--Series--History--Designs--Poetry--Statement--Meaning--
Note: Because this page was used as a communication tool during the design phase, it is in reverse chronological order (most recent information is at the top of the page). To read it in chronological order, follow this link and the words "next entry" at the end of each entry.
Drafted the Good Friday banner (and parts of the jellyfish) today. Here's notes about art in life (last week) and accessible art. (next entry)
I did yet another week 6 today and finalized the Easter designs. (The only thing I did to them was to add a "fade" layer to the background images. Wendy assures me the type oddities are not a bother.) Yet to do: a note about the experience of week 3, Good Friday, and "the jellyfish" (which I doubt I can represent on the web site until after they're done, since they're three dimensional.) (next entry)
I spent much of yesterday and today working on the Easter designs and now have a first draft of them. There's a temptation, somehow, to just leave the colored banners there and dispense with any images, words, etc. Part of it's laziness; part of it's fear/frustration. I want to show the Kingdom of God and PhotoDisc's images limit me. There are so few photos of people really caring for one another. A lot of caring for children, but as adults we put on suits and pretend to be impressive. Harumph. Oddly enough, many of the caring images involved people of color, so that was nice. (next entry)
We "hung the show" on March 5 and it "opened" on the 12th. I'm humbled by all the help I'm getting--and, of course, I couldn't do it otherwise. It was exciting to see it on the wall. What's in my mind doesn't always translate to reality, but this did.
Last Sunday was terrifying--I kept forgetting to breathe. I speak in front of groups often, but I'm usually teaching technical things about which I care only a little. This was speaking my soul. I noticed, when getting the poetry "reading stand" ready, that my poems get more self-revealing as we go on. I'm expecting week 4 to be the hardest reading. I will have to go away a little to read the line about the "crippled shell." But if I go away too much, the emotional truth won't be in the reading...so it will be tricky.
After the service many people complimented me. (My favorite: a teenaged-girl who said the poem moved her.) I am not good at receiving compliments. My mind immediately wants to belittle what I've done, to run away from the love people are offering to me. Crazy, because of course love and approval (which I way too often confuse) are what I want.
We put a computer outside the sanctuary so that people could see the web site. At first no one went near it and there were discussions of the evils of the internet. (Do you suppose people used to rail about the evils of libraries because of the content of the books therein?) I was pleased to see, later, little groups of people looking at the site. To be complete, in my mind, this "piece" of art needs to include the banners, the words, my reading of them and this web site. The parts stand by themselves, if they have to, but the whole is better.
Feedback from Wendy is week 6 still doesn't work. Sigh. There are a few changes I want to make to week 4, but it's close.
Yesterday I went to my studio and painted. With paint. And a brush. It was wonderful...physical...messy...necessary to my mental health. Now I can come back to work on this project. (But I'm not gonna show what I've done until tomorrow. Interesting! Now that the audience is potentially larger, I want to be more sure...) (next entry)
I made myself take two days away from this work (although of course I was thinking about it). This (very early--it woke me up again) morning, I made new designs for weeks 4 and 6... (next entry)
Well, sigh, Wendy confirms my fear that weeks 4 and 6 are still not working. I suspect I will have to let go of the idea of having all 6 done before week 1 goes up.
I did want to do a little writing today, though, so here are those meanderings I mentioned yesterday. (next entry)
Last night, I finalized (maybe) banners for the remaining weeks of Lent. I redesigned weeks 4 and 6. Week 4 wasn't "reading" well in the church--I couldn't tell what it was the carpenter was doing. Wendy helped me see that the lighting was odd--there was an awkwardness about the cloud background when he was so clearly indoors, etc. Week 6 was just weak...and I'm not convinced it's better yet... I made a web page with all the designs, brightened. This won't ever happen, but it will help me to see changes I need to make.
Yesterday I sent out e-mail inviting folks to look at the site. This morning Mary Martin (Director of the Women's Art Registry of Minnesota) agreed to facilitate the "Artist and Audience Discussion" on Palm Sunday. I'm moving from the design phase into the do-all-the-details-for-the-show phase...not my favorite part.
I have some meanderings to add to the meaning page, but don't want to take the time right now...(multiculturalism...wrestling with God) (next entry)
Ralph and I met on Friday to talk through the printing, "construction," and hanging of the banners.
Friday night I realized hanging day is only a week away! I put in another late night session and finalized banners for the first two weeks. That's a relief.
I'm putting the results of Friday's work on the web site today. (next entry)
Wendy, Dick and I met at the church today to look at the latest prints and discuss the project. In general, Wendy thinks the designs work individually, but not collectively. She agrees that week 6 is weak and had several suggestions. Notes:
Re-working the web site became a late night project on this date (and early morning 2/24--yikes!). (next entry)
Week 6 design is drafted. (next entry)
I spent most of yesterday and today working on the Lenten series. (Until today, I had been referring to it as "The Easter Project." See note.)
After last week's meeting with Dick Nichols, the first priority was a new layout.
We've discovered that the printer will not print to the edge, so I can't easily do graphics with a "bleed." In order to make this white edge look less goofy, I've blurred out the sides of the designs. I've also adjusted the designs so that my graphic file includes extra at the top for wrapping around the dowels. [Visible on this site in the larger versions of the graphics.] This will relieve us of having to be exact.
I've done quite a bit of design work yesterday and today, making corrections to week 1 and 2 [increasing type size and smoothing edges] and creating weeks 3, 4 and 5. As mentioned below, each week the "graphic of the week" will be full color and the graphic from the previous week will be dimmed. The design will still be there, but will hopefully not compete for attention. The design page includes "dimmed" versions of weeks 1 and 2.
I have to go, but also made quick additions to the meaning and statement pages. (next entry)
I finished the first draft of week 2's design. (Which is making me question including any of the painting with the weeks...I also haven't recorded my concept of "graying out" the paintings as the weeks go on...except to make this note to remind me.)
We did a test print of week one, which didn't come out quite the right size. (Ralph says, "don't panic." He knows me well.) I'm taking it over now to test it in the sanctuary and am meeting with Dick Nichols about the whole project. (Poor man.)
After the meeting:
I wanted to make some notes. Interesting that, while we talked about
theological issues--and it was helpful, I find it hard now to remember
specifics.
Practical specifics include:
I need to find more time to work on this. What fun! (next entry)
Yoopee, hoopee, the poetry happened! (Draft 1, anyway.)
This week, I've been waking up at 1 or 2 in the morning and been awake for several hours. It's not only about this project, it's also house and money and such...Last night, for variety, I couldn't get to sleep to begin with. So I got up and wrote poetry and went to bed (eventually) and slept.
I discovered, in the wee hours, that I had accidentally put this page in place of my business home page. That seems like a Freudian slip--I want to be doing this.
(I also discovered that www.god.com is a registered domain, but they haven't yet put up a web site. Yikes!) (next entry)
I have a new layout, which shows how I hope the art will hang on Ash Wednesday. (Still no guidance on actual dimensions, but I sent e-mail today...) I am purposely integrating the look of some of my paintings. [Aside.] I'm not sure yet whether each panel will appear on the appropriate week and then stay up or whether the representational panels will appear and then disappear each week. I bet that makes no sense to someone who is not inside my head. Oh well.
I also have a new week 1 design, which doesn't seem to start at the end like the other did.
Question for Wendy: is the light too confusing? There's the sun (an afterthought on my part, but I like it), the light across the letters comes from top left as does (I think) the light on the dove and the arm. Is it a problem? If so, what do I need to change?
(Upon Ralph's advice, I'm working at higher resolution and larger physical dimension...definitely slows things down!) (next entry)
I've started my theological ramblings and changed a couple of the texts. (next entry)
I seem to be doing most of my mental work on this project around midnight as I'm lying in bed too interested to sleep.
I met with Wendy yesterday and learned these things:
In my progress report yesterday, I didn't mention that I made initial decisions to use the computer and a large format (3' wide) printer as the "medium" here. This is part of a move towards doing fine art on the computer because it takes less physical energy for me and is more easily reproduced.
Last night as I was envisioning things, I realized the banner design I've got going now probably bears as much resemblance to the final product as a chicken does to an egg. Reasons it will change:
A final note for the day: I need to start (and add to this site) writing about the theological/spiritual questions I'm bumping into as I do this work. I mean, c'mon, a crucifiction?! (next entry)
