In my last post I shared my installation at the new Kaiser building in downtown Santa Cruz but I also wanted to share a few of my favorites of the other local artists that were chosen for this space too. It’s so great to see large organizations or corporations prioritize local artists and unique work into their public spaces. Chandra Cerrito Art Advisors was given the task of presenting all of the works for potential selection and it was great working with them. Check out some of these great pieces…
Ethan EstessJohn MaxonLaura BeachLea de WitLeslie Morgan
Ethan Estess uses reclaiming fishing rope to create many of his pieces. John Maxon paints the great beauty that surrounds us. Laura Beach combines her love of science and printmaking to create her works. Lea de Wit creates large scale glass installations that swim, fly and flow across walls. Leslie Morgan creates work that is inspired by her time in the water.
There are many, many more pieces included in the building, so if you’re going to get your flu shot or booster be sure to keep an eye out as you pass through the halls. You’re sure to be inspired!
Thanks to Dr. Harrington, I got a personal tour of all the art that was recently installed at the new Kaiser Permanente healthcare building in Santa Cruz and I got to see my work there for the first time!
‘Marine Drifters’ at Kaiser Permanente downtown Santa Cruz offices
This piece is called Marine Drifters and includes hundreds of porcelain parts that are based on the intricate skeletal structures of radiolarians, which are single cell planktons. The pieces were adhered to painted wood panels and then framed in plexi to protect the work. They span 216″ x 26″ x 6″ over the work stations. The overall composition is based on the Santa Cruz County coastline.
To see more images from this installation, click here.
A lot of art was collected during Open Studios, but I was also left with quite a few strays; one or two pieces from older series. So I’m putting them on sale in the online shop and they are ready for adoption! More work will be going up soon, so stay tuned but in the meantime, check out these great deals from the Specimen & Rock Candy Series, Art Hearts and Book Bundles!
Be sure to get out to Sierra Azul Gardens before October 31st to check out all the sculptures. There are over 90 works created by 48 artists and collaborators. Visit the stunning two-acre demonstration garden, relax under the umbrellas, and spend an afternoon enjoying the exhibit.
Nearly the entire exhibit is up in the online shop and open 24/7. If you’re not in the area and won’t get up to see the show in person, this is a great way to tour the exhibit and add a new piece to your collection. Works range from small handheld objects to site specific large scale installations as well as photos from the In the Field series so there’s something for everyone.
Thank you to everyone who came up to see the opening of Bodies of Water at the Eloise Pickard Smith Gallery- it was a lovely evening celebrating a collaboration of art + science. If you missed the opening, I wanted to share images of the ephemeral ice sculpture that was on display in the courtyard.
Throughout the course of the evening, discs of ice with porcelain plankton parts embedded in them calved, crashed, slipped and dripped as the installation melted away. A blatant commentary on the loss of sea ice, rising ocean temperatures and how we are all contributing to it. Accompanying the ice sculpture were words by Ari Friedlaender, PhD who has seen climate change happening in front of his eyes over multiple trips to Antartica. Inside the gallery, three pieces made with resin mimicked the ephemeral ice sculpture melting outside.
Our planet is warming, quickly. Some regions like those at the poles are extremely susceptible to warming. In both the Arctic and Antarctic, nearly every level of the marine ecosystem has evolved to rely on the annual advance and retreat of sea ice. The intimate ties between sea ice and the health of our oceans are being stretched thin by rapid warming and diminishing amounts of sea ice cover. From tiny bacteria and phytoplankton that rely on the sea ice for their growth and flourishing, to zooplankton like krill that feed on these under-ice communities, to the largest animals on the planet the baleen whales that feed on these zooplankton, they are all at risk. Scientists and the general public can see these changes occur from satellite images, documentary films, scientific reports, and first-hand accounts.
Over the past 25 years I have made nearly 50 trips to the Antarctic Peninsula, the knife-edge of the continent that sits below South America and juts into the Southern Ocean. Here, temperatures are warming as fast as nearly anywhere on the planet, and the amount of sea ice that builds annually is decreasing. Because of this, the amount of krill that is available for penguins, seals, seabirds, fish, and whales is decreasing too. Above the water, I have watched as glaciers curl up like a hermit crab into its shell, I have watched glossy snow-covered peaks weep away their cover becoming dark, rocky outcroppings, and I have watched as the surface of the ocean that should be frozen solid remains liquid and wavy.
Opportunities to share these stories and bring together people from diverse communities with different ways of thinking and seeing the world is critical if we are to find a way to solve these issues that we have, without a shadow of a doubt, created by our actions. Art and science are two powerful tools that we have to educate, bring empathy, share truth, and inspire change. I am honored to be part of this effort with Jenni and Tauna and all of these here at UCSC.
Ari S. Friedlaender, PhD
Professor, Ocean Sciences Department
It was the first time I’d used ice as a medium and as simple as it seems to make ice, there was actually a very steep learning curve. I had to make the ice as clear as possible, I wanted to suspend the ceramic pieces in it at different layers and I wanted to display them in a way that worked with the exhibit as a whole.
I honestly didn’t advertise that I was planning this for the opening because I really wasn’t sure if it would work or if it would be interesting or if it would melt before anyone even got there. The lighting added another element that helped highlight the the porcelain plankton and the natural bubble patterns in the ice. By the end of the night, very little of the ice remained. And while it didn’t turn out exactly like my plan, it was beautiful and interesting and I think it has a lot of potential for future projects.
Beginning with a projected image on the wall, gives a starting place for the installation to launch from. The layout is based on satellite imagery of a plankton bloom happening in the Southern Ocean, near McMurdo Sound in Antartica. Ceramic pieces inspired by the skeletal structures of plankton were added to the wall giving it shape and dimension. Once the main form was installed the rest was done intuitively, adding one piece at a time and then stepping back to see it’s impact on the overall form. This piece is 30′ long by 8′ high and was installed over several days.
A few sneak peeks at what I’ve been installing at the Eloise Pickard Smith Gallery for my upcoming show Bodies of Water. The show is inspired by the unseen world of plankton, it’s beauty and it’s role in sustaining the planet.
The plankton bloom site specific installation, comprised of hundreds of porcelain pieces.
We are bodies of water, we are connected to and dependent on the ocean from the very beginning of life on planet earth to our current day. Within all oceans are planktons, tiny marine drifters that make up the majority of all marine life in the ocean and are vital to sustain life on our planet. This exhibit aims to highlight the beauty of the unseen world of plankton, share the ecological importance of them and how we are connected.
Framed planktons leaving amazing shadows on the wall, urchin and medusa inspired pieces captured under bell jars & gallery assistant Sarah giving the show a thumbs up
The exhibit is on display Sept 20th – Dec 3rd 2022, with an opening reception Saturday September 24th from 5-8.
The gallery is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday from 12pm-5pm and Thursdays 12pm-7pm
