Left To Chance, San Francisco Center for the Book Opening

An estimated 300 people squeezed into the San Francisco Center for the Book on Friday for the opening of Left to Chance: In Search of the Accidental Book Art . The exhibition was curated by the luminous Hanna Regev, pictured below, center, bookended by SFCB Co-Founders Mary Austin and Kathleen Burch.

My new piece, Fugitive, was part of the exhibition. With the crowd, I could barely get close enough to take any pictures of it! The work was displayed with gloves so that viewers could handle and see the papers close-up.

The exhibition, which is on view till May 12, is inspired by the work of John Cage, and his use of chance operations. Some Bay Area folks, like Kathleen Burch, actually knew Cage and worked with him on projects. Cage, to me, has always been a distant figure, a colossus straddling visual art and music, influencing countless creatives of the past century until the present day. It's been so eye-opening to hear people who knew him talk about him as a person, someone who was sweet and full of life, with a quirky sense of humor. What I liked most was that people seemed to like him as a individual, not just as an Important Artist. The impression I get from them is encapsulated by the wall quote pictured below. If you can't read it - click on it for a larger image.

Sneak Peak - New Work for Upcoming San Francisco Center for the Book Exhibition

Some sneak peak details from a new piece, Fugitive. It's going to be part of the next exhibition, Left to Chance: The Accidental Book Art, at the San Francisco Center for the Book. As it reads on the colophon page for Fugitive:

"The title of this portfolio derives from the term used for pigments and dyes that fade when exposed to light. More commonly, it refers to someone who is avoiding arrest. The corporate logos and symbols that appear are representative of entities and activities that benefit from a global corporate monoculture that has led to financial and environmental devastation. The actions and organizations depicted have no fear of repurcussions for their criminal behavior.

The handmade papers for this portfolio were selectively exposed to light, causing their natural pigmentation to fade to create the images. Fibers used are from Andean Pampas Grass (Cortaderia jubata), a species invasive to the United States. Invasive species such as Pampas Grass decimate native ecosystems, drive out diversity, and their presence is due directly to globalization. Through their use as a fiber base for this portfolio, a symmetry between material and content is created, with the awareness that financial and environmental justice often go in unison."

No piece is ever made in a isolation, and I could not have made this work without the advice I received on the Yahoo Papermakers' Group, particularly the help of Winnie Radolan and Catherine Nash. In addition, thanks to Hanna Regev, curator of Left to Chance as well as the Get Lucky exhibition at SOMArts, for including me.

Together Again

I just learned yesterday that I will be in an exhibition with my friend and old studio-mate Sun Young Kang! We are going to be part of the exhibition Branching Together, curated by Melanie Mowinski, coming at at PRESS: A Letterpress Public Art Project in North Adams, MA. Unfortunately, I don't think we will physically be able to be there, but I'm sure our spirits will.

Above is Sunny's piece that will be on display, though I believe it will have a different configuration for PRESS, and I will be exhibiting my Ghost Trees. The exhibition will also feature Helen Hiebert's Mother Tree project. Its sure to be an amazing and paper-rific exhibition!