platFORM: adventures in sculpture proposals

Last night I submitted my very first sculpture proposal for an outdoor installation space up in Scottsdale, Tempe, or Gilbert. There are eight "platform" spaces available throughout those cities that were created specifically for art students to have the chance to create and display works while in school. If I get accepted I get funding and the chance to have my work on display for a whole year! I was super excited when I first heard about it and knew I wanted to try for it. No joke, it took awhile to get everything together to submit, but thankfully it all pulled together and now it's in the hands of the Lord whether I get the opportunity or not. I wanted to share my written project proposal, the sketches and miniature bronze piece I made to depict my proposed piece.

Here you be, but remember I don't write or draw as well as I can sculpt! haha.

I am currently a sculpture student at the University of Arizona where my knowledge and experience with art practices and theory are expanding. This is encouraging me to create pieces with impact; I feel the impact of my work is through engaging the mind not only in thought through what is being depicted and emphasized in a piece, but I also feel my work encourages action by connecting individuals to themselves and their community through implied dialogue with the piece. In 2013 I received my Associates of Fine Arts degree with a visual arts concentration from Pima Community College. During my time as a student I have been able to work with metal, ceramic and wood concentrating on using each material to its full potential.

A passion in my life is food, specifically the production and consumption of the western diet. My work attempts to open up a conversation about food and its industry. Through my experience with whole food living, being a food writer, and helping educate youth about nutrition the piece I am proposing will not only appeal to the eye, but challenge thought in regards to the impact industrialized food has on the individual, community, and society. My proposal for the Platform project is a squeezed half lemon dripping juice. The lemon closely connects Arizona with the food industry and culture; Citrus being one of the five cash crops of the region. A 36” x 30” x 36” steel rod frame forms the lemon segments, added ceramic pieces will make up parts of the peel and the exposed cut flesh of the lemon. The ceramic elements will be attached to the frame with bolts and other hardware to emphasize industrialization in our culture. The work interacts with the viewer by letting them see inside and through the piece as well as the urban landscape around. This helps to ground the viewer to their local environment by marrying the viewer to the landscape hoping to incite action as the process of food production and consumption in the western diet is truly disjointed from sustainable agriculture.

 I titled the little bronze piece "Fresh Squeezed". haha. Isn't it cute? Also, working with wax, which is what I had to do to get the bronze piece was fun, but waaaay different than working with clay. I like clay. 

Now I have three things I am waiting to hear back about that I have opened myself up to try for, an art school scholarship for the fall (I'll find out in the next month or two about this), the summer Medici scholarship to buy a new camera (I'll find out in the next week about this), and this platFORM project (I'll find out by May 9th about this). 

Even if I don't get any of them I sure have learned a lot about myself, my work ethic/organizational skills under pressure, and what my passions for creating art is. Sweet goodness school might be harder than I was expecting, but I sure am enjoying all this learning and life experience. If I do get them though... my summer is going to be PACKED. haha. I am hoping for the latter. Prayers and happy vibes my way would be immensely appreciated :)