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Waiting for Spring

• PLAYA January residency was fabulous!

• 2024 CODEX IX review

• Emergency Food for the people in Gaza: ART Auction Fund Raiser Arts4Action

• In Cahoots silent auction

• CAP Art Auction

• Township 10 ceramic residency in North Carolina

• Our future

What an amazing cohort of writers and visual artists: Nina Elder, Farnaz Fatemi, Daniel Duford, Paul Skenazy, Aaron Rabinowitz, and Patrick Kikut (not pictured). Thank you everyone for your friendship, generosity in sharing, encouragement with experimentation, and interest in learning from one another. It was a productive time!

The landscape was spectacular! It constantly changed – dramatic skies, gorgeous sunrises and sunsets, a magical harvest moon, and star filled night skies – Summer Lake is the second darkest location in the U.S. Each day I saw new animal tracks in the snow and sand assuring me wildlife abounds.

I was fortunate to work in the Sand Hill print studio, a wonderful large space with high ceilings and two large etching presses. It was special having Nina Elder working in the adjacent studio right thru the beige door. I made 24 large landscape mono prints each visible on my website here. I am including three below to give you an idea.  

Before leaving for the residency I handset wood and metal type letterpress printing  the title page and colophon of my newest artist books 15 Inkblots. During my time at PLAYA, I put together 3 leporello accordion ink blot books, covered Plexiglas with photo gravure etchings printed on Gampi paper for the hard covers, and made paper enclosures to house the books so that I would have them ready to take to CODEX when I returned home.

I also brought with me 5 pomegranates and 4 pomelos to eat and then utilize their skins in my new series EXPOSING THE INSIDE where I carefully peel the fruit, turn them inside out and stitch them up.

Photo credit of my artwork (mono prints, ink blot books, and fruit sculpture) Mario Gallucci

I am grateful for the time, space, and community to focus my efforts on new projects. Thank you Playa staff: Kris and Michael Norris for creating a supportive and independent atmosphere rich with historical tidbits and group field trips and Shawna Negus for nourishing us with 4 scrumptious meals!

I also spent time conceiving of my next artist book project on wasps. I made a working dummy to explore content, sequence, book structure and pop-ups. Collaborator, Kate Taormina and I Zoomed, texted, and sent packages back and forth. Kate visited me in Portland for 3 nights in February where we made great strides – deciding what to include and how to order the content. Images forthcoming!

An enormous THANK YOU to Max and Lisa for helping me at my table at CODEX! I couldn’t have done it without their support. It was wonderful to be back in the Bay Area again to see good friends and show my work to new people. I sold a copy of NOURISH to the University of Miami and Smith College is buying a Deluxe Owed to The Mountain and my first 15 Ink Blots. I am thrilled to have both of those books on the East coast. I only have one remaining copy for sale of the deluxe Owed to The Mountain. I am hoping a few more sales will materialize from the exposure at CODEX.

BUY ART FOR GAZA

Sale goes live: March 17, 2024, at 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

arts4action is a collective of artists mentored by rosenclaire, united around the belief that art has the power to remind us of our shared humanity. Through online fundraisers, the collective is able to respond to timely and ongoing global crises and injustices. 

In response to the war in Gaza, I am participating in an art sale with arts4action.com.The relentless bombing over the past 5 months has led to a catastrophic humanitarian crisis for the Palestinian people: 30,000 people have been killed, 80% of the people are displaced from their homes and ¼ of the population is facing starvation. arts4action is partnering with KinderUSA, a US-based non-profit focused on the health and well-being of Palestinian children. With a team on the ground, KinderUSA’s current efforts are going into emergency food relief, purchasing and delivering food inside the Gaza Strip.

Please consider buying a work from one of the amazing artists. All artworks are original, signed by the artist, 9 x12” or smaller, and sold for $250 USD each. All funds raised, after deducting shipping costs, will be donated to KinderUSA’s food relief efforts in Gaza.

Help arts4action raise $30,000 to feed families in Gaza.

Thank You!

Sale goes live: March 17, 2024, at 1:00 p.m. EST!

In Cahoots Silent Auction

Bid here for Mountain Cat (solar etching and letterpress pressure printed blue background). Starting bid is $100. All proceeds support the grant program to attend residencies at In Cahoots.

CAP ART AUCTION 3-16-24

I am excited to announce that my art piece, The Work of White People, 2019, 30” x 60” x 3”, wood matches on wood panel, (quote from DeRay Mckesson) has been selected as part of the 2024 Cascade AIDS Project Art Auction & After Party! The event, which provides vital support for HIV and LGBTQ+ services, is taking place on March 16th at the Hyatt Regency.

Tickets are available now! Visit the website to view the gallery online and bid now! You can start the bidding at $400 here .

I leave early tomorrow morning for a 5-week ceramic residency at Township 10 in Marshall, North Carolina near Asheville. I am very excited about this unique opportunity to devote my attention to clay. I will be working in porcelain firing little sculpted bats to cone 10. Besides lots of experimentation I hope to make a series of flying bats where I combine abaca paper wings and carved bat heads/bodies. I hope to also work on some wasps and nests for my other project.

Thank you jurors for selecting me, founder Marjorie Dial for your vision and dedication, Regional Arts & Culture Council for your financial support from a Arts3C grant award, and a Career Opportunity grant from the Oregon Arts Commission and The Ford Family Foundation. Stay tuned for posts on Instagram!

This represents my deepest fear and angst with November’s presidential election!

WE MUST VOTE TO KEEP TRUMP OUT OF OFFICE AT ALL COST!

I hear people saying they are not going to vote

I have heard people resigned to Trump winning

This is terrifying!

We cannot survive 4 years under Trump’s regime.

Biden cease fire NOW stop the aid to Israel!

The suffering and terror in Gaza must end!

We want PEACE!

love,

diane