Involuntary Memory Object No. 11

While the video was encoding, I was busy building this guy. Formal documentation and installation to be found at barbarapolster.com tomorrow afternoon.

Tomorrow's studio to-do list:

Tower (2011)

The low-res final cut of Tower (2011) in its entirety - a barbarapolster.blogspot first. Meant to be screened as a wall-size projected, looping video.

Tower video work - Sneak Peek

Just a short low-res clip from this upcoming video work. More to come!

Editing Room

Images from the editing of Tower (2011) last night - initial review of footage, etc. Stick around for a sneak peak clip.

Tower

Shown here are images of the half geodesic dome, fully assembled. This dome was installed over the surface of the swimming pool, intended to suggest the interior of a water tower. Though the footage of the tower interior through the water was largely a bust (couldn't see much of the tower detail through the water, even close to the surface), it was still fun to use the camera underwater. The bottom is the complementary footage of the tower that will also be part of the video. Thanks again to Sharon (for use of the pool, assistance in building and install), Laura (for assisting in building and installation), and Corey (for building, installation, starring, and putting up with pieces of the dome being scattered around the apartment for weeks).

Believe it or not, you really are seeing the final detail pieces for Space Elevator - totally ready for their November install.

Been thinking a lot about these structures below lately. It started with the drive out to Burton for the shoot for the upcoming video, Tower. I'm very taken by these guys:

In-print

Picked up my prints from CIA's Digital Output Center today - they look awesome. Thanks, Josh! Excited to get these hanging. Building the gate track, tower reinforcements, and triangle joints today - last 3 sections of Space Elevator before install.

1 Unit Geodesic Dome: for Laura Dietz

First major piece built for the half-geodesic dome that will be part of the set for Tower, an upcoming video work. The interior is what will actually be used in the video. Sorry, Solo. Now if only I could convince myself to stop building things I don't have room to store.

99.999% finished

Okay... it might be more like 96%, but you get the idea. Closer to us in the hallway are the floor and ceiling pieces for the elevator (square cut-out is where the interior ladder exits through the roof of the cab. Further down the hallway are the finished wall pieces. Almost at the point where I can't do anymore work until installation. Literally, the only thing left is the track the liftgates will sit in - about 20 minutes worth of work.

Stressing a little bit about the upcoming studio/apartment move, but off to cut triangles for my 7' geodesic dome set. Have to shoot that video before the end of the summer, too. Diving Bell slated to be shot next week sometime. Wish me luck!

For your curiosity's sake, below is a really low-tech tour of my studio being overrun by a space elevator. Enjoy!

Walls!

The Space Elevator has exterior walls! I can't really even walk down my hallway anymore, but hey! Walls!

Building Projects

Final diagram to be drawn for the space elevator - laying out where the connector beams will be installed between wall panels. First sort of comprehensive diagram, too. It's exciting to see everything coming together.

Speaking of coming together, above is the construction site for the new Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland - this time I didn't miss!

Object No. 10

Object No. 10 is completed. Off to formally document the work, install, and then head over to Proximity for a showing of work by Janet Bruhn and Wes Friedrich. Busy night, as always!

Unusual Studio Day

Went over to CMA to draw today for the first time in years, mostly just to prove to myself that I can still do it (not that there was ever really any doubt)! Got kinda bored there, plus finding sculptures seemed trickier than I expected. Rodin sculpture room was beautiful, as always, but busy. But I drew the above when I got home.. so that was pretty sweet. Felt nice to just draw again, especially something completely unrelated to my body of work.

Drove by the new MOCA construction site on my way home and tried to take a picture, but missed. Posted it anyway?? Umm, that's it on the left.

Anyhoo, off to study more AE on lynda.com and to finish Object No. 10 tonight. More pictures to come later tonight for sure.

In the double digits now!

Here are the beginnings of Memory Object No. 10. Seems as though I have a surprise moving day coming up, so I'm trying to crank out as much work as possible over the course of the next few weeks before the studio ends up in a flux. Videos and Memory Objects - where it's gonna be for a minute.

Sunsit (2011)

In-progress mock-up of Sunsit (2011)

Tying up some loose ends

Grate 4 is officially, unequivocally finished.

Above and below are images of the additional Space Elevator tower pieces, complete with finishing details from today. The tower will now reach just under 12' tall.

Below are images of the power panel built a few months back, finally installed in the wall of the Space Elevator. This wall is 5' tall and 2' wide, for reference.

(outward facing side)

Also completed today was the reshooting of the video work, Sunsit. Video is compressed into a workable size and is in the animation and editing stage. Images to come!

A new old work and some old new work

Above and below are two in-progress stills of the video work, Cancel (2011), that is intended for projection onto the space elevator installation. Still some layer editing needed, some mask feathering, and definitely some color work (I will eventually need the white in the clothes and sky to fluctuate in space on the white sculpture) but I'm excited to see this video take shape. Shout out to Mike Smith (Graduado Aranha) for being in this piece - thanks so much!

And below, of course, is more of the diamond-cutting-out for the final grate of the space elevator that I've been putting off for 2 months now. It's literally the second to last part of the installation that needs to be cut. I guess that's why I haven't rushed it, but it's nice to be almost officially, unquestionably done.

Whatcha workin' on?

Ohh, nuthin'. Just building a 7'-in-diameter, half geodesic dome/water tower interior that is to float just above the surface of a small body of water and is made out of cardboard for an upcoming video shoot. No big.

Object No. 9

Images kinda wash out all the details, but it felt nice to work on another artwork tonight. My other life as a Capoeirista has eaten up a lot of time as of late (in a wonderful way, of course!), but it feels great to get back to another love. Now on to researching my somewhat inadvertent reference to Los Carpinteros' Coco Solo and its relationship to my own work. I am particularly interested in their lyrical presentation of community, government, and identity issues - or you know, social and people issues.

Los Carpinteros, Coco Solo

2004
Color lithograph
42" x 72"
Edition 20

(image via http://www.usfcam.usf.edu/gs/artists/los_carpinteros/carpinteros.html)

Tower Modules

Spent some time recently building more tower modules for the Space Elevator installation. My studio is bursting at the seams here. If you need a refresher as to what these pieces for, check out the construction photos for the Elevator. Really any post from the months of February through May will do the trick.

Involuntary Memory Object No. 8

In-progress to completion images:

Front before any buttons.

Back with some detail, but not finished.

Bottom side.

Involuntary Memory Object No. 8