Melissa Dickenson

Breathe and Skin Series 

Fall 2011

Breathe 1 Acrylic and Polyethylene 72” x 84” 2011

Skin 1 Acrylic, canvas and polyethylene 60” x 48”

Breathe 2 Acrylic and Polyethylene 72” x 84” 2011

Skin 2 Acrylic, canvas and polyethylene 60” x 48”

I already miss NYC. The bustling was amazing and the sites of the city unparalled to any I have see (except maybe Tokyo).

This was my studio above middle building from the outside. Everyday there were photo shoots of various weddings, fashion catalogs, independent stylists etc., selling the DUMBO “lifestyle”.  Kind of bizzare and kind of like a movie set, but I grew to love it.

This is what I am kind of doing now. 

View from PS1 MOMA’s sculpture garden. above

and below the three good pieces I made in NY.

Untitled Paper Sculpture acrylic on paper, paper rag  27” x 22” 2011

Untitled Study   acrylic on paper 2011 18” x 14”

Process acrylic on plastic 50” x 72” 2011

Speaking of paper scupltures, this cardboard straw I found at wholefoods might be eco freindly but it serves near impossible to enjoy your drink for more than 5 minutes without failing miserably.

My stop on the F train and an homage to my SF digs.

Also inspiration for I heart NYork peice. below

I Heart NYork  acrylic on plastic 30” x 35” 2011

This peice below was an amazing painter at a gallery in the lower eastside. I will find her name shortly and the gallery if I ever finish unpacking.

The Museum of Arts and Design had a kick ass diorama show. If anyone out there that reads this knows me I LOVE dioramas. Here is a link back to my 2008 blog reviewing the Marcel Dzamas show

Not so astonishing to my asthetic was the Folk Art Museum. Below are some “highlights”. I am sorry its just not my thing.

I did share this expeirience with some great people though so it wasn’t a total bust. I think I laughed my guts out with Jake while waiting for our two other pals to finish oohing and ahhing at the quilts. Below an ankle shot of Mr. Zeimann.

Finally the weekend of PRIDE. NYC passed the Gay Marriage Law! Woo Hoo. This is how Levi’s celebrated. 

I love this city. 

I wonder now what Tarnow, Poland will be like. I do know it is home to Wilhelm Sasnal. I am totally in love with his work and I am going to contact him!!! 

And I am in my new studio, #29 which has a great new feeling that has left me better able to understand my work and what I am interested in doing in the studio.

           Release Painting 2 acrylic on canvas 94” x 60” 2011

New York gave me such a great perspective on the reality of painting. In my opinion it is a selfish act to paint.  Thinking that what the artist makes is worth something visually, historically, and monetarily is a concept of that drives the attitude of most of the art world or artists that want to play in the game of it. Painting is the most selfish of the art practices because it is “dead” therefore if the artist can make it alive again, then they will certainly place very highly on the scoreboard.

  Release Painting 4 (with Anchor)  acrylic and rope on canvas 50” x 25” 2011

This is a near impossible feat since everything has been done before on, with, about canvas and linen, and about the act of painting and the object of a panting. SO what is the point of trying? I don’t think there is a reason except loving to move paint around according to an emotional pathology. The purpose of my raw canvas series in and of themselves are about the act, object, the materials, and how they are addictive. Jab the art world in the side because there is something so seductive about painting it can be your lover as well as your arch enemy.

Release and Capture  acrylic on canvas 91” x 42” 2011 (sorry for the bad photo)

Cover, Release and Wait   acrylic and canvas on canvas 20” x 12” 2011

Release acrylic on canvas 78” x 64” 2011

……… or the doughnut muffins?  It seems no one in NY wants their picture taken. I got yelled at by 4 different people for taking pictures of ridiculous things.

1. Recess in the middle of the street for 6 year olds, really if any of these kids are famous who would know?

2. The Woman at Dean and Deluca threw a fit when I was trying to snap a photo of the ridiculous doughnut muffin, come on I don’t even want you in the background lady if you are a budding actress to be who cares?

The other two were successful at preventing my photos~ the gurads at the amazing Alexander McQueen show at the MET.  His show Savage Beauty was simply amazing. I left feeling so mesmerized by the vision he has.

After a 12 hour day of Art nerding we all returned to the studio and went into our worlds for the rest of the night.

I have a new studio for a month and I am super excited to get out of dodge, not that San Francisco is dodge i’ve just been there on a hampster wheel for 10 months.  I am participating in the AICAD New York Studio Program. My flight buddy and fellow artist Jake Ziemann flew a red eye from SF to LGA saturday night and adjusted to EST with some grub at Superfine. I just got the keys yesterday to my squeaky clean white walled studio. We’ll see how long this lasts.

Off to the Frick today with a good group of art nerds. Bopping around the city with such a pulse puts a an extremely fresh breath into your work. I am sure I will absorb all the energy of  NYC and it will come out in a wild burst of paint when I return to SF!

Paint’in time.

I have ‘what’s going around’ this week and am housebound because of it. :(

So to entertain myself, after exhausting Harry Potter DVD’s lent to me by my roommate, trying to read books and many many hours of sleep, I turn to the computer. Every once in a while it is fun to google yourself and see what pops up. I found something awesome! Pictures from my time in Japan making paper at the Awagami Hall of Handmade Washi.  On the trip my camera got erased and I have very few images from that time four years ago.  Here we go!

Tuesday marks the opening of the “Apartment Show” aka:

(Odds Are) 13:1
May 3–7

Capp Street Project residency apartment: 50 15th Street (at De Haro), San Francisco
Public reception: Tuesday, May 3, 6-8 pm
Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 11 am-7 pm; Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, 11 am-6 pm

Subsequently I have been thinking about said living spaces and how varied they can be. I live in a Victorian painted lady that is divided into 2 apartments, but it was originally a single home. I have two roommates and I think we actually have a pretty good deal of individual space as well as communal areas. Our place in NY, would be twice as much for the same amenities. 

The show we are having at the residency apartment that the Wattis Institute uses for visiting artists and curators.  It is a one bedroom absolutely beautiful apartment, complete with great sunlight, wrap-around windows, back deck and it’s own Koi pond! Yes, a Koi pond !

Apartments can be sacred spaces (like that of living in one by yourself) or very chaotic groups of people living in a shared environment. This is the nature of 13:1  we open up a private space to the public. We (the 13 artists involved in the project) inserted art in precarious places that deals with presence and absence. My piece,  Release Painting # 2  Exasperation from too many obligations and deadlines, apprehension towards making new work, four days 91” x 42, 2011,

I have installed it on to the ceiling of the kitchen, so the viewer must look up at the weight of the paint that is suspended by the optical net above them. Other projects included the bathroom Camera obsceura by JJ Campanero, pictured below in his new cozy “studio apartment” which he can’t leave and go to his real apartment for another 3 weeks.

Other than that, as you can tell my work has changed quite a bit from this:

Germination 60” x 94” 2011

to:

Molt 32” x 46” 2011

to this current paired down work.

Release Painting # 1 Feelings of worthlessness after the threat of possible failure, anxiety, and five days, 2011 78” x 64”

and

Release Painting #3 Fluctuating emmotions, 270 days, in progress 18’x 8’

It has been an interesting journey this first year of Grad School at CCA, it will be wild to see where the summer takes the work. Friday marks the end of the semester and I am off to NY for a Summer Studio Session for 4 weeks, then to Krakow for a project with the Museum of Mocice.  

Large paintings travel well? Hmmmm

Pollination  Acrylic and Ink on Mylar 42” x 96” 2011

I am soo excited about paint right now! After a long winter of feeling “stuck” in the creative way I am finally back to feeling super excited about working again. I have been adding elements of collage, drawing and paint into my drawings. I am tinkering with the idea of trying something on Plexiglass for an upcoming show at the Wattis Institute in March, but haven’t really come to terms with making that happen.  I also was sort of directed towards this idea by  Kris Martin, a Belgian artist visiting the Bay area.  I am not sure though, how to hang such a thing and the functionality of a hanging transparency which is soooo over done.

Pangea Two  Acrylic and Ink on Mylar 72” x 36” 2011

For now I am focusing on these four Mylar pieces and possibly one paper piece for my Valentines Day Crit and impromtu opening next tuesday at the Wattis.

Greenwash  Acrylic and ink on Mylar 14” x 17” 2011

Tsunami  Acrylic, Ink, and Mylar on Paper 36” x 72” 2011

Missile Acrylic and Ink on Mylar 14” x 17” 2011

Wired 2011 cell vinal on mylar

And so here we are 2011. Once again I try to give up Cheese and Ice Cream, sadly,it never works!  This year will be particularly challenging as I have a new roomate moving in and she works for a cheese importer. D came over for a meet and greet/dinner last night and was kind enough to bring over a pint of ice cream as well, a nice gesture but I think I am going to have to scrap that all time favorite resolution!

In other more exciting news,I am on “break” from school right now and am a bit lost. Not quite sure what to do with myself. Being at the studio is a bit weird right now, especially because no one is there. Imagine…..all alone painting in a large metal warehouse while a Dexter marathon is streaming, chilly air, and exacto knifes everywhere, now that would give anyone a serious case of the Mondays! I have also been freezing my butt off too,  so getting to Yoga for some reason has been a challenge this week as is getting out of bed before 9 am. I am not off to a good start for 2011. I am hoping to stay home today read my Teaching Critical Thought book for another Saturday class I have this upcoming semester, and venture out to Yoga at some point.

With that said here are some results of Dexter inspired pieces. More exciting things to come for 2011, I hope!

Pitcher Plants 2011 cell vinal on mylar

Power Plant I Detail 2011 Ink on Mylar

I have been working on some smaller drawings to sort of free up my practice and play with…. COLOR!

I am excited to add color slowly and have just got in the mail an order of Cell Vinal that I can’t wait to try.

Rebekah

Stef

Badula Study

Sesum Fo Llab   December 4th 2010

Two Saturdays ago I was an artist in the Sesum fo Llab show, part of the Magnificent Seven series hosted by the Wattis Institute for Contemporary Art.  We were working closely with Paulina Olowska, an amazing Polish artist. The evening featured loads of shenanigans including but not limited to a dancing bear, Angel Punch, fantastic costumes and characters, and a kick ass dj and light master.

Rebekah Goldstein and I were in charge of selecting the evenings drink of Choice, Angel Punch, which is delicious as a non alcoholic beverage, or Amazing with a bit of gin.

The event was full of smart arty people letting loose, dancing, making ceramic donuts and doing Alphabet Yoga.

in a  sentence…. the most surreal night in a very long time.

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