A violin is a unique object.
It can be the source of some of humanity’s most beautiful music. It has been a tool of beauty for hundreds of years. And, it is used by all members of society from the street-side busker hoping to earn their next meal to the symphony orchestra concertmeister playing in the grandest theaters on earth.
In “Phoenix”, I hope to capture the musician in the instrument.
We were fortunate to receive two reviews in Italian national newspapers in addition to comments in local and arts publications. Below are translations in English.
On October 8, the Museo dei Bozzetti hosted an exhibition in the Sala delle Grasce for the month of October. It was the first curated event to put the body of work before the public. I hope it will be the beginning of a series of exhibitions to leverage the work to create dialog about this important topic.
In preparation for the exhibition hosted by the City of Pietrasanta in October, I completed this new piece. Unfortunately, sleeping bag residences in doorway, parks and benches are all too common in urban areas like Oakland.
My Current Home, 2022
White Marble Carrara
119cm x 35cm x 24cm
“Tre Luci Studi d’Arte” is now up and running with art being created and exhibitions in place. My space within our studio currently has elements of the House of Cards exhibit. Open Studio events will take place later this year once restrictions due to COVID-19 are relaxed.
Over the past several months Paula Tazzini (photographer) and I have been partnering with Bryan Hagar (HagarFilms) to create a video to highlight messages from some local unhoused neighbors about what it is like to be homeless and what the community can do to better support them.
Bryan is currently editing material to focus exclusively on messages from the interviews. The purpose is to showcase that these neighbors are real people with dreams, aspirations and needs…and deserving of our attention and support.
Here is the first cut.
I guess there is a good side to a COVID lockdown.
Unable to return to the studio in Pietrasanta this spring, I finished a sculpture that I started 17 years ago when our son Guy was 13 years old. Since I no longer had a face to reference for the piece, I created a clay copy from pictures I rounded up from his childhood, made a plaster copy and used that to carve the head. Here are some shots of the work in progress and the result.
On March 25, Materially Speaking released their 6th episode in the series on marble carving in Pietrasanta - showcasing the Sculpture Project on Homelessness.
I completed the panels that highlight the findings from discussions with individuals who currently live or once lived on the streets of Oakland where I asked for their basic requests of the community. Some of these comments were profound to me in that people stressed that we should look at them as neighbors, people who want a better life and human … just like other members of the community.
I completed the panels derived from the Alameda County EveryOne Counts! 2019 Homeless Count and Survey, which identified primary causes of homelessness and support that might have prevented homelessness. The following carvings list some of the most important services identified in this latest report.
As we were driving around Oakland in June, I met a man at 35th and Market alongside the McArthur Freeway. We had just competed several interviews with residents at the Tuff Shed complex, that I asked if he found a place to stay in the housing units that the City set up to provide shelter for the homeless. He said he could never live there because he would need to share the small room with another person. “I suffer from PTSD and often have nightmares that wake me up at night. Sharing a room like that with someone would never work.” With each individual we meet comes a new nuance to the struggles of the homeless in our community.
As part of the project on homelessness, Paula Tazzini and I toured programs and homeless communities in Oakland with the support of generous people like:
Janny Castillo and Susan Werner at St. Mary’s Center;
Joe DeVries, Kelly Kahn and Roberto Bedoya of the City of Oakland and the Mayor’s Office; and
Talya (Boots) Husbands-Hankin and Alistair Boone, advocates for the homeless in our community.
As part of that effort, we met at St Mary’s Center, the “Tuff Shed” housing complex at Northgate Ave and 27th, and encampments at Athol Plaze on Lake Merritt, Wood Street at West Grand and East 12th Street at 16th Ave. During meetings with members of our homeless community, Paula took portraits of those we interviewed (in addition to the video content Bryan Hagar is currently editing).
The following is a sample:
Based on the findings from the interviews with members of the homeless community that we conducted this summer, I am now carving individual panels of cardboard from a new block of statuary marble. The messages on these pieces will include the key findings of the Alameda EveryOne Counts point in time survey of individuals and families experiencing homelessness in the Oakland area - how money should be spent - and findings from our discussions - basic requests of the community.
How money should be spent (How we can help):
Affordable Rental Housing
Rent Subsidies
Employment Training
Job Opportunities
Mental Health Services
Substance Abuse Services
Basic Health Services
24/7 Basic Sanitation
Emergency Shelter
Basic requests of the community (How we can care):
I am Human
I am your Neighbor
I want a Home
I want a Job
I need some Help
I grew up Here
I get Scared
I want you to Care
Meanwhile, I am working with a great partner Bryan Hagar of hagarfilms.com to edit the video and still picture content developed with Paula Tazzini during our summer tour of the Oakland community. Very excited that materials for an exhibition are coming together!
It is amazing to work with talented collaborators like Paola and Brian.
Homeless Project Phase II
hagersculpture.com
… now the work begins.
I returned to Oakland and am now on a quest to learn as much as I can for the next phase of the project, which is the real intent of the effort - to capture images and voices of the homeless community to include in the exhibition. The first week was very insightful, beginning with discussions with Jan Christensen-Heller (Christensen-Heller Gallery) to seek guidance on how to best create the exhibition and navigate the art community. She is amazing and immediately put me in touch with others in her world. Next stop was the Mayor’s office at the City of Oakland for a conversation with Kelley Kahn, the Mayors policy advisor on all things arts/culture and Roberto Bedoya, Manager of Cultural Affairs. Both were helpful in linking me with the City’s broader team and sharing ideas on a venue for the work. The week ended with a visit to St Mary’s Center and a discussion with Susan Werner, the art director and a social worker with the center, and Janny Castillo who coordinates the Seniors for Hope and Justice program. They reinforced that I am moving in the right direction and are my entry into the community. I’m excited to continue my efforts to better understand the homeless in Oakland.
Much more ahead….
Here is a video overview of the project on homelessness. I am excited to return to the studio in Pietrasanta to complete the marble piece. In June, I will be back in Oakland to collaborate with others supporting the homeless community to assemble the remaining components of the exhibition. Thank you to Skip Skivington of KP, Josh Bamberger, MD and others for their insights and support thus far.
Over the past couple years, I have been thinking about leveraging art as a tool to create awareness and action on critical issues facing our communities. Homeless is a particularly sensitive issue in the Bay Area as housing costs continue to rise and the number of homeless in our community continues to grow.
Last October, I began carving a piece that I envision being the centerpiece and draw into a multimedia exhibition on homelessness. The effort was inspired by a desire to better understand “Who are the homeless in our community?”. I constantly pass individuals at street corners holding signs asking for help and continue with no real understanding of who they are or how they came into this situation. I want this exhibition to share voices and images of the homeless in Oakland in a format that is insightful, illuminating and engaging, reaching a broad audience to increase public awareness of the people and issues underlying homelessness.
I am in a very preliminary stage of developing an understanding of the issues facing the homeless community, which as one might guess is critical to undertaking this endeavor. Collaboration is key! A critical element of this effort is to partner with homeless individuals, the City of Oakland, community shelters and other programs/individuals serving this population, to assure that the photos and voice content are representative of this population and the exhibition leaves a lasting and positive impression on individuals seeing the exhibit.
I am on a steep learning curve AND just beginning the marble sculpture below. More to follow….
I am pleased to share details of the second piece I completed of Jackson and Landon. Intended as gifts to the boys when they grow up, I needed a second sculpture to present to the twins. Metamorphosis has always fascinated me. When I was taking pictures of the boys swaddled as newborns, I was reminded of a butterfly emerging from it’s chrysalis. It will be very interesting to see which boy is more interested in the first, more traditional sculpture, and which one prefers Gemelli… Today, at 16 months, I still struggle to tell them apart, but I am sure that over time their personalities will evolve into two very different and unique individuals.
Here are some details on the sculpture of Jackson and Landon, Guy and Lauren’s twin boys…and my new grandchildren. The piece was completed during the Spring of 2018 and is carved out of a piece of statuario venato marble.
On December 8, La Polveriera hosted an exhibit of the work I completed over the past year. The evening reception was a wonderful experience as I got the share the work with friends, fellow artists and members of the art community in Pietrasanta. A big thank you to Veronica and Flavia for the event, Paula for the invitation and photos, Jake, Sandro and others for helping me set up the exhibition.
Created two sculptures of Jackson and Landon, realizing that as a gift to the boys (and their parents), I should have one sculpture for each. The first work was in a more traditional style based on the boys at two months swaddled and ready for bed. Their peaceful expressions impressed me. I decided to have one child gazing at his sleeping brother, with eyes open and head turned in the direction of his partner.
For the second piece, I chose to build on the inspiration I got from the first, seeing the swaddled boys as cocoons. Metamorphosis has always intrigued me. Having the boys take on this form, emerging from their nest to begin their existence, impressed me as another display of new life taking hold.
These two works were unveiled in a show hosted by La Polveriera on December 8, 2019 and later shipped to California, where we will hold them until the boys are older and Guy and Lauren get settled.
Jim - December 2018
