Faith Purvey

Invisible Cities Workshop @SFAI

admin — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 06:52:16 +0000

During a 3-month residency at Santa Fe Art Institute, I facilitated a 5-week sculpture workshop based on ‘Invisible Cities’ book – a set of short vignettes based on fantastic architecture, by Italo Calvino. The project was a collaboration with SFAI, DeVargas middle school 7^th graders and Literature teacher Chris Slakey, and others. It was experimental project intended to expand SFAI’s Youth and Outreach program.

In the workshop, participants made sculptures and paintings based on images from the stories. We brainstormed together over the sessions to develop an overall concept. I then framed the space of the room with local architect Amy Lin to build a path through 4 cities : Sophronia, Isaura (City of Wells), Despina, and Octavia (hanging city), for an immersive art installation / giant fort with a soundscape created by other residents at SFAI. The project was exhibited during Open Studios on December 20, 2012.

Refoundation news

admin — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 07:15:46 +0000

We’re working on 2013!!

Meantime, I will be presenting Refoundation at PSU’s Open Engagement social practice conference, May 18.

Read about last summer’s project on Patricia Briggs’ Scene/Unseen blog and 2011′s project on John Schneider’s Express article

Refoundation

admin — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 14:08:27 +0000

Refoundation is a summer outdoor workshop in the Melvina neighborhood park field. I work with youth, adults, artists and civic organizations to explore themes of home and belonging, history and future of the site. Through sculpture, photography, painting, interviews, play, and conversation, we create shared and safe spaces and process. The workshops are oriented towards building an installation exhibit, and culminate in a celebration cookout with local performances.

The project was initiated through IN:SITE temporary public arts group in Milwaukee in 2011, exhibited at City Hall, returned independently in 2012 with additional support through Riverwest Artists Association, and is in planning for 2013 by the City and the Melvina Triangle Neighborhood Association, Neighborhood Improvement District Corp, and Milwaukee Public Theatre.

Click here to view the embedded video.

MPT All City People’s Parade + Summer of Peace workshops

admin — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 04:01:27 +0000

I worked on a float with Milwaukee Public Theatre this summer. The float was constructed over several public workshops at the Grand Ave mall space. Its form was a tall, central Milwaukee-style cardboard house with a fleet circling it of 5 carts piled high with the home-sculptures made in the workshops. We generated a series of phrases about home through a conversation with Olu and the Safe and Sound group, an organization for homeless youth. Their thoughts were photocopied to equal a few hundred, folded like small fortunes, contained inside smaller house pieces, and passed out in poetic gesture to onlookers during the parade to the Summer of Peace.

A journal entry about a man who inadvertently summed up this summer’s themes…”He came back tonight to work on his house, without his brother and 5 nephews this time. He said he wanted to work on his house and ‘stay out of trouble.’ When I talked to him to generate some ideas about home, we agreed: “Home is Something You Work On” and “Home is Heart and Love.” He also said his house looks ‘badass.”

Mobile Mural Lab : Nite Write

admin — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 06:49:37 +0000

May 2012 : I worked with MML on their County-commissioned “Nite Write” events, gathering stories and thoughts from the public towards designing a permanent set of glow-in-the-dark murals at Dockweiller Beach. It was like Fort Hauser gave birth to 3 beach babies. Good times with the Lab!

KCET article

http://mobilemurallab.com/

Click here to view the embedded video.

House Beautiful

admin — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 08:48:29 +0000

“Little Boxes” pool installation for group show, “House Beautiful” curated by Jane O’Neill; San Gabriel, CA

http://houseisbeautiful.com/

Fort Hauser

admin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 21:42:50 +0000

Fort Hauser is an ongoing sculptural occupation of an urban municipal space at Hauser and Washington Blvds, Midcity, LA 90016. Art is generated on site by passerby within a series of “forts” in an ongoing conversation with community members and artists. The fort references notions of occupation, habitat, and play. Past interventions have included live music and performance. Art and building materials are made available on-site so that passerby may add their own creations to the projects, embodying collective representation within the space.

A series of temporary installations and events have taken place on the traffic island between October 2009 and the present: the inaugural Fort Hauser Gallery; a sculpture workshop; a “Town Square” Christmas tree; the recurring Bermuda Triangle tent portal; Fort Hauser Monument; and Pancakes. The project was initially born at the Washington Blvd Art Concert and curated by Islands of LA.

Fort Hauser continues to inspire many people in the neighborhood. In addition to local residents, the project is in conversation with the Midcity Neighborhood Council and local entities as new installations and events are being planned.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Underground River Project

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 16:55:08 +0000

A collaboration with Tory Tepp, the Underground River Project is an experimental alchemical equation framed by a “base station” and “sub-stations,” and explores the rural desert town of Beatty, NV and its surrounding landscape. Sensory data are gleaned through the operation of a series of gestural “sub-stations” at sites along the Amargosa River. This data was collected and “transmutated” at the base station – the Red Barn studio – in neighboring Rhyolite, a deserted mining town. Here, viewers entered a mystical mine installation through a wooden shaft, to experience the result of our observations and meditations.

Forts

admin — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 23:35:25 +0000

“Sensitive Habitats” are modular fort structures that embody nomadic explorations through many physical and social geographies, with ethereal interior spaces. Shown below are Station, Pink Tent, Spiral, plan for Window Vestibule, Disappearer, and MOCA tent w/LA Urban Rangers.

Paintings

admin — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 03:25:56 +0000