HYCC - Make Ours Green project

"Make Ours Green" was the title of this Spring's Green architecture
project at Hawthorne Youth and Community Center's after school
program. It was made possible through a Boston Foundation
for Architecture grant bfagrants.org and supported by Friends of
the Dudley Library and the Dudley literacy center. As usual the
final exhibit is on display at the Dudley library for all to enjoy.
The photo above shows how the display looks in the library.

With the help of mentors from archventures.org HYCC kids
learned about "green" architecture I accompanied them on trips
and helped  facilitate. Three sites in our Highland Park
neighborhood are slated for green architecture projects so
the time was right to discuss green building and energy
saving concepts with HYCC  youth and families.

Construction is under way at "Powahouse" a PlaceTailor.com
project, just a short walk from HYCC.  The kids loved
seeing the "bones" of the house and everything that is
hidden behind the interior walls of a house. The Archventures
mentors did a great job of explaining various aspects including
the "light wells" the air exchange, the super insulation, the
"bridge" feature in one of the units, the plumbing and the
plans for solar panels etc.   The kids especially enjoyed the
view from the roof deck. Check out the powahouse blog
for May 25: http://www.powahouse.org/2012/05/25/archventures/
it shows some of the kids on tour.  The blog is written
from the perspective of the house which might explain
the confusion that these are elementary school, not
middle school children.  Sometimes houses, even smart
green buildings can't distinguish school levels very well.

One of the other designated sites, but one which doesn't
yet have construction started, was chosen by the kids for
their imagined houses.  It is across from Marcella Park
which the kids know well.

They decided to design two units - one for 5 people,
and one for 10 with extended family possibilities. Each
house has a bedroom and bath on the first floor for a
grandparent or two. As a grandparent myself,  I was
pleased to hear them take us into consideration.

After sketching some floor plans, they refined their
ideas using blocks and legos. Working with the blocks
they determined the large unit should have 2 compact
bedrooms for the 4 children and a large playroom
(complete with flat screen TV).  Ingenuity soared as
one student designed a toilet which would be both comfy
and include the idea of composting. He had never heard of 
composting toilets. I brought in some materials about them
so he could do further research.

Archventures brought laser cut cardboard

pieces and model construction began.

 

The buildings grew, floor plans were created,
and colorful exterior walls painted.

These would definitely be houses noticed from a distance.
Every floor had its own color. Outside walls were insulated
(polyester simulating cellulose..)  and colorful interior walls
added. The mentors explained why it was important to think
through which rooms should be facing south to get the most
light. The kids put in the largest windows there.
This is the south face of the finished model:

Complete with solar panels facing south, backyard
sculpture, a meditation space and third floor open
space adjoining the master bedroom (and hot tub room).
This is the North Face:

And the aerial view which shows common roof
garden  and/or green roof:

Wonder if the Archventure team got any ideas for
future designs?

At the presentation, kids explained to parents and
community about the model and what they had learned.
Archventures provided some intriguing maps of the
neighborhood and comparisons with downtown Boston
which were displayed along with sketches by the kids.

Certificates and green necklaces were handed out and
dinner enjoyed with family, friends and library staff.

Unfortunately with end of school logistics, not
too many of the youth could be at the presentation,
but they will be able to take their parents and
friends to see the display at the library all summer.

In the Fall, we'll take the youth back to Powahouse
when it is completed in September. They will watch the
empty lot they chose as green construction begins there.
It will be fun for them to compare their designs  to
what is built and to watch for construction on the third
site just around the corner from HYCC. Building
should begin there soon as well.

The HYCC kids invite everyone down to the Dudley
branch  library to see their exhibit and learn a bit more
about green architecture.  HYCC staff and kids thank
everyone for making the project possible.

For now, I'm off to New Jersey, to help one of our
daughters and family get ready to move to Ecuador.
Looks like South American travel will be in our future
again. Then home to set up a show of my work at a
local cafe in early July.

Adventure on.     Wendy   

HYCC kids create thrones

 
Hawthorne Youth and Community center is one of the
organizations connected to the Community Partnership
Program of the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum www.isgm.org

Last year after noting all the mythic creatures at the museum,
the HYCC kids created Sedred, the dragon for the
Community Creations exhibit. See my blog post:
www.wendyellertson.blogspot.com/2011/06/hycc-kids-sedred-fire-biter-silver.html
This year during the visits to the museum, the kids took
special notice of all the chairs, seats, and thrones in the
museum and decided to create their own seats for royalty.

We took two chairs which had been pulled from the trash
and transformed them.

They used rolled up cardboard and tape to create arms
and extended the height with more cardboard that they
painted gold. They  wrapped the "arms" with polyester
and cloth.




  Then created two "shields" - one for a queen, one for a
king. ...and decorated, decorated, decorated:

 

Of course what is a project without hot glue?

 


...and lots of stitching...satin pillows and covers

 

 and final fringe:

The King's skirt seemed a little plain, so more decoration was added:





Then of course, the chairs had to be tried out.  To see if
they felt sufficiently royal.  They passed.

The final touch - two peacock feather each...and off they went to
the museum for display:

 



and celebrating with family and friends in the new bright
artspace in the new addition to the museum.

 

 The entire Community Creations exhibit including the work
made by the youth of all the partnership organizations will be
on display  through August.  If you are in Boston and haven't
been able to visit the Gardner Museum since it reopened
with its spectacular new wing, I recommend strongly
that you do.  It's beautiful.  The HYCC thrones await you!

With the school year wrapping up, I'm helping with just
one last HYCC project - a model of "green architecture"
in collaboration with Archventures and students at the
Boston Architectural Center.  I'll let you know what they
come up with.

Adventure on!   Wendy

HYCC community wakes the watery world

 
The first Saturday in May, Boston celebrates with a "Wake up the
Earth"  parade and festival in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood.
The festival  began in 1979 as a celebration of community success
in halting the  extension of I95 which would have divided Boston
neighborhoods.  Many  houses had been torn down by the time the
eight-lane highway was finally stopped.  Activists who
worked on this issue in Jamaica Plain and Roxbury subsequently
started community gardens and worked for the creation of new
parks on the vacant lots left by the destruction of the houses.The
result is a series of parks, depressed subway line, and a bike path
greenway into downtown Boston. 

 
Since '79 with the leadership of community organizations like
Spontaneous Celebrations: www.spontaneouscelebrations.org
the festival has grown as a event affirming community, diversity
and the importance of green space in an urban environment.
For years there were two streams of the parade, one beginning in
Roxbury and another at the  monument on Center Street in JP.
But for the last 10 years, there has been just one parade. With
active development growing on both sides of  Columbus Ave.,
it was time to reinvigorate both streams.  With the encouragement
of Discover Roxbury : www.discoverroxbury.org  a lot of
Roxbury groups joined in.   I helped facilitate Hawthorne
Youth and Community Center's part.


We opted to "Wake up" the watery world.

Stuffed paper water creatures were designed and made by

the afterschool program kids as well as by families in Saturday

community workshops.

Starfish:

Catfish:

Grinning sharks:

Jelly Fish:



Turtles, dolphins, seahorses and more... We attached dowels
with two tone blue streamers (from plastic table cloths)so
the creatures could swim down the streets.

Some families added items made from home - like  waves with blue
paper streamers

And so we marched down the streets waking the water and seas
accompanied by other groups playing music, dancing, carrying
puppets, holding signs (no more bullying), walking within a dragon
and more...

Once at the festival on the greenway, HYCC set up a table to keep
the water theme going.  Children and adults decorated paper
fish,  seahorses, turtles and sharks:

They were put into our HYCC "pond"

or carried around the festival swimming in their blue ribbon
water:

The weather was cooperative.  A fun day of music, dance,
play, and communities gathering.  Can't ask for more.

Next blog - more work with HYCC - transforming
discarded chairs into thrones for Community Creations
exhibit at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Adventure on.  Wendy

Figures, humor and fun at Craft New York - Lisa Naples, Cathy Rose and Syma

Craft New York: www.craftnewyork.com  took place the

last weekend of March on the 11th floor of 7W 5th Ave, 

across the street from the Empire State  Building. (Not 

exactly an easy location to load in and out of.)  Eager to

try something different from my usual all black, 

I had the show provide hard white walls for my booth. 

The response was great and I enjoyed the clean look. 

Only problem now is to figure out if I want to create this 

look on my own.   For years I hauled around hollow core 

doors for my booth, but I really  don't want to start doing 

that  again. So I've been brainstorming possibilities.

As last year it was a beautiful show and helped support the 

good work of CERF, the Craftsmen Emergency Relief Fund:

www.craftemergency.org The show had an especially good 

selection of narrative driven figurative work, including that

of  Cathy Rose:  www.cathyrose.com  Cathy is located in 

New  Orleans and doesn't  come to the Northeast  too often. 

I've been aware of her work for a long time,  so was really

pleased to finally meet Cathy and she her art in person.  

 

Her work made from porcelain, copper, glass, altered wood
and found objects calls out for the viewer to find a story within it
or within themselves. Cathy's website is as intriguing as her work.
I definitely recommend checking it out.

Lisa Naples: www.lisanaples.com  was also there. This was
the first time I had the pleasure of meeting Lisa and seeing
her humor filled work bursting with exuberance and color. 
I've been  enjoying one of her mugs I acquired. The texture
and shape feels great in my hand. She shares my affinity
with birds.

I was drawn to her "Bird Mama Queen" - a mother whose
arms have transformed into branches to nestle and protect
her young. She has a sturdy foot on a stack of story books.

 

And how  could you resist this piece entitled "Beg Pardon" 

(the rabbit's belly if filled with feathers.)

Another ceramic artist I connected with at the show was Syma:

www.symastudios.com As with Lisa, Syma's  work  reflects 

her free spirit  and  sense of humor.  Syma's illustrated pots 

beg the viewer to discover and continue the stories she has 

started. She also displayed some small works including

"cash cows" -  little ceramic bells in  the shape of  cows 

(we had to bring one  home to ring):

and  small "pots of gold" for  all of us hoping for something at the 

end of our  personal rainbows.

Quite a few of my pieces found new homes including Luccini, the 

music loving dragon (below) and Leapfore - both  the dragons

were created with stones from our Tuscan wandering through hill 

towns.  I'm wondering  what new dragons and other creatures

will  show up in the studio this Spring and Summer.  

 

 

For now, I'm filling orders from Spring shows and

envisioning the work I will present at Haley House Cafe,

a local Roxbury cafe/gallery. My show there opens in late

June. I will encourage the after school kids and their families

to come  to the opening. A couple of the kids already define 

themselves  as artists.

Adventure on!   Wendy

Clay landsacpes,natural woven forms and stitched pottery at Craft Boston

Sorry for delay in  posting..two shows in a row, then the

task of filing taxes on time caught up with me. Someday I'll make a
creature for tax time..would probably be one full of angst or maybe
REALLY sweet and calm would be more helpful.  With two less
than organized self-employed people in our home, it's always a tough
time of year.  

Back to more pleasant issues....Craft Boston was a beautiful as ever
with lots of exhibitors I'd never met and plenty of old friends. I was
directly across from Rick Epstein and his amazing clay landscapes.
Nunonna and Furb loved looking into his "Cathedral of Nature" that
you can see behind them in the photo above.

Here's Rick in his booth.  Check out his website: www.rickepstein.com
to see great images, learn more about him and  his process. He
definitely brings nature inside.

 

 And speaking of nature, as soon as I approached the booth
of Karen Gubitz, I knew we were kindred spirits.: www.wovenearth.com



   The woven sculptures  Karen creates out of natural materials
pull you right in inviting your touch and appreciation.








Karen also gives workshops. On her website she uses these enticing
words: "Experience an Illinois wild flower prairie and learn to weave
basketry as our grandmothers did." Not sure my grandmother had
such skill, but a few days with Karen on the prairie would be a delight.
A friend brought me an awesome Australian Banksia seed pod to
be incorporated into my work. I had her show it to Karen. Guess who
ended up with it?  (Fortunately my friend sent me two more later.
Stay tuned to see what emerges with them!)

You don't see too many young exhibitors at these shows, so I get
especially excited when I see new skilled younger artists 
with a distinctive style and approach.  Such an exhibitor is
Anna White: www.shadetreeceramics.com
The "stitched" pottery which Anna creates is a marvel.  She's taken
thrown work to a new dimension! Here are a couple of her pieces:



The stitching is done completely with clay slip.



I traded with her and besides getting a beautiful
sculptural bowl...received one of her canvas bags
which says "Mud is meant for throwing"..It's become
my favorite.

Speaking of trying to get a new group to Craft Boston,
the steampunk theme brought in a few costumed folk
on Sunday.  There was a whole area in the back devoted
to steampunk work..including this punked up bike:



Just goes to show it's always worth attending exhibits.
You never know what you'll find.

Next post...some intriguing work at Craft NewYork.

Adventure on!    Wendy