A Hole Lot of Dedication

It's one thing to view an inanimate work of art, to walk around it, think about it, maybe even touch it. It's quite another when human beings actually become their art.

Yesterday I promised to clear the air about the pumpkin man featured in this week's Zen Monday post. I first saw him on the path during New Town's On the Trail Of, a series of open-air art installations (plus this one bit of performance art) at Oak Grove Park last weekend.

Joseph Ravens and Taisha Paggett title their work I Think That I Shall Never See... and describe it thus: "A person, resembling an enormous solemn doll, carries a large shovel, seeking a perfect place for a hole, always searching, almost digging. A large-headed solemn doll struggles to carry a small tree, seemingly in search of the hole never dug."

I reacted with delight at seeing the "large-headed solemn doll" on the path. (If I hadn't known I was at an art event I might have felt differently!) And it was compelling to see the two of them struggle across the frisbee golf course amid the reactions of people out for an afternoon of frisbee and beer. Art like this--so unconventional, so demanding of both spectator and artist--speaks of the dedication of its creators.

Last weekend's event was funded by grants from Pasadena Art Alliance, the Pasadena Arts & Culture Commission and the City of Pasadena Cultural Affairs Division. I wanted to mention them a second time and give links to these groups. Events like "On the Trail Of" are close to impossible without financial help. But this one was a success, and New Town is able to pay the artists thanks to such funding.

Yesterday I received an email from Rochelle Branch, Cultural Affairs Manager of the city's Cultural Affairs Division. She said, "Thanks so much for mentioning New Town's art installation and the support of Cultural Affairs. We are always appreciative of local support for our treasured arts and culture organizations and we are particularly pleased to have provided financial support for this program."

I love this town.

More photos on Overdog.

Art and Craft

Wondering what Zen Monday was about yesterday?

It was about art. Or maybe magic.

New Town is a diverse arts group dedicated to bringing art to the public in myriad media and venues. This past weekend they presented On the Trail Of: A Half Mile of Al Fresco Installations, Sculptures and Performances, funded by grants from Pasadena Art Alliance, the Pasadena Arts & Culture Commission and the City of Pasadena Cultural Affairs Division.

The photo above shows part of Stomata/Stigmata by Karen Bonfigli & Andreas Hessing. The two artists hung about 100 terra cotta pots in Oak Grove Park. I've never spent much time at Oak Grove Park because that's where they play frisbee golf, and Boz tends to like frisbees a little too much. But on Saturday the old oak grove was alive with art, frisbees and something more. The pots seemed to have been hung by elves instead of humans, making the grove even more magical than it already is.

From each pot hung a little cord with a tag, and at the end of the cord, a tempting ring. My intrepid friend Linda took hold of one of those rings and pulled. At the other end of the cord was something we hadn't noticed. A cork.

The artists describe their work as "an abstracted version of 'stomata,' the pores on the surface of a leaf responsible for gas exchanges and transpiration." Their purpose, they go on to say, is "to make obvious why it is cooler under the shade of a tree and provide some entertainment and respite for the audience." They provided more. They cast a spell.

You may have guessed that yesterday's work was more on the order of performance art. Joseph Ravens and Taisha Paggett entitled their work I think that I shall Never See... But you shall. Tomorrow.

More photos on Overdog.