Posted every Monday, this is my weekly review of art related activities. Topics this week:
1.) Where’s the time gone? – learning time-lapse photography
2.) Demolishing heritage in order to save it – James Street Baptist Church
3.) Only famous when you’re dead – street photographer, Vivian Maier
4.) Learning to make a bomb – knitting class at HandKnit Yarn Studio
5.) Even Picassos are throwaways – the Four Season Curtain
Where’s the time gone?
Time-lapse photography is a great way to capture the sense that time is passing, particularly with storytelling. I had hoped to use this technique for a film project on the creation of Cork-town, but the project proved to be much larger than expected. One complication being the fact that the Canon 600D DSLR Camera (Rebel 3Ti) does not allow for interval photo taking (time-lapse), so I installed the Magic Lantern software that offers a whole bunch of extra features. Unfortunately, I have had some problems using the LED screen, particularly in bright sunlight. To solve this problem, I have purchased a remote control that permits time-lapse photography.
Here is my second attempt using the remote control:
Demolishing heritage in order to save it
Many heritage advocates have been concern that most of the designated James Street Baptist Church will soon be demolished because the developer believes the building is unsafe. The City’s heritage permit sub-committee agreed to the request to demolish the unsafe parts of the building and this work scheduled to begin this week. Starting with the inside of the building and then moving to the outside structure in the summer or fall of this year, according the media reports.
I believe the plans for the site are very exciting if you agreed that the building is unsafe and must be partial torn down in order to save it. However, I understand that no independent assessment of the building has been made with the perspective of saving the architecture. Others have also expressed concern that the Permit Committee decision was not ratified by the whole Heritage Committee or City Council.
As one person noted in the newspaper, since so few buildings get heritage designation, there should be an extra effort to review proposals that would involve demolition. While I am not a big fan of the architecture of this Church, I am concern about the standard this case sets for other heritage designated buildings in the city.
Only famous when you’re dead
Street Photographer, Vivian Maier, is becoming quite famous now that she is dead, according to the Saturday edition of the Globe and Mail (page R4).
Maier is this amazing woman who worked as a Nanny for a rich Chicago family and spent her one day off per week photographing the streets of the City. With no family, her few belonging were sold or given away. A local amateur historian, John Maloof, purchased over 30,000 of negatives from a repossessed storage locker. He had hoped to find images that might advance his work but soon realized the great artistic value.
Today, the people are much more aware of photography and the concept of privacy then compared to earlier times. Maier was able to capture many unguarded moments of everyday life.
Interestingly, one thing that is holding back her work from greater recognition is the fact that Maier printed hardly any of her photos and left no directions on how the negatives should be handled. With no direct connection between the hand of the artist and potential prints, most Museums are reluctant to accept her work into their collections.
Learning to make a bomb
On Thursday, I started to learn how to make a knit bomb or to be more accurate; I started to learn how to knit. At the recommend of Liz from “I love needlework,” I signed up for a 3 hour beginner session at The “Hand
Knit Yarn Studio.” The store is located at 4 Cannon Street East, around the corner from Mixed Media. It was a great evening and I learned a lot.
My ambition is to cover a several trees with yarn for my oldest daughter’s birthday. Knit or Yarn bombing is a form of craft street art-activism that is sweeping through the artist communities along the Pacific West Coast and England. Here are a few examples:
Even Picassos are throwaway
The owner of the Seagram’s building in New York City wants to remove Picasso’s 1919 Le Tricorne from the wall of the Four Seasons restaurant according to the Saturday’s edition of the Globe and Mail (Page R2).
The artwork is on fabric that has been mounted to the wall. The size and age of the work makes it impossible to move without a significant risk of damage. According to the article, the owner of the building claims there are structural problems with the building that need repair work to be done and hence the moving of the artwork.
Philip Johnson designed the four seasons restaurant and in 1993 was designated as a landmark. Unfortunately for the artwork, the curtain was considered to be detachable and, therefore, not coverage by the designation.
New York City has led the way on heritage issues and how the matter is resolved will likely impact heritage cases everywhere.
The organization that is fighting to protect the artwork is Landmark Conservancy; an advocacy group formed in reaction to the demolition of Penn Station. Today, Landmark Conservancy is funded by some of New York City’s largest corporations and is a leader in heritage preservation.
FCSD Studio 