Winter/Spring 2019/Issue Five
ALUMNI NEWS
FROM THE DEAN’S DESK This past November, a small but spirited band of PrattMWP alumni reunited at the Emerson Bar, adjacent to the Pratt Campus. Mother Nature decided to give an air of authenticity to the gathering of Munsonites by contributing an unexpected gift of several inches of wet, slushy snow in Brooklyn. The Emerson, operated by PrattMWP alumna and brilliant painter Gina Jankowsky, hosted the event. Jankowsky said her establishment continues to entertain PrattMWP alumni, and she enjoys meeting new students as they relocate to the Pratt campus. We were joined by MWPAI President Anna D’Ambrosio and several faculty members as we met up with former students, ranging from the first year of the Pratt affiliation to students settling into their first semester on the Pratt campus. Though many years separated this group, it became clear that their shared experiences and fond memories of the faculty, the staff, and Utica were elements that sparked lively conversations and remembrances into the evening. There were also some reunions of classmates who, although they had gone through the program together and lived in the same area, hadn’t had the opportunity to get together because of their busy careers. The event resulted in some welcome advice from more-established alumni, as well as casual networking and follow-up engagements. I was particularly moved by how quickly the gaps of time vanished, and I delighted at seeing former students and hearing their stories in person as they embellished their stories I had seen on social media telling me of the work they are doing and relating it back to things and discussions we had in the classrooms.
Take advantage of being part of your Alumni Association. Joining is easy! Just provide us with your current contact information by visiting: https://bit.ly/2TR8LfL
FACULTY Q&A: DANIEL BUCKINGHAM PROFESSOR OF SCULPTURE AND 3D DESIGN Daniel Buckingham is an artist who teaches 3D design, sculpture, and a seminar in the fine arts curriculum. He attended Tulane University and received his BFA and MFA from Alfred University. Dan exhibits his work throughout the United States and abroad. His large-scale public commission, Tower of Bells is located in the Park of Women and Children in Quito, Ecuador. He had a solo exhibition at the Everson Museum in Syracuse in 2014 and recently was included in the group exhibition Masters of War at the Albany Center Gallery, Albany, New York. Dan traveled solo by bicycle for eight years, beginning his trip in 1981 and exploring more than 60 countries. This enriching journey has become a major resource for his artistic practice and his understanding of the human condition. Dan and Tina in Switzerland 2015
Since 2000, he has been a board member for Sculpture Space, Inc. in Utica. Dan lives in Clayville, New York and shares the studio that he built in 2002 with his wife, artist Tina Betz, their son, Owen, and daughter, Sophie.
Mirage Series: “White Wash” 2018 Detail of Opossum taxidermy and 3-D Printed Prayer Beads: North Korean Hydrogen Bomb, Liberty Bell, US Capital, 9668 Bird Road
Tell us about your own personal artwork. My work explores the concept of cultural exchange within a 21st-century context. Recently, I have been working on a mirage series where I built a billboard structure from galvanized-steel studs and siding. The scale is based on the Dr. Kerns Powers aspect ratio of 9 over 16, similar to an iPhone screen. Sandbags support the structure, which, if removed, will cause the entire piece to smash to the ground. It includes taxidermy, bent neon verbs in English, Arabic, Persian, and Hindu, 3D-printed objects, and a CNC router was used to form Dibond medallions.
I employ contrast to tease the viewer. A taxidermy opossum stares at you with its mouth ajar. Its hind leg is holding 3D-printed prayer beads, replicas of a North Korean hydrogen bomb, the Liberty Bell, the U.S. Capitol, and my home. Local/global and ancient/new concepts are expressed. The entire 3D-printed prayer beads are designed on CAD, then printed on a 3D printer. There is an image of it with the opossum. My storytelling is fragmented, improvisational, and theatrical. My work functions as a structure for social interaction and it offers a place to meet others from our community to discuss current events and history, to play, and perhaps a place to fall in love.
Mirage Series: “White Wash” 2018 Galvanized steel, CNC Dibond, Persian text: Explore, Neon text: Sway, Opossum taxidermy, 1959 Sputnik Chandelier, Sandbags, 3-D Printed Prayer Beads: North Korean Hydrogen Bomb, Liberty Bell, US Capital, 9668 Bird Road, Light, Electricity, Transformer. 8’h x 8’w x 6’d.
How does your work impact the way you approach teaching? I share with the PrattMWP students my personal experiences that have enabled me to grow and become a self-reliant problem solver. I share stories from my eight-year bicycle trip around the world, learning about cultural objects, religions, rituals, the value of research, and acquiring skills. I say to them “Art is the primary vehicle to trace our complex history as human beings. Artifacts have been carbon-dated to two million years old. Smile.” Humanity moves me!
What is your favorite part about working at PrattMWP? As PrattMWP faculty, we have been given the opportunity to transform young-adult minds in the studio. I respect this unique task and mention that “Art asks difficult questions as it supports ideas, issues and celebrates our ability to take risk!” Viewer, 2006. Tricycle, birch plywood, ash wood, glass, argon mercury gas, transformer, electricity, light. 8’6”h with seated person, 38”w x 144”
Each spring, I take my sophomore sculpture students on a “Quest for Light” adventure. This nine-day trip combines exhibiting light sculptures at other universities and galleries. We visit eight museums and do research for a project. I also include some industrial tours, such as the Airstream Factory and the Goodyear Airship in Akron, Ohio. Our goal is to interface with professional artists and inspire confidence, insight, and a dynamic network. What do you hope of PrattMWP alumni? I am in regular contact with many PrattMWP alumni, mostly via Facebook and email. I write many job opportunity recommendations for them and they are often very successful. In March, I visited Daniel Bruce (https://www.danielabruce.com/) and Dave Mishalanie (https://davemishalanie.com/), two stellar alums who exhibit frequently in New York City. I also visited Mike Beitz’s studio in Denver during December. (https://michaelbeitz.com/). I see our students as professionals and work to be an inspired soundboard. Read books, make art, smile!
Brink 2016 Steel snapping turtle shells, tricycles, woven copper basket, carpet, brass coffee pot, English, Arabic neon tubes, electricity, light. 7’h x 7’w x 16’. Hanging from ceiling
Donate to the Class of 2019 gift, a water bottle filling station for the Studio Building: https://bit.ly/2FJX71l
ALUMNA PROFILE: ADRIENNE DI SALVO Adrienne Di Salvo attended PrattMWP from 2006 to 2008 and received her BFA from Cleveland Institute of Art in 2010. Though her focus was jewelry and metals, she had always fostered a passion for glass. After graduation, Adrienne went onto a successful career as a goldsmith working for a major production goldsmithing studio in Cleveland. Seeing an opportunity for multimedia works and cameo glass in pipe-making, she later applied her skills to the functional glass world. Today her imaginative stylings are highly sought after in the pipemaking community and are included in the collaborative work of a range of pipe-makers throughout the industry.
Tell us about your own personal artwork: I typically utilize humor and whimsical oddities to invite the viewer to explore the work. Inspired by traditional anatomical prints, I carve objects that are curious and Adrienne Di Salvo playful representations of imagined anatomy. As much of my carved glass work are collaborations, I often take inspiration from real skeletons and organs and merge it with imaginative twists to fit the canvas of work by other artists. Though sometimes dark, there is a consistently lighthearted nature to my work.
Wicked Kraken in Collaboration with Wicked
What has been one of your greatest achievements since leaving PrattMWP? One of my greatest achievements so far has been publishing my coloring book Babedrienne’s Brainfarts in November of 2017. It’s now available on Amazon! http://a.co/0g9vzSN
What is one fond memory you have of PrattMWP? Narwhicorn in Collaboration with Chadd Lacy
One of my favorite memories at PrattMWP is working during open studio hours in the metal studio. I fell in love with metalsmithing there!
What is on the horizon for you as an artist? On the horizon is actually my first solo show. On May 19, at Stoked in Bridgeport, Connecticut, I will be showing a body of work that I am very passionate about. The show is called Babedrienne’s Bones, and will feature my cameo-style glass carving with anatomy subject matter (mostly skeletal).
Have an update about yourself you want to share with fellow alumni? Send your alumni news to studentlife@mwpai.edu
Save the Dates! Freshman Exhibition Opening: Friday April 12, 2019, 4 - 6 p.m. PrattMWP Gallery in the Museum of Art
Class of 2019 Commencement
Wednesday, May 15, 2019, Reception and Sophomore Exhibition Closing, 4 p.m. Ceremony, 5 p.m. Museum of Art, Edward Wales Root Sculpture Court
Family and Alumni Weekend October 4-6, 2019 More information will be posted here: https://bit.ly/2uHSy2j
Join the Alumni Group on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2UkXWXN