9 minute read
» Brent Harris
Local Artist & Faculty
Tell us about yourself—where did you grow up, and how did you end up in Kalamazoo? I grew up in Belleville, Michigan, a rural community on the east side of the state, past the exurbs of Detroit. My family was the first of color to settle there at the turn of the last century. Because of that, my family was close-knit, and we spent much of our time in nature, gardening and building. I came to Kalamazoo to study at Western [Michigan University]. I studied psychology for several years before switching gears and transitioning into the sculpture program. At the time, the department was focused primarily on metal fabrication and casting. The materiality and work ethic felt familiar to me: aligning my creative spirit with the industrial familiarity of the Midwest.
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Briefly describe your practice. My work is an exploration into the essential nature of connection using process and depth psychology. I believe every person, animal, element, nation, or culture has a story to tell of itself. I’m fascinated by the conversations between artist, material, and intention. In that conversation of creation and exploration we learn more about the essential nature of ourselves. When I work I listen to the material I’m interacting with, what its needs are, and how that is reflected back to my intention. When done with listening, the final resulting art piece is not only a synthesis of these interactions, but also the psyche speaking through the unconscious.
How did you first get involved with Ox-Bow? I’ve heard great things about Ox-Bow for years but never had the opportunity to visit, until recently when a friend recommended me to run a foundry workshop. I’m grateful they decided to take a chance on me, as I’ve incorporated aspects of nature immersion into my work and teaching.
You mention in your bio that you put art on the back burner. Do you have any words for young artists who are contemplating the same thing or who might be experiencing the pull to finally make art a full-time endeavor? Did being a paramedic influence your art practice? Yes, being a paramedic influenced my art practice. It made me more aware of the breadth of human experience. It made me consider the struggles we go through and the way our life’s stories are expressed through the body. As a figure sculptor, it gave me a deeper perspective of the human form and its vulnerability. Being an artist also made me a better paramedic. I found the prehospital setting encouraged me to think of creative solutions to complex situations. In this I also realized that being an artist is much more valuable to me than the work I produced. Although art school taught craft and a degree of intellectual rigor, I didn’t choose to pursue what I felt to be such a narrow window of what defines an artist. That focus made me feel that unless I was creating a commodifiable object or new work for its own sake, I wasn’t of value.
Making the transition out of art school into the “real world” was scary at first. So much of my identity was tied to being an artist, and if I wasn’t creating at the pace I was before due to lack of inspiration, outside obligations, work, you know . . . life, then who was I?
The Alchemist Sculpture Foundry is located in Kalamazoo; what are the significant impacts or benefits of having a foundry (or arts organizations in general) in this region? The Alchemist closed its doors for good four years ago. We were a valuable asset to local and regional
artists at the time, but the art community evolved. Fewer young artists were interested in the process, and the successful ones were aging out, and there were fewer craftspeople learning the trade. It’s a different time, and people are less interested in investing in a process that is so labor and material intensive.
Fortunately, Kalamazoo has a dynamic arts community, and the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts has kept a metals program running for years. After landing there and taking over as Head of their Sculpture Department, I have been able to continue teaching the art of bronze casting to new generations. The labor-intensive aspects of the process lead to a strong sense of teamwork and individual accomplishment.
I can’t stress enough the importance of regional arts organizations. Access to affordable arts experiences not only helps support budding creatives; it allows a network for working artists to work within—supporting themselves and each other through a form of creative mutual aid.
You are bringing the visual arts to the Kalamazoo County Juvenile Home this summer. Could you speak about how that project came to be and why arts education is important? I took over that project last year when the previous arts educator retired. My aim is to continue the values of aesthetic education, which I feel is a necessary way to connect them to the arts and encourage them to speak their stories. None of these kids have escaped trauma, and that trauma is often exacerbated by the carcel system. The arts are an opportunity to not only express their inner world, but sculpture teaches teamwork, dimensional comprehension, responsibility, and trade skills.
Do you have a website or social media handles that you’d like us to publish? Out of respect for my emotional health I have been in a steady retreat from social media. And although it’s in my career’s best interest, my website has languished. I can, however, be found enthusiastically by email: brentharrissculpture@gmail.com.
4-Day Art Workshops continued....
Renewed Ready-to-Wear
DATES: Tuesday, July 12–Friday, July 15, 10 a.m.–1 p.m. FACULTY: Gurtie Hansell
TUITION COST: $205 What we wear shows the world so much of who we are. For many, fashion acts as ornamentation, or even armor. Unfortunately, the fashion industry—and fast fashion in particular—is destroying Mother Earth. The clothing and materials we need to adorn ourselves already exist in the world. With a little creativity, we can reinvent and revitalize our looks (and a bit of ourselves). We will explore ways of sourcing “upcycled” and “deadstock” materials. We will hold our own clothing swap to pool materials for creating and renewing ecofriendly wearables, then enhance those found garments with inks, dyes, stitches, and appliqués— learning new painting, sewing, and printmaking techniques along the way. The experience will culminate in a fashion show collectively produced by the group on the final day. Let’s frolic!
Cutting, Collage, Cut-Outs & Cut-Ups
DATES: Tuesday, July 12–Friday, July 15, 2–5 p.m. FACULTY: Tessa Paneth-Pollak & Lauren Russell
TUITION COST: $185 This workshop, led by an art historian and a poet, will explore cutting as a technique of shaping, composing, and editing in both visual art and writing practices. It will introduce participants to the history of cutting as an artistic process through specific historical examples. In conversation with these examples, we will perform daily experiments with distinct subtractive and separative
procedures, resulting in several text- and found image–based collage works. We will use these hands-on experiences as bases for daily discussion and visual analysis of their differing implications for creative work.
Drawing as Meditation
DATES: Tuesday, July 19–Friday, July 22, 10 a.m.–1 p.m. FACULTY: Janet Trierweiler
TUITION COST: $195 This workshop provides students with a chance to practice drawing techniques that slow down the artmaking process, resulting in a peaceful and healing experience. Use intuition and inspiration from Ox-Bow’s landscape to connect to natural, creative forces. Through meditative practices, we will engage all of our senses to enjoy calming, observational, and imaginative drawing. Learn to use tone and color to create serene and joyful moods with water-soluble materials on watercolor paper.
Art, Music & Listening
DATES: Tuesday, July 26–Friday, July 29, 10 a.m.–1 p.m. FACULTY: Britni Bicknaver & Christopher M. Reeves
TUITION COST: $185 In the mid-20th century, experimental artists and adventurous musicians worked to reimagine how music was composed, played, and listened to. This workshop picks up on these ideas through informal lectures and hands-on activities that engage Ox-Bow’s pristine natural environment. Topics include making visual and text-based musical scores, using musical instruments in nonconventional ways, and experimental listening practices. No previous musical experience is required, and all musical instruments will be provided.
Coiling: Reflecting Abstract Forms in Nature
DATES: Tuesday, August 2–Friday, August 5, 10 a.m.–1 p.m. FACULTY: Alonzo Pantoja
TUITION COST: $205 Abstract forms in nature are abundant, poetic, and inspiring. Workshop participants will learn basic fiber coiling techniques to create abstract sculptures and/or functional vessels that address the forms, colors, and textures found in OxBow’s natural environment. Participants will learn how to
start a coil, wrap yarn, join coiling material, and finish off the work. Each participant will interpret and approach the idea of abstract forms on their terms. This workshop will emphasize exploration, experimentation, and observation.
Fluxus Findings
DATES: Tuesday, August 9–Friday, August 12, 10 a.m.–1 p.m. FACULTY: Barbarita Polster
TUITION COST: $195 Students will learn to see the world playfully, with new eyes. Borrowing from the approaches of the 1960s avant-garde, we will experiment with drawings, found materials, homemade instruments, games, and performances in order to generate new methods of approaching situations in everyday life. Much of the time will be spent outdoors, as projects will take cues from the Ox-Bow campus itself. Students will leave with various written projects, drawings, and documentation of performances.
Natural Dye Techniques
DATES: Tuesday, August 9–Friday, August 12, 2–5 p.m. FACULTY: Christalena Hughmanick
TUITION COST: $195 We will dye fabric with materials found on the Ox-Bow campus. We will forage locally from the surrounding natural environment and collect food by-products from the kitchen to make shared dye baths for submersion dyeing. Basic resist techniques of wrapping, binding, and stitching will be used to create patterns on fabric, and conversation will focus on sustainability and material recycling in textile processes.
Patchwork Quilting Techniques
DATES: Tuesday, August 16–Friday, August 19, 2–5 p.m. FACULTY: Christalena Hughmanick
TUITION COST: $195 This workshop will take an analog approach to quilting, using fabric piecing and appliqué by hand-stitching. We will look at the inherent meanings and material histories of found fabrics. Fabric can be brought into the class or created in the “Natural Dye Techniques” workshop that Christalena will lead on August 9–12 (enroll separately!). We will look at the history of quilts as objects that record and collect biographical information about the life and surroundings of their makers. For context, we will look at how patterns associated with different groups living in the US have become signifiers of culture, geography, and identity. No prior sewing experience is necessary, and all skill levels are welcome.
Hand-Sewn Narratives
Dates: Tuesday, August 16–Friday, August 19, 10 a.m.–1 p.m. Faculty: Christine Haynes Tuition Cost: $195 Students will learn how to create a hand-sewn quilt top embellished with a narrative, inspired by the story of their choosing. We will learn about both historical and modern quilt designs, gather inspiration from our own personal histories, and then design our own individual quilt tops. The stories on your quilt can depict a linear narrative, an abstract representation, a pictorial illustration, or simply a celebration of meaningful fabrics. Using needle-turn appliqué, fabric collage, embroidery embellishment, and hand-sewn seams, each student will learn the joy of meditative hand sewing.
