Local Art Seen: Free Range Trials with Kathy McTavish and Cecilia Ramon

Global water currents mapped in the grass.

Sunday afternoon Kathy McTavish and Cecilia Ramon had two new exhibitions on display at The Barn in Wrenshall. If my facts are correct this is the first joint event by McTavish and Ramon since the 2012 collaboration called holy fool at Sacred Heart in Duluth.

Under threatening skies cars began arriving with numerous local notables gathering for the opening reception for the two non-traditional artists. Rebecca Krinke noted that some people drove here from the Twin Cities to see/experience this. Former DAI director Annie Dugan, Ken Bloom from the Tweed, Judge Dale Wolf, Emily Swanson from the Oldenburg House, David Beard from UMD and others were numbered among those who attended.

Cecilia Ramon's map detailing global water current flow patterns.

Kathy McTavish's digital multi-media experience had been set up in the basement of the barn, an audio-visual delirium of projected performing patterns. Is it random? Has this been created through code? Or is it a program of sorts that has been modified.

Kathy McTavish explained that the raw code, compressed code, is like poetry but it goes in many directions. In a sense it's an audio-visual alphabet.

In explaining her work McTavish provided a new understanding of the World Wide Web, comparing it to theater. In theater we have the visible part of the performance, what the audience sees. And then there is a backstage, or behind the curtain, where there is action but it is hidden from the audience. In a sense, code is what takes place backstage. What we experience -- from YouTube to text and graphics, hyperlinks and music -- are the front of stage results of what we do not see, the coding choreographed by the programmer, in this case the artist, Kathy McTavish.

I sat for a bit in the basement of the barn and attempted to capture in words the sense of being there, ineptly. The photos help contribute more effectively. Similar to her Chance display this past year at the Tweed, the context and textured surfaces gave a totally different feel to the display.

Transitions
Audio Aural Visual
Blue-White-Black
Shades of Grey
Patterns Morph
Mutate in Symmetrical
Asymetrical Designs
Yellow Brilliance
enters in
2-D Flat Screen Panels
yet the spheres move back
and then forward to create
perception of depth.
Now Blue/Black and White
cylindrical movement
Centering in Harmony.
Bells, Humming
Stretching sounds
slicing and shuffling
clicks, water droplets,
drumsticks clacking, tapping...

Cecilia Ramon's exhibition filled the upstairs portion of the barn, as well as a sundial and map of the world's oceanic currents "etched" in the lawn. (Photo at top of page.) Sundials have been used for centuries as a means of measuring time, and we were treated to an instructive presentation via Skype by a pair of experts on sundials from Italy, Silvano Roilo and Antonio Rovelli. In the presentation we learned what a sundial is, saw examples of different types of sundials from Renaissance times with examples from the Milano Cathedral, St. Petronio's Church in Bolgna, and other conceptions in Florence, Rome and elsewhere. 

Walking the line, an interactive lesson in oceanography.

Ramon's outdoor ocean current pattern served as a highly instructive interactive map. We were ushered into a line to walk along the path as she explained how the currents circulate Antarctica and flow up along the coasts and circle about the globe, sometimes close to the surface and other times deep down below. 

Here are more images from the Free Range Trials:

 Free Range Trials is a lab for artistic process and creative experimentation through the exhibition of work by Kathy McTavish and Cecila Ramon. The lab will be open daily between 2 and 5pm from August 26 through September 3. 

Related Links
A page of examples of sundials in Italy
A 2012 Response to Holy Fool 

Meantime art goes on all around you. Engage it.

Free Range Film Festival's 2017 Playlist Announced

There will be no whales saved in Wrenshall this weekend. There will be no terrifying accidents on a giant roller coaster that shoots people through the air. There will be no ocean expeditions, nor crash landings by Martian explorers (we hope). Rather, there will be laughs and sighs and other surprises, because the 2017 Free Range Film Festival (FRFF) is back.

If you've never been the the Free Range Film Barn, then you might want to go just because of the nostalgic sense of going back in time that it gives. (I think here of Uncle Harry and Aunt Isabel's spread in West Virginia. They had a bull and we were told not to get too near. That's no bull.)

The Free Range Film Festival has developed something of a cult-like following since it began in 2003 in that Wrenshall barn. The FRFF will be screening 35 films from around the world this year. The event provides a forum for filmmakers, film lovers, as well as barn enthusiasts and country living aficionados.

“That overused phrase ‘there is something for everyone’ really does apply here” says organizer Annie Dugan. “We screen short films, documentaries, animated films, and fiction. I think we try and strike a balance between work that is going to capture as well as challenge our audiences. I think there is something about watching movies in a big old barn that give people permission to relax and try something new. If they don’t like something, they can look up at the rafters and daydream. Its just such a beautiful space.”

EdNote: It really is a cool space.

This year’s lineup features local treasures along with nationally recognized films. In fact, “Hello Stranger” was featured on the Tonight Show after it was secured for the festival. The diversity in directors and subject matter is also noteworthy this year. Dugan states that “One of the cool things that we realized after we programmed the festival is that almost half of the directors are women, something you don’t usually see in filmmaking.”


www.freerangefilm.com

Free Range Film Festival
909 County Road 4, Wrenshall, MN 55797
To get there, head South out of Carlton and take County 1 when you get to the fork.
That will bring you to an intersection with County Road 4. Make a right and you can't miss it.
If you get lost, call 218-310-4703

Friday, July 28th 7pm – 11pm
Saturday, July 29th, 2pm – 5:30pm and 7pm – 11pm

For more information contact Anne Dugan
annesdugan gmail.com

* * * *
THE SCHEDULE

FRIDAY EVENING 7pm
CATHERINE (12m)
Cat ownership can be difficult. Directed by Britt Raes.
*THE LEGEND OF CYRIL (3m)
Cat ownership can be beautiful. Directed by Beth Peloff.
SCIENCE TODAY: THE TRUMP PARTICLE (3m)
Trump stumped scientists… until now. Directed by John Akre.
*DEMOLITION DREAMING (52m)
The Minneapolis Gateway District according to the girl in the walls. Directed by John Akre.
HI STRANGER (3m)
Hi stranger. It’s been a while. I’ve missed you. Directed by Kirsten Lepore.
IT SHOULD BE EASY (2m)
Computer ownership can be dangerous. Directed by Ben Meinhardt.
*ON THE WALL, OFF THE CHAIN (7m)
Artist Adam Turman is also a gentleman cyclist. Directed by Greg Carlson
ALL THE PRESIDENTS’ HEADS (9m)
All of our presidents are cement heads. Directed by Adam Roffman.
PERFECTLY NORMAL (13m)
We are all normal in some way. Directed by Joris Debeij.
***** BREAK with music ****

FRIDAY EVENING 9:30pm

Balcony with a View

BIRDLIME (11m)
The exotic bird industry in heartbreaking stop-motion. Directed by Evan DeRushie.
FRY DAY (16m)
An adolescent girl comes of age thanks to Polaroid photography and the execution of Ted Bundy. Directed by Laura Moss.
LITTLE POTATO (14m)
Imagine growing up gay in the Soviet Union with limited television options. Directed by Wes Hurley.
TOUGH (5m)
Some cultural misunderstanding can only be understood with maturity. Directed by Jennifer Zheng.
ELECTION NIGHT (8m)
The 2016 election takes a turn for the worse at a London pub. Directed by Ryan Scafuro.
REFUGE (20m)
Captivating interviews with refugees arriving in Greece. Directed by Matthew Firpo.
SATURDAY AFTERNOON 2pm
CONDITIONER (5m)
Auditions for a conditioner TV spot get wonky. Directed by Shane Bream.
UNTAMED WORLD: DESERTS (4m)
An intimate look at desert fauna. Directed by Kelsey Juddo.
GUT HACK (13m)
This guy eats poop to feel better. Directed by Laura Heberton.
LINGUA ABSENTIA (10m)
This is difficult to watch because it involves animation of severed tongues. But it is worth it. Directed by Kate Raney & Jeremy Bessoff.
LIFE AT A SNAIL’S PACE (23m)
Snails are surprisingly fascinating creatures, and pretty too. Directed by Alexandra Gaulupeau
THE SEVENTH STAGE OF GRIEF (14m)
These guys think climate change is real! Directed by Jacob Rosdail.
*MANLIFE (94m)
The secret to a healthy life? Eat raw vegetables, abolish income tax, and go to airshows. Directed by Ryan Sarnowski.
SATURDAY EVENING 7pm
BLOOP’S BIRTHDAY (4m)
What did you get Bloop for her birthday? Directed by Julian Glander.
*WALK IN DREAMS (5m)
Edgar Allen Poe says “All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.” Directed by Jonathan Thunder.
BACK TO ABSTRACTION (10m)
Stacy Elaine Dacheux travels back to the future to explore abstraction. Directed by Matthew Quezada.
AMEN (10m)
Adam is 11 and he is a messenger from God. Directed by Marie-Helene Viens and Philippe Lupien.
PENELOPE (13m)
A couple rescues a chicken from an Orthodox Jewish ceremony in Brooklyn. Directed by Duncan Skiles.
IMAGINE KOLLE 37 (8m)
Two carefree young girls laugh in the face of danger. Directed by Michele Meek.
*IN THE SKIP DISTANCE (9m)
A young girl alone in the wilderness finds some analog technology. Directed by Emily McNeill
TOMMY AND DAVID (5m)
Michelangelo’s David does not feel inadequate. Directed by Sara Joe Wolansky.
THE COLLECTION (12m)
Two friends find the holy grail of movie memorabilia in the unlikeliest of places. Directed by Adam Roffman.
THE SCARLET WHALE (15m)
A whale hunter becomes what he hunts. Directed by Jimmy Cho.
ARKABUTLA (14m)
There are certain moments in our lives where we make memories for life. Directed by Katori Hall.
*** BREAK with music by Portrait of a Drowned Man ***

SATURDAY EVENING 9:30pm
OH WHAT A WONDERFUL FEELING (15m)
Stars, hide your fires; let not light see my black and deep desires. Nor any truck. Directed by Francois Jaros.
*WHAT CHILDREN DO (87m)
Two estranged sisters are forced to repair their feral relationship. Directed by Dean Peterson.

Meantime, life outside goes on all around you. Get into it.

Opening Reception for Three Exhibits, February 23 at the DAI and More

The opening reception for the triple exhibition of Carla Hamilton, Elizabeth Kuth and UMD Student Photography is rapidly moving into view. Just over two weeks from today this is a show I've very much been looking forward to. Here are some notes to get you motivated.

“Gezielt (Targeted)”
Feb. 23 – April 9, 2017

"Ghost Fathers" from her show Durch Wasser rennen.

If I remember correctly, DAI director Annie Dugan lives in Wrenshall, as does popular local author Lucie Amundson. Carla Hamilton grew up there in the small rural community and then left the region to spend nearly 18 years in Germany, where she studied classic art techniques at the Freie Kunstschule. Hence the German titles of her shows and much of her work.

Hamilton returned to Minnesota in 2012 and turned from traditional painting techniques to mixed media, employing repurposed objects in her work. This current series comes from an “experience of walking while black.” In spring 2015 she was stopped by a cop and accused of bothering her two white friends. She states: “My fear from the incident spurred me to request mediation and body camera footage. The mediation process was a great exchange—the officers saw me as more of a person and I saw them as people, too. This work comes from processing both the original experience as well as the productive aftermath. We can’t ignore the things that happen and in order to move forward we have to talk.”

Her initiative fostered learning opportunities. The dialogue proved helpful not only for Hamilton but also for the officers as well. Bringing her art to the Duluth Art Institute is another step toward bringing understanding as regards police/community relations. "You don't have to do anything wrong to get arrested," Carla told me last summer. "I get stereotyped all the time." Her life in Germany taught her that what's happening here in the Northland could be better.


“Rooted Expression” 
Feb. 16 – April 9, 2017

There's much anticipation to see the new paintings by Elizabeth Kuth. I myself love her painterliness and the ways she uses paint to evoke subconscious, childlike forms. Her textures and surfaces can dramatic. Kuth’s work conveys her search for meaning and purpose.

In December she exhibited work from 2014-2016 at the new Studio 3 West Gallery where she also talked about her paintings. Kuth, who said she paints from the gut, explained, "I learn about myself as I paint," noting that it's a very determined process for finding out more about yourself.


UMD Student Photography
The Corrdior Gallery at the DAI will exhibit photography by University of Minnesota-Duluth students. This annual exhibit showcases their learning in photo theory as well as digital, analog and hybrid techniques mastered by the region’s post-secondary students. This year’s photographers are Katie Bertucci, Keegan Burckhard, Liz Huninghake, Wilson Johnson, Sammie Lundberg, Kaitie Sauer, Eric Soderberg and Emily Theisen. This exhibit, which will be on the walls outside the DAI office and board room, is curated by the DAI Artist Services Director, Amber White.

The reception is free and open to all, with live music by Emanuel Eisele.

* * * *
There are a number of programs taking place in March that relate to thes exhibits. One of these is a Wiki Edit-a-Thon for Arts & Equality, March 5 at the Lincoln Center DAI. There will also be a forum addressing art, race and community policing (with panelists including Hamilton, City of Duluth Human Rights Officer Carl Crawford; Chief of Police Mike Tusken; and local NAACP president Stephan Witherspoon). And Studio 3 West is hosting a feminist art opening in March called Wtf. It's apparent that the DAI is expanding its Duluth footprint.

February 23 is the first date of note, though. Will we see you there?
 
Meantime, art goes on all around you. Engage it.

Wordless Wednesday: The Barn and the Kissing Booth