Lucy Puls in Residence

Oxbohemians are incredibly fortunate to work with two visiting artists per semester on exploratory 10 day long workshops. OS33's first VA is Berkeley-based Lucy Puls, who is also an art professor at the University of California, Davis. Lucy crafted a prompt that will aid OS33 in ways they probably don't know yet in the remainder of their semester, which they've been using along with some new material on campus: Solarfast inks! Read on for a summary of the prompt and some images of works in progress:

GO TO SEED/GONE TO SEED/SEEDgo (or run) to seed (of a plant) cease flowering as the seeds develop: deteriorate in condition, strength, or efficiency 

Usually one thinks of the phrase "go to seed" as referring to something abandoned or deteriorated. A garden gone to seed would be one that hasn't been tended for some time. The below text however is quite relevant to how to think about the project prompt:

"It seems "go to seed" has contradictory meaning. Final stage of plant life seemingly expiring, on the one hand, and a stage of coming rebirth, which is fecund, on the other hand." 

Locate and consider places or spaces in the immediate environment that have "gone to seed" Photograph the place from a number of different vantage points.  

Using Solarfast light sensitive inks on fabric, paper, or experimental materials, create as many iterations as time allows. You can continue with photographic images (via negatives), create photograms by placing objects or handmade stencils onto the Solarfast, or three-dimensional forms by sewing, gluing, stapling, or nailing the fabric image to a support or armature. Think about other media and techniques such as watercolor, collage, paper mache, or found materials. Additionally, you, your person, can be a material. You could do a short performance with the finished piece or you could be the armature for a built, sewn, or constructed object. This way you'd work in tandem with the built element, completing the "sculpture" with your presence. 

photos: Eulala S and Megan 

Connections: Set Loose

The Connections class continued to move out of the classroom and into the world with a whirlwind week of fieldtrips to local farms and conscientious companies. Each section had a uniquely crafted experience, coming back together to share out about their diverse visits. While a few locations from previous semesters were revisited (ever beautiful farms Green String and Open Field, both of Petaluma), OS33 had the pleasure of seeing many new sites including the Petaluma Seed Bank, Thistle Meats in Petaluma, and exploring the vendors and panels at the National Heirloom Exposition in Santa Rosa. Continue reading for a reflection on some of these experiences from Graham G:

This week, we explored the work we've been doing in Connections class around regenerative agriculture and its impact on the world by visiting various farms and markets that practice healthy, regenerative farming. Each section visited a different farm and/or market, where we heard firsthand from those involved in food growth how important it is for us to consider not only the quality of the food we eat, but also the health of the land it comes from. Regenerative agriculture is a concept that challenges farmers to grow food in a way that reinvigorates the soil with nutrients for a better, healthier farm, and drastically increases the soil's ability to soak up excess carbon. We connected the concepts we've been learning about farming to our reading of Thoreau's Walden and our own personal lives by writing essays about food-related memories. This gave many students the opportunity to share experiences from home and with family that reminded us all how much the food we eat brings us together as a community. 

above: at Open Field Farm. photos: Jessica K || below: shots from Mo Elgazzar of Green String Farm, Thistle Meats, and the Santa Rosa National Heirloom Exposition.

Honing in on Solitude

photo: Ezri H

OS33 has already been here for two weeks, and time is speeding along. the Observation Project is completed, the Place project has begun, and our Humanities Team has rolled out their team-taught Connections course with a close reading of Henry David Thoreau's acclaimed Walden. See below for a joint reflection from Ellery T. and Jaden R. on the new Connections unit:

This week, we wrote short papers centered on the idea "What I Live For," which correlated with readings we've been discussing from Thoreau's Walden. We all hiked to a secluded area in Westwood Hills to read our papers for each other, share our lives, and what's important to us. Continuing with reading Walden, we were then assigned to spend three to four hours outside in solitude to reflect and draw about how we feel connected - or disconnected - to nature. The assignment is designed for us to question what makes us happy, as we spend time alone in nature free of other distractions. Lila S, from Vermont, says, "I loved it so much, it was inspiring. I'm going back to the place we hiked to." about her section's Humanities classes and "What I Live For" hike. It has allowed many of us to question ourselves, the outside influences affecting us, and what is really important to us.

photos: Mo Elgazzar