Observation : Interdisciplinary Naturalists

Piper's sketchbook

The first course of the Oxbow semester is team-taught across disciplines. Each section works with a pair of teachers--one art faculty and one humanities faculty--in a course designed to explore the overarching theme of Observation. Sculpture and History are paired, New Media and English are a team, and Painting and Science combine forces. What follows is a selection of sketchbook pages from the Painting + Environmental Science course, in which students took on the role of campus naturalists and carefully observed hidden spots in the Oxbow gardens. Using Thoreau's essay Autumnal Tints for inspiration, they recorded, sketched, dissected, and questioned their surroundings. 

Lucie's journal

Isabel's journal

Darien's journal

          

Nigel's sketchbook

First Impressions

It's hard to believe that OS29 has only been here for a little over two weeks; already we're seeing great things from them. In the art studios, they've been busy working on the Observation and Place projects, and in Connections they are deep into their exploration of Walden. Across the board, their work has been colorful, diverse, and full of life. They are poets and storytellers, and show a lot of care towards one another and the Oxbow community as a whole. Outside of the classroom, they are rambunctious and playful; on the weekends, scooters, skateboards, and bikes litter the breezeway.

Yesterday, during an excursion outdoors for Connections class, one student stated, "I make art because I have things to say." An observer could conclude that this statement holds true for all of OS29. This is a class with a strong voice (yes, it gets a little loud sometimes...) and a lot of heart; as the semester moves on, we aim to help each student project their voice and share their passion. So, OS29: as you head into your third Oxbow week, we leave you with a thought from Kahlil Gibran: "Work is love made visible."

WELCOME OS29!

Greetings Ox-Blog followers! Welcome back, old friends. New readers, we're so glad to have you with us. Once again, apologies for the delay in programming... getting the gears greased and the Ox-machine running again after a summer respite is an all-consuming task. But campus is humming with fresh energy, and we are proud to announce the launch of OS29. This exciting and diverse new class comes to us from all corners of the country--Maine, Florida, Southern California, and Washington, and everywhere in between. New Mexico is well-represented, as are Minnesota, New Jersey, Maryland, New York, and Illinois. This a group of THINKERS, MAKERS, and DOERS.

Each Oxbow class develops a unique character over time, and while we can make guesses at what some of the defining features of OS29 will be, we'll have to wait and see how the semester unfolds. But one thing that every incoming class has in common is their exuberance at meal times--the food at Oxbow is just so good. So to whet your pallets for news of OS29's freshly-launched adventure, we'll leave you to salivate over this delectable Ox-Lunch:

For those of you who are new to the Ox-Blog: we post about campus happenings once a week, sometimes more, and you can sign up to receive an email notification each time a new post goes up--see the "subscribe" box at the top right corner of the blog homepage. 

Letters From Abroad

This week have a special post--Laura Brentrup, OS16 alum and Sculpture Studio Teaching Assistant to OS28, reports from her new home base--Italy. Great to hear from you, Laura!

Bergamo 'old city' (citta alta)

Ciao da Milano! 

I arrived here June 15th and it has been a non-stop adventure ever since! My main purpose of being here is taking classes at NABA (Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti-- New Academy of Beautiful Art), a design and art institution located in the Navigli (canal) district of Milan. I am enrolled in two sessions of design courses taught by architect and designer, Francesco Librizzi, who just so happens to be part of the design team of the Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, a major international art exhibition occurring this year. I am the only American in my class and have gotten to meet people from literally all over the world: Portugal, Mexico, Brazil, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Belgium, Russia, Mongolia.... it has been fascinating learning  about all these different cultures. The class is taught in English, so as the only native English speaker in the room, you can imagine the chaos that often ensues... Being here, engaging in these modeling workshops (our first course involved designing a planet for one person--beginning with the 'core' and each additional day constructing another layer, building outward; the second course designing a villa to house both humans and animals, with the goal being connecting each students' model together at the end...There are a lot of sticks, cardboard, Styrofoam, measuring and glue involved!) is experience much different then I expected--it has taught me 'design' and 'art' are on two vastly different ends of the spectrum; 'artists' and 'designers' are two completely different breeds of people, and do not make the mistake of mixing up the two! It is a distinction that is often overlooked and incorrectly interchanged. And alas, I am an 'artist' at heart and this experience has most definitely influenced the direction my life will take next...

Lago di Maggiore

Outside the classroom, life in Milan, 'design capital of the world', is a strange contrast between old and new. But the Italian culture permeates, the "bella vita" prevails, and this experience has been richly supplemented with once-in-a-lifetime happenings such as Richard Wagner's "Der Ring" an epic 19hour German opera, performed over the span of 4 days at the famous "Teatro Alla Scala," a private viewing of Leonardo's "Last Supper (Cenacolo)," visits to the art-rich Pinoteca di Brera, Museo Cinquecento, excursions to fortress towns (Bergamo), Torino (home of the 2006 Winter Olympics) and the countless hours of entertainment provided by simply standing by and observing a culture in love with life's simple pleasures: food, wine, and good company.

  

Climbing the Duomo (Cathedral), Milano

As my time here in Milano comes to a close, I am off, returning to the family I au paired for last year and will take a 'vacation from my vacation' at the seaside followed by a month in the Alps!

I wish OS28 all the best and hope that wherever life takes you next, you get out there and explore! The world is big, exciting place and Oxbow was just the start...! Keep in touch! 

Buon viaggio!

LAURA, OS16 

July, July!

Oxbow summer camp session #2 is underway, and the Oxbow semester program faculty are deep into their summers. We'll be posting soon on what they've been up to, but for now we're backtracking to tell you quickly about the adult program that happened here on campus in June. 

Last month Oxbow welcomed a new visiting artist, Cecilia Giampaoli, a printmaker living and working in Italy who joined the 10-day Adult Summer Studios program. Cecilia teaches both traditional and experimental printmaking techniques at ISIA Urbino, and was a resident artist at Kala in Berkeley before heading up to Oxbow. Here she shared her work and her practice with an eager group of printmakers and painters who worked alongside her. 

Cecilia began her Oxbow residency by giving an artist talk, focusing on her choice in subject matter, her technical process, and her own narrative journey as an artist. The Adult Summer Studios were all around a great success--big thanks to Cecilia for joining the Oxbow team!

Next week we'll stick with the Italian theme, and hear from OS16 alum Laura Brentrup, who moved to Milan after working with us as a TA last semester. 

Ciao!

Summer Break

Many apologies for the lapse in programming. Our Blog Master is out of the country -- practically on another planet -- and was overly optimistic to expect to find reliable Internet access in these remote regions (let alone regularly functioning electricity). Blog Master will return stateside (the land of smart phones, real coffee, and bathing facilities that don't require a bucket) mid-July, and your beloved weekly Oxbow blog will resume. We'll be posting about summer happenings on campus, and the adventures our faculty and staff are having beyond the Oxbow bubble. Happy summer!

Outtakes

When 44 students and 9 teachers live together in close proximity for four months, some funny things happen. We get to know each others' quirks, and we immediately notice when something changes--new shoes, new hairstyles, shifts in the social structure. And we begin to speak in a coded Ox-language. Morning announcements start to sound like this:

ST, caught lurking in the Breezeway on final cleaning day

"Snack Patrol. You know who you are. Stop slacking, the people want their Cheese-Its. New Dish Dawgs this week. Spread The Love--meet JP for lunch. Where are all the spoons? PFoy's art angels--turn in your journals. Mo's advisees--meet on the Pad after breakfast. Who's hoarding the Sculpture tape dispenser? And pleeeaaase make sure you've put your stuff on the server." 

We fall easily into routines, and certain roles are set early on: Piper always times the Minute of Silence, Jose and Alex are always late for breakfast, Grace always has candy if you need some, Raven will always hold the door open for Blair, and West A will always have the cleanest bathroom.

And then there are those wonderful moments when the Ox-bubble is burst--people who have been hiding in the shadows come out of their shells, roles are reversed, and some really hilarious stuff happens. What follows is a sort of photo essay of some of those moments. We'll call them the OS28 Semester Outtakes.

There was a Math Prom

These two students were caught selling unofficial Bottle Rock souvenirs

The Carrot Gods spoke

Izzy got...lost (not arrested)

OS28 went through an American Gothic period

This guy happened...

And on the very last day, THIS happened

Goodbye, for now

Farewell, OS28. Congratulations on a spectacular Final Show, and on all the amazing things you accomplished at Oxbow. It might feel sad and scary right now, but you are off to do more amazing things, and trust us: you are READY! When your Oxbow ache gets bad, read some poetry with breakfast. Make some art. Keep a journal. Hug a chicken. And know that all Oxbow paths will ultimately cross again. 

Be well, stay in touch, and remember, lunch is at 12:00. Come back any time.

We'll miss you. 

The Week Before

Sneak peek: artwork by Alex McD

It’s just a couple of days away from Final Show, and we here at Oxbow are about as busy as our new bees!  The week before final show, we as a community embark on our biggest collaboration of the semester: completely transforming all of the studios into gallery space. That includes sweeping the floors of any sawdust and copperplate shavings, pencil points and canvas trimmings, wiping down furniture before moving it all out of sight, spackling over memories of past installations, giving each wall a fresh coat of white paint, and, quite literally, clearing the cobwebs.

The journey from workspace to exhibition space is an exciting one. In many ways, it’s like any other move. During the month-long Final Project, the students really do move in to the studios, making it a second home. This means that in addition to all of the grunt work, The Week Before also includes returning clothes, coffee mugs, and iPods to their rightful owners, and, in the best cases, discovering items you thought were lost for good (like my phone charger!).

Last night, we officially finished installing all of the artwork. The tenor does shift here as the students turn over the space that has become so much theirs. As they walk around the studios looking at the work of their friends (some for the first time), it’s a lot like walking around the house you can’t come back to—at least not in the same way.

Sure, there are other things going on—like writing and revising artist statements, rehearsing presentations until the nerves subside, choosing the perfect outfit for the show, packing, a sense of triumph at having finished met with constant waves of nostalgia for the almost-over semester, and, of course, the bittersweet anticipation of the near goodbyes we have to face. But for right now, we are all proud, anxious for the big day, and really, really, tired. 

Hope to see you all at the show this weekend!