Visiting Artist Workshops in Review

Each semester, two artists are invited for ten day residencies at Oxbow. This unique opportunity allows for students and visitors alike to explore ideas and take new directions in their art making, both individually and as a group. OS31 hosted Anna Von Mertens and Michael Arcega for two wildly different workshops. 

Anna Von Mertens' art is heavily research driven; investigations of phenomena crossing the realms of scientific study and her private world are of particular interest. These are translated into subjective pieces usually via means of hand dyeing and quilting. She says," These patterns reveal to me aspects of our existence, whether it is how we experience time and face the infinite - embedded in that is our own mortality - or how the boundary of the body is presented to others versus how it is felt internally. I see all of these elements as a form of mapping, reflecting the need to get my own bearings in this vast universe."

Anna coached OS31 through several quilting projects, culminating in a large collaborative collage which now hangs in our historic dining hall. 

Michael Arcega is a sculptor and installation artist whose work utilizes language and historic narratives to explore sociopolitical dynamics and unbalanced power relations. "Jumbling signifier, material, linguistics, and site," Michael uses considers cultural connotations found in "food, architecture, visual lexicons," and the rich contrasts of insider vs. outsider knowledge. 

With this in mind, Michael asked OS31 to create a series of body extensions meant to consider the body as an art medium and raise questions of functionality, intent, ingrained social perceptions, and redefining the physical limitations of the body. Ranging from techno-heads to buddy suits to musical helmets to plastic claws to clothes tents to an epistolary approach, these projects are exciting in their inventiveness, playfulness, and capacity for serious commentary. 

quoted text from http://annavonmertens.com and http://arcega.us/home.html. Photos: Finn N, Patrick, Pattiann, Megan 

Glimpses of Project X

The Project X show is finally installed! This is the first long term project of the semester where students pursue their own line of inquiry via in depth research and artistic experimentation. For long term followers of this blog and experts of Ox-lore, you'll remember that Project X is a top secret deal, the details of which are kept under lock and key each semester until the launch. In the spirit of keeping secrets (but also wanting to showcase OS31's incredible work), here are tiny peeks of each piece created over the past month.

Enjoy!

Beach Date!

Wednesday: Final Project proposal deadline

Thursday: THE BEACH

OS31 spent a celebratory day at the beach at Tennessee Valley in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The perfect way to decompress after a proposal deadline and regroup before the full blown Final Project production phase begins!

photos: Megan and Logan L.

Approaching the Home Stretch

OS31's Final Project Proposals were due today! This is a chance for students to propose their initial ideas for research and art production during their last month at Oxbow. It can be a nerve-wracking time for many as they present their personal work for review and support. As always, the faculty spent the entire day together reading each proposal and suggesting countless resources. Students will receive their proposals back soon and move forward into full production.

In the meantime, have a look at what's floating around in OS31's heads!

proposed topics: Sense of self; Capitalism/American guilt; The language of emotion; Cults and mental illness; Religion, Culture, and morals; Utopia; The Death Penalty, Dissociative Identity Disorder, Sexism, Quilting as Storytelling; Fear in the post 9/11 world; Historical and modern perceptions of beauty; Mythology: established ideas of good vs. evil; Science of emotions; Surveillance; Metacognition; Subvertising; Censorship and cultural isolation; Coming of age; Interior design; Graphic novels; Absence; Rituals; Social networks; Multiple Personality Disorder; Divination; Alter egos; Physical, mental, and social health; Mental illness.

Stay tuned for updates from the studios and be sure to mark your calendars for the weekend of our Final Show - December 13/14.

We'll Be Here All Week

A day at Oxbow is a wild ride, and a whole week is a roller coaster. There's always so much activity all over campus, whether it's a late night in the studios, a school-wide gardening effort, a lively gallery opening, or frenzied last minute cleaning before Room Checks. This week, Kai has summarized OS31's typical experience for you so you can get a sneak peek into how madcap and exciting our lives are around here.

I believe I can say that for all of us, Oxbow has been an interesting experience so far. Unlike any other school I have attended, Oxbow provides a variety of activities  - whether curricular or just things I can do around campus in my free time (there’s always the chickens we can mess around with). Let’s recap this week: On Monday, we started our Focus classes which have been very thought provoking so far. For the first month, English, History, and Science were part of one co-taught class called "Connections," but now they're separated and we get to delve further into each subject. On Tuesday, we helped the gardeners distribute 20 cubic yards (about 10 tons!) of compost around campus. That same day, we had our first Visiting Artist Lecture with Anna von Mertens who is also in residence here until next Tuesday.  On Thursday, we started our new co-curriculars, and we have an Ice Cream Social on Friday that we are all looking forward to.   

Here's to many more great weeks for OS31!

photos by Abbey, Megan, and Mo.

 In the dark for a slideshow.

"Ox-Chix" is a weekly campus crew. Students switch off each week, collecting eggs and caring for the ladies. 

Science instructor Alex installed a slackline and it is now a favorite past time (as with most semesters).

SO MUCH COMPOST. Many thanks to the gardeners for all their hard work and even more thanks to the students who joined us just for this morning of smelly schlepping. 

Megan and Bella cleared out the last of the marigolds. Painting instructor Chris will lead a dyeing workshop this weekend using indigo and marigolds from the gardens. 

Art School P.E.

As OS31 reaches the end of their first co-curriculars, students already have lots to share with each other and you! This past month, our co-curriculars were full of surprises and each had a great send-off before our Early Break weekend! Hiking and Yoga explored a local regional park and reached an awesome creek, Quad Games ventured far afield to play some serious disc golf, Gardening found a praying mantis while harvesting potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers for the kitchen, Walkabout discovered the area surrounding the school on foot, and the Oxbikers powered up several mountains. How cool! Students will rotate through two other co-curriculars in the coming months. Who knows what's next!

The hiking Yogis. 

It's hit and miss with "Sports Game Face" at art school.

Another beautiful morning spent tending and harvesting….

…and making little friends.

Walkabout's reflective outings take them on some hidden gems of trails around town.

We're hoping no phones were broken during the taking of this photo.

The fittest of us all - Patrick's biking crew. 

This post brought to you by Micah and Niki. Photos by Niki, Logan, Jennifer, Megan, and Patrick.