Progress in Works
It’s been a busy week so far here at the house studio at Casa Corteza: prepping materials, work, and artists for the Works in Progress show scheduled for tomorrow has kept us on our toes! There’s a whole series of posts waiting to be written on “How to Write a Press Release,” or “What to Think About When Hanging Work,” or even “Top Ten Things to Remember When Planning for an Artshow,” but I found myself driven to write about a unique facet of the show concept, the space, and the people we’re working with for this autumn event.
The theme for an artshow can mean the difference between a vague, unbalanced, crowded show or a tight but too similar connection of likeminded artists…or something more flexible that falls in-between. We were lucky that the “works in progress” concept we proposed to the area’s artists was met with a lot of interesting takes on our press release. We have one artist performing a never-before-in-Nashville album created during his three-months of silence…several site-specific installations that use our borrowed HAUS to it’s fullest potential…an artist who has set up a mini-studio for the night to work on oil-clay sculpture…and a whole range of great work covering the walls.
But the most exciting thing isn’t the art – and trust me, I’m not saying that lightly – but instead the kind of discussion that’s been floating around as people meet each other, install their work, and ask questions of what they see around them. The whole HAUS has a good atmosphere of thinking ahead. Several artists who hadn’t met each other got to trade ideas, while others found that the install concept of the work itself changed as a result of talking to other artists. And there’s been a lot of just plain fun, too. I’ve been elbow-deep in my own installation the whole night, but found myself unable to keep away from the talk, from snapping pictures, and from just seeing what everyone is doing. For some of these pieces, the creation happened initially in the studio…but it hasn’t stopped there. It’s growing, even now while I pull away to write this piece. And that’s really inspiring.
The ideas happening here tonight aren’t just about work: they’re about connecting, and creating a stronger art community in the region. I can’t wait for some of the discussion to start happening as soon as we wind down from the install. I’m even more excited to see it continue tomorrow as we bring the rest of the art community and the public into the dialogue for our one-night opening. I hope you’ll join us: 3530 Murphy, 5-10 p.m.
We’ll be grilling peaches and making smoothies, Nashville, so come on out.
