Sunday, February 24, 2013

Journey of Jelutong...earth to ethereal

Journey of Jelutong
earth to ethereal

Jelutong is a wood
of a certain tree only in specific areas
of very limited quantity
when it runs out it runs out
there is no more
this is the wood that John Buck
has chose - or - has it chosen him
to make his wooden sculptures/panels/prints from
and when it's gone he (says) he's done...

link to what Wiki has to say about it--Jelutong Wood...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dyera_costulata
note: they consider it threatened but not of extinction
while this may be true, am not sure if it's because of this that it's difficult to get this wood for such model making as what John Buck is creating - which is why he's limited to what he's gotten to date to work with

Thumbnail for version as of 21:49, 30 November 2008
Photo Credit: Wiki Commons
photo taken in KL, Malaysia
2008 Buckit Nana Nat'l Park

~~~

Price of Jelutong...
found one woodworking webpage with this wood for sale in small amounts like 2 inches by 6 inches for $1.00...which may work out to something like the size of your hand - now after seeing these enormous sculptures/panels/prints of John Bucks can't imagine how many hands would cover just one piece of a piece of his work?!

Jelutong (Malaysia)

"A favorite of wood pattern makers, Jelutong is very even-tempered and carves beautifully with hand or power tools. It sands very easily, too. It is slightly more open-grained than Bass or Tupelo, making it ideal for natural finish carvings as well as birds, animals, and habitat. A member of the rubber tree family, Jelutong will occasionally have small latex "canals" inside the wood which can result in a small void (generally around 1/16"x1/4") that can easily be filled with a small wedge or chip of jelutong. All of our Jelutong is premium grade, between 2x6" and 4x12" in any length you want up to 10 feet. Available on our online store."

link to their webpage...
http://www.razertip.com/carvingwood.htm

~~~

Exhibition at Paul & Lulu Hilliard Museum - UL Campus - Lafayette, LA...

JOHN BUCK: C'EST MAGNIFIQUE

January 19 - May 11 2013



This exhibition will showcase the unique work and skill of internationally renowned sculptor, woodcarver, and printmaker, John Buck. The artist creates intricately carved woodblocks, which he uses to make prints by hand rubbing rather than through mechanical processing. This labor-intensive technique produces prints that are high in quality and limited in edition. Additionally, Buck carves and assembles elaborate sculptures consisting of unexpected combinations of objects. These sculptures vary in size; many are two and three times Buck’s height. With several, Buck includes a kinetic component. Visitors to the exhibit will have the opportunity to activate these wonders into motion, bringing them to life. Art enthusiasts as well as anyone who appreciates the skill and time involved in woodworking will enjoy this exhibition.

Link to museum webpage for John Buck's C'est Magnifique Exhibit...
http://museum.louisiana.edu/exhibitions
Jan 19 - May 11, 2013

~~~
John Buck the Artist

his webpage...
http://www.johnbuckart.com/


John Buck with his 1999 Woman of the House...and his hatchet...
this is one of the wooden sculptures at Paul & Lulu Hilliard/UL Museum exhibit



John Buck's Wood Panel 2003 Index
Jelutong wood & Acrylic
this is also part of Paul & Lulu Hilliard/UL Museum exhibit



John Buck's Print 2005 The Singer Tract
last of the 3 representations of his wooden art
at Paul & Lulu Hilliard/UL Museum exhibit
(note: you have to see this to catch all the fascinating details...
I can't tell you how much I wanted to touch them all--of course they don't want you to touch them...I think he needs to have some touchable sample pieces--am very curious what this wood feels like?!)



John Buck's Glass 2007 Remember the Maine
blown glass & wood
note: these pieces & his bronze or commission work is not at the exhibit
although this image looks familiar tho I don't see it on the Exhibition Checklist
for Paul & Lulu Hilliard/UL Museum Exhibit...


Exhibition Checklist:

Wood Panels
The Diary, Downtown Square, Longview, Projections & Predictions, Moment to Moment, Reining, Index

Prints
East West, The Lamp, Fact & Fiction, Skyline, The Singer Tract, War (crossed out) Eagle, Submuloc, The Choir Boy, Macy's on the Kaw, Tulip

Sculpture
The Universe, School of Paris, Against the Grain, Omnibus, The Ascent, The Magnificent Gadget, Gadget, Woman of the House, Yankee, Cat's Cradle, The Muse

~~~

Introduction (to John Buck's C'est Magnifique Exhibit)

"Many people use adjectives to explain the riddle that confronts us all when we encounter John Buck's sculptures or prints.  The works are dreamy & spiritual, fough & rigid, simple & complex.  Take the word magnificent, for example.  Spelled in Frnech, it was deliberately chosen for the title of this exhibition because it is synonymous with words like superb, wonderful, glorious, brilliant, outstanding & marvelous.

In John Buck: C'est Magnifique, we see the artist's sculptural wood carvings, some he infuses with electricity to make kinetic, wood block prints which are rubbed by hand to absorb the ink & his shadow-box-like panel works, bridging his exploration of ideas into the combination of 2 & 3-dimensional forms.

The Hilliard University Art Museum is privileged to highlight kinetic pieces in this exhibition, some of which have never before been shown, making this a truly one-of-kind experience for the viewer. Buck's work is not easily digested into a single experience, however. While the sheer size of Buck's work will awe many people, it is the attention to detail, the mindfulness, and the complexity of ideas that will make this experience & this exhibition special.

We hope, too, that the ingenuity of Buck's ability to merge history with popular culture, ethnic influences with modernist sensibilities, aesthetics with mechanics, and his skill at creating a discourse of politics & popularity will inspire & challenge all who come into contact with the work of John Buck." - Lee Gray

(note: Mr Lee Gray was kind enough to answer my inquiry if it was OK to use these 2 paragraphs from the exhibit brochure & the exhibition check list--he said it was OK as long as I gave credit, which I've included his name & the link to UL's Museum...Paul & LuLu Hilliard Museum, so thanks again?! And I do plan on a return visit to stand in front of everything again--just watching the You Tube video, see link below, & hearing the wood/leather/motors sounds of them all moving together makes me want to do that...scheduled until May so am hoping I make it back in?!)

Artist's Statement (to John Buck's C'est Magnifique Exhibit)

"My recent work is an extension of previous figurative work that had included implied movement through the dynamics of form.  This particular group of pieces explores mechanical movement through the use of motors, pulleys & belts.  My interests in primitive, ethnic, & historical wood carvings are combined with my explorations of modernism & contemporary art to form the basics of my compositions.

The figures themselves have evolved from genderless, primitive, non-gestural forms to more naturalistic carvings in the round.  I combine the figures with various compositions on their shoulders wich are now complex mechanisms for animating diverse images.  The addition of movement gives the viewer the opportunity to make various associations based on the changing relationships of the kinetic elements within the sculptures." - John Buck

~~~

Wiki for John E. Buck...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_E._Buck

(note: they divide their time between studios in Bozeman, Montana & Hawaii...)

File:'Father and Son', color --woodcut-- on paper by --John E. Buck--, 1981, --Smithsonian American Art Museum--.jpg
Photo Credit: Wiki Commons
'Father and Son', color woodblock print on paper by John E. Buck, 1981, Smithsonian American Art Museum (Washington, DC)


~~~

John Buck: Kinetic Sculpture
You Tube link...
http://youtu.be/QY35ReZ5k7E

(note: turn the volume up so you can hear the wood, leather, motors of these kinetic wooden sculptures...C'est Magnifique?!)

~~~

Link to The Advertiser article by Kris Wartelle - Feb 8, 2013...
http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20130208/LIFESTYLE/302080305/-C-est-Magnifique-
(taking note: the image of the Omnibus by John Buck is for purchase...hmmm...well you can just go there & look at it, have no plans to purchase it...actually it's in the lobby, it's not even in the gallery so am wondering if you couldn't just walk in there & take your own photo?!)

(add'l note: who did that caption for the photo...am wondering how happy Paul Hilliard would be to be called Pat?? Opps--a typo error, now who would I tell...it is a newspaper afterall & a caption for a photo image that they want you to purchase...and good grief--what else?? they've called the artist by the wrong name in the caption as well, it's not Joe Buck it's John Buck?!)

Link to an earlier article by Kris Wartelle - Jan 30, 2013...
http://www.theadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2013301300330
(note: pretty much worded the same as the Feb 8, 2013 article--only there is a different photo, so there is that...at least nobody captioned it with incorrectly spelled artist/museum names?!)

(add'l note: it's also unfortunate when you search that it gets confusing if you're searching for a restaurant tasting event/fundraiser of the same name at UL's Alumni Center it looks like or UL's Museum exhibit...)

~~~

Link to Eventful Listing...
http://eventful.com/lafayette/events/john-buck-cest-magnifique-/E0-001-054106073-5

art

Link to The Vermilion article...
http://www.thevermilion.com/exhibits-reconcile-classically-trained-self-trained-artists-1.2972412?pagereq=1

"Exhibits reconcile classically trained, self-trained artists" by Emily Lalande
Published: Wednesday, January 16, 2013
 
“It’s enormous, engaging, provocative, intellectual ... it’s everything,” Gray said, describing Buck’s exhibit."

note: looking at this photo made me realize they had to uncrate all these pieces & then assemble them...what a puzzle, it must of taken a long while...I would of loved to have watched that, wish someone would of not only taken photos but a video...sigh...there is at least a YouTube of a few of them in motion, which is something...I am just curious & always want for more...anyway, thanks Vermilion for a sneak peek behind the scenes?!

~~~



Monday, February 18, 2013

Mardi Gras Theme 2013 - Will it or Won't it Rain


Mardi Gras Theme 2012
Will it or Won't it Rain
Odds many days were way over 50/50

So...Throw me something mister--before it rains down something other than beads?!

Due to Vintage Mardi Gras Costume Sale at Cite des Arts volunteering or Capuchon/ Mask making for a week out from Mardi Gras aka Fat Tuesday I didn't make but the tail end of the dog parade the Saturday a week out from Mardi Gras w/e parades (Oh yeah--snicker snicker...yes, I did say 'tail' end...)

And then just made Mardi Gras Day for the King's Parade & what we often all the middle parade that never remember the name of we'll call it the Lafayette Parade during which it poured down rain for at least 5 min's while we popped up the umbrellas or ran under the Camper cover behind us & finally to end it all the Independent Parade...

But sadly I took note there was no Krewe of CousheCoushe this year (or maybe they only stay downtown & not march the whole way from before downtown, down Johnston St to the Cajun Dome Blvd & thru the Festival aka Rides at the Cajun Dome parking lot...that's a long way to march when you're 'not' a Marching Band & often 'not' as young as maybe you use to be when you stumble into Krewe of CousheCoushe...)

They're what I think of as the Anything Goes Marching Krewe - was told they have a community trunk of costumes you can use & pretty much anybody that shows up can march with the Krewe...as for their Ball--it's whatever bar establishment will let them in for free or cheap & put up with their type of crowd...maybe they just had a Ball this year & said forget the rain threat so didn't march in the parade - or at least didn't see them down past UL Campus along the parade route...









 



 

 
 
am thinking disco ball mickey mouse ears green nose did very Very well at racking up a bunch of bags of beads & all else...we've often been told if you wear a costume or make a sign then the Krewe's on the floats like to throw you more--if you make a game like a net then that's good too...
 
 




 


 
Fav under the sea/Sea Horse float
for the Sea Horses alone
couldn't even tell you what else was on the float
but sadly they were 'not' throwing sea shells (necklaces)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 







 











 
passing Dwyers downtown from Parc San Souci/Parking Garage spot
love the downtown murals...makes me want a cup of coffee, that can't have 'cause nothing's open but Food Trucks elsewhere along the parade route... (am now wondering if the dark haired lady with glasses pouring coffee--let me guess Community, or was back in the day, reminds me of the movie Tootsie & the actor Dustin Hoffman at the time playing the crossdressing Tootsie on a Soap Opera...)


 

 
Bead Booty beginning...did find a fav, the gold beads made of Jazz instruments - which proceeded to next parade give away to my friend's son who's moving to Belgium with the Navy & so this was not only his first Mardi Gras in 8 yrs he says but will be his last now for prob at least 3 more (so who can refuse that--I live here, he can have 'all' the silly plastic shiny beads he wants far as I'm concerned?!)
 
 

 
 


 

another Fav during Mardi Gras...the Mardi Gras Tree--in all the Mardi Gras colors...purple, gold, green & then some...there will also be utility lines decorated or fences along the parade routes as well...some folks will even on purpose toss them into their trees & hang them on their gates/fences...

 
good day for an umbrella hat...and also an upturned umbrella, after the downpour, to try 'n catch more beads (some of that make it game for the Krewe & you get more bead booty...) then there's the guy with the fishing net, but such a long pole to hold onto not sure how well he did all day...
 


Krewe Pas Bon
as in Pass a Good Time I would think
 
look at that load of beads will ya'
I think those are a tease...
as is whenever any member of the Krewe holds up an extra big stuffed animal
making you think they might throw it your way...
(if you know someone on these floats & they actually see you/hear you then you might get whacked with a bunch of big beads or a bag of beads or possibly--tho I've never seen it, the said giant stuffed animal...)
 
 
Independent Parade
so you get adverts
but I like their hats - check out the Viking gold horns on one of them...
and all that colorful hair (I think I have a wig of pink or red hair somewheres in my Mardi Gras box I did not dig outta the garage this year--as I was digging thru way too many Mardi Gras Costumes instead for one thing...)
 
Krewe of Crossfit were very entertaining...
that guy at the top in the middle without a shirt on -
he's got what I think is a camera on his chest, so he'll have some fun rewinding when he's done...
then on the other end of the float as the passed by saw 2 other guys w/o their shirts on
that actually looked good w/o their shirts on & I missed that shot?!
 
 
 
 
 
more hats, more Viking hats--but enjoying the way they wear their horns?!
(am seeing maybe a Capuchon next year with some Viking/Cow horns out the sides...)
 
 

 

 
Courir de Mardi Gras/Country Mardi Gras banner art on this float
I think it may be the only one I saw - he's got his costume/capuchon/mask all on like he's a scarecrow out in the fields (also like the stripey shirt thing going on in the crowd too...)
 
 

and the Fav/Famous Louisiana saying...
Laissez le bon temps rouler
aka Let the Good Times Roll
(which it's Mardi Gras so they deff are)
 
Whoop Whoop Whoop for the Super Heroes...
think she's trying to get some paradegoers all worked up
either that or she's started her party early
(which if I were to guess on most of these Independent Floats that's the way they roll...best one that past earlier & I prob missed that photo too was the float with a port-a-potty on the back end - can you guess how well that works as you're rolling down the street?!)
 
 
DJ Boogi Boi float in the Independent Parade
I like their mask a lot
he's kinda leaf/bat/winged mask
 
Krewe of Anything Goes...
Krewe of Let's just drink our Daiquiris instead of throwing beads much...
Krewe of Let's throw my beads backwards over my back...
 
 
 
 
Drew Brees catches the gold beads...or guy in his Saints Fan Football Tee Shirt did?!
 
 

 

 
colorful Mardi Gras colors...then I see it, not a Port-a-potty on the back of the float--
no, this one is on the front of the float...tsk tsk...don't remember seeing these in the parades before,
cracks me up (the least they could of done was hang some purple plastic tablecloth on it too?!
 
Oh & someone's gonna get a football off the backend of this float looks like...
look up in the air it's 'not' beads, it's a rubber football...Heads up y'all--you just do 'not' know what might hit you upside it when you're 'not' looking?!
 
 
 
more Super Heroes...is that really Batman--Holy Cow...
And what is a Shred Fest...I must look that one up...
hmm...
so is it a big Shred Party or is it a Ski Party or a Concert or ??
or just all of the above & do I really care...
 

 

 
 
Oh if only they'd be throwing airline tickets...like to Brazil...
missed the front so don't have a clue who they all are, but that one guy up top is swinging a big/Big bunch of beads to just tease the all get out of beggers below...
 
 
Robert M's should have the hands down best hair of them all...
then I'm seeing more Super Heroes, again--can Batman be 2 places at once...
the Magic of Mardi Gras...and there's Spidey walking away too...throw us a web will ya'?!
 
Krewe de Cajun ___
Fat Pat's
Cut Dat - was 'not' throwing Dat...
 

 

 
 
Krewe de Cafe (I think)
Why aren't they throwing coffee--Throw me a Latte or a Cappuccino
(could use one right about now, even more than the stupid Jello Shots that were being thrown off some float earlier--would guess a bar or college student float had something to do with that crazy idea, but I could be wrong...guy in front of us caught one, looked like mouth wash 'n water in a tiny plastic cup w/a sealed plastic sheet overtop--we all agreed he should 'throw it away mista'?!)
 
Krewe of City Bar
Krewe of Dix
Krewe of I don't know
Krewe of Crossfit Outrage
(what? there's 2 of them - this one bigger, full of neon green t-shirts & more girls...)
 
I don't know is she taunting with a cup to throw
or is she having a Cheers with her frozen Daiquiri--can't tell...
 
love the plaid shirt boy's technique--Come to Me, his hands coming towards him rather than the usual of everybody waving or grabbing or jumping up & down one hand/both hands waving...
(seems he's doing well so it may be a good one to try, like next year...)
 
Again--with the Port-a-Potty off the back of the float, too many Daiquiris for the Krewe of Dix
(do you think they're trying to be clever, instead of Krewe de Dix...then Dix can sound like something else--but in town it's a Burgers & Daiquiri's Place/Hangout...dare I call it a restaurant? I think not!)
 
 
long walk back to the car
from Motor City down the side street along UL until get to Girard Park
where I'm parked as close as I could get - then I get out of the parking lot & head in the direction that everybody else is 'not' (even if it's the long way, it will be the short way in the end then if I'd followed the leader to even worse a street that ends in a left/right but w/o a street light?!)
 
I have an urge to climb down to go walk along the coolee to read the graffiti down there...
like that color blue, am thinking it's not really more than one graffiti artist...
 
 
Bead booty that's not in my bag...
goodness this all weighs you down when you're walking a mile to the car
and underneath my new--what else--Mardi Gras bead shirt from last year's Mardi Gras design by Parish Ink
(note: as long as they don't do anything stupid like Keep Calm & Party Gras, then it's all good...Yes, I saw that T-shirt on someone in the parade crowd--but I did not see it in any of the stores, so don't know where they go it or if they made it special...someone has got to put a hault now on copying that phrase--now it's getting old & overdone & enough already?!)
 
 
 
Fav bead pic, hanging from my neck before I take them off to hang them from the rearview...
at least for a few more days, showing off the spoils per say & I like the shiny colors of them all
& even better the sound of them sliding/tinkling almost all together as you drive/turn the corner...
almost as good as wind chimes in the breeze...
 
 

 
the bead booty/haul in the bag at home on the kitchen table
even a green dubloon (that I didn't catch but picked up, they are rarer & rarer to come by...this one plastic--do they even make metal ones anylonger?)
 
Checking out on the Mardi Gras Cup throw when Mardi Gras is next year & a few more years to come...
 
 

 

 
 
on the other side of the Mardi Gras cup
from the dates - cute joker/jester throwing/catching beads














 
 
 
 
 
 
 


 
 
~~~
 

 
you'll never believe
best filling yet this year
Oh my the imagination
 
It's called the Elvis
Can you guess?
 
Well, there would be bananas & peanut butter right
then there would be bacon--Oh yes there is...
 
(which I narrowly warned an unawares Vegetarian getting ready to take a bite of this King Cake at the Vintage Mardi Gras Costume Sale...Opps...Bacon is 'not' on most Veggies diet right?!)
 
It was a Favorite King Cake this year--it's from Twins, which is a Burger joint now after the real Twins of a baker Dad took his Southside Bakery & left the boys to it (I think he's opened elsewhere now...but is he making the Elvis? hmm...maybe not?!) PS King Cakes are not cheap, especially this one--it's a good thing they are only once a year from 12th Night until Mardi Gras?!
 
Link to the Twins webpage...
(note: there is no Elvis King Cake Flavor on the menu--but trust me, it is there...funny did not notice until now that it's Burgers & Sweets?!)
 
~~~~
 
OK, enough...
enough King Cake
enough Parades
enough Beads
enough Rain
enough Mardi Gras Costumes
enough Mardi Gras
We Passed a Good Time & now that's that until next year
 
Now--What to give up for Lent?
Sugar...ugh...sigh...wish me well...Oh I am not Catholic, but I feel a great need to Give it up along with everyone else over the next 45 days is it of Lent--from Mardi Gras until Easter I think it is...
 
End of a Happy Mardi Gras Y'all
~~~