in the studio with val britton

one of the FAVORITE things about my job is that it forces me to be connected to the art world. it also allows me the excuse to ask favors from fellow artists. i constantly need artists to come and talk to my professional practice class. there is NOTHING better than a real live artist speaking to my class. sharing their world, their experiences, etc. i work for a state school. i have NO budget to offer guests payment for their time. instead i offer a lunch [on me] and my and my students eternal gratitude. i try and not ask the same friends over and over so that i don't tax their time. it's actually become a great excuse for me to reach out to people i "know" - maybe not super well - and see if they might talk to my class. my class wins cause they get an educated wonderful speaker and i win because i get to hang out a bit with them...

because almost all my friends and people i reach out to are sympathetic to this situation they will say yes to me [they remember the time they heard an artist speak and it made all the difference in the world]. once a semester i try and take my class to a real live studio. a workspace of an artist - so they can see what it looks, smells, feels like to have a working studio. 

last week i took my class to see val britton's studio and it really was a treat. 

i was introduced to her work back in 2005. [proof is in this blog post]

since then we've actually met. we've even been in a show or two together. i love how her work has evolved.

i particularly like her more recent installations. above is a maquette for one [the maquette is almost as cool as the actually piece. almost]

she was incredible generous with her time. and wisdom. i love seeing her work in various states of completion. it was lovely to be overwhelmed by multiple works in her space. 

it was organized chaos. paper everywhere. 

materials everywhere... [she might have more inks than me !]

they have such intensity. a phreneticism. they are both larger than life and microscopic. open and never ending and enclosed worlds amongst themselves. i love all the contradictions. i love the level of work that goes into them. the chance butting up against the desire to control and make sense of. 

so good. go spend some time on her website. you won't be sorry. 

hmm. i wonder if she would ever want to trade....