[Strawbale] Mud - Art - Wash DC: FANTASTIC!!

[Beth E. Baker]

Dear Athena and Bill,,
   
  Wow!! This is fantastic!! 
   
  Thanks for providing the introduction and link to this fascinating project. I will be following it avidly.
   
  Beth E. Baker
  Pine River Watershed
  Driftless Region
   
  p.s. I'm a natural materials sculptor (of no repute whatsoever LOL), L*O*V*E working in fiber, sticks, stone, mud, whathaveyou. So _cool_ to see this thing going on in Washington, D.C., of all places.

Athena & Bill Steen <absteen at dakotacom.net> wrote:
  Sometimes life takes you funny places, sometimes really funny places 
doing things you never imagined. But hey, I guess that's what makes 
it interesting. First of all I don't really like to leave the place 
I live especially when it involves hot humid muggy places and even 
more so when it's a city. But sometimes there's no choice and the 
universe teams up with one's wife and drags you by the collar to do 
the unexpected. So this late May and June finds Athena and I parked 
outside the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian on 
Independence Ave right across from the Capitol building supervising 
the construction of 5 sculptures out of clay, stone, wood, bamboo, 
reed, what have you. Below I've pasted a brief description of the 
project. It's a big deal with webcams, public events, podcasts and 
such. Anyhow, either come see us in person or check it out on the 
museum's website when they have the webcam set up.

For now you can also see a description on our website along with two 
short film clips. The first is the film Athena's aunt submitted to 
the Smithsonian competition that in turn got her awarded the 
project. The second is filmed during a workshop here when we 
constructed several small prototypes mostly to get Athena's aunt 
familiar with the materials and techniques. Concept was hers but she 
has never worked with these materials on that scale. Here's the link.

http://www.caneloproject.com/pages/currrent%20projects/smithsonian.html

As usual, best to all of you and this great ongoing dialogue that is 
making better ways to build,
B....(& Athena)

The Canelo Project will be overseeing the construction of 5 outdoor 
clay sculptures in Washington DC in front of the Smithsonian's 
National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall. The 
project will be carried out in conjunction with Athena Steen’s aunt, 
Santa Clara Pueblo artist, Nora Naranjo-Morse from Espanola, New 
Mexico who won a design competition for outdoor sculptures that will 
be placed at one of the museum entrances. Naranjo-Morse's sculptures 
entitled, "Always Becoming," were selected unanimously by a selection 
committee, from more than 55 entries submitted by Native artists from 
throughout the Western Hemisphere.

Nora Naranjo-Morse is a sculptor who works primarily in clay and 
bronze. Her work can be found in the collections of museums 
throughout the United States and has been featured in group and solo 
exhibitions at the White House, the Canadian Museum of Civilization 
in Ottawa and the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, 
N.M. She is also known for her book Mud Woman – Poems from the Clay.

Construction and installation will begin late May of 2007 and 
continue through the month of June with a public dedication scheduled 
for September 2007. The commissioned work will be located at the 
museum's south entrance on Maryland Avenue S.W. near 4th Street and 
Independence Avenue S.W.

Each of the five tower-like forms will stand anywhere from six to 15 
feet tall and will be created out of organic, nontoxic materials— 
clay soil, straw, sand, stone, wood poles, bamboo, reeds and plants. 
Pueblo pottery carving designs and low-fired shards will also be 
incorporated into the structures. The artist selected organic 
materials to enable the forms to take on a life of their own, which 
allow the natural elements to affect the forms through time. The 
forms are in essence, "Always Becoming."

"Native culture and the environment served as the inspiration for the 
sculpture design. 'Always Becoming' will reflect themes of growth 
and adaptation and represent indigenous peoples' unique relationship 
to the environment," said Naranjo-Morse. "The sculpture's metaphor 
of home and family not only conveys a universal theme to all peoples, 
but also enhances the visitors' experience that they have entered a 
Native place when they step foot on the museum grounds."

Athena and Bill Steen
The Canelo Project
HC1 Box 324
Canelo/Elgin, AZ 85611
absteen at dakotacom.net
www.caneloproject.com



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