Tuesday, May 12, 2015

First Art: Traveling Art Project. "Orshinugspots 1 to 10".

I am participating in the First Art Traveling Art Project, originated in the Netherlands. See their Website here. See also their facebook page ... Here is my introduction to my leg of the journey...Mine is a station on Kit 2's travels!

Kit 2 is now imaginary.

My predecessor rid himself of the physical kit body. Old friends that we are, we had a minor tiffy about that. I believed in the conceptual importance of the actual kit traveling, replenished, from place to place, from artist to artist. He did not. Though I went through several months of "First Art Kit" mental paralysis because of this, it turns out my stubborn friend essentially sent me an invisible kit filled with the permission to be completely free.

Thanks, Dude (growl).

I have filled my imaginary Kit 2 with extremely basic wound dressing, and with organic shapes found in nature: Roots, Flowers, Stones, Shells, Feathers, Snake Skins, etc.

Brooklyn. For 15 years I lived in the old dirty Southside part of Williamsburg, and now live in the Bed-Stuy area bordering the also dirty Bushwick. Both Williamsburg and Bushwick are world-famous for their appeal to artists and generally, young creative exciting types (for Williamsburg, that time lies way in the past due to extreme rents and development; Bushwick will soon arrive there too).

Bronx. I work in the South Bronx, a failed bastion of wannabe-artist-collectivity. A run-down place that largely still looks bombed-out from the 70s.

Almost everybody I count among my friends is an artist or otherwise culturally active creature. If anything, I feel the, often ugly, areas I frequent need LESS art. Less man-made stuff. There is a lot of crappy art out there, only adding to the ugliness of human sloppiness and "don't care" attitude.

Instead, I feel these hoods need more Nature. Nature IS Art, of a higher order. And, as we all know, Nature is constantly under attack; it needs the biggest First Aid Kit of all. Its wounds need to be dressed so they can heal.

I find Nature is best expressed in organic shapes. Though small, the organic shapes I employ in this project are conceptual in nature (pun fully intended). They are there to remind us that what's missing in our ugly urban world is a greater representation of, and feeling of responsibility for, Nature.

So. I am attaching my crude "Orshinugspots" (Organic Shapes in Ugly Spots) throughout my daily world. There will be 10.

I will pass on Imaginary Kit 2 when I am done.

Halona Hilbertz, Brooklyn, NY

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