the creative process

I’ve put up my first ever Kickstarter project! (If you haven’t heard about this great resource, check it out. It’s a fabulous way to get project funding. Each donation level has great prizes attached, if the project doesn’t come through no money goes out, and it’s just an inspiring and fun way to get your information out into the world.)

The project is a Re-purposed Circus in Baraboo, WI (Circus City, USA). It’s the birthplace of the American circus and former home of the Ringling Brothers, now home to Circus World Museum.

Heidi Dakter and I were asked to create performances and workshops for the Summerset Festival of the Arts in Baraboo, Wisconsin. Heidi came from there, I have friends there and we were thrilled. We came up with a repurposed circus parade, using my live draping to transform old circus materials onto the townspeople and the lead clowns and ringmaster from Circus World. Heidi has created a series of memory boxes incorporating old materials and memorabilia into little dioramas, I make garments on live bodies by stapling old fabrics into new garments- it’s a perfect combination for making repurposed arts workshops.

We put together ideas for 2 gallery shows from local sources: the fabulous collection of old circus costumes of Circus World’s Museum, pieces from the renowned American Player’s Theater and Dr. Evermore’s beautifully odd salvaged mechanical creatures. He’s a local artist who’s created stunning creatures out of old machinery, and while his work’s been featured as a roadside attraction he doesn’t have much local attention. Sometimes it takes an outside perspective to get people to see what’s in their own backyards…

Unfortunately, Wisconsin’s been going through some difficulties with state funding (you may have heard about the protests) and while the Festival still wants us there, they didn’t know about spending the money to bring in outside talent.

And this is where Kickstarter comes in! We’ve contacted people and already started this process, and just don’t want to let it lie. If we can possibly bring ourselves there, with the help of interested and fabulous folks…

Why not?

Thanks so much, thanks to Kim and Richard and merry spring!

Laura

Links! Please share the link to the project- we’d love to get as many people as possible checking us out.

The Repurposed Circus Kickstarter Project: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1898846927/repurposed-circus-parade-and-workshops-in-circus-c

Repurposed Circus Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Repurposed-Circus/128743903868948

Circus World Museum: https://circusworld.wisconsinhistory.org/

Dr. Evermor’s fabulous creations: https://worldofdrevermor.com/

Heidi Dakter and her stunning textile designs: https://www.heididakter.com/Site/_welcome_.html

And the Summerset Festival of the Arts: https://baraboo.uwc.edu/?pid=1104

Per ‘building permits’ submitted at LAVA’s Sunday Salon 1-30-11, construction of the following projects was today completed on the Majestic Blvd. West cityscape:

Terry Ellsworth project: Edith Massey’s Thrift Store: Edie’s Shopping Bag, in its expanded new location: “Surprises Galore!”

Jim Trombetta projects: Billboard for the movie Quanto: The Man Who Can Be in 2 Places at Once! and Gentry condominion towers.

This week, construction was completed on two more projects on the ‘cityscape’ scroll, as suggested in building permits filed 1/30. These are the consulate general of Smokessylvania (submitted by Count Smokula) and Sylvie’s Ye-Ye record shop (submitted by Neal McCabe). The record store is situated behind the Johnny Hallyday Convalescent Hospital, which was also a McCabe project.

Following today’s Sunday Salon, construction was completed on the Majestic West Extension portion of the cityscape on the Johnny Hallyday Convalescent Home, as proposed in the building permit submitted 1/30 by Neal McCabe of Eddy Mitchell Enterprises. Per the permit, an adjoining ye-ye record shop will be added next. This structure joins the already complete headquarters of Ian T. Whitcomb Industries, the headquarters and tower of radio-station KCFK of Kelley Broadcasting, and Alexis Animation Studios, as the first tenants in the West Majestic Media District. 

Following the 1/30 Salon submission of  building permits for development on the Majestic Blvd. Western Extension on the cityscape, a number of projects have been completed. They include: Chuck Kelley’s proposal for a radio station atop a 12-story building (Radio KCFK, flagship of Kelley Broadcasting); Ian Whitcomb’s proposal for the world headquarters of I.T.W. Industries; and Jim Trombetta’s suggestion of billboards announcing the release of the debut album by hip-hop artist Sir Reptitious. Also completed: Alexis Animation Studios. Cranes and crayons will be out in force this weekend as well; we still have 14 or 15 projects to complete by the June LAVA Salon. Will keep everyone posted.

I’ve been gently reminded by both Kim and Richard that I’ve been remiss in keeping my fellow Visionaries up to date. The problem is, as usual, that I’m doing more than I’m writing about what I’m doing. Much of the drama gets lost in the business of the moment.
I’ll do my best to write more during the process instead of after the fact. I’ve got to warn you, though. It’s a little hard to keep up. For now, I’ll give you a little month to month precis.

August and September were mostly about Diavolo Dance Theater and creating the SteamWalker, aka Le Flaneur. It’s the second installment in my Opulent Mobility series and includes a tasseled cushion and parasol, a chafing dish nestling a GPS unit and cow horns in front. Oh, and a bud vase. You may have to look at the pictures.

I worked on Diavolo’s adaptation of Fearful Symmetries on and off from June through September, but Aug-Sept were the push times since the show opened at the Bowl on September 9th. Naturally, my completed submission of the Steamwalker for the Steampunk Form and Function design competition was due Sept. 4th and the walker needed to be ready to ship out to Massachusetts before I left for Kansas City on Sept. 29th. Did I mention that August was also filled with finishing crafts for Toy Story on Ice and September was also devoted to prepping patterns (with designer Michael Schmidt) for Steven Tyler’s debut on American Idol?

Got to pay the bills somehow.

At any rate, Toy Story is now on Ice. Steve Tyler hasn’t yet worn anything I’ve made on American Idol, but it will happen. Diavolo’s Fearful Symmetries went up and down without a hitch at the Hollywood Bowl and the Steamwalker is safely on display at the Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation through May 2011. Pictures from the exhibit are up now on Facebook, and you can find the exhibit online here.

For the next installment-
I’ll tell you what’s up to date in Kansas City!
(I hear it’s everything.)

WHAT: Visionary Gene Sculatti exhibits his scrolls at the LAVA Sunday Salon, March 28, 1pm at Clifton’s Cafeteria. More info.

I’ve never engaged in this kind of thing before: publicly promoting these scrolls or “cityscapes” as Kim calls them. But here’s the deal: On and off since I was 9 or so (I’m now 63), I have done pen-and-crayon (with some watercolor) drawings of imaginary cities, mostly informed by the way L.A., S.F. and California appear to a largely untrained illustrator.

They’re full of streets and buildings, people, freeways and beaches, power plants and broad, palm-lined arterials. They’re mostly drawn on white shelf-lining paper, and the longest one (1960-62) is 60 yards long. Because they were drawn over many years, they in effect comprise a rough chronological snapshot of what (mostly) Cali has looked like to me: sprawling suburban tracts announced by “Vets No Down!” billboards (60s), the mansard-roofs of fast-food franchises (70s), theater and concert venues whose marquees hype long gone films and idealized pop-music bills.

Somehow, though, it is, like the weekly radio show I do, all sort of contemporaneous, the accretion of architecture, signage and sensibility all meant to bear the time signature of the eternal Now, which, I suppose, is a key part of the California Dream that informed my growing up and lifelong residence here. I started the latest cityscape, “Majestic Blvd.,” in February 2006 when I lost my last real job. It’s just under 60 feet now and growing. I will also bring and show one scroll of earlier vintage.