Non-Partisan, Artist in Residence Project

Artist in Residence @ SCRAP Humboldt

For 8 weeks in late 2018 I was one of two artists chosen for the pilot program AIR at Scrap Humboldt, a creative re-use center. I was given a small workspace in the store, a modest stipend for materials and a venue for a solo exhibition of the work created while in residence. I was contractually obligated to use no less than 70% post consumer materials for this project. The timing was appropriate to work with campaign signs, 336 # of them were collected & used as the main media in my work for this project.

During her 8 weeks as Artist in Resident at SCRAP Humboldt,  BV has collected 336 pounds of  campaign signs from  (mostly) Eureka candidates   to use as her main building material   The material transcends its’ original purpose & becomes something else, color & shape is a consideration in how they are reworked into a sense of place. The timeliness and intensities of the local campaigns allowed for an easy choice in materials for the artist. Re-use is the principle tenet of Scrap & the AIR was required to focus on that with intention. Contractually 70% re-use was required, BV went 98% for this work & the build on the installation is designed for yet another re-use for future works.

In total this work used approximately 180 pounds of campaign signs, all the accessory parts were from the SCRAP store in Arcata with the exception of a few pieces of hardware & some glue that were purchased.

Many thanks and much appreciation to the candidates & community members that donated or helped  collect the materials as well as SCRAP for hosting the artist with a studio &  a store credit to make the work.

Using the most unlikely & challenging materials I have built you a sense of place, lie down (it’s cushioned flooring)  & look up at the trees, rest, study shapes & forget the original use of the material & think about how to grow & maintain a forest of community.