Joseph R. Reeves Integrated Art Forms

HOW TO: Shotgun a Beer, w/ Mikey Kusnecki

2011-12-07T16:06:00.000-08:00

Mikey Kusnecki is a die hard, beer loving, Milwaukee-native, who you surely know from his popular stint as a television host on the canceled hit television show "Mikey Kusnecki's Packer and Beer Forum."
   He is a character I created back in college for my final biology experiment, when I created a HOW-TO video on home brewing beer, and studied the various chemical properties of yeast within the "yeast pitching" process (yeah, they obviously encourage a creative slant to biology in art school, but this was still pushing the envelope). Anyhow, the video was a hoot to make, and despite Mikey's character, I still managed to fill the video with an informed overview of the beer-brewing process.
   More recently, I think I decided to bring this character back as both an outlet to my circumstances of living in a basement in North Dakota for the time being. I can also entirely get behind the notion that Mikey's character allows me to embrace my roots as a mid-westerner, that through my relentless traveling I have come to embrace, while still opposing in many ways. It's a love hate relationship, and as much as I might oppose certain aspects of life there, I have roots I will never cut in my wonderful city, Milwaukee, and wherever I go, I will never lose my mid-west pride.
   The video is a little slow paced for the Youtube generation, but to cut it up, and make it catchy enough for kids now'a days, I would have had to sacrifice the ultimate subtleties that make Mikey a true character, paying true homage to the mid-west. Like it or not America- this one's for my homies.

"The Whiskey Economy," Collaborative Project w/ Sean O'Neill, from Summer '11 in WA.

2011-12-03T22:49:00.000-08:00

Since there's much more to be said about this last summers collaborative music project, "The Whiskey Economy," I'm just going to post some of the raw videos for now, and leave the blurbs that they were originally posted with. More to come, more to come!

"Okay Enough"

So this is one of my personal favorites of our work in the past few months, and its also the first song I attempted to write... Unfortunately, this recording is not only unflattering, but in this quick run through, I really lacked the lyrical punch that this song is normally emphasized by. I suppose for now though, It's "Okay Enough..." ENJOY, and please pass these modest little pieces around like.. well, whatever it is you kids pass around now'a days

"Machines Are Coming (Take Off Your Clothes)"

Me and Sean O'Neill had the privilege of playing at the Trout Lake Country Inn last night! I don't remember much, but I think it went well lol... For the majority of my peoples out there who probably missed it, heres a raw recording of "Machines!"

"Fuck My Life"

Another very raw yet very fun soon-to-be Whiskey Economy classic. It is also a very appropriate Monday song... So here's "Fuck My Life." Next time your in a shit mood, put a smile on and sing about it. More to come, hopefully in a better quality format, but first things first...

"Straight Lounge"

"STRAIGHT LOUNGE," is an attempt to describe my recent experiences living in a rural mountain town, through an urban perspective. It was written in effort to find a common ground between two completely different lifestyles. It was also a way to pay homage to my experiences in Trout Lake, because whether you say the life was "absolutely magnificent," "superb," "baller," "pimptastic," or "straight up gangsta," we all essentially mean the same damn thing... (What ISN'T straight gangsta', was having to record the damn thing in me and Sean's room in the Lodge-Pole Cabins on the ranger compound, but oh well, all the more reason to re-record an amazing music video for this in the future)

"Pick Up Truck"

"Pick Up Truck," is the second song me and Sean O'Neill came up with last summer for our music project, "The Whiskey Economy." It is a song about my magnificent summer in Trout Lake, WA, all the amazing people I met, and of course, all the good times we had hanging out in the back of the pick up truck. Six months later when all was said and done, I was left with a raw version of the song recorded via laptop, a plethora of photographs, and the desire to share this heartfelt song with my friends. Here's what I came up with for a video...
SPECIAL THANKS to Maggie Wallace for helping me with some back up vocals on this tune. People liked 'Pick Up' too much for me to not sing- but as I have learned from the numerous songs I've been working on since then, this one is not quite within my vocal capacity. None the less, it is a fun and very meaningful song for me, so thanks to Maggie for helping me make it a bit prettier, and of course, Sean O'Neill for helping me turn allot of scattered words and sour notes on paper, into a beautiful song...

IN:SITE Web Documentaries for "On and Off Capital," Milwaukee Public Art Project

2011-12-03T22:33:00.000-08:00

Last winter, I spent several months working on a series of web documentaries for an amazing Milwaukee Public Art organization called IN:SITE. The artists and the projects were really amazing, and I was glad to have been a part of such a great experience. These shorts were entirely shot, directed, and produced by me, so it was also an amazing experience in D.I.Y. style film making. My personal favorites were probably Colin Matthes' projects, but they were all really incredible pieces that demonstrated how artists can get involved in the community at large.

IN:SITE Project Overview video

IN:SITE Individual Projects: (artists interview, process, concept)
"MARLA SANVICK"

"COLIN MATTHES"

"SARAH LUTHER"

"PAULA SCHULZE"

"MARLEY GISSER"

Bad Ass Kitten Hoody, from Craft Nights in PDX

2011-12-03T18:10:00.000-08:00

So after I got out of the Americorps gig, I spent two weeks with one of my favorite houses in Portland, the beloved "Craft House." I needed something to work on during their spectacularly entertaining craft nights, so I decided to put kitten ears on my hoody, so I wouldn't have to wait until Halloween to make an ass out of myself every year. Sooooo glad I did!

Thanks for the the guidance Steph, and Jess, I've still got a bit of work to do on the fur, but for the most part, I'm finished. Crafting is so much fun!

"The Last Trail Crew" (Zombie Apocalypse Trailer)

2011-12-03T17:56:00.000-08:00

This is a short trailer I put together with my very own trail crew during a stint of working under the Forest Service in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, in Southern WA. In such a position, you spend allot of time full-pack hiking with dangerous weapons, so naturally, the "what-if" scenario of zombie attacks are a favorite subject in conversation to pass the time. One thing led to another, and we finally decided to turn our playful scenario into a movie trailer that would premiere at the Northwest Service Academy's summer summit.
We had a helluva' time making this short piece, and even with our tireless day jobs on the trails, the Gifford Pinchot zombie trailer came together in only two weeks.

Promotional Video for My Friend, Photographer ROBB QUINN

2011-12-03T17:43:00.000-08:00

Here's a piece I wrote, shot, directed, and edited in 48 hours (without sleep obviously). I did it for a good friend of mine, Robb Quinn. He's traveled around the world doing photography, and learning under some of the greats, and his body of work is most definitely compelling.
If you need some video work done, holla' at me, and maybe we can work something out.

STATEMENT: New Direction For My Happy Little Art Blog

2011-12-03T17:34:00.000-08:00

   So as my vegabond study of the country, and relentless efforts to write a book detailing the accounts therein have been ALL TOO CONSUMING- my wonderful little art blog here has taken a beating for several reasons. Though I haven't had the luxury of a studio life since graduating, art has never even remotely taken a break in my life, it has just shifted accordingly to whatever circumstances I happen to be in during that particular month. Seeing as my focus within art is a somewhat of a "non-focus" in terms of discipline, this seems entirely appropriate. So why should my happy little corner of the net here be put to rest so easily? Well, the truth is, I've often been entirely too busy with life to post. My first blogging rule, is that since I am using it as a platform for my art, I can NOT make the mistake of ever putting the blog before my time to work. I generally never have the urge to do so anyhow, so this isn't a problem. What that does mean however, is that when I'm traveling or working 40, 50, plus hours a week, I'm still getting my art done somewhere in there, but there is not much room to deposit that work here onto the blog. So I've decided I'm going to make things a little easier on myself, by re-claiming the art blog with a new direction. A re-envisioned purpose if you will.
     When I resentfully began blogging toward the end of college, I was determined to use the blog as basically a free website to showcase my work, and present thoughtful process writing and documentation along with it. My posts took forever to create, and though they entailed spending a significant amount of time and effort, I was happy that I could appeal to what I considered a higher literary type of format. Well, sadly folks, that was then, this is now.
     I will still compellingly struggle with over-written, intricate posts that take entirely too much time and effort on my part, but not as much here on the art blog. The fun, flowery, mess of writings are now mostly going to take place on my other blog, "THE LAST GREAT american JOURNEY," which is a smarter move anyhow, as the emphasis of that blog is much more about literature.
So what will become of the art blog here? Well, I'm going to try and use the art blog here, as kind of a directory toward my various projects whether they exist at TLGaJ blog, Youtube, or right here. Basically, what I'm saying, is this blog will become kind of like a regular blog, where I post pictures of work, short descriptions, links to said projects, etc.
     The problem with remaining precious with my postings all the time, is that it has really hindered my ability to simply deliver all the work I've been making, and if the aim of this blog is to put my work out there- then I need to put that goal first and foremost. Though I really look forward to having a studio practice again in the future, my urge to create art in all these crazy places, under all these crazy circumstances, has forced me to really embrace the interdisciplinary approach to art that I have come to know and love. I need to make sure I'm sharing all that with you, so if it entails lazy posting with little to no writing, then that's what I'll do.
That being said, hopefully I can get some extra mileage out of using this blog as a depository for the different avenue's that I'm pursuing.
   Here goes...

My Humorous Yet Critical Article on Lady GaGa for LAUGH.PL, a Polish-American Media Website

2011-07-11T00:19:00.000-07:00

Hello my wonderful friends! I've been keeping busy working on a trail crew in Trout Lake Washington for Americorps, as well as whoring myself out on my days off doing miscellaneous labor for locals, and cooking at the "Trout Lake Country Inn." I don't have time to go into details right now, but keep up with my other blog "THE LAST GREAT american JOURNEY" to find out more about this amazing experience.
In the meantime, here's an article/essay about Lady GaGa that I wrote for my good friend Marcin's website in Poland. Check it out, and please let me know what you think. I haven't gotten any feedback whatsoever, and I'm really dying to know what your thoughts are about the writing.

HERES THE LINK:
"The GaGa Phenomenon, and Why We Can't Seem To Look Away," By Joseph R. Reeves

Joseph R. Reeves: Art at a Glance (interview for "C E N T E R" gallery opening)

2011-05-27T18:15:00.000-07:00

"The Weight of the World On My Shoulders" Milwaukee Performance Art Showcase 2010:

2011-03-16T18:51:00.000-07:00

For Milwaukee's 2010 Performance Art Showcase, I developed a stamina driven performance piece that entailed me attempting to hold a television bearing the struggling image of my face, over my head for the 2 hour duration of the show. This piece was unlike any media/performance work I've done in the past, and looking back now, I can honestly say that I was quite relieved to have had a nurse on staff at the show. After the course of the event, I was sick as a dog, and the pain I had the remainder of the week, was a constant reminder of the creative "burden" that this piece is suggesting an artist must bear.

I won't say much more than that, except to urge you to read the artists statement, and check out the short clip below.

Enjoy!

"THE WEIGHT OF THE WORLD ON MY SHOULDERS,"

is, in many senses, a live depiction of failure. The performance attempts to emphasize the inevitable struggle involved with achievement, as opposed to the literal product, or outcome, that one might be struggling to achieve. To this extent, the performance questions the importance of the actual 'outcome' in an artists' practice, by publicly displaying my inability to physically 'succeed' in bearing the weight of the television.

The fact that this impossible weight is bearing my struggling image as a focal point- alludes to the extent in which I pursue my career as an artist, and directly suggests that my own maniacally driven efforts, might very well be the cause of my failures, while still synchronously prevailing as the source of my accomplishments.

By consciously plotting this certain failure, I am ironically framing my shortcomings as a final product. The resulting efforts aim to display a visceral sense of human frailty, and weakness- while at the same time- suggesting a certain extent of triumph, if only purely through my ambitious efforts to foil my own attempts at failure.

In this sense, I am playing off of an ever-circling dichotomy suggesting that: to fail in achievement, is still, at the very least, to succeed in failing.

If only they'd taught me that back in elementary school, I'd have been prepared for the world...

Long time friend, collaborator, and colleague Dylan Zalewski handles the camera, and keeps an eye on the general performance. Having majored in acting, he's in charge of making sure dip-shit artist folk like myself maintain my performance stamina. Thanks Buddy!

Everyone knows where I'd be without the lovely Miss Chastaine Tallon- rotting in a gutter somewhere! This performance was no different. Thanks a million Chass!

Chassy's grueling task was to mop the sweat from my face periodically, and then neatly hang them on the "Free Souvenir" wall. The theme of the show was "Souvenirs," and as you could probably guess, the act of offering them to the public for free- though theatrically appealing- did not seem to prompt much interest in getting the audience to actually take home some of my sweat as a memento of the performance. Oh well, more sweat rags for me. You'll be sorry you didn't take one when I'm auctioning them on e-bay for a thousand bucks a piece!!

MENTIONS FROM THE PRESS:

So although the show reviews were a bit fluffier than they were critical, the show, as well as my piece, at least garnered some attention from the media. The numerous mentions helped give the show exposure, and I was happy that the writers were apparently intrigued with the concept of my piece. As an eager emerging artist, I'll take what I can get!

Third Coast Digest (preview):

The pieces in the showcase vary from light to weighty, from wordless to a scream, with lots of audience participation. Some pieces are twists on acts from traditional carnivals. Rather than a typical weightlifter, Joseph R. Reeves will be representing the struggle of his artistic endeavors by holding the massive weight of his ego as an artist above his head for two hours...

Third Coast Digest:

…John Loscuito and Pegi Christiansen are organizing their fifth such showcase. Among the many attractions is conceptual weightlifter Joseph R. Reeves. Reeves will hold the massive weight of his artistic ego over his head for two hours. He must be strong. Reeves’ act fits the five-tent, 15-booth carnival format of the showcase. Free-will donation at the door ($5 suggested, $3 for students)...

Shepherd Express:

John Schneider, an inspirational multi-disciplinary artist whom I was lucky enough to interview and meet during the "My Vote Performs" project wrote:

…I know only two of the artists. Theresa Columbus, the endearing former impresario of Milwaukee’s main performance art venue Darling Hall, returns from Baltimore to perform “The Artist Statement” about her struggle to compose one. Filmmaker Joe Reeves, his back to us as he faces a camera, will reveal “the massive weight of his ego” via his televised face as he supports the screen on his shoulder for two hours.

Third Coast Digest:

…Here’s one I can identify with: artist Joseph R. Reeves will hold his ego above his head for two hours, which is way longer than most of the artists I know can. Actually, the ones I know wear their egos on their sleeves, no offense intended….

ART FROM THE ROAD: Experimenting with Bamboo Skewers and Super Glue

2010-12-15T16:42:00.000-08:00

Ever since I left the familiar walls of my beloved studio space in search of the "American Dream" over a year ago, I have missed the aspect of "play," that I once fondly nurtured in my work by experimenting with new materials, and pushing the boundaries of their unique tendencies. I feel this is an important part of my process when physically creating art, and I feel that much of my sculptural work is inherently based off of this method of experimentation and play.
When I came across the photo's of this piece that was created while living in a back yard in Portland this summer, I thought it might be worth sharing with you lovely folks. It was created while living in one of the back yards that we were lucky enough to camp out in (thanks Nina, Sarah, Corey, and Erica!). I happened to come across some super cheap bamboo skewers at a local Japanese market down the street, and I decided they might be worth picking up and playing around with. Obviously, they are akin to much of my work with spaghetti and super glue.
We departed before I could really develop anything substantial, but more importantly, is that I was able to test the materials bonding potential in a fairly rough environment, get a sense of the aesthetics that might organically develop, and perhaps most importantly- have some fun.
Who knows where it goes from here...

WEEKLY PICS! New Photography From My Vaults of Hard-drives

2010-11-27T06:27:00.000-08:00

A fine hello, and how-do-you-do to all my esteemed colleagues out there, and hell, even you too. I continue with my customary excuse line, "I've been sooo busy with all these other projects, and yada yada yada...." the thing is though, this time, I'm not lying. I've been cooped up editing a series of documentary's for IN:SITE, a local "temporary public-art" organization here in good 'ol Milwaukee, and though I really am loving it- its beginning to make me a little nutty. If that isn't bad enough, I haven't even had the time to indulge in my usual remedy for imbalance- ART ITSELF!

So in an effort to keep this monkey dancing for y'all, and to mindlessly keep the spotlight on little old me- I've decided its finally time to start giving you fine people some of the photography work I've been selfishly hoarding for myself on hard-drive, upon hard-drives, upon hard-drives. Seriously though, I have 4 hard drives now, and at least 20,000 photographs that I've been stock piling!

Some are good, most are bad, all are fun. No matter what the outcome though, at the end of the day, I've learned a ton about photography purely through trial and error. So in an effort to keep the blog moving, and to step away from being too "precious" about what I put up, I've made a nifty new little segment called WEEKLY PICS. I am going to put no rules on what I put up, so we'll see what happens. It should also be taken into consideration that I'm trying to make these brief posts, so I'm going to go ahead and shut the hell up now. This way, during my "busier" weeks, I can still give you something new.
Experimental? Documentary? Fine Art? Portrait? Fashion? We'll see what I feel like picking, enjoy!

"Geyorg Rafailidis Warming In the Sun"
(taken from a series of photography, documenting visiting Berlin artists Georg Rafailidis and Stephanie Davidson, installing their heat-sensitive public art project, on the North side of Milwaukee)

"White Box On Urban Pedestal"

"Looking Up"

"Ross Bernard in: a Bar-lit Youth"
(taken from a small, spontaneous, series of portrait studies with long time friend, Ross)

"Ross Bernard in: Who Told You You Could Eat MY Cookies?!"

"Ross Bernard in: Tell Me Judith, Who the Hell is Stan?!"

"Ross Bernard in: Some Help From the Good Angel"

"Byron's Kicks: Off the Hook!"

"Untitled"
(taken from the "Studies in Light and Motion" series)

"The Floorboards of Amerika"

2010-11-09T06:55:00.000-08:00

This is a piece that I actually did very early in my pursuits as a sculptor, and as it is much earlier work for me, it has been admittedly neglected in my efforts to give it a presence in the public realm. No more of that nonsense though, right? I'm beginning to shift my thoughts on
how a blog should function, and instead of making this site an overly formal "online portfolio" that only exists because I can't afford a website, I'm going to embrace the format as one that shows much more than just my "best" work. It's going to be tough for me, as I am very picky- but I think I can do it. Anyways...

The piece is titled "The Floorboards of Amerika," and it is a mixed media sculpture consisting of wood, and painted plexi-glass. The symbolism in this piece is much simpler than obvious, and unlike much of my sculpture work, the piece really draws upon formal concerns of aesthetics, as opposed to conceptual challenges. Although simple, I really do think the piece is composed thoughtfully with regards to both metaphor and aesthetic.

My disregard to the sculpture as being very "early work," and the subsequent lack of attention I gave it, had recently prodded a very ironic outcome in a gallery show this last summer. I was showing a handful of brand new pieces at a gallery event in Milwaukee, and as the curators had some extra space, they suggested I fill it. Without expectation, I decided to grab "The Floorboards of Amerika," because most of my other work was not able to be transported on such short notice. I put a fairly modest price on it for the night, and to my surprise, one of Milwaukee's most prestigious collectors happened to be there, and happened to LOVE the piece. I was elated to say the least.

He put a "SOLD" tag on the piece, and I drank more then a few extra whiskey sours that night. As it turned out, I was given his information, and had no luck getting ahold of him before I departed for the west coast for the summer. When I returned several months later, I contacted him, and he claimed that he was not in the financial position to buy any pieces at that time.

So, short story long: "The Floorboards of Amerika" is still for sale, and I also learned a valuable lesson. Don't underestimate ANY of your work, and don't trust collectors ha ha!

"All The Stars In The Sky (1843 to be exact)"

2010-11-04T12:14:00.000-07:00

In an effort to exercise the "wit of brevity," I will keep my writing to a minimum on this piece. You may recognize this concept from one of my earlier studies here on the blog, one that WAS written about. Since its back a few pages, I'll spare you the hassle of having to go through everything, and I'll just include the link here:

"All The Stars," small scale study, and concept writing

The actual large scale implementation that you see above, was aesthetically developed as a result to the conditions by which it was created. Basically, I decided I would use only 3 blue sharpie's for the whole piece, and however many stars I could get out of those three, would determine the scope of the project. If they were still running strong, I would still be working on this piece. As it happened, I made a total of 1843 stars before all three sharpies died, and yes I did keep track of them.

Although it is a simple concept, I like that the outcome is determined by my initial decisions/restrictions. I am working on a whole series of these pieces, using different methods to determine the somewhat randomized outcome i.e. one canvas, I may decide to draw 10,000 stars, and whatever it looks like at 10,000, is the final product. If your intrigued by the concept, be sure to check out the extensive writing found a few pages back, on the small scale study. In the meantime, here's some fun process photo's.

Much more to come y'all! Most of my recent work has yet to be posted, so I'm going to just bite the bullet and start posting a bit sloppier writing in favor of "getting-er-done," as many so fondly put it...

"Eyes On The Prize," Screened Live At Milwaukee's Firestarter Film Festival

2010-10-22T16:28:00.000-07:00

This is a piece I did for the "Firestarter Film Festival" competition, that is difficult to describe. If I HAD to, I would say the piece is mostly about the process of me actually making the movie within the 24 hours of the festival, and more specifically, me humorously playing off of my desire to win the festivals competition prizes.

The criteria said that the piece needs to be 2 minutes (something which I pretty much failed to do), and that it be about "Snow." Since I started AND finished the piece within the 24 hours before the festival had taken place, the last snowfall in Milwaukee was long gone, and I ended up using "Snow" as merely a reference point for my failing to meet the specified guidelines. The subject matter in it's entirety, began to reference itself in both process, and intent- ALSO, I managed to have some fun razzing the Festivals creators Shawn Monaghan, and Phil Koch- a point which was purely in good fun, and successfully worked as a subversive contrast to how IDIOTICALLY I portray myself in comparison; a humorous allusion to the age old artist vs. curator tension.
In the end, I created a piece that was about a competition that I didn't even rightfully qualify for; the important thing though, is that I had a hell of a time making it, and I somehow found a way to make the success of my piece, be based on the reality of its failure. As an artist and filmmaker, I am always trying to challenge the boundaries of each medium, by using one to aggressively confront the other- something that I think I also found success with in this work
From the beginning to the end (not counting credits, OR the short excerpt AFTER the "End" title) the piece STILL stands about 2 minutes and 35 seconds. What can I say, I just don't know when to quit.
Thanks to Shawn, Phil, and Firestarter Films for giving me a venue to show, an audience to watch, and another excuse to continue creating ridiculously fun works of video art!

You can also view this on YouTube

"The Cell Phone Photo Gallery," Curated By Joseph R. Reeves

2010-07-11T15:59:00.000-07:00

So, for the very humble hand full of people that have been faithfully following my various endeavors within art, writing, and film- you may recall my very first installation of "The Cell Phone Photo Gallery," that was cooked up my senior year at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, well over a year ago. At the time, I was very excited about the concept itself, and entirely pleased with the small scale version of it that I was able to install. Since then, I had kept it in the forefront of my mind, as a project that needed to be given its full extent of potential, as soon as I could find a space large enough to host the show.

Over a year later, after having done a substantial amount of traveling, and living on the road while working on the in-process manuscript for THE LAST GREAT american JOURNEY; I had returned to milwaukee to work for a month or two, in efforts to collect some cash to continue my traveling (I am in Eugene, OR. as I type this, and Portland bound by tomorrow). During my prolific little stint in Milwaukee, I did everything that I couldn't do on the road, and I pushed my studio practice to the fullest, almost always working large scale- mostly because it's not an option when you're living out of your back pack. Out of the whole batch of work, my biggest accomplishment, was definitely the full scale implementation of "The Cell Phone Photo Gallery."

It just so happened that during my time in Milwaukee, a serendipitous little happening took place, that randomly ended up getting me a job with iNViDiA DESIGN. Since these guys had the means to support a show of this caliber, I immediately began forming an in depth proposal. The extensive 8 page proposal outlined the budget, construction, implementation, and any/all otherdetails concerning the show.

I must've done something right, because the proposal was accepted, and I had just over a month to collect the photo's, and build a gallery for the humungous, pillar-lined Pritzlaff building. I was very grateful that M.A.R.S./iNViDiA was willing to give me the space I needed.

By using social networking devices such as text messaging, and Facebook, I was able to generate allot of interest in the show, and even more importantly, I was able to boost the number of submissions a bit. The main efforts we put forth with our highly modest budget, were in pounding the pavement, hitting the street, and littering Milwaukee with fliers requesting that people submit us their favorite cell phone photos for the gallery. An important aspect of my approach, was that all the photographs would remain entirely anonymous, and pretty much anything was acceptable as content.

Opening these subversive possibilities up to complete strangers, was intriguing to me, because in a sense, it gives a very broad audience, a certain amount of control over the content as a whole. In this way, my role as "curator," is both loose, and debatable. To this extent, I believe I am working towards the idea of using curating, as a medium in itself.

I collected over 600 pictures for The Cell Phone Photo Gallery, and I see this project, as one that will continue to develop through the years. As I continue to travel, I am beginning to flirt with the notion of collecting photos regionally, but like usual, I will make those decisions as they come.

The idea of representing the photos eventually in a book, is also a possibility- if you're interested in providing me with space for a show, or are interested in the possibilities of seeing this idea in print, e mail JOSEPHREEVESART@YAHOO.COM

I could sit here and elaborate on this exhibition till the cows come home, but to a certain extent, I feel like doing so, would limit the convenient elbow room I left you for contemplation- so, UN-like a curator, I am going to shut the hell up, and let you do some inventing. No short cuts to thinking around here folks, sorry.

If you'd like to read some more about the concept, check out the original posting of the small scale version- if you click on "CURATING" on the side bar here, under categories, it's probably the only other piece I have under that heading, but hell, who knows. It was interesting for me to go back to, maybe it will be for you too.

THANKS SOOOOO MUCH:

to Chastaine Tallon, Austin Gardener, and Brian Olsen, who assisted me in the major construction of the show, the printing of the pictures, and the distribution of the fliers. Their efforts were crucial to the successful outcome of this event, and I am forever grateful.

The awesome graphic design for the fliers, was compliments of Chastaine Tallon. Chassy specializes in collaborating with artists, so anyone in need of a thoughtful, intelligent, designer that understands the art of design, I highly recommend her services. E-mail me if you need her contact info.

A final thank you, goes to M.A.R.S., for giving me the space to have this show. If it weren't for their trust in my proposal, and their support of my concept, this show couldn't have happened.

"Waste Not Want Not" (mixed media/video)

2010-07-10T18:19:00.000-07:00

As I look through my blog, I am realizing I need to be less wordy. I will do my best to bear my soul with you, while still being at least somewhat concise. Here goes...

In this repetitive, callus forming, performance-esque video piece, I took the simple line "Waste Not, Want Not," and I wrote each word, individually, taking up a whole sheet of paper per word. I naughtily went through quite a bit of paper in my repetitive action, in fact, I spent about twelve hours straight doing this, while also recording various shots for the video portion of the piece.

The video itself, wasn't as developed as some of my previous work, but I still wouldn't hesitate to share it with you, except... well... its a serious pain in my ass, that I am quite frankly, not up for. I'm a busy man.

I was still pretty pleased with the reactions I was getting from viewers. For some reason- probably how blatantly UN-marketable video art is- I decided to put a 50,000 dollar price tag on it, and even farther, a requirement that the buyer gives me a polaroid of them hugging me in front of the piece while smiling. The reactions to this were comical.

My favorite thing to do at gallery shows, is to conspicuously hang out near viewers, acting like I am just another gallery-goer, and listen to what they say about my work. After a moment or so, I usually shake my head in disgust, and tell them, "It's ridiculous what passes for art now a'days..." and wait for their response.

The professors in my head were all criticizing me, saying that making that move with the price, would certainly be compromising aspects of my own artwork, but, for some reason, I was compelled to do it anyway.

Ok, I'm done.

"All The Stars In The Sky," Drawn in Ball-Point Pen (Small Scale Study #1)

2010-01-09T16:24:00.000-08:00

Upon returning recently from my latest adventures throughout sunny Florida, I have had the privilege of satisfying my urges to push quantities of work in an attempt to whet my more-so (recently) mania driven appetite in the realm of visual arts. This is not only because my "traditional" studio practice isn't quite as feasible to maintain outside the studio and on the road, but because of my tendencies to work several pieces at once, and to explore relative concepts that come to me organically and satisfy a certain physical or psychological need within me. Put another way, I don't work on a piece if I don't have the literal need to work on it; similarly to the way a person wouldn't make love or masturbate without the urge to do so.
That being said, it can be observed with practicality that I would return on such a trip that forces me to be exhausting more internal facets of creativity such as writing, poetry, note taking, meditation, photography, etc.; and now feel the need to work aggressive, experimental, physical, and visually oriented works.
Similarly to some of my more meditative work, this piece almost develops aesthetically from within the first marks of its original conception, and is only loosely controlled through the implementation of the process.
Essentially, I very quickly drew and re-drew the simple five lined star that we all learn to make in kindergarten- I did this over and over again using a variety of sizes from one inch stars, to one foot stars, and repeated this for a few hours every single day. Not only did this provide an insightful opportunity for aesthetic development and reflection at the end of every days session, but it provided a certain time slot for me to relax my tensions in the frustrations of art-making by venting creatively.
Many have likened this quality to some of my work as therapeutic, and suggested that I work more toward that field (art therapy), however; although I do not work against, or deny this observation- why must any/all other facets of art be lacking this self healing quality? I was led to believe very early, that this was always a major function of art, no matter what your subject, medium, or intent are. I hope we do not begin to compartmentalize this healthy function of art as a new trend or movement, but conversely- strive to fulfill that personal importance as an asset to any artists working philosophy, whether someone paints a vase, a figure, a circle, or a wall.
I will continue to work off of what was observed in this smaller scale study (2'x2'), and am already considering how I will go about making these into large scale pieces. Since I used only one blue ball point pen, on a scrap board painted over in house paint- I have allot of decisions to consider when making the leap to large scale.
No matter what I decide for the future works, I cannot help but be amazed in the beauty of the single star itself, and then the resulting pattern created by obsessive repetition, and aggressive spontaneity.

A Simple form, untactfully placed;
sequentially repeated, the unit erased-
marriage of function, disparage of form,
essentially deforming the symbol first born.

dramatic reformation is creative masturbation.
clean up your mess, it is time to embrace
this curious new form.

Taken From Joseph R Reeves Esq.
(The Life, The Writings, and the Essential Life Writings of Joseph R Reeves Esq: p.26, par.4, WPP. '09)

THE FIRST TREE I'VE EVER MADE!

2009-12-16T19:48:00.000-08:00

If you like this and other pieces, you should know that many of my current pieces are created on the road, as I am writing "THE LAST GREAT american NOVEL-" Be sure to follow this blog, it is my main priority currently (in the world of blogging that is)
The link is a few posts below, and on the side of the site this site as well- it can be found at:
http://www.thelastgreatamericanjourney.blogspot.com/

It was a bit frustrating being in Jacksonville NC- a Marine town with nothing to do at all, AND, Brian and Mark were working most days. I stayed productive initially by writing for the novel until midnight most days, and then pounding cheap beer with Brian until 3 or 4 and passing out, and then doing it all over again. I did get a bunch of work done on the novel, and I actually don't mind that sort of life- but after about a week I realized there was something missing in my life- I was feeling unfulfilled.
I decided to stop staring at my computer screen for hours on end, unless I was ACTUALLY writing, and decided to change out of Marks sweatpants, and go walk around outside.
It was a beautiful day out, and there were these wonderfully cute little lizzards running around all over the place. I began to go explore the back of the camper, and ended up just playing around with the nature that I saw, which eventually got me thinking about what kinds of art I could make out of it. The way I approached it reminded me of being a kid, and how much time I spent just goint and "playing" in the woods. The revitalization of that spirit began to inspire me, and as I came across a big dead tree that had fallen, I started to jump around on it, trying to get a nice piece to break off. After propping it up on a rock, and finally jumping onto it with a snap- I had a nice length of wood that I could carve or do SOMETHING with, I just wasn't sure what.
I sat there among nature and just looked at it and thought. Although I have always enjoyed earthworks, and natural installations, and that type of thing- I don't often see new concepts being explored; most of the time it is using elements found in nature, and arranging them in an eye pleasing composition. With that in mind, I began to think of how futile an effort that can seem be in comparison to the authentic beauty of nature. Put another way, nature in itself, is so inspiring that artists most often times use fragments of it as a medium to make something that is "MADE OF NATURE" but is no longer "Natural" or within the context of "Nature."
I thought about it over the next night, and when I approached the sad dead log, I suddenly had an idea. What if I could bring this dead log back to life? although I found a certain beauty in it already, I began to wonder if I could make this a "REAL" tree again. Along with this notion, is also a certain trickery that always appeals to me. The idea that I could "FORGE" a tree, or "FALSIFY" nature, began to intrigue me as a challenge.
I ran back to Marks trailer, and grabbed a pair of scissors, a box of toothpicks, and the fold-up marine standard shovel that he had given me for my trip. The results, are not too bad for my first try, and my limited materials. Although we left Jacksonville before I could really put some touches on that tree that would fool anyone- I am pleased with how far I was able to push it, and will be trying to invent new trees and plants now as I continue my travels.
A really great part about the process, is how meditative and reflective it really is to try and replicate nature in such a literal sense. It is not only a humbling experience, but it gives you a sense of inferiority that is intriguing to use as a challenge against yourself, and is at the same time, an aspect that contributes to the way you appreciate nature that isnt invented by wacky traveling artists such as myself.
the day before I departed from Jacksonville, I was overjoyed when a neighbor came over and asked- as if astounded- if we had a magnolia tree growing on the side of the trailer.

"ONE BOX OF TOOTH-PICKS" (In the process of becoming: "1000 BOXES OF TOOTH-PICKS")

2009-12-16T19:34:00.000-08:00

So as I was staring at the Computer screen writing for hours and days on end- I started to go a little crazy, and needed some fun relief that could serve as another form of artistic release- thus, the toothpick sculptures were born!
I made it as far as One box of toothpics before I left NC, but you just wait and see- someday, this will be a large-scale outdoor sculpture! Think of how crazy it would be if I could get 1000 boxes of toothpicks together! What fun!!!

Start small, and be patient!

If you like this and other pieces, you should know that many of my current pieces are created on the road, as I am writing "THE LAST GREAT american NOVEL-" Be sure to follow this blog, it is my main priority currently (in the world of blogging that is)The link is a few posts below, and on the side of the site this site as well- it can be found at:http://www.thelastgreatamericanjourney.blogspot.com/

New Glitter Porn Pieces, AND Fun Process Pics!

2009-10-23T05:28:00.000-07:00

As simple of a concept as these glitter pieces really can seem, there is conversely, a level of depth to their presence, as well as their depiction. Strangely enough, I found myself spending alot of time in choosing these photos out of porno magazines- not for personal reasons believe it or not, but for finding exactly perfect images. Not perfect in any sort of superficial sense either- I was seeking images in which the female model was displaying not only a sense of control or dominance over the male objects, but also striking eye contact, and an intense expression that evokes a disarming sense of intimacy, lust, and voyeurism when confronting the viewer.
The pieces are done on 4' x4' panels, so the relatively large scale is also confrontational in its essence. Although the content is considerably offensive, and the images are quite 'loaded' with possible meanings- I am trying to use the push/pull of imagery versus material, in the same way that I am trying to illustrate the contrast between natural, intimate, human behaviors; and the silliness of our demoralizing, hypocritical, degradation of these same such images publicly.
Would you think I'm a pervert if I said I thought these images were sexy?
Instinct, curiousity, human nature, and pleasure- all seem to be direct contradictions to societal expectations- these pieces are just an extension of some of those never ending human struggles.
Don't worry mom, I do OTHER things with my art too.
Because of my avid documentation practice, I got a bunch of fun photographs during my working too! I just cant do one damn thing at a time I guesss...

New Spaghetti Composition!

2009-10-02T12:16:00.000-07:00

What can I say, I just cant stop with the spaghetti art. So much of my other work is so very different than this, but what the hell, if I enjoy doing it, what more justification should I need? Of course as a professional artist, its much more complex than all that in my head- but does it need to be? Can art validly JUST be pretty? I find alot more than just that in my thoughts as I make these pieces, but maybe most valuable to me, is the solitude I find when engaging in these precise compositions. This variation of my 'spaghetti series' in particular, brings me back to perspective drawing, and as always with my spaghetti pieces, I can't get over how cheap it is to make such beautiful pieces using only superglue and spaghetti. Sure, maybe its no breakthrough in contemporary conceptual art- but give it some time!

SENIOR THESIS EXHIBITION

2009-09-14T16:56:00.000-07:00

This was the piece that I did for MIAD's Senior Exhibition '09. It was a huge success for me personally, and I was fortunate enough to have been given "Best of Show," for the Integrated Studio Arts major- a personal goal that I had in my mind since my freshman year at MIAD.
The piece developed into a merge of video, sculpture, and performance; and was based largely on concepts of personal reflection, intensity of process, and perceptual relativity. For the final few weeks leading up to the senior show, I spent most hours day and night, drawing circles in phonebooks. I would start with a rather large circle, and I would continue drawing that circle with a pen, until eventually I would draw through the entire phone book. I did this with nearly 20 phonebooks, and after the second or third phone book, I even had a developed understanding of how to control the aesthetic outcome of each phonebook i.e. swithching pen types, colors, or the angle of my hand. The result was that the books themselves b
egan to have a beautiful layering of pristine colors, almost like what a jaw-breaker looks like if cut in half.
In the space that I was given, I projected a video of me that was split screen. half of the video displayed an emphasis of my facial expressions while drawing these repetitive circles, and the other half was a close up of the phonebook being drawn through. Along with the screen, was the embellished acoustical presence of the circles being drawn over and over again- a strangely dominant factor in the hypnotic tone of the space.
In the very center of the space, was a large wooden circle that I attained as a result of drawing a circle all the way through the wall using MANY MANY pens! Using the circle as a platform, I arranged the meticulously collected circles from the center of each phonebook on top of the wall circle, and placed them in front of the projection of myself and the phonebooks.
Finally, I placed 6 unmarked pedestals throughout the exhibition, and I displayed the actual phonebooks themselves, in small groups on these 6 pedestals. The intent of this placement, was to draw attention to the strange un-named phonebooks as objects, and to allow viewers to question not only WHY they were oddly placed throughout the exhibition, or WHAT the significance of this was- but also HOW had these strange objects been constructed.
By seperating the unexplained physical objects from my actual space in the exhibition, people were led through a series of questions that they would not normally be forced to consider. By seeing the recurring object a few times on their way to the 4th floor gallery, they had the object in the back of their head- THEN, upon seeing my space, and finding the video installation as well as the presentation of the phonebook centers- viewers were prompted to put together the puzzle, and were lead to discover the answer of HOW exactly the pieces were constructed. This helped to emphasize the great deal of meticulousness that pertained to the construction of the pieces, and added to an even greater appreciation of these objects on the way back out of the gallery when viewers would again come across the object with a newly found sense of appreciation.

THE LAST GREAT american NOVEL

2009-09-14T14:18:00.000-07:00

I feel like a pretentious bastard to say this, but I am writing THE LAST GREAT american NOVEL. Really now though, I am. I will be leaving on the 22nd of SEPT, and will be going on a one year trip to CALIFORNIA. Me and my two partners in crime, DYLAN ZYLEWSKI, and BRIAN OLSEN- are leaving Milwaukee with an enormous van, my parents pop-up camper, about a thousand bucks, and all the necessary implements of destruction we will need to survive and create art along the way.
It is sure to be the adventure of a lifetime, and along with the intent of moving to California and fleeing from the Milwaukee winter time- is the intent to write a novel based on the experiences we have along the way. We have a few people in a few states that we will visit, but for the most part, the journey is entirely improvisational. We most certainly do not have enough money, and part of the adventure will be having to find random jobs along the way.
A blogspot much like this one, has been created to detail EVERY aspect of the trip as it unfolds. This is including a list of our materials along the way, random thoughts or observations, character profiles of people we meet on the road, future/current plans, updated financial details, excerpts of the in process novel as well as various other photography, writing, sculpture, drawing- basically, the blog will serve as an interactive format for others to monitor our travels, our adventure, and our thoughts at the time. PLEASE CHECK THIS BLOG OUT! I PROMISE WE WILL KEEP IT UPDATED ALMOST DAILY! ALSO, I have already posted the first draft of the PREFACE on this site. It can be seen at: www.THELASTGREATamericanJOURNEY.blogs pot.com

BRIAN OLSEN a.k.a. "B.O."
DYLAN ZYLEWSKI a.k.a. "D- MONEY"

Joseph R. Reeves a.k.a "Joseph R. Reeves Esq."

DONT FORGET TO FOLLOW AND MARK THIS BLOG! ONCE AGAIN, THE SITE IS:
www.THELASTGREATamericanJOURNEY.blogspot.com

Installment #1 of "CELL PHONE PHOTO GALLERY" (curated by Joseph R. Reeves Esq.)

2009-09-12T17:22:00.000-07:00

The "CELL PHONE PHOTO GALLERY," is an idea concocted by currator Joseph R. Reeves Esq. with the fueling notion behind it, to take any curratorial decisions based opon personal opinion in both aesthetic and professional senses- and throw them out with the trash! This is a gallery opportunity for the everyday american who ALMOST DEFINITELY has a phone with a camera on it (even my mom has one).
By relieving this curratorial power from the hands of the gallery, we can see for once, an honest show of photography that reveals not only what the average person wants to see in a gallery, but the converse agenda of contributers who expose photos annonymously in an unintentional effect of revealing exactly HOW ELSE camera phones are being used. No matter what variation of personal meaning the unknown 'artists' ACTUALLY have when contributing their photos, the actual treatment of these works in a serious gallery context- and among clusters of many many other cell phone photos- strangely transforms these beautiful, odd, humerous, and always interesting photographs into something you might find in a fine art photo show normally. This also leads to a beautiful and transformative reality for the everyday american, to understand that art is anything, and anywhere; and the term artist, is really just an umbrella term.
Another key aspect of this piece for me, is using the idea of curating as a medium almost. I littered my target areas with fliers that asked people to send their favorite cell phone photos to me, and I gave them my number and e mail to either send it via e mail, or simply by sending it directly to my phone. The ease of contributing to this photo show is what made it so successfull, I got about 150 submissions in 2 days!!!
I plan to continue putting fliers up around the united states as I travel for the next year, and hopefully, one year from now I will have a MASSIVE cell phone photo gallery showing that will take place. Ideas for a book of the ongoing collection are also in the works. E mail me with suggestions or contributions! WWW.JOEMAMMAXX23@yahoo.com.
Here are a few of the raw photos too!

Duct Tape Form

2009-09-11T11:15:00.000-07:00

I was a bit burned out on some other projects one day, so I decided to go to the corner store, buy a roll of duct tape, and see what kind of forms I could create by just playing around with the material. I really do have far too much fun with my art for it to be considered work! Anyways, as I played around with the material, and built this cute little button of ribbons on the wall- I began to envision a duct tape button that would nearly fill a room! This is the result of one or two rolls of tape. Along with many many many other experiments, this will be put in my to-do pile of future projects. Anyone know of someone who might want to donate a thousand rolls of duct-tape?? Just thought I'd ask...

Repitition and meditation

2009-06-23T14:10:00.000-07:00

This piece was a continuation of a major aspect of my senior thesis project, and although the piece seems quite simple, the concept was what intrigued me most. Every day, for one week, I would take a half hour to stop and sit in front of this 4'x4' panel, and for that half hour, I would simply draw this large circle with permanant marker over and over again. Although the task seems redundant, I found very much peace and clarity of mind within this daily half hour excercise. This gave the piece an important meditative function within my studio, and as the circle developed, what began as simple and repetitive, developed very quickly into a very beautiful and self evolving aesthetic. I believe the circle itself, and the mark making used in this piece, evoke a similar feeling to viewers that was present in my mind when I was creating the work.

Another Spaghetti Installation

2009-03-03T20:28:00.000-08:00

Just a continuation of my never ending spaghetti exploration, what else is there to say?

The Emancipation of Sunny Leone (glitter and glue painting)

2009-03-03T19:04:00.000-08:00

This is a pornographic scene from a magazine that I translated onto a 4'x4' piece of scrap paneling, and painted with elmers glue and glitter. Yes, the same method you use when you are in grade school making cards for mommy. Aside from the obvious irony of process/method vs. subject/content- there was a certain glamourous confrontation the work challenged the viewer with. I was in my own way, attempting to make this image something that people would look at, and maybe be able to challenge certain societal and psychological contradictions that we exist within. I could maybe even go so far as to say, that I was attempting to make this image something people might be able to stretch themselves into admitting could be beautiful in some way. Isn't it fair to assume, that an average viewer has most likely found themselves in a similar experience of that which I am depicting? Should it be a moral dilemma if you might even find that this picture is arousing? Instinct, curiousity, human nature, and pleasure- all seem to be direct contradictions to societal expectations- this piece was just an extension of some of those never ending debates that I personally will have no problem admitting to.

Flucking Flamazing! thats right, THE FLA- BONGO!!! (coming to a store near you!)

2009-03-03T10:31:00.000-08:00

Ok, well this goes back to my video 1 class, and is one of the first video pieces, so forgive some of the lacking technological lustre. It really becomes aperant to me at points in this short piece, how my editing skills have improved, but also- how in many ways, I have maintained a similar editing process, rhythm, and style. As you may find in much of my work, it is very humorous- and if your wondering- yes, the Fla- Bongo really does work.

Pissing Video Installation

2009-03-03T09:30:00.000-08:00

Of course, give me a projector and a camera to play around with, and you know I'll find a way to get into trouble somehow. In this simple "one liner" type video installation, I recorded myself appearing to urinate on a door- nothing conceptually challenging, but definitely appealing to my sense of transgression as well as the recurring subject of deviancy and youth that can be found in much of my pieces. In the original installation of this piece, I projected the video to actually match up with the door seen in the video- which is in a functioning hallway of the school. The other aspect of this piece was that in its originally intended context, I had poured water all over the hallways, so before seeing the deviant character- you would wonder why you were stepping through puddles. It was a fun piece for me to create, and I will be the first to argue anyone who says that good art cannot be humorous.

Runway models captured in motion

2009-03-03T08:20:00.000-08:00

These are some photographs I had taken a while back, when I was working with the notion of the fashion industry as a subject for study in fine arts, as opposed to commercial appeal. The dramatic lighting, and the idea that these models were supposed to be advertising their apparel; was what encouraged me to have a little bit more fun with the shooting- maybe they had nice clothing, but in all honesty, I was not paying attention. I was very drawn to the theatrics, the physical gestures, and the confidence behind their sexual prowess. In the photographs I was both attempting to capture the physical gestures of their choreographed movements, as well as their powerfully proclaimed feminine stance. I experimented with the more technical elements of photography here, in order to achive a dramatic sense of motion; almost like taking 10 pictures in 1 second, but being allowed to see them all at once.

"Life is an Envelope" (created by Dylan Zalewski)

2009-03-02T15:02:00.000-08:00

This entertaining little DIY performance piece, was shot, written and performed by Dylan Zalewski; I actually had NOTHING to do with this piece, but I really enjoy the simple non edited process that Dylan applied (just pointing recording, and stopping manually on a Hi 8 handheld). I asked Dylan if I could post it here on my site, and he had no objections, he just wondered why. Well, I'm the first to admit to shameless self promotion; but that also applies to other unseen talent such as Mr. Zalewski here- I have a great deal of respect for him as an actor, performer, and artist- and will take any and all opportunities I get, to deservingly promote his exceeding talent... ON THAT NOTE- be sure to keep up with my site here, so you don't miss out on the details, or premiere of the latest Warrior Poet Production, "The Making of, The Making of, The..."
The 40 min short; written, directed, and produced by me- will feature Dylan Zalewski as the lead actor and co-producer, and is a production in association with Unannymous and Random Entertainment. I am very proud of the script, and our small crew is doing amazing at seeing to every detail of the production. If nothing else, I can promise you that this film will be like nothing else you have ever seen. It is scheduled for it's first showing on April 17th (Spring gallery night)- and will premiere as a component of my Senior Thesis Show at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. The second half of my thesis takes place in a seperate space at MIAD that will feature my sculpture, installation, and visual art works.

My Favorite Spot on the Floor, Put On the Wall

2009-02-23T15:47:00.000-08:00

This work is in similar fashion to my previous studies of "indexical relationships," as well as my efforts to apply spatial relationships to 2-d works. In this piece, I studied the floor of the Rae-Schilling gallery, in order to find a spot that I though was the most interesting and compositionally compelling. This gesture alone applies a conceptual focus that takes alot of the traditional aspects of "art-making" and tosses them aside, for a more experimental investigative approach, i.e. I didn't draw that piece of the floor even though I found that the marks were beautiful, I simply uncovered their inherent composition- outside of my artistic abilities- and brought attention to them by replicating them with a painted plaster mold. I than painted that spot on the floor white, to bring further attention to this switch, as well as add a slight twist of humor.
I was pleased with the results and will continue in this line of studies.

Confronting Fear (Re-Mixed Monologue)

2009-02-17T17:59:00.000-08:00

This was a piece I did with long time friend, collaborator, and acting talent- Dylan Zalewski. I gave Dylan a very vague prompt, and put him on the spot completely, by asking him to engage in a dialogue solely with the camera concerning his thesis subjects of fear and freedom.
Dylan was extremely disapointed with the fragmented/improvisational outcome of his monologue, however, I was interested in exploiting the honesty within certain points of this evident frustration. This led me to working with the footage in a very different way, allowing through editing; the exposing of several different layers of Dylans words and actions. All and all, I think this was a particularly interesting project, in that through my manipulation- I believe I was able to reveal the literal substance and honesty that could be found in- what Dylan considered- a failed monologue.

Wall Drawings/Floor Drawings

2009-02-17T10:29:00.000-08:00

These are pretty simple concepts in terms of drawing, but as is common in my work; I am most interested in the process. It reminded me quite a bit of drawing on the wall when I was a child. Being allowed to have this freedom in the context of a pristine gallery- has an emancipating effect on your actions. I found that in a way, it was almost a form of action drawing- allowing me to carry my physical gestures through my arm and onto the wall in a rather fluid manner. The simple stencil idea, relates to many of my studies of indexical relationships, as well as my recent attempts to carry out 2-d work in the spatial and physical mannerisms of a sculptor.

"Its ok, he cant hurt us anymore" (spit-wad shooting gallery)

2009-02-03T10:34:00.000-08:00

This piece was done for the inauguration, and follows suite with some of my work that explores the elements of deviancy in childhood. Although somewhat immature, it was definitely therapeutic for people to hang out and have a laugh over this bastard while shooting some good ole' fashioned spit-wads at him!

Lace and Styro Form

2009-02-03T10:22:00.000-08:00

This surreal looking form, was really inspired by process and materials- and conceptually came about intuitively. I definitely enjoy using the lace and plaster in this manner, and will continue to work different variations of this concept- we will see what happens!

Cinnimin Gumdrop Man

2009-01-16T12:23:00.000-08:00

This is easily probably my best figurative work to date- it was done quickly when I noticed one of my fellow peers had left a container of cinnimin gum drops out on her table. I quickly fashioned a small gum drop man to sit on the edge of her container and wave hello to her upon her arrival. I am in the process of selling this piece to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago for 12,000 dollars- it will be tough to part with though, this is a truly priceless work. I know what your thinking, go ahead, I dare you to tell me why this is not art. You don't got the guts punk!

Cream City Brick Installation

2009-01-16T11:46:00.000-08:00

This was an site specific installation I did using these absolutely beautiful cream city bricks. The cite was very intriguing to me, as I had to get lost to find this abandoned, graffiti enscribed, milwaukee ruin. I set an alarm for 45 minutes, and tried to work with these brick intuitively and without the weight of critical theory or planning. I thought of it as similar to the way a child might work with blocks. I enjoyed working this way very much, and was finished just in time to document as the sun went down. This piece is about a year old now, I think its about time I go visit and see if this random piece is still standing out there in the middle of nowhere...

Boundary Experimentation

2009-01-16T11:26:00.000-08:00

This is one of the first experiments I did with boundaries and social interaction- by dusting the two sides of this hallway corridor with plaster dust and writing "Please use other side" on all four entrances, I was aggressively confronting individuals to make their own decisions about how to react to this barrier. The most interesting part of this experiment was to see its progression. As more and more people decided to disregard the prompt, you could see more and more footprints going different directions. This led people to believe more easily that it was ok to walk through, and funny as it was, people would tend to use the exact same side that the footprints were on- as if one side was ok to walk through, but the other was not. No one wanted to be the first set of footprints to break the rules.

More Spaghetti Art!

2009-01-15T13:02:00.000-08:00

Just a continuation of my study with the wonderfully economical medium of spaghetti! This time, I used it in an installation setting, by gluing a piece to the wall, and just building slowly off of that to see how far I could push it. The lighting and shadows of this particular study were prime, so the documentation turned our very nicely!

"Indexical Relationship"

2009-01-13T13:30:00.000-08:00

This was an earlier video installation/process study, where I sculpted my hand from observation within the span of an hour in clay, and taped the entire process. The video was than displayed as a backdrop to the actual sculpture, allowing the viewer to silmutaneously view the final product, as well as the initial process.

Gathering Texas Foliage at the Guadalupe River

2009-01-13T13:09:00.000-08:00

On January 1st of 08' I embarked on an adventure to see ALL of Texas with 2 other photographers, a fellow filmmaker, and 400 bucks. I fell in love with the landscape at the Guadalupe River and had to find a fun way to make some art- this is the results! I got up early, and spent the morning climbing trees and shaking these strange little green prickly things into my basket. Photography is once again compliments of Huck Radar, the only other one I trust in charge of documenting my temporal works.

Self Portrait

2009-01-13T12:55:00.000-08:00

Heres a more classically rendered wax bust of yours truly. Originally the bust was done in clay, and was then painted in several coats of latex before a plaster mother-mold was created to hold the empty latex casing. The clay bust is than removed, and wax is poured into the void. I will have a post up soon that better illustrates this complex and fascinating process. I must say though, that hat is simply to die for!

Warrior Poet Writings!

2009-01-13T12:14:00.000-08:00

I just started a coinciding blog dedicated specifically to certain writing works of mine- It is currently only featuring my poem "Holey Healthcare Issues," a lengthy poem that was the basis for a video installation included in "The Healthcare Show," and printed in "The Healthcare Show Zine." Feedback is always appreciated, here is the link-

http://warriorpoetwriting.blogspot.com/

"EL Deltitnu Eceip" (Locally groan)

2008-12-18T13:08:00.000-08:00

This piece was done for UW Milwaukee's "Locally Groan" exhibition, in which all participating filmmakers contributed 10 min. of any footage they desired. All of the 10 minute segments were complied and returned to each filmmaker, and they were than all asked to compile a 5 minute piece using their tape consisting of everyone else's footage. This is the result. I was forced to come up with a title, so I took the "Untitled Piece" and used the letters backwards while adding "EL" just to throw everyone off.

"IM what's left of YOU, YOU are what's left of ME"

2008-12-18T12:49:00.000-08:00

This is an audio installation I did earlier this year in an effort to convert some of my poetry into a literal visual realm. The audio recording is of myself and a female voice, reading the title of the piece (Im whats left of YOU, YOU are whats left of ME) back and forth to each other, however emphasizing different words to make a different meaning of the same phrase. i.e. I would say "IM whats left of YOU, YOU are whats left of ME," pronounciating the words in a way that references the literal placement of the words "IM" being literally LEFT of the word "YOU", and YOU being literally left of the word "ME". Conversely, the female voice in the recording says the phrase, "I'm whats left of you, you are whats left of me" suggesting a far more romantic or sentimental meaning of the same words.

Spatial Boundaries

2008-12-11T16:30:00.000-08:00

This is an ongoing piece that explores some of my literal fascination with boundaries in particular, but also space, and interaction. What is especially fascinating, is that I used this strangely delicate lace/plaster boundary in the context of an art school, a place where people are expected to interact with pieces of art. When confronted this aggressively, without time to think or react- most people immediately look for someone around them to confirm that either they can move it, or that they should go under it. So far reactions have been nearly 70/30 with 30 % of the people actually getting down on their knees and crawling under the surreal hurdle! at least its good to know that so many people respect art, right? Wait- is that what this is? Nevermind...What is really amazing about this piece is the video footage of the actual reactions taking place- I will post some of the footage as I compile more and more, and in different locations with different context. (I just need to learn how to post video footage, thats all)

"Art in the Parkinglot"

2008-12-08T10:38:00.000-08:00

"Art in the Parkinglot," was a large scale, temporary, outdoor exhibition that was held last year in the fifth ward on gallery night. My piece was made up of crumbled parts of the old demolished highway, and metal rebar that was intertwined within the concrete pieces. Physical labor, and the intensity of process,was a focal point- as opposed to some of my process work that reflects more meticulousness or compulsive behavior. In the 1/3 scale model shown below, I used a flourescent light underneath that was not very prevelant in the final product.

"STYRO-FORMS"

2008-12-06T20:05:00.000-08:00

This is the latest piece in my "Styro-Forms" series, a series of more-so "object like" works that are created by a simple method of carving forms into blocks of styrofoam, pouring plaster into those negative spaces, and than reductively uncovering select parts of the styrofoam off of the plaster forms. I find the texture to be absolutely beautiful, as well as the questioning of process it evokes to most viewers. Below, are some of the first works created last year, when I first discovered this process.

Experimenting with pink foam and pressure

2008-12-06T19:07:00.000-08:00

I'm not quite sure where this, or these (types) of works are headed, which is something exciting to me. I had the notion of using pieces of styro-foam board, and figuring out a way to make them cross an entire room held together purely by their pressure. This is a model using pink foam instead, and this is about as far as I got. The density of the pink foam didn't help, nor did their 2"x2" size. If I contrive a process to hold the other pieces together somehow, while adding in the new ones- I will be closer, but I also know now that the size of these units as well as their density, will be a significant factor.

My Vote Performs

2008-12-06T17:07:00.001-08:00

For the November 4 2008 elections, a highly ambitious, non-partisan, performance art organization called "My Vote Performs" (co-produced by Pegi Taylor, and John Loscuito), put together performance art pieces at 11 different polling places in the city of Milwaukee. The artists involved represent three decades of Milwaukee's finest performance artists. I was lucky enough to have been honored by Pegi and John, with the task of creating a doucmentary of the project in its entirety to be shown on the My Vote Performs website, as well as an open forum held at MIAD. The documentary is about 45 minutes, and catalogs the individual projects of all 11 artists, as well as our conversations concerning them. Thank you so much to John and Pegi for giving me this wonderful opportunity, as well as each artist for sharing their time and wisdom with me. I cannot express how wonderful and inspiring of a task this documentary has been for me, and how exciting it has been to work so closely with a project that I truely feel represents the importance of celebrating the democratic process, and our privelaged right to vote. The documentary can be found on the My Vote Performs official website, and is in the process of being sent out to various film festivals. I will keep updates about future screenings. http://www.myvoteperforms.com/index.html I encourage everyone to look into the amazing artists that were involved in the project, Renato Umali, Ted Brusabardis, Jill Sebastian, Steve Wetzel, John Schneider, Dasha Kelly, Raoul Deal, Miachael Pettit, Thewhiteboxpainters (Brent Budsberg, Shana McCaw, Mark Escribano, Harvey Opgenorth), and Debra Loewen.

"The Healthcare Show"

2008-12-02T11:11:00.000-08:00

This previous gallery night, I was privelaged enough to be a part of "The Healthcare Show," curated by Zoe Darling and Melissa Wagner, both professors at Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. "The Healthcare Show," was comprised as a small grouping of exhibiting artists, and a "Zine" of compiled writings on the subject of Healthcare. I was lucky enough to have contributed a lengthy poem to the "Zine," as well as a video installation based off of the poem.
The televisions are both me performing the reading of the poem, but between both televisions. The televisions almost act as seperate beings, by completing each others sentences, and responding to points of tension- yet they are putting together a unified poetry piece, while confronting viewers with the presentation of an unsettleingly personal writing piece.
The show is going on at the River Level of MIAD, just outside of the Layton gallery until January 1. The Poem from the "Healthcare Show Zine," can be read by clicking the following link. Enjoy!

http://warriorpoetwriting.blogspot.com/

"Where did YOU go?"

2008-12-02T08:47:00.000-08:00

This text installation was an idea that came to me after having to paint over another text installation. After several coats of white, I could still see the tracings of my original work, so I began to work with the idea of this figurative sense of permanance- in terms of covering something up, or making something disappear. Even when you paint over another color, or stain on your wall- you still know it is there. It shows somehow, even if only by the heavily saturated single clean paint spot standing out on the dusty white surface of the wall.
This invincible presence is being used somewhat obviously in the first installation of the piece, and was titled in a simple punch line fashion; "Where did YOU go?"
I began to consider semiotic perception, and where and how a viewer would take the notion of "You" being erased somehow; mainly, where they might put themselves in this simple contradiction. I personaly, was creating a very intimate narrative in a sense- I was considering the notion of making someone in my life dissapear in the same way as a stain, and than, almost the childish notion of asking them 'where did you go?' being almost reminiscent of peek-a-boo as a kid. When the piece was re-installed for the "Verify" exhibition at MIAD, I used a more subtle, yet provocative approach by doing two things.
One, I painted almost entirely over the "YOU," in hopes to extend the concept by leaving the almost decorative painterly qualities of the original behind, and leaving some viewers questioning a nearly blank wall (most were either confused or annoyed). Second, as the title provides you with the only concrete notion of this peculiar joke ("Where did YOU go"?) I signed my name as Joseph R. Reeves ESQ, and put 22,000 dollars as the price.

Spaghetti Sculptures

2008-12-01T07:51:00.000-08:00

Here, I began to experiment with cooking the spaghetti and letting it dry in strange formations.

1 Box of Spaghetti

2008-12-01T07:23:00.000-08:00

This is an ongoing series of sculptures that started earlier this year, that began with me using one box of spaghetti to create a form. There are really no major conceptual breakthroughs going on in this work, I just really love the material and method. I am pushing the limits of these spaghetti sculptures by experimenting with their limitations, as well as applying an obsessive compulsive type of attention to detail and form. These pieces are very meditatively manifested, and I often use them as a break from another project in the studio. It gives me time to think and reflect, and than even when I relax and escape from my work- I am still getting something done.