Read more about Young Kim's installation at ArtPrize

...on YouTube

...in The New York Times

...on Michigan Public Radio

Elon Photography professor and ArtPrize artist Young Kim wins special curatorial award

From: http://www.mlive.com/artprize/index.ssf/2009/10/artprizes_young_kim_sweeps_away_his_salt_and_earth_art.html

GRAND RAPIDS - Kneeling on one knee next to one of the 50 portraits he created of salt and red clay, ArtPrize artist Young Kim carefully swept away the first layer of "salt and earth," separating all the debris and red clay from the white salt.
One of several portraits that were altered by ArtPrize goers who visited Young Kim's work at 47 Commerce.
"I'll just separate and then take the salt and recycle it, bring it to area farmers," Kim said as he swept away a man's face at 47 Commerce SWin downtown Grand Rapids.

"Traditionally, art is made to make sure it's going to last a long time. I'm more interested in art reflecting our own (temporary) existence," he said.

With ArtPrize over, artists are starting to sweep out or dismantle the art pieces that drew thousands of people downtown Grand Rapids in the three weeks.

Whisking away the pieces that took him more than a week and 2,500 pounds of salt to put together was always part of the plan, Kim said.

What wasn't necessarily part of the plan was ArtPrize goers using 10 elements Kim had placed as offerings to decorate - or vandalize - the portraits.

The offerings were symbols of the most needed elements for human's subsistence, Kim explained: water, iron powder, sea salt, flour, honey, milk, oil, cotton, wine and fire in the form of matches' heads.

ArtPrize goers used those elements to pepper the portraits with matches' heads , to decorate some or simply used their hands to change the subjects' appearances. Some seemed to be trying the art themselves, others seemed just to be having fun with it.

"I didn't necessarily intend for people to pick up matches' heads and embed them into the portraits. They were symbolic offerings and people took it pretty literally," said Kim, who was neither surprised nor angry about the development.
Mark Copier | The Grand Rapids PressA portrait of a man disintegrates as artist Young Kim brushes it away Sunday.
"Other people think it's defacing the work. I don't think people had a malicious intent. This is another level of engagement," he said. "It's OK. It's part of the process."

Young Kim garnered passionate fans of his "salt and earth' work during ArtPrize. When his piece failed to make the top 10, Twitter users set up a hashtag in his honor: #sorryyoungkim.

The Urban Institute for Contemporary Art made a surprise award on Thursday, the night Ran Ortner was announced as the ArtPrize winner. UICA awarded Young Kim $5,000 for his work.

And then today, the work disappeared with the help of a brush and a dustpan. As Kim swept away the portraits, many people trickled in to take a last look at the exhibit.

Rina Sala-Baker brought her grandson Matthew O'Brien to see Kim's work.

"I've lived in Grand Rapids for 38 years and I've never seen the city so awake," said Sala-Baker, who's originally from Italy. "It's been a great thing for the city."

Two artist lectures and receptions this week

Mariam Aziza Stephan will be giving a talk at her reception in the Isabella Cannon Room on Tuesday from 5:00-6:30 (food and beverages provided). "Her work deals with the painterly languages of representation and abstraction. She explores the seemingly disparate themes of infinity and interconnectedness, through the metaphor of landscape."

Exhibition runs through Monday, November 23rd.

On Thursday, come hear Mark Robinson's talk in Arts West (a roundtable discussion with Will Taylor), 6-7:30. Pizza and beverages will be provided. "Mark is a mixed media and video sculpture artist that is interested in the intersections and networks of culture, technology and visualization. His past works explored the relationships of Quantum (Mechanics) Identity with forms of subjectiviity and cultural mediation found on the internet." He is going to be altering the shape and size of our gallery and has built some type of interactive robot. As a viewer, you will experience a true sound and visual transformation. Also, if you want to see a completely different body of work from Mark, do an internet search for "Lemons the Clown" on YouTube.

Exhibition runs through Thursday, November 5th.

Tri-State Sculptors Conference 10/2 - 10/3

Keynote: Mel Chin Saturday, 10/3, 4:30 - 6:30

Koury Business Center 101

Though he is classically trained, Mel Chin’s art, which is both analytical and poetic, evades easy classification. Alchemy, botany, and ecology are but a few of the disciplines that intersect in his work. He insinuates art into unlikely places, including destroyed homes, toxic landfills, and even popular television, investigating how art can provoke greater social awareness and responsibility. Unconventional and politically engaged, his projects also challenge the idea of the artist as the exclusive creative force behind an artwork. (Biography from: www.pbs.org/art21/artists/chin/index.html)

Open mic night

This Thursday,(tomorrow!) October 1st, the Arts & Letters Learning community is offering a really cool event:

Open Mic Night like you may never have seen before-

Bring your work (anything past/present/in progress), talk about your work, get people to ask questions. Awesome. Good practice for your critique/senior thesis defense!

Thursday, 8pm, Trollinger House

Questions: Joanna Patterson-jpatterson9@elon.edu

Adventures in Illegal Art: Creative Media Resistance, Free Speech and Negativland

Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Yeager at 7:30

“Adventures in Illegal Art” is a 90-minute video and storytelling presentation by Mark Hosler, founding member of Negativland, with Q and A to follow. No lawyers were harmed in the making of these events!

Pranks, media hoaxes, media literacy, the art of collage, creative activism in a media saturated multi-national world, file sharing, intellectual property issues, evolving notions of art and ownership and law in a digital age, artistic and funny critiques of mass media and culture, so-called “culture jamming”.... even if you've never heard of Negativland, if you are interested in any of these issues we think you’ll find this presentation worth your time and attention.

Is Negativland a “band”? Media hoaxers? Activists? Artists? Musicians? Filmmakers? Culture jammers? Comedians? An inspiration for the unwashed many? A nuisance for the corporate few? Decide for yourself in this presentation that uses films and stories to illustrate the many creative projects, hoaxes, pranks and "culture jamming" that Negativland has been doing since 1980.

Most famous for getting sued for their “U2” single, Negativland has had many years of experience being a tiny thorn in the side of the corporate media and entertainment biz. This presentation touches on a number of issues that are very much in public view these days - creative anti-corporate activism, media literacy, intellectual property issues and evolving notions of ownership and law in a digital age, the art of collage, artistic and funny critiques of mass media and culture, pranks and media hoaxes.

Tri-State Sculptors Exhibition 8/24 - 10/3

Closing Reception, Arts West Gallery, Saturday, October 3rd, 6:00-7:30 pm

The Tri State Sculptors Association, with 300-plus members, exhibit works that range from realistic to conceptual; in scales from architectural to intimate throughout Elon’s campus. Some locations include the Isabella Cannon Room and Patio, Arts West Gallery, and the Sculpture Walk.

Exhibition runs from Monday, August 24th-Saturday, October 3^rd.