The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Art

  • A drinking place with a crafting problem

    A drinking place with a crafting problem

    New beer, wine and craft bar Arts and Drafts opens their doors in Old Town Eureka on Feb. 17.

    An improv acoustic guitar solo and noises of lively voices filled the rooms of the E. Janssen Building in Old Town Eureka on Feb. 17.

    The once hardware store became home to Arts and Drafts, a “drinking place with a crafting problem.”

    The venue is divided into two spacious sections. Couches and large wooden tables geared with puzzles, sketchbooks and watercolor pencils surround the bar. Guests are encouraged to leave an art piece in the sketchbook, similar to a visual guest book.

    A bright mural of purple, psychedelic cats and a four-foot wine glass filled with colorful yarn make up the Kitty Corner of the room. The ambiance of the space is relaxed, open and gives the impression of a cozy living room.

    Through the bar, in a separate room, is an art workshop space filled with supplies and art-lined walls. Here, patrons can purchase pre-made DIY art projects, from paintable stone coasters to string art or bring in their own supplies to craft up while hanging out.

    Owner of Arts and Drafts, Tracy Dorgan, said she wanted her dream to come true in Old Town Eureka. After extensive searching for the best possible venue, Dorgan said she fell in love with this one.

    “When I walked into this building,” Dorgan said, “my entire vision changed and expanded.”

    The space is much bigger than her original plan, which ended up doubling Dorgan’s budget.

    The grand opening of the new bar brought a steady flow of people throughout the day.

    Greggory Allbright, Humboldt State University alumnus, high school teacher and artist, says he often enjoys drinking a cold beer while creating.

    “Sitting down and doing art is a lot harder than sitting and drinking,” Allbright said.

    Allbright is setting up for a surrealist art show at the Wine Stop and sketched at Arts and Drafts on the day of the grand opening.

    Brooks Heaslet from Maple Creek, a bartender at Arts and Drafts, said the crowd was a mixture of locals and tourists.

    For Heaslet, the art and beer bar combined two of his passions. Heaslet said he not only works the bar, but also helped build it with his father at Maple Creek Woodworks.

    “Woodwork and beer are definitely my mediums.” Heaslet said.

    The bar offers 12 different taps, including local beers, ciders, kombucha and nitro coffee, as well as an extensive wine list.

    “The only shot glasses we have are the ones you can paint,” Dorgan said.

    The small kitchen offers diverse snacks, such as cheesy jalapeno bread and local vegetarian Sushi Agogo.

    Dorgan said she worked to make the space welcoming to students.

    “You can come hang out, drink a beer and do a mini project for under $10.”

    In the back of the bar, Mark Talbert and wife Laurie of Eureka, sipped ales while weaving a burgundy string through nails in the shape of a wine glass.

    “She convinced me into it!” Talbert said. “I’m generally anti-social, but I feel totally comfortable walking and nailing nails onto a board.”

    Not only are the employees of Arts and Drafts brew buffs, they are craft connoisseurs as well.

    Amanda Anderson painted a wooden wine caddy in a deep, nut brown to demonstrate one of the crafts available for purchase at the venue.

    Anderson, a wildlife conservation major at Humboldt State University, scored a job at Arts and Drafts thanks to her experience with crafting and teaching. As a statistics tutor at HSU, she felt confident in her ability to guide creatively.

    “The goal here is to spread creativity,” Anderson said. “People are going to love this. It’s Arcata, people love their art.”

    Dorgan said that in the future, she plans to extend the working hours and the kitchen, as well as work on an option to divide the space in order to accommodate kids.

    Arts and Drafts is located on 422 1st Street in Old Town Eureka.

  • New Bachelor of Arts degree is coming to HSU

    New Bachelor of Arts degree is coming to HSU

    A new degree has resurged in the art department: the Bachelor of Fine Arts.

    The program is a cohort system of 24 students who want to focus on their studio artwork. The BFA program helps prepare students for a professional art career or graduate school.

    The first group of BFA students will be juniors this fall, and will graduate in spring 2020. Applications are due this spring on Feb. 28.

    Department chair of the HSU art history department Heather Madar says that this program has been in the making for a number of years.

    “So at this point we are about to look at our first round of applications and have our first cohort,” Madar said. “Yeah, this is our first one and this is really exciting.”

    The difference between the two degrees is the coursework. The BFA requires 70 units of art classes while the BA requires 54 units. With the BFA, students won’t have the ability to have a minor or a second major.

    “It is a pathway to a degree that really focused in a whole lot of depth on their studio artwork making,” Madar said. “The BFA is seen in the field as a slightly more professionalized degree, so it gives them an additional credential if that is something that makes sense for their future career plan.”

    Art major Ann Valdes has always put an importance on creativity. This year, Valdes is graduating without having the opportunity to be part of the BFA.

    “I guess it just sucks for people who are in the transition and is between HSU not having a BFA and having a BFA,” Valdes said. “But in the future, I guess people will get to choose what they want.”

    HSU students who are in their first two years can become part of the BFA degree by taking the required lower division coursework.

    “We are not requiring them to declare which of the areas they are in,” Madar said. “It is a general BFA program, but generally most of them do identify with their previous coursework, what areas they really want to focus on, like ceramics, for example.”

    Art major Kiya Rutherford enjoys making functional art, but likes painting things for an aesthetic reason – it allows her to express certain ideas.

    “I think it’s pretty important, because I know a lot of people look for art programs,” Rutherford said, “but only go to certain schools if they have a Bachelor of Fine Arts rather than just art. I think it helps with grad school, too.”

    Art major Kiya Rutherford working in the ceramics lab on Feb. 2. Photo by Bailey Tennery.

    Valdes sees the BFA degree as an overdue improvement to Humboldt State’s art department.

    “I think for the school to have a BFA is amazing,” Valdes said. “It makes HSU way more competitive.”

    The tenured faculty will be involved in reviewing student applications. After reviewing the applications, they will have a meeting to decide who will be accepted.

    Valdes considers the BFA degree as a positive addition to HSU, but it wasn’t the right program for her.

    “Having a BA doesn’t mean you can’t be a fine artist, so it is a decision you have to make pretty early on,” said Valdes. “I feel like for me, that wasn’t really the best idea at the time, but I think it is great for people in the future, and that is great for HSU to have.”

    The Feb. 28 application deadline was put together by Madar and the Office of Admissions to make it easier for transfer students to apply to the BFA program.

    “This is not a better degree,” Madar said. “It is just a different degree and for different students, depending on what they are wanting to do with their college career.”

     

     

  • Multi-talented artists

    Multi-talented artists

     

    By | Juan Herrera

    The art world has no discriminations about who can “join” or become an artist. If someone can randomly put anything together and can technically still be considered art, then anyone who picks up a pencil to draw or crafts to create is technically considered an artist.

    As I passed through the colorful hallway entering the art building I bumped into Adonnis Johnson, junior at HSU, and noticed he had a painting in one hand while juggling a rugby ball in the other.

    “Playing ball while supposedly being an artist, was kind of stressful at first.” Johnson said. “Because in high school not too many of the athletes enjoy’d art or drawing, but I did.”

    DSC_0966_WEB.jpg

    He said that growing up he was always taught to be true to his self no matter what anyone said towards him or about him.

    “At first I was super nervous to share my passion for art,” Johnson said. “But everyone laughed at me and told me they thought it was cool I liked art.”

    Johnson said that he first found his passion for art when he visited his first live art museum. According to Johnson a live art museum is where artists from all around the world come together to either draw, paint, craft, or even weld beautiful pieces of art.

    “I first attempted to draw my freshman year of high school,” Johnson said. “And like most famous past and present artists I sucked bad at first.”

    DSC_0984_WEB.jpg
    Adonnis Johnson showing of his half selfie and half wolf painting in the art building at HSU Photo credit: Juan Herrera

    Johnson said that at first he was discouraged about art but knew he had a great passion for it still. After working on his drawing skills for nearly a year he finally started to notice improvement and get recognition for his art.

    “My parents always taught me to never give up on anything I start,” Johnson said. “So that’s what I did with art, and I guess you could say I’m not that bad.”

    Playing sports practically his whole life and drawing for nearly eight years of it, when asked to choose between the two, if he ever had too, he got shaken up by his own response.

    “Man that would never happen, choosing that would be the hardest thing I’d have to do,” Johnson said. “But honestly i’d probably go with art.”

  • The Godmother of wire

    The Godmother of wire

    By | Robert Brown

    Internationally collected and award winning, Godmother of wire sculpture, Elizabeth Berrien opens up her studio to show her latest creations in wire.

    “No one has the body of work that I do, or a track record of fulfilling such big jobs, so I get a lot of them, and it’s fun,” Berrien said.

    BROWN.PROFILE.11.1.2017.IMG_5626
    The Godmother of wire sculpture, Elizabeth Berrien in her studio on C street in Eureka, CA., Oct. 28, 2017. | Robert Brown

    Some of her clients include The BBC, The American Museum of Natural History, The Los Angeles Zoo, Louisville International Airport, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Disney. Her work can be found in Brazil, France, Spain, Sweden, Morocco, Belgium, Australia, China, Japan and in many other countries throughout the world.

    Until recently, wire sculpture was a rare and under-appreciated genre. It started as a folk art thousands of years ago. Ancient Egyptians refined metal and drew wire to create hand-crafted wire jewelry and other useful items. Slovakia invented many wire items that are still in use today such as mouse traps, bird cages, wire baskets, and kitchen utensils.

    “All artists do what they like to look at,” Berrien said. “For me, thats animals. I would have loved to be a zoologist. I have done thousands of wire animals.”

     

    Kung Fu fighter wire sculpture by Elizabeth Berrien.
    Kung Fu fighter wire sculpture by Elizabeth Berrien. | Robert Brown

    By exploring wire for over 50 years, she has developed her own unique style, and brought her pieces up to the level of museum quality.

    “They say it takes 5,000 hours for someone to master an art,” Berrien said. “In my case, it’s more like 95,000 hours, and counting.”

    With the extensive amount of experience and knowledge she has gained from working with wire, Berrien designed and released a free Wire Sculpture Tutorial and Lesson Plan on the internet. They can be found at http://www.wirelady.com/berrienwirehowtopage.html. Today, wire sculpture is taught universally in almost every art school and art curriculum.

    “Every year I push it to somewhere it hasn’t gone before,” Berrien said. “A client will show me what they like, or an example, but it’s up to me how to interpret that into wire.”

    Berrien is currently working on two large pieces. One is a 20-foot tall space shuttle for a space center, and the other is a giant wall piece depicting ferns and wildflowers for Kaiser headquarters in Seattle.

    “By the time I get the 20-foot shuttle done, it will have all of the details, the NASA logo, the American flag, all of the little nuts and bolts, and rivets,” Berrien said. “I feel like a detective sometimes having to figure all of the details out.”

    Wire sculpture comes in 2D, an example would be a flat wall piece, and 3D, which would be a stand alone or hanging piece.

    Meitosis wire sculpture by Elizabeth Berrien.
    Meitosis wire sculpture by Elizabeth Berrien. | Robert Brown

    “In 3D you get different dynamics as you move around, shadows shift and change, you get more depth and emotion,” Berrien said. “Not everyone has the room for a 3D piece, but everyone has wallspace, so 2D is having a nice renaissance right now.”

    Two different forms of wire sculpture, closed and open form, are merged together in Berrien’s abstract piece, Mitosis. The blending of neatness and wildness, to depict the perfect imperfection that is the essence of the human body.

    The one and only rule in wire sculpture that has stuck with Berrien since her high school art teacher announced it in class is, “Don’t put your eye out!”

    “There are no rules,” Berrien said. “A client asks me for a technical piece, a polyhedron, twists/no twists, I just figure it out. There are lots of ways to connect wire together.”

    Clients come with requests that allow her to explore new techniques and methods creating with wire. Her series of Kung Fu fighters for a restaurant in Dubai had Berrien watching hours of Bruce Lee movies in order to get it right.

    “I don’t know if I would have done that if it wasn’t for a client requesting it,” Berrien said. “I really got into it.”

    Berrien’s work can be seen every first Saturday of the month during Arts Alive at 208 C Street in Eureka’s Old Town, and on her website at WireZoo.com.

     

  • Scary Science

    Scary Science

    By | Juan Herrera

    Haunted houses are scary enough, throw in moving objects and you have a whole new ballgame.

    The Kinetic Sculpture Lab hosted their Haunted Kinetic Lab of Horrors to the Arcata community to give them a pre-scare for Halloween. The Horror Lab consists of a maze of many different projects created by the Kinetic Sculpture team. They are not only terrifying but also move to make the sculptures even scarier. This event has been going since 2009 and always takes place a few days before Halloween as well as the day of. At the event the Dead Drops, a music band, will be live performing as well as a free barbecue for people who survive the lab. This year the event took place on the corner of 8th and N St. in Arcata on Oct. 26-28 and Oct. 31 from 7 p.m. to midnight. If your a fan of haunted houses, go on down and see if you can survive.

  • Plaza Pastels: A 30 year tradition

    Plaza Pastels: A 30 year tradition

    By | Andre Hascall

    At first a one-time event, Pastels on the Arcata Plaza has become a tradition in our slice of Humboldt. Starting in 1987 with 29 pastels, the event has grown to surround the entire plaza with artwork.

    Many of the local businesses sponsor a square, they purchase one for $125 or $225, and the profits are donated to Northcoast Children’s Services. Artists pitch in their free time to keep this event going year in and year out.

    Sidelines and TJ’s bars are two of the businesses sponsoring squares this year, but are no stranger to Pastels on the Plaza. Sidelines Manager Nicole Costanzo was one of the many artists contributing.

    “It’s a learning process being out her, I wasn’t prepared my first time,” Costanzo said. “You need a lot more water than you think.”

    IMG_1511_Web.jpg
    Legacy Club surrounds their Pastel at the Plaza. | Photo by Andre Hascall

    The water helps with the water art of course, but with October as one of Arcata’s warmest months its a good idea to keep it close by during the long event.

    “Its pretty hard work,” Costanzo said. “The artists get here at Eight in the morning and aren’t done until two in the afternoon.”

    One group in particular made their mark on the community for a second year in a row. HSU club, Legacy created a pastel to imprint their group in the event and community. Along with having their own pastel, they helped the children at the plaza get their own little paintings done as well.

    Fourth year Child Development major, Dee Breaux is a member of Legacy.

    “For our pastel design this year, half the group came up with a tree,” Breaux said. “And the leaves will have our initials on them.”

    Legacy’s colors are purple and gold, and that showed on their pastel. Fourth Year Pyschology Major, Danni Pittman had a few words on her groups artwork.

    “It’s like the tree of life, and the ‘L’ in the middle makes a statement,” Pittman said. “The crown empowers us, like we are queens dripping in gold.”

  • Making recycling an art

    Making recycling an art

    By Juan Herrera

    2500 degrees fahrenheit. That’s the heat it takes to perfectly mold glass into the shape your heart desires.

    Fire and Light is a local company in Arcata that hand crafts an array of colored glass tableware. This local company puts on Hot Glass Tours that allows you to be up close to watch the process it takes to make these fascinating pieces.

    worker 1
    An employee of Fire and Light getting melted glass from their furnace. Photo credit: Juan Herrera

    John McClurg, the president of Fire and Light, discusses the tour and some about his product.

    “These tours give people a small sense of how long and hard the process is to making hand crafted objects,” McClurg said. “It also brings light to how much we actually do recycle when making our products.”

    JHMillCreekGallery_Web-3.jpg
    Some of the many finished products that Fire and Light hand crafts. Photo credit: Juan Herrera

    The tours take place Monday through Friday, at 10 a.m., 12 p.m., and at 2 p.m.. According to McClurg the tours have been great for his company as well as to the community members.

    Fire and Light purchase their used glass from the Arcata Community Recycling Center to make everything made out of the community’s glass. According to McClurg they are the first glass company to use all recycle objects to make their product in the United States.

    Kelli Welch, an employee of Fire and Light, discussed her role in the business and about some of her favorite hand made pieces.

    “I pretty much help wherever needs to be helped, but mostly I set up the display store and help costumers here,” Welch said. “Helping here in the store makes it hard to narrow down a favorite, but I have a special liking to the foot bowls we make.”

    JHMillCreekGallery_Web-2.jpg
    An employee of Fire and Light getting ready to mold a cup with melted glass Photo credit: Juan Herrera

    According to Welch the ideas of what to make come from the community and shows they attend out of the state. Welch mentioned how she came up with a heart shaped design glass that they now create. Fire and Light’s showroom is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., located at 100 Ericson Ct, Suite 100A in Arcata.

    During the tour Humboldt State graduate, Lorea Euskadi, said how this was not her first time on the tour and describes her top three favorite pieces.

    “I’ve been living here for about 5 years now. This is my fourth time touring this place, and the products just keep getting better and better,” Euskadi said. “It’s so hard to pin point favorites here but if I had to only keep three they would be my dogs custom bowl, my favorite soup bowl and lastly my crazy multi-colored vase.”

    According to Euskadi, if you haven’t been to the Fire and Light tour or store, you are severely missing out on an awesome art form.

    “I honestly look forward to it every year and encourage more people to come on down and join in on the action,” Euskadi said.

  • It’s hard to take your eyes off this art

    It’s hard to take your eyes off this art

    By Sarahi Apaez

    Sarah Arias, a senior art studio major and business administration minor is in a process of creating a piece for her advanced painting class.

    Arias has created a series piece of gay lovers eyes. Eyes who belong to the Queer Trans People of Color (QTPOC) community. Arias is adding a twist to a late 1700s to early 1800s jewelry fad of necklaces, rings, and broaches which held small photos of their secret lovers’ eyes. Arias was inspired by a similar theme within her life and the lives of her POC friends who still struggle to come out to their families. For her friends, telling their parents about their lovers could jeopardize more than just their relationships, it could jeopardize their schooling if their parents pay for it. This lack of acceptance from Latinx parents results in lovers being kept secret.

    To learn more about Arias and her work, watch the video below.

  • $75,000 bong for sale at Humboldt Glassblowers

    $75,000 bong for sale at Humboldt Glassblowers

    By Erin Chessin

    On display and for sale at Humboldt Glassblowers, is a $75,000 bong. You can find psychedelic and intricate glassworks of nearly a hundred local artists at the bong and pipe store located in downtown Arcata.

    IMG_0562
    Two of the most expensive bongs. On the right is Banjo Glass $75,000 bong. | Photo by Andre Hascall

    Arthur Ecker works at Humboldt Glassblowers. He said the asking price for the bong, made by local glassblower Banjo Glass, is appropriate due to the intricacy and precision of the bong.

    “The amount of time and energy that was put into that piece shows just how hungry that artist was,” Ecker said.

    Ecker said the amount of hours these Humboldt County artists put into their artistry is unfathomable. An artist can spend anywhere from 300-400 hours creating just a single piece, which equates to four to six months of hard work and craftsmanship.

    “These people have families, and children they need to put food on the table for,” Ecker said. “These artists are incredibly hardworking people.”

    This new breed of contemporary artistry sprouted new beginnings for Banjo Glass. Ecker said Bango Glass is a devoted father who was driven in his earlier years to make his best quality work in efforts of supporting his children. 

    Utilizing his past experience in art school, the aspiring artist was committed to creating iridescent, three-dimensional, and functional glass pieces.

    Humboldt Glassblowers was in awe when they obtained one of his most extravagant pieces which is on sale for $75,000.

    Customers are also impressed by the quality of the work when they walk into Humboldt Glassblowers.

    Isaiah Harris was visiting a friend in Arcata for the week and made a point to visit Humboldt Glassblowers on his trip.

    IMG_0579
    Animal Rigs | Photo by Andre Hascall

    “I was impressed by the intricate artwork,” Harris said.“The quality of the glass is what sets them apart from other glass shops in different areas.”

    Located at 815 Ninth St. the Arcata Plaza, Humboldt Glassblowers has the works of numerous local artists for sale and on display. Artists from all over Humboldt County bring their artwork to Humboldt Glassblowers. The shop holds pieces from 80 to 100 different artists, many of them local.

    For efficiency, the shop is divided in half. On the left side of the store, customers will find small, multicolored glass pipes where prices ranges based on the complexity of the glass patterns.

    Then there is the right side of the store, where Humboldt Glassblowers puts its finest glass pieces on display. Prices can run through the thousands depending on the intricacy and size of the bong.

    Glass bongs and pipes have become not just a functional aspect of weed culture, but also an artistic element.

    IMG_0589
    Papa Smurf Pipe | Photo by Andre Hascall

    What use to be an online-only market for glassblowers has now become a state-of-the-art level of craftsmanship. Nowadays, the public is able to walk into a store and visually experience the glasswork.

    As customers walk in and experience these inspiring pieces of art, they gain appreciation for the artistry.

    “People are now respecting the art by being exposed to it,” said Dan Belo, who works with Ecker at the shop.

    Belo and Ecker agreed that with legalization, glassblowers should gain more recognition for their craft with time because there is no longer a reason to be secretive about their artistry.

    “With legalization you will start to see artists become more public about their work,” said Ecker.

     

  • Art & Comics by Joe DeVoogd

    Art & Comics by Joe DeVoogd

    Graphics by Joe DeVoogd

    Comics by Joe DeVoogd

    Smoker 1SkooldsScan 84Original ComicMILOROADCongress Plays The game of envirnmental legislation 1Big poster

  • Art by Claire Roth

    Art by Claire Roth

    Claire Roth’s Art for This Week in Science Spring 2017