Farmlab Salon
Joel Tauber
Friday, April 6 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge

Sick-Amour

Sick-Amour follows Tauber’s Flying Project, a story culminating in the artist's flight 150 feet above the desert, suspended from helium balloons and playing the bagpipes; and his Underwater Project, where Tauber translates his movement underwater during 40 scuba dives into music.

About Sick Amour

Description: In his new work, Sick-Amour, Joel Tauber adopts a lonely and forlorn sycamore tree stuck in the middle of a giant parking lot in front of the Rose Bowl. The tree – like most parking lot trees – suffered many indignities. The tree was starved for water and oxygen by the asphalt that surrounded it, it was attacked by swarms of pathogens and pollutants, it was aggressively pruned, and it was hit by cars. Out of love for the tree and as a symbolic gesture pointing to our need to care for the things stuck in our urban jungles, the artist has been caring for this tree directly - watering it, building tree guards to protect it from cars, planting seeds to help it create offspring, constructing giant earrings for the tree, persuading the City and the Rose Bowl to remove the asphalt beneath its canopy, and getting the approvals to begin constructing a permanent monument to the tree.

To see a 5-minute video preview and to read more about the project, visit www.joeltauber.com.

About Joel Tauber

Joel Tauber received his MFA degree from Art Center College of Design. His work has been shown in solo exhibitions at Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects; at the Adamski Gallery, Aachen, Germany; at the Helen Lindhurst Fine Arts Gallery, University of Southern California, Los Angeles; and at Gallery Saintonge, Missoula, Montana. Tauber has been included in the "California Biennial", Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach; “The Gravity in Art”, De Appel Centre For Contemporary Art, Amsterdam, Netherlands; “Happy Believers, the 7th Werkleitz Biennial, Volkspark, Halle, Germany; “Still, Things Fall from the Sky”, UCR/ California Museum of Photography, Riverside, CA; “Light and Spaced Out: 11 Artists From Los Angeles", Herve Loevenbruck Gallery, Paris, France; “Eco-Lux: Art in Light of Ecology 1953-2006”, Lightbox Gallery, Los Angeles; “Stuff From L.A. and Other Places”, Christine Koenig Gallery, Vienna, Austria; and “To Believe Much More Than That”, Wight Gallery, UCLA, Los Angeles.

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Farmlab Public Salon
George Herms
Friday, March 30 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge



Garden of Brokenness
GALLERY TALK


Join Farmlab Artist-In-Residence George Herms as he discusses Garden of Brokenness, by Farmlab Team, an exhibition on view at the Farmlab Exhibition Center from February 23-June 1, 2007.

Herms will also be available to discuss his large body of other works.

About George Herms

“Like a lean jazz quartet, Herms sets the mood as much with what is there as with what is not. In an era where assemblage artists fixate on the cute essentials of thrift store finds, Herms abstracts the detritus of society into an improvisational solo encouraging the things to become something else within his sculptures and collages.” – Mat Gleason, ArtScene, 2005

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Under Spring Hosts
Square Dance & Cabaret
Saturday, May 19@6:30pm

FROM THE EVENING'S PRODUCERS:

 



 

Farmlab Public Salon
Casey Coates Danson
Friday, March 16 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge



Who's Got The Power?
Film Screening & Discussion


Join Casey Coates Danson, executive producer of the documentary film, "Who's Got The Power?" for a screening and discussion.

About The Film

"Global warming is the environmental problem of the 21st century."
--Kert Davies, Research Director, Greenpeace May, 2005

"Clean coal is a lie. There’s no such thing as clean coal."
--Harry Sebock, underground coal miner since 1979--

"The nations in the lead of this next energy revolution, the one that takes us beyond fossil fuels, it’s a safe bet to say, they are going to be the power house countries of the 21st century."
--Barbara Freese, Environmental Attorney, Author “COAL – A Human History” May, 2005


From the coal-scarred hills of Appalachia to the sun drenched suburbs of Los Angeles, to three Category 5 hurricanes within three months in 2005 in the Southeast, eight days of non-stop rain in the Northeast, record breaking heat globally, people are becoming increasingly vocal about the hazards of global warming. They are demanding practical and achievable solutions, in particular, championing the development and use of renewable energy resources to safeguard the earth for future generations.

Who’s Got The Power, a forceful, new documentary film, addresses head on the reality of global warming, caused by the burning of fossil fuels, coal, oil and gas, its attendant dangers in the form of carbon dioxide emissions---and presents genuine and workable solutions. The film proposes that the use of renewable energy – solar, wind, biomass and geothermal, are viable alternatives to our dependence on fossil fuels that bring about the dangerous climate changes that result in global warming. From the vantage points of world-renown scientists, environmental activists, physicians, financial advisers, designers, builders, coal miners and others, the global warming debate unfolds. In addition, inner city and suburban consumers in America, Germany and Japan share their personal experiences with solar-powered housing.

According to the New York Times, (August 5, 2005) the worldwide global solar market has grown roughly forty percent a year in the last five years, driven in large part by Germany. Germany consumes thirty-nine percent of the world’s solar panels; Japan, thirty percent; and America only nine percent. Against the backdrop of the American landscape, Who’s Got the Power demonstrates that we do not have to savage our terrain, destroy our water sources or befoul our air in order to enjoy the pleasures and conveniences of modern life. Who’s Got the Power? argues that we are capable of being on a par with the Germans and Japanese in terms of solar energy, and shows how harnessing this limitless resource can make a difference.

This film also recognizes the critical role of our built environment. Since two-thirds to one half of the nation’s electricity is used in buildings, we can have the greatest impact in the shortest amount of time if we begin with the built environment. Buildings are a direct and important resource in insuring our environmental future. Making our buildings more energy efficient can help reduce our use of electricity and fossil fuels. Powering them with the sun can and will quickly reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

These are among the perspectives in Who’s Got The Power?

• On the evolution of global warming: When we use the atmosphere as an un-priced sewer and we dump our waste like carbon dioxide and methane and industrial hazes, then we start to force the atmosphere in different patterns than would be natural.

• On environmental hazards: The twentieth century stands out as the warmest time in history… 90% of the glaciers in the world are melting. Here in Glacier National Park, the Grinnell Glacier has already melted sixty-three percent and only has a few more decades to survive… Six hundred and fifty three billion metric tons of ice, an area larger than Luxembourg, has broken off the Larsen B Ice Shelf, which has existed on Antarctica for twelve thousand years.

• On photovoltaics: In one second, the sun produces enough energy to supply the world for one thousand years. We need to make the transition to renewable energy now – not later. The power is in our hands.

• On preserving our land:

When you go in and you cut down all the trees on a mountain, from the top to the bottom, blow 700 feet off the top of it, take all the coal, boost a rock and gob over the hill into the creek, there’s nothin’ to be there. It destroys the game, it runs the grass out, it destroys the squirrels, the deer don’t have acorns to eat, and they move on.

We can lead the way in renewable energy. We can lead the way to a new future. And we can give our children a beautiful clean earth to live on. But we’re not doing that. We’re addicted to comfort. And we’re selling our children’s feet to buy ourselves fancy shoes.

• On our built environment:

The truth is that good design is no more expensive than bad design… A few pioneers are incorporating photovoltaics and solar design principles. Not only are the structures beautiful, they are in harmony with the environment. Solar technology can be employed anywhere, even on a Manhattan skyscraper.

• Never before
• On our obligation:

Ultimately it’s not going to be the scientists, it’s going to be us, it’s going to be the politicians and the leaders and the people in their own households, everybody in a massive global cooperation in order to solve this grand problem.

Powerful, enduring, reliable and accessible worldwide, the sun is our greatest energy resource. The sun’s renewable energy – solar energy – can supplement or replace the limited and costly fossil fuels we now use, reduce our dependence on the utility grid, and stem the tide of global warming.

In a cogent and incisive hour, filmed across America, in Germany and Japan, Who’s Got The Power? examines these vital issues and in so doing is an essential primer.


About Casey Coates Danson
Casey Coates Danson As the mother of two children and a strong sense of stewardship for the earth, Casey Coates Danson established Global Possibilities in 1996, a non-profit devoted to promoting the use of solar energy in the built environment as a viable and natural alternative to fossil fuels in order to mitigate climate change. Prior to that, Danson co-founded with her former husband, the American Oceans Campaign, now merged with Oceana. Danson served on the Board of Governors of the Parsons School of Design, the Board of Directors of the Southern California Institute of Architecture, and chaired the Board of Directors of the Environmental Media Association. She also served on the Advisory Board of the Jimmy Carter Work Project in Los Angeles and as an honorary board member of the Institute of American Indian Arts Foundation.

For Danson, it started as a simple need for natural light; there never seemed to be enough inside her homes. As an environmental design student at the Parsons School of Design in New York in the 1970s, she learned to appreciate how the Anasazi and the master builders of the Renaissance incorporated natural materials into their designs for self-sufficient cities. As news of the expanding hole in the ozone layer came to light in the 1980’s, her consciousness about the destructive nature of how we heat and power our homes expanded exponentially.

Through Global Possibilities, national conferences, educational initiatives, public outreach, speaking engagements and film, Danson seeks to remind people that the sun is virtually an untapped source of free, constant energy, and pleads for an energy transition – even If it’s with one photovoltaic panel at a time.

Danson has left a living legacy in the form of two solar homes that she designed and built in the nineties – a 1,500-square-foot, Pueblo-style adobe home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and a grand, 7,000-square-foot contemporary Los Angeles home now occupied by a family of seven. Both demonstrate that the sun’s energy can be used to power houses at any end of the design spectrum.


Farmlab Location
Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Farmlab Public Salon
Monica Howe
Friday, March 9 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge




"Psyched on Bikes:
Pedaling a two-wheel solution in the capital of cars"
Also appearing: Liz Elliott of C.I.C.L.E. (Cyclists Inciting Change thru Live Exchange)


Join bicycle activist Monica How -- outreach coordinator for the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition --and friends as they discuss living and pedaling in the City of Angels.

About Monica Howe
"Monica Howe sees herself as the voice of a two-wheeled future, dedicated to the notion that an urban bicycle culture will make this a better place to live." -- John Balzar, Los Angeles Times, 1/2/07

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Farmlab Salon
Sophy Wolters
Friday, February 23 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge



Microcredit 101

Sophy Wolters offers this primer on the basics of microcredit, also known as micro finance.

Micro finance is an upside down development model, giving empowerment to people and developing from the bottom up. We will start with a little history and describe how microfinance changed the world. Then we will talk about methodologies and how we use it. We will cover the use of the social collateral as an empowering tool. And then as a group we discuss how micro finance can be used in the US.

About Sophy Wolters

Sophy Wolters has lived and worked in Guatemala for the last 20 years. She worked in development programs ranging from re-forestry, child nutrition and early stimulation to running Friendship Bridge, a microcredit “plus” organization working in six departments in Guatemala. Her main focus has been working with people in the field. She feels that micro credit has turned the world of development upside down and is passionate about micro-finance as a tool to eradicate poverty and exclusion in the world. At the moment she is consulting for Namaste Direct and other NGO’s.

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Farmlab Salon
Gerardo Vaquero Rosas
Friday, February 16 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge




"Cornhenge in Winter
Farmlab Salon En Espanol with Gerardo Vaquero Rosas"


Join Farmlab Artist-in-Residence and agriculturalist extraordinaire Gerardo Vaquero Rosas for a look behind the scenes of Cornhenge. Cornhenge is the metabolic sculpture located on the grounds of the Los Angeles State Historic Park.

Rosas will be introduced by Lauren Bon, the Not A Cornfield project artist.

About Gerardo Vaquero Rosas

While Gerardo Vaquero Rosas was only recently named a Farmlab Artist-in-Residence, for the record, he'd like itknown that he's been an artist since he was 10-years-old. Rosas is a former South Central Farmer. He was born in Tehuitzingo Puebla, Mexico.

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Farmlab Salon
Diego Cardoso and Guests
Friday, February 9 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge

Diego Cardoso, the MTA's Director, Central Area Planning Team, visits Farmlab.



Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Farmlab Salon
Helen Samuels
Friday, February 2 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge



Earth Restoration:
Youth, Our Greatest Tool for Sustainability


Activist, organizer, and coalition-builder Helen Samuels will discuss her experiences working with young people on collaborative cultural restoration projects, environmental justice issues, and related long-term issues. Samuels, the subject of a recent PBS profile, will display examples of recycled products.

About Helen Samuels

Helen Samuels is among a rare group of innovative and courageous social entrepreneurs who are changing the way the world views solutions to our environmental and social challenges. With dogged determination, compassionate action and hands-on grassroots organizing, Helen has spent more than 20 years inspiring and supporting at-risk youth in Mexico and the United States. Her passion particularly extends to the “4th SECTOR” - the massive and fastest growing social sector of the post-development world with over 1 billion youth who live in poverty and devastation in and around degenerating urban dwellings in Mexico and the United States. Her dedicated efforts have lead to the creation of more than 150 youth-run projects which have hence spawned an additional 500 projects themselves as they have replicated their sustainable practices through other youth networks worldwide.

The following are the URLS to a few of her projects and affiliations:

TEKIO: http://www.tekio.net (offline for renovation)

ASHOKA: http://www.ashoka.org/

PBS: http://www.pbs.org/kcet/globaltribe/voices/voi_samuels.html

LA Earth Crew: http://www.un.org/Conferences/habitat/unchs/press/mural.htm

GANGS: http://www.yesmagazine.org/article.asp?ID=805

Peace One Day: http://www.peaceoneday.org/page/educommits
(check HOPI RUN)

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Farmlab Salon
Jenna Didier and Oliver Hess, of Materials & Applications
Friday, January 26 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge




M&A: The Garden of Forking Paths:
Growing an organization from the seed of an idea to an influential force to push new ideas forward in architecture and landscape design

Jenna and Oliver of Materials & Applications (M&A) will review some of the highlights of the past four years of installations at their outdoor project space in Los Angeles. A discussion of what gets selected to be constructed and the joys and troubles involved will illuminate on a micro scale the trends of the construction industry on the macro scale. They will also talk about community building and the value of removing individual authorship or control of projects to increase productivity and diversity of outcomes.

Jenna Didier is in pursuit of a new approach to the built environment. A lifelong interest in the creation and use of public space has led to continual opportunities to expand upon her experience in construction and fabrication. In 2002, Ms. Didier founded a non-profit outdoor exhibition space called Materials & Applications.

Jenna is the principal of
Fountainhead, a water feature design and engineering company. She completed a Permaculture Design course in 2005. She also collaborates artistically with Oliver Hess in a continuing effort they call infranatural.

Oliver Hess has years of experience as a visual effects and
installation artist. He works primarily with responsive environments and virtual reality systems. He uses the skills he has developed in his work to create art that has been displayed in galleries around the globe and to assist international artists with new media installations.

As Techncal Director of Materials & Applications(M&A), Oliver works to ensure all aspects of the installation process maintain a technical relevance. The implementation of technology is not for show, but to assist the fabrication/ installation process and sensitize the installed piece to visitors, enhancing their experience of the space around them. Oliver maintains several side projects including:
www.choubun.com and www.infranatural.com.

 



 

The Public Salon Series

A weekly program of presentations - including lectures, panel discussions, workshops, screenings, readings, performances and more - that connect artists, environmentalists, writers, filmmakers, historians, politicians, planners, activists, and others. Fridays at noon. Always free-of-charge.

Please note that the calendar of forthcoming salons is updated with new programs as they are booked - keep coming back.

THIS WEEK'S SALON

August 20, 2010
Jerri Allyn: Debating Through the Arts
More Info


PAST SALONS

2010 to date, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006

FORTHCOMING SALONS

October, 2010

The Metabolic Studio's Public Salons, which have happened every Friday since November 2006, are entering a new phase. The series will reopen at the Studio in a different form, in a remodeled space, in the Fall. In the meantime join us on The Twain, the Studio's new red trolley, for six Fridays of mobile conversation starting at noon on August 27th.
Coinciding with two works by Lauren Bon and the Metabolic Studio – Strawberry Flag and Building 209: Garden Folly – which are at either end of the route, the trolley and its special guest "conversationalists" will journey from the LA County Museum of Art to the VA campus in West LA and back again, narrating the route and exploring issues raised by the artworks.
More Info

 



 

Farmlab Salon
Joe Geever, Jeanette Vosburg, and Paul Herzog
Friday, January 19 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge




"Agitation: The Social, Political, Geological, and Biological meaning of Water in L.A."

Representatives of the Surfrider Foundation and the Ballona Network will present their work on developing a Ballona Creek Watershed-wide plan for simulataneously cleaning-up surface water and recharging ground water basins, restoring hydrological stream/creek function and riparian habitat and creating and linking open spaces.

This campaign for "green infrastructure" utlizing treatment wetlands and other tools combines the efforts of the Network to create a greenway connecting the Ballona Wetlands to the LA River with Surfrider's mission to improve water quality and the coastal zone's health. In addition to explaining the treatment concept, we would like to share our year of experience with working within the governmental structures set up to do water quality improvement planning, select projects and fund them.

In addition, the trio might touch on the state of our working relationships with academia and sister organizations. Surfrider has just been awarded a grant for a small amount of money from the Patagonia Co. to continue its organizing work as well as create educational materials (brochure, poster, video) about natural treatment options.

About the Participants

Joe Geever is the Southern California Regional Manager for Surfrider Foundation (www.surfrider.org).

Jeanette Vosburg is the Coordinator of the Ballona Network. (www.ballonanetwork.org).

Paul Herzog is a community organizer and an independent contractor for a six-month Mountains Recreation Conservation Authority (MRCA) project to identify and get in the ground connections between key beginnings/destinations and the Ballona Creek bike/pedestrian path).

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Wildflowers Duo, Jean Copeland
to Perform Under Spring
Friday, January 19 @ 7:30pm
Free-of-Charge


Live Music + Dance
Wildflowers Duo (8pm)
Jean Copeland (7:30pm)


(Photo Credit: Nourdinne El Wariri)

Dancer Oguri and percussionist Adam Rudolph have toured together worldwide with their improvisational performances. In the spirit of the under the bridge space, the pair, performing as Wildflowers Duo, will explore methods of interaction and structure for the creation of a performance piece. Jean Copeland will precede the dancers with a Tibetan bowls concert.

Under Spring Location

Under Spring / Farmlab, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Performances are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.


About Oguri
www.lightningshadow.com

Oguri, a resident of Southern California since 1990, conducts Body Weather Laboratory, a forum for investigating the body and dance (founded by Min Tanaka in Japan, 1978). He has taught and performed worldwide. He is an artist-in-residence at the Electric Lodge in Venice, California. Oguri has received support from the California Arts Council, the New England Foundation for the Arts National Dance Project, the Rockefeller Foundation, the City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, The Lila Wallace Reader's Digest Arts Partners Program, The Getty Center and an Irvine Fellowship in Dance (2000), and in 2005 an Irvine Foundation Dance: Creation to Performance grant for Caddy, Caddy, Caddy!, William Faulkner Dance Project at the REDCAT March 1-4 at Disney Hall.

Oguri’s new dance work investigates Faulkner's epic novels The Sound and the Fury; Absalom, Absalom!; and A Rose for Emily transmuting the mythic power of Faulkner’s fiction into exalted physical form. Accompanied by Feltlike with Paul Chavez’s visceral live music score, Oguri and his dance troupe, Honeysuckle, draw on an uncanny mix of subtlety and stark expressiveness to delve into the heart of Faulkner’s gothic family narratives. Artist Hirokazu Kosaka’s set expresses a sublime simplicity with brooding textures of Faulkner’s Deep South.

Presented by the REDCAT, Cal Arts’s terrific black box theater in Disney Hall. This is the perfect venue to see Oguri who “takes us as deep as dance or theater can go” Lewis Segal, Los Angeles Times. Oguri previously participated in the Not A Cornfield project.

About Adam Rudolph
www.metarecords.com

Originally from Chicago, composer and handrummer/percussionist Adam Rudolph has, for the past three decades, appeared at festivals and concerts throughout North & South America, Europe, Africa, and Japan.

Rudolph is known as one the early innovators in what is now called “World Music”. In 1977, he co-founded The Mandingo Griot Society with Gambian Kora Griot, Foday Musa Suso, one of the first bands to combine African and American music. In 1988, he recorded the first fusion of American and Gnawa (Moroccan) music with Sintir player and singer Hassan Hakmoun.

Active as a performer in the Los Angeles creative music scene since 1979, Rudolph has also contributed by producing concerts and running his own Meta Records label. In 1998 he organized the three-day Bootstrap Festival, Los Angeles, presenting over 75 artists from many local and national cultural backgrounds. From 1992–97 he organized and performed a free weekly concert series of improvised music for children at the Jazz Bakery which featured guitarist Kevin Eubanks and Ralph Jones.

He has received grants and compositional commissions from the Rockefeller Foundation, Meet the Composer, Mary Flagler Cary Trust, the NEA, Arts International, Durfee Foundation and American Composers Forum. Rudolph previously participated in the Not A Cornfield project.

About Jean Copeland
Tibetan Bowls

Jean Copeland most recently performed for the UCLA Fowler Museum exhibition, "The Missing Peace: Artists Consider the Dalai Lama." She created a sound score for Oguri's "Height of Sky: A Report From the Desert," at Barnsdall Gallery, and ceremonial music for Roxanne Steinberg's "Corn Fence Fire Dance" at Not A Cornfield. Jean facilitates meditation workshops using Tibetan singing bowls and Qigong exercises. She also dances and has trained with Body Weather Laboratory since 2000.

 



 

Machine Project's Allen Talks Shop


In front of a noontime crowd of about sixty people, Machine Project's Mark Allen delivered a multi-media presentation last Friday, January 12, at Farmlab.

The lecture, Q&A, powerpoint, and book show-and-tell session, was part of the weekly Farmlab Salon series. The series happens every Friday, at noon, at the Farmlab headquarters located at 1745 N. Spring Street, Unit #4, Los Angeles, CA 90012.

"An art space is a permissive space," Allen said. He later noted: "I'm interested in how you can use art as a system to investigate certain practices."

Indeed, Allen discussed many of the projects, classes, and exhibitions that his Echo Park venue has previously presented -- and the diverse crowd that the gallery sets out to attract.

As is to be expected during a Machine Projects overview, topics pinballed from oragami to smoke bombs to a couple kissing inside a coffin to DORKBOT to moonshine to fruit jam to pneumatic tubing to sewing.

Allen also noted the various institutional collaborators that have partnered with Machine Projects - that who's who of the Los Angeleno art and science scence included the Institute for Figuring, Materials & Application, Fallen Fruit, and the Echo Park Film Center, among others.

 



 

Farmlab Salon
Mark Allen, of Machine Project
Friday, January 12 @ Noon
Free-of-Charge




"Fried Food, Transdimensional Art Galleries, Solar Robotics, and Other Strategies for Rethinking Community and Alternative Space."

Mr. Allen will be discussing the following...

1. Machine's illustrious history, fantastical events, and mysterious collaborators,

2. Creating communities based on intellectual and social life,

3. Informal and semi-formal pedagogy for artists and other
interested parties.

About Mark Allen and Machine Project

Mark Allen is the founder and executive director of Machine Project. Machine Project is a non-profit art and event space dedicated to exploring the directions, deviations and connections between art, science, technology, music and literature. For more information please visit www.machineproject.com or read a recent cover story in the LA Weekly.

Farmlab Location

Farmlab / Under Spring, 1745 N. Spring Street #4, LA, CA 90012
Across the street from the site of the Not A Cornfield project, in a warehouse colocated at Baker Street and N. Spring Street

Salons are always free-of-charge, all ages welcome.
Refreshments will be served.

 



 

Trees of South Central Farm Doing Fine At Huntington




The trees that were recently boxed and transported to the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens from the former site of the South Central Farm are doing fine, according to the most recent update provided by Farmlab's expert colleagues at Valley Crest Tree Company.

The fruit on a pair of banana trees were affected by late December chilly weather. The bananas have since been covered. No other problems have been reported.

The trees are being temporarily stored at the Huntington, as planning continues for a future monument, to be located elsewhere, to the trees of the South Central Farm.

At the Huntington, the trees are being safeguarded next to the Children's Garden, and not far from the Chinese Garden that is currently under construction.