This Week @ Farmlab
November 1-November 7, 2007


Farmlab Public Salons

Friday, November 2, 2007 @ Noon
Peter H. Diamandis, M.D | The Prize is Right: Using X PRIZEs to Benefit Humanity
Join Peter H. Diamandis, M.D., Chairman & CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation, for a discussion on how the
X PRIZE is reviving the concept of 'innovation prizes' in order to address major challenges of our era .... full text

Friday, November 9, 2007 @ Noon
Felicity Powell & Ansel Krut | Crystal Ship: A Family of Artists Searching For Arcadia
Join this pair of 'Crystal Ship' artists for an advance gallery talk about the exhibition opening later this same
day ..... full text

News + Projects

Saturday, November 3 @ 7:30 pm – Midnight
La Ofrenda Celebration Coming To Under Spring
Join Farmlab in a celebration of life honoring the ancestors as we transform Under Spring with hundreds of marigold and candles while featuring music and art. reflecting our city's cultural diversity .... full text

Exhibitions

Friday, November 9 @ 7:30 pm
Opening Reception | Crystal Ship: A Family of Artists Searching For Arcadia
'One midnight we were woken by the sound of thunder. A distant storm was coming in across the sea and the lightning stood out in prolonged relief against the moonless sky. Suddenly a ship, lit up like a crystal' ..... full text.

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'Concrete is Fluid'
Behind the New Neon Sign


Concrete is Fluid
Farmlab
Neon Gas Inside Clear Tubing
2007


Farmlab's latest neon sign reads, "Concrete is Fluid."

The piece is some thirty-feet-long by five-feet-tall; it's written in a bold, fuschian color, in a boxy sans-serif font.

The sign is located in the garage in front of Farmlab -- where the relative darkness makes the sign ever-more visible.

At Farmlab, the three-word phrase was first mentioned by team member Steve Rowell; the observation was based on previous work done, in Houston, Texas, by the Center for Land Use Interpretation. (Rowell is a principal in that group.)

At Farmlab that day, among the various topics of discussion were: fountains, in general, and the brutalist architecture of the Hayward Gallery, located on London's concrete-laden South Bank.

Farmlab team members liked the notion of concrete being seen as something it's not, at least in the standard sense; as well as applying it to a very concrete place -- in this case, both the Farmlab parking garage as well as the London gallery.

Think of the three words, Rowell explained, as being a projection of architecture versus nature, in an oblique way. "All concrete was fluid for a brief period of time," he says, "between being rock and rock again."

Photo posted by laavocado; photo courtesy flickr.com's creative commons license

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Four From Farmlab Attend Bioneers Conference



From Jaime Lopez Wolters, Farmlab team member:

"Bioneers 2007 Report

"Bioneers held its 18th annual conference in San Rafael, CA on October 19-21, 2007. Three thousand people attend this conference and an additional ten thousand connect through satellite at 18 locations around the country. For the third consecutive year a small contingency of Farmlab team members attended the conference to observe and learn.

"As always the topics of discussion ranged widely from green science to environmental justice, from art to indigenous movements, all looking at the our world in a holistic way that includes social, economic, ecological and spiritual views. The following excerpts from the Bioneers Program give a brief description of the many inspirational leaders that spoke at the conference:

"JAY HARMAN (www.paxscientific.com)
Designing the Next Golden Age: A Progress Report
Award-winning inventor, entrepreneur and CEO of PAX Scientific offers examples of highly efficient technologies inspired by natural systems that can help us create prosperity without degrading the biosphere.

"VAN JONES (www.ellabakercenter.org)
Toward a Green Growth Alliance: Birthing a New Politics
It is the chief moral obligation of our time to build a green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty. Activist and founder of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights urges us to carry our spiritual, cultural and economic movements into the electoral arena to transform politics and forge a green "New Deal" coalition so that kids who are now prison fodder will help create a zero-pollution economy, harvest the sun and heal the land instead.

"JUDY WICKS (www.whitedogcafe.com)
Local Living Economies: Green, Fair and Fun
Fabled entrepreneur and activist tells her story of moving beyond responsible business practices to working cooperatively with other entrepreneurs and citizens to build whole economies based on love of nature and community.

"PAUL ANASTAS
Green Chemistry: From Here to Sustainability
The "father of green chemistry" explains that moving toward a sustainable civilization depends on major changes taking place in the nature of our products, processes and systems. Green chemistry seeks to transform many of the materials that are the basis of our society — from clothes to housing, communications, agriculture and energy — to ensure they are as benign as possible to the planet and all its inhabitants.

"WALLACE J. NICHOLS (www.wallacejnichols.org)
A Brave New Ocean, or an Ocean Revolution?
Senior scientist at the Ocean Conservancy and ocean activist extraordinaire explains how space-based research and new deep sea technologies have resulted in an explosion of information about the ocean. To change our destructive course we must harness this knowledge, make it accessible to everyone and creatively communicate what the state of the oceans means to the future of life on our planet.

"WINONA LADUKE (www.welrp.org/)
Seeds the Creator Gave Us
This renowned indigenous rights leader and two-time Green Party U.S. Vice Presidential candidate highlights the struggles of indigenous peoples to protect their food sovereignty, restore their food systems and protect their cultures and foods from genetic modification.

"KA HSAW WA & KATIE REDFORD (www.earthrights.org)
Earth Rights: Linking Human Rights and Environmental Struggles in the Age of Globalization
The co-founders and directors of EarthRights International will discuss their work from the jungles of Burma and the Amazon to U.S. courtrooms to hold corporations accountable for human rights and environmental abuses committed in the name of development. They will focus on EarthRights' landmark lawsuit Doe v. Unocal, and their work to raise the voices of indigenous people in international forums through their model training program, the EarthRights Schools.



"The Farmlab team also attended a variety of workshops, the lessons of which are being drafted into a more comprehensive report. [Check farmlab.org for more info, as it arrives. -ed.]

"-Jaime Lopez Wolters
-Sarah McCabe
-Kate Balug
-Olivia Chumacero"

Photos: Top, a conference attendee our photographer named "Bag Man." Botton: Inside the conference hall, at a plenary session featuring Ka Hsaw Wa and Katherine Redford.

-- Farmlab Photos by Kate Balug

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This Week @ Farmlab
October 25-October 31, 2007


Farmlab Public Salons

Friday, October 26, 2007 @ Noon
Angela Johnson Meszaros | AB32 Climate Change Law and What It Says About...
When California adopted the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32) it sent a statement heard around the world. The question is, what was the statement? Join Angela Johnson Meszaros for an exploration of ..... full text

Friday, November 2, 2007 @ Noon
Peter H. Diamandis, M.D | The Prize is Right: Using X PRIZEs to Benefit Humanity
Join Peter H. Diamandis, M.D., Chairman & CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation, for a discussion on how the X PRIZE is reviving the concept of 'innovation prizes' in order to address major challenges of our era.... full text

Under Spring

Friday, October 27 @ 10:00 am – Noon
Mayan And Azteca Mask Making Workshop
Artist Christi Burgos will lead a mask-making workshop inspired by the Mayan and Aztec cultures. Create your very own mask, discover the history behind mask making, and learn about our upcoming La Ofrenda. .... full text

Saturday, November 3 @ 7:30 pm – Midnight
La Ofrenda Celebration Coming To Under Spring
Join Farmlab in a celebration of life honoring the ancestors as we transform Under Spring with hundreds of marigold and candles while featuring music and art. reflecting our city's cultural diversity .... full text

News + Projects

'Crystal Ship' Exhibition Coming to Farmlab
Opening Reception Scheduled For Friday, November 9 @ 7:30 pm
Subtitled, "A family of artists looking for Arcadia", this exhibition features the work of artists Felicity Powell, Ansel Krut and Saskia and Hannah Krut-Powell. The show will run at Farmlab through December 28, 2007 ..... full text

Copies of 'Cornfield' Report Available to Conference Attendees
PUBLIC SPACE LA!-Goers Welcome to White Paper
Visitors to this week's PUBLIC SPACE LA! Conference -- The 1st AIA Los Angeles Urban Open Space Summit -- are invited to bring home a free copy of "The Cornfield: News Ideas For A Sustainable Urban Park" ..... full text

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Copies of 'Cornfield' Report Available to Public Space L.A. Conference Attendees

Copies of the Farmlab publication, "The Cornfield: New Ideas for a Sustainable Urban Park" will be available to attendees of PUBLIC SPACE LA! -- The 1st AIA Los Angeles Urban Open Space Summit.

The conference, conceived by the AIA / LA and being held in West Hollywood at the Pacific Design Center, takes place Friday, October 26.

Farmlab team member Mike Woo -- the author of the report -- will be a participant in the conference; Farmlab team member Janet Owen Driggs will be on hand as well.

Distinguished panelists include past and upcoming Farmlab and Not A Cornfield salon presenters Lewis MacAdams, Jennifer Wolch, and Robert Gottlieb.

For those not attending PUBLIC SPACE LA!, free-of-charge audio, visual, and PDF downloads of the 'Cornfield' report are avaiable here.

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This Week @ Farmlab
October 17-24, 2007



Farmlab Public Salons

Lucas Reiner | Pollarding in the New World
Friday, October 19, 2007 @ Noon
Join artist Lucas Reiner as he discusses his on-going fascination with trimmed trees -- and the photographs, paintings, drawings, and film that have resulted from this. ..... full text

Angela Johnson Meszaros | AB32 Climate Change Law...
Friday, October 26, 2007 @ Noon
When California adopted the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32) it sent a statement heard around the world. The question is, what was the statement? Join Angela Johnson Meszaros for an exploration of ..... full text

News + Projects

Park Site To Host Historic Tongva Sunrise Ceremony
Ritual To Occur For First Time Since Late 18th Century
Not since the time of Spanish Conquistadors have the Tongva people practiced this ceremony at the original site of the Yangna village. Ceremony will begin November 2 @ Sunrise (6:14 am). .... full text

Under Spring

Mayan And Azteca Mask Making Workshop
Friday, October 20 & 27 @ 10:00 am - Noon
Artist Christi Burgos will lead a mask making workshop inspired by the Mayan and Aztec cultures. Create your very own mask, discover the history behind mask making, and learn about our upcoming La Ofrenda. .... full text

La Ofrenda Celebration Coming To Under Spring
Saturday, November 3 @ 7:30 pm – Midnight
Join Farmlab in a celebration of life honoring the ancestors as we transform Under Spring with hundreds of marigold and candles while featuring music and art reflecting our cities cultural diversity. La Ofrenda is similar to a Day of the Dead Celebration and translates to mean 'The Offering'. .... More info coming to Farmlab.org

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This Week @ Farmlab
October 12-19, 2007


Farmlab Public Salons

Friday, October 12, 2007 @ Noon
Michael Davis and Stephen Moore | In Search of the American Esthetic
Join Michael Davis and Stephen Moore for a video presentation of Progress-1970-2005-parallel deja vu, a documentary from two separate cross-country trips in search of the American esthetic ..... full text

Friday, October 19, 2007 @ Noon
Lucas Reiner | Pollarding in the New World
Join artist Lucas Reiner as he discusses his on-going fascination with trimmed trees -- and the photographs, paintings, drawings, and film that have resulted from this. ..... full text

News + Projects

La Ofrenda Celebration Coming To Under Spring
Saturday, November 3 @ 7:30 pm – Midnight
Join Farmlab in a celebration of life honoring the ancestors as we transform Under Spring with hundreds of marigold and candles while featuring music and art reflecting our cities cultural diversity. La Ofrenda is similar to a Day of the Dead Celebration and translates to mean 'The Offering'. ..... More information coming soon

Under Spring

Saturday, October 13, 2007 10am-12noon
Tongva Cultural Workshop | Stories/Songs/Basket Making
Join us for the fourth and final workshop held at Farmlab to honor November as Native American Heritage month. The workshop will be led by the descendants of the Tongva people, of the Los Angeles ..... full text

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This Week @ Farmlab
October 4-11, 2007

Farmlab Public Salons

Friday, October 5, 2007 @ Noon
Cara Baldwin | Wasted
Join Cara Baldwin for "a belligerent celebration of the ways artists and activists endlessly consume and reclaim ourselves, one another and our environment." ..... full text

Friday, October 12, 2007 @ Noon
Michael Davis and Stephen Moore | In Search of the American Esthetic
Join Michael Davis and Stephen Moore for a video presentation of Progress-1970-2005-parallel deja vu, a documentary from two separate cross-country trips in search of the American esthetic ..... full text

News + Projects

Farmlab Featured in Calendar Section of Los Angeles Times
Sunday, September 30, 2007 Article Headlined Making Art a Team Sport
Expanded piece about alternative arts in Los Angeles opens with 'Artists congregate, ideas live and breathe, creativity soars. All around the city, a communal process feeds a vibrant new scene.' ..... full text

Under Spring

Tongva Cultural Workshops to Conclude on October 13
Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007 10am-12noon | Stories/Songs/Basket Making
Join us for the fourth and final workshop held at Farmlab to honor November as Native American Heritage month. The workshop will be led by the descendants of the Tongva people, of the Los Angeles ..... full text

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Farmlab Featured in Calendar Section of Sunday Los Angeles Times

Farmlab was featured in "Making Art a Team Sport," a multi-page, multi-photo Los Angeles Times Sunday Calendar cover story written by feature writer and critic Holly Myers.

The piece spotlighted Farmlab friends, salon speakers, and collaborators such as Fritz Haeg, Mark Allen, and Sean & Fiona of Telic. The story's deck sums up the piece: "Artists congregate, ideas live and breathe, creativity soars. All around the city, a communal process feeds a vibrant new scene."

Lauren Bon, Farmlab's founder and creative director, is photographed and quoted in Myers' story:

"Farmlab feels that creativity can bring recognition to some of these things," Bon says. "It's really an action-based project that's about revealing values we all share; we just don't know how to manifest them because we're in a strange juggernaut between politics, real estate and the disempowerment of those without the capacity to buy into those arenas."

Click here to read full article (subscription may be required).

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