In the Trees

Matthew Geller’s new sculpture, Anticipator, will combine bionic metal limbs with a tree from the Museum grounds. When snow was still falling (and falling) this winter, Facilities Manager Ted Gaffney and I considered the options with a tour of the grounds.

The Museum maintains an inventory of the trees
on our property, with notes about their health, care, and future management. Using the inventory, Ted and I identified several trees that are dead, and thus slated for removal at some point. We then sent a list of the trees along with pictures of each possibility to the artist. Matthew Geller needed a tree with a circumference that would allow it to support the metal limbs of his sculpture, but also one that would not be too thick or unstable when lying on its side.

The winner was star magnolia originally planted by Florence Griswold. It stood between her house and the Lyme Art Association. The tree recently died, perhaps due to damage from the sapsuckers that have made rows of small holes in the bark.

Star Magnolia planted by Miss Florence

Damaged bark

Although we regretted that the tree could not be saved, we liked the fact that a tree selected by Miss Florence could find new life in an artwork on a different part of her property. We think Miss Florence would have been delighted to see her tree incorporated into the sculpture, which will resemble an exotic hybrid not unlike the unusual plantings she sought out for placement on the grounds around her home.

In March, Geller came to asses the tree and make plans for how it should be cut to prepare it for his sculpture. Some limbs would need to be removed so that the trunk would lay flat on the ground. He also marked out an area near the river as the site for the sculpture.

Matthew Geller (left) evaluating the magnolia

Marking out the site of the final sculpture with flags and string

In late April, Lomas Tree Service came to cut the tree, with Museum staff and artist Matthew Geller looking on. Although they would normally cut the tree into pieces, they had to figure out how to fell the tree in one piece so that it would stay intact for use in the sculpture.

Removing unnecessary limbs

We held our breaths as the tree came down, and although some of the more rotten portions did crack off, the trunk survived its trip down to the ground.

After the fall

Lomas then used a crane to lift the tree into a truck, which drove it to our site for the sculpture. The trunk was gently lowered into place on the lawn near Marshfield, overlooking the Lieutenant River. In its current position, the misting branches will provide a screen through which to see the river—such a beloved motif for the Lyme Art Colony painters—in a new light.

Placing the tree on the lawn near the river

The trunk of Miss Florence’s magnolia has been resting in place, waiting for the arrival of its new bionic limbs from the foundry later this week. Matthew Geller will begin fitting the two together this weekend, the first step in bringing Anticipator to life!

Amy Kurtz Lansing

Curator

Anticipating Anticipator by Matthew Geller

As part of the Florence Griswold Museum’s Agora Project—an initiative funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services to make our grounds and gardens a community gathering place—we have commissioned a new, temporary outdoor sculpture. A noted sculptor in the field of public art, Matthew Geller has designed Anticipator, a work for the Museum grounds that combines a recycled tree trunk with three “bionic” limbs forged from Cor-ten steel. These perforated branches will emit colored light and mist through oversized flower “blossoms.” Playful, accessible, and unexpected, the sculpture offers elements of surprise that will encourage visitors to interact with it and each other, fostering a sense of community as they stroll the grounds. Anticipator will shape its environment in an almost animate way, introducing the elements of mist and light and eliciting feedback in return.

Woozy Blossom (Platanus nebulosus), 2010.
 Katonah Museum of Art

Geller often incorporates mist into his works as a means of sparking conversation among viewers by subtly changing their surroundings. At FGM, the mist will transform the environment, influencing how visitors perceive light and air against the backdrop of the Lieutenant River, a subject of interest to the generations of artists who have painted in and around the Florence Griswold House. The sculpture’s futuristic combination of natural and artificial forms will play off our historic site—the tree trunk has been salvaged from the grounds and the exotic blooms recall Miss Florence’s interest in non-native species, many of which she planted around her house. A new biomechanical hybrid that is part plant and part machine, Anticipator will shape its environment in an almost animate way, introducing the elements of mist and light and eliciting feedback in return.

Anticipator arrives on June 8, with a day of fun family activities. Until then, check our website and Facebook for additional posts about the progress of the Anticipator project!

For more of Matthew Geller's work, check out his website: www.matthewgeller.com

Amy Kurtz Lansing

Curator

Florence Griswold Museum

Thumbnailing Thumthing Thpecial

So exciting! Chicago illustrator Aaron Miller is now working on our Oz-inspired faerie art and, although I've only seen a few of his initial thumbnail sketches of the faerie scarecrow, faerie tin man, and faerie cowardly lion, I can say we are off to a great start. I'm only gonna share one little glimpse this week, but will reward your patience with some images for our previous endeavors.

A few years ago, we were working with a friend of Aaron's, Jeff Himmelman, who designed a series of scarecrow images for us, each based on a famous artist. Here's the mascot for Scarecrows at the Museum, our own Vincent Van Crow. 

After Vincent, we urged Jeff to look to more modern artist and he offered us Jack the Dripper. Can you guess which artist he is suppose to be?

After nailing Jackson Pollock, he then turned to Frida Kahlo, or as we liked to call her, Frida Kahlcrow! 

Other fun stuff was then added to really play up the scaring-of-the-crows aspect of the event.

David D.J. Rau

Director of Education and Outreach

David D.J. Rau coordinates as well as participates in the Museum’s October creative endeavors. You can contact him at david@flogris.org.

Upcoming Blog Entries:

• Illustrating the Museum's October Events
• Meet the Museum’s New Fantasy Illustrator Aaron Miller
• Just C’Oz: Other Creative Endeavors Inspired by Oz

Inspired by Oz

It's been a very busy week working with the artists who will be creating the mini-faerie installations, based on the 24 chapters in the original text of The Wizard of Oz this October at the Museum. Artists were asked to look over the chapters and pick their top three choices. Some even shared their early ideas and, let me tell you, we are in for a wonderful array of wee faerie creations inspired by Oz. So very excited. I plan to post the artists and their chapters in upcoming posts. 

However, this week I was looking back at the first Wee Faerie Village, and I came across some of my own collage work that was inspired by the Museum's faeries. At the time I was working with historic tin-types to create collages. Eventually the faerie enchantment crept in and I started using maple seedlings as wings to transform these sober men of yesteryear into faeries. Ironically, considering our upcoming project, I called these works "Tin Men."

Seeing my work, a friend noticed a connection with another artist, Alex Gross, who paints over cabinet cards. A very talented artist, he transforms the sitter in the early photograph into heros, monsters, Xmen, and more. I went to his website recently and was delighted by this collection of Oz-inspired images. I immediately ordered his book which is filled with his mini masterpieces. I think his approach to the characters of Oz is clearly inspired--and what I would give to own that Wicked Witch of the West. Simply Oz-some. By the way, you can get more information about him at his website, alexgross.com. His book is available from Amazon.

In closing, I want to "thank you" for reading, and do feel free to send me link of other works of art you come across that are "inspired by Oz."

David D.J. Rau

Director of Education and Outreach

David D.J. Rau coordinates as well as participates in the Museum’s October creative endeavors. You can contact him at david@flogris.org.

Upcoming Blog Entries:

• Illustrating the Museum's October Events
• Meet the Museum’s New Fantasy Illustrator Aaron Miller
• Just C’Oz: Other Creative Endeavors Inspired by Oz

A Little Creative Casting

"But it wasn't a dream. It was a place. And you - and you - and you - and you were there." ~ Dorothy Gale

I remember watching The Wizard of Oz when I was young and having that "eureka" moment when I realized that the farmhands, Hunk, Zeke, and Hickory, were the same actors who played the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion. I think it took me a few more viewings to make the connection between Professor Marvel and Oz. After the realization, I wondered if Aunt Em and Uncle Henry had Ozian cameos -- I don't think so. 

With this in mind, I thought it might be fun to recast the movie with people from the Florence Griswold Museum's core story of Miss Florence and the artists of Old Lyme. Of course our own Miss Florence could have made a wonderful Dorothy, especially in her younger years. 

For the Scarecrow, I am casting Arthur Heming, the Canadian painter and illustrator. The Museum is currently featuring his work in the traveling exhibition Arthur Heming: Chronicler of the North which will be on view until June 2, 2013.

For the Tin Man I had to choose Childe Hassam, probably the most famous artist to come to Old Lyme to paint. We often show him in these black and white photographs standing outside the studio he used nestled in the fruit orchard. I can see him standing rusted-tin-man straight observing the landscape and planning his next great painting.

The painter Henry Ward Ranger, credited with founding the Lyme Art Colony, is best for the Cowardly Lion. Although a brave artist to start such a venture in the small village of Old Lyme, the body type and king-of-the-jungle-ness of Ranger seems to suit the Lion. Instead of the wagging tail, Ranger supposedly had a ring of cigar smoke ever-encircling his head. Puddum up! Puddum out!

As for Oz himself, I chose Willard Metcalf, partially based on their similar features. Not at all a humbug, Metcalf made Old Lyme famous with his painting of the front of Miss Florence's house titled May Night which won a great prize and was the first contemporary painting accessioned into the collection of The Corcoran Gallery of Art, the oldest in our nation's capitol. I'm glad somebody paid attention to that man behind the canvas.

David D.J. Rau

Director of Education and Outreach

David D.J. Rau coordinates as well as participates in the Museum’s October creative endeavors. You can contact him at david@flogris.org.

Upcoming Blog Entries:

• Illustrating the Museum's October Events
• Meet the Museum’s New Fantasy Illustrator Aaron Miller
• Just C’Oz: Other Creative Endeavors Inspired by Oz

Image-ing Our Wee Faeries

Back in 2009, when we embarked on the first Wee Faerie Village project, we envisioned printing a map for visitors that would aid them in finding their way around the Museum's campus. Likewise, it seemed appropriate to have some wee faerie images of our very own that we could use to advertise the upcoming event. We commissioned Jeff Himmelman, a young illustrator with experience drawing fantastical creatures and beings, especially for the mystical world of online gaming.

The collaborative creation process was a great deal of fun. After some initial conversation about the map and what kinds of faeries would best represent the project, Jeff got to work. One night, an email arrived with the words "faerie sketch" in the subject line--these emails most often arrived in the middle of the night, so this gives you an idea of when these enchanted creatures are conjured. Deep breath time: it's always a little nerve-wracking to open the attached image; you have no idea what you're going to see. Double click. Ahhhhhh! The first demo faerie was truly beautiful, but not quite the tone the Museum was hoping to set with families. Back to the drawing board--or, to be more accurate, to the computer and keyboard.

Not to worry. Jeff took the feedback in stride: 

"Love the autumn leaves as wings." 

"The dress of natural elements is inspired." 

"She may be a bit too adult and perhaps a tad too stern for this project."

Days went by before the first sketch of Griswold appeared. He was a boy faerie who was just the right age with a playful and slightly devilish personality. Next came Florence. She was sweet and demur, but also a perfect muse for the Old Lyme artists. Yeah, we had our first pair of faeries. 

I personally loved his tattered leaf wings and artistic weaponry. The small pencil tucked into his belt like a sword. Griswold holds the ink pen like a spear, the sheafs of blank paper readied for creativity. Jeff Himmelman was masterful in the details: the acorn beret, maple seedling upper wings, and the pair of pointed shoes. For Florence, he gave her a tiara of purple flowers and work belt strung with jars of pigments. 

For the 2009 project, we planned to have both a girl and a boy faerie to represent the inhabitants of our Wee Faerie Village. However, as the process continued, it became apparent that a few more faeries were needed. Himmelman to the rescue!

He even created a wee faerie dog and wee faerie cat to welcome visitors to the Village--L. Frank Baum would have been thrilled since he believed in animal faeries.

Last year, we added to wee faerie family with a few more faerie characters. Another playful boy and impish girl, however, the creative process remained the same.

In 2013, however, our Wee Faerie Village in the Land of Oz characters will most likely look different from the ones above. Firstly, Jeff Himmelman has turned over the creative reins to a friend, Aaron Miller, so the illustrator's personal vision and style will be new--more on Aaron in the upcoming weeks. Secondly, this year's characters will be informed by L. Frank Baum's original text whereas earlier characters were not based on anything too specific. And lastly, it's our goal at the Museum to push beyond what we've done and to create something excitingly new for the audiences who love to visit the Wee Faerie Village, and for them, we will work hard not to disappoint.

David D.J. Rau

Director of Education and Outreach

David D.J. Rau coordinates as well as participates in the Museum’s October creative endeavors. You can contact him at david@flogris.org.

Upcoming Blog Entries:

• Illustrating the Museum's Non-Faerie Village Events
• Meet the Museum’s New Fantasy Illustrator Aaron Miller
• Just C’Oz: Other Creative Endeavors Inspired by Oz