Pacific Northwest Sculptors

Sculptors share knowledge and resources

Newsletter

Help Shape the Future of Portland’s Public Monuments

The Portland Monuments & Memorials Project, organized by Convergr45 is coordinating the “Prototypes” show. The project is managing conversations around proposed sculptures to replace many of those removed in the past year. A group of about 30 will be on display from August 25 through October 9th at 1010 NW Flanders Street, Portland. These existing and proposed sculptures will be available for public comment. The feedback received will influence how the City replaces many public sculptures. This is an opportunity for everyone to voice an opinion and help shape how public art is selected.

eXtended Reality

Possibilities and trends of 3D visualization for Sculpture

Presenter: Miguel Arias, Founder and CEO of Prefixa,
Miguel Arias is an innovator in photorealistic, augmented reality, and virtual reality imaging. Prefixa has operations in Silicon Valley, Mexico, and France.

XR (eXtended Reality) encompasses all the 3D visualization technologies like Augmented Reality, Mixed Reality, Virtual Reality, and other 3D techniques that can display artworks, products and objects inside immersive 3D environments.

This presentation gives an overview of the existing technologies and how art pieces, specially Sculptures, can be scanned and integrated into interactive 3D showrooms, virtual reality exhibits, or augmented reality visualizations. The first step is to convert the art piece into a 3D representation, either with 3D scanning, photogrammetry techniques, or 3D modeling. Once the artwork is converted into 3D, it opens the opportunity to exhibit, experience, and share it with the world in a variety of virtual ways. Artists can host exhibits in 3D worldwide, museums can document and create 3D catalogs of their collections and new digital tools and workflows help to showcase and sell art online. Some trends will be discussed, from Augmented Reality, VR-eCommerce, and 3D NFTs.

Finally, some alternatives to 3D scanning were introduced, including Prefixa’s photogrammetry from video conversion, the XR-ROOM platform to host 3D exhibits for artists and custom apps for AR, digital catalogs or VR exhibits. The presentation shows web 3D interactive and virtual reality examples created by xr-room.com

Art Saves Lives

Culture could save the Planet

Detail from, We are Still Here, Kayin Talton Davis with Cleo Davis, 2020. Lizzie Weeks Room, Portland Building.
Detail from, We are Still Here, Kayin Talton Davis with Cleo Davis, 2020. Lizzie Weeks Room, Portland Building.

I have posted here previously about broadening Culture, the challenge of racism and the concept of “de-colonization”. That writing has been adjacent to ongoing discussions offline about the almost entire whiteness of PNWS. It’s a tricky thing to bring up, people can get defensive. There’s dysfunctional conditioning that can lead to self-blame, distraction and numbness when bringing up topics of global abuse. Here’s a simple idea put forward by Roslyn Hill that can be a handle to hold, a point of traction when wheels are spinning.

Put yourself on the RACC mailing list (https://racc.org/about/newsletter/)
The Regional Arts & Culture Council and PNWS have a lot in common. The above link will take you to their newsletter sign up, which is part of their ABOUT page with their Mission statement. Please, peruse the rest of the site to see how they’re manifesting those ideals. I believe they can offer PNWS Members guidance for honoring many Cultural traditions with an understanding that some people’s voices have been systematically marginalized, but that there are also many pathways to reconcile abuses.

One simple step we can all take is sign up for the RACC newsletter. And I look forward to all the other steps, the discussions, the art, along with the grief, shame and joy of expanding possibilities, shared resources and multiple Cultural outlooks. I look forward to all these steps and more.

Andy Kennedy, Board member of PNWS
Andything.com

Posting to your Member Profile

Creating Posts on your Member Profile page.

Members familiar with the Member Profile page are likely aware of the tab that displays the posts created by that member. Until now, members needed to know how to access the WordPress dashboard, after logging in, to create a post. A skill only a few members have. The Website team has been actively working to make it easier for members to create their own posts and are excited to announce this new functionality.

Now, when you login and visit your Member Profile page, a new Create Post tab is available.

Creating a Post

When you click the Create Post tab the following instructions are presented:

When you select the Create New Post button the WordPress block editor will be presented. The block editor is quite different from text editor and word processor applications you may be familiar with so we highly recommend you check out our Writing Posts in WordPress tutorial page which contains links to several helpful video tutorials that will introduce you to the block editor.

When you select Edit Draft Post you will be presented with your list of posts similar to this:

Select the draft post you would like to edit to enter the block editor.

Publishing a Post

Once you are are satisfied with your post the next step is to submit your post for Review. Selecting the Publish button will present the following confirmation prompt:

Once you click the Submit for Review button your post will be available for review by our website editors. You will be notified once one of the editors have reviewed and published your post to the site. Our goal is to publish within 2 days.

Your published posts will appear on the Posts tab on your Member Profile page. If the website editor feels your post would be a good candidate for the PNWS Articles page or our monthly newsletter, they will contact you for permission to use the post.

Recognizing International Sculpture Day 2021

                by Andy Kennedy

In the tradition of York and Sacajawea, PNWS 2021 International Sculpture Day (IS Day) was a pioneering experience.  A conceptual theme was chosen: Unrecognized. This word came up as a conjunction of different sculptural phenomena that were hidden, undervalued, uncompensated or intentionally made less important.

A portrait of York, an uncompensated American pioneer, was secretly installed on Mount Tabor last February, and became the central inspiration for the PNWS IS Day. Earlier in October 2020, protesters knocked an image of an anti-democratic, white publisher off the block-shaped pedestal that York is on today. They also sprayed the word DECOLONIZE on both sides that block shape. At least three trends of US history are being challenged here. A black man is being recognized for his pivotal role in the Corp of Discovery, an expedition that may not have succeeded without him. The white artists of this sculptural dedication to a black man choose to remain anonymous even with international attention on their artwork. And American colonization is no longer history, but a present-time action. As though we are colonists now, playing our parts in a kind of brutal conquest game. York and the artwork about York are both leading us in a different direction. Honoring his experience, fully recognizing his contribution and suffering, brings us to a new territory, an uncharted inclusiveness. Letting go of the old model of colonial conquest and ambition at the expense of our humanity, is not a loss. We gain the real scope of a truly representative human experience. York’s portrait in the middle of Portland gives a clear opportunity to place York at the center of a US history that has not been recognized.

In all history the colonization of the Americas is the single biggest movement of human cultures. Starting about five hundred years ago Europe, Asia and Africa came to the Americas, with a mix of ambition and denial. The patterns of conquest and projecting otherness continue from then until now in obvious and subtle ways. To decolonize means to stop this process, a plea to stop abuse, stop exploitation, stop objectifying life. This goes beyond politics or social agendas. It is primal in the way that putting down a tool, no longer needed, is a primal gesture. Time to stop the urge to control the land and every living being. It’s time release the tools at hand.

Cartoon Sculpture: A Publishing Quandary

The goal of any cartoonist is to get published. When that happens the publisher will reproduce the drawing and distribute it. Ink is cheap. Paper is flat and easy to mail or deliver otherwise. In the case of sculpture, publishing is an involved and expensive process. Think rotational and injection molding, slip casting, bronze casting, chasing and glazes. There will never be a kid throwing throwing today’s sculpture onto your lawn at 5:00 am.

So how to make a 3D thing into something that translates into a 2D format. I pondered this for years. Then came Etsy. Etsy says, “Describe your item, tell the viewer why they should buy it”.

Techs

Uh…ok…so:

“It’s a cowboy obviously, see the hat? Hoss wore a hat like that but this is obviously not any sort of person from these parts, not even California. Must be an alien then, but why the cowboy hat? Thinking on this I realize that they must just now receiving old Bonanza broadcasts. Hoss has become a meme there and everyone is wearing ten gallon hats. So you should buy this thing.”

Something clicked. I found it easy to write these things. I could say anything. Who’s to argue? Will this resolve the 3D publishing issue? I don’t know, maybe. In any case the following link will open a collection of these things in pdf format.

Funker’s Compendium

President’s Message

Chas Martin

These past few months have been a busy time for the PNWS Board and Volunteers. We have made multiple updates to our systems to improve how we manage our group’s activities. Among the upgrades is our Newsletter. We are now publishing monthly again and will feature recent articles published by our members. Behind-the-scenes work of Dave Frei and Jonas Hartley made this possible. More streamlined improvements are in the works. Thanks to Rocky Jaeger for taking on the editor role. And thanks to George Heath for his years of service in that role. George remains a trusted advisor for many or our tasks. He’s taking more time to focus on his own work.

Our May meeting will be hosted by Russ Ford. Russ is an accomplished, now retired educator. His ceramic potential has taken a significant leap forward with installation of his new, huge kiln. Russ will give us a studio tour and discuss his work on Wednesday, May 26.

We have initiated a registration system for our monthly meetings so we can track who attends. Don’t be offended. This is part of our plan to increase new members.

Upcoming activities:

On June 23, we will have our first live meeting in over a year. It will be at the studio of Devin Laurence Field. Devin, one of the founders of PNWS, is known for monumental steel sculptures that transform metal into experiences. His works appear across the globe. Devin will inspire and amaze with the scale and complexity of his work. His articulate communication skills are both verbal and sculptural. This is a presentation worthy of your participation.

Our July 28th meeting will feature Miguel Arias, founder of Prefixa. As an innovator in 3D imaging, virtual reality and augmented reality, Miguel will give us a look into the future. His work is making it easier for non-technical people to create and use 3D imaging to share and market our work. Imagine a 3D gallery where your sculptures can be viewed virtually in the round. Or, an AR (augmented reality) model that displays your sculpture in the viewer’s actual environment. This technology exists today. Be sure to attend our June presentation and invite other artists to join us.

3D imaging opens the door to many other options like selling digital versions of your work as (NFTs). Remember the Monopoly board game? This is similar. Here is a short summary to help you visualize what is possible and how we may be able to expand our collector audiences through emerging technologies.

The Shape of Sculpture’s Future: 3D Imagery

After years working online, up to my eyeballs in technology, I really appreciate the tactile sensation of hands-on work. It’s the fundamental connection and eye/hand coordination that I find fulfilling. However, I have not lost my fascination with what technology can do. And, since my marketing communications genes are still alive and well, I cannot ignore the potential of what is happening in the digital 3D realm.

I was approached by a representative of Prefixa recently. She offered to convert one of my existing sculptures into a 3D model. Once I saw their example, I couldn’t resist exploring further.

Scan this QR code with you phone to see and interactive 3D sculpture.

This is still an emerging technology. It’s not perfect, but it does work and it is impressive. The AR version of this file can be placed in your environment using your phone. Put the sculpture in the middle of your dining room table and walk around it. Scale it. Zoom it. This is incredibly effective way to visualize sculpture in situ. If you would like to see the AR version, let me know. I’ll text you the file and you can drain your phone battery while you amaze friends.

In January 2019, I participated in a conference in NYC on NFTs (non-fungible tokens). The event was about creating and selling digital versions of art for cryptocurrency. It’s a bit out there, but there are artists actually earning real money and cryptocurrency for their art.

I met up with a couple of other participants from that conference last week. We talked about the future of digital art and commerce. Here’s is a short summary of possibilities that are in development or already in the market.

Virtual galleries exist, mostly for 2D art. Technology also exists to create a 3D gallery for viewing sculpture in the round. These galleries may deal in actual (not just virtual) dollars. Selling digital copies of a sculpture means you man create limited edition digital copies and set your price. That may also contribute to the value of the original.

Remember the Monopoly game? Check out Upland. You buy a space (think URL) that is mapped to a physical, real-world address. In this metaverse, you build it up with houses, hotels and other assets like music, video, paintings and sculpture. Turn the property into a gallery filled with 3D sculptures. It’s an immersive experience. If a visitor likes a sculpture, they can purchase a digital copy. Here’s how Upland describes the experience:

Join a brand new NFT metaverse that is mapped to the real world and quickly becoming the largest and most dynamic blockchain-based economy in existence. Buy, sell and trade virtual properties mapped to real addresses. Build your dream house, start a virtual business and earn UPX coins or U.S. dollars by selling your NFT properties in a free and open marketplace.

In Monopoly, commerce is conducted with blue, purple, yellow and green money. In the virtual world, it may be crypto or real currency. All of this is evolving quickly. I have not taken the step to actually sell my work through this platform. I’m still exploring and learning how it all works. I do believe that this is one version of the future of art marketing. Success will depend, as always, on the quality of work and getting it in front of the right potential buyers. As I have said before, you never know until you try. Then you know.