After working for over 50 hours in the last four days I have to say that as I walked away from Don’t Sleep On It I was extremely tired. But I found myself wishing about an hour after it finished that I was still in that small room in the California Building creating another three hour installation.

Don’t Sleep On It was a huge success. Aside from the issue of the time-lapse video going out for 12 hours, everything went off without a hitch. This was due in large part to all of the artists, and their commitment to keep all of our participants motivated through their sleep-walking/arting.

Thanks to Erin and Brett Smith for the convenience store, Chris Pennington for the cardboard city, Hardland/Heartland for the black hole (with help from M-Deathsquads), Burlesque for the BRLSQOTHEQUE (and the wall of bass), Kristina Mooney for the misty mountain landscape, Liz Miller for the felt and burlap oasis, Scott Stulen and Andy Ducett for the couch-fort/pastel-polygon, and lastly Broken Crow for the porcupine and spray paint free-for-all. Each of these installations were amazing and surprisingly different.

I’d also personally like to thank WACTAC for their commitment to staying awake and helping remove trash and debris while everyone else was making art. Nick & Shannon, word up.

Thanks to all of our participants, sponsors and funders. There will be a slew of photos in the upcoming days, so be on the look-out for that, but for now here’s the time lapse video.

I’m going back to bed now.

Admin edit: Added the corrected, longer version of the time-lapse video.

If you haven’t already, check out the our first video interview with Hardland/Heartland.

For now, check out our inaugural video interview with members of Hardland/Heartland, featuring the Walker’s very own Aaron Anderson.

Don’t Sleep on It: A 24-Hour Art-Making Marathon kicks off on May 15 at 6pm and runs through May 16, with a closing party at 8pm. For a full schedule of artist led activities and musical performances, visit teens.walkerart.org or shoot us an email at teenprograms@walkerart.org

Over the past years I have had difficulties getting teen artists to produce quality writing about their work. Many times a printed artist statement and biography written by a teen artist doesn’t give much insight to how they developed the work, what inspires them, or what they are trying to convey through their art. Although a print piece is valuable in terms of permanence, for teen programs, Art on Call has been the perfect companion to the traditional written artist statement. As mentioned in a previous post, Art on Call can be interesting way of bringing artists voices into galleries, cinema, and theater.

Check out some of the Art on Call artist statements that we produced for last year’s multidisciplinary teen art show 20 Under 20 and the 13 Most Beautiful Young Artists performance (Warning: shameless plug – check it out tomorrow night!).

I would love to hear about technologies that educators are using to bring young artists voices into exhibition spaces. Educators, do you have any success stories? Visitors, are these info devices helpful to you? Do you use these devices?

Blizzard, sleet, or snow, we hope to present the performance on Thursday night!

We put Amy through the wringer before we deemed her worthy of reciting the WACTAC of Allegiance, and our in home stenographer was kind enough to give us a look at the transcripts:

What were you like in high school?
I was sort of obnoxious and immature, I’d say. I was actually sort of in the grade school stage in high school. You know, I was like pea-shooters and gum under desks. I wasn’t really artistic. I didn’t know I wanted to be an artist. Some of my family members were but I was more into music. You know I was in a marching band and then I went on to college and thought I was going to teach band music. Isn’t that funny? So, I was at the College of Fine Arts and I thought I wanted to go into radio television, in the production end of it, and then I started taking all these art classes. I went to see a counselor and I said, “I want to change out of fine arts into telecommunications.” And he said, and he said, “No, look at all these art classes you took!” I said, “well I can’t be an artist, I’m not good enough to be an artist!” and he said, “you don’t have to be good.” So, I took drawing, illustration, and sculpture for under grad and then it turned out I liked sculpture so much I mastered in it. But yeah, I was going to be a band director.

Muscle 2004 (near the Saint Paul Farmers Market)

What do you want people to get out of your art?
Great question. I guess I want them to have a feeling of wonderment or explore potentials and possibilities and sort of mix up the reality. You know, it’s hard to surprise people in 2008, almost 2009, and then when you can surprise them and make them take notice of something, especially an object, I think that’s big. And I just love doing it. So, I guess I do it for myself more than anything but I do sort of want to the hair on the back of their neck to stand up.

If you were to create a sculpture that visually translated what goes on in your head, what would it look like?
It would be pretty haphazard, and some parts wouldn’t be finished, it might tip over. Someone told me—and I’m an Aries—”Aries are great at starting projects, they love to start projects” and I was like, “That’s right!” But then the follow-through is just like discipline, so I do a little here, I do a little there.

What is your favorite sculpture of all time?

I think it would have to be Lee Bontecou, any one of the early sixties, when she did canvas over these steel frames, and she’d sew them. It was all found objects because she lived above a Chinese laundry mat and they would throw out these conveyer belts, so she cut up the canvas and then stretched them on these frames and she’d sort of burn into them and they looked really industrial and yet biomorphic. I just love her work. And I love Martin Puryear, too. And Carsten Holler.

What are your favorite materials and why?
Steel, probably. Lightweight steel. First of all it’s very forgiving. So if you cut it too short, that’s alright, you just add a little section onto it and if you cut it too long, you cut it again. So it suits my personality and my way of working and I also love to sew. I like fabrics a lot. And I sort of use steel as fabric. It’s just this additive, manic process, and it looks homemade and I like that it shows the hand of the artist.

If you could have dinner with three people living or dead who would they be and why?

Ghandi, is one. I always aspire to be more zen (laughs). I was just reading abo ut Shirley Chisholm, I would like to have met her. There’s a documentary on her life called CHISHOLM ‘72: Unbought and Unbroken …Who else, maybe Abe Lincoln or something. I live on Lincoln street (you know, Northeast has the streets named after presidents).

If you could design a senior prom, what would it look like?
It would be based on spaceships and rockets. There would be a lot of rope lights. And really good music. Like, you wouldn’t want to sit down, and you’d want to actually go, even if you didn’t have a date.

What advice could you give to teen artists?
I guess, keep on keeping on. Talent’s not even important—it’s one aspect. It’s perseverance, really. It’s a long distance race and somehow you have to make that process fit your life, because you’re not going to do it if it doesn’t. And you know, who succeeds in life? It’s the person who keeps trying. I think that’s more important than anything.

SO REMEMBER!!! Sign up for the sculpture workshop by January 16th. $30 dollars for Walker Members, $35 for non-members. Broke? Don’t worry about it, scholarships are available. To register contact Teen Programs at 612-375-7628 or email teenprograms@walkerart.org

If you would like to see more of Amy check out her Soap Factory interview below.

Eric Luken, WACTAC 1999-2000

Shannon Joyce, 2005-2006 WACTAC member.

Blue Delliquanti, WACTAC 2006-2007 (you can see Blue’s full application here)

Laura Gantebein, WACTAC 2005-2006

I just wish he could have been a part of the WACTAC organized Un-Prom Fashion Show.

Via minneapoline. Thanks for the tip Megan.

What makes working with Alexa so great is her ability to move from medium to medium. Although she’s listed on mnartists.org as a sculptor, she has many titles including photographer, painter, printmaker, and filmmaker. Here’s some photos that show how just versatile her work is.

El Zorzal Criollo (The Native Robin)

28”H x 110”L x 59”W, steel, auto paint, airbag hydraulics, stereo, i-pod, battery, compressor, 2006

Heartbreak Highway 1999

5′ 6″ x 104′ x 144′, Interactive Mixed Media Outdoor Installation

Latina Incognita (I want…)

2000 chromogenic color prints, ed. of 10 20 x 16 in.

Girl Washing Elephant

Acrylic on paper, 62″ x 52″, 2006

If you want to find out more about her work, check out this Radio mnartists.org interview.

1. The man is an unfailing barometer for cool. Not trendy, mind you. COOL.

2. It’s easier to take advantage of his good nature early in the morning, before he’s had his coffee.

3. He works as the Lone Male is a department full of women. He shows no fear when the conversation suddenly takes a turn towards fashion or gossip at the weekly staff meeting. In fact, he has some very interesting opinions on the latest celebrity couples. (Kidding. Sort of.)

4. And did I mention how well he skateboards?

5. He gives a damn about the arts. He gives a damn about teens. He gives a damn about teens in the arts, and 10 years of service at the Walker is proof of that. There are dozens of organizations and colleagues around the Twin Cities (and beyond) who have had the chance to work with Witt Siasoco and sung his praises. I’ve seen many of them roaming these very hallways. Kulture Klub, The Soap Factory, Juxtaposition Arts, Intermedia Arts, MCBA, Perpich Center, TCYMN….shall I go on? I could, you know. For ages.

There’s a reason that when national conversations around teen audiences and the arts come up that the Walker and Witt Siasoco are among the first words out. His excellence in teen programming and community outreach and collaboration has now brought him to the attention of Americans for the Arts. Witt Siasoco was selected to receive a 2008 Professional Development Fund for Emerging Leaders of Color. As one of only twelve recipients chosen, Witt will have the opportunity to attend three national arts conventions and participate in mentorship programs to further develop professional growth and leadership skills.

How cool is it that they recognize what we already know about Witt? Pretty. Damn. Cool.