Glen Kaufman
2006: Tableaux
December 2006
Big Canoe, GA
Early November at Big Canoe in the north Georgia Mountains is a riot of color. Driving along the narrow roads with the bright sun shining through the canopy of leaves overhead is a magical experience. Every hue associated with the fall season is on view – reds, yellows. oranges, browns — each nuanced as only Nature can achieve. Long-time residents declare that this is one of the most colorful falls ever. A week later the spectacle is somewhat diminished but the small island in the center of Lake Petit, reflected in the clam waters, remains as one the most memorable sights seen here. By the end of the month most of the leaves have dropped in profusion, yet here and there in isolated spots the maples hold on to their brilliant reds now seen through the dark vertical trunks of their barren neighbors. December arrives with only the beeches holding their tawny leaves that rustle in the breezes until the spring budding pushes them off.
Now to the rest of the year: January was marked by the beginning of the spring semester at UGA and my annual trip to Tucson to spend time with my cousins and extended families there. The weather was perfect as we made our day trips to Mt. Lemon, the beautiful valley of the former Meigs Ranch with its brown grasses and occasional cattle near Patagonia, our favorite Mexican restaurants and simple relaxing on the patio surrounded by grapefruit and orange trees laden with fruit framing views of the nearby mountains. We shopped resale and thrift shops “until we dropped” and managed to outfit yours truly in real Western garb from black boots to black hat (I mean cowboy for both). This outfit won for me 1st prize for costume at my BC Solo Club’s Halloween dinner. Can one be more Lone Ranger Western than that in the GA Mountains?
In March I was back in Kyoto for my spring re-charge and to attend to details of the Study Abroad Program. The weather was cold and the usual winter mode in place — space heaters at the ready and fueled and all winter clothing taken out of storage. The people essential to our program were contacted and all were “on board” for our arrival in May. Walks along the rivers in early morning, dinners with old friends, viewing the exhibitions in the museums and galleries were all on the agenda. Plum trees were in full aromatic/spicy bloom and the camellias in my garden provided the flowers for the tokonoma.
Upon return to Athens our group was immersed in the preparations for the Nuno no Odori (see enclosed card) performance on the 25th. My former MFA student, Andrea, and I received a grant to sponsor this collaborative event which involved my fabric wall that provided the background for video, which I shot the previous October in Kyoto of bamboo groves, cedar forests and maples over a stream. Andrea choreographed three segments for the three distinct visual effects and the dancers performed in various costumes in front of the projected images (as seen on the card wearing white antique kimono) creating a shadow on the fabric wall — a partner for each dancer. Original music accompanied the dancers in the three segments of the performance. We were pleased to play to a full house and received many favorable comments on the effort.
April here in the mountains is a replay of the wonders of Nature seen in November — but in reverse.
Each subsequent weekend brings forth the slow unfolding of the leaves until by the end of the month that very special spring green fills the air and the view through my window-wall. Weekend visits highlight this progress, as the changes from week-to-week are more dramatic than seen day-by-day. An additional delight is the blooming of the wildflowers that occur at this same time. April is also the month that life at UGA becomes totally hectic with the many demands of the Program, correspondence with the participants plus all the end of term responsibilities. Finally, once on the flight to Japan I can relax a bit and look forward to the few days I’ll have there before the students arrive. The Program went exceptionally well this year with a very enthusiastic group of students in fabric design and ceramics. Everyone worked very hard and the results of the immersion in “everything Japanese” and the studio work were impressive. 2006 was a great success.
I stayed on from mid-June until early July to finish the work for my exhibition at GalleryGallery in Kyoto: Jeans Tableaux. (See card enclosed with a photo taken in GA.) Jeans are now ubiquitous as items of clothing all over the world. They can be seen as common everyday wear and as high fashion statements from famous designers. The installation consisted of empty jeans that were made hard by glue and were freestanding in a variety of arrangements. They were arranged in scenes from daily life (tableaux) in which a group of men might participate. For the opening of the exhibition, I recreated the image on the card with leaves collected in Kyoto on my visit in March. Some of the jeans are ones that I have worn while others, in my same size, were purchased in flea markets and re-cycle shops. Thus, I was a part of each tableau. But my identity remained a mystery. A new tableau was created every few days during the period of the exhibition. I had some intense discussions with viewers about the significance of jeans internationally. It is especially rewarding when a visitor can penetrate my mind as expressed by the work on view. A few days after the show closed, I hung up my jeans (floating from my studio ceiling) and returned to GA.
The period of July and early August at Big Canoe is a special treat. Mid-day can be hot but early morning is ideal for a daily hike either on the Indian Rocks trail along the stream that empties into Lake Petit or on the trail that winds up to the Lower and Upper Falls of Disharoon Creek. The spirit of Nature envelops me. Days are spent in the yard, in the studio or working on a “home” project. Late afternoon is an ideal time for a visit to the beach at the swim club for some reading or a nap, out of the sun, after a dip or two in the alternating warm and cool waters of the lake. You never have that kind of experience in a chlorinated pool — but that is where the wild and frantic activity takes place, for which this old guy is thankful.
Alas, mid-August brings the start of school with class preparations, meeting with students and faculty — and the beginning of classes. During August and September, I was busy in my mountain studio working on my entry for the 12th International Triennial of Tapestry to be held in Lodz, Poland in 2007. I was one of 5 American artists chosen to participate in this major international event. The work had to be to photographed to meet the application deadline of mid-October. I will relate more about this project in 2007. In September a search was undertaken to fill the position created by the retirement in 2005 of my colleague of many years, Ed Lambert. It is an opportunityto achieve a better balance between art and design in the fabric design program so we are looking for a candidate that has an MFA and design experience in industry. We are hoping for a choice of candidates by the deadline the end of January.
In early October I traveled to Savannah to visit my WI cousin, Mick, whose daughter and son-in-law, Lisa and John, had just moved into their new house with a beautiful view of the salt marsh. I was also able to spend a couple of days with former student, Lee Heidel, Ginger and new baby Camille. Super visits all around. October is the height of football season in Athens, and I escape as soon as possible on Fridays to my hideaway. The 90,000+ fans, the tented banquet style tailgating (tailgates having long since disappeared from most vehicles, except trucks), the traffic snarls, and drunken brawls all add to the mythology and mystique of UGA Dawg Days, which shall remain inscrutable to me.
However, our fall break, which still coincides with the UGA/Florida game (we lost) allows me, with a bit of a stretch, to whisk myself away to Kyoto for a glorious week. The weather was unusually warm this year with temps in the 70’s most days and with a scant bit of rain. The sky was clear, the sun was bright, the surrounding mountains were in full view and contentment reigned. There were many exhibitions of note including contemporary Kyoto crafts, German sculpture, ancient Chinese art and, most importantly, a fantastic exhibition of Greek sculpture and vases from the Louvre. The marbles were incredible to see again after so many years with new appreciation for the luscious folds in the garments carved with consummate skill so many centuries ago. There were a number of gallery shows as well so I was totally saturated with new experiences in the visual arts. I was very fortunate to snag a terrific new housemate for the Kyoto house. Nino Falaci is an Italian researcher in theoretical physics (He uses pencil and paper!) at an important institute associated with Kyoto University. He has his PhD from the UK and his English has a beautiful Italianesque lilt. I had a memorable birthday celebration in Kyoto, along with other friends whose birthdays are in October, with an Italian feast that went on and on. I celebrated as well on my Northwest flight to Detroit with treats of sake and a dessert plate from business class. And one more party at Page’s after he picked me up at the Atlanta airport and one more event hosted by Andrea of the performance event. WOW!
The November highlight was the Thanksgiving Holiday when I was able to stretch my time at BC into a 9 day stay with trips to Atlanta for grandson Lee’s (now 13 and growing) “Grandparents Day” at his school to meet the teachers and classmates, check out the exhibitions at the High Museum and spend Turkey Day with Page, Jeanne and Lee in Atlanta. Both Page and Lee are very active in Boy Scouts and all 3 of them in church activities. Lee is a “high honor” student in his middle school, impresses me with his piano skills and enjoys Korean school on Saturdays. He will enter high school next fall.
December brings the end of the fall semester with 6 of our undergraduates graduating with their BFA Exit Shows a highlight of their time with me at UGA. I was able to settle into life at Big Canoe by the middle of the month with a chance to unwind, see some movies, read a bit, and prepare for the holiday. Lee and I had a day at the High seeing the first of a “suite” of exhibitions from the Louvre over the next several years. We enjoyed some outstanding paintings and sculptures and look forward to future shows together. Christmas brought my former student Ben, his wife and brother to BC on the 23rd, I was in Atlanta at Page’s on Christmas day and then on to Milledgeville to celebrate the holiday with former student, Sang-Wook Lee, and my “other” family. I made a quick trip back to the mountains to welcome another former student, Clay McLaurin, and a friend. We had not been together for 5 years but have kept in contact via phone and email recently. It was a memorable reunion. Page and family are to make a visit before the end of the year, but I will also have time to work in the studio and enjoy the peace and quiet of the forest surrounding my lair here with frequent visits of squirrels and birds and an occasional appearance of a deer or two. Later in the winter they will be back in numbers for a handout of corn.
I will conclude this tome with my warmest wishes for a healthy, contented, and fruitful 2007: HAPPY NEW YEAR OF THE BOAR.