SF Mobile Museum

Quick re-post: "Too Much For the Brain To Take In"

2012-01-16T22:30:00.000-08:00

I was reading this article within the context of "observation". The Australian Arts & Lifestyle has a good article on a topic we have seen before: Too Much For The Brain To Take In.

I'm going to take the liberty of excerpting what I think is the gist below, which lays out a logic for what we value in art: a transformative experience. That delightful mix of Resonance with an idea and Wonder at its realization or character. Experienced internally through observation and presence, and shared through proximity and subsequent conversation:

"A picture is not absorbed in a flash, apparently, but by a process of visual assembly. "The result of this rather mad experiment," says Alexander Sturgis, the curator of a show based on this research, was that "surprise, surprise, everyone looks differently".

Our idiosyncrasies put curators to the test.... A single picture, hung in isolation with no writing around it and perfect lighting, might be what some people long for, but others will be completely put off."

"You might assume that going to an art gallery is about looking at art works," says Leader, "but it's just as much about looking at other people. When the Chapman brothers showed their McDonald's effigies many were shocked because the amazing thing about that show was that the room was dark and people could only look at the work, not at each other." Many shuffled away quickly to discuss it afterwards in the safety of their fellow group...

"In a sense we are not interested in art. We are interested in what other people are interested in.

"Built into how we see an art work is how someone else sees it," Leader says. As he explains in his Stealing the Mona Lisa: What Art Stops Us From Seeing, "visual images on their own might trap us, but for our capture to become more than transitory they need to take on a symbolic, signifying value".

"A place has to be made for them. Crucially, art works need to mean something for someone else."

[snip]

"Our relationship with art is far more than visual. It is social, emotional, philosophical and spiritual. You will push your way free of the thronged blockbuster when you have reached the end of your physical or mental strength. This could take three hours or three minutes. But there will probably be an image that you won't be able to push out of your mind. It will have outfaced you in the staring contest. It's not you who takes in the art, but the art that takes over you."

I wonder about that last idea that for "our capture to become more than transitory they need to take on a symbolic, signifying value" and consider if it's possible to integrate such a social and psychological phenomena into an exhibition. Or is that something that happens whether or not we try? Perhaps I'm making this too much for my brain to take in.

When is it exhibit or art and does it matter?

2012-01-12T16:57:00.000-08:00

Walk with me through this one. As I'm working on the next exhibit concept, thoughts like these cross my mind:

How much responsibility do I have to be educational in my exhibits?

For example, I'm working on this concept of "Observation". How much am I responsible for educating people about what the universe defines as observation? There is of course the need to inform the public enough about any topic so they can get into the exhibit-- however, is there a line around what the quality of that knowledge is that I present?

At what point does it tip into art, and do I need to be declarative about it?

In 1999, I worked on a piece at the Yerba Buena with Neil Grimmer called "Metatherapy.com". It was a fictitious product showroom for a web and pager system that would deliver mantras to you based on Chakra points. Some visitors laughed, others approached us and suggested that we install it in hospitals and shopping malls.

We thought that it was important to the piece to leave it up to visitors to decide- as for the idea we were floating this idea of melding technology and spirituality.

The SF Mobile Museum is a construct I've created with the intent to play with the concept of museums, exhibits, and art. I believe that if it serves the experience to be agnostic about intent, so be it. I do wonder is there a case where that is not true?

Does it matter?

When we see "museum" is there some universal process that we all assume has been applied? I can think of similar assumptions from the well-known Fox "News" to calling just about anything an "artifact". Many art careers have been built upon "artifacts".

In the context of the SFMM, I've been working on the assumption that it doesn't matter, because the whole idea is to explore and expand the basic concept of "museum"-- so that means playing with it in a variety of ways.

Again, I go back to the quality of the experience. If it serves the concept and fosters the quality of experience I'm trying to achieve, then it doesn't matter how I get there, as long as it follows a logic that serves the idea/experience.

Right?

I'm not asking for permission, and I am probably overthinking (my part-time hobby). I do wonder if others think about this, and questions or conclusions they arrive at. What responsibility do you feel you have, if any?

We're not the only game in the Mobile Museum town

2011-12-09T11:34:00.001-08:00

There are some wonderful other projects out there in Mobile Museum Platform Land. Thought I would share a few of the prolific ones.

I'm finding that this type of platform is well suited to some forms of engagement and not others. It's very well suited to experimentation on a variety of scales, but maybe not for displaying costly works of art (though some may disagree with that).

Of course there is an existing history of mobile museums which are exhibits in flatbed trucks. This is focusing on exhibitions with a more participatory bent:

The Pop-Up Museum of Queer History

Now just because you may *not* be queer doesn't mean there isn't anything to glean from this. Think this museum provides an excellent model for how a history museum can enrich and engage:

"The Pop-Up Museum of Queer History is a grassroots organization that transforms spaces into temporary installations celebrating the rich, long, and largely unknown histories of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. We believe that our community – and especially our youth – deserve to know our history. If you don’t know you have a past, how can you believe you have a future?"

The Mobile Arts Platform

MAP is the ultimate mash-up of popp-up-art-installation-craft-camp-concert-on-the-street. They have created a platform that allows them to make cultural events and installations on the street:

"The Mobile Arts Platform (MAP) is comprised of two large-scale, interactive sculptures that are activated by a mobile exhibitions program. MAP brings together Peter Foucault’s Fal-Core Van – a retrofitted 1963 Ford Falcon – and Chris Treggiari’s Mobile Art Trailer in locations throughout the Bay Area. MAP creates an autonomous exhibition space, an artistic research lab where a cross pollination of mediums and genres can occur, be accessible to the public, and create strong bonds with partner communities. MAP events include video screenings, visual art, performance art, live music, interactive artworks, and culinary art."

The Black History Mobile Museum

The vision for this museum is to bring the subject matter via the museum to the people through a mobile platform that also allows him to create flexible and tailored exhibitions. They can range from racist artifacts to hip-hop and sports:

"For the past 20 years, the Black History 101 Mobile Museum has acquired thousands of original artifacts of Black memorabilia that date from slavery to Hip Hop culture. The Black History 101 Mobile Museum travels to colleges, universities, K-12 schools, conferences, and cultural events across the country."

What made these projects stand out was their inherent sense of experimentation, their ability to sustain, and their DIY approach. I'm highlighting them here because I want to support the idea that museums can be informal and wonderful.

Observatorium

2011-12-01T15:12:00.001-08:00

Been thinking lately about moving away from a challenge-based approach for my next experiment and focusing on observation. When I worked on the Outdoor Exploratorium project, I always wanted to do a piece that would allow folks to play with different types of observation tools and skills.

So I'm starting to brainstorm what those might be, and what type of platform it would take to make it transportable. I may still include a challenge in it, but the challenge may be around what it is you are looking at.

Image by Flickr/Warm Sleepy

#aam2011: Our presentation

2011-05-22T21:03:00.000-07:00

I thought I would share our presentation from our session at #aam2011 today. I was honored to share the stage with Ashely Remer of the Girl Museum, Jon West-Bey of the American Poetry Museum and brilliant moderator Paul Orselli of the Paul Orselli Workshop.

What is it about? Our experiments, and why we think approaches such as these are good for the future of museums.

San Francisco Mobile Museum, Maria Mortati, #aam2011

View more presentations from Maria Mortati

It was a lot of fun to share the work. Thanks, all!

Here We Come: #aam2011

2011-05-19T13:50:00.001-07:00

Hi.

We're delighted to be participating on a panel with Girl Museum and the American Poetry Museum at the American Association of Museums conference. Our panel is this Sunday from 1:15 p.m., room 372E and is called "Future of Exhibiting: Voices from Non-traditional Museums".

We'll be sharing our experiences and perspectives the work we've done with our alternative museum projects. I'll post links to slides and additional materials soon!

A Cause for Reflection with the Center for the Future of Museums

2011-05-16T09:41:00.001-07:00

If you've been following, you've probably heard that we participated in a blog series with the AAM's Center for the Future of Museums. They've called it "Museums and the Spectrum of Control". It looks at a set of projects which challenge the notion of authoritative museums in unusual ways.

In Part 1, Barbara Stauffer chief of temporary exhibitions at the National Museum of Natural History shared her work on a project where they invited the community to crochet pieces for a giant "coral reef" installation.

In Part 2, I shared our brief history of playing with both the idea of a mobile platform and participatory projects.

For Part 3, Streetcolor talked about her experiences with 'Yarnbombing' in relation to museums.

Finally, we had a bunch of emails amongst ourselves reflecting on how reading about each other's processes impacted our thinking:

"Closing the Loop"

It's great when you're doing experimental work to have a chance to reflect. Grazie, CFM.

Image: CC/Flickr/Basyke

Free SHRINE: Gone But Not Forgotten: A Burro Story 1982-2010

2011-05-15T23:25:00.000-07:00

By Marcia Stuermer

Clarissa was a town burro from Murphy ’s, an historic Gold Country town who died earlier this year. She was 27. She was an affectionate and wildly loved animal- the result of a University of CA program that rounded up feral burros in Death Valley and adopted them out.

No one could visit the town without paying a visit, usually with a treat. After her death, her shed was turned into a giant memorial of flowers, notes and other gifts. Often townspeople paying their respects could not hold back tears. The town of Murphy's will hold a tribute in her honor on August 6th. It is rumored that they might even erect a statue in her name. It’s yet to be determined if the town will adopt another burro to hold court.

Let me tell you, I have never heard such a sound as the earth-shaking braying that would come from a delighted Clarissa when she was aware that someone had brought her food! I hope that sound will continue to echo on that corner of Murphy’s Main Street for many years to come.

Note: Marcia Stuermer also created this piece for our first exhibit, "Looking for Loci".

Art & Science: Microscopic Success

2011-04-24T20:05:00.000-07:00

Last Fall we participated in Phil Ross' "Enormous Microscopic Evening" at the Hammer Museum. It was part of Machine Project's residency.

As I've said before, this is a deeply engaging, fun event for artists, scientists, and especially the public. Someday I'll post my pictures!

Emily Lacy from Machine recently sent us this video. It says it well:

Enormous Microscope Evening from machine project on Vimeo.

Movement Museum Offers a Mobile Model

2011-03-16T21:29:00.000-07:00

Scott Moulton, an Exhibit Designer at Gyroscope and fan of the SFMM, sent a link to the "Movement Museum, A Creative Field Station for the Study of Movement".

Movement Museum is part of an ongoing series out of the Works Progress group in Minneapolis:

"Works Progress is a loosely affiliated group of creative collaborators who bring unique skills and experience to our collective work. A few of us make up the core Works Progress crew, while others contribute on a project-by-project basis."

They have multiple participatory projects, this one is of interest to us in particular. It offers not only the opportunity for the public to engage on the spot, but to capture and share the results:

"Movement Museum is located in and around a pop-up field station that can be assembled anywhere in about 30 minutes. It is an experiment with the concept of a mobile museum, one where research is performed, recorded and projected as part of a large-scale, public composition."

We look forward to learning more about their progress, and iterating our own platform for speed of set-up and sharing.

Image source: Movement Museum project blog

FREE Shrine: Booklit

2011-03-14T18:52:00.000-07:00

Shrine to the Beginning, by Kathy Mancall:

When you start a new book—at least, a new book you want to read, –present high-schoolers excepted who are being forced to read Billy Budd for their required summer reading lists—you crack open hope. You anticipate the journey ahead with excitement. Hope is unfurled before you like a clean, unbroken highway that disappears deliciously into the horizon line. That first sentence presumes innocence. As a reader, you haven’t been sullied yet by a plot that disappoints, dialogue that rings untrue, or the ending that didn’t lived up to the beginning. There is always hope that this will be the best thing you’ve read this year, or the guilty pleasure you’ve been waiting forever to indulge in, that invites you to load on the don’t-give-a-fuck mental calories. Great first sentences are like a clear bell ringing. They engage, amaze, and are the promise that you’ll be sorry when the last sentence ends.

So I’ve compiled here a shrine to some of my favorite beginnings. Maybe you’ll agree, disagree, or want to add a shrine of your own. If so, visit sfmobilemuseum.org and set down your favorite start.

Note: In addition to participating in our show, Kathy is a writer, knitter extraordinaire, and the force behind Princess Animal.

FREE Shrine: Tim's baby is no gentleman

2011-03-14T16:57:00.000-07:00

A FREE Shrine, by Tim Phillips:

What's the definition of a gentleman?
Somebody who knows how to play the accordion, but doesn't.

I have a shrine to something, maybe music.
It is where I like to make my votive offerings,
in hope of gaining favor with a supernatural something, maybe music.
Imparting refuge in its patterns, it is my portable sanctum.

I'm no gentleman.

Above: Tim with Shrine.

Note: Along with this contribution to our show last year, Tim is also the force behind CMT Creates Music.

FREE Shrine: Bird Box

2011-03-14T16:46:00.000-07:00

Peter Forrest Kline let his bird do the shrining for his piece in our show last year. So no poetic wall text to offer. As with many shrines, the object is what you make it.

University College London developing a Mobile Museum

2011-03-02T11:44:00.000-08:00

Another Mobile Museum? How dare they! In London, a mecca of museum culture, the University College museum research group is pairing up with an architectural team to develop their own platform. This came to us thanks to Elizabeth Merritt, from the Center of the Future of Museums.

Like us, they are testing out new models for engagement via a mobile platform:

“In the process of working towards our new model for museum… what we would like is a small portable space that can house two or three people and one museum object, that is not a tent, that is in some way magic, appealing, thought-provoking, enticing…” - Celine West

Their platform for testing exhibits is being developed by appropriately named “Mobile Studio”:

“Mobile Studio is a young London-based architectural practice. The practice is actively involved in cultural and socially aware projects within the public realm. It is a design-orientated practice, and places a strong emphasis on collaborative working and public engagement.” - Mobile Studio

By the way, if you're wondering about how this project come to be out of a major university, the UCL has long innovation roots. They were the first secular university in London that also admitted women on the same basis as men, starting in 1826.

We look forward to hearing more from our friends across the pond. What do you think it will look like? How do you think it will be perceived by the public? What do you hope the museum will learn from this?

Better yet, would you like to try this yourself?

Image sources: Big Ben Flickr/CC/Rudolph Schuba, London Eye Flickr/CC/Shining Darkness

What's the NEA got to do with us?

2011-02-14T09:58:00.000-08:00

If you're a culture lover, liker, or follower, you may have heard that members of Congress are yet again, seeking to dismantle the NEA and the NEH via massive budget cuts.

Again? PBS/NPR/NEA/NEH to be cut, slashed, eliminated? Why does this keep coming up you may ask?

Waaaaaay back in 1998 Dr. Cynthia Koch, formerly of the Penn National Commission on Society, Culture and Community, suggested that thinking behind it goes like this:

The philosophical differences between the two sides represent varying views about human nature and its relation to government. Endowments proponents generally hold modern liberal-moderate political views: minimal intrusion on the part of the state in private life combined with confidence in an activist government to guarantee individual rights and broad access to social goods such as economic, educational, and cultural opportunity. This view is opposed by many political opponents of the endowments, but by far the strongest opposition comes from Christian conservatives who advocate elimination of the NEA (and the NEH in the heat of the 1995 funding crisis) as part of their broader social agenda. For them individual rights and free expression, fundamental values in the liberal tradition, are radically at odds with a world view from an older ideology that sees human beings as basically flawed, their capacities for good nurtured only in the strict observance of Christian dogma. A government that fails to enforce these precepts is at odds with their deepest beliefs and must be changed. - Cynthia Koch, Associate Director, Penn National Commission 1998

Here are the San Francisco Mobile Museum, we have a fundamental belief that access to uncensored education and information are a basic right of being American, and that we are all fundamentally good.

If that jives with your world view, we'd like to encourage you to participate in our free society by letting Congress know what you think.

;)

Image: CC/flickr/deltaMike /Mike Renlund

2010: analysis of 1

2011-01-02T15:50:00.000-08:00

Last year was a bit immobile for us. All good reasons, nothing to do with the Museum: we were moving, there is the "day job", and I worked on a fun collaboration with Machine Project.

The exhibit we put together, called "Free Shrines" was a mix of a solicited challenge, some classic interpretive elements, and a little "visitor participation" thrown in for good measure. All in a roughly 8' D set up. Here's some thoughts on how it worked:

The Solicited Challenge
The challenge itself was fine and open-ended enough. Folks took to it in their unique and wonderful ways. A delightful mix of interpretations which I will show in following posts. What was different was that I didn't give a box or fixed format to people. While that worked fine for the "makers", it wasn't as effective for our "visitors". Seems that having a consistent framework when engaging an unusual thing like a pop-up museum makes it easier for them to grasp the overall experience:

Interpretive Elements
Since there wasn't a fixed format, I put in some backgrounds and images of shrines, etc. to flesh out the concept of the exhibit. It's hard to quantify their impact. I think on the panel for April Bank's piece it was very useful. Her's was a collage of photos of roadside shrines she'd taken on a ride across the US this summer:

Visitor Participation
This was by far the most successful element of the exhibit (and of past ones where we've had on-the-spot participation). I had modeled a Shinto "Ema" Shrine, where the public was invited as they are in Japan to write a wish and tie it up onto the shrine. Nearly everyone that approached the exhibit participated in it. What was funny was that most were fairly sincere. In the Looking for Loci map element, we got about 30% more wisecracks than in this instance...

With some adjustments Free Shrines may be out on the road again before launching a new exhibit. Look for us as the weather clears up.

Happy New Year!

Top Image: CC/Flickr/Ed Youdon. All others, San Francisco Mobile Museum.

NOW: Youthful Curating and Social Art Practice at SoEX

2010-12-10T10:15:00.000-08:00

Always on the lookout for other explorations in exhibits and curating, tonight I'm headed over to see the latest and greatest from SF's Southern Exposure's Youth Advisory Board. SoEx "teaches YAB members to use art as a community-building tool and provides them with a space to create their own events and have their collective voices heard."

It's exciting that the practice of curating, putting on an exhibit, and thinking about the larger context that art and the public intersect in is being practiced by the youth in our area. Here's what they've been up to this fall... sounds similar to what many of us are striving to do:

"From September- December, YAB studied the practice of curating, and approached this skill as a collaborative creative process similar to art making. GONE explores and tests the limits of what an exhibition can be, investigating alternative curatorial methodologies in order to support and nurture the development of critical cultural producers."

Tonight's exhibit "Gone" is being shown alongside the "Boom" show, an annual juried show.

All images Southern Exposure.

From Mobile Museums... to Pop-Up Operas?

2010-11-11T10:50:00.001-08:00

If you thought it was a bit of work to mobilize a museum, imagine popping-up an... opera:

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is doing just that, with their series, Random Acts of Culture.

The Knight Foundation's tagline is "Informed and engaged communities", the project is a product of The Knight Arts Challenge. These are (seemingly) spontaneous arts events that erupt in communities that the Knights brothers published newspapers in.

Similar to the responses we've seen with the Mobile Museum, the feedback is generally one of gratitude. A commenter on their site put it this way:

Flash-mobs are another form of random acts of culture. Let us not forget, the Hammer Time Los Angeles event:

Top image: John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Summer Evening at the Exploatorium

2010-09-30T09:54:00.000-07:00

We've got a bit of a posting backlog here at the SFMM while I move.

Our soft opening of FREE Shrines at the Exploratorium last month was a lot of fun. It was our first evening event and a road test of one of our more participatory elements in the exhibit, the Ema Shrine. I'll talk about that later!

This time we used a more open-ended format for our "makers"- I gave folks a size and weight limit, but didn't provide a box for them to fill. The difference in form factors had pros and cons as I look back on this experiment. The pros were that the layout looked more like an exhibit the cons were that for folks encountering and usual idea in an unusual setting, I got the impression that it put a little more on them to grasp the overall idea.

Exhibit Opening: This Thursday night!

2010-08-02T09:42:00.000-07:00

The FREE Shrines exhibit makes it's first appearance at the Exploratorium After Dark event this week. While the shrines are free the event isn't: $15 + cash bar (Thurs. Aug. 5, 6-10pm).

But who can put a price on a evening where chaos, culture, and the SF's own phenomena-driven-hands-on science-and-art-museum meet?

Image: the brilliant Mark Glusker, helping install lighting.

Shrinetasm: Myanmar's Kyaiktiyo Pagoda

2010-07-26T19:53:00.000-07:00

As I'm doing research for our new exhibit FREE SHRINES, I find everything from the fantastic to the unassuming. At the same time, these objects, sites, reliquaries and shrines are nonetheless meaningful to their devotees.

This site is often called of course, The Golden Rock. It sits atop a small shrine, and it is said that you can pass a thread beneath the rock. Buddhist belief has it that it sits upon a single strand of Buddha's hair, and that seeing it will convert anyone to Buddhism.

Been there? I'm curious about how those who live with it so close by feel about it being the 3rd largest site of pilgrimage. Never heard of it? You can read at length about it here.

Top image courtesy of Wikipedia, bottom, Creative Commons license via Flickr/R_Stanek

FREE SHRINES exhibit challenge

2010-07-17T12:58:00.000-07:00

FREE SHRINES is a new exhibit where we are exploring the history, meaning and spontaneous use of shrines with you. We'll look at public, religious and cultural examples, and invite you to add your wishes, locations, and remembrances.

Our exhibit challenge invites you to create a shrine of your own, to show at the exhibit. Something that can fit in the palm of your hand. Contact us at info [at] sfmobilemuseum [dot] org with questions.

HERE'S THE FREE SKINNY.

SFMM Opening at Exploratorium After Dark

2010-07-10T11:03:00.001-07:00

Our new exhibit "Shrines" will be making it's first appearance this season as part of the next Exploratorium "After Dark" event. Their theme is "Nomadic Communities" and we'll be in good company with the likes of the Dr. Karen Kalumuck, the Succulent Circus from Wonderarium, Dust City Diner, Paul Nosa, Harley K. Dubois, and hopefully Forage SF.

- Thursday, August 5, 2010
- 6-10pm

We'll be introducing you to the subject of shrines with a little history, roadside shrines, space for your to show your shrines in the Bay Area, and contribute to our take on a traditional Ema Shrine:

Top image Flickr/Creative Commons/Matt Baume who says "Once a month, the Exploratorium turns into the best bar in the city." Bottom image Wikimedia Commons.

Roadside Shrine: Dead Man's Curve?

2010-07-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

These photos are part of a theme we're exploring– Shrine s. April Banks is an artist and designer who is currently on a cross-country bicycle trip called "We Ride 3000". She's photo-documenting a type of shrine we whiz by on the roadside.

"Chad and Brandi Moreno" (year not legible).

"Mark Allen Parker, 2002". For another take on these, click here.

View Larger Map

Roadside Shrine: Rte 33 Near Vernailis, CA

2010-07-01T09:44:00.001-07:00

April said that this shrine looked like a real burial site. It looks well-tended too:

View Larger Map

Roadside Shrine: Rte 41 Near Lemoore, CA

2010-07-01T09:24:00.000-07:00

Again, these images from April Banks are part of the development for Shrines, an exhibit theme we're exploring with you. We're sharing what she sends us as she crosses the US– which will give us questions to ponder as a part of shaping the exhibit.

This shrine has a got a bit of delightful inventiveness. See if you can find it in the center of the image.

View Larger Map

Roadside Shrine: Route 41 near Riverdale, CA

2010-06-30T08:29:00.000-07:00

From April Banks, as she bicycles across the US for WeRide3000, she is recording roadside shrines for our exhibits. Here is the obituary:

Richard J. Pilgrim

In loving memory of Richard J. Pilgrim, 62, of Riverdale born on Aug. 17, 1945 in Reedley and passed away on Sunday, Feb. 24, 2008 in Riverdale.
He is survived by five children and 12 grandchildren, Sonny and Carla Pilgrim and their three daughters, Cayla, Cara and Christa of Tulare, Randy and Dianne Pilgrim and their daughter, Raenni and two sons, RJ and Ryan of Visalia, Clyde Pilgrim of Laton and his son, Travis and daughter, Victoria both of Hanford, Richard and Michele Pilgrim and their son, Bronson and daughter, Carrington of Visalia, Sadie Pilgrim and Carlos Cantu and son, Christian and daughter Savannah of Laton; two sisters, Frances and Carol of Riverdale; three brothers, Frankie of Terra Bella, Jimmy of Caruthers and Billy of Fresno.
Services will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, March 1 at the Laton Lions Hall.

- Published in The Hanford Sentinel on February 26, 2008

View Larger Map

Roadside Shrine: Patterson, CA

2010-06-29T06:12:00.001-07:00

Catching up with April Banks and WeRide3000 as we continue to explore shrines:

View Larger Map

Exploring Shrines: between Mendota & Kerman

2010-06-28T06:24:00.000-07:00

Each year we have an idea of sorts that we're exploring, and we invite you to join in (of course, we feel free to mix it up with surprising, and completely unrelated topics when the opportunity arises).

Shrine. Yes, shrines to the times, the past, the glory of them, the heartache. That's our area of interest for this year. We'll be posting challenges, interviewing folks as part of the exhibit development process, and generally co-investigating it with you.

To start it off, let me introduce April Banks. She is an artist and designer who is currently on a cross-country bicycle ride called "We Ride 3000" to bring awareness to public education.

Since she's going to be crossing the US at ground-level, we've asked April to photo-document a type of shrine we whiz by on the freeway- the roadside shrines. We'll be posting them here she progresses. This first image is from Rte 180 in California:

View Larger Map

Sparky

2010-06-22T17:42:00.000-07:00

The AAM 2010 meeting was thought-provoking for such a small institution such as ours. Not much evidence on the ground about the earlier-posted "Spark" idea. Found out later that it's really about the industry setting higher standards for itself around excellence and innovation. Something we all enjoy striving for.

While we tend to go to our audiences and have fairly humble exhibits, it does mean that we are extremely nimble and in a good position to test out ideas and approaches. We're working on road tests for new things to engage with you. It's in the hopper now, and will be unfolding over the Summer and into the Fall.

Big Conference, Little Museum

2010-05-22T21:37:00.000-07:00

We're headed to the grandmamma of museum conferences- the American Association of Museums annual meeting in LA (#aam2010).

It's time to do a little research and reflection. A perfect time to go as we're developing our summer/fall exhibit.

Apparently, grandmamma is proposing a new strategic plan for themselves. They're calling it... Spark, and they're asking for opinions. We'll let you know our thoughts once we figure it out.

About the Box: The Giving Park

2010-05-04T16:23:00.000-07:00

Genius Loci: Washington Park, Burlingame
By: Tina Mizukami

Washington Park, just two blocks away from my house, is a place that keeps giving.

We've celebrated birthdays there, we've meet our friends and family there for an afternoon of fun, and most often, you'll find us there throwing tennis balls to our dog, Cali.

View Larger Map

It's also one of her favorite places in our neighborhood.

About the Box: Summerized

2010-05-02T19:01:00.000-07:00

Genius Loci: Coral Reefs
By: Summer Powell, San Francisco

My genius loci is coral reefs. I feel so at home drifting around the swaying, colorful animals and plants.

When making this little diorama I was thinking of diving off Kauai, and the shimmering schools of fish undulating around Flintstonian reef formations. At one point a turtle swam above us, and the sunlight glinted at the edges of its silhouette.

About the box: Headquarters?

2010-03-15T20:10:00.000-07:00

Genius Loci: Headquarters
By: Susanne Pierce Maddux

I've chosen my design office in San Francisco for my company Hero Bags. This room is a special place in my house on the second floor, an old sun room with windows on all 3 sides.

The room looks out on my south facing garden and all of the gardens and lush trees of my neighbors.

It's quiet, sunny and peaceful.

I love it.
Curator's note: This is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit. This is our one and only contributor who cited their office as their Genius Loci.

About the box: Stealing Print

2010-03-12T22:29:00.001-08:00

Genius Loci: Baker neighborhood,Denver, CO
By: Kim Owens

I’ve always dreamed of visiting an old, vacant house and discovering something magical.

Then it happened.

While house hunting, I visited a 1800s house in Denver’s Baker ‘hood and below the vintage linoleum were newspapers dating back to 1925. There was Denver’s history preserved. It was fascinating to see an ad for the new Charlie Chaplin movie; that a cab driver was resisting the fad of new fangled automobiles. I couldn’t resist taking a piece.

Don’t tell anyone.

Curator's note: This is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit. We want to know... have you ever stolen anything at an open house?

About the box: Becky loves the Library

2010-03-08T22:05:00.000-08:00

Genius Loci: the Library
By: Becky Geller

A library is the perfect institution.

Denver Public Library provides endless information while respecting privacy. It is simultaneously chaotic & calming, with an underlying current of complete organization. Each branch combines innovative design with homespun comfort that welcomes its patrons. I think the reason I am so taken with the library is that these contradictions sit naturally with each other.

While Denver is celebrated by its library, the information is universal-- please take a call number and learn something new.* Zombie painted by Héctor Cobián.

*Curator's note: This is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit. As you can see in the detail above, Becky had library call numbers that visitors could pick up and head to their local library and search for. Giving them an opportunity to share in her Genius Loci or make one of their own.

About the box: Flipbook Dogwalk

2010-03-06T20:27:00.000-08:00

Curator's note: This is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit. If you'd like to read about the making of this piece, go here (including a movie).

Genius Loci: Berkeley Park, Denver
By: Angela Schwab

My Genius Loci is an area in Berkeley Park Neighborhood, located a few miles NW of downtown Denver.

I filmed an hour-long evening walk with the dog to share our route and some favorite points along the way: Berkeley Dog Park, Tenn Street Coffee & Books, and Tennyson True Value Hardware Store.

I consider these spaces to be essential resources and energizing gathering places in the community, and I love that these spots would not exist without the participation and contribution from residents in this charming neighborhood.

About the Box: Outdoor Safety; a thing of the past?

2010-02-28T17:28:00.000-08:00

Genius Loci: Denver Foothills
By: Alicia Bailey

I was conceived in Tiny Town, in the foothills outside of Denver, child of a Denver native. Treks through the western suburbs and foothills of Denver, although they have changed much since the 60’s and 70’s, never fail to bring on pangs of nostalgia.

Outdoors was where I could be found; in yards, vacant lots or horse farms; on porches or picnic benches.

There was safety in my outdoor haunts; unlike today’s suburbs where fear has stilled the noises that filled my childhood from dusk to dawn, no matter the season.

Curator's note: This is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit.

About the box: Livin' a Mod Dream

2010-02-08T21:06:00.000-08:00

Genius Loci: 5327 E. Colfax Ave., Denver, CO
By: Jill Warner

We opened Mod Livin’ almost ten years ago in an an old pharmacy building on the famous Colfax Ave.

This is a place that we dreamed about...a place that we could satisfy our love for design! When the concept of Mod Livin' began it was a dream - a place where we could sit back and think about what if we opened our own business and did it in a way that sustained our life.

You always hear "Do what you are passionate about and you will never work a day in your life" Well maybe that is not true...but what we have created is a place where people can come and share the love of modern design. Not a day goes by that we don't meet someone that truly has made our utopia a reality!

Curator's note: This is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit. Mod Livin' was a proud supporter of the Denver Community Museum, our collaborator on Loci. Above is a mini Verner Panton.

About the box: DCM curator's garden

2010-01-31T09:13:00.000-08:00

Curator's note: This is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit. Looking for Loci co-curator Jaime shares:

Genius Loci: My Garden, Denver
By: Jaime Kopke

I live in a tiny white house that used to be home to the carousel horses over 100 years ago. Set back from the street, hidden by a row of unkempt hedges, sits my magic garden. An enormous century-old rose bush guards the decrepit gate. The vines and the weeds are constantly creeping in, though I battle them only half-heartedly because I love the wildness of this place. Rose bushes of every color and scent fill one side, while the other hosts my overgrown plot of vegetables and flowers. It’s a place where potted plants rest next to wooden saints and candles hang from the trees. This old house is filled with history and secrets and the garden is where they are hidden.

About the box: Predominanty about birds

2010-01-14T23:10:00.001-08:00

Genius Loci: The Bird Room, Loveland, CO
By: Marielle Butters

In my youth my father bred birds – watching these magnificent creatures from my height of two feet I began to obtain the uncanny notion that they were not only imprisoned physically by a metal cage but they were, like people, mentally caged by schemas and perceptions strong as steel that may never be forsaken.

As a child I pitied the birds for living in such a small space, but in truth, that space is no smaller than that set aside for each person who can see only so far in a society plagued by hegemony.

Curator's note: Marielle is the niece of Looking for Loci contributor Alan Disparte.

About the box: Performance art as tribute to the WPA

2010-01-12T22:49:00.000-08:00

Curator's note: again, this is part of extending the Looking for Loci exhibit post-run. The story of this box is complex, but it's sweet history once you get into it.

Genius Loci: The Magafan Walkathon Performance
By: Anne Thulson, Denver

Posing as two WPA artists, Jenne and Ethel Magafan, we placed ourselves at two public buildings that house their murals. Anne started at Jenne Magafan’s mural “Women Settlers” at West High School, 951 Elati Street. Alli started at Ethel Magafan’s mural “The Horse Coral” at the post office at 225 South Broadway.

View Larger Map

We walked towards each other until we met. This happened to be at the 7 Eleven at Broadway and Third Avenue. Here we made a shrine to the Magafan sisters.

This walk mirrors the way in which the Magafan twins pieced together a living from one WPA mural commission to the next, all the way through the Great Depression with uncanny synchronicity and symmetry. It also acknowledges local work by local artists, especially the artwork done in Denver under the Treasury Department during the New Deal.

Note: From the NYT obit on Ethel:

"Ms. Magafan was born in Chicago and grew up in Colorado Springs, Colo. She and her twin sister, Jenne, an artist who died in 1952, studied with Boardman Robinson and the muralist Frank Mechau at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center. In the late 1930's and the 40's, she painted Government-sponsored murals in post offices in Nebraska, Oklahoma, Colorado and Arkansas, as well as in two Federal office buildings in Washington and the chamber of the United States Senate."

About the box: Confluence

2010-01-08T17:16:00.000-08:00

Genius Loci: Denver
By: Charles (39), Annnika (10),Elise(8), and Mia (6)

Our Loci is the confluence of Cherry Creek and the South Platte River. This meeting of waters is the birthplace of our city, Denver, the place we call home.

Children's laughter can be heard, dogs park, and couples walk as the city erupts around the force of nature carving its way through the urban landscape as it has done for thousands of years. Humanity and nature form their own confluence in this Loci of Denver.

Curator's note: While the exhibit has stopped running, the pieces exist online. What I love about this family project is the detail, craft and coordination. Notice the materials and implicit thought in the image above.

About the box: let's get this party started

2010-01-07T23:40:00.000-08:00

Curator's note: thought that it would be fun to start the new year with what I think of as the party box. Short on text, long on fun. What I love is that the execution of the box is detailed and lavish.

Genius Loci: Denver By: Leigh Bush

Denver - outside she’s one thing, but inside she’s a whole different beast.

About the box: Take Me to the Cleaners

2009-12-16T19:29:00.000-08:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them online. It's a bit hard to see in this image, but this box has a transparency in front of it, and behind, it is filled with dryer lint.

Genius Loci: "The World's Largest Discount Laundromat"*
By: Kirsten Vermulen

Smiley's Cleaners has seen a lot of dirty laundry. A classic Colfax haven for cleaning up and drying out, "the world's largest discount laundromat" is a home-away-from-home to all. With 24-7 rumble and spin, Loci finds no shortage of socks to steal or unmentionables to mangle.

*Apparently, there is more to Smiley's than lint. A Google search takes me to:

CD: A Swan at Smiley's
Blog: Life Behind Smiley's
Flickr: Somebody included it in their photostream
Yelp: Smiley's Cleaners

Box detail.

"Looking for Loci" Closes in the Park

2009-12-08T17:43:00.000-08:00

Looking for Loci had its last showing in a San Mateo park last weekend. It was a brisk NorCal day but there were lots of folks out enjoying the exhibit.

While the crowd in SF tended to take the Museum a bit for granted, the San Mateo audience tended to be more surprised to find it in their park- and were excited to have it come to them. It was interesting to show it in both an urban and suburban environment- especially since many of the pieces came from both "worlds".

We'll be posting the rest of the boxes, as well as some of the notes that visitors wrote on our map while we retool the platform ...and enjoy the holidays.

Venue Change Tomorrow: From SF to SM

2009-12-04T20:50:00.000-08:00

Sorry, Cole Valley- due to construction on the tracks and city permits, we're going to be in Central Park tomorrow. Central Park in San Mateo, that is. 1:30 - 4pm at:

http://bit.ly/centralparksm

Come check out Looking for Loci and add to our Bay Area map of stories!

Come shine, coming to Cole Valley

2009-12-02T16:53:00.000-08:00

Weather permitting*, the Mobile Museum is going to the dogs this Saturday afternoon. We'll be at the Cole Valley Dog Park, right by the N-Judah stop near Carl and Cole from 1 - 4pm. One of our last "Looking for Loci" stops. Come say hello!

"Cole Valley grew up around the streetcar stop at the entrance to the Sunset Tunnel at the intersection of Carl and Cole Streets. That intersection is still the center of the neighborhood's small business district, and the N Judah light rail line still stops there." -Wikipedia

*We'll brave the beasts but not the elements. Check back here or follow us on twitter, @sfmobilemuseum if things look questionable.

Excellent Resource for Exhibiting in Empty Storefronts

2009-12-02T12:36:00.000-08:00

Via newcurator.com > Artbase:

Artists and Makers Magazine in the UK produced this very thorough workbook on DIY'ing exhibits and artwork in empty storefronts. It's quite applicable here.

http://artistsandmakers.com/images/emptyshopsworkbook1.pdf

Today in SOMA

2009-11-28T09:27:00.000-08:00

FYI... the SFMM will be open today in the garage at 1268 Folsom Street, from 12 - 5pm. It also happens to be the workshop/studio of Marcia Stuermer, one of our participants who did the Chinatown box:

About the box: Bonsai & Power Lines

2009-11-27T17:50:00.001-08:00

Genius Loci: Various locations around Denver
By: Jesse Howard

In any urban environment, there often exists conflict between natural and built environments. Perhaps the most fascinating is the unintended macro-bonsai trees created by groups of linesmen with the highly coveted job of trimming tree branches away from power lines.

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them online. This curator is now intrigued to look at the relationship between trees and power lines in through the lens of high craft.

About the box: Lawyer's Take (3)

2009-11-21T21:48:00.000-08:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them online. In our initial request, we asked all participants to design their boxes in landscape format. Rebecca, being a lawyer of course broke the rules... with style.

Genius Loci: Fridge, Bernal Heights, SF
By: Rebecca Grey

Its the fridge. It contains life's greatest joys.

PS: Rebecca is the Mom of Dinah, wife of Chris.

About the Box: Chris' brain (2)

2009-11-20T08:47:00.000-08:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them online. In addition to being a talented product designer, he is also the Dad of Dinah, and wrote about their family's "making of" on his blog.

Genius Loci: My Head By Chris Luomanen

Sadly, my Genius Loci is in my head, which is like a big cluttered workshop with partially finished projects lying around all over the place. I go there to relax, pick up one of those dusty projects and putter. Sometimes things get done, sometimes I just make a bigger mess. I should probably get out more.

About the Box: Sleeping on a bunny's tale (1)

2009-11-17T11:49:00.000-08:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them online. Dinah was one of our youngest, yet most magical participants. Her entire family participated- Mom and Dad will be featured next. Dad (Chris Luomanen) wrote about the "making of" on his blog.

Genius Loci: Rabbit Hutch
By Dinah Grey, Age 6

If I could go anywhere I would get shrunk down really small and live in a rabbit hutch. I would ride the bunnies all day long. And at night I would sleep with my head on their fluffy tails.

That or go to sushi.

About the box: the city under our feet

2009-11-12T20:57:00.000-08:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them online. Peter Forrest Kline is a long-time garden designer here in San Francisco.

Genius Loci: Underground
By Peter Forrest Kline

My box is about San Francisco's underground.. I don't mean some counter culture scene but the physical place under San Franciscans' feet.

As a gardener here for many years, I've dug in it's mostly sandy, soft soil, regularly finding an old marble or fragment of pottery--sometimes an old cast iron toy or clay bottle, even a layer of charcoal & fused glass, evidence of the 1906 earthquake & fire.

Note: garden by Peter.

About the Box: A special little alley in Chinatown

2009-11-04T20:39:00.000-08:00

Genius Loci: Ross Alley, SF
By Marcia Stuermer

This genius loci is Ross Alley located in Chinatown in San Francisco. The alley has always to me possessed a strange presence, seeming like some type of movie set with various layers of hidden meaning, history and everyday life.

Although now somewhat 'famous' with the tourist set, because of the proliferation of travel guide books, it still holds a charming mystique.

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them online. This Loci is iconic for San Francisco, and Marcia did it justice.

About the Box: Cat Lady's House

2009-10-30T11:39:00.000-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them with their stories, adding to them where possible. Since it's almost Halloween, this box seemed appropriate to post.
Genius Loci: 39 46’33.94” N 105 02’29.85” W 1644 m.
By Nikki Raschbacher, Denver

I lived next door to this house from age 8-13. I think of it now as “The Cat House” because the woman who lived there had at least 20 cats. At one time, the interior of the house must’ve been elegant. But, when the cat woman lived there, all the furniture was covered with sheets and cats draped themselves on the fireplace mantel, the stairs and the furniture. And, yet it seems sort of mystical. Oh yeah, I’m allergic to cats.

About the box: New Meaning to Navy Seals

2009-10-20T22:22:00.000-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them with their stories, adding to them where possible.
Genius Loci: Alameda Point
By Danielle Guidici Wallis & Patrick Wallis

Our Genius Loci is at Alameda Point, formerly the Alameda Naval Air Station.
Active from 1936 through 1997, it is vast, windy and mostly empty. It sits patiently awaiting redevelopment which has yet to happen due to the cost of remediation... it was identified as a superfund cleanup site on July 22, 1999.

Our Loci is just East of the USS Hornet, an aircraft carrier that now serves as a military museum. There is a breakwall where folks fish and seals sun bathe on the decrepit docks. Pelicans dive into the waters and snowy egrets wade in the shallows. It is a strangely beautiful place.

About the Box: Fun House Mirror

2009-10-14T16:54:00.001-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, we've photographed the boxes and are posting them with their stories, adding to them where possible.
Genius Loci: 1999 Broadway, Denver
By Samantha Schmitz

This is a place downtown that makes me feel like a child. It is a bit of unnoticed whimsy in the middle of offices and traffic. This mirrored column outside of the offices at 1999 Broadway is like a fun house mirror on the sidewalk. I can stand there for long periods of time watching the traffic and light rail bend around the way, appearing to almost crash into the surrounding buildings. Also it is 1999 Broadway, so that’s cool.

Note: we don't personally know Samantha here at the SFMM, so we did a little sleuthing. Turns out 1999 Broadway is a quite tall building, designed by Fentress Architects. From Wikipedia:

"1999 Broadway is a 544ft (166m) tall skyscraper in Denver, Colorado. It was completed in 1985 and has 43 floors. The building was designed by Fentress Architects and is the 4th tallest in Denver. 1999 Broadway has a unique shape, it is shaped like a triangle with a scoop in the side. This is caused by the desire to retain the historical Holy Ghost Catholic Church at the base."

About the box: Nina Simon takes us into the Trees

2009-10-12T12:12:00.001-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, I'm gathering additional stories from participants, and putting them online. Nina Simon is a museum experience developer and force behind Museum 2.0. Call 1-641-715-3900, ext. 74622# for an audio tour of her diorama.

Looking for Loci, by Nina Simon
Genius Loci: Tree House

I've always been obsessed with treehouses. In 2007, we moved off the grid in the Santa Cruz mountains from Washington DC. After much bushwhacking and deliberation, we found a redwood on the edge of our property with huge spiraling branches and incredible ocean views. It took five months to build a simple plywood platform 80 feet up in the tree. The tree platform is a magical expression of the risk and reward of living this crazy, creative rural life.

I've always dreamed of living in one - the more fantastical, the better. When my partner and I got married, we decided to get tattoos of treehouses instead of rings to mark our commitment. To me, they symbolize both imagination and rootedness, the beauty of nature and the power of human engineering. Ours is very humble (a platform, really), and this diorama shows the partial view from the platform. I'd like to believe we will build more but that first effort was so time-consuming that I think it will be several years before we have an Ewok village in the sky.

I've played with voicemail boxes as a simple audio device for exhibits before. In this case, I thought some people might stay on the line to answer the question I ask at the end ("What is that place for you?") but the question is pretty heady and goes by quickly, which I think disincentivizes answering. It sounds too rhetorical and last minute. And so instead of answers, I get a bunch of hang-ups after a few seconds. Those are nice too - I get to hear a bit of what's going on at that particular exhibit event, and it's like being transported into a social world where this little box I made months ago lives on.

Visitors sharing a cell phone listen to Nina's audio tour of her treehouse:

PS: if you're a treehouse design fan, this simple google search [as of this posting] finds some amazing resources of all types, and some fab designs:

http://bit.ly/Qq988

However, if you're looking for the magical possibilities that a treehouse can bring, then we'll leave that to your imagination, ingenuity, and choice of tree.

A Day in the Park

2009-10-11T09:58:00.000-07:00

As mentioned, this weekend began San Francisco Open Studios month. We at the Mobile Museum attempted to situate ourselves in the center of Weekend 1 at Dolores Park. It was a beautiful day and the park was full.

Having our exhibit Looking for Loci - a collection of shadow-box style dioramas and their stories - outdoors was interesting. The contrast of the great outdoors to tiny intimate stories was something we weren't sure about.

We set up the Museum in the round. Visitors carefully circled; reading, looking, and then writing about their own Genius Loci on the Bay Area map. Sometimes the notes were sweet, sometimes snarky (more about the map later), but all were welcome:

Seems that the experiment worked, and worked well. We got to witness the delight of many visitors as they read stories, called in and listened to Nina Simon's box that has an audio tour, or laughed about Rebecca Grey's refrigerator (more about those soon).

Participant Chris Luomanen dubbed us the "museum version of the food cart". Not sure we're quite THAT mobile. Chris has some typically smart musings about the SF food cart scene here:

http://thing-tank.blogspot.com/2009/10/recession-foodies-twitter-food-cart.html

Weather permitting, we'll move the museum to the center of the next Open Studios. Come find us - or follow us on twitter @sfmobilemuseum.

Looking for Loci Showing in Dolores Park today in SF

2009-10-10T10:46:00.000-07:00

Come by the this afternoon and see Looking for Loci in the park! It's also Weekend 1 of Open Studios nearby, so come walk around, and expand your local art horizons.

The original map is from ArtSpan, the force behind Open Studios. We're showing a segment of it to see where we'll be in relation to them, but for the entire map of weekend 1, please click here.

About the Box: Simon Powers takes us to the Beach

2009-10-09T17:04:00.001-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, I'm gathering additional stories from participants, and putting them online. Simon Powers is from Denver, so I don't know him/her. Oddly enough, I grew up near this location so it has special meaning for me too.

Looking for Loci, by Simon Powers (Denver)

My Genius Loci is at Rye Beach. I practically grew up on this beach. Rye Beach/Playland is located on Long Island Sound. My sister and I would watch the sailboats go by as we played for endless hours in the sand and water. We could glimpse the ferris wheel of the nearby amusement park as it went endlessly round and round. We could hear the happy laughter of the children playing.

The beach and the romance of those times is always with me. A special place where both my mother and father and aunt and uncle had their first dates. Sun, Sand and Sea - on a summer afternoon everything anyone could want.

About the Box: Kevin Fine Takes on Silicon Valley

2009-10-01T20:46:00.000-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, I'm gathering additional stories from the participants, and putting them online. Kevin gets the humor award. Or is it irony? You tell us.

Genius Loci: The Stock Option

One of the protective spirits of Silicon Valley is the stock option. It helps to create the environment that we love - creative & energetic people working together to build amazing things.

Unfortunately the stock option can be bit of a trickster spirit, luring people away from their families with promises of riches... often only to disappoint.

- Kevin Fine

At the time of making his box, Kevin had been recently laid off, and his stock options were worth nothing.

He is now gainfully employed.

About the Box: Philip's Room

2009-09-29T13:21:00.000-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, I'm gathering additional stories from the participants, and putting them online. Philip made a dynamic box for the exhibit, and was one of our youngest participants.
This is Philip's box, he is 5.

His Genius Loci is his room, and here he is at the Opening with his piece. He worked on it with his mom, shown below with a picture of Philip and a friend:

Philip states that he chose this as his Loci because:

" You can find all this great toys in my room to build something with."

About the box: Alan Disparte's Crows

2009-09-18T18:50:00.001-07:00

Curator's Note: As part of extending the "Looking for Loci" exhibit, I'm gathering additional stories from the participants, and putting them online.

Alan Disparte is a professional artist who participated in Looking for Loci. A potent influence in his work is his childhood home from Southern California. It’s been represented in his paintings (see below) and was the inspiration for his Looking for Loci piece.

Looking for Loci, By Alan Disparte

I was surprised at how easy and fun it was to recall the areas or energies that embody my personal “Genius Loci” two primary triggers are Orange Blossoms and Crows, these sounds and fragrances transport me back to my childhood citrus farm in Southern California. These memories for me are special in that Disparte Ranch is still standing and my 86 yr. old mom still tends to her chickens, goats, geese, and garden:

Unfortunately the groves that surrounded our home have been torn out and replaced with tract homes, strip malls and parking lots. My childhood home is now a living 3 acre island in a sea of urban / suburban development:

Surprisingly the crows still hang out there and although their favorite 100 year old Deodar Cedar trees have been recently removed to widen our street and accommodate the busy traffic which now runs along the once dirt road in front of our house, the crows still find refuge in the trees that surround my mothers home. Through out the years the crows have demonstrated tremendous resiliency and like my mother who has fought very hard to keep her ranch they have truly made the best of what could have been a devastating situation.

The other great thing about the Looking for Loci project was having the opportunity of showing in the same venue as my niece Marielle Butters (my niece lives in Colorado) and since the first part of this project began in Denver and because Marielle is a great artist I had a feeling that she would make an excellent participant. The other interesting thing is that both our Loci pieces used birds as the central character and symbolic icon.

Detail from Marielle's box:

I’m glad we were able to participate, it was great fun. - Alan Disparte

DCM Founder & Looking for Loci Co-Curator Reflects

2009-09-16T13:09:00.000-07:00

By Jaime Kopke - Curator, Denver Community Museum

The best part about the Denver Community Museum had always been making connections; with each other, memories, imaginations, our community. Meeting Maria Mortati was one of those random occurrences that happened almost everyday at the DCM. She wrote a post for Museums Now, I read it and we started emailing. Soon she visited. Then over the next several months we kept in touch, she saw several more DCM exhibits in action and we brainstormed.

Meeting neighbors, creating participants

I met Doug Robinson (a frequent DCM participant and Looking for Loci maker) because he often rode his bike by the museum windows. One day I waved and he came in. Two little boys ended up taking a liking to my 800 sq. ft. space and would stop by almost every weekend with their dad just to hang out. Many of the participants were visitors first, intrigued by the objects and inspired to create their own.

You too can be an artist

One of the things I almost always heard while Looking for Loci traveled around Denver was, “I want to do one.” I would tell people there were still ways they could participate - take one of Becky’s cards and go to the library, call in to hear Nina’s treehouse tour...and in SF you can add your own Loci.

Hopefully this won’t be the last installment and the connections keep growing... Denver, SF - where should we go next? The museum is mobile now!

--
PS: you can keep up with Jaime via her blog: Design Klub
--

Above image: Looking for Loci exhibiting at CTA Architecture offices during a Denver First Friday Artwalk.

New Loci Participant: looking for a lost home

2009-08-30T21:47:00.001-07:00

This is Bruce, and he came to opening night and added a story to our map. Our map is of the Bay Area, and his note was pointing to the far east.

He just got back from Beijing where he spent time looking for the location of his grandfather's home. It got plowed over with a freeway. Other special homes like this that remain are being bought up by folks with nostalgic ties to area. The city is starting to take notice.

It's hard to imagine what it might be like to track down a plowed over home in a place like Beijing.

Looking for Loci: Doug Robinson Links DEN to SF

2009-08-29T13:38:00.001-07:00

[As part of our Looking for Loci, participants will be featured on the blog from time to time. This guest post is by Doug Robinson of Denver. Pictured above and below are images of his creation for the exhibition].

MY GENUS LOCI: Platte Valley Rail yards - Denver

The Denver Millennium Foot Bridge marks the site of an unintended memorial to the Beat poets. Standing like a giant push pin at the edge of the Platte Valley Rail yards it connects our two cities. It starts here and ends at North Beach.
It’s here that Ginsberg boiled with unreleased passion, Kerouac wandered in the weeds drinking cheap wine searching for Paradise, and Cassady grabbed the wheel ready to race across America. The energy was building and ready to explode.

The explosion occurred on October 7, 1957 in San Francisco.The Six Gallery hosted a poetry reading. Kerouac spread his arms in poetic benediction while Cassady passed the jug working the crowd. Ginsberg dropped his H-Bomb as Howl shook North Beach. Ferlinghetti put it in print as City Lights shown round the world.
The Millennium Bridge links our cities; poetic inspiration incubated in the Platte Valley, culminating on North Beach. Only few weeded acres of sacred ground remain. Here are some discarded relics I’ve found.
Millennium Bridge: 39 45’ 10.46 North, 105 00’ 09,67 West, elevation 5190’
Doug Robinson, Denver, CO Age: 60

The Mobile Museum is Open

2009-08-29T12:33:00.000-07:00

We had a great time last night at the opening. Uli Zinnkann and Mark Glusker helped set up, and Purple Skywalker provided some great jams to make the atmosphere complete. Critter Salon and the Studio for Urban Projects gave us lots of support.

Thanks most of all to co-curator Jaime Kopke for the collaboration & inspiration.

People enjoyed the involvement of the Looking for Loci boxes- they were carefully reading, thinking, laughing and then saying "I'd love to do one of these". A workshop session may be in the works, for now, many folks added a story or two to the map.

Today is hot in SF, but the SFMM is luckily on the shady side of the street. We're enjoying a regular stream of passers-by. Come say hello if you're in the neighborhood!

We're open today and tomorrow, 12 - 5pm.

Opening Friday Night in the Mission!

2009-08-27T10:07:00.000-07:00

We've been working away in preparation for the debut of our museum experiment. Come visit us this weekend in the Mission and participate. Not only will you get to experience "Looking for Loci", you'll get to listen to the debut of Purple Skywalker too (yes).

You can download an exhibit poster here.

Hours:

Friday, Aug. 28th 5 - 9pm

Saturday and Sunday: 12 - 5pm

Location:

Studio for Urban Projects

3579 17th St. at Dolores, SF, CA 94110

Check back here for future openings or email us: info [at] sfmobilemuseum [dot] org

SFMM Logo Evolution: a group effort

2009-08-20T15:02:00.000-07:00

During the past weeks, we've been iterating our identity. In every sense.

Trying to visualize and synthesize the essence of what it means to be mobile and of San Fran in an iconic sort of way, is not easy.

Thanks to feedback from lots of you on FaceBook, Beth Marx of Gustav Marx Studios, Olimpia Cerda, (formerly of the Exploratorium, now runs Olimpia Cerda Studios in Valencia, Spain) and my husband (and SFMM staff photographer) Mark Glusker- we have the final design above.

Thought it would be fun to share the evolution.

Denver Maker Angela Schwab documents her process

2009-08-19T10:42:00.000-07:00

Angela made a box of flipbooks of her favorite places in Denver. If you're into process (like we are) then you'll love her posts about how she made them. Come check her piece out in person next week at the opening. The making of:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/invalt/sets/72157619769906299/.html

...and a movie:

http://blog.invaltdesign.com/2009/07/flipbooks-of-my-favorite-places-part-ii.html

The Unpacking

2009-08-18T20:22:00.001-07:00

The Denver and SF "Looking for Loci" boxes are here in the Bay Area, and have been photographed. It's amazing that 37 stories were able to fit into these 2 boxes. We're looking forward to hearing from the Denver folks about their experiences making and exhibiting as the SF leg gets ready to open next week. We'll begin posting those stories shortly.

Welcome to San Francisco, Mobile Museum

2009-08-18T20:03:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the San Francisco Mobile Museum blog. This is going to be a place for the public and curators to participate, iterate, and extend the experiences of our exhibits.

Since this is a mobile museum platform, the dates and locations will be evolving. Our opening is on Friday, Aug. 28th, 2009 at the Studio for Urban Projects.

Our first exhibit, "Looking for Loci" is a collaboration with the Denver Community Museum and the good people of Denver and the Bay Area. 37 people children, adults, artists and designers responded to this challenge:

"Cross-City Challenge: Looking for Loci

Have you ever found a place in your home, neighborhood or city, and felt an invisible energy, almost like magic? In Roman culture, this was called "Genius Loci", which referred to a location's distinctive atmosphere, or spirit. In our urban environments these places can be more difficult to find, or lost altogether– but they do exist."

Locate a special place in your city and create a visual tribute to the genius loci of the spot. It can be part of your home, in a park or garden, on a street corner, or just a forgotten place in the alley"

During the Bay Area run, we're inviting folks to call into the exhibit and leave messages which will get transposed to the blog from time to time. There will also be a map of the Bay Area (thanks to Shawn Allen of Stamen Design) where visitors to the exhibit can write/draw/locate their Genius Locis.

For more info, contact us at info [at] sfmobilemuseum [dot] org.