The March 17th DIY Solar Sculptures workshop at Northern Illinois University was fairly well-attended considering it was the first 70-degree day in Illinois since the fall of 2008. About ten people attended and sweated to get their solar powered walking king crabs together in less than an hour. The workshop was part of a celebration of Women’s History Month. The Chronicle ran a nice article on the 18th that summarized the experience.

DarkSky is an interactive installation that consists of 30 salvaged table lamps that sit on a low table. When all the lamps are on, the enormous quantity of light produced is overwhelming. Turning all of the lamps off allows the viewers to see a complex animation of swarming fireflies that grows on a plasma monitor that sits behind the table. DarkSky invites viewers to “choose” a state for the artwork: one that consumes large quantities of energy or one that does not. Both states are intended to be aesthetically compelling; it is up to the viewers to choose one or the other state.

DarkSky is part of the UBS 12 x 12: New Artists/New Work series. The installation can be viewed in the McCormick Gallery at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art from April 4-26, 2009. There is an artist’s talk scheduled for 6pm on Tuesday April 21st.

DIY solar sculptures at the MCA

On Saturday March 7, 2009 I will be conducting a 3-hour workshop at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art called DIY Solar Sculptures. This short Saturday class is linked up in concept to the exhibition of my new installation, darkSky, that opens on April 3, 2009. The DIY Solar Sculptures workshop will also run at midday on March 17, 2009 at Northern Illinois University and on March 25th at Marywood University in Scranton, PA.