planet Island
Recently back in Hawai'i for the launching of Safe Planet's new art contest with the Department of Education, I was reminded of the model mentality of traditional Island cultures around the planet.
Spending time on a finite chunk of land (as I did in the 80's for my undergraduate work at UH), is a good education in limited resources and conservation. In ancient times, before the white man's occupation and take-over of the Hawaiian Islands, the culture was completely self-sufficient, practicing sustainable agriculture and aquaculture. Today, the islands would run out of food ...
2012-02-18 - 17:07:00 by barbara more...
2012
Some interpretations of the ancient Mayan calendar claim that it's the end of a cosmic cycle on our planet.
Let's hope so. The human condition as it stands is spiralling towards certain self-destruction if we don't change our way of life immediately, from consumers to stewards. Taking care of the earth that feeds us, the forests that give us the air we breath, and the oceans the water we drink (yup! remember evaporation and condensation?!) must ...
2012-01-14 - 07:25:00 by barbarabenish more...
end of fall
The leaves are classic golden, covered in the morning with frost. Ice slowly covers the lake- the swans can walk across it. The ducks, an abundance of them this year, enjoy the last paddles in the water before it becomes a 13 solid hectare cube of ice. There is always a bit of melancholy this time of year, as the season ...
So now it's time to butcher the rabbits and get ready for Thanksgiving! Next week: rabbit stew recipes and homemade pumpkin pie, Mill style.
end of summer
ArtMill's energy is slowly dropping with the ripe tomatoes on the garden ground. The summer season winds down, and we get the fires on for fall.
It seems each year we say "this was the best summer camp ever", so cliche, but sorry, this one WAS. The group of teachers and counselors who graced us this year was unbelievable. It was a nearly one-on-one ratio of teachers to kids. Everyone worked hard to make it happen, and I am so grateful to all those who made the ...
2011-09-08 - 23:55:00 by barbara more...
Mushrooms!
Excursion into the forest to collect mushrooms....the first of many for ArtMill Summer Camp 2011!
It's official - ArtMill Summer Camp 2011 has started! 19 campers from 4 countries, speaking 11 languages have embarked on a 10-day expedition to learn about and experience sustainable creativity!
2011-07-31 - 21:15:00 by alexkatis more...
the 4th of July @ ArtMill
from Europe to New York to Horaždovice, a Czech artist team shows at Califia
We don't celebrate many national holidays at the Mill, but rather prefer to mix and match. So this year we had Americans, Czechs, and Mexican food. Over 40 people, ranging from ages 15 to 81, joined us for an after opening party, celebrating the new show at Califia featuring two Czech-American artists. Based in New York City for over 15 years, ...
2011-07-08 - 10:55:00 by barbarabenish more...
visiting artists
Martin Zet at ArtMill
We were lucky to have MK at Galerie Califia for a great show with Monika Brandmeier from Berlin. Hanging out with creative people is the fun part of our job, and makes all those hours sitting at the computers planning things worth it. Both of these incredible artists are teaching at various art academies (Brno and Berlin), so discussions around art ...
2011-06-21 - 09:15:00 by barbarabenish more...
broccoli
the wonder vege
Broccoli's got a bad rap. "eat your broccoli" echoes in kid's ears until adulthood, recalling mushy tasteless green stuff on the plate that was better left in the fridge. But have you had the kind that grows fresh in the garden and doesn't come wrapped in plastic? An entirely different species of green, this. Our first bumper crop of broccoli is ...
2011-06-18 - 06:36:00 by barbarabenish more...
Lawn Mowers
We have 4 horse-power mowers at the Mill
Everyone has a job around here. This is part of our team: Jirasek, Mari, Bara, and Linda.
2011-06-10 - 13:37:00 by barbarabenish more...
First Strawberries
The taste of the season's first strawberry is heavenly. Or is it the scent of spring lilacs?
It's the time of year when we don't know what to do first outside, there is so much work. The garden is growing so fast we can't eat all the salad we've planted (thus any visitors take home a sack of fresh greens). The carrots are coming in, the radishes are edible, the chives already are flowering in sprightly purple pompoms. ...
2011-05-27 - 14:51:00 by barbarabenish more...
Go Global/Buy Local
Returning from a quick trip to New York and Los Angeles for a Safe Planet event, I cringe at my carbon footprint but have a small victory on the airplane battling plastic consumption.
It's just after 7 a.m. and I've already connected with colleagues in India, Vancouver, Oregon, California, Samoa, Pakistan, Geneva, New York, Italy, Nigeria and a special friend on the Lakota reservation in South Dakota. Thanks to globalization and the internet, we are able to communicate in seconds with friends and family around the world. It's exciting, as ArtMill is reaching out ...
eternal return
The swallows have returned from their winter sojourn in Italy, blessing the mill with their staccato esperanto, as well as the ubiquitous swallow poop on my parked car.
I did a piece a few years ago on the swallows, for a show in Italy, that referred them back to Central Europe and their incessant traveling skills. There was a story about how the St. Gotthard tunnel , 57 kilometers long, that goes through the Alps in Switzerland, is closed to cars each year when the swallows go back and ...
2011-04-17 - 09:49:00 by barbara more...
new beginnings
April 5, 2011
It's spring, obviously, because even the Czechs are smiling. Or, to be specific, they are now complaining about the heat, instead of the bitter cold of three weeks ago. The heady scent of sweet hyacinth fills the air, the birds are singing like there is no tomorrow and Tonda's incesstant whistling has stepped up a beat. There is light now, when ...
2011-04-05 - 07:28:00 by barbara more...
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