Spring Art Tour coming soon!

Come see the 8ft chicken! The 8ft pulltoy pig! And lots more (including that Skip Johnson patriotic chicken in the foreground). Here are a few students from a visiting art class in front of Market Weight Press Studios

Now in it’s 7th year, the Spring Art Tour features 20 artists who will open their studios to the public June 7, 8, 9 (Friday, Saturday, Sunday), 10-5 daily.

**NOTE: Sue will be in studio daily 10-5, EXCEPT Saturday absent 3:30-5p

S.V. Medaris’ studio will have printing demos, prints (unframed and framed), cards, pillows, t-shirts and more for sale. She is currently carving the first in a new series of Alphonse Mucha poster-inspired prints, as well as a 4ft hog woodcut, a flying (sort of) chicken linocut, and block-printing pillow covers, t-shirts and ? Lots of fun stuff.

Maps, artist profiles and more at the Mount Horeb Spring Art Tour site.

This Saturday night: Farm to Fork (to Fabulous!)

Opening reception Saturday, March 16, 7-10pm.

Showing with my friend and fellow artist Alicia Rheal in our From Farm to Fork (to Fabulous!) exhibit. The opening reception is a gala celebration and benefit for the Walls of Wittenberg. More info, and the poster, below. Highlight? Why Nueske’s Applewood Smoked Meats of course.

This is going to be a really fun (and delicious) opening reception! (Click on poster to enlarge) And, if you drive up early, you can visit Nueske’s Company Store in Wittenberg (Sat. hours: 8-4).

The WowSpace is located at 114 Vinal St – Wittenberg, WI. Easy to find…Just look for the 8ft hanging hog carcasses and the giant pull-toy pig (cuts) in the front windows along the main street of downtown Wittenberg!

And here’s more info about the Walls of Wittenberg ongoing mural project.

One section of the wall installed for now….

Installing…. That’s an 18ft long Hampshire stud boar on right (the model, Pioneer is owned by Monson Show Pigs in Richland Center). And that’s an 8ft pull-toy pig in front window.

The Tunnel of Mortality

The Tunnel of Mortality, a life-size tunnel-book installation at Artisan Gallery, has been extended to September 9th, 2012! The next reception is Friday, July 27, 2012, 5-9pm at Artisan Gallery.

Here’s some shots (click any image to enlarge):

“Come in.” said the spider to the fly….

Once you step in the door, you are in a floor-to-ceiling, darkly wallpapered, little anteroom, about 8ft x 8ft.

Back wall and right corner of anteroom

Chairs are upholstered in the same, matching, printed fabric as the walls.

The richly detailed wallpaper is actually a 10in x 10in linocut pattern printed black onto burgundy duckcloth. About 480 times. If you look closely at one of the “tiles” you will see the underlying theme of the show:

If you look behind you to your right, the outside light looks blinding compared to the dramatic low lighting surrounding you.

Taxidermy chicken NOT for sale.

As you step through the door, into the anteroom, The Tunnel of Mortality is that big framed piece on the right-hand wall. It looks like any other of the framed woodcuts, except as you walk towards or by it, it changes (since it’s a 3-dimensional space, not a flat piece). If you’re not paying attention though, it doesn’t “read” as an interior space, but rather a mirror…or something. A number of visitors were looking behind and above them to figure out where the projector was. Most think it’s a mirror, but can’t figure out how come they don’t see their reflection.

Matching tablecloth and upholstery! This is really the only time I’ve gotten into “interior decorating” (in our real house, nothing matches. I mean, who has time when it takes this long to make pretend rooms?).

Walk into the center of the room, turn to your right, and there’s the tunnel.

The Tunnel of Mortality, framed.

I’m not going to try to explain how this looks in real life, since you really have to go experience it to get it. Suffice it to say, that it’s confusing at first since you can’t quite tell what you’re looking at. Some have said it feels like a mirror.

And here’s a cropped panorama of the center section:

All woodcut or linocut prints on fabric or Tyvek.

Reception is this Friday, 5-9pm at Artisan Gallery (directions).
And the show is up through September 9th.

So, come check it out!
Experience the tunnel!
Sign the camouflaged guestbook!
Read some of the entries in the guestbook here.

Tunnel of Mortality (and much more) Friday night!

(Day 3 of the install)

Artisan Gallery 25th Anniversary Exhibition
June 8th – July 22nd, 2012
Opening Reception Friday June 8th 5-9p.m.

Group Show: 25th anniversary — We are excited to celebrate our 25th year in Paoli, the anniversary show will feature favorite work from many of our gallery artists.

In the Cooler: S.V. Medaris “The Tunnel of Mortality” — Printmaking from birth to slaughter and everything in-between. One season of life on the farm (in life-size tunnel book form), as told by S.V. Medaris of Market Weight Press.

Nick Wroblewski: Color Reduction Woodcuts — Wroblewski’s woodcuts entice the viewer through the use of vivid colors and hold their attention through his variety of distinct mark making. This exhibit will have many prints which showcase his unique style of reduction woodcuts.

More info at Artisan’s Facebook page and
Artisan Gallery website

Defrosting a frozen turkey

I get asked every year about how long to defrost a turkey. Not because I’m a noted cook, but because I raise turkeys for meat (so, I’m not an expert). When it’s a food safety issue, the first place I look is the USDA. So, here’s the answer straight from the USDA–you should find everything you’re looking for (and more) at this link:

USDA Seasonal Food Safety (Countdown to Thanksgiving…)

I’ve copied/pasted some of the basics from that above link here:

Most importantly for those of you who don’t cook much:
Never defrost your turkey at room temperature.

NOTE: I’ve often defrosted with both the refrigerator and the “cold water” method (at the end of defrosting period) for those monstrously huge turkeys. Anyway, here’s the basics (from the USDA):

IN THE REFRIGERATOR
Place frozen bird in original wrapper in the refrigerator (40 °F or below). Allow approximately 24 hours per 4 to 5 pounds of turkey. A thawed turkey can remain in the refrigerator for 1-2 days.
Thawing Time in the Refrigerator
Size of Turkey: Number of Days
4 to 12 pounds: 1 to 3 days
12 to 16 pounds: 3 to 4 days
16 to 20 pounds: 4 to 5 days
20 to 24 pounds: 5 to 6 days

IN COLD WATER
If you forget to thaw the turkey or don’t have room in the refrigerator for thawing, don’t panic. You can submerge the turkey in cold water and change the water every 30 minutes. Allow about 30 minutes defrosting time per pound of turkey. The following times are suggested for thawing turkey in water. Cook immediately after thawing.
Thawing Time in Cold Water
Size of Turkey: Hours to Defrost
4 to 12 poundS: 2 to 6 hours
12 to 16 pounds: 6 to 8 hours
16 to 20 pounds: 8 to 10 hours
20 to 24 pounds: 10 to 12 hours

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Read more:USDA Seasonal Food Safety (Countdown to Thanksgiving…)
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Hope this helps Mom!

And now they are meat…

Took in the last of the season’s harvest this morn (turkeys and broiler chickens). This year (as in years past) we drove them to Twin Cities Pack in Clinton, WI (near Janesville). We left about 4:30am and got there at 6am. I pick the (frozen) birds up tomorrow! I did save behind 3 of these “super chicks” from the batch of broilers. They are from a shipment of chicks that were sent in June and arrived with many dead. Amid the sad bunch of dead babies were these 3 super chicks that acted like nothing was wrong–peeping loudly demanding water and food. I figure after that, they are meant for something else–maybe they’ll be good breeding stock for more meat birds?

Carcasses from 'The Meat Locker' (click to enlarge)

At any rate, they earned it. Let’s hope they are fertile and can lay some eggs. If not, oh well, they are a good addition to the bunch–calm, big, personable girls. And they’re not pecky. Instead, if they don’t want somebody near, they stand up tall, poof out their chest and neck feathers making themselves huge, and the wee little pesky polish (crested) turn tail and run.

Also picking up meat–pork– from Avon Locker Plant over in Darlington, tomorrow. I love this place–best meat processor around (and yes, we tried the others nearby). Incidentally, these are the guys that let me take photos of my hogs when they (as carcasses) were hanging in the freezer. And from which I made some 8ft woodcut of the carcasses. And who (the woodcut carcasses) then made it into a NYC show! Still can’t believe it. Awesome hogs (from feeder pigs I bought from Monson Show Pigs). Awesome carcasses courtesy of Avon Locker Plant.

‘Birds in Art’ interview by Rob Duns at WAOW

Click on image to watch interview.

Marla Brenner and I were interviewed at the Birds in Art opening weekend. Watch the interview!

The part Rob left out of the interview was that the turkeys that I “liberated” were actually, originally intended for Thanksgiving dinners for friends and family. I raised the turkeys to use
as models AND for meat, just as I’d done years past with the Broad Breasted Bronzes and Giant Whites. But wild turkeys can fly (which I didn’t think about ahead of time), and they had a different agenda, so I started clipping their wings once I realized they were all going to fly away.

But then, through my own  need to have beautiful models, their wings were allowed to grow out (after a clumsy, unsightly wing clipping –hey c’mon, my models were escaping one-by-one daily!– that left my models looking like strange, ungainly, flightless birds that were not exactly fit for modelling). I decided then that wild turkeys flying off to be wild kind of made sense, and I sketched and photographed the birds like crazy once their wings grew out, knowing they were going to take off any day. And then, one by one over a few days they flew over the fence to freedom. They definitely earned it! Well, they also got a long, safe-from-predators, well-fed childhood before they took off.

And it was awesome the following spring to go on jogs with the dogs, when all-of-a-sudden we’d scare up a mama turkey and her rafter/gobble/flock of tiny little poults flapping like mad to follow her up into the trees. This happened often that spring. I felt proud–like they were my grandkids or something.

Museum acquisition for “Turkey Promenade”

Just got a call today from Jane from Collections at the Woodson Art Museum, and they’ve selected “Turkey Promenade” for their permanent collection. I’m just thrilled–it’s a dream come true for me.

The Birds in Art exhibit is up now through November 13, 2011.

You can read more about the exhibit, and 2 friends who are also in the exhibit, local Madison artists Clarence Cameron and Marla Brenner in this Wisconsin State Journal article.

“Turkey Promenade” and 59 other “Birds in Art” works selected to go on tour…

…to Kansas, South Carolina, Michigan, Colorado, and Alaska. Full list of venues here.

The Birds in Art exhibition is currently showing at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum (the big opening weekend was last Saturday, Sept. 10th), and is on display through Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011. After that, the 59 selected will continue on to the national tour (which ends in Anchorage, Alaska, January 20, 2013). I feel very honored to have had my piece selected!

Here’s more info about Woodson Art Museum, Birds in Art and so forth:

What is Birds in Art?

(From the Woodson Art Museum):
Introduction
Since 1976, the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum has organized Birds in Art annually, seeking to present the very best contemporary artistic interpretations of birds and related subject matter. Two- and three-dimensional artworks in all media other than crafts and photography are eligible for submission. Approximately 100 works are selected by a jury review of digital images. 

As the Museum’s flagship exhibition, Birds in Art enables the Museum to meet its goals of presenting and collecting art of the natural world having birds as the primary or secondary focus. A fully illustrated, four-color catalogue accompanies each Birds in Art exhibition. Catalogues are available for purchase online.

In conjunction with Birds in Art, the Woodson Art Museum selects an artist to receive its Master Wildlife Artist Award. The award honors artists who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in using bird imagery in their artwork. The individual recognized as the Master Wildlife Artist is further honored by a mini-retrospective (approximately 10 to 12 artworks) during Birds in Art.

Each year, 60 works are selected from Birds in Art to be included in a national or international tour. This tour considerably expands the exhibition’s reach to broader audiences.

Birds in Art opens to the public on the first Saturday following Labor Day every year and is on view for nine weeks. Specific Birds in Art education programs and special events will be available online by August 15 each year.

This Saturday Aug. 6 at Dane County Humane Society

AUG 6, 2-3pm:
DCHS Benefit &”CLUCK” Book Signing/Talk with S.V. Medaris
Free event, door prizes, auction…

Join DCHS in welcoming Sue Medaris for a talk about the life (and artwork) of raising chickens, peafowl, turkeys and more on her farm in the Driftless Area of Southern Wisconsin. Funds riased at this event support efforts to build a coop for the homeless chickens in DCHS’s care. Door prizes, drawing for 3 hard-cover CLUCK books, live auction of an original print by S.V. Medaris, and more!!

Dane County Humane Society
5132 Voges Rd,
Madison, WI 53718-6941
Phone: (608) 838-04130
Contact : Jan Viney at janviney@giveshelter.org