A few years ago, Robert Raczka invited me to participate in 8 – Hour Drawings, a show at Allegheny College that involved artists creating their works directly on gallery walls as visitors watched (and sometimes participated).
In 2011, Raczka brought the idea to SPACE Gallery in Downtown Pittsburgh, orchestrating a Gallery Crawl night frenzy of performance and audience interaction.
This Friday, July 12th at SPACE, the newest manifestation of the art making marathon will happen as Crowdsourced. I will be participating along with eleven other Pittsburgh artists (Kim Beck, Matt Forest, Casey Droege, Corey Escoto, Gabe Felice, Lori Hepner, Renee Ickes, William Kofmehl III, Maritza Mosquera, Shaun Slifer, Barbara Weissberger and Paul Zelevansky). I don’t foresee a lot of traditional drawing happening at this one. Whatever is made, it is best to see it live. The event is free and open to the public from 1:00 PM to 10:00 PM.
For my project, I’ll be developing a Duchampian wall of modified “everyday objects.” Sixteen people will be delivering junk objects throughout the day. Objects will arrive every hour. I will not know ahead of time what is being delivered. I’ll have a small workbench and tools to modify objects. The resulting pieces will be arranged on the walls. At the end of the night, I aim to have a collection of sixteen objects. The results of the Friday event will remain on view as an exhibition through September 1, 2013.
Tom Sarver 