ARTSPEAK RADIO with Erica Iman, Nick Ward-Bopp, Mark Allen, and Bense Garza

Wednesday April 4, 2018
NOON to 1PM CST

Host/producer Maria Vasquez Boyd talks live in the studio with artist Erica Iman, Nick Ward-Bopp with Maker Village, photographer/artist Mark Allen, and designer/art consultant Bense Garza.

Erica Iman makes hand-built, one-of-a-kind vessels that are often reflective of forms or fragments found in nature. She enjoys the raw material properties of clay and minerals and is continuously experimenting with these materials and processes to advance her work.
Erica received her BFA in Ceramics and BSE in Art from the University of Missouri Columbia in 2005 and obtained her MFA in Ceramics from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 2012. Between earning her degrees she served 2 years in the U.S. Peace Corps on the Eastern Steppe of Mongolia and was a selected participant in the International Workshop for Ceramic Arts in Tokoname,(IWCAT) Japan program in 2007.
Erica has taught in various schools and community arts centers and is currently a studio artist in Kansas City and a founding member of the KC Urban Potters. She was awarded second place in the San Angelo National Ceramic Competition with the work being purchased by the San Angelo Museum of Fine Art, was selected for the 2013 NCECA Biennial Earth/Energy, and recently received an honorable mention in the 10th International Ceramics Competition, Mino, Japan.
In addition to her studio work and teaching, she gardens and works in the antiques and design side of her husband’s auction business.
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Ideas behind sculptural vessels.
References to landscape and natural phenomena are often evident in my forms and working processes. The forms are abstracted yet resemble the geological features of their origin, such as glacial ice or weathered rock. By creating work using the material’s inherent properties and mimicking processes from nature, I am searching for the essence of the material’s structure and the qualities it naturally possesses.
I am drawn to geological formations and extreme landscapes that remind me of my own solitude and impermanence. I am interested in exploring these ideas through my work by creating solitary, abstracted or fragmented forms that are reflective of the land, processes, and materials from which they are derived, while simultaneously having a visceral and metaphysical connection to the viewer.
My approach is to explore form and surface in a more intuitive manner, allowing the materials to more instinctively influence the making processes and results. The materials and processes are exposed rather than being disguised, while my control over the work is less obvious, giving the finished piece the feel of a found object or fragment that you might happen upon in nature.
Using the materials and processes that have created and are continuously shaping the earth, I hope to relate to an elemental quality in both form and concept as a foundation for questions and ideas, as opposed to a closed system of statements and answers.
www.ericaiman.com

Nick Ward-Bopp, co-owner of Maker Village, a community woodworking and metalworking shop in midtown. We have monthly intro to woodworking/metalworking classes, and open shop every Saturday. Our long-terms goal is to lower the barriers into the maker movement for mid-towners, non-profits and entrepreneurs. We have been rehabbing the building slowly since we purchased in in 2013, and only in the last year have started dependable re-occurring programming. We also house The Cherry Pit Collective, a great group of talented women that are entrepreneurs, paper makers, printmakers, jewelry makers, studio artist, and more. We hope to keep growing organically and offer more access and a variety of programming, AND hope to be a resource for makers and and aspiring makers for years to come.

Nick also co-runs the Black & Veatch MakerSpace at the Johnson County Library where they help patrons learn to use digital fabrication technologies like 3d modeling, 3d printing, vector drawing, CNC cutting, laser cutting, and vinyl cutting. Also provides access to sewing machines, a sound booth, and green screen. The library is FREE to use, you don’t even need to have a library card to make a reservation.
www.makervillage.org

Mark Allen is a multimedia performance artist based in Kansas City, MO, a Pepperdine University graduate with a degree in Painting. His work has been seen around the globe with illicit performances held at the Tate Modern in London, Times Square in NYC, and Art Basel Miami Beach. From creating a condom-balloon installation in his high school, to faking his own death and burning his artwork, Allen is an artist in many aspects. He is a professional photographer, painter, filmmaker, art director, designer, writer, astrologer, curator, and event planner.
[email protected]

Bense Garza is an internationally acclaimed artist, award-winning designer and consultant. He is the founder and principal designer of Garza Art & Design a design studio based in Kansas City, Mo which specializes in Surface Design, Art Licensing and Product Development. He has collaborated with and created collections for high profile brands such as Apple, Disney, Target, Pottery Barn, Neiman Marcus, Kleenex, Avon, Walmart, Dick’s Sporting Goods, The Philadelphia Museum of Art among others.

With more than 30 years of proven experience and knowledge in design and product development Bense is often asked to speak in professional settings. He’s lectured at major institutions and conferences including The Best of Missouri Hands annual ArtSmart Conference, The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, MO and The Kansas City Art Institute, as well as various art organizations.

Buttonwood Art Space is happy to sponsor Bense Garza’s “Introduction to Art Licensing” workshop on April 14th! This workshop is now SOLD OUT.
This workshop is for Artists, Photographers, and Designers who are interested in learning how to earn passive income with their creativity. You will learn: what Art Licensing is and how it works, how to get started, how to determine if your artwork is right for licensing and what manufactures are looking for. Other topics covered: Copyrights and Contracts, Agent or Self Representation, and list of companies who license artwork.
www.bensegarza.com

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