it's me-

Hello blogging world. I am ever far behind in catching up with you-

Here's a bit of what is going on and what is coming up in the studio and beyond...

I just returned from the Hampton/Long Island Area... an amazingly inspiring trip- life changing some would say for an artist.

Yearly shows have begun for me as well...this Thursday night the private patron party is scheduled for the Dian Fossey foundation- followed by the Opening Public Gorilla fund Event September 23rd, 2010. This is a very exciting time as the studio releases it's first historically documented international series. I feel the weight of such a responsibility and am ready to share the works in a public setting. They are emotionally dynamic-- as I try and express the layered life of a woman and her work... She so passionately connected to her environment.

"Atlanta Celebrates photography" month is just around the corner with October approaching. New works will be shown through Pryor Fine Art Gallery here in Atlanta. Pryor Fine art will also house more new works in a 2 person show this spring featuring a multi-faceted mixed media series from the studio.

As it always seems October is a very busy month for me- New works will also be released Hilton Head, SC for a solo exhibition towards the mid-end of the month in October. Moreover, I plan to close out the month with a trip to Hong Kong- I am very excited about my anticipated time there... as i am sure another life changing event is on the horizon.

Stay tuned.

The Studio at the Summit

On May 15, 2010, 23,000 people gathered to watch 590 of the world's rising designers showcase their potential in one space at one time: the 145,000 square foot Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. The 22nd annual International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) attracted designers from 40 different countries and 14 different contingencies, and was called "the global summit of what's best and what's next in design."

The studio had the privilege of being represented in the Holly Hunt New York showroom with one of Courtney's latest series: Blackbird. Here are a few photos from the show...

Dian Fossey: Echoes...

it's a mystery for now but- we've got a lot of stuff in the works. it seems to be the most passionately documented series yet. -- or just until the next one. stay tuned.

from Amelia: so I was never good at puzzles...

Amelia here!.. again- just updating everyone on some things going on in the studio with Courtney's work and my job as the studio summer intern...

We are always shuffling art and artifacts in and out of the space but currently are working on an extraordinary project-

This week I have had the privilege of taking part in a photo shoot for some of Dian Fossey's personal belongings for a new series beginning in the Studio. Courtney is busy with commissions and is also steadily working a specialized group of paintings for the Dian Fossey Foundation's 3rd annual fundraiser in September. For the past 2 days I found myself delving into the rich history that surrounded these few items; from newspapers to manuscripts to placemats to maps of Rwanda and Uganda, the assignment quickly went from a small project to a full-fledged lesson on the state of central Africa 25 years ago, reminding me of the few fragments of their history I have learned from various classes the past couple of years.

Opening the newspapers Ms. Fossey collected during her time in Africa to document each page was a far from tedious task, as I recognized the African leader Mobutu in each picture and every article. These papers were full of propaganda supporting the corrupt governments of the time, and as the papers progressed, I watched Mobutu's rise to power in Zaire. It was incredible to see the country's fascination with this man and the hold he had over them during that time. I wonder if Ms. Fossey knew what was really going on, and saved those papers for this purpose...

As I continued documenting, I discovered grocery lists, projected budgets, annotated speeches, and notes on a screenplay for a documentary made of the gorillas she had studied. Her handwriting was average, not particularly lovely, but her language when speaking about the gorillas was the most descriptive and carefully loving I have ever read in reference to animals. Her passion not just for her work/studies, but for the gorillas themselves, shone through every sentence.

Lastly, I found a map of Rwanda and parts of Uganda that had been burned in a fire. This topographical map had been marked and colored by Ms. Fossey for her own unique use with crayons and markers. Since it was burned, I had to piece it together from the connections I could find. I loved doing it; this was probably my favorite part of this documentation, because I was piecing together a part of Dian Fossey's life, a map full of the places she traveled and studied in. I couldn't figure out why it was so difficult for me though, and then it hit me: I was never good at puzzles.

check out the Dian Fossey foundation here: http://gorillafund.org/

...and continue to follow us as Courtney documents the passionate work of Dian Fossey through an upcoming series release.

-Amelia

from Amelia: Changes in the New Space

Since the summer began, we did some moving around to free up the front part of the studio for painting and create more of an office space in the back...

-Amelia

from Amelia: A Day in the Life of Mattress Factory Studios...

Amelia here- Courtney J. Garrett Studio's assistant...

So far I've been here for a little over a month, and wanted to voice my observations as a new member of the Mattress Factory family.

I don't think there has ever been what most people call a "normal" work day- each day is filled with a new adventure, whether it's known or yet to be discovered.

10 am- To-do meeting in the car on the ride to the studio- I am always over ambitious, and I make many long lists.

11 am- Begin work at the freshly painted studio after catching up with all of our neighbor artists. Todd, from next door, has a new beast of a truck he has termed "The Black Pearl."

Also, there is a random electrician, who's doing some renovations upstairs, on the porch waiting for the power company to arrive with his dog Trey, who quickly befriends Courtney and won't leave her side.

12:30 pm- Find an enormous roach that got his leg stuck in our refrigerator door...I ran next door for assistance, and after blow-torching the monster (which I have decided is the new best way to exterminate), we discovered it was just a beetle.

1:00 pm- Grieve the loss of our friend, Ben the Beetle, and plan a memorial for him in the future.

2:30 pm- Our weekly power outage has occurred. (...and don't be fooled into thinking it is consistent in its coming) On a day like today, where Atlanta heat has soared into the triple digits, our work took an unexpected turn as all the power in our buildings turned off. Not that it makes much of a difference to us heat-wise (AC is a luxury reserved for normal "citizens" not artist at Mattress factory=)

3:00 pm- Since there are no lights, we move today's meeting up and go get some ice cream to help us think. =)

3:10 pm- Power and production is back up and running- no more stumbling through the hall with just the light from an iphone.

5:30 pm- The electrician and Trey the dog are still waiting outside 6 hours later...Leave the studio to answer more emails on the hour long ride home-courtesy of Atlanta traffic.

6:30 pm- Arrive home to Rufus and Ollie, who cannot contain their excitement and proceed to show off by wrestling each other to the floor.

I love having a job that as consistent as it is, still leaves room for the unpredictable. What a blessing it is to wake up every day, looking forward to work and what a new day will bring to the Mattress Factory.

"A Resurrection of Time Indefinite"

A Resurrection of Time Indefinite opened in 2 cities: April 16 at Pryor Fine Art in Atlanta GA, and May 20 at Loretta Goodwin Gallery in Birmingham AL. (and in that sentence is a brief explanation of my non-existent blogging activity)...

To say the least, the studio has been extremely busy. A Resurrection of Time Indefinite was an incredibly moving series that at its core represented somewhat of a closing statement to the former series A Recording of Time Indefinite.

"A RESURRECTION OF TIME INDEFINITE”

My last series entitled "A Recording of Time Indefinite" was based of my observations over a three-year period of change that occurred over particular plots of land and southern vernacular structures. During this process, I had the unique privilege of photographing a horse whose pasture I had been recording for many years. He lived amongst the backgrounds of my more architectural landscape works and until this point he singularly had remained un-documented.

When I arrived to take his picture I had the sobering sense that it would be my first and last opportunity. Seasoned with a vibrant long life, sway backed and gentle he passed away in the weeks to follow. Incredibly moved by my timely imagery of him, “A Recording of Time Indefinite” was emotively born.

During my work on that series I dreamed of an impressionable last encounter with the gentle horse. Within the Dream, I watched myself walking towards him with a handful of medicine…Seconds later in the next frame of imagery, the horse has passed away, and I had begun burying him under a thick pile of brush. After placing the final piece of dried foliage over his mountainous body, I sadly stood to make my decent from the organic graveside. Within a few steps of walking away, I turned back for one last look at the sleeping giant.

Upon my looking, I noticed, what was expected to be the lifeless body of an old horse, turn into a moment of life giving redemption. There, under the brush, within a motionless body, I saw the white of the horse's eye... He blinked and I realized he was alive. Screaming loudly, I began yelling- he's alive! He's alive! I then ran back to his side and started throwing off the brush... In an excited moment of understanding, something I thought was dead and gone now lived. I awoke immediately.

Months later, after observing the old pasture being plowed and prepped for new use... I began watching a large brush pile accumulate in the center of the property. Teary eyed and weepy, I was reminded of the dream and the life I found stirring amongst the layered brush. In an emotional moment the series "A Resurrection of Time Indefinite" was created.

Within the works a vibrant movement is seen amongst the darkness. Through imagery of both winged and creeping things a promotion of life is illustrated despite what seems to be an encroaching night. My liberating hope is to inspire the acceptance of life and freedom amongst tired old bones…

To stretch out weakened legs and learn to walk again…to move wings that once were broken and to take sunk-in eyes and learn to see.