type: 1-minute interactive portraits. Live painting.
CONNECTIONS
It only takes a moment to make or miss a connection. Within a blink of an eye you could meet your soul mate or miss your train. This subtle but spontaneous act of Being forces you to be anxious. to be observant. to be present…
Imagine how many *missed-connections there are these days with the lack of attention to the world that surrounds us.
We must re-connect to reality to re-establish a presence.
We must connect to exist.
RENO IS ARTOWN
Each year in the hot month of July, Reno Nevada becomes a bustling creative town full of life, music, art, and celebration. Artown is a month long art festival that captivates the city and highlights what is ART in Reno. From live band stand shows in the park to dance performances scaling building walls the events throughout the month offer a unique showcase of any and all kinds of artistic creation.
As a Kick-off Event for Artown 2019, Alley Art left superstitions behind and hosted project #13 in The Reno-Tahoe Airport Terminal… welcoming arrives’ and waving goodbye to those flying on.
There was no bad luck passing through these creative gates as attentive airport-goers got free portraits and earned a roll in the making of a collaborative painting lead by artist, J.Charboneau.
THE TASK.
GET YOUR PORTRAIT DRAWN ON THE COLLABORATIVE CANVAS & DRAW A CONNECTION LINE TO THE NEXT PERSON’S PORTRAIT.
One-minute portrait’s done by artist, J.Charboneau
FLY ON YOU CREATIVE SOULS… FLY ON.
No passports were required for this creative journey. AND REMEMBER… Staying Connected = Staying Conscious.
contributors: Reno-Tahoe Airport passengers on July 1.2019. Reno Community.
A quiet airport for the start of it.Charcoal sketches.Airport Views.Laying in the color.Final touches.Alley Art Project #13. Thats a wrap!Live music during Artown 2019.Artown Pride art show @ Sierra Arts Gallery. 2019Reno Artist Killbuck representing his works during Artown/Nada Dada. 2018.A Dance Group performing on the side of Reno City Hall. Artown 2018.Burning Man block party. Artown 2017.Alley Art collaboration mural. Artown 2017.
type: collaborative found art sculpture. Reno Sculpture Festival.
THE REVIVAL.
A new age of art and culture is brewing in the biggest little city. You can feel the impact and the influence at each color-filled corner. Public art is filling in long lost spaces. Spaces meant to be seen. Details frequently missed by busy moving minds.
Metal-works mold the River walk. Artworks stand tall from burns years before. Murals brighten walls with memories and messages. And festivals celebrate and honor the vibrant art and artists driving it all forward.
LARGER THAN LIFE IDEAS.
The idea… collaborate. create big. create fierce. create the impossible.
then… share it with 30,000 people. For free.
The result… Reno Sculpture Fest is a “larger-than-life” art, music, and culture festival spanning across the urban jungle known as Reno.
THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX.
As the people wandered in and out of the giant sculptures that lined the Downtown ReTRAC Alley Art Project #10 awaited their time and interaction.
A simple idea. A bold statement. Most search beyond the ‘box’ for inspiration. This project’s aim was to build the ‘box’. deconstruct it. and finally rebuild it again into something new.
A SINGLE STROKE OF INSPIRATION.
The ‘box’ stood as a giant easel and canvas of scrap woods abstractly attached to each other. As the people wearily approached the piece they were greeted with a brush dripping with wet paint.
A single brushstroke is all each individual would get… but as the crowds filed through the individual strokes began to connect and flow across the uneven surface. The chaotic yet individually precise lines shapes and colors were building something.
WRITE WORDS OF WISDOM OR TRUTH.
An old beaten saw-horse piled high with wood scraps meant for the yard stood next to the easel. A fresh coat of white paint would fast be covered with scribbles in black sharpie ink.
With each new person came reflection over the words others had left. Then, a moment of poetic inspiration would come and a new wisdom would be etched in among the others.
MERGING AT DAWN.
Sunday. A final festival dawn of hazy grey skies and subtle mists of rain or inspiration. I stripped the thoughts and color from their original places. To reinvent. To revive. For it’s when we merge our words with our actions that we can create new and inspired ideas.
GIVE THE PEOPLE BACK THEIR VOICE.
Just as the early morning coffee drinkers and book readers settled into their lazy Sunday routine I stood back from the newly constructed scrap wood canvas of three dimensions.
‘The People’s Philosopher’. As old of an idea as the wood grains he was created from.
Created by the hands and words of the Reno Citizens. Reconstructed by the artist, J.Charboneau. Art for the people, by the people.
– Take back your words. Take back your ideas. create. create. create. –
Alley Art is pretty good at finding interesting alleys.set-up for the giant orange octopus took a giant fork lift and a long wet afternoon. sculpture by Peter Hazel.Alley Art Project #10. start creating.paint goes here.wisdom goes here.caught in the act of creating.excited for her single inspiring addition to the working collaboration. another smile worth the journey.thinking outside the box…making their unique -out of the box- mark.REno Camping sculpture. By Chris Wyatt Scott.The addition of the umbrella was a last minute thought. A kinetic sculpture by Kai Prescher.snowflakes are more functional in the spring. Sculpture by Jessi Sprocket Janusee.She is strong as stone. Sculpture by Mischell Riley Wrecking House.day two of creating. reaching for spots untouched.there will always be wisdom found and shared on the journey.layers have formed.A lesson in welding. Sculpture demos from Mountain Forge Inc.they have arrived. Sculptures by Vinnie Lucido.create the walls if you have none to paint on. Art and sculpture by Joe C. Rock.a think inside the box moment. Sculpture by Chad Rice.wisdom on wood.as the sun sets… the final touches by the community are complete.4am wake up call.closed for deconstruction.down to the bare bones.merging. words with action.piece title. framed.A.A. #10 detail.Alley Art Project #10. complete.
Humans have celebrated life and land for ages. Ceremonies of dance lit by raging fires. Mystical Gods marked in ancient black night skies. And meditative thoughts by mountainside trees. Let’s not forget about this history before the 1970’s conscious revolution. Let’s not forget that preserving the earth and our natural surroundings is an idea as old as man. Earth Day is a collective reminder to cherish that which gives us life.
EARTH. AIR. FIRE. WATER.
The wooden grid of squares and lines began black and white. But as the people of Reno blocked in the ‘elements’ the complexity of color and life took shape. A mosaic of earth. air. fire. water. A tribute to the day. Another community creation for the Alley Art books.
THOUGHTS FOR TOMORROW.
The festival brought out families and friends to celebrate a day of clean water, fresh air, and appreciation for the natural environment we live within. This idea and practice of awareness and preservation should exist everyday.
Everyday.
We can collectively create a masterpiece… but only if each individual takes the time to add their own positive mark.
First elements being added.black and white beginnings.attention to the detailsa conscious communitythe human element.mid-day progress after rain showers.creative thinking.in the rain.
a group effort to fill in the blanks.a final brushstroke.a mosaic of elements.
