Danny Kerschen, Lynne McCabe, and Teresa O’Connor Artist Studio Program

Danny Kerschen

“During this Studio Residency Program, I immersed myself into the subject of street band and marching band culture through creating drawings, modifying uniforms, doing research, engaging with networks of bands, and participating with an unconventional street band with ad hocorganization. Dreamlike, yet well defined; the drawings are quiet, subtly tonal, graphite images of asymmetrical marching bands enveloped by the negative space of the paper. While meticulously rendered, the figures seem to drift away into the void of the paper with the gentleness of the gradation. The prototype for utopian centrifuge 1A is comprised of five green modified marching band uniforms with 9 feet detachable joiners, pink face mask/ascots, and accompanying tool set. The suits are a whimsical means of promoting collective task execution. The prototype should be tested by visitors to Lawndale by taking the uniforms off the hangers, while intended to be worn by two or more persons connected by the joiners using the machetes and drumsticks.The video prototype for utopian centrifuge 1Bis a documentation of participants testing the prototype for utopian centrifuge 1A uniform while walking in loops, playing percussive instruments, and chopping shrubs with machetes.The marching bands exist between the regiment of military-like choreography and collective unraveling. Folly, idiosyncrasy, rebellion, and failure emerge as tender documentation of individuation. Ubiquitous with school rallies, military pomp and order, libertine carnival, rebellion, and protest; blending social contradictions, essentially the marching band embodies collective spirit and morale.”

Lynne McCabe

“My work is contingent upon the exploration and critique of the idea of collaboration. It therefore exists not only to facilitate community, or collective engagement, but as a means to examine the social and cultural currency of exchange that takes place within these historical modes of artistic production, mainly as it exists under the rubric of relational aesthetics.

As a multi-disciplinary artist I create environments whereby I manipulate socially constructed notions of authority and trust.Referencing cultural signifiers of safety, intimacy, and authority, I can actively and collaboratively investigate subtle negotiations of power and truth within a specific social context. In my practice I provide a performative framework, and invite participants to divulge truth about themselves.Using gender, body language, “factual” presentation strategies (video and photo documentation, case files, interview transcripts) and psychology, I vary the degree of control I have over the outcome, and the degree to which participants are aware of their involvement. The closer I am to the work, by also becoming a participant, the more difficult it is for people to distinguish my environment as a construction. The more I remove myself, by using actors or self-reflexively providing information about the installation design to make my conceit transparent, the more participants control their involvement. Highly influenced by Clare Bishop’s work on relational aesthetics I want to create a work of art that will question the presumptions of this mode of production, while also trying to figure out a way to use it as an effective means to expand my practice.

Essentially, I am interested in situating my work in the space where collaboration begins to crumble.”

“Musicians Sharks and Sailors have generously allowed me to use samples from their music in my installations in the past. For the Lawndale Studio Program, I wanted to create a video for the band, present it at Lawndale as well as launch the video on Youtube athttp://www.youtube.com/goodvibrationstour, creating a dialogue between “high” and “low” formats. While working with the band I decided to start composing music with Garage Band, taking the first composition I made and reworking it repeatedly. On my websitehttp://www.teresa-oconnor.com, you can hear my successes and failures.

The Choir Project-I attended an event where about 30 musicians came together to play Sgt.Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles. Every sound was performed live. During the performance I asked a friend of mine to record a piece of the performance on her digital camera and this snippet became the template for”The Choir Project”.

The Good Vibrations Tour 2008 utilizes sound, collaboration and presentation as away of communicating with a broad audience.”

Danny Kerschen

Texas in the 70’s and 80’s seemed romantic to film-makers and pop cultural myths, as good a time and place as any for childhood.

Having many siblings and cousins allows for traveling in packs and readymade parties.

Do-It-Yourselfers, anti-authoritarians, and rebels are interesting…sometimes they make for change.

“Confederacy of Dunces” by John Kennedy Toole is worth reading over.

Riding a bicycle across country is preferred to hitch-hiking and hopping freights as means to free travel.

Driving, Riding Greyhound, and flying have their ups and downsNever been back to Norwich, England..

Lynne McCabe

Originally from Scotland, McCabe received her B.A with honors from The Glasgow School of Art in1999 and held a residency at The School of the Art Institute, Chicago in 1996 selected exhibitions of her work have been held at; The Columbus Theatre, TheSchool of the Art Institute, Chicago(1996); The Daily Record (Scottish newspaper), Glasgow (1997); Glasgow Central Train Station,Glasgow (1999); Lawndale Art Center, Houston (2002); Triangle Project Space, San Antonio(2004), Diverseworks, Houston (2005) andProject Row Houses, Houston, (2007). Her work can currently be seen in The Houston Area show at Blaffer Gallery, University of Houston and is a finalist for the 2008 Artadia prize.

Teresa O’Connor

Teresa O’Connor is an installation artist that incorporates video, sound and found objects in a gesture to stimulate the duality of presence and absence, body and landscape. For theLawndale Studio Artist Program, O’Connor is working with musicians “Sharks and Sailors” to create a music video for their song “Cliffs”. The night of the opening, the video will be launched on YouTube as well as on view at Lawndale. O’Connor is also working on a collaborative choir project, “All You Need” that is open to all to participate. More information athttp://www.teresa-oconnor.com