s+oryprobl=m :: 156

s+oryprobl=m :: 156 (2018 - ongoing)

s+oryprobl=m :: 156 is an answer to the question:

“What can I do with: the weight of my entire being; the tools I know how to use; the materials at my disposal; to practice meaningful rituals and positive, thoughtful communication, while creating artifacts of time and intention well spent in the company of others?”

s+oryprobl=m :: 156 is a work in process, multi-year social practice project that begins with a ready made bathroom scale and the artist’s “weight in paper” hand-formed into 10,000+ teacups and bowls surface designed by hundreds of participants during a series of simple rituals involving tea, time and thoughtful conversation.

s+oryprobl=m :: 156 differs from its s+oryprobl=m predecessors in that it is the first s+oryprobl=m project that includes in the creation of it, the participation of people other than C.K. Itamura, the artist who conceived it.

The concept for s+oryprobl=m :: 156 began in 2016 with the realization that the current generation of adults may be the last generation, in technologically developed and developing sectors of the world, to understand through their own life experience and to believe in earnest that irreplaceable value lays in face-to-face, in-person positive interaction, and that this type of personal connection is essential to the well being of individuals and collectively to society. While contemplating ways for her art practice to embody the essence of this knowledge, C.K. Itamura received invitations to participate in two influential projects: The Rhinoceros Project (Anne Beck and Michelle Wilson, 2016) and the The Roundtable Collaboration Postal Collage Projects (Marty McCutcheon, 2017), both of which honor the spirit of positive interactions centered around art practice. The indelible experiences she encountered as a result of her participation in these two projects reinforced C.K.’s desire to use her own art practice to positive affect and informed her decision to pay the experiences forward by inviting people to participate in a new project from the s+oryprobl=m series.

Physical work on s+oryprobl=m :: 156 began during C.K.’s tenure as Artist in Residence at the Chalk Hill Artist Residency in 2018, where the quiet, uninterrupted time, the large well-lit converted barn-studio space, and the comfortable accommodations within close walking distance of the studio, allowed her to focus on this project and provided her with the spaciousness needed for this undertaking.

Chalk Hill Residency & Peach Farm Studio Participants (2018)

Adrian Praetzellis, Adrienne Biggs, Bob Best, Christina, Conrad Praetzel, Diana Jameson, Diana LaCalle, Ed Arnone, Jane R., Julie, Lyn Dillin, Margo Warnecke Merck, Mark M., Michaela Codding, Michele Bottaro, Pam Hava, Pam Israelson, Sarina, Serena Hazard, Stephani Sanchez Hernandez, Vicky Kumpfer

Contemporary Jewish Museum Participants (2019)

Sandra Rose Novia, Kiera Lofgreen, Vicky Kumpfer, Marty McCutcheon, Andrea Guskin, Julie Grigoryan, Nancy Turner, Charolette, Madeline Brown, Andrew Brown, Nancy Brunn, Emily Raboteau, Angie Cruz, Andy Rosenburg

Sonoma County Museum Participants (2020)

Catherine Soria, Joyce Rau, Joyce Cox, Ginnie Kirsch, Jodi Kule, Esperanza Vera-Frazier, Terry Teplitz, MJ Oliveri, Linda Donahue, Laurence, Andrea Speer Hibbard, Lisa Gurian, Claude Smith, Lillian Lee, Lisa Saslove, Carmen Martinez, Alison Wong, Lotus Wong, Rachel Laufer

Type

s+oryprobl=m is a series of projects by C.K.Itamura that center on problematic contemporary issues distilled into storyproblem formats, which are resolved through processes which include elements of research, intentional field trips and the ritual creation of visual elements which evolve over several months or years in multiple locations.

s+oryprobl=m :: 156 is the fourth of several s+oryprobl=m art installations by C.K.Itamura. The first, s+oryprobl=m :: fragile vessels was installed in the Santa Rosa City Hall Council Chamber for two months in 2017. The second, s+oryprobl=m :: alternate route was at The Spinster Sisters in Santa Rosa, California from April 4 thru June 5, 2017. The third, s+oryprobl=m :: blue sky no clouds remains a work in progress as of this writing. The fifth, s+oryprobl=m :: changed conditions will be installed at Museum of Sonoma County as part of the Discovered Awards exhibition in November 2019.

Venue

Initiated at Chalk Hill Artist Residency (November 2018)

Date

October 2018-ongoing

Thank You

Chalk Hill Artist Residency, Sonoma County Museum of Art, Contemporary Jewish Museum, Conrad Praetzel, R.C. Wong, Becoming Independent, Marty McCutcheon, Anne Beck, Michelle Wilson, Susan Donner, Andrea Guskin, Julie Grigoryan, and I-Team members Serena Hazard and Vicky Kumpfer

Production Photography (photos below)

Adrienne Biggs, C.K.Itamura, Conrad Praetzel, Vicky Kumpfer