Croix Williamson is a very talented young fellow that has been pursuing his love of art for many years. His experience as a blacksmith/metalworker has given his creative side a natural place to flow. And, flow it does! Check out the images of his latest “5 Square Knots”. He says he has never been good at math, but I’m not sure I believe him, as he uses math to work out the complicated schematics for each of these before he picks up his torch and commences cutting. Then comes the bending, and assembling, and… Voila! A 5-Square Knot results. And, that’s not all he’s good at. Check out all of his other works on our site and stay tuned, as he’s just getting revved up.
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Inside the Fe29 Lab
Well, change is a commonplace word around here, as things change on a regular basis, let me tell you. The grounds and facilities of Fe29 outside the small Texas hill country town of Wimberley are a peaceful and safe place and one in which creative juices flow freely. I have included a sampling of photos taken inside the Art Lab so you can see how lucky we are! Notice the large I-Beam across the center with two hoists for lifting heavy artworks or materials. It sure came in handy when unloading our new 1200lb shear, brake, roll and the railroad iron used in the sculpture “On Track”. Check out the galvanized metal walls protecting the 12″ of insulation from the flames and sparks generated around here on a regular basis. High end Low-E French doors have been re-purposed into windows – one that allows for a line of sight from inside the Art Lab up to the second floor deck of the Coop, and the other one that allows artists working in the finishing room to check out progress in the main shop. A couple of years ago a friend donated a large 12′ x 7′ insulated door to our cause. It turned out to be perfect for the giant pocket door between the main room of the Lab and the Finishing room. We also have racks for storage of materials and art (completed and in-process), as well as a scaffold and of course a myriad of hand and power tools.
So, check out our website and if you are interested in any aspect of what we do, please come on out to Wimberley, as we love to visit about Art. See “Contact us” for just that! See you soon…
Featured Artist: Chris Cander
Chris Cander is an exceptionally talented young woman that we are lucky to have amongst our ranks. She is a writer of childrens’ books, a novelist, poet, martial artist and now a REAL artist! Chris is adept with words and has a vocabulary that is awe-inspiring. In collaboration with some of our metal artists, furniture makers, welders, etc. she has added words that permanently instill deeper meaning to their works. Chris is very creative with the shaping, size and meaning of these words that she so thoughtfully melds with the works of other artists.
And smart as a whip she is… We thought we would be able to trip her up when calling with a request for a poem to be welded onto the top of the section of rail road iron which embodies the work we lovingly call, “On Track”. ” We need a poem that is 54″ long, 1.5″ high and about inner strength.” It took her all of a few hours to come back with the perfect answer!
I have taken an excerpt out of Chris’ blog on her Chris Cander Author site to include here: “I was honored that Fe29 asked me to co-create something with one of their artists. The piece I began with is a long sheet of copper, oxidized an oceanic green and then texturized to resemble the magnified surface of a canvas. It had three gentle swells, which look like waves. Taking the artist’s life journey into consideration I wrote a poem that I hoped would reflect her story and enhance in some small way her piece of art”.
“The Journey” is twelve lines long, and can be read either starting at the first line or in reverse, starting at the last, with the meaning slightly altered depending on the direction. To incorporate it into the piece, I stamped the lines using letter stamps and a hammer, alternating the direction of each line to encourage viewers to begin reading at either end. I was quite moved by the process of physically transcribing my verse onto the piece. It was the first time I had ever collaborated with another artist in such a way. I hope it won’t be the last.”
THE JOURNEY
To get where I thought I most wanted to be
Away from all the incongruities and absurdities
I pressed myself
To you
I lashed and thrummed my way
Pulsing through torpor and even, sometimes, joy
I lolled and swam and slipped
Alone
Crossing that predatory ocean of loss
Between What-was and What-might-have-been
And, despite spending so much time thusly
I ended up exactly where I am
We are so glad and so lucky to have Chris on board. Stay tuned for more works with her words…
Visit our gallery in downtown Austin!
We’ve been trying out a small gallery space in downtown Austin to test the proverbial waters. We call it our Satellite Gallery and it has a great location – between 4th & 5th Streets on the east side of Brazos St. (which is 1 block east of Congress).
10 years ago, Cid Galindo, our landlord had the forethought to turn one of the very large first floor condo units into, not only his living quarters and office, but also 6 additional offices that generate income for him, as well as a shared space that he hoped would be used as a gallery. This space has a conference table, which can be reserved by any of the tenants for meetings during the week. We have leased this gallery space in order to have a presence in Austin and a comfortable space to meet with our clients that may find this location more convenient than driving to Wimberley. There is a significant amount of art hanging in this small space and we will be using the gallery to hold exhibitions on an ongoing basis.
As we also have gallery space at The Art Lab in Wimberley, we frequently switch out works between the two depending upon needs at the time. For instance, we are in the process of preparing to launch Fe29 in Wimberley and will need to have a representative sample of all of the types of work that we have produced to date for the opening, so have taken some of the works from the Satellite Gallery and will replace them after the opening. Please note however, that we do not staff the Satellite Gallery. Visitors are encouraged to drop in during normal business hours and peruse our works, but don’t expect the good looking fellow sitting behind the double doors in what appears to be the curator’s office to jump up and ask if you need assistance, as he is Cid, simply working in his office.
FIRST LIGHT: Opening Reception Photos!
The opening reception for “First Light”, the Fe29 debut exhibition in the US, was a great success. Over 100 guests enjoyed good food, good company and of course, great art! Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time, as evidenced by the many guests who spilled out onto the street and partied until late into the night. Thank you all for taking the time to help us celebrate.
We would also like to thank those who helped us with the exhibition and made this a night to remember. Firstly our landlord Cid Galindo who not only allowed us to use his beautiful office space for this event but was kind enough to open up his living quarters to make the caterer’s job more pleasant. Not only is Cid very generous but he also makes good conversation and is a great party guest!
We would also like to thank Glazer’s for their very generous gift of some very good wine, which was enjoyed by all, David and Pam Taylor who did a great job catering; Lenore Avant and John Gallagher for helping us set up; Paul Beck from Paul Beck Productions who went out of his way to pull together a track of sounds from the workshop after a last minute request; Benjamin Slade & Adam Rasmus for not only designing the invitation but also for going out of their way to ensure we had signage, a slide show, etc for the night.
We look forward to seeing you all at our next exhibition. Watch this space.