About the Carnegie Mansion
The Cooper Hewitt at the Carnegie Mansion has two great exhibitions currently, one is a photography series depicting the process behind our everyday wares, and the other is focused on sound and sound systems over time. There is an interactive sound station where you can listen and be a mini dj as well as a listening room in the library that is constructed incredibly meticulously making it a great stop. Student discount tickets are $10!
Community quilt
Community quilting! I have just learned to quilt in February at the first commmunity quilt event I hosted. You do not need much credibility to host a sewing event, just patience. The first event had 2 guests, including my mom. Hoping to pick up traction over time. Either way it’s a great event and gives an opportunity to connect with your community and give back in multiple ways. Here’s the structure Every month there is a 4 hour community quilt session that has a $5 minimum donation (no one would be turned away though). The $5 donation is given directly to the organization of the month (rotates monthly). The quilts will be showed in a gallery for a quilt show in November. I am organizing getting donated quilts that will be auctioned off for monetary donations to our local housing organization (HRDC). All community quilts will be donated to HRDC as well and will be distributed to those who would benefit best from a warm blanket! here are the organizations planned out. February- Bozeman Fashion Week: a local organization putting together fashion shows that are focused on innovation and inclusivity. March- Montana for Palestine (MT4P): a local organization providing educational resources, organizing protests, and speaking out against the genocide taking place. April- Stafford animal shelter: local animal shelter that provides support to animal shelters across the state. May- June- Montana Trans Closet- a group focused on providing access to free gender affirming and expressive clothing. July- August- September- October- November- Livingston food resource center, food resource cebter providing food in rural Montana with summer programs and a permanent grocery. Others are being coordinated but there are some ideas in case you need a place to start when reaching out to people in your community! As for the quilting itself, it can be scrappy or not! Ours will be filled with scraps for backing and is not perfect at all! Have fun with your friends and community:)
Ceramics
Try ceramics if you can! Though expensive, there can be ways around this when you have your foot in the door. Reach out to people in your town that may have kiln space and source your clay locally if possible. There are so many people willing to help at all times (in my experience). Why you should ceramicize- there is total creative freedom with clay, it is incredibly forgiving and is can be learned so immediately. I appreciate the forgiveness in hand building, where I am able to do back and modify mistakes or clean up edges as it dries. On the wheel I would recommend taking a couple courses if you are able. It can be intimidating at first and definitely leads to some frustration if you are new! I think, like with anything else, if you focus some time on learning, trying, messing up, and repeating, you will be making mugs and bowls in no time at all. Glaze freedom is another reason I have come to love ceramics. It takes a lot of control out of your hands when you are experimenting with glazes. Thickness, layering, application technique, kiln neighbors, and much more can effect how your piece will turn out. I would say that if you are able you should not only learn ceramics but also about the extraction process of the materials you are working with. I to ink it’s important to understand the ethics that are put into your piece, and there are some interesting things to consider. Here are a couple things I have made in my ceramics class at college.
The Most Dear and The Future
Truly one of my favorite albums ever. Ear has been such a fun band to see live and highly recommend it so anyone who enjoys dancing funkily.
