Colorado Art RanchPhoto: David Peterson
 

 

benjaminCatherine Schwalbe-Bouzide

Artist
Chicago, IL

www.casbah3d.com

My art explores aging, agriculture, nature and science, the concepts of plenty and want, reuse, food systems, and being human through a variety of media including high-fired clay, artist books, events, growing, installation, found objects, fiber and cast metal.
Why corn?  It is solidly Midwestern, like I am.  I have found through the deep exploration of corn, more than its history and imagery, but the fundamentals of humanity itself.

"The first and most respectable of the arts is agriculture."  - Rousseau

The above quote has informed my work for nearly 10 years.  I work on mixed media works in my home studio including working with found objects/collage, building works from fiber, wood and metal.  I have an indoor and outdoor workspace with tools that include a sewing machine to a book press, grinders and drills, needles and thread and paint brushes. At my studio at Lillstreet Art Center I am free to work exclusively with clay via a shared infrastructure.

I poke fun at my process - that I have “media deficit disorder.”  A variety of things have provided an inspiration for my works and will in the future. Chosen media. A found object or vessel. A chapter relating to agriculture and food systems by Michael Pollan, Wendell Berry and others. An antique hand tool. Discussions with farmers about their experience with contemporary farming. Fellow artists making work with a shared sensibility. A quote or concept found in a trade manual for farmers. Hearing the struggles of our own CSA farmer. And many more.

About the DIA Project
The works selected for this DIA exhibit relate directly to my talk at the Artposium titled "Dinner Stories in Delta County" in September 2009.   We are at a crossroads as a culture to become more mindful of our eating habits and many yearn to be connected to the earth and people in ways related (quite broadly) to nourishment.
 
“Eating is an agricultural act.”  - Wendell Berry 

 



  

33 IDEAS!, an exhibit of art, writing and ideas
March 15-June 15, 2010

Denver International Airport

DIA PostcardThis exhibit showcases visual and literary artists associated with Colorado Art Ranch as presenters, artists in residence, or Nomads at one or more Artposia. The artists were selected because they use their passion, skills, knowledge, and talent to ask questions and react to the world around them. The work, in turn, inspires us to ask questions and view the world from different perspectives.

33 IDEAS! is on display at the Ansbacher Hall: The Art of Colorado, on the walkway between the terminal and A Gates before the security screening. The hall is accessible for everyone’s enjoyment.

For more information contact DIA Art Program at
(303) 342-2521 or visit www.flydenver.com/art

 

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