Table Of Contents January 2012 6 Artisan’s Asylum
14 Rachelle Loiselle
28 Madoka Fukai
Founder/Editor-In-Chief
Darius Loftis
Art Director
Brianna Calello
Writing Editor
Claudia Puccio
Contributing Writers
Kevin Hebb Zoe Hyde David Showalter Jr.
Marketing
Pete Cosmos Darius Loftis
Photographer
Nicklaus Pereksta
6
Artisan’s Asylum
Interview by David Showalter Jr. Photos by Nicklaus Pereksta
Peoples Is Peoples: Transcending Arts and Sciences A Narrative Feature on Artisan’s Asylum David R. Showalter Jr. Part 1: I decided to pay a quick visit to my next feature after work on what happened to be one fine, rainy evening. I wanted to get a general sense of the space and meet the owner. Gui Cavalcanti (pronounced phonetically “gee” like karate gi, not “guy” like Hey! I know that guy, which was dutifully pointed out by Director of Operations, Molly Rubenstein. I added the bit about karate fashion on my own) is the President and owner of Artisan’s Asylum in my hometown of Somerville. I had the fortunate opportunity to meet with him briefly that evening to schedule a good time to meet another day and take a quick perusal of his apparent “mental institution.” To say this is an organization for the arts is not a comprehensive definition of what I saw that day. At first glance, Artisan’s Asylum is a factory, an amalgamation of art, science, mathematics, labor, creativity, machinery, and so much more. The first work of art I saw was situated next to the front desk and I can only imagine what it is like to work all day next to such a piece. It was a gigantic dragon’s head made of metal wire holding a purple hippopotamus doll in its open mouth. How’s that for strange and dynamic? I left with a greater sense of this amazing institution and a beautiful feeling of innocence and fun. It is like one of those field trips Mr. Rogers takes in between feeding the fish and visiting the Land of Make Believe. I met Gui momentarily before I asked permission to walk around and take in everything. There is so much going on at Artisan’s Asylum. Multimedia would not be descriptive enough and would never encompass the massive amount of expression and artisanship that ensues at such a place. I saw bikes, kayaks, sculpture, robotics, computers, go carts, and I do not know what’s all over the place. It is very exciting and vibrant, full of so much life and feeling. The 31,000 square feet of the warehouse includes multitudes of open cubicles set aside for people to work. Their property is situated and each space is neatly marked with what I assumed is the renter’s name(s). Towards the back there is a woodshop, metal works, and welding stu-
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dio with tons of equipment and tools. My first word when I returned to Gui at the front desk was emphatically and excitedly: “Cool!” This is definitely a wonderful, unique, and special place and I am pleased to write more about this fantastic entity. Part 2: I revisited Artisan’s Asylum several days later for an official tour of the facilities and a sit down conversation with both Gui and Molly. I would like to take a moment and publicly thank both of them very much for their time, cordiality, and attentiveness. They are very passionate and caring individuals who share such a lovely, positive energy. I am very happy to have met them. I remember learning in college about the Restoration period (about 1660-1685, England) when theater was banned and people would put together performances in secret on tennis courts. Back then, actors were referred to affectionately (or maybe not so much) as “rogues” and would put themselves at great risk to be on the stage. Mind you, this is not the crazy Sarah Palin kind of rogue where she thinks she is sane and rational but is in actuality completely psychotic. After meeting with Gui and Molly, I would very much so refer to them as modern day rogues of their craft and their desire to propagate the philosophies and institution of Artisan’s Asylum. For me, this is a positive association and affirmation of their uniqueness. I am utterly in awe and admiration of these people because I am very sure they know who they are and care about what they do. Along the same ideals of what is portrayed by theater artists, these people are storytellers. They, along with their organization, have a rich history to share. As explained to me by Molly, Gui’s background is in engineering and her background in theater. Gui found himself with the desire to have a collective that enriched the lives of others like an extracurricular activity would for young people. Artisan’s Asylum was compared by Molly to a theater club or Dungeons and Dragons meeting where people could get together, spend time with each other, and enjoy themselves while doing something they all loved to do. There seems to be a lack of places like that available for adults outside of bars and clubs these days. We need enrichment and stimulation that does not necessarily include alcohol, bumping and grinding, or trying to “get some”. This also speaks volumes to Gui’s character as a
person. In regards to his background, he could easily be working for a fortune five-hundred company and make a six-figure salary. That is not what is important to him and I personally have a lot of respect for someone like Gui for putting all his time and effort into his passions. The history of the organization continues from there. Through the struggle to find a place that could accommodate eventually over a hundred members and the large amount of equipment needed to engage in their “adult play”, they needed to grow and expand to be able to sustain. I spoke with Gui about the support from the city of Somerville. He told me about his experience meeting with our Mayor Joe Curtatone and the support given to be able to further their cause of keeping Artisan’s Asylum open. The credibility of the mayor allowed them an opportunity to be in the location they currently inhabit. They continue to grow and take over more surface area to suffice the community and expand according to the needs of its members. There is much I could share about this wonderful nonprofit organization. Rather than raving, I would like to share some of their ideals and important, pertinent information with Abstraks’ readers. Their mission statement is put so eloquently: “Artisan’s Asylum Inc. is a nonprofit community workshop which unites disparate types of creative fabrication under one roof. We aim to make it
easier for our members to get their hands on tools and put them to work making.” Molly explained to me that there are many members of Artisan’s Asylum that do not consider themselves artists. Rather, these are a collective of people who are willing to learn, teach, share, make, and do. There is a grand sense of community that comes from a place like this and is, in my opinion, part of the necessities we as humans must have available to us. From the mission statement, there are four pillars of a support system offered through Artisan’s Asylum. They are: shared equipment, education, work and storage space, and community. This encompasses their desire to further expression and give people opportunities they may not be able to find elsewhere or have a difficult time achieving on their own. It is a good thing a place like this exists. They are truly a commune who believes that people should have the ability to coexist and be able to work to create and express themselves. One interesting tidbit Molly shared with me is the unexpected happenings that come about through the sense of community and sharing. There are many people who come from their own unique backgrounds that share space at Artisan’s Asylum. One example she gave was of the collaboration between a sculptor and an expert in remote computerization, meaning someone who creates devices or programs so you can turn the heat on in your
house from your iPhone while at work. They met and decided to combine efforts to devise a sculpture that has working parts and could be controlled from a remote location by the mere touch of a button. Fascinating! Another admirable quality in their essential philosophy is their fervor for education. Gui and Molly want their members and people affected by Artisan’s Asylum to be well informed, so they offer a myriad of classes for everyone to take. They range from robotics to fire breathing and much more. They also talked with me about their want to incorporate more youth programs and get young people involved with their organization. Artisan’s Asylum also offers people the chance to teach their own classes and share their own personal skills. It seems as though the possibilities are endless when it comes to this incredible organization. They deserve all the success in the world and I wish it to them. The title of this article comes from the movie “The Muppets Take Manhattan”. The Muppets are trying to sell a musical they wrote in college called “Manhattan Melodies”. They find it very difficult to get their show produced on Broadway. The line comes from the scene where Kermit and the gang go to eat at a local diner, but
they have no money. The owner, Pete, sits Kermit down and talks to him about life before giving Kermit and the Muppets a free meal. Pete says (in his odd, origin-unknown accent): “I tell you what is. Big city, hmm? Live, work, huh? But not city only. Only peoples. Peoples is peoples. No is buildings. Is tomatoes, huh? Is peoples. Is dancing. Is music. Is potatoes. So, peoples is peoples. Okay?” Kermit responds: “Thanks. That helped a lot.” I think that is an appropriate way to end this article. Please enjoy the experiences Artisan’s Asylum has to offer. Get involved! Thanks for reading. Contact Information: Artisan’s Asylum 10 Tyler Street Somerville, MA 02143 Office Hours – 12 PM to 9 PM, Sunday through Saturday Phone: (617) 863-7634 Fax: (617) 718-1641 Email: info@artisansasylum.com Website: http://www.artisansasylum.com Gui Cavalcanti – President gui@artisansasylum.com Molly Rubenstein – Director of Operations molly@artisansasylum.com
January 2012 Abstraks 13
Rachelle 14 Loiselle
Interview by Kevin Hebb Photography by Henshawphotography@gmail.com
Fat kids. I keep hearing babbling about childhood obesity. Where are all these droves of fat kids? I can’t name 5 of my friends that were not fat kids at some point in their lives. Didn’t we all grow out of it when we hit puberty? And, in some cases, grow tougher because of it? What the fuck is up with Michelle hating on fatties? Girl, check your ass. The same government that is spending millions on putting an end to bullies is also spending time and money making fat kids feel bad about themselves? Wouldn’t it make more sense to let kids grow thicker skins and confront their problems, rather than raise a nation of calorie counting pussies? Bullying, wasn’t there always bullying? The idea that the bullies would end up as gas station attendants seemed to balance everything out. Are we out of gas stations? Are foreign oil companies the real reason there are too many fat kids? Perhaps parents could be just that and not try so hard to relate to their children? Each of us hated our parents at some point. What an injustice it would be to rob a child of such an important factor of growing up. Out of the stacks of burnt CD’s, awful posters, TERRIBLE clothing, and house party photos, the one thing that shined through, for most of us, was the desperate need for communication. Problem being, none of us had good enough taste to be taken seriously and acted like total assholes. (Sorry, Mom and Dad.) Let your kid be the weird one, the one who gets picked on. They will do just fine if you encourage them standing up for themselves and punching “bullies” in the face. Could you imagine if in 15 years parents and kids go to punk shows and house parties together? Where would that anger and uncontrollable angst come from? All that whiney shit that rang so true for so many young kids would dissolve and all social boundaries would crumble and everyone would simply understand each other. Fuck that! Love your fat kids: a new America. Kevin Hebb for president in 2016. The other night I was stuck in traffic on 95 South with Jake Waldron. Jake and I were on our way back from Maine when I got a text from the homie, Rachelle Loiselle. Ever been in one of those moods and all of a sudden the smallest thing makes everything all better? You know, like when you find an extra 20 dollar bill in your wallet or when that quiet girl from work shows up to the Christmas party with a 40 oz. of Old English. That moment came
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when I read “My tits look great!” aloud and heard Jake laugh and say, “Oh, do they?” “Jake”, I said, “We are going to Allston and you are meeting Rachelle.” Since I was driving he really had no choice, but Jake was a good sport about it and went along with the notion. Traffic began to break and with a definite plan and destination lining up, the mood lightened and the music got louder. Just as Eazy E was saying something about chicken heads, Jake began expressing concern of being a third wheel. “Don’t worry, Jake, this will be fun.” It was oddly easy to convince him. A lot of that was probably due to me getting moody and annoying while sitting in traffic. Jake more than likely just wanted out, and I can’t blame him. [For the sake of keeping this interesting, Jake will be referred to as Lorenzo and we were in a Mercedes Benz.] There we were, Lorenzo and I, in my Benzo cruising into Allston looking for fly ladies and to punk some suckah ass mc’s. Well, it was a Wednesday and me and Boss Hog were kinda hungry. We slid into the BK lounge looking for some bitties and shitty service. (I hope someone understood what I did there.) Carefully, we debated over the glorious selection of ketchup-smeared, salt-covered tables and went with the one by the window. We joked and made the best of the atmosphere. Jesus Christ, why the fuck do Burger King’s still exist? Between the wretched yellow glow, the screaming kids, the filth covered floors and the fact that I am too tall for the ball pit, it’s a wonder why there are not more suicides committed in the kitchen. There I go, again, being a fucking snob. Whenever I am meeting with someone, I always try to sit by the window.You should too. There is nothing worse than being the guy standing in the doorway and awkwardly combing over the crowd to find your date. MESSAGE!! Bounding through the door, to complete the roster of misfit toys, came Rachelle. She was wearing tall boots, a mini skirt and a camouflage jacket that was about 6 sizes too big for her. Lorenzo was sporting some Vibram’s, a hoodie and a utilikilt. Myself, North Face, button up shirt and boat shoes. Have you ever been sitting in traffic and noticed a group of people waiting at a bus stop that were clearly not together? Yeah, something like that. If we didn’t already look out of place, our obnoxious laughter and explosive conversation glorifying washed up wrestlers, The
Fifth Element and Andy Warhol did the trick. It’s odd to think that when surrounded with “artists”, (whatever the fuck that means) we never talk about art.You shouldn’t, and you’re an asshole if you surround yourself with people that can only talk about their hobbies and how awesome they are in reference to someone that they never met. Who the fuck wants to wind down from traffic and talk about art? What an awful way to spend an evening. Even after factoring in our present local, there was still fun to be had and it would have been tacky if I introduced her to Lorenzo as some chick that sculpts vaginas? Right away, dismissing the hard work and the thought process behind the work. Why is it that that happens? A figure drawing of a nude woman can be such a beautiful thing on it’s own, but in order for it to be hung in a gallery it has to have a Marquis de Condorcet reference. What is it with nudity that makes everything suddenly have to be a thing? Why is it that as soon as genitalia is thrown into the mix people start getting weird? You would think, for a progressive country, Americans would have come to grips with the fact that we all have reproductive organs. Some even have both!! Should one be called “crazy” or “weird” for thinking of something to do with genitalia other than pairing up and slamming it toward another? There is a perverted connotation that goes along with working with the human body. There are roughly 2,500 strip clubs in America that generate billions in revenue. Americans are estimated, on average, to watch 11.4 billion hours a year watching pornographic material. As a nation of at home perverts and closet deviants, we are very quick to label something and dismiss it as something we just don’t understand. What a world it would be if people just asked questions about things. Admit you might not understand something and try to gain a deeper grasp on something. Maybe it’s idealistic on my part to expect so much out of people. We carried on about Leeloo being a badass, Bridgid Berlin, Chyna’s dick and how lame it is that Kane wrestles without the mask. Turns out, Lorenzo has an extensive collection of wrestler’s autographs, Rachelle has unmentionable evidence that her and John Waters are soul mates and I am an asshole for liking Andy Warhol. That’s the good stuff, finding out how the gaps are filled is how you find out if people are interesting or not. I have met far too many technically proficient “artists” that have NOTHING interesting to talk about. Rachelle immediately proves that she is not one of those people. It’s cool; the world
can always use more abstract painters.You simply cannot expect much from a 20-something that refuses to accept that there are important bands other than The Beatles. Try to get an original thought out of a person like that. Remember when The Undertaker chokeslammed Mankind through the cage during the Hell in a Cell? No? Well, chances are, more people tuned in that night than give a shit about R. Mutt. Don’t get your cardigan in a bunch; just consider that next time you are trying to channel Robert Rauschenburg. If what you are doing is not coming from an honest place, why do it? At this point, most of my memories of adolescence are fogged over, covered in the haze of sweat and yellow lights that were so often cast across us as we yelled into the night. I remember, mostly, being angry. Often we woke up with that peculiar and familiar ringing that your ear uses to remind you last night was worth it.Yet, for every immature or poorly executed cry for attention, there remained a certain truth in exclamation. If someone had told me I would have such a hard time remembering most of these nights later in my life, I would have taken notes along the way. I wonder how gloriously each and every event would have been proclaimed by the 17 year old me. Fuck, that diary would be embarrassing. It was not so much a “fight the power” thing as much as it was simply a desperate attempt of communication. As we’ve grown up a bit, we just found new ways to yell. Likewise, I am glad I know Rachelle at this stage of her life. Still young and bursting with excitement, there is no way of knowing what she will be doing three years from now. Her work is honest, blatantly rooted in personal experience and oddly inviting. This is the voice people work so hard to find, this is her struggle for communication. And what a great feeling that is. That feeling you got when you finally came to a conclusion of self and said “this is me”. Rachelle is doing one hell of a job of yelling.
January 2012 Abstraks 21
Contact: Rachelle Loiselle rmloiselle@gmail.com Photographer Henshawphotography@gmail.com
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Madoka 28 Fukai Interview by Zoe Hyde
Madoka Fukai talks about children’s media the way health nuts reference the growing obesity epidemic. With wide, earnest eyes and the taught string of sincerity she shares her ideas with me about the gaudiness of what primary colored junk that invades children’s hearts and minds these days, without anyone batting an eyelash. The messages we’re sending are important, true, but Madoka wants to know - must they be so insultingly hideous? Offended by their bland intensity, Madoka is working to illustrate a different space for children, of a more dreamlike and introspective quality, where cats drink beer and little girls run away with giraffes. She meets me at ‘N House Café in Allston, where we talk about how you become what you play with without even knowing it and the highs and lows of art school. Z: I looked at your blog, I noticed you’ve been illustrating Aesop’s fables.
and a half. Then I took three years after that, just like waiting tables, and then I finally went back this semester, this fall. So I just finished my first semester back in school.
M: I have. Z: Congratulations! Where are you going? Z: Are you interested in writing children’s fiction as well as illustrating it? M: That’s a tough question. I write thoughts, but I don’t write stories. And I have stories in my head, but I always have the hardest time bringing them out. I’ve worked with my friend Jason, who’s a great writer, and I’ve worked with him a little bit, and maybe if I were to get my writing levels a little higher, I’d be totally interested in writing, but I’m not there yet. Z: Right. I ask because a lot of your work seems to have a story behind it. M:Yeah, they do have this narrative to them. It almost seems like, my thought is so short it’s not a story; it’s like a one-sentence story, to me. But if someone could pull more words out of it, that’d be great. Z: Do you have any favorite children’s illustrators or authors? M: Beatrix Potter, love. Eric Carle, I love. Shel Silverstein, I love. That’s really my top three.
M: The Museum School. Z: Oh wonderful, I went to Massart for a heartbeat. Well okay, so you’ve been in school for a semester, how are you liking SMFA? M: It’s great, although I never realized until now how big a difference there is between 18 and 23, in terms of like wanting to do something, and doing it to please myself and not accommodating to a teacher? It’s something that seems so simple, but it’s actually really difficult. Z: It’s especially hard to do it art school, I found. What teachers want is so abstract. M: And biased, sometimes. Z: Have you noticed a change in your work, since you started the Museum School? M: Definitely. My stuff’s gotten a lot darker, way darker, actually.
Z: What is your art background?
Z: Darker than a little girl sitting in a field surrounded by forest creatures? Come on!
M: So, I just started school again, I graduated high school in 2006 and I went to Micah, the Maryland institute, right away. I got really depressed and I dropped out after a year
M:Yeah! It’s funny; I really had to watch myself to keep myself from making fluff. I didn’t want to make, you know, cotton balls any more. I want to make illustration, but
Page 31: Town Mouse & Country Mouse 11”x15”, watercolor, colored pencil on paper
Page 32 - 38: 11”x15” microns on paper
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art at the same time. It was good because I actually really started thinking about why I want to do things, and I realized that I have this really incredible urge to control everything that I’m doing. A lot of my teachers were telling me to use a bigger paintbrush and, I was like, ‘whatever, no, I’m just going to be even more OCD’, so I really concentrated on doing small, delicate lines and really obsessive mark making.
Z: There’s a lot of junk.
Z: How do you feel that your art has changed over the past 5 years?
M:Yes, but it makes me really nervous. Computers scare me. Technology, I just don’t know…anything that I can’t physically touch and change, I have a really hard time with because I’m such a control freak.
M: It’s darker, and I feel that I’m making art for the first time ever, this year. I stopped making art for a little bit too, right after I dropped out. I was oil painting in school the first time, and I ended up hating it because I hated everything around me, and when I got out I just didn’t want to do it anymore. I just picked it back up, though, so.
M:Yeah. And I don’t wanna see it anymore. If I could get something out there that would influence that bigger picture, that’d be great. Z: Have you ever worked in animation or would that be something you’re interested in?
Z:You could always do really old school animation frameby-frame. M:Yeah something super tedious, that might work. Claymation.
Z: I like that you mention the difference between 18 and 23. It’s such a huge difference.
Z: What are your most used mediums?
M:You wouldn’t think that, but it is such a difference!
M: Watercolor, water pencil.
Z: I’m in school now as well and I have a few classes with a bunch of 18 year olds…it’s so weird.
Z: Any pastels?
M: I’m like ‘I can’t even believe you can feel okay about failing out of a class that’s six thousand dollars‘.
M: Not much, I don’t like things that get messy. I’m kind of a lazy artist, I don’t like cleaning up, but I like things to be clean, and I like things I can do at home.
M: They just don’t know. They might never.
Z: In your Aesop characters specifically, a lot of these characters are floating above text, and I was just wondering what the significance of that is.
Z: Okay, well lets say you graduate. What would be your dream job?
M: It’s the story. I purposefully didn’t want it to be read, because I thought it would be too distracting.
M: I don’t know…if I could just illustrate books, but. That’s even an abstract concept to me. I feel like I’m so new, I feel like such a student right now, it’s hard for me to dream big. I guess, however, that my greater mission statement is just that kids look at so much crap, especially recently, it’s a lot of saturated colors, and 2D crazy animation and terrible character design, and I just really want them to look at something better. The books that we read as children will morph our character without us even realizing it, and I just think it’s terrible that there’s all this Hello Kitty vomit everywhere.
Z: How long does one painting take you?
Z: It’s because they don’t know yet what that means.
Page 39: Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing: 11”x15” watercolor, colored pencil on paper
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M: It used to be like, 5 hours, but now it’s like 205 hours. I’ll start something, I’ll do something else, then I’ll do something else, and then I’ll come back to it. My brain is scattered, I get too excited about too many things. Z: Does living in Brighton affect your animal characters? I’m seeing a lot of flannel…
M:Yeah, when I was drawing the town mouse and the country mouse, I thought about it as the yuppie mouse and the hipster house, so there you go.
don’t understand pretentious art, if people can’t relate to it easily, than maybe you’re not making something great. I want to be really sincere when I make my work.
Z: Are you working on anything right now, specifically?
Contact: madoka.fukai@smfa.edu modokkaa.blogspot.com
M:Yeah, I can show you on my phone. It’s little girls getting eaten by carnivorous plants, and it’s sort of based on the whole idea that it’s totally unfair that we don’t get to pick what we play with when we’re little, and so, we become whatever is placed in front of us without choice. It’s sort of a natural thing that occurs in our society, but never give too much thought to it. Carnivorous plants only eat insects because they need nutrients because they grow in nutrient deficient soils, and I feel like our society, every single generation we create more nutrients to build up a future. I didn’t want there to be a sense of struggle of them getting consumed. They’re just limp bodies. Z: When you say ‘we don’t get to pick what we play with’, what do you mean? M:You know, when I was little…when you’re watching TV, as a young kid, all these things are flashing in front of you, and you don’t choose to watch that, or that imagery was created for a large group of children to have them think in a singular way, and that just really bothers me. Bratz dolls, or things like that, and I guess kids somewhat do pick that, but it’s made for them, I don’t know. We don’t even realize what becomes of us playing with something. Does that make any sense? Z: Absolutely. M: I just think its possible to make something approachable and likeable, without making it…primary yellow. Z: What’s your favorite animal to draw? M: I like bears. I like bunnies. I drew a lot of camels this year. I love giraffes. Probably giraffes. Z: A lot of your characters are anthropomorphized animals, is that just because you like drawing them? M: I think that makes the whole idea of the piece more approachable. I don’t wanna make art that people can’t just appreciate aesthetically. It’s a really simple thought, but. I Page 40: 30”x22” watercolor, ink on paper
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