Project Progress

PROJECT PROGRESS: To date, I have collected three gallons of pennies! Will tally them soon. Check here for Project Progress throughout the year.





Tuesday, August 14, 2012

And The Tiling Begins!

I am just all over the place with this project now! I've begun the tiling with the main tile in the recess of each side of the shrine and with the pennies filling out the recesses and on all the edges of each wall. It's looking great so far! Also working on building the penny fountain... gluing the pennies together one by one. I've tried so many different glues but finally settled on the old favorite: Super Glue. I've already glued my fingers together more times than I can count! Also still glazing the tiles with the epoxy resin and making additional tiles using fortunes from Chinese Fortune Cookies with messages pertinent to the theme of each side of the shrine. Like I said, all over the place.

Except for making the Fortune Cookie tiles, I have to say that this is not the most creative phase of the project. The tiling and gluing is repetitive, tedious, and boring compared to the design phase and even the building and cementing of the shrine itself. Several community members have joined me in the studio (thank you, thank you, thank you!) to work with me... luckily, they didn't find it boring at all! I guess it's all a matter of perception (and how long you've been doing it!).

Special thanks to Dennis Conatser II for making the main  (4" x 4") tile for the Community Side of the shrine, and Alyssa Acevedo (one of my four incredible grandchildren) for making the main tile for the Art Side. And of course thanks to the hundreds of people who decorated the 2" x 2" tiles that will cover the walls (except for the recesses where the main tiles are. I've taken the summer off in terms of First Fridays, but beginning in September I'll be showing again and there will be more opportunities for the community to contribute.

Here are some Progress Pics:

putting the pennies on the edges and around the main tile in the recess

all the edges now have pennies

main tile for the Money Side of the Shrine

Alyssa's tile for the Art Side with pennies filling out the recess
Dennis' tile (not glazed yet) for the Community Side

main tile For the Admiration/Compliments Side of the Shrine

the beginning of one stream of a penny fountain