The first week of August I attended the
EMMA International Collaboration that is held every two years in Saskatchewan,
Canada. This was my second EMMA. Only
one hundred artists from around the world are invited to come together to work
in collaboration, teaching one another new skills and sharing creatively in the
fabrication of art objects. At the end of the session an auction is
held at the Saskatchewan Craft Council where the objects are sold to patrons in
order to fund the next event.
Affectionately known as
'Emma', this biennial weeklong residency takes place in the heart of the Boreal
Forests of Northern Saskatchewan.
Artists are challenged to step outside
their usual practice to explore different media, techniques and subject matter.
Professional artists skilled in working with wood, blacksmithing, metal
fabrication, forging, painting, fabric, leather, bark, stone and other media
are invited. The artists move around the group to work with each other,
asking someone to add something interesting to a project or asking another how
to solve a problem with an unfamiliar medium. New techniques, ideas
and inspiration are shared throughout the week.
This year one of my projects was to collaborate with the team that made this clock. My contribution was to make the pendulum from
telescoping brass and copper tubing and an old 1920's pre-vinyl record made
from wood fiber and other material that I cut and carved to shape. The record was at least 1/4th inch thick, very different from the
vinyl records we are more familiar with now. I think the name of the
record was 'Good Bye Sunshine Hello Moon' before the label was
removed.
I worked on several other
projects, as well, but we were so busy that I didn't take any
photos. It was especially hectic at the end of the week as we
tried to get our work completed.
These are the
Blacksmiths forging a relief onto some hot iron for a table that was completed
later. Great teamwork! Timing was critical. These guys are from Great Britain,
New Zealand, Hawaii, Saskatoon and a Kiwi now residing in Canada. A better group of
people you would be hard-pressed to find.
This is Te Rangitu Netana from New
Zealand, an amazing graphic artist. He had never met an African American
before and I had never met a Maori. We were instantly friends.
This is the Tiny Shiny
group of Jewelers, Greg Wilbur, John Wirth, Myra Perrin, 'Mary' Podiluk,
Melody Armstrong and me. As with the other work locations at EMMA the
amount of skill, talent and problem solving that went on in this space boggles
the mind. Hell of a group and I was honored to be a part of it.
The Emma Lake
International Collaboration grew from a series of wood workshops organized by
Michael Hosaluk through the Saskatchewan Craft Council in 1982. Since that beginning, the EMMA
International Collaboration has become a catalyst for worldwide creativity in
the arts and several collaborative EMMA events across the world have
emerged.
For more artist information and images
visit http://www.emmacollaboration.com/.
Thank you for reading! Please send me your comments. Charles
