StoryTime - Highlighting Cultural Connections Worldwide
Public Art - Mountain View Elementary School - Municipality of Anchorage
Proposal Narrative
Debbie Dickinson
Mountain View Elementary School - Municipality of Anchorage
First of all, thank you for considering my work for the Mountain View Elementary School community.
Interior Multipurpose room - proscenium walls framing the stage
Narrative
Through history, cultures around the globe have woven together unforgettable tales passed on from generation to generation. Through this lore we learn of virtues and vices, that things are the way they are for a reason, and that dreams preceed creations. These are stories that entertain, bring people together, teach by passing on wisdom, useful skills, and knowledge of the environment. Storytelling around fire circles are the original university lectures. A safe place to sit among friends and family, respectfully listen to elders, learn, and become more responsible in the world. Tales that speak to the same desires, needs and values that we still deem important today. To draw on a thread that connect us together and identify ourselves each as a part of nature, bind the past to the present, and link one nation to another. It is in this spirit that I have chosen the content for the mosaic murals for Mountain View Elementary School.
I enlisted the help of Jennifer Noveck, a young friend who recently finished her Doctorate at the University of Washington, to help me to research first people stories from all over the planet. When reviewing the folk tales and origin stories I was struck by how similar many of them are, such as an African/Ashanti story of the clever spider Anansi who obtains light for the world bringing it in the box it was kept in, and the North American/Haida story of the trickster Raven who with skill and cunning steals the box in which light was kept. Two cultures a world apart, yet both believed that light was kept hidden away in a box. I was also delighted to learn that many creation stories speak of dreaming the creatures who inhabit the world into existence, and creating the land from mud that was fetched from under the deep deep water that covered everything. Each element in my proposed design incorporates details and animals from these stories, with an emphasis on the characters who show up in stories all over the world.
Finally, I would also like to point out the beyond the storytelling components of this mural concept, it also depicts the 4 elements; Earth, Air/Wind, Fire and Water, as well as the 4 seasons. Insects, arachnid, mammals, reptiles, amphibian (I want to add a frog in the tree above the porcupine), birds, fish and human people are also in there. I truly love this concept and look forward to building it!!
Student involvement
As part of this mosaic art installation project we would create a coloring book that incorporates line drawings of the mural and more comprehensively tells the stories, engaging student interaction for generations to come. There are also wonderful children's books that tell and illustrate many of these stories and more, therefore I would also like to create and share a reading list as part of this project.
Experience
I have been creating with tile since 1989. Many of my pieces are large stone and glass murals. With awarded works in the new Kodiak High School and Bartlett High School renovation, I feel my experience is perfect for this project. Every installation is different, and my ability to assess needs and plan accordingly is part of my success. I regularly work with architects, builders, committees and community to create a vision that is bigger than any one person or idea.
Materials
I create art installations from tile, stone, and mosaic glass in both private and public settings. For this installation I will use a variety of materials to create texture and interest. Ranging from, but not limited to, natural stone tile, pebbles, colored glass of all kinds, beads, seashells and found materials. It is my intention to create vibrant images that are clear, easy to understand and compelling to look at from a distance, and that become more detailed and interesting up close. I have intentionally concentrated a lot of detail in the bottom of the installation so that the smaller people at the school have plenty to see and feel when standing up close. The materials will be safe to touch and easy to clean and maintain. I understand that this is a multi purpose room and the art installation must be able to withstand impact from a stray basketball, etc. Tile art is functional, durable, easy to maintain and beautiful, offering the opportunity for a statement that reaches out to students, staff and visitors, while reinforcing the school’s mission, identity, and place in the community.
Installation techniques
The Mosaic Mural will come in 6 separate panels that will span 3 feet wide and 13 feet tall on each sides of the stage. They will be installed onto dimensionally stable foam core board to keep it as lightweight as possible while still being rigid, and framed with an aluminum Schluter frame, also lightweight, durable and attractive. The panels will be hung by either mechanical means (see Figure 14 on the right), or by using appropriate adhesives, or possible both, this is yet to be determined.
The Landscape walls outside of Mountain View Elementary
I would like to use brightly colored porcelain tile to write words on the landscape walls outside the school. The words that I am most interested in writing are LISTEN, LEARN, DREAM and CREATE because they go hand in hand with the mosaic mural in the multi purpose room, but of course we can consider other words.
These words could be presented in a couple of different ways. Either way all letters would be cut from colorful porcelain tile called Crossville Argent, appropriate for industrial and exterior applications. They would be directly installed onto the concrete walls Using Mapei Kerabond T plus Keralastic, which is appropriate for tile installations exposed to extreme temperatures. Each letter would be finished on all edges with a bead of acrylic caulk.
Concepts
Approximately 24”x 24” block letters. In this concept each wall would have only one word on it written as large as possible. Each word made from one color, but every word a different color. The words would probably be located on the walls somewhat randomly, with an eye toward overall composition and readability. I believe this will be the most impactful of the 2 concepts.
The words would be written 3 to 5 times on each wall in a variety of fonts and sizes ranging in size from 16”H x 11”W to around 5”H. With this concept there would be more words and they could be written in many sizes and colors and fonts, randomly placed, all over the four walls.
*Please refer to the fold out in the proposal materials for more specific details and material samples.
Artist Statement:
I would be thrilled to help create art for MVES. I create art installations from tile, stone, and mosaic glass in both private and public settings.
Tile art is functional, durable and beautiful, offering the opportunity for a statement that reaches out to students, staff and visitors entering the buildings, while reinforcing the school’s mission, identity, and place in the community.
I have been creating with tile since 1989. Many of my pieces are large stone and glass murals. With awarded works in the new Kodiak High School and Bartlett High School renovation, I feel my experience is perfect for this project. Every installation is different, and my ability to assess needs and plan accordingly is part of my success. I regularly work with architects, builders, committees and community to create a vision that is bigger than any one person or idea.
Public art values people, and gives something unique to all who experience it. In this spirit, I would be honored to work with you.
StoryTime - Highlighting Cultural Connections Worldwide
Many cultures, stories and connections
This coloring book was created as an accompaniment to the Storytime installation at Mountain View Elementary in Anchorage, AK, to inspire interactive fun and reference for the students, and to help them learn about the stories and creatures in their school’s art murals.
Feel free to download the coloring book pdf, print and share!
Many cultures, stories and connections Through history, cultures around the globe have passed unforgettable tales from generation to generation. Through this lore we learn of virtues and vices, that things are the way they are for a reason, and that dreams precede creations. These stories entertain, bring people together and teach by passing on wisdom, useful skills, and knowledge of the world around us. Storytelling sessions around fire circles are the original university lectures—a safe place to sit among friends and family, respectfully listen to elders, learn, and find one’s way in the world. These tales connect us to each other and to nature, bind the present to the past, and link one nation to another. When reviewing the folk tales and origin stories for this project, I was struck by how similar many of them are, such as an African/Ashanti story of the clever spider Anansi, who obtains light for the world by bringing it in the box it was kept in, and the North American/Haida story of the trickster Raven who with skill and cunning steals the box in which light was kept. StoryTime incorporates details and animals from these stories, with an emphasis on the characters who show up in stories all over the world. Also depicted are the four elements: earth, air, fire and water, as well as the four seasons. Insects, arachnid, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish and humans are represented. One of my favorite concepts, which I encountered in many forms across cultural stories, is the importance of dreams, and the idea that the world, or the creatures of the world, were dreamed into existence. I love how this relates to an artist’s creativity. I used babies and mirrors to convey the idea of dreaming, reflecting, imagining and creating our world. We all have an opportunity to create from the inside, what we want to be on the outside. Who do we want to be? What do we want to add to this world?
Debbie J. Dickinson, Artist
