An Amy Romans Holiday
Conceptual & Visual Designer Amy Romans of the Fort Worth Museum in our very studio!?! Absolutely, and a great time was had by all… Amy’s whirlwind tour of Philadelphia art and design hotspots included First Friday galleries, a fashion boutique, a magic garden,The Franklin Institute and of course, our illustrious studio. We think she enjoyed her time here from the pics above… Always a pleasure and looking forward to many more playdates with one and all.
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A DreamTime Interview
DreamTime in progress
Rather than just pictures and updates, we thought another way of documenting the creation of DreamTime would be to get the artist’s perspective in his own words. Bahdeebahdu’s Luminary, Warren Muller, offers studio designer Kevin Derrick some insight into his process and technique below…
Kevin Derrick: What were your initial thoughts when beginning DreamTime?
Warren Muller: Well, for the most part I just began looking for objects around the studio and warehouse. Fort Worth Museum gave me some ideas and feelings they wanted to convey– innovation and inspiration especially– and I just went with it, finding things that would be appreciated in juxtaposition to each other. Of course, considering the new space, children and play are central to the work too… Hmm, but not just a child’s things, but actually the whole idea of inspiring kids– and really, children of all ages– to make their own creations.
KD: Is this the same process that you normally follow?
WM: Yes. If I have a theme in mind, I keep referring back to that in my collection. But for DreamTime, I had to consider more than just the art itself. A lot of thought went into engineering the piece and the items that would support that goal too. There’s really a lot involved.
KD: Ok, so tell me more about the specifics of DreamTime.
WM: Well we had to think about how the piece will hang, specifically the 5 connection points that are spaced about seven feet apart. Building the structure around those, we first welded larger objects together in five separate frameworks. Each one had to meet the weight limitations and yet give the appearance of flowing into one another. Each individual structure’s on a chainfall too, which makes it easier to raise, lower and move. And that’s just the beginning! Once the framing was done, we began bolting objects to the structural parts… We’re still doing that right now and we’ve also started the process of electrifying the piece. Once that’s completed, we’ll go back and revise, adding or removing objects to give it all balance and harmony… Rhythm’s really important too, especially for something linear like DreamTime.
KD: So five separate pieces?
WM: Yes and no. It’s all happening in five parts but when complete you won’t be able to distinguish them as separate pieces. You won’t see where one ends and another begins. Plus, my assistant Rebecca and I will be bringing other objects and our tools with us when installing the piece. We’ll be working on it right there in the museum. You need to, to make sure it all works with one another.
KD: Makes sense. So a 45 feet long piece to be completed in just under two months… How have you met this challenge?
WM: You know, I’ve developed a way of doing things that I use when working on my commissions. Getting all the information upfront, meeting the clients, feeling what they want and who they are… It’s really like a dance in a lot of ways. What I mean is there’s a dynamic. You know when jazz musicians jam with each other? One person has an idea and they begin with it. Then another person joins in and adds something to it. The work keeps building in that way, and with each new instrument or voice something new happens. It’s really all improvisation, you know? I think with DreamTime we’re dancing and making music and everything all at once with the people at Fort Worth. They’re bringing their ideas and I’m bringing mine and we’re making something huge and great! And the best part is this whole process is about inspiration, just like how DreamTime will do that for children in the classrooms. I can’t tell you how exciting it all is and how great everyone involved has been. It’s really something else, really.
More pics of DreamTime can be viewed on our Flickr page and stay tuned for Amy Romans’ Philly holiday pics on Tuesday!
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DreamTime in 3D
Two dimensional images just don’t do Warren’s work justice, so here’s a super simple, quick vid of DreamTime in progress… At a length of 45 feet and width/height pushing 5 feet at points (wow!), this is by far his largest piece to date. With found objects a-plenty and more being added everyday, DreamTime is filling out for sure, as you can see… Check back again for more videos and images to come!
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DreamTime 