And We're Back!

Good tidings arrived from Edinburgh this week in the form of the long-awaited Map panels! The Map has made quite a journey these last few years, and all signs point to more travels to come. All 2,800 panels are safe and sound here in icy old Michigan, just in time for the upcoming exhibition at the Concord Art Association.

The Map will make a second appearance in the Bay State at the upcoming Personal Terrain exhibition in Concord, Massachusetts this April. For those who were lucky enough to view The Map before, come peer into it again as many panels now feature fresh artwork.

Personal Terrain:
Contemporary Mapping
Ilana Manolson, Curator
April 16-May 18, 2014
Opening Reception: 
Thursday April 17, 6-8pm

Hope to see you there!

Some fresh numbers

For all you numbers junkies the Map is now composed of 3111 individual panels covering 1728.3 square feet. If it were perfectly square it would be 41.5 feet on a side. The actual maximum dimensions are 46.7 feet in width and 48.3 feet in height. To mount the entire Map with the standard 1" gaps between panels would require a surface 52.5 feet wide and 53.2 feet long. 

The population of the Map is now 16,364,902. There are 441 separate cities in the 29 parishes. The largest city is still Ukrainia at 2,414,234 followed by Geo with 1,663,163 inhabitants.

Closing out the eBay Store!

That's right folks. I am phasing out the items for sale in my eBay store over the next couple of weeks.  Rest assured panels, both originals and prints, will continue to be sold.  Contact me for more information on how to acquire your favorite pieces! biggouda@aol.com.

Another note on framing

I framed these Map panels recently using those clip frames, and I think the results are great! The pieces are hung a half inch apart but still read as one continuous map.

If you use this method and start with a large enough expanse of wall you can continue to collect sections and add them as they become available.

Palette

Here is my current palette of paints used on the Map. The 35 colors continue to be remixed, one new color a day. You can see the dates on top of the bottles. The remixing process started about ten years ago when I decided that the palette was too bright. It's now very earthy and subdued. Too much so?

Between shows

It's winter in Northern Michigan, and I am hunkered down getting ready for the next show in Concord, Massachusetts opening in mid-April. The snow is inching over the windows here- over 180 inches so far and plenty of time left before Spring to break the old one-season record of 231". It's 10 degrees outside, and I am working away on the Northernmost panels of the Map, ones that will make their debut in Concord. The Edinburgh show closed last Friday. I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of those four wine boxes full of Map. The Brattleboro exhibit has another month to run.

In the meantime, anticipating new shows in 2015, I am in the process of making copies of the entire Map. That should take over a year, but it will mean that I will always have a version in the studio so that my work can go on uninterrupted. The originals can be on display while I rework the copies. Wanna help? Go to Ebay and buy yourself a few panels or prints. Thanks!

A framing suggestion

Here's a  helpful suggestion with regard to framing for those followers out there with panels in their collections or those who want to snag a few but don't know how they would display them.  These modern "frame-less" frames are available at most craft stores for about $4 each and look great especially when you are hanging several panels in a set.  The clasp system could not be easier to use!

 

Check out the Map panels currently available for sale in my eBay store.