REDSTARTstudio

The other day while driving down Shattuck Ave. we realized that we have both been practicing artists of 25 years or more. We then started listing the things that motivate and interest us, and we made a few general statements about ourselves:

1. We are makers.
2. We are interested in materials, processes, forms, tools and ideas.
3. We are interested in bringing art into our daily practice.
4. We not personally interested in exhibiting in a traditional sense anymore.
5. We are interested how one skill or concept connects to another seemingly unrelated skill or concept.
6. We enjoy twisting convention and questioning convention.
7. We like asking questions a bit more than providing answers.
8. We like working with used materials or things that others throw away.
9. When we don’t use our hands to make things we become unhappy.
10. We enjoy problem solving.
11. Through true collaboration rich ideas emerge.
12. We are very restless, but focused.
13. We are not interested in strict authorship.
14. As artists we seek to counter the negative spirit in the world.
15. A sense of aesthetics ties all of our various interests together.
16. We value our education, and those who have taught us so many things.

With the last point in mind we would like to thank the many people who have helped guided us and inspire us:

Henry Glassie, Jim Cambronne, Pam Blum, Dr. Syer, Mr. Wentworth’s algebra class, the kindness of Mrs. Hughes, Randy Hester, Ruth Droppo, Ed B. & Wendy C., the support of Helaine Prentice and Elizabeth Baker, the life of Frances Bode, the humor and intensity of Alana Ryan, Frodo’s antics, Joan and Polly as models to survive really tough situations, and Julie, who has always encouraged the next step.

This re-design of Redstartstudio has been a long time coming. 12 years ago, when we started Redstartstudio, coding and building the site was part of the creative process. Over the past few years, however, our site updates have been few and far between. Coding, and “starting from scratch” has seemed to get in the way. Now, though not interested, for now, in blogging outright, we’ve embraced the blog format for it’s fluidity and content. Finally for us, because we are multimedia artists working with a range of materials from dirt to pixels, there seems to be a web format that doesn’t get in the way of the content, and also presents us as two blended individuals whose separate works really aren’t that at all.

Peter Suchecki & Lauri Twitchell

Oakland, California
October 2008