BENCHES ON PARADE
Today, I Have Clarity
So the Dixon Schwabl bench team had another awesome week of work and progress.
I've been excited through the whole project - and extremely nervous. None of us have worked with fiberglass before and after the first attempt at working on the tree half - we had nothing done but a lot of cut up chicken wire.
We're better now. After a phone call and some advice from the fiberglass artist who made the bench, we've made significant progress. It's still in its ugly stage - but I can see how the tree will work now. And anyone who creates can tell you that seeing how you're going to do something in you head is the hardest part. Once you have that clear - you can do pretty much anything. Today, I have clarity.
I've painted a lot. I've worked with acrylics of all kinds on a lot of mediums, so I can't lie and say that this is my favorite part. It isn't. I cut a lot of foam today (and Matt cut more). So I'm anxious to get her coated with the FB so that my brain can see the lay of the land for painting.
But to be fair to the process, the ugly duckling stage is really the best part. It's the unsure, the adventure, and the camaraderie that it takes to get through this part that is what makes art WORTH IT. So I'm holding on - even though we're in the weeds. A clearing will come, I'm sure of it.
How to Woolie
Kevin Serwacki's quick how to with the Woolie for Benches on Parade. Using a great color sense mixed with the Woolie an artist can really create perfect color gradation and textures, making things look like stone or metal without using an airbrush. Woolies can be purchased at Lowes, Home Depot or online. In the video Kevin is working on a bench for the DiMarco Group.
A Creative Explosion!
After participating in past community arts projects, Chris Pallace and Kevin Serwacki, are back for more with Benches on Parade. Working at full speed, Chris and Kevin have two studio spaces at Baytowne Plaza in Webster. One studio is well ventilated space for construction, while the other is a clean space for painting. Chris and Kevin have a lot to share; they will post their first blog next week, but for now here is some background on them both.
Chris and Kevin are both freelance artists working in various forms of art design applications. They are both born artists; it is in their blood. Both have early childhood memories of picking up a pencil and drawing. Over the years the pencil might have turned into another artistic tool, but the passion stayed true.
Chris owns an illustration business, Chris Pallace Productions. He is traditionally trained in the use of pencil, pen, brush and canvas, which he continues to utilize everyday. Life got easier with the invention of the computer. Chris is now versed in digital imaging programs to enhance his illustrations, allowing him to better depict his true vision to clients. His portfolio includes original artwork, game design, printed promotional materials, murals and of course fiberglass statues.
Kevin is a professional freelance artist, born in Kenya! Even after numerous attempts from his parents to push him in different directions, he couldn’t stop thinking artistically. Kevin went to RIT and majored in art. Some career highlights include teaching art classes to young students, comic illustration, editorial illustration, author and illustrator, and designer for different fiberglass statues.
Bringing Chris and Kevin together has created a creativity explosion!
Come see these two creative minds in action on location. Look for the Benches on Parade banner at Baytowne Plaza, and see Chris and Kevin’s progress! Or check out their video debut here http://www.facebook.com/pages/Benches-on-Parade/179142779808?ref=ts!
The Dixon Schwabl Bench: The Beginning
Hello Bench Fans!
Dixon Schwabl has a bench in the works and I thought I’d give you a progress update. We’ll tell you more about the bench’s inspiration and dedication in detail soon, as the bench is pretty sentimental for us here at the office.
In the meantime, we thought we’d show you how the creation of the bench is going. We’ve had a company-wide brainstorm for the theme. We’ve got a design/rendering in 2D. We’ve got a space for creating and mess-making thanks to our friends at The DiMarco Group! We’ve got a bench in the space and a lot of supplies for getting started. And, of course, we’ve got a team of Artistic Adventurers.
This weekend we took the team to the space and thought about the major hurdle we have to jump – the 3D oak tree on the right side of the bench. It’s a major element and it’s causing us to really think about what and how we’re going to make this happen. We have some wire mesh, screws, fiberglass, and Google. That’s all you need, right?
Wish us well along the way. We’ll keep you updated with our progress right here as we power forward through these next two months. It’s going to be a lot of fun!
A Family Affair
Over the weekend of December 12 I got to paint one of the benches in the Rochester, N.Y. Benches on Parade public art event and got several family members involved. My sister Kathy Anne Benner hosted the painting in her garage with her usual good spirits, high energy and awesome food and joined in for two and a half solid days of painting. Niece Stacey Rae Benner and her friend Ryan Beattie pitched in as pick up and delivery team and lent a much appreciated propane space heater while Brother-in-Law Jerrry Benner cheered from the sidelines.
I used my tried-and-true Rustoleum glossy paint that I have used on all kinds of outdoor art objects and the stuff is as tough and durable as it gets. The color selection is pretty minimal but you can mix the colors together to get nice variations and shades. I even used the paint for a life size school bus that is used for a dining area in a restaurant in Jacksonville Beach, F.L. so it had to be weatherproof and as kid-proof as possible.
The only difficulty I encoutered was that the back side surface is unfinished and rougher than expected and the supports that stick out of the backside caused me to have to alter my design but I'm always flexible so it wasn't anything major. I had a ball painting it and would love to do 100 of them!
Thanks
Howie Green
Protecting our Natural Habitat: Broccolo's Leaf Bench
Our team is in the midst of cutting and reshaping our Broccolo bench. Currently, it is cut into the shape of a leaf, which is part of our team’s culture. When asked to build a bench it only seemed fitting to incorporate our team’s culture. Each and everyday we work to beautify our surrounding communities and cultivate nature in all we do, which is where our inspiration for the bench came from. It represents our commitment to educating the community on preserving and promoting nature. The bench will be a big 3-D tool, raising awareness about protecting our natural habitat.
After our team heard about the Benches on Parade campaign, we were all excited to get moving on the bench. We develop landscapes for client’s everyday, but this is a project that the whole community can utilize for many years to come, helping to raise awareness about the company and our dedication to making Rochester a green place to live. We want people to find our bench inviting and comfortable like sitting in the lap of nature.
Creating a bench for this campaign and getting involved in such a community-wide event is a true honor and an absolute blast! The creative process has been fairly easy, however just to be safe we are re-enforcing the bench to add strength. We hope to have the bench finished before the holidays. And when parade time comes we are proud to announce the temporary home will be at the Rochester Museum and Science Center. Now it is time to get back to the building process.
Till next time – The Broccolo Team
The Benches Are Here!
We’ve had a busy week with Benches on Parade. On Monday the benches arrived from Nebraska, after a long journey through every kind of precipitation. We held a quick press conference in front of the Democrat & Chronicle, with the benches on a flatbed truck and sponsors and speakers sitting in them, reading their morning “Democrat & Chronicle.” It was a cold morning, but wonderful to see the support for the community arts project and the benches arrival. If you haven’t seen the press on the bench’s arrival, visit our “News” section and click on the links. Fantastic!
Yesterday we had an artist workshop from 6-8 p.m. at the Nazareth Arts Center. More than 40 artists attended the workshop to learn how to work with fiberglass and paint on fiberglass. Two experts were on hand to walk the artists through and answer any design-specific questions they had.
Until our next update!
Check out video of the press conference on Facebook or here on YouTube -
Congratulations Grant Winners!
We have more exciting news to share!
When we announced the availability of ten, $1,000 grants to local non-profits our goal was to enable these organizations to participate and even turn this exciting initiative into a fundraiser. The submissions we received were outstanding and illustrated that our community leaders can think outside the box to move their organizations in the right direction while raising funds and awareness by participating in Benches on Parade!
We have five non-profits that have won the $1,000 grants, lowering the cost of participating in Benches on Parade to $2,850 from $3,850. The winners are: Catholic Family Center, Daystar for Medically Fragile Infants, Crisis Nursery of Greater Rochester, the Arc of Monroe County, and Camp Good Days & Special Times. Each organization submitted creative and thoughtful bench designs, as well as interesting fundraising concepts.
With the announcement of these five winners, we have extended the deadline to October 10 for the following five grants still up for grabs! If you or an organization you care about has not yet submitted, please urge them to do so. There are so many fantastic ways each and every non-profit can turn the fun and funky bench, into an amazing fundraiser!
Need help coming up with ideas, just give us a call at 585.383.0380 or email us at benchesonparade@dixonschwabl.com!
Congratulations to the non-profits awarded!
PRESENTED BY
PRODUCED BY
CREATED BY
PRESENTED BY
PRODUCED BY
CREATED BY
