Uncle Lumpy's Down-Home Art Blog and Pancake Emporium

Question – What do you eat?

Answer – Only the finest cross cuts of Auroch.

Question: What is the meaning of life?

Answer:  Well friend, first I must apologize for not answering your question sooner; I felt it needed some time to sit around in the ol’ noggin before I tried it.  I’ve never been much for philosophisin’, but it seems to me that this question really isn’t the one you need to ask.  The meaning of life is all well and good, but the real question is how would your life be different if you knew the answer? Would you get up earlier, be a little nicer, floss more regularly? Really, these types of questions are best directed to more qualified experts in the field; I would suggest the Dalai Lama, he seems to spend a lot of time thinking about just this sort of thing. If you find a trip to Tibet to be a little out of your way, then you should probably consider less profound philosophy and just do what I do, and enjoy a nice warm stack of pancakes- they always help me in such existential difficulties.

Tara Donovan, native of New York City and recipient of an M.F.A. from VCU, was recently awarded the MacArthur “genius” grant.  This award provides $500,000 over five years for the work of people demonstrating “exceptional creativity and promise,” and was awarded to 25 people this year, eight of which work in the arts.  Other recipients include a violinist, a music critic, a neurobiologist, an experimental plant evolution geneticist and a medical historian, just to name a few.

Donovan, a sculptor and installation artist, is known for her work with everyday, disposable objects like drinking straws, styrofoam cups and masking tape.  Her massive structures transcend their utilitarian origins to become abstracted images that allude to landscape, clouds, and even cellular structures.  According to Donovan, her work is not intended to simulate nature specifically, but rather to mimick the way things grow.

For more information concerning the MacArthur grant and its recipients, visit www.macfound.org. (Any quotes above came from the MacArthur site.)

made from styrofoam cups and hot glue

stacked drinking straws

paper plates

Question: Will the Art department ever get t-shirts this year?

Answer: Well lets see those creative designs art majors and we’ll have no choice but to print t-shirts!