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Raygun Gothic Rocketship

2009-05-18T23:12:00.000-07:00

After extensive travels throughout the nearby universes, 5 Ton Crane has landed the Raygun Gothic Rocketship on the SF Embarcadero at Pier 14.
It's been a long journey since we built the vessel and
there are many stellar stories to tell.

I worked with Almost Scientific to produce this series of little model rockets.

TC MFA CCA

2009-05-17T23:19:00.000-07:00

...just helped Torreya successfully install & deinstall her MFA exhibition at CCA.

Giggles goes to Ireland!

2008-11-13T01:08:00.000-08:00

well, it looks like the Irish dig purple as well as green.... Alan got word on Halloween that the Neuron Chamber was accepted into the Lightwave Festival hosted by the Science Gallery at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. So in Jan/Feb 2009, the Almost Scientific team brought 'Giggles' to the emerald isle to participate in our first international exhibition.

Dracul

2008-11-11T09:11:00.000-08:00

Winter brings dark & exciting times....
The Crucible put on the ballet, Dracul, in January to mark their 10 year anniversary. I was asked by my good friend, Ben Carpenter, to help manage, design, & build the set. Dracula is one of my favorite dark icons and a perfect body for the Crucible to breath life into as the nights get longer.

even more illegal sf downhill '08

2008-11-02T23:34:00.000-08:00

I should've taken a hint from the heavy all-day rain on Saturday that kept me taking breaks from my work to sweep standing water out of the roll-up door... the clowns in cyclecide like to say, 'too dumb to die' -I think I'm just too dumb to not do things the hard way. Soggy welding aside, I swapped out the old taco-tires for some bomb-proof wheel-chair issue rollers that I modified to take the existing mountain bike disc brakes, getting the cart together to roll again in the 11th hour (just like last year.)
So when Shul and I finally made it to Bernal, we were pretty surprised to find the uniformed welcoming committee.
I kinda knew that we wouldn't just go home after all that hype and hard work... SF is a town of hills, right? So, not too long afterward, a sampling of racers reconviened at another tried & true downhill location (this one in Potrero Hill) and tested gravity in all our illegal glory.
The shopping cart veteran made it down about 4 times before the 'bomb-proof' wheels lost their rubber, ground down the plastic rims, and seized up with the spokes locked into the brake calipers. Perfect.

lumbering contraption

2008-09-15T21:11:00.001-07:00

The Lumbering Contraption
Team Ratchet & Rumble's human-powered railwheel, The Lumbering Contraption. Created at Saint Louise for the first annual Handcar Regatta; September 28, 2008 Santa Rosa, California. After the race we received the Isambard Kingdom Brunel award for— Most Grandiose Feat of Engineering. Now we are sharpening our knives to cannibalize this big piece of steel!

2008 regatta video

the neuron chamber

2008-07-18T19:51:00.000-07:00

Today Alan submitted the application for The Neuron Chamber to the Lightwave 2009 festival in Dublin, Ireland. If accepted, 'Giggles' and crew (Alan, Bender, Shul, and myself) will be traveling to Ireland in January / February. Keep your fingers crossed....

the squid

2008-04-20T21:01:00.000-07:00

My good friend, Chad Carpenter, designed this pavilion structure for an under-utilized and ill-equipped courtyard in CCA's Hooper Graduate Center on the San Francisco campus. As CCA's SF Studios Supervisor, I 'commissioned' Chad to come up with something for the courtyard to provide shelter from the elements -something that we could build 'in-house'.

Chad put this together as his thesis project for his Master of Architecture degree. Chad, myself, and a talented sculpture grad named Patrick Gillespie, installed 'the squid' in '08/'09.

Alan Rorie took these shots.

sf illegal soapbox derby

2007-10-28T22:10:00.000-07:00

With some help from Bender and Alan, Max and I resurrected his old shopping cart racer and gave it a whole new look for the 2007 Illegal Soap Box Derby .

steampunk treehouse

2007-09-18T21:56:00.000-07:00

Built originally for the 2007 Burning Man festival, 'the Green Man', the Steampunk Tree House has been an epic project that has also been installed at the 2008 Coachella Music Festival and the 2008 Crucible Fire Arts Festival.

The Crucible

2004-08-20T00:22:00.000-07:00

I worked at The Crucible from 2002 - 2006 as their Sr. Studio Manager as well as an instructor. During this tenure, I worked to move the organization into their west Oakland facility, build out individual studio / class areas, put on many events, and develop the organization. While I am no longer employed by the Cru, I enjoy participating in their semi-annual events as an artist and volunteer.
I really like this image of Michael..., the Crucible's Founder / Executive Director, my old boss, and friend.

Tabula Raza, BGY2K

2001-08-10T23:26:00.000-07:00

When I was in grad school I had the good fortune to work with John Balistreri and learn about anagama wood-fired ceramics. Although not a ceramic artist, I was inspired to explore this elemental process to engage the creative community around me. Over the course of about 6 months, I invited 40 or so other artists into my studio for a series of intimate collaborations on thick slabs of clay. Over 100 individual pieces were created, which were then fired together in the wood kiln, and eventually installed outside the School of Art.

A.J. Leventhal Studios

1999-09-09T00:16:00.000-07:00

From Sept 1996 - Sept 1999 I worked with Adam Leventhal on many projects. Here are a few of the more note worthy:

Esperanza Gardens
Bullocks Wilshire
Boise Flight
Boat Drop