aSTATEMENT OF PURPOSE
The work in my series “Toys for Imaginary Children” are as much about a longing for a relationship with fantastical (and therefore perfect) future progeny as they they are about the nostalgia for a glossy version of a past self's relationship with parents. Inherent in this look at making and childhood/parenthood, is an exploration of the otherness of nature and it's proffered temporary moments of wonder and joy. Revisiting the work I made as a child in the ideal landscape of rural Vermont in my father's wood-shop and my mother's sewing area, I make objects from found and new materials that falsely invite touch with interactive and movable components, seductive surfaces, and bright colors. Contrasting natural and mundane materials such as wood or cardboard with the vulgarity of the new and modern of LEDs or glitter, I want the viewer to re-experience a longing for the real – a connection with something greater. (Is that connection lost? Did it ever exist?) The work allows the viewer an unexpected, nostalgic experience for a nonexistent time when toys were made of wood, twinkling lights were otherworldly, and imagination was enough to create wholeness. Regarding this goal, the work is a simulation and as such, ultimately and intentionally, falls short. It does not satisfy a lasting connection, but instead underlines the desire for loss, impermanence, and even fantasy.
BIOGRAPHY
My work is shaped by my experience growing up in a tiny town in rural Vermont. My time was filled with caring for animals, climbing trees, and entertaining my younger siblings. I received my BFA from Maine College of Art in 1995 and eventually moved to San Francisco, California where I had various adventures working as a project manager and graphic designer in tech companies. Finally I settled in to teaching at the Academy of Art University where I still teach technical drafting and rendering to Industrial Designers. In 2011 I received my MFA from California State University, Northridge where I switched my focus from painting and drawing to sculpture. I currently live with my husband in the neighborhood of Eagle Rock in Los Angeles, California, continue teaching at the Academy of Art University online, teach children through the Armory Center for the Arts, curate shows for and help manage Monte Vista Projects, and foster kittens and cats through Kitten Rescue.
EDUCATION
MFA California State University, Northridge, CA
BFA Maine College of Art, Portland, ME
EXHIBITIONS
2018 Tiger Strikes Austin, ICOSA Gallery, Austin, TX
2017 Drawing into Sculpture and Back Again, Shoe Box Projects Residency, Los Angeles, CA
2017 Small Thing, Member Show, Monte Vista Projects, Los Angeles, CA
2017 The Collectivists, Brand Library Gallery, Glendale, CA
2017 FAR Bizaare, Cerritos College, Cerritos, CA
2016 In the Garden, Tiger Strikes Astroid, Los Angeles, CA
2015 Intermittent Dialogs, Monte Vista Projects, Los Angeles, CA
2014 Spectacular Subdivision, High Desert Test Sites, Wonder Valley, CA
2014 Conversations and Dialog, Keystone Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2013 Ardor, Institute of Contemporary Art, Portland, ME
2013 Lesson Plans, dA Center for the Arts, Pomona, CA
2012 Applied Science, Gallery 825, Los Angeles, CA
2011 BOOM!, L.A. Mart, Los Angeles, CA
2011 MFA Thesis Show, CSUN Art Gallery, California State University, Northridge, CA
2010 38,640 Watts, Juried Group Show, St. John’s Methodist Church, Los Angeles, CA
2010 Juried Painting Guild Show, West Gallery, California State University, Northridge, CA
2010 Juried Student Show, CSUN Art Gallery, California State University, Northridge, CA
2009 My Favorite Monster, Arizona Museum for Youth, Mesa, AZ
2008 Featured Artist, San Francisco Children’s Art Auction, San Francisco, CA
2008 Resident Artist Exhibition, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 MELT, The Art Explosion, San Francisco, CA
2007 Under Our Noses, SFMOMA, San Francisco, CA
2006 The Secret Garden: Women in Art, One Taste, San Francisco, CA
RESIDENCIES, AWARDS, SCHOLARSHIPS, FELLOWSHIPS
Summer Arts (with Even Holloway and Katie Grinnan), CSU, Monterey Bay, CA 2015Teaching Fellowship, Armory Center for the Art, Pasadena, CA, 2012
Summer Arts (with Trimpin, Machine Project, and Heather Mae Erickson), CSU, Fresno, CA 2011 (full scholarship)
Arts Council Award, California State University, Northridge, CA, 2010
Juror’s Choice, Annual Juried Art Exhibit, California State University, Northridge, CA, 2010
Tuition Waver, California State University, Northridge, CA, 2010
Artist Residency, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT, 2008 (partial scholarship)
Academy of Art Teaching Conferences, San Francisco, CA 2003 – present
Studio Classes, Academy of Art, San Francisco, CA, 2002 – present
Artist Residency, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Island, ME 1995, 1996
Bachelors of Fine Art in Painting, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME 1991 – 1995
CONTACT
rebeccabennettduke@gmail.com
The work in my series “Toys for Imaginary Children” are as much about a longing for a relationship with fantastical (and therefore perfect) future progeny as they they are about the nostalgia for a glossy version of a past self's relationship with parents. Inherent in this look at making and childhood/parenthood, is an exploration of the otherness of nature and it's proffered temporary moments of wonder and joy. Revisiting the work I made as a child in the ideal landscape of rural Vermont in my father's wood-shop and my mother's sewing area, I make objects from found and new materials that falsely invite touch with interactive and movable components, seductive surfaces, and bright colors. Contrasting natural and mundane materials such as wood or cardboard with the vulgarity of the new and modern of LEDs or glitter, I want the viewer to re-experience a longing for the real – a connection with something greater. (Is that connection lost? Did it ever exist?) The work allows the viewer an unexpected, nostalgic experience for a nonexistent time when toys were made of wood, twinkling lights were otherworldly, and imagination was enough to create wholeness. Regarding this goal, the work is a simulation and as such, ultimately and intentionally, falls short. It does not satisfy a lasting connection, but instead underlines the desire for loss, impermanence, and even fantasy.
BIOGRAPHY
My work is shaped by my experience growing up in a tiny town in rural Vermont. My time was filled with caring for animals, climbing trees, and entertaining my younger siblings. I received my BFA from Maine College of Art in 1995 and eventually moved to San Francisco, California where I had various adventures working as a project manager and graphic designer in tech companies. Finally I settled in to teaching at the Academy of Art University where I still teach technical drafting and rendering to Industrial Designers. In 2011 I received my MFA from California State University, Northridge where I switched my focus from painting and drawing to sculpture. I currently live with my husband in the neighborhood of Eagle Rock in Los Angeles, California, continue teaching at the Academy of Art University online, teach children through the Armory Center for the Arts, curate shows for and help manage Monte Vista Projects, and foster kittens and cats through Kitten Rescue.
EDUCATION
MFA California State University, Northridge, CA
BFA Maine College of Art, Portland, ME
EXHIBITIONS
2018 Tiger Strikes Austin, ICOSA Gallery, Austin, TX
2017 Drawing into Sculpture and Back Again, Shoe Box Projects Residency, Los Angeles, CA
2017 Small Thing, Member Show, Monte Vista Projects, Los Angeles, CA
2017 The Collectivists, Brand Library Gallery, Glendale, CA
2017 FAR Bizaare, Cerritos College, Cerritos, CA
2016 In the Garden, Tiger Strikes Astroid, Los Angeles, CA
2015 Intermittent Dialogs, Monte Vista Projects, Los Angeles, CA
2014 Spectacular Subdivision, High Desert Test Sites, Wonder Valley, CA
2014 Conversations and Dialog, Keystone Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2013 Ardor, Institute of Contemporary Art, Portland, ME
2013 Lesson Plans, dA Center for the Arts, Pomona, CA
2012 Applied Science, Gallery 825, Los Angeles, CA
2011 BOOM!, L.A. Mart, Los Angeles, CA
2011 MFA Thesis Show, CSUN Art Gallery, California State University, Northridge, CA
2010 38,640 Watts, Juried Group Show, St. John’s Methodist Church, Los Angeles, CA
2010 Juried Painting Guild Show, West Gallery, California State University, Northridge, CA
2010 Juried Student Show, CSUN Art Gallery, California State University, Northridge, CA
2009 My Favorite Monster, Arizona Museum for Youth, Mesa, AZ
2008 Featured Artist, San Francisco Children’s Art Auction, San Francisco, CA
2008 Resident Artist Exhibition, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 MELT, The Art Explosion, San Francisco, CA
2007 Under Our Noses, SFMOMA, San Francisco, CA
2006 The Secret Garden: Women in Art, One Taste, San Francisco, CA
RESIDENCIES, AWARDS, SCHOLARSHIPS, FELLOWSHIPS
Summer Arts (with Even Holloway and Katie Grinnan), CSU, Monterey Bay, CA 2015Teaching Fellowship, Armory Center for the Art, Pasadena, CA, 2012
Summer Arts (with Trimpin, Machine Project, and Heather Mae Erickson), CSU, Fresno, CA 2011 (full scholarship)
Arts Council Award, California State University, Northridge, CA, 2010
Juror’s Choice, Annual Juried Art Exhibit, California State University, Northridge, CA, 2010
Tuition Waver, California State University, Northridge, CA, 2010
Artist Residency, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT, 2008 (partial scholarship)
Academy of Art Teaching Conferences, San Francisco, CA 2003 – present
Studio Classes, Academy of Art, San Francisco, CA, 2002 – present
Artist Residency, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Island, ME 1995, 1996
Bachelors of Fine Art in Painting, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME 1991 – 1995
CONTACT
rebeccabennettduke@gmail.com