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Abraham Lincoln reportedly once said that "If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend the first six sharpening my axe." This project worked much the same way. The preparation and research were significant; below are a few of my thoughts and plans as I began the project. I have purposely left the text as it appeared at the beginning of the project so that you can see my ideas as they unfolded. The Barn Project began -- now, it doesn't usually work like this -- one sunny Autumn morning in San Francisco as I was waking up. I had recently arrived there to begin graduate work at the Academy of Art University; and though only there for a month I had become very interested in what my Senior Thesis would entail. The light was slowly filling the Presidio as images of these same murals on the barn ebbed in and out of my mind. Suddenly, I realized what it was, sat straight up in bed, and haven't quit grinning since. It's funny how sometimes you have to beat an idea into submission and other times it's just there. Originally, I had no idea what was actually going to be painted on the murals short of "Philo Dibble on the Front, and a landscape on the Back". That part has taken a great deal of effort. Yet the mural shape and the structure as a whole are largely the same as they were in my mind that Autumn morning in the Presidio. |
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| DEVELOPMENT: | |||
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This is a photo of the front of the barn, which faces North. The mural will be placed in the triangular 'gable' up top, which measures 36' x 9'. The lighting will also be redone so as to be up under the eave shining down, and possibly some upward lighting as well (more will be said of the nuts and bolts of things in the 'Mounting/Construction' portion of the project site). One of the biggest challenges is painting the murals on separate panels and then getting them up onto the barn while still matching up to the inch (and quarter inch), and without seriously destroying something. Click on the photo for a larger view.
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This second photo is of the back side, which faces South. The entire barn will be repainted as well -- a slightly darker red -- and I'll probably paint over the fan vents (the grey squares) also. As I have done photo mock-ups with the triangular mural shape in the gable, the vents tend to look like eyes with a hat pulled down too low. Another challenge is to make the entire project stand up to the weather. Utah seasons, while incredibly beautiful, are not always mild. Significant research has been done as to which varnishes are going to be the most protective. |
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This is a photo of the scale model (1.5"=1') which I constructed for a variety of purposes. First and foremost, oddly enough, is color. Color, of course, is all about context and proximity. Put anything against a huge bright red box , and the color is going to look drastically different than it did standing alone. Thus I needed a color context for color studies. Also, I needed to understand things structurally. It may seem a strange thing to assert, but I would say that over half of this project is engineering and logistics. The goal is to do that half so well that the viewer takes it for granted. It's like building a house: the most important parts structurally you never see, but if they are not constructed correctly, nothing else matters. Needless to say, the learning curve has been steep. |
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This photo is me, the model with mural panels attached, and the actual barn in the background. The murals will be painted on a product called "Extira", an outdoor signage product which is similar to MDF panel (basically like sawdust and glue pressed together in a panel shape), except that it weathers incredibly well. (2% swell in a 24 hour soak test, if that means anything to you). Here's a little funny fact: when I was building the model, I was at the hardware store estimating wood needed, and the barn door (in scale) is 21 inches tall. The wood slats were 3" slats, so I got seven. Yeah, artist mistake #1: for some inexplicable reason, wood is not the same in measurement as it is sold. So, for example, 2x4's aren't really, they're something like 1/2" shorter all around. Thus, as I finally constructed the model door, I wasn't in the mood to rebuy, resand, reprime, and repaint, so the door is now officially "open." |
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| TIMELINE: | |||
2006: March-August: Visual research on composition, subject matter, etc. -Materials and financial research, Begin fundraising efforts. September- October: Construct scale model, conclude visual research and complete final sketches and color studies. -Continue fundraising. November-December: Begin construction of mural framework in warehouse, construct mural pieces and prepare them for painting. -Begin painting acrylic base layers.
2007: January-April: Paint like the Dickens. Conclude painting in time for oil to dry adequately. May 19-September: Transport finished panels to (and from) BYU in Provo, UT for summer display. JUNE 1-Opening reception for show at BYU-HBLL. In Atrium of Library, 6pm-8pm. Yes, there will be treats. July-August: Go to Scout Camp (I directed a BSA summer camp, Holcomb Valley Scout Ranch) September-October: Prepare barn structure for murals. Repaint barn and trim. Mount mural panels to barn. Apply trim and architectural dentals. OCTOBER 12-The Barn Project opening gala and official unveiling. 6pm at Dibble Farms in Layton, UT November-December: Clean up, attend to final details, graduate from AAU! Begin the next big project... |
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