"I am convinced there is a link between corrugated board and creativity. Its very valuelessness liberates us. Boxes, tubes, sheets of corrugated board - everything that lives between the good stuff and garbage - becomes a perfect partner for play. Rescued from trash, it asks only, "What do you want me to be?" Corrugated board is the DNA of creativity. Boxes, glue, tape, knives and a group of willing people can create anything. And have a great time doing it."
James Grashow, Artist (Redding, CT), Sharon Arts 2006 Artist-in-residence and hopeful returning artist May 2012
Sharon Arts Center is thrilled to share news of the campaign to BRING JIMMY BACK! In an effort to provide expanded access to New England art and artists, Sharon Arts is sincerely hoping for a return of renowned cardboard artist James Grashow to participate in a collaborative "Garden of The Imagination" project and exhibition with area schools. As an organization with a sixty-five year commitment to arts in the region, this event marks the continuation of an ambitious campaign to become a more accessible and valuable arts education resource to our community through expanded program offerings and wonderful new and on-going collaborations with schools and other non-profit groups.
We have invited James Grashow to work directly with children and teachers in the galleries in an effort to eliminate the distance between “famous artist” and the young creative mind. The Children and the Arts Festival, developed by community art advocates, is aimed at showcasing the creativity of our youth, and exposing them to new and different art forms. Sharon Arts can play a greater role in contributing to the festival by connecting area children to our greatest resource-- talented, living, working artists.
James Grashow’s work ranges in scale from large environmental installations through which a viewer can walk, to delicate houseplants, where a miniature world buds within a bouquet. A graduate of Pratt Institute, a Fulbright scholar, father and grandfather, James is convinced that magical art can be made from the most mundane of materials. Constructing his pieces from Cardboard, paper, and occasionally wood, he is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the children of Peterborough (and beyond) to create a larger-than-life fantasy garden of the imagination, complete with corrugated plants, flowers and insects, real and mythical. His work is currently on display at Mass MOCA.
We are confident that the impact of James Grashow and his infectious energy will be something these children will never forget as they continue to test, push and explore the boundaries of their creativity each year.
We anticipate to have over 25 area schools with over 1200 students and nearly 40 teachers participating in various ways. Several events and workshops will lead up to an exhibition opening when the installation is complete, and during the 2012 Children and the Arts Festival.
- May 9 – 20th: Selected classes (a total of approximately 100 students) will make a corrugated 3-d work with James Grashow that will become a part of an installation called “Garden of the Imagination”. Children from area Elementary, Middle, and High Schools (as well as home-schoolers) will all work with James in the two weeks leading up to the opening reception.
- Sharon Arts will host a workshop for area teachers whose students will be working with Grashow and making work inspired by his processes and materials. We anticipate over 20 teachers and arts enrichment volunteers to be on-hand.
- James Grashow will be available to meet families of the participants at the Sharon Arts Galleries on a set date. “Garden of the Imagination” will be open to public. Many of the pieces constructed will also parade through town as a part of the annual festival’s celebration.
- After the official opening in late May, over 700 students from 12 area schools throughout the Monadnock region will be participating in interactive educational field trips to the “Garden of the Imagination” exhibition for tours and activities to explore the magic of Cardboard art and the limitless capacity of the imagination!!!!
ABOUT JIMMY: James Grashow was born in Brooklyn in 1942 and has been creating works that address themes of man, nature and mortality since the 1960's. His prints have appeared regularly in the New York Times and in virtually every well known periodical and publication through out the country. Grashow attended Pratt Institute where he received a BFA. On graduation, he was awarded a Fulbright Travel Grant for painting and graphics to Florence, Italy. After a year abroad, he returned to Pratt to receive his MFA. Grashow had his first sculpture show at the Allan Stone Gallery in 1966. This show began a relationship with the Allan Stone Gallery, which continues to this day. MORE
ABOUT CHILDREN AND THE ARTS FESTIVAL: The annual festival celebrating art for, by, and of the children of our community. MORE
SHARON ARTS GALLERY in 2006 Installation
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- (60 days)