JETSAM JEWEL INSTALLATION

Winter Snowfalls: a Jetsam Jewels art installation by Kari Glass

MORE SNOW IN ANC

ARCTIC ZODIAC: artist statement & bio's

ROSE COLOURED GLASS PRODUCTIONS

K A R I G L A S S & R O B I N R O S E M O N D ’ S

ARCTIC ZODIAC

BELUGA WHALE by Robin Rosemond

New Ice Age Art Adaptation

of the

Ancient Chinese Calendar Cycle

an arctic art tale spun from ice on the cusp of cold

Celebrating the coming 2012 New Year of the Whale

multimedia December art exhibition at

snow city cafe

1034 West Fourth Avenue . Anchorage Alaska USA

2 Dec 2011-4 Jan 2012

First Friday Dec 2 Performance Art Opening 5:30- 8 PM featuring

Marian Call—singer and songwriter

Brian Hutton—performance art poet

Robin Rosemond and the Elly Mazes

ROSE COLOURED GLASS PRODUCTIONS summons a journey to the land of the frozen north, long before man inhabited the Arctic Circle, where the Spirit of the Aurora Borealis reigns over the bitter cold ice cap of winter’s endless night. Kari Glass and Robin Rosemond’s ARCTIC ZODIAC art series colorfully transposes the familiar Chinese Zodiac story with regional twists on the twelve animal zodiac cycles. snow city cafe invites you in from the cold to rejoice and ring in the coming year of the WHALE while interactively locating where you and yours dwell in their spirited multimedia renditions of the ARCTIC ZODIAC.

ROBIN ROSEMOND: Robin Rosemond has a long history in live theatre and is a photographer, painter, poet, author, actor, yoga teacher, multimedia artist and driving force behind the Mammaist art movement. Robin writes, composes and performs her original songs with her rock band the Elly Mazes. Visit Robin Rosemond's blog of photography and poetry at rosemondpost.com and her Alaskan bi-weekly Turnagain Times column Out of the Town at turnagaintimes.com.

KARI GLASS: The origin of Kari's current work is trash—an eco-friendly visual improvisation reclaimed from discarded, forgotten and found objects. Her assembled jetsam and flotsam pieces, are informed by the works of George Herms, Wallace Berman, and Simon Rodia. Kari studied art at University of Washington and is a fulltime and all-the-time visual artist, overtime theatre designer, and sometime stagehand and studio mechanic. Visit her blog at kariglass.blogspot.com.

THE ARCTIC ZODIAC

The Arctic Zodiac Race

as told by Kari Glass

Long before humans occupied the North, the Spirit of Aurora Borealis decided to create an Arctic Zodiac. To do this, she invited all creatures to participate in a winter race to determine who would be assigned to each of the twelve cycles.

Before the race, clever Eagle and playful Otter were best of friends. Both vulnerable to icy winds and anxious to finish first, they devised a plan to navigate the formidable frozen Chukchi Sea upon strong Muskox, who had generously agreed to carry both on its back. Midway into the race, however, Otter roguishly ruffled and plucked one of Eagle’s feathers, startling Eagle, who slipped and fell off Muskox into a deep ice crevice. Then, as Muskox and Otter neared the North Pole, Otter leaped forward to claim first place in the race, right in front of unsuspecting Muskox, who obligingly accepted second place in the Arctic Zodiac.

After Muskox came Lynx. Panting, he explained that although it was difficult to cross the glacial ice, his powerful strength allowed him to reach the Arctic Circle in time to land in third place. Just as Lynx caught his breath, Snowshoe Hare suddenly arrived, having nimbly hopped between icebergs to become the fourth animal of the Arctic Zodiac.

Next to arrive was Whale, which was quite curious - why should such a swift creature fall so short of first place? Whale explained that she had been delayed at an ice hole rescuing a falling starfish while giving directions to the lost creature. Aurora Borealis was impressed by Whale’s noble act, and was pleased to give her fifth place in the Arctic Zodiac.

As soon as she had done so, the creatures heard a galloping sound, and Moose ran into view. Before he could place sixth, however, Salmon, who had hidden in Moose's large palmetto antlers, suddenly jumped ahead off Moose into sixth place. The startled Moose thus took seventh place.

Shortly, Dall Sheep, Bear, and Raven arrived. They had helped each other. Raven had found a sled, and Dall Sheep and Bear took turns pulling the other across the frozen ice pack while raven, who sometimes rested on one of their backs, guided them all the way to the Pole. Aurora Borealis was very pleased by their cooperative spirit and promptly named Dall Sheep the eighth creature; Bear, the ninth; and Raven, the tenth in the Arctic Zodiac.

After a while Wolf arrived. He hadn’t been able to resist the temptation to play on the frozen sea. His explanation for being late, however, was something else. He explained earnestly that he had paused to give himself a good grooming before arriving. Just after Aurora Borealis declared Wolf eleventh and was about to call it a night, a squeal was heard from a small seal. Seal had gotten hungry during the race, stopped to feast, and then promptly fell fast asleep. Continuing the race after waking from her nap, Seal barely made it in time to place twelfth to become the final animal in the zodiac cycle. Straggling in later, Eagle sadly didn’t make it into the Arctic Zodiac. Bitterly, he blamed Otter for his loss, which is why eagles ever after have preyed upon young otters.

The Arctic Zodiac Race culminated with a spectacular celebration on the winter's solstice, when the shift from darkness to dawn begins. Each year ever after, the Spirit of Aurora Borealis suspends undulating cosmic currents of dancing colour upon the dark frozen stillness of the winter landscape in recognition of the twelve winners of the Arctic Zodiac Race.

Artist contact: kari@cablerocket.com / portfolio: www.kariglass.blogspot.com

Sketches for the set of INUK AND THE SUN produced in 2005 by ATY directed and designed by Kari Glass for the Discovery Stage at the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts.

SEASTAR TENDRILLS FOR SNOW CITY