Several of Ian's plastic blister pack creations are now featured on the Project Vortex website. Project Vortex is a collective of artists and designers who work primarily with plastic diverted from the waste stream. A portion of all sales made through the website go to local beach clean-up efforts, and Ian has agreed to donate 50% of any sales to the Friends of Casco Bay organization. Check out Ian's plastic art on the Project Vortex site here.
artwork
Spring Break Art Show /
Big Thanks to curator Krista Saunders Scenna for putting together a great show at the Spring Break Art Show. Spring Break is an up-and-coming satellite art fair that takes place in an old post office building near Penn Station during Armory Week. Her curated show, "A Storied Collective," included some of Ian's Strange Histories slide viewers, as well as his spores and piano piece collages. A review of Spring Break on the Hyperallergic art blog praised Krista's show and mentioned Ian's "witty slide mashups." You can read that review here. In another review of Spring/Break on the travel/culture blog My Fave Places, Ian's "awesome" viewers were put on their "Wish List"!
Watch Krista introducing Ian's work at Spring Break:
New Town, New Studio /
2015 has been a big year for Ian: big projects, big shows, and large undertakings. As fall is wrapping up, 2015 will now include a big life-shift: a move from Brooklyn, NY to Brunswick, Maine.
Ian moved to Brooklyn in 2009 armed with a passion for creating art and looking to find a place for himself in the New York scene. Over the next eight years he did just that. And in the process New York became home and those in it became family.
And now the next chapter is in Brunswick, Maine where he now has more than tripled the studio space he had in New York. And while his studio and art making is no longer based in Brooklyn, his ties to his New York family continue to be strong and he will continue to participate in shows in and around NYC.
Maine is beautiful. Come for the scenery, the pace of life, the lobsters, and the foliage. And you all have an open invitation to come visit the new studio space in Fort Andross any time (Suite 0104B, 14 Maine Street in Brunswick, ME). Email us at info@iantrask.com to schedule a studio tour!
A Farewell to NYC: Ian's Solo Show /
From September 11, 2015 through October 4, 2015 Ian's new solo exhibition called "Give and Take" opened to the public at the Ground Floor Gallery in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The show featured a variety of Ian's work over the years and was curated by co-founders of Ground Floor Gallery: Jill Benson and Krista Saunders.
The show has been featured in the Park Slope Stoop as well as Untapped Cities.
Interview on Chapter Be Podcast /
Why is it so hard to make significant changes in our lives? And how do some people make it look so easy? One day Kristen Blake, founder of Chapter Be, decided to leave her 9-5 job in pursuit of a more meaningful life. To better understand her own situation, she began asking others who made similar moves. Now she catalogues these conversations and shares them with the world in her podcast Chapter Be ("Chapter B" is a term psychologists use to refer to a new stage in an individual's life). You can listen to her conversation with Ian, where they talk about his decision to leave behind a career in science and his subsequent transition into the New York art scene.
Ian Talks with Clocktower Radio /
While in residence at Pioneer Works, Ian had the pleasure of meeting the creative and hardworking crew of Clocktower Radio. They invited him to talk about the Blister Pact project during the February Second Sundays open studio. You can listen to Ian's interview with host Bridget Hickey here.
Ian chatting with visitors about Blister Pact during the Pioneer Works open studios.
Blister Pact Kickstarter /
The Blister Pact project would not have been possible without the help of the Blister Pact Kickstarter campaign. A very enthusiastic THANK YOU to each and every person that donated to the campaign, as well as everyone that donated plastic packaging and/or time and effort to help make Blister Pact possible. You can find the Kickstarter page, along with the video and any subsequent updates here.
Pioneer Works Residency /
How do you produce a monumental sculpture inside a 100 sq. ft artist studio in Brooklyn? Ha, you can't. So you can imagine how hard this harsh reality has been weighing on Ian's mind as he plans for his next exhibition. Sometimes, though the Universe answers, and this time it's answer came in the form of an amazing (and timely) residency at the Pioneer Works Center for Art and Innovation. Huge Thanks to the amazing people at Pioneer Works for this opportunity.
Now Ian can start turning all of that discarded plastic packaging into something beautiful. Stop by Pioneer works during their Open Studios, every second Sunday of the month. Come say hi to Ian in his studio and see how the project is progressing. Oh, and don't forget to bring along any blister packs that you've been saving.
You can read about Fiercely Curious' studio visit to see Ian during his residency.
