The Rhinoceros and ME
I signed up for the project late - the last. I get my partner's e-mail address a week later. I get his room description almost 3 weeks later! But I am too anxious to jump in. I know I have procrastinated on writing the room description and that I will be busy and out of town so I jump the gun (oops!) and send him my room description. An 11 day wait, which I mention only as my excuse for what I did next. I googled his name - Dragan Aleksic, artist. Deceased (b. 1901), Yugoslavian Dadaist. A ghost. This is getting good already! Later I notice the last name has an "EK". The name on the email address Janis gave me has the letters "KE" Disappointing! Partner Dragan sends his room description. Brief. Mine must have been too long (much too long).
Dragan writes that on the wall is an African King under an Umbrella. I google and find this book - and get it sent from the main branch of the Burnaby Public Library. By Daniel Laine, Ten Speed Press. Again, I am happy, new stuff for me. Maybe Dragan actually has one of these on his wall. BUT he writes there is a Queen Beatrice in the room too! She is leaning over a "strange red object". And he says the African king's umbrella shelters all "the royals".
Queen Beatrix is our bunny in Vancouver, Canada. Has she wandered from our room into his? Maybe HIS "Queen B." is a human? Is she a bunny statue? (I google 'bunny statues', most are too cute. Procrastinating!). Hmmm...there are rolled up yoga mats in the room. Mats. Plural. I am realizing that MY room description said nothing about the other two people who live here - my family.
I am still NOT getting into that room. Still just peering in. Literally. And I have no idea what it is like. Things haphazardly acquired? Or cool and designery and up to date - something I don't know anything about. A kind of hint that I am interested in the king and umbrella and sprays and cannisters of weird shapes and all the umbrellas and what might be seen from a 3rd floor window and the "impractical" recycling bins he made, "decommisioned because impractical"!! SO one of my space problems is that these things are on OPPOSITE sides of the room. The Truth: I just won't make the practical choices that would make life easier (read "do-able"). Would be sensible to pick a corner and be done with it.
Over past few days I have applied myself, for what that's worth. Had started with just trying to figure out floor plan - suspect I never did get THAT right. This was next step becz I clearly have no idea how to make it like a room. I think I stayed up there also because I didn't feel very welcome actually!
Can't understand how the three umbrellas "underpin" the coat rack. Seems the real umbrellas are at the opposite side of the room. Sigh. I really want 'em. So must do all sides of room. Containers of all strange shapes kept me happily procrastinating a bit and avoiding basic room perspective. Selected floor colour, just guessing. The cart before the horse indeed, the question really was: WHERE on the floor does everything go?
Marilyn told me how to bisect trapazoids. So I can work out distances on the floor. Such a relief but I'm still allergic to precision though I long for it. Somewhere around the time of taking this pix am heading for thyroid surgery (I'm not sick. No problems. Just a lump. Now taken care of). Then my elderly mother's personal care helper went away. So we went to Victoria for a spell. That was July. Add in son's mood swings. All this no excuse, but sure made it easy to procrastinate.
Perspective on coat rack is wrong. I think maybe it should be the viewpoint of a siamese cat from the top of this invisble wall that is the picture plane. The colour just an underlay I couldn't wait to try it. Had started in pencil on mylar and went to clear cello - tho I am NOT a painter, both beg for colour behind! The preceeding was the beginning of the struggle to get real.
At a glacial pace, measuring lines over and over, I got the dreaded counters and cooker in the right perspective and size, I think, and adjusted some mistakes. Got a bit waylaid this evening looking at coat racks for sale in UK - this rates as procrastination because the burners aren't on the stove, the sink isn't in the counter, the little bench with yoga mats on left isnt there yet, and the shelf of 'every kind of spice' above isn't there yet. I'm finding I like the loosey goosey thrashing about better than what I've got on the drawing board now.
The things that happen in the privacy of one's bedroom! There was more pain than gain in effort to keep abit of my old vanishing point below the floor! It was FIVE FEET below my picture paper! Marilyn laughed at me today "You just guess!", she said. And so tackled the dreaded kitchen wall.
At first when I drew the counter in it seemed it would block the view of one of Dragan's recycling bins. So I jacked her up. But then I realized this not necessary as the counter needn't have a cabinet below....
Just thought to put the enlarged coatrack on one of the earlier efforts (sans kitchen). Also on this earlier effort to in which I had no way to measure back to front distances on the floor.
Bones for an less stiff drawing. Maybe the loosy-goosey ones were better? Have more pieces for this. I "put " the dishes in the low cupboard last night, and did a the trolley for the yoga mats. Must draw sink and taps and stove. I "shopped" (Kettles UK) and found a toaster that cooks an egg too! The description says the "chunky table" is "massive". It's to scale, 6 ft long but the wide legs keeps it from looking long! What to do? I'm not sure!
The archives of DaDa Dragan the Artist "are known to have been taken to the city dump". So his namesake's attempt to make recycling bins to keep things from going to the dump is quite poignant. Therefore I hereby declare this back corner of Dragan's room be a (tiny) tribute to DaDa!
Dragan Alkesic's room
Technical:
The room is East facing on the 3rd floor - dimensions 5.5m x 4.5m and 2.50m high.
2 windows about 1.m x 1,2m high.
It is a sitting room, dining room and kitchen all in one.
Description:
Although the floor is grey green and the lower part of walls are minty green and dark yellow from the 1m up, the room is glowing with orangey yellow haze. Its very light and pleasant, cluttered but peaceful. As you enter, on your left a coat hanger is caring for a couple of jackets, hat, bicycle helmet and bunch of weird sprays and canisters, all underpinned with the 3 different size umbrellas. Small shelf along the wall full of clutter, trolley with few yoga mats, folding Ikea sofa bed, bundle of fabric in the corner, all along the
same wall.
Straight in front (as you enter) two big windows and small flower pot on the ledge. Between the windows Queen Beatrice is bending down to examine an strange red object. You can see her again on top of 3 dark brass hooks. She is in the company of an African king and his servant who is holding a big parasol for the royals.
You turn right and more shelves (3) and low cupboard underneath with pots, few books, bottles, and similar.Then my personally designed and hand-made multi-use rubbish bin on wheels. Massive fridge, two more of my hand-made recycling boxes on the wheels (all decommissioned as being too impractical).
You turn right again and the Kitchen line spreads across the wall. Surface, washing sink, surface, cooker, surface, end, back to the door. On top of the kitchen line one long shelf across the wall with every possible spice, oil, vinegar and similar, you can possible imagine. Some cups, plates, bottles and similar.
In the middle is a massive chunky wooden table (1,8m x 0,8m). Four different chairs around of which one is foldable and red.
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