December 2014

Random Orbit has been somewhat dormant for awhile. Doug has became a full time faculty member of Santa Fe Community College as well as Chair of the Arts & Design department. It is a change we welcomed and he has met the challenges, but he has been extraordinarily busy this past semester. Kim is working less at an outside job and we are re-envisioning designs and a path forward for our work.  We have been making less of the vintage canisters that were very popular for quite a few years. Over the last few years there have been some custom orders and quite a bit of speculative work. Both Kim and Doug had work (designed separately, not as Random Orbit) in a seating show at the Santa Fe Community Gallery in 2014.

One of our hopes for the next year is to work on our ancient mailing list and update into an e-mail list, so if you see this and would like to be on it, please send your e-mail info. We will try not to wait so long for the next blog!

What's Happening...

Our show's just ended at Mariposa Gallery in Albuquerque, but please check out our on-going selection of fun decorative works there, including this "tin tower" and many other works incorporating recycled tins and painted wood.


If you're interested in any of the works shown on last month's news and events blog (see below), just send us an e-mail (please see contact info). You can also view more of our most current work on our new Etsy storefront, http://www.etsy.com/shop/RandomOrbitStudio

Also, we are participating in a studio sale of work on Artful Home's website, starting July 15th:
Artful Home

No craft shows planned at the moment, but we look forward to participating in "Art at the Coach Barn" this October on the exquisite grounds of Shelburne Farms, near Burlington, Vermont: http://www.shelburnefarms.org/calendarofevents/index.shtml

Finally, you can check out Kim's wood sculptures at Chiaroscuro Gallery in Santa Fe, NM or follow this link:
http://chiaroscurosantafe.com/artists/185/

More Deliberate Mischief

 "Deliberate Mischief," our current show at Mariposa Gallery in Albuquerque, has been extended until the end of June, 2012. The show features wall mirrors and cabinets, a bench, a new version of our popular chinese checker table, a small hall table, and a variety of unique sculptural objects and boxes. Nearly all the pieces incorporate recycled objects or unusual materials. Here are some more pictures of the show.

Spare Bulbs Wall Mirror

Lotus Bench  

 

"Buddha's Reincarnated Incense"(above) is created from several vintage metal boxes, an old chinese checkerboard, and Kim's rendering of a foo dog-like creature, assembled on our decorated wooden panel behind. Buddha watches serenely above from the pinkish box. 

Cabinet Number 2, door open: handmade marbelized paper, turned corn cob, raphia nut shell, kalimantan nut!

We named these wall shelves "Nichos" after the Southwestern wall cavities or cabinets that provide a featured place for special objects. Each Nichos features a different type of central panel, made from recycled natural materials (created by a company called Kirei). The one on the left is made from lightened coconut shells (remaining from oil production) laid in a dark substrate. The one below utilizes waste sorghum stalks compressed and sliced into a fascinating board. Each has a hickory frame. Some of our small sculptural objects called "Minis" are featured on each shelf.

An Assortment of Minis and several, fanciful "Can Containers"

Deliberate Mischief

Number 2 Cabinet

We’re excited about our show, “Deliberate Mischief,” at Mariposa Gallery in Albuquerque, running through the end of June, 2012. We gave ourselves the gift of time to experiment.
The result is a new body of small works that express our sense of design, collage, and humor.

El Practico Arquitecto

We delved deeply into our stockpile of vintage games, containers, and other ephemera, as well as exotic veneers, lesser-known woods, and some new, green materials. We used our familiar techniques of woodturning, decorative painting, and veneering.

Ouija Marquetry

We also developed unconventional ways of making patterns with veneer and old game boards, created a new series of sculptural shapes, and even learned how to turn a corncob and preserve it with wax.

We see a wide range of possible applications for all of these ideas in the future. Everyone tends to get locked-in to certain ways of designing and making; it’s very satisfying to break free every so often! The response has been very gratifying and we are thankful to Jen and Liz at Mariposa for the opportunity to show a body of work. For more on the show please contact Mariposa at info@mariposa-gallery.com or 505.268.6828

Photo Credits: Margot Geist, Geistlight Photography

We are excited about new work that we are creating for an upcoming show in May at Mariposa Gallery in Albuquerque. More details on the way soon!

WELCOME!

Happy New Year! Our big news for 2011 is that our webmaster, Dee Dee O'Brien, has updated and improved our website to include an online catalog for you to browse and, hopefully, purchase new work directly off the website, using Paypal. Just click on the new heading, ONLINE CATALOG, and use your mouse to enlarge the image and see price and size info. Kim and I are excited about this feature and hope you will find it a convenient way to stay current. We have also added recent furniture, commissions, and examples of accessories to our portfolio pages and brought our resumes up to speed. In addition, Dee Dee  added this blog feature, so that we less-web-savvy people could contribute more timely news and event info!

We are always happy to hear from our customers. Let us know what you think!