As part of The Craftivism (Downsized) Art Show, I created a triptych of 8″ x 8″ paintings called “Beyond Petroleum” on the theme of community and sustainability through our need to move towards alternative green energy. I had won a community grant from Vancouver Foundation to provide online promotions for the exhibition on Artistrun.org. Here’s my artist statement below.

Click on image above to see and download desktop image. “Beyond Petroleum” – Fin De Siecle 2012 Series, 2010, mixed media on canvas 8″ x 8″, $110.40 – by Liza J. Lee

Beyond Petroleum**– Artist Statement

For a sustainable community, we need to get “Beyond Petroleum” and implement more alternative “green” energies, such as solar, wind, hydrogen and nuclear. This would help alleviate petroleum dependencies, tensions in the mid-east and provide opportunities to contribute towards sustainable growth. To support my hypothesis, here is research where I shall leave to the audience to interpret.

The US allocated one trillion dollars in costs to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Iraq has the second largest oil reserve in the world, with known reserves of 43 billion barrels of crude oil, as well as large quantities of natural gas. The US is the world’s largest oil consumer and the second-largest energy user after China.

About 31 percent of US oil output comes from the Gulf of Mexico. The area is home to 43 percent of operable refining capacity and seven of the country’s 10 busiest ports.

On April 10, 2010, BP’s exploratory offshore drilling rig exploded after a blowout, killing 11 people. 4.9 million barrels of crude oil gushed into the Gulf of Mexico, making it the biggest off-shore oil spill in US history. BP had changed its name from British Petroleum and added the tagline, “Beyond Petroleum” in 2000 to highlight the company’s interest in alternative and environmentally-friendly fuels.

However, petroleum continues to receive enormous subsidies, which includes consumer tax levies at the pump, while renewable energies receive a tiny fraction of that amount from governments around the world.

Alternative energy is unlikely to meet more than 10% of the world’s energy needs for decades to come. Windmills work only when the wind blows. And each windmill needs two tons of rare earth metals for its construction. Windmills are primarily built in China. The country has recently slashed its exports of rare earths metals, as they will require them for their own windmills.

China is also buying unprecedented amounts of uranium for nuclear energy. Each new reactor requires about 400 tons of uranium to get started. The nation may purchase about 5,000 metric tons in 2010, more than twice as much as it consumes, building stockpiles for future nuclear reactors.

Meanwhile, the US has injected one trillion dollars in stimulus packages in 2010. The budget deficit for 2010 alone is $1.5 trillion. The stimulus funds have made virtually no dent in the US unemployment rate. Subsequently, consumer spending, which includes petroleum makes up 70 percent of the economy, is being held back by the highest unemployment rate since 1984. A sluggish US economy reduces crude oil demands from Canada, the largest exporter of total petroleum to the United States.

** This artist statement is an opinion by the writer-artist, with research from Bloomberg.com and Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. For more information about craftivism, visit the Gallery on Artistrun.org (TheArtParty.org).

© 2010 ArtConverge (ISSN 1918-9273‏)

I bought the world’s smallest and easiest FLIP camcorder ($169 at Best Buy) to share instant videos online on TheArtParty.org (Artistrun.org), YouTube and Facebook. With the mini tripod ($9.99 at Best Buy), it was extremely easy to shoot and I was pleasantly surprised with the internal mic for sound quality, considering the speaker, Kevan Seng was talking over the background DJ music. For my first video news, I shot some clips at SKin is IN at Gallery Gachet.

Make and Break Arts Foundation and Gallery Gachet present “SKin is IN”
“A celebration of the human canvas” where ten local Vancouver artists painted live on both human skin and canvas, in addition to showcasing various pieces which will be available for purchase by attendees. Guests met with the artists and witnessed the creative process of painting, as well as receive a complimentary art piece on their own human skin.

Gallery Gachet is a unique artistic institution founded in Vancouver in 1992. Named after Vincent Van Gogh’s homeopathic doctor, Paul Gachet. Gallery Gachet strives to provide a focal point for dialogue amongst outsider/dissident artists. We aim to use the canvas of the outside work to educate and demystify the public on issues related to mental health and to advance the artistic discourse around these issues. We provide the artists informed by mental health issues with opportunities to exhibit, curate, perform, read, teach and to develop their leadership skills. Located at 88 East Cordova Street, close to the diverse populations that reside in Vancouver’s neighborhoods.

Monika Blichar, of MAB Ventures Inc. and Make and Break Arts Foundation, was the founder, curator, and coordinator of One World Art Show and Fundraiser held at Telus World of Science in Vancouver, BC on May 1, 2010. With over 650 guests and participants, the venue was filled with over 600 pieces of art from over 60 artists, live painters, fashion and jewelry designers, a body painting competition in addition to a live and silent auction. Proceeds from the silent and live auctions went to Safewater Nexus, a charity which has been dedicated to the rebuild in Haiti. In addition, Monika is the co-founder of The Golden Brush Painting Competion, the curator of the West End Art Krall 2011, and is also working with organizations such as Capulet Art and artistrun.org. Monika is comitted to making arts more available to the public and creating opportunities for artists to show and sell their work.

J Peachy is quickly becoming one of Canada’s foremost arts-based advocates for mental health. Peachy is active in his art practice and Mental Health advocacy, through a number of differ7:00ent mediums. As the creator and producer of Sound Therapy Radio, an Arts and Mental Health Radio Show broadcasting on CJSF 90.1 FM and on Vcommunity TV (Shaw), he calls himself a ‘Radio-Visual’ Artist. J Peachy combines social media and the arts in a unique way to get the message across. J is also a collective member at Gallery Gachet, an artist run center and a mental health advocacy Gallery, based in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side. He is also part of the 2010 Stand up for Mental Health Class and was a feature performer at the Stanley Theatre in May 2010. Peachy is also a Team Leader with the Artist Alliance for Mental Health Canada, a National organization dedicated to creating change through Art. In addition, Peachy is an ambassador for two local Vancouver Arts organizations; ArtsConnect and the Vancouver Art Gallery.

© 2010 ArtConverge (ISSN 1918-9273‏)