TRAVELS WITH STATUS HAT

From artists that produce their work from their actual travels, to those that create from disciplined “flights of fancy,” Status Hat has showcased a variety of visual works and writing that explore all types of journeys – real to metaphorical – over the last two and half years. As a supplement to this month's edition of Status Hat, we've pulled out a retrospective of some words and art that could easily have spoken to this month's themes. Here, then, is a little journey through our archives – enjoy!

-Carli Castellani

These articles and showcases that we have put together can be viewed at the links below, but will also be available compiled in one edition, to be found in our download section as one of our free ebook editions, "coming soon"!

A Vintage Road Trip by Debi Gustafson, "PLACE" (May, 2010)

"I have always had a passion for traveling, and finally this year I was able to start make this a reality. On January 21st, 2010 I set off on the open road in a GMC Savana van with my friend Casey. We departed from a small town in Upstate, NY with the sole mission of seeing everything we could, taking our time and thrift shopping as much as possible."
 

The Search for Lori's Paintings by Kathy Konkle, "HEART" (September, 2010)

"Working with color, light and shadow rather than details, Lori achieved a simplicity reminiscent of early American folk art. Lori often painted the countryside around Charlottesville, Virginia, with its views of the Blue Ridge mountains, and her landscapes often reflected the special character of that area."

Reading Dr. Seuss Aloud by Thomas Matlack, "WORK" (June, 2010)

“Do you read to your kids at night?” she asked when the session finally ended. The question stung me. I worked, and I drank. I had more important things to do than read to my kids. Yet, in that moment, with that simple question, I realized who I had become. I looked her straight in the eye, and lied: "Of course".

  

Bahay by Francis Toriaga, "PLACE" (May, 2010)

"Our hearts are rooted in the native land that we are born in. But what happens when we're taken away? This animation is a metaphor for my journey to the US from the Philippines. "Bahay" translates to "home" in Tagalog and this piece investigates the struggle between culture and identity."

Stirring Ghosts by Keith Moul, "LANDSCAPE" (October, 2010)

"With my spiritual sense of space, my travels made me alien,
found coping with heat, deep rain, cold, then stinging sleet,
but coping with the back edge of peace, set against the plain
like fortress walls besieged by warriors from another place."

Thousand Mile Weekend by Robert Lietz, "REFLECTION" (December, 2010)

"We climbed that treed hill to the dusk-lit
cross up top. And there, among
the last-century's dead, we watched
the sun turn marvelous,"

Hotel Grand by Heather Mitchell, "PLACE" (May, 2010)

Travel photographer Heather Mitchell reminds us of the transitory nature of "place", with her photos of the ruined "Hotel Grand" in Kupari, Croatia. Now a war relic, the abandoned site evokes a dreamlike state of imagination.

 

Past Meets Future by Michael Rosner, "REFLECTION" (December, 2010)

Michael Rosner calls his work “an odd mesh of architecture and science fiction.” In a paradoxically futuristic reflection on past eras, Michael chooses a creative guide mark such as “geisha” or “cyborg” and a place or era, such as 1920's-Americana or Victorian, to begin his projects. Working with a model, he then takes 12-20 hours to work his striking magic, painting on the model with non-toxic body paint. From the Zhou Empress Wu Zeitan to Marie Antoinette, Michael's work lets us look at figures from the past in a strange new light.