Evanston Artist Dave Ford Competes in ArtPrize 2012

Today is the first day of ArtPrize, an art contest in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where the public awards more than $250,000 worth of prize money to their favorite artists.

My husband Dave Ford is competing this year with his Swing Set Drum Kit an interactive sonic sculpture encouraging kids to build rhythmic sounds with a swing set. The piece will be on display in Calder Plaza from Sept. 19 - Oct. 6.

More than 1,500 artists are competing and the event attracts more than 300,000 visitors to downtown Grand Rapids. You have to be a local to vote but it's worth the day trip to Grand Rapids to check out the art and people watch.

If you could, send good vibes eastward to Dave Ford and his Swing Set Drum Kit starting today through Sept. 30 when the top 10 artists are announced.

I am posting event updates and news on Dave's blog at fordart.wordpress.com and you can learn more about ArtPrize at www.artprize.org/dave-ford.

This sonic sculpture originally showed in the public art festival in El Paso, TX, Chalk the Block where Frederico Villalba shot the image above. Wouldn't it be fantastic to put the Swing Set Drum Kit in the front lawn of the Evanston Art Center? I'll add that to my list of things to do!

Video of a recent public art project by my husband, Dave Ford

Recently I wrote about being married to a visual artist (10.22.11: On marrying a visual artist, staying For Real and communal living in Chicago) and the benefits of choosing a spouse who helps you keep it real. I'd like for my readers to get to know my husband a little better, so that when I pitch the City of Evanston a public art proposal for the "Swing Set Drum Kit", you'll know what I'm talking about and back my idea!

The video above was taken of my husband's "Swing Set Drum Kit" that he was commissioned to create for a public art festival in El Paso, Chalk the Block. The festival is geared toward children, with a variety of chalk drawing activities, performances, etc. Dave's piece was ideal for this festival and there was a long line of children waiting to swing during most of the festival.

Click here for a slide show of images of the event, to include Dave on the cover of the El Paso Times.

Thank you in advance for your support, I totally think this piece would be great for the Evanston Art Center right around spring.

On getting used to living in a small space, what children do with colored chalk and more of the things we inherit

Our new life is an adjustment for all of us, especially because we're living in an apartment, which my children haven't experienced. The best thing about our apartment is our tiny porch, which we call France, and the big communal courtyard in the back. This summer we used the courtyard for lots of dinners, charades, scooter action and some chalk art. This week my older son took it upon himself to produce a massive scale chalk drawing, leading a team of children from other apartments, eventually coloring in 90% of the bricks in the courtyard.

What started out as a few bricks of color ended up as this flag of color, with more than seven children coloring on their knees for hours. My son is very comfortable being bossy on projects and other children follow his lead, regardless of the size of the project. At the beach this summer he was always leading a crew of under 10s to build some huge Mayan village. The beach is too cold for projects and he's taken his energy to the courtyard. I love it and I love the scale of this project.

The timing of this project is very fitting as their father (visual artist Dave Ford) is across the country in El Paso, TX, participating in this year's Chalk the Block, one of the coolest arts festivals for children in Texas and possibly the nation.

Cheers to all the artists who make their work using the world around them, from courtyards to scraps.