Rain + Art = Sad Face

Storm, J.M.W. Turner

(The following is primarily of concern to those with "outdoor studios" like the Broads, Annex studios, and Butler Building studios. Still, it could be useful to anyone I guess...)


So it's winter in Southern California, which means it will actually be raining every once in awhile over the next couple months. Due to the "unique" design of many of our buildings, some of your studios are "uniquely" prone to leaks and water seepage. To help avoid mayhem and damage to art work, please make sure your windows remain closed and you don't store any valuable artworks or equipment or possessions under window sills or on the floor near doors.

Also, check out your ceiling: is there bubbled up paint up there? A big crack in the ceiling of some kind? Water stains? You'll want to avoid putting something of any worth to you underneath that spot. Heck, you might even want to cover your stuff with plastic just to be extra safe.

Do I realize that I just told you not to store your art near windows, on floors, near doors, or UNDER the CEILING? Yes, I do. But I'm telling you anyway.

If you've got water leaking in your studio, let me know ASAP and I'll try and get someone out there to address it. If your windows are stuck open, let me know and I'll try to get someone to fix them.

Water damage is the cross we who inhabit experimental architecture have to bear!



Godspeed.

The Fire Marshall Cometh

Don't even think about it.


Hey There All Students in the School of Art

The Fire Marshall is inspecting CalArts this week. Some of you may
have received a visit from him.

I ran into him in the hallway today and he told me the biggest problem
in the studios is that there is too much stuffed furniture, too many
toxic/flammable chemicals, and a great deal of overloading/misuse of
extension cords. I have a number of notices already for "General
Housekeeping"---essentially "Too much stuff in the studio". I will be
trying to assess how to deal with this in the coming weeks.

If the fire marshall singles out your studio for an infraction, you
will receive notice from me and one week to address the issue. If the
issue is not resolved in one week's time, I will have to personally
take steps to resolve the issue in order to comply with the fire
marshall's demands.

As of my writing this, the fire marshall is still making the rounds of
the studios. You can probably make things a little easier on all of
us by taking a look at your own studio space, tidying it up, and
making sure that you unplug all extension cords before leaving your
studio, are not overloading your electric sockets, and are storing
chemicals like resings, turpentine, etc. in the Flammable Liquids
cabinets provided. Some studio areas (such as the Annex and Broad
studios) do not have Flammable Liquids cabinets, but if you contact me
I can help provide you with appropriate storage.

...And just so you guys know, to actually comply with what the fire marshall is requesting will actually require us to CHANGE our BEHAVIOR in some significant and RECOGNIZABLE WAY.