Mural dates changed

Live painting from last post postponed.  New dates and location coming at end of summer.

Live mural painting. 422 West Industrial Ave, Boynton Beach, FL.
June 22, 23rd. Will be painting this. come round. Check it.

updated website

Hey. check out my updated website by going to birdsarenice.com . This blog will be linked to the website. I will continue updates here, but main work images will be there.

Don't forget twitter @DianeArrieta and facebook (link on right).

Thanks for stopping by.

Coming soon...Art Basel Miami exhibition already in the works. Wynwood Gallery in conjunction with my MSc research project....stay tuned. Too soon to spill the details.

Site specific mural #2

Views of new vinyl mural in progress and 98% finished .

Kali and the redemtion song.

It is a re-creation of the 3d installation I did a while back; plus added scientific info for the science kids at the honors college @FAU.

New wall mural at FAU. This was a collaboration project I started in the library to help student writers get their work out there in the public.

This first one is by poet Peter Bui. Birds are Nice did all graphics.

We shall see if anymore develop.

Come round for a look.
FAU Jupiter Library. By the elevator : )

upcoming print show

Group show in Miami

Birds are Nice will be participating in the group show
Sweat
Nov 4, 2012 - Jan 15, 2013
MDC Center Gallery
(Wolfson Campus)
300 N.E. Second Ave.
Building 1, 3rd Floor
Miami, Florida


This show is a collaboration between artists and writers to produce a series of broadsheets.
(12 x 18" works on paper combining image and text)
Some of the notable artist included are Tom Virgin, Kari Snyder, Rosemarie Chiarlone, and many others.
Excited to have been invited to participate.
My collaboration is words by Diane Arrieta/ design images by Birds are Nice.


I will post images closer to the show date. It will be up for art Basel, so anyone in town stop by!

vote for me!

http://dianearrieta.artistswanted.org/atts2012#.T3nUfBBFkOs.facebook

Log into the above link with facebook and click on collect.

See my work up in lights in times square!

Thanks and remember...

Birds are Nice

Birds in the Hood (aka my house is not for sale)

This is my piece for the upcoming group show.

Description: This installation is a statement about the destruction and degradation of vital Tropical forest regions all over the world. Vital ecosystem services are being depleted; while carbon emissions from cutting down the rainforest continue to rise. Congruently, species are being lost at alarming rates. In the latest assessment in 2011; 2,082 species of birds are in urgent need of conservation action.

Birds in the Hood utilizes the shopping cart as an icon representing consumer demands; which is the main driver for biodiversity loss around the world. The latest trend in trying to curb deforestation is placing an economic value on these forests; essentially, making them a valid commodity in the marketplace.

The use of video footage of birds (replacing living specimens) metaphorically represents the shrinking avian populations and disappearing natural world. Perhaps in the near future, the only way to view birds will be via archival video footage.

Birds are Nice is taking this opportunity to align with Greenpeace in an effort to focus on their Save the Sumatran Tiger Campaign. Virgin rainforest are being cut down and manufactured for products we use daily, when they all could be made from recycled paper. Let’s help stop the destruction.
Please take time to  text ‘savetigers’ to 877877; when prompted, enter email address and zip code to sign the petition. Go to their website bit.ly/defendtigers    for more information.

Press for upcoming show

There was a great article today in the Palm Beach Daily News about my upcoming group show Outside the box II. Check it out. My piece looks different than this now though.

Whitespace, The Mordes Collection to unveil outdoor show of multimedia installations
By JAN SJOSTROM
DAILY NEWS ARTS EDITOR

Whitespace, The Mordes Collection already dedicates 7,500 square feet of gallery space to contemporary art. Now, Elayne and Marvin Mordes’ private collector space in West Palm Beach is turning over its grounds to art as well.


“Outside the Box” will feature 22 artists in a two-night outdoor show of site-sp       specific multimedia installation art curated by Sibel Kocabasi.

“That’s what Whitespace is about — engaging the community in conversations about contemporary art,” Elayne Mordes said. “That means all kinds of art.”

Hanne Niederhausen is creating an installation made of books in the parking lot. TD Gillispie is erecting a house visitors can walk into on the lawn. Jade Henderson is designing a wavelike artwork that will emerge from the lake behind the building.

Most of the artists live in Palm Beach County. They’re creating the pieces at their own expense.

“We don’t have many things like this happening around here,” said Kocabasi, a Lake Worth-based artist and curator. “There are a lot of great artists living in Palm Beach County. This is a good opportunity for them to get their work out.”

It’s also a chance for artists to experiment with different ways of making art, she said.

Tequesta artist Diane Arrieta is exhibiting a “sustainability piece” under her pseudonym Birds Are Nice, which she uses when she exhibits works with an environmental message.

She and Jupiter artist Jackie Kern collaborated to make Birds in the Hood, which features a wrapped tree growing out of a shopping cart. A portable DVD player in the one of the branches plays a movie of birds in a nest, complete with chirping.

“It’s about how consumerism is driving biodiversity loss,” said Arrieta, who is pursuing an advanced degree in biodiversity and wildlife health. If the trend isn’t arrested, “the only way we’ll be able to see birds in the future is through archived video footage,” she said.

West Palm Beach artist Sam Perry has exhibited his paintings frequently at area galleries. For the Whitespace show, he’s creating a 17-minute animated film, a new medium for him.

The film evolved from his Starbucks series, paintings and sketches derived from his hours spent people-watching at places such as the Starbucks on Clematis Street and Harold’s A Coffee Lounge in Northwood.

“It’s about the informal social interactions people have when they’re in public places” he said.

The film is set to an electronic score composed by local musicians John and Bill Storch and sound effects Perry found online. It will be projected on a wall outside the entrance.

The Mordeses opened their collection to the public on select dates four years ago and began exhibiting curated projects three years ago. This season, they doubled the number of public viewing days and mounted even more shows.

Attendance has likewise doubled. “When that happens, I feel we’re going in the right direction,” Mordes said.

Whitespace’s galleries also will be open during the outdoor show. On view are selections from the Mordeses’ collection and temporary shows of large-scale photographs by Nathalie Edenmont, paintings and ceramic works by Claudia Alvarez, and paintings by Marty Kelly.

Find this article at:
http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/arts/whitespace-the-mordes-collection-to-unveil-outdoor-show-2244518.html

Kali and the Redemption Song (Sneak Peak)

Installation view of
Kali and the redemption song
11/2011
mixed media + sound loop

This is a sneak preview of my piece in the upcoming show in Lake Worth. Details were posted earlier or click on portfolio link on the right for details.

Wall graphics came out great, and the sound in this space is haunting! Hope you can stop by.

upcoming outdoor installation show

Outside the Box
March 30 & 31st, 2012
@The Mordes Collection

2805 N. Australian Ave
West Palm Beach, FL

http://www.whitespacecollection.com
561.842.4131

This is a two day alternative outdoor installation show curated by Sibel Kocabasi.
Birds are nice + Kern will be doing a collaborative installation piece related to habitat fragmentation and species loss (multimedia/video installation).

Featured in Elvo magazine

Birds are Nice was featured in the magazine Elvo, from Cyprus. It is in Greek, but my pages are in English. So check it out at the link below. I am on pages 34-35.
ELVO MAGAZINE

sneak peak

Here is a sample of the wall graphics (custom made stickers- illustrated by me) that go with the whale piece for upcoming show. New title...Kali and the Redemption song.
This could be a cool tattoo.... if anyone wants to use it let me know. Just be sure to tell people who designed it.

Upcoming exhibition

                                     Foundations
South Florida Cultural Consortium Winners of Palm Beach County
                The Cultural Council's Inaugural Exhibition
                      January 18 - April 14, 2012
                                   601 Lake Avenue
                               Lake Worth, FL 33460

Birds are Nice will be participating in this show. I will be showing new work, from my new series about endangered species. The piece is entitled Whale Song. It will be a soft sculpture with sound. Images to follow in a month. I have to make the work.

Catalog for An Exchange with Sol Lewitt

I participated in an exhibition in conjunction with Cabinet Magazine and MassMoca.  The exhibition catalog is now available in pdf or for purchase.
You can click here  for the catalog.

Free download: endangered species origami (aka cootie catcher) game by Birds are Nice

You can right click on this image;
save on your computer. Print it out
regular 8.5 x 11" paper.

The second image below has folding directions I got online.
    click on image to make larger.

IF you don't remember how to play the game, spell out the name of the animal you choose (vulture, crow, rhino, crane).

Then pick a number inside and count that out.
Pick another number and open to read about
endangered animals.

Good for teachers and kids!!! Save the animals!

(images on origami are copyright of Birds are Nice and may not be used except with this free download as this game)

Changes are coming

Birds are Nice has a new focus. I am currently a graduate student at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland studying Biodiversity, Wildlife and Ecosystems Health. So Birds are Nice will be focusing on endangered species and saving the planet. I plan on doing outdoor projects as well.

Stay tuned for my new body of work and projects.  In the meantime.....save the planet  and buy some of my t-shirts!!! click on the store link on the right!!

LIghtworks 2011 fillm festival

My video A Little love was chosen for a film festival in Grimsby, U.K. !!  Here is the info:

Lightworks 2011 (click here)

CityLink Interview

Colleen Dougher from Citylink-Art Murmur in Ft Lauderdale wrote a great article and interview.
Check it out here! Thanks Colleen. She is the best.