Again, I cannot begin to express my gratitude to Steve Hanson for the opportunity for an artist residency at Art Farm Iowa in June and July 2024. It was productive, rejuvenating, hard work, fun, and so much more. A complete writeup to follow, but for now, some highlights:
KEN BOE: Art Farm Iowa STORE and EVENTS
Beginning with my June 2024, month-long Iowa artist residency, some of my artwork will be available in the Art Farm Iowa store. Your purchase supports me as an artist, and furthers the mission of this non-profit public charity to develop culture alongside agriculture in northern Iowa.
The 4th of July is a big four-day event in Northwood Iowa, with free events at the Art Farm July 4-7 following a paid dinner on the 3rd. I’ll be performing whip painting and poetry at 5pm on the 4th of July, and then each day the 5th through 7th “High Noon Poetry” as well as poetry and whip painting at 3pm each day.
Here’s a link to all my events at the Art Farm Iowa, and check back here often for journal entries, poetry, and videos like the one below. Thank you for following along!
Art Farm Iowa, Ken Boe Residency
I’ve received a significant artist and poet residency at Art Farm Iowa, which I’m arriving early to on June 14th for the big yard sale which I’ll be adding something to. During my time there we’ll be breaking the rules in both subtle and in bold ways, in this artist-as-outlaw themed experiment. I’ll be painting with whips, putting poems around town and on the farm, getting folks to hold my hand as I scribble the wind, and numerous Player-Piano-Paper-Pieces in the gift show gallery. Keep in touch or visit in person to find out more, I’m going to be having a lot of fun on site, as will others, and some Alien Aesthetics…
We’ll be reinventing what we’re doing as a culture, versus idiomatic stagnation. No nihilist trends on the farm with me, folks. I have a lot to share and since this somehow became the Arizona Artist Outlaw residency, we’ll be coloring behind the lines. Stay tuned for more intriguing announcements which will be their own original content, in and of themselves, like this draft poster “No Beauty Without Contradiction.”
See recent videos of my poetry performances with other artists at my Patreon.
The Blackhole Collage show of my Player-Piano-Paper-Pieces is up for a minimum of three events at the Four One One Space at 411 W. Sullivan Street in downtown Miami Arizona off highway 60 west of Globe. These are automatic drawing and painting pieces collaged over with 100+ year old Player Piano Scroll, with its texture of holes for notes, and fragment of lyrics and symbols in unique old fonts.
Also are layers of 1940’s catalog images and text, cancelling each other out into blackholes of abstraction. These papers I make transparent with my archival mediums, creating a distorted window to the surreal imagery beneath the papers. My hope is that these anomalous ways of seeing open a portal to the imagination.
Our latest art show is up for a minimum of 2 more events at the new FOUR ONE ONE SPACE at 411 W. Sullivan Street in downtown Miami Arizona, off highway 60, west of Globe and east of Superior. Another opening will be for the 2nd Saturday Art Walk and Car Show, April 13th, 2024. We were planning the Poetry Procession for Loco today and Jules mentioned dressing as a clown and my memory was thrust back to Michael Twenty-Three who dressed as a clown last year with multiple planned scenarios up his sleeve. Now we are entering the first Miami Loco Arts Festival without him since we started it in 2009. So there is a quiet to this one, and a hilarity.
Featured will be my Blackhole Collage Player-Piano-Paper-Pieces; sculpture and chapbooks by Libby Rooney; a piece by international artist ShaiLee; skate world paintings and prints by Shane Long; Hieronymous Bogs poems, music and art; Britta Garbo’s “Calling Cards” as well as printed and framed poetry by Trinity Murchie.
Four One One Space open 10am-pm, or even later for special shows during Miami Loco. 411 W. Sullivan St. Miami AZ
SATURDAY EVENING CONCERTS AT FOUR ONE ONE SPACE
Live Experimental Music To Be Announced.
Sunday, April 21st:
2pm Ken Boe’s DANCING THE SHOVEL with some of his greatest poems read to sound performance at Four One One Space with guided experimental and improvisational sound work, butoh dance by Eric Hodgins, and select other troubadours from the Phoenix Experimental Music Scene.
Organic Poetry, Part Two: 3PM – come gather around, relax, and complete the weekend with your most grounded and connected poetry to share with the others you have bonded with over this warm and wondrous weekend. This much has always been true.
PREQUIL: April 13th, 2024
Warming up for Loco is the next art walk:
April 13th, 10AM – 5PM at FOUR ONE ONE SPACE
Open for the next 2nd Saturday Art Walk in Miami Arizona which takes over the town with fun vendors, live music on installed stages, art shows, and closing with the best open mic in Arizona at Miami Art Works 509 W. Sullivan. Then comes Arizona’s most underground arts festival: The MIAMI LOCO ARTS FESTIVAL that we’ll be open for April 19th-21st 2024,
Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Story, poetry and music performances will be held in Four One One Space throughout the weekend.
Special thanks to our sponsor Miami Rose Trading Company. Antiques which inspire, and just down the street on the corner: A SOURCE OF MUCH OF MY WORK’S PIANO SCROLL!
Starting at 8PM, I’ll be performing 10 new poems experimenting with vowels and rhyme, consonants and alliteration, their random coincidences in experimental voice work by Kelly Owen, Carolyn Toronto’s, and myself, and their instruments of theremin and synthesizer at The Gallery at 40 Main, formerly the Thamm Gallery. Traffic has resumed both ways, the Bisbee After 5 Art Walk has resumed.
*A number of other artists are also on display at 40 Main, including my work this poster is a detail from. — Ken Boe
The new show is up at Forty Main Bisbee…Historic Thamm Gallery. “Beloved” I like what Nohava has done with these four pieces of mine in her curation of it. They’re encaustic gesso-grosso, some assemblage and some oil. I’ll be hybridizing all my different techniques and series over the next few years. Reception 01/20/24, 5pm. The show will run 3 months but I’m doing replacement pieces in case anything sells, and you can take it with you. Plus a couple other bonus pieces of mine to see of advanced Player-Piano-Paper-Pieces.
