Congratulations to the August 5. 2007 workshop participants upon their graduation:

[from left] Natalia Agati. Francesca La Malva and Alessandro Bellesia continue at Arcosanti with internships in planning. Vidhu Shekhar continues with an internship in construction and Tony Saba-Shiber continues with an internship in planning.

In 1994 prominent artist John Waddell created a bronze bust of Paolo Soleri. Just recently, John Waddell visited long-time friend Paolo Soleri at Arcosanti to present his gift of eight sketches, drawn in preparation for the bronze sculpture.

John Waddell (b.1921) was raised in the Midwest and studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and had his first solo show in Peoria, Illinois at age 21. He was in the military and the G.I. Bill financed the remainder of his formal education, which was two M.F.A.'s in Fine Arts and Art Education. He and his wife, Ruth, a close partner in his professional as well as his personal life, moved to Arizona in 1957. Here he headed the art education department at Arizona State University (then Arizona State College) for several years. During this time Waddell made sculpture his primary art form. The 1963 church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, in which four young girls died, became a pivotal event in his development as an artist. The monument he created in response to that tragedy, "That Which Might Have Been", Birmingham, 1963, resides in the garden he designed for it at the Unitarian Universalist Church on Lincoln Drive in Phoenix. His sculptures are exhibited in many places in Phoenix, including Civic Plaza and the Phoenix Art Museum. The Waddells have lived in the Verde Valley since 1970 and make frequent visits to Grand Canyon, where they sketch and paint.

The Soleri bust is 48.2 cm [19 inches] and is featured on page 96 of the book "John Henry Waddell, the art and the artist" by Michel F. Sarda, published by Bridgewood Press, Phoenix, AZ in 1996.
See our previous report about John Waddell on 10/27/06.

This continues our 8/10, 8/22 and 8/24/07 report of interior work in the first floor apartment in Unit 9.
Alumnus Angus Gluck returned for part of the summer to instruct and crew lead one of the construction teams.
Under Angus's tutelage, workshop participants Daiva Trudeau and Davide Valada install studs that will support the ceiling panels and ceiling light fixtures in the main room.

Workshop participants Youn Joong Shuk and Ji Seon Yeong install insulation around the utility lines that lead from the heat-duct tunnel to the second floor. A closet will provide cover for the utility lines.
This will be the first apartment at Arcosanti to comply completely with ADA disability regulations.

When we look from the main room towards the intended kitchen area [see plan in 8/22 report] and through the stud wall, we can see a little bit of the next door apartment which is located in Unit 10.
There will be more on the Unit 9 apartment as work proceeds.
This report continues on 9/5/07 with the interior work that went on at the same time in the Unit 10 apartment.

This continues our 8/10 and 8/22/07 report of interior work of the first floor apartment in Unit 9.
This apartment will be completely finished for handicapped access.
Alumnus Adam Nordfors returned for a few weeks this summer to lead one of the construction teams. Here he teaches installation of metal studs to one of the workshop participants.

Insulation on the inner walls is complete in the lightscoop area and workshop participants Youn Joong Shuk and Ji Seon Yeong continue to cut and install insulation panels in the main room and on the ceiling.

[from left] Workshop participant Davide Vadala installs side supports for metal studs under the ceiling.
Workshop participants Youn Joong Shuk and Ji Seon Yeong.
This report continues on 8/27/07

On 8/10/07 we started a report of interior finishing in two first floor apartments with entrances on the north-side of the East Crescent complex.
The apartment in Unit 9 thas been designed for handicapped access.
This view is of the lightscoop area before just before work begins.



In the lay-out of the apartment, the area in this report is at the bottom of the drawing next to the tiled entrance area.

Workshop participants, architecture students from Korea, Youn Joong Shuk and Ji Seon Yeong work on the first step, the insulation of the inner walls.
This report continues on 8/24/07.

This continues the 8/15/07 report of interior finishing of the kitchen in the third floor apartment of Unit 4 in the East Crescent complex.
Planning coordinator Dan Kelliher took charge of the design and installation of the kitchen utilities and cabinets.
Here he installs countertop and back-splash tiles.

The color of the tiles nicely complement the cabinets.

The kitchen is ready almost complete.
This report will continue when the unit is ready for occupation.

IT'S A BOY ...

Congratulations to the Begin-Tollas family, Nadia, Dave and their 10-year old son Tristan, on the birth of their newest family member.

Nadia Begin with Paolo Soleri on August 8. 2007.
Nadia made table decorations for the E.A.R. concert on August 11. 2007.

The baby was born yesterday, August 16., around 5 o'clock in the afternoon, right during a thunder and lightning storm.
He weighed 9 lbs 10 oz.
Birth took place in the Begin-Tollas residence, the west foundry apartment, with guidance of a mid-wife. Mother and child are healthy and in good spirits.



Welcome !!!


More story and photos soon!

This continues the 8/06/07 report of interior finishing in the third floor apartment of Unit 4 in the East Crescent complex.
This photo depicts the back entrance to the apartment. We see [from left] a little bit of the tent covering the Colly Soleri Amphitheater, then the Unit 5 lightscoop, a stair case leading to the third floor and the Unit 4 lightscoop, and far to the right a little bit of the Vaults.
The entrance door to the Unit 4 third floor apartment is right above the Unit 4 lightscoop.

Work continues in the kitchen with installation of a black stove and refridgerator to complement the beautiful birch cabinets with charcoal facing.
Once again, the walls are straight, distortion of the image is due to taking a photo in a tight space.

A rotating set of shelfs for pots and pans makes the best use of the back corner cabinet.
This report continues on 8/20/07.

The 13th annual E.A.R. Unit Composer Residency and Seminar took place in the Colly Soleri Music Center.
This is a week long course which involves rehearsals, recordings, master classes, lectures/discussions and culminates in a concert of composers' works on Saturday with a special pre-concert gourmet dinner.
A group of very gifted young composers rehearsed all week with EAR musicians, were able to conduct their own work and then had their compositions performed in a concert open to the public this last Saturday, August 11. 2007.
Participating composers this year were
Daniel Iglesia with "Somatization",
Matthew Mendez with "Nickel-and-Dime Music",
Shawn Crouch with "Adolescent Psycology",
Amelia Kaplan with "Insidious",
Ryan Tanaka with "Fantasies for a Quintet",
Jason Barabba with "Curious Squid",
Stephen Yip with "Karma".

The music presented was playful and incredibly adventurous, thoughtful and thought-provoking, technically very challenging, yet excecuted with excellence and pizzazz.
E.A.R. Unit musicians this year were:
Lorna Eder, piano,
Dorothy Stone, flutist, composer and conductor,
Philip O'Connor, clarinet,
Johnny Chang, violin,
Timothy Loo, cello
Daniel Kaminski, percussion.

E.A.R. Unit is a Los Angeles-based new music ensemble dedicated to the performance, promotion and creation of the most exciting music of our time.
Since it's formation in 1981, the EAR Unit has brought unparalleled versatility, virtuosity and dedication to its performances. As a result of its long and fruitful history, the Unit has achieved a flexibility and rapport rare in contemporary music, and has earned an international reputation as one of America's finest contemporary chamber ensembles.

With assistance of staff, workshop participants and volunteers, Arcosanti Cafe chef Carrie Krueger put together a delicious dinner and a wonderful spread of hors d'oeuvres for the pre-concert reception in the Colly Soleri Garden in front of the Vaults.
Hors d'oeuvres were
Hummus, Tapenade and Pita with Spinach-Artichoke Dip.
Dinner was served after the concert. Chef Carrie's menu was Chilled Cucumber Yogurt Soup, Minted Pea Salad, Saffron Barley with Chickpeas and Almonds, Savory Vegetarian Shish Kebab, Tangy Chicken Shish Kebab, Dessert: Lemon Tart with fresh Raspberries.
[photos from upper left]: Workshop participants and planning interns Francesca La Malva and Natalia Agati prepare sunflower table decoration, the dining room, chef Carrie Krueger, the reception in the Colly Garden and baker Virginia Schutte prepares lemon tarts.

The back of the East Crescent shows us four completed Light Scoops. Each has a finished and occupied studio apartment on the second level.
From the left, behind the three cypresses we see the back of the S.O.T. Building. Next to that is the back of Unit 10, Unit 9, the round stair-case tower of Unit 8, Unit 7 and Unit 6.

On the first floor of Unit 10 is an apartment with the living room in the Light Scoop space.
On the first floor of Unit 9, the apartment has been designed for handicapped access.

Construction team of volunteers and workshop participants is currently working on interior finishing of both apartments.
This report continues on 8/22 and 8/24.

Welcome to the August 5. workshop participants:

[top from left]
Zachary Hunter, Natalia Agati, Francesca La Malva [planning intern], Vidhu Shekhar [planning intern], Erin O'Rourke [seminar week], Youn Joong Shuk, Daniel Brady [three weeks] and Hunter Farris [seminar week].

[front from left]
Milo Mason [two weeks], Charlie Peel [two weeks], Alessandro Bellesia [planning intern], Angelo Brigola [two weeks] and Ji Seon Yeong.

Located on the third and top floor of the west half of the East Crescent are a collection of different sized apartments. The Sky Suite is a two bedroom apartment in Unit 1, Unit 2 and 3 have two studio apartments each, and Unit 4 and 5 have one large apartment each, which were used as dorm spaces for some years.
We reported in 2006 on 8/16 and 9/1 on interior finishing of the apartment in Unit 5.
Part of the construction team has recently completed interior work in the apartment in Unit 4. The walls were painted and carpet tile installed.

This is a two-level open apartment with a high slanted ceiling, with a large room and bathroom on the upper level, and kitchen and dining area on the lower level.
The kitchen space was used for many years as a bedroom.

Planning and Design department selected beautiful birch cabinets with charcoal facing.
This report continues on 8/15/07.

To continue our report from 8/1/07, three individual frames have been painted and prepared to be installed in one of the door panels on the east balcony of the Crafts III building at Cafe level.

This photo taken from the inner balcony at the top level of the Crafts III building, the Visitors Center - Gallery, gives some indication of scale of the three-level interior space and of the scale of the door panels.
The panels have been installed and welding crew Philip Bonham and Darina Trendafilova fine tune placement and clip in the fly-screens.

In past years, during the summer month, both door panels on the east and south balcony were kept open to allow a natural breeze to flow through the cafe space.
Recent feedback from the health department frowned on this easy access for the fly population.
To screen these giant doors presented quite a challenge and it was elegantly solved.

On 7/25/07 we reported on metal construction of a large screen-door for the east balcony of the Crafts III.
Giant double doors open out onto the east and south balcony from the cafe. One half of the east door will be filled with three screened panels.
The frames have been welded together and primed and now received a first coat of paint.

Individual fly-screens have been put together in the woodshop.

Little magnets are applied to the corners of the fly-screens.
With these magnets the screens can be easily popped in and out of the frames.
We will continue this report on 8/3/07.