cca santa fe

THOMAS ASHCRAFT | CODICES : HELIOTOWN
June 21 - August 24, 2008
Reception Saturday, June 28
Member Preview: 4-5PM Public Reception: 5-7PM
CCA | Muñoz Waxman Gallery
“Ashcraft’s work rises up out of the high desert like an exotic flower; sentient, fragrant, energetic, and curiously psychotropic.” - THE HELIOPOLITAN

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Inveterate experimenter, artist and extrapolator Thomas Ashcraft installs a vast and complex system of ponds, gardens, electrical labs, and public thinking chambers for a summer engagement in the new 6,000 square-foot
Muñoz Waxman Gallery.

Ashcraft will also exhibit the Codices : Heliotown, which are comprised of a series of reports and ongoing investigations into a multitude of subjects including sculptural extrapolations into the possibility of microbial life in outer space; studies into comets and fireballs; futuristic money analogs and parallel currency prototypes; a method of hyperextending the nervous system for enhancing artistic sensitivity; the aesthetics of micro-monumentalism, and lots more.

Of special interest: On the nights of June 23 and 24, the public is cordially invited to events wherein Ashcraft will take the opportunity to introduce a new artistic and cultural form that he calls “electroreception.” Using modified radio telescopes as energy receivers Ashcraft will attempt to harness direct electromagnetism from the planet Jupiter and use it as a new artistic medium to power sculpture in real time. (Stay tuned for further information as to specific details of these events.)

Thomas Ashcraft first showed at the CCA in 1989 with an installation and investigation of the concept of Radiopanspermia, which means “seed: everywhere ( in the cosmos): propelled by interstellar radiation.” Now nearly two decades later, Ashcraft presents his updated research in the field of astrobiology. In 2005 he was a recipient of the Louis Comfort Tiffany Award in the Arts. He lives and works as a radio astronomer twenty miles southeast of Santa Fe. For his recent observations check out his website at www.heliotown.com.

	Hair of the Dog April 11 – May 25 Reception Saturday, April 12, 5-7pm CCA Member's Preview Saturday, April 5 4-5pm Munoz Waxman Gallery download PDF \| view PDF The exhibition Hair of the Dog investigates the vocabulary, limitations, and mythology of the medium of painting through modern art history and into the 21st century. The artists and their works do not lend themselves to conclusions; rather, the aim is to provoke critical considerations of how painting functions as art in our culture. None of the artists in the exhibition will apply pigment to canvas in the traditional manner; some will not use paint at all. Portraiture, landscape, and narrative are some of the structures within the language of painting to be engaged. Featuring the work of AES+F, Polly Apfelbaum, Ann Gaziano, Rebecca Holland, Jason Manley, Philip Sanderson, & Brandon Soder; mediums include needlepoint, video, installation, photography, and cast sugar.

	SAVE THE DATE!
	Saturday, June 7, 2008 6:30 - 11pm Live & Silent Auctions CCA Photography Auction Award CCA will announce the winner of a $1,000-grant given to a significant New Mexican photographer. download PDF \| view PDF The Seventh Annual Photography Auction not only features photographers of international acclaim but also showcases many of the exemplary photographers who are living and working in our region today. At this event, CCA will also announce the winner of the third annual CCA Photography Auction Award, a $1000 grant given to a significant New Mexico photographer. This award represents CCA's dedication to promoting, supporting, and giving back to the talented artists living and working in our community.

	THOMAS ASHCRAFT \| CODICES : HELIOTOWN June 21 - August 24, 2008 Reception Saturday, June 28 Member Preview: 4-5PM Public Reception: 5-7PM CCA \| Muñoz Waxman Gallery “Ashcraft’s work rises up out of the high desert like an exotic flower; sentient, fragrant, energetic, and curiously psychotropic.” - THE HELIOPOLITAN download PDF \| view PDF Inveterate experimenter, artist and extrapolator Thomas Ashcraft installs a vast and complex system of ponds, gardens, electrical labs, and public thinking chambers for a summer engagement in the new 6,000 square-foot Muñoz Waxman Gallery. Ashcraft will also exhibit the Codices : Heliotown, which are comprised of a series of reports and ongoing investigations into a multitude of subjects including sculptural extrapolations into the possibility of microbial life in outer space; studies into comets and fireballs; futuristic money analogs and parallel currency prototypes; a method of hyperextending the nervous system for enhancing artistic sensitivity; the aesthetics of micro-monumentalism, and lots more. Of special interest: On the nights of June 23 and 24, the public is cordially invited to events wherein Ashcraft will take the opportunity to introduce a new artistic and cultural form that he calls “electroreception.” Using modified radio telescopes as energy receivers Ashcraft will attempt to harness direct electromagnetism from the planet Jupiter and use it as a new artistic medium to power sculpture in real time. (Stay tuned for further information as to specific details of these events.) This installation and all events are “central nervous system friendly.” Thomas Ashcraft first showed at the CCA in 1989 with an installation and investigation of the concept of Radiopanspermia, which means “seed: everywhere ( in the cosmos): propelled by interstellar radiation.” Now nearly two decades later, Ashcraft presents his updated research in the field of astrobiology. In 2005 he was a recipient of the Louis Comfort Tiffany Award in the Arts. He lives and works as a radio astronomer twenty miles southeast of Santa Fe. For his recent observations check out his website at www.heliotown.com.