Machine Project
Encyclopedia
Machine Project is a Los Angeles based not-for-profit arts organization
and community event space dedicated to making specialized knowledge and technology accessible to artists and the general public. Machine Project offers workshops, exhibitions, performances, and talks at a storefront gallery in the Echo Park neighborhood, near the major intersection of Alvarado Street and Sunset Boulevard. It is also a gathering place for a loose alliance of artists who produce collaborative work in various locations around Los Angeles, including the Santa Monica
beach and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
(LACMA). Machine Project was founded by Mark Allen in 2004 and incorporated as a non-profit in 2005.
article, writer Gendy Alimurung described Machine Project as, "Nikola Tesla
by way of P.T. Barnum, with a dash of 'The Anarchist Cookbook
.' " Machine Project facilitates conversations between poets, technicians, artists, scientists, and obscure hobbyists and supports work that arises out of unusual combinations of interests. Past activities have included urban plant foraging and needlepoint therapy based on classic oil paintings. Machine Project prioritizes accessibility, explicitly courting amateur practitioners and curious locals. Workshops are regularly offered in sewing electronics, soldering
, Arduino
and Processing
for artists.
In addition to weekly events held in the storefront gallery space in Echo Park, Machine Project operates as a gathering place for local and visiting artists to produce shows at various cultural institutions and events in Los Angeles. Frequent collaborators include Brody Condon
, Liz Glynn, Kamau Patton, Jason Torchinsky, Chris Kallmyer, and Adam Overton. Machine Project has curated performances at the Glow Festival at Santa Monica Pier
and at several art museums. Through their Artist in Residence program, Machine Project invites previous collaborators to develop larger projects that generally include a pedagogical element in addition to performances and exhibitions.
Over the years, Machine Project has moved toward larger collaborations. holding residences with major art museums, including a one-day takeover of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
(LACMA) on November 15, 2008 and a several month residency at the Hammer Museum
in 2010. The Machine Project Field Guide to LACMA, which included over 50 individual events around the museum, has been described in the press as "epic," "Like Disneyland," and as having "the distinct feel of a summer camp." At the museums, Machine Project explores alternate, less formal ways of using the space and encourage more playful engagement with the collections. Machine Project has also curated events and exhibitions at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis
, where they raffled off a musical trip to the dentist with folk singer Emily Lacy, and the Pomona College Museum of Art
, where they installed a floral chocolate volcano by artist Holly Vesecky.
Machine Project developed out of founder Mark Allen's collaborative art practice and work with C-level (now Betalevel
) in the Chinatown
district of downtown Los Angeles. Machine Project has received grants from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Annenberg Foundation
, among others.
Not-for-profit arts organization
A not-for-profit arts organization is usually in the form of a not-for-profit corporation, association, or foundation. Such organizations are formed for the purpose of developing and promoting the work of artists in various visual and performing art forms such as film, sculpture, dance, painting,...
and community event space dedicated to making specialized knowledge and technology accessible to artists and the general public. Machine Project offers workshops, exhibitions, performances, and talks at a storefront gallery in the Echo Park neighborhood, near the major intersection of Alvarado Street and Sunset Boulevard. It is also a gathering place for a loose alliance of artists who produce collaborative work in various locations around Los Angeles, including the Santa Monica
Santa Mônica
Santa Mônica is a town and municipality in the state of Paraná in the Southern Region of Brazil.-References:...
beach and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is an art museum in Los Angeles, California. It is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles, adjacent to the George C. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits....
(LACMA). Machine Project was founded by Mark Allen in 2004 and incorporated as a non-profit in 2005.
Overview
Machine Project events emphasize intersections between fields and practices, particularly where the arts and sciences meet. In a 2006 LA WeeklyLA Weekly
LA Weekly is a free weekly tabloid-sized "alternative weekly" in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Editor/Publisher Jay Levin and a board of directors that included actor-producer Michael Douglas...
article, writer Gendy Alimurung described Machine Project as, "Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer...
by way of P.T. Barnum, with a dash of 'The Anarchist Cookbook
The Anarchist Cookbook
The Anarchist Cookbook, first published in 1971, is a book that contains instructions for the manufacture of explosives, rudimentary telecommunications phreaking devices, and other items...
.' " Machine Project facilitates conversations between poets, technicians, artists, scientists, and obscure hobbyists and supports work that arises out of unusual combinations of interests. Past activities have included urban plant foraging and needlepoint therapy based on classic oil paintings. Machine Project prioritizes accessibility, explicitly courting amateur practitioners and curious locals. Workshops are regularly offered in sewing electronics, soldering
Soldering
Soldering is a process in which two or more metal items are joined together by melting and flowing a filler metal into the joint, the filler metal having a lower melting point than the workpiece...
, Arduino
Arduino
Arduino is an open-source single-board microcontroller, descendant of the open-source Wiring platform, designed to make the process of using electronics in multidisciplinary projects more accessible. The hardware consists of a simple open hardware design for the Arduino board with an Atmel AVR...
and Processing
Processing (programming language)
Processing is an open source programming language and integrated development environment built for the electronic arts and visual design communities with the purpose of teaching the basics of computer programming in a visual context, and to serve as the foundation for electronic sketchbooks...
for artists.
In addition to weekly events held in the storefront gallery space in Echo Park, Machine Project operates as a gathering place for local and visiting artists to produce shows at various cultural institutions and events in Los Angeles. Frequent collaborators include Brody Condon
Brody Condon
Brody Condon is an artist based in New York. Concerned with the aftermath of trauma and the over-identification with fantasy in contemporary culture, Condon’s work is best known for its influence on the re-purposing of existing pop cultural material to create performative situations, video, and...
, Liz Glynn, Kamau Patton, Jason Torchinsky, Chris Kallmyer, and Adam Overton. Machine Project has curated performances at the Glow Festival at Santa Monica Pier
Santa Monica Pier
The Santa Monica Pier is a large double-jointed pier located at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California and is a prominent, 100-year-old landmark.-Pacific Park:...
and at several art museums. Through their Artist in Residence program, Machine Project invites previous collaborators to develop larger projects that generally include a pedagogical element in addition to performances and exhibitions.
Over the years, Machine Project has moved toward larger collaborations. holding residences with major art museums, including a one-day takeover of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is an art museum in Los Angeles, California. It is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles, adjacent to the George C. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits....
(LACMA) on November 15, 2008 and a several month residency at the Hammer Museum
Hammer Museum
The Armand Hammer Museum of Art and Culture Center, or the Hammer Museum as it is more commonly known, is an art museum in the Westwood district of Los Angeles, California...
in 2010. The Machine Project Field Guide to LACMA, which included over 50 individual events around the museum, has been described in the press as "epic," "Like Disneyland," and as having "the distinct feel of a summer camp." At the museums, Machine Project explores alternate, less formal ways of using the space and encourage more playful engagement with the collections. Machine Project has also curated events and exhibitions at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis
Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis
The Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis is an art museum for contemporary art, located in St. Louis, in the U.S. state of Missouri.- External links :*...
, where they raffled off a musical trip to the dentist with folk singer Emily Lacy, and the Pomona College Museum of Art
Pomona College
Pomona College is a private, residential, liberal arts college in Claremont, California. Founded in 1887 in Pomona, California by a group of Congregationalists, the college moved to Claremont in 1889 to the site of a hotel, retaining its name. The school enrolls 1,548 students.The founding member...
, where they installed a floral chocolate volcano by artist Holly Vesecky.
Machine Project developed out of founder Mark Allen's collaborative art practice and work with C-level (now Betalevel
Betalevel
Betalevel is a venue located in a basement down an alley in Chinatown, Los Angeles, behind a Chinese restaurant, underneath the shops and art galleries of Chung King Road....
) in the Chinatown
Chinatown, Los Angeles
Chinatown in Los Angeles, California is located in the city's downtown area. Built in 1938, it is the second Chinatown to be constructed in Los Angeles. The original historic Chinatown was founded in the late 19th century, but was demolished to make room for Union Station, the city's major rail...
district of downtown Los Angeles. Machine Project has received grants from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Foundation
The Annenberg Foundation is a private foundation that provides funding and support to non-profit organizations in the United States and around the world...
, among others.
External links
- Machine Project's Website
- Machine Project residency information on the Hammer Museum Website
- NY Times Article on Machine Project Field Guide to LACMA
- LA Times Article on Machine Project Field Guide to LACMA
- From Machine to Museum Project: Interview with Mark Allen by Ken Allan in X-TRA : Contemporary Art Quarterly
- Article in LA Weekly, 2006