The Last Post.

Every end, is also a new begining.

I am migrating my blogging from this blogger site to Wordpress and Facebook.  You can find my new site for my art and blogging at:

Russs.net

Signing off,

Russell

Reconfiguration

After several months of silence, the words and the ideas are brewing within like a long bottle wine that yearn to be un-corked. 

Yet in the silence, there has been much contemplation.  How best to express? With all my art and social endeavors I am constantly posting movies, photos, galleries and text to a variety of different social services.  I want one repository for it all.

I may just have to return to the old idea of having an artist website! 

Luckily I've done most of the work five years ago setting up my old Fire-Painter.com website.  Stay posted on this site to see the progress of rebuilding from the past into the future, so that I can post my moments away.

Long time, no post

Wow.  It's been a long time since I have posted on my blog.  This is not for want of much reflection and much interesting happenings.  I have simply been contemplating how to best go about sharing my reflections and happenings.  I feel I am shifting into a new and exciting phase and this requires upping my digital expressivity.  And this requires new and better ways of sharing my work and thoughts.  More to come!

Cutting creativity!

Four ladies from the village of Napua pose with 40 new glasses cut yesterday from old bottles at the Trashure studio after an intensive recycling workshop to prepare their wares for the village festival. The women take not only the glasses and a new cutter back to their community, but the idea that waste can be creatively transformed rather than just trashed. Since their last workshop in January they have come up with their own new ideas and creations-- more to come on this!

A Bianca Lattern: using the cut bottle tops we made a prototype candle Lattern (so named after its inventor).

"Unauthorized Use Prohibited": how about "Unplanned Product Packaging Prohibited"? Liquor bottles, like so many other corporate products, have dead-end packaging life-cycles, and thus end up as pollution-- except for this one which is now a glass! Power to the people.

Building with Bottles up in the Mountains

 

Over the last few months, I've been working with my girlfriend Bianca, and with the local officials in Sabangan, to help open up a hike for her company here in Sabangan. Sabangan, is at the foot of the very high, beautiful, and forest shrouded, Mount Kalawitan.

This remote mountain, capped with miles of virgin mossy forest and two meter thick pine trees, has only been opened up in the last year to outsiders.  The new Sabangan Guide School Association has had to clear deer traps and thick jungle to make the hike possible to their sacred ancestral mountain.  Alas, a typhoon last November damaged their Apa base camp and destroyed their organic greenhouse.

Trailadventours (Bianca's company) came to the rescue!  They donated 5000 pesos for the restoration work.  Yet, as we began planning the restoration, we found a colossal stash of trash tucked under Apa’s main hut– hundreds of bottles dating back thirty years had accumulated at the historic camp, which has been used over the decades by local hunters, Japanese Soldiers, Rebels, Filipino soldiers, rice farmers and intrepid hikers.  The bottles were an ugly blemish at the beautiful location, but, also, an opportunity.

Over three days, a team came together to fix up Apa.  The local councilor, Ernesto Bondad, Trail Adventours partner, Bianca Silva, Scottish backpacker Erik Jelinek, local guides Roger, Raymondo Dudds, Reggie and Gypsy and, recycling artist Russell Maier (me!).  Together we camped out for three days to build the greenhouse and to clean out the bottles.  Once cleaned, Russell guided the transformation of the bottles into tables, stools, glasses and lanterns to serve visitors of the camp site.  The greenhouse was erected in the traditional style of a rice rest hut and organic lettuce was planted inside.  Visitors will be enjoying the organic fruits (vegetables really) of our labors, for a long time to come.

Hikes to Mt. Kaliwitan began this past weekend.  I'll post another blog on that shortly.

(this post is adapted from a post that Bianca and I made on her company's blog:  http://trailadventours.com/footprints3/)

"Foreign IT Experts Lecture at Xijen"

I was in Sagada last night for a quick trip to use the village bank machine. As so often happens the universe had quite other plans. As I remarked in a previous post, living vivaciously is all about following your intuition every single moment on the twists and turns of the luminous path.

I was in my buddy Jed's restaurant in Sagada about to order dinner when another foreigner, an intriguing-looking young woman, walked in. As we both stood at the counter I insisted she must try Jed's amazing Peanut Veggie Stir Fry.

One thing led to another and before we knew it, we were in the middle of a lively discussion over our great meal. We were talking excitedly about our web development work with the latest Facebook App technology, java script and more. Turns out, Milena was a bright young Israelie programmer. We had lots in common to talk about.

An idea hit me.

The night before, I'd met a bunch of young women who were all first year Xijen college students beginning their studies in IT. It struck me that these young women would immensely benefit from a role model who was successfully navigating the front lines of the computer world in one of the top countries (Israel) for information technology.

I texted my friend Joel, director of Xijen, to see if his college would be interested. He texted back right away.

The next day, scheduled exams were postponed and Milena and I (mainly Milena) did a lecture on "Global Opportunities in the Future of IT" to about 100 rapt students. They were shy as can be, but they were attentive to Milena's every word. In the evening twenty students joined us again for a workshop on Java script. I learned lots too!

Oh... And about my original bank machine plan? There was a electricity failure in all the villages that day and I never did get to that bank machine (sorry Alvin!).

Life is like a box of chocolates, you just never know what you're gonna get.

Milena helps a Xijen student with her Java script attempt.

Burning Trash... Or...

Yesterday I was walking down the hill in the village. I saw my friend Esther, who runs a local restaurant on the side of the road. She was stoking a burning pile of trash. Noxious tendrils of plastic smoke swirled about her like grasping ghouls from a hellish dimension. Her pile is right beside the river. When it rains all those toxic ashes just wash right down.

I had just finished visiting my friend Gloria. Gloria and I have been working for the last month and a half on a Trash Painting. Rather than burn our garbage, she's been collecting it and diligently cutting and weaving weaving it. My love Bianca helped me to design this dazzling beautiful pattern with Gloria's weaving. The final oeuvre is beautiful in two ways: aesthetically and symbolically.

I waved to Esther and I asked if I could snap her photo (she laughed at the crazy Americano). I then called her over. Under my arm I had the painting, I proudly showed it to her. She loved it.

And so did half a dozen other ladies at the nearby store when they saw us. It was a poignant moment of contrasts. With a little perseverance and creativity we can transform problems to beautiful solutions.

I didn't know what to title this painting. The last one was 'Perserverance'. So, we'll call this one 'Transformation No.1"

Title: 'Transformation No.1'
Creators: Gloria, Bianca, Russell
Creation: Dec-Feb 2012, Sabagan Village
Medium: recycled wrappers
Size: 29.5 x 21 inches
Price: 600$ (available)
Framed: Pine shadow-box back frame

An Amazing Race...

CRAZY:  Here's me and the contestants (back seat), camera man, and celebrity guest from the Amazing Race (European version: PK Express).  

The other day, I was on my way home from Sagada with my latest trash painting (see below!) when I noticed a gaggle of white people in my village.

They were doing their best to wave down cars.  In three months, I haven't seen another white person in my village, so, after dropping off my stuff at home, Tomayo, my Police officer buddy, drove down with me in the police truck to investigate.  We were immediately swarmed and asked for a ride!  Two Belgians and a Parisienne were urgently trying to get to Baguio.  

Two of them spoke no English, only French-- (which fortunately for them I speak!).  I was able to understand that they were part of a race to get to Baguio.   At the moment they were badly last.  The younger teams were ahead of them with their English and good looks (a group of girls had put on Bikini tops to get a ride!).    

 My mind raced to help them out.  Tomayo could only drive so far in the Police car. Who could help us in Sabangan to get to Baguio? I had Tomayo stop at the mayor's house along the highway.  Mayor Donato, keen to help, had us jump in his highpowered SUV in a stunning display of impetuous generosity.  Off we went!  A crazy, full out, auto-race ensued on the most winding and precarious mountain road that you can possibly imagine.  The mayor was an AMAZING driver and we we took hair pin turns at full speed.   By nightfall-- skimming past the others in outrageous driving maneuvers, we were all queasy, but-- in second place!  

In Baguio, I got them to my friend Akira, who let them sleep at the back of her bar (the rules are that the contestants can't pay for anything and everything has to be given to them).  I bought them dinner.  It was the least I could do for two Belgians-- when I was in their country on my amazing journey, know that I was shown sooo much kindness and hospitality.  My new Baguio buddy, Alvin, stayed up all night with me and we found a van to take them the next morning at 7:55 AM.  

And juuuust in time,  the race began again at 8 AM!  

I am proud to say that Alvin and I got them then up to first (in another outrageous pass that will surely make the show)-- even if we faltered a bit at the end.  They caught a ride in a fast car in the town where they were required to transfer, and off they went!  

I wish them the best of luck and am deeply grateful for the profound lesson in following one's intuition.  

The art of following one's intuition never stops folks.  To waver in one's unending gratitude for each twist and turn, to regret the past, to wish something other than it is-- is to falter on the journey.  To give kindness to anyone at any moment is furthermore the best possible thing you can ever do, no matter the intricacy or solidity of one's own plans in that moment.  Do what you can!  That's what we are here for.

Merci Damien, Noela, Daniel, et Christophe! 

'Persistence' -- Our Latest Abstract Trash Canvas!

 Detail from canvas #4: Persistence

So, you all I've been working with Trash. We're making all sorts of great products with the trash weaving in the villages-- from bags to wallets to placemats.   These weavings are collaborations with communities as we collect, wash, cut, and assemble the trash.

Of course, I am first and foremost an artist. Thus, what I am most passionate about are the Trash Paintings that we are making using this same technique of weaving used sachets and wrappers.

I am tremendously excited about this. I've been working with the villages and the women weavers for almost a year now to establish the technique of weaving the trash in a compelling abstract aesthetic and mounting them appropriately. They are getting better and better!

And, now we now have a new painting complete!

Title: Persistence
By: Russell Maier, Karen Kalinga, (created in Sagada and Sabangan villages)
Size: 4'9 x 3'3 (145cm x 100cm)
Medium: woven trash (wrappers)
Price: 1900$ (available)
Framing: to be mounted on a pine stretcher backing (can be easily assembled and dissembled for shipping)

Trash to Treasure-- progress!

We've been real busy here in the village experimenting with home you can transform Trash to useful, beautiful and salable items. The idea is that by transforming trash three things can happen:

1. transform community pollution
2. increase the standard of living of poor folks with freely-made functional items
3. generate a new stream of livelihood income for the unemployed (mothers, farmers, out-of-school youth).

My house has been transformed into more than even a studio-- a laboratory for playing with trash: creating, refining and using. We've had three workshops now and created the coolest stuff. Here's some photos of our progress and play!

A table made from small plastic Yakult bottles (which are 100% non-recyclable!)

This one is simple but revolutionary-- drinking glasses from bottles. Here a mother's group learns to make them for their homes and to sell. The finished glasses are beautifully sanded and far nicer than the cheap glasses that folks normally here buy.

This table was made entirely from gin bottles.

I've also been working with Aunt Rose (who literally works at a city street corner as she sells candy and cigarettes to passer-byes) to transform drinking straws into mats, lamp shades and placemats.

Using wrappers of every sort I've been working with the local ladies to make everything from wallets, to clutch bags, to placemats and more.

My biggest passion however remains art. We are using the technique of weaving wrappers to generate large abstract "paintings" made entirely of trash. Here's some more examples of artistic collaborations using nothing but trash:

My dream is to show BIG trash canvases back in Paris and Berlin. We've got a few new ones in the pipe. I'll post soon!

A Full out Day of reTrashing

So, as many of you know, I've opened up a laboratory here in the mountain-perched village of Sabagan. My lover Bianca and I have been experimenting with transforming what is commonly know as Trash into our living accouterments in what was our bare house.

The house, has turned into a virtual laboratory. Studio or house is no longer the word. We've been delving deep into the requisite conceptual shift to see trash not as trash but rather something immensely practical.

We've been making some dazzling discoveries.

Today, I opened up the house to show the village youth and a mother's group our discoveries. The type of creations we are making out of trash are imminently salable products. Knowing how to make this stuff is an awesome livelihood skill for these out-of-school youth and unemployed mothers.

Fun! Here they are learning to cut bottles to make glasses, vases, ash trays, etc. We're all excited! Tomorrow everyone comes back for more.

Poverty as a Creative Opportunity

A living on the street in Manila receives a heart shaped banana pancake in a decorated banana leave sleeve.

I've been reflecting alot on my art practice in the last year. I have been doing art (which is usually for rich people) in one of the most materially poor countries in the world.

What is poverty exactly?

When it comes right down to it, poverty is a perspective, personal or collective on one's financial, material or existential state. Yep, that's what I am saying: fundamentally, poverty is an idea, a label-- a belief even. It is the idea you are lacking something that you should have or need.

Now, many spiritual folks will debate that this is in fact possible: Our moments are our perfect creations and we have all that we need Here in the Now. Poor people however, will urgently disagree, "I could really could use some food/money/gas right now!"

Such thoughts of lack however provide an opportunity to the other-- the neighbor, you and me. It is the opportunity for generosity, magnimitty, goodness, love. Poverty is an opportunity for the you and me to provide those immersed in need, precisely what they feel they lack. The condition of poverty is the perfect correlate for it's polar opposite to express itself: abundance and generosity!

Yet relieving another's need can be peformed in different ways. Giving can be cold and mechanical-- a welfare check from the government in the mail. Or it can be full of creativity and colour-- a gift wrapped in a hand painted paper and encircled with flowers. It can be about admelioring societal statistics, or it can be about creatively embracing the unique nuances of a person or people's existential state. The later takes time and imagination of course-- like a good painting. Truly, it is not so much about the material provided, but about the way of giving-- the way one expresses abundance to the other. As such, giving becomes an art. As such, I dare say, poverty becomes a blank canvas of artistic opportunity.

In this way the antiquitated verb 'to bless' gains relevance. In the way that The Lord would 'bless' a person or people with particular abundance, so too can we artfully address poverty with profound, poetic and luminous blessings of creativity.

This is even more so when we unite together to collectively and creatively express light to the shadows of lack and poverty. When two or more join together to craft and weave a blessing, the effect gains luminosity exponentially. Through socially media, an unprecedented opportunity presents itself for social co-creative blessings.

Such blessings are like a soft and colourful tapestry woven by a village to lay over a neighbour's rough and jagged floor. The co-creative expression that is woven for poverty has the opportunity to attain the highest ideals of beauty. For this is a tapestry woven not out of threads of cotton or silk but of hands joined together in a common task. The primary colours that form the expression are not red, blues and green, but instead joy, connection and oneness.

I can see it now, one day in the not so distant future, things will be alot more harmonious here on planet Earth. The enlightened humanity ahead of us will shake their heads with envy at our era. "There was so much poverty back then!" Poverty will then be seen clearly and valued for what it is. "They had so much glorious opportunity to manifest the most beautiful things and express love so colorfully!"

I am smack dab in the field here. Drop me a line if you'd like to help co-create.

Jaffari gives the Japanese ambassador an origami lotus flower made out of his youth group's prayer for the Japanese people after the 2011 Earthquake.

Completed! The Women of Gilbraltor neighborhood, Baguio, Phillippines pose with 113 coasters made entirely from recycled and woven trash (sachets from chips and other corporate food). These Trashure coasters are next their way to a Fair Trade store in Germany. Orders like this inspire massively here in the cities, jump-starting community recycling and, most of all, getting folks to think differently about garbage.

Building a re-Home

My lover Bianca and I have decided to undertake a novel challenge.

We have been laying the ground work to manifest another library project in the village of Sabagan for the last month. The library is to be built using recycled bottles. Bianca and I will be moving there in the next two days to fully apply our expertise to the project. The mayor, councillors, the guide association and schools are getting very excited by the project we are proposing. They are keen to get the community recycling going and with the "trash" that flows in, build their library.

But our moving there is the easy part. Getting settled is another matter! We'll be moving into a completely empty house. We'll be bringing our backpacks with nothing but our cloths and living gear. And... our creativity.

You see, we are going to make our furnishing from trash. Our chosen house, is located right beside the library site and the town recycling depot. The depot is there but the community is not yet using it. I will be working with all the community schools to jump start the project. Soon the recycling depot will be filled with all sorts of exciting and sorted items.

And... We're going to build our home! Yep. That's our self imposed challenge! We're going to build everything from our couches to mats to mattreses using recycled materials.

You can follow our village adventure and more of my Trashured discoveries (trash > treasure) on this new Facebook page that I have setup.

Www.Facebook.com/trashured

Creative Destruction

I am reminded from my early fire painting days that destruction is the beginning of creation, failure the requisite passage to success, a problem the spark of solution. The best and most meaningful beauty is shorn of the fires of tribulation, trial and test.

Failure. Complete.

Well, it's official. I feel like a total failure. It is October 8th. I've been trying to return to Canada for a year to be at my little brother's wedding. And, I am here in Sagada. I havent been able to pay one 400$ bill and get my visa right. People keep offering my tickets, but thats even more depressing because i cant do shit with the offer. I've tried working here but the wages are so low that I get sick and my savings are all wiped out.

Failure.

I DO have all sorts of great projects blossoming. Alas they have all failed to flower in time to see me back. To get a sustainable and profitable local/global business going takes at least a year.

So what the hell? Is it Bad luck? Bad planning? Complete Moral failure? These conclusions and condemnations wallow my mind in a mire. I write about them lightly, yet in truth they hang about me like dead weights, dragging down my I initiative and enthusiasm like some convict thrown over the boat with a ball chained to his ankle.

I am so sad I can't be there for my little brothers wedding. I think that's the worst of it. I feel like I am letting him and my whole family down.

Typhoon Survival with Chicken Soup

A massive typhoon has just passed over the Northern Philippines. It hit here really hard. The winds and rain have knocked out the power, the cell service, trees and more.

But, the folks here are used to such things! Already things are returning to normal. Alas, landslides have blocked all roads connecting the town back to the rest of the world. My friend Federico, who has been visiting from Manila, will have to stay another night!

Bianca, Federico and I spent yesterday inside the house as the ferrocious wind battered the hills, houses and trees. We watched from the cozy comfort of the balcony doors as it blasted branches away.

The brown-out evening was spent cooking a warm and spicy chicken soup together with a couple bottles of beer. We enjoyed our cooking over candle light, then gathered around a fire in the fireplace to sip our hot chocolate and tell stories while cuddling on the couch. Well, just Bianca and I enjoyed that last one!

It's a great thing that Federico brought so many great books up for the Guina'ang library project. We've been testing them out. What a pleasure to curl up in doors and read one wonderful book after another! Some amazing children's books have been donated.

The generator at the hospital is working. Hopefully, their wifi is to and I can post this.

Strawed!

Woven Straw Mat. This is a new art medium my Dutch friend and I are exploring: Co-Creating with villagers canvases and products out of used drinking straws.

My new Dutch friend Maartin has been visiting Bianca and I here in Sagada. It's perfect timing because Bianca and I have just moved into a gorgeous new house with lots of room, a great kitchen and living room complete with grand balcony and hearth. It's one of the nicest houses in Sagada. I am pleased to say that Maarten has been entertained in great style!

Maartin has been searching for business opportunities in the Philippines. For nine months he came up short. Then he met my friend Muriel who told him about our trash art endeavors here in the North. He made the 14 hour trip up to talk business.

And talk business we did! We have all sorts of exciting ideas on leveraging recycling, community manufacturing, and our international connections.

He returns to Holland now and shortly I return to Canada. We'll see what we happens!