When I started Teaching Artists ROC, it wasn’t because I wanted to run a nonprofit. In fact, I was adamant that I wasn’t going to launch yet another organization that would add overhead to artist fees and pile on bureaucracy. I simply saw a need that wasn’t being met: a need for more art, more … Read more
We have long searched the skies, not out of boredom, but hunger. Not for food. The food problem is solved. Or should be. We certainly have the means to feed everyone on the planet. It’s distribution, and well, really politics that get in the way of that. No, not food. What we are hungry for … Read more
I didn’t sleep much the week I arrived in Tokyo in December 1998. Not from jet lag, though that certainly didn’t help. No, I was buzzing with nerves and anticipation, preparing to lead the most ambitious balloon project of my life. It was my first trip to Japan, and it was for a New Year’s … Read more
Back in 1999, I knew I found my tribe when T Jam, the first balloon twisting convention, took place. For years, there had been talk of creating this event. It hadn’t happened previously because no one wanted to spend the money to produce a convention that wasn’t guaranteed to be successful. There was interest — … Read more
New Yorker here. I speak American English. I have traveled extensively for work, much of it internationally, which has exposed me to a wide range of languages and cultures. While I’ve always struggled to learn languages other than English, I make an effort to pick up a little wherever I go, even if it’s only … Read more
I just finished a performance and was driving home, carefully replaying in my head how well the show went. I was proud of myself. Suddenly, I saw flashing lights in my rear view mirror. And, well, we know what that means. The excitement I was feeling about my show suddenly turned to concern. So I quickly … Read more
The platform beneath me vibrates slightly as I’m slid into the capsule. The soft hum of machinery fills the air, steady and unchanging. The smooth, curved walls close in just inches from my face—a confined tunnel. I inhale sharply, my breath misting against the cold air that seeps from the chamber. This is it. I’m … Read more
It is never more obvious to me that I work in a peculiar medium than when I hear the words, “Wow! It’s just like art!” The implication, of course, is that it’s not ACTUALLY art. It’s only LIKE art. This begs the question, “What is art?” Should the choice of medium have an impact on … Read more
I’ve always felt like there was something just out of reach, a thread hanging loose in the tapestry of the world. As an artist, I’ve spent my life trying to pull at that thread, hoping to see the bigger picture—to understand what ties it all together, and why, in moments of stillness, it feels like … Read more
It was the summer of 1988, just before moving upstate, from NYC, to start college at the University of Rochester. That afternoon, my girlfriend and I had gone to see Big. Tom Hanks plays a kid trapped in an adult’s body, and there’s a scene that had us completely captivated: Josh and Mr. McMillan are … Read more