Zaftig

My work is included in the 2014 January issue of Zaftig, an online art magazine created and edited by Jacob Sanders.  This months theme is Nourishment.  Check out the zine here.

Relly Belly in the Sun!

Sketch for page 12!

Root - A Success

Take a chicken, love a chicken.

Root

Tonight!  I have a piece in the exhibition Root, curated by clementines + fingernails at the Chicago Art Department from 6-9pm.  

1932 S. Halsted St. #100

Hope to see you there!

Honey Bunny on a Cow Pie

Page 11 of my 18 x 24 inch fabric book titled, Farmer Kim and The Feathery Ladies is complete!

"There golden yolks are the outcome of their freedom to roam wherever they choose, enjoying compost, greenery and scratching through cow pies for bugs and larvae."

Honey's foot in a cow pie.

They enjoy eating, greenery, bread, ants, bananas...

...worms, strawberries, noodles, watermelon...

...apples, spiders, broccoli, onions, egg shells...and just about anything!  

*They also like (love) dead mice but I thought that would be too graphic...

Brewing Beer with Matt

Last Friday I learned to brew beer for the first time with my friend, Matt Shotick.  He is knowledgable and passionate about beer, so it was fun learning how to brew from him.  It is a long process (a lot waiting for water to boil) but the wait is full of incredible smells and the always satisfying feeling of knowing you took the time and effort to create something delicious.  Sure, you could purchase a beer rather than make your own, but drinking one you brewed yourself will always be so much more special.

I am always excited to learn how to make foods and beverages from scratch.  I do not want to be detached from the process of making food.  I'd rather bake a fresh loaf of bread than purchase a loaf full of strange ingredients, baked 3-7 days ago, wrapped in plastic.  Being self-reliant is incredibly empowering and it is always fun to learn how food and beverages are created.

Matt made a Saison beer with lavender and pepper.  

There were 3 different types of hops added to the brew.  They each have different scents and flavors.

He started by boiling water then pouring the boiled water over crushed grain and filtering the grain from the liquid.  The grain is in the orange tub and Shotick is pouring the boiling water over it.  There was a mesh bottom in the tub so the grain didn't go into the pot on the ground.  This was how the malt extract was made.  You can purchase the malt extract and skip this process but it is more expensive.

He then brought the malt extract to a boil for an hour.  You add the types of hops and spices in at different times depending on how much of the flavor you want to have in the beer.  So we started with a specific bag of hops (I can not remember which one).  About 20 minutes later he added another type of hops and the pepper and 5 minutes before the hour of boiling was up he added the last bag of hops and the lavender.  The lavender was added at the end so the beer wouldn't taste much of lavender but the scent of lavender would be there. 

After the brew boiled for an hour we needed to chill it down quickly and add the yeast.  Matt placed the immersion chiller (the copper spiral) into the brew which quickly cooled the brew down. If the temperature was too high it would kill the yeast.  But if we let the brew cool down without the immersion chiller it would take many hours to cool and bacteria would most likely find its way into the brew.  The brew was chilled down in 20 minutes with the immersion chiller.

After the yeast was added we filtered the brew of any chunky remnants.  The brew was then sealed up and left to ferment, I believe for about two weeks.  At some point Matt will add more hops (this is called dry hopping) to the brew and let that sit.  Then the beer will be bottled which I hope to be a part of.

And this is Theo, the scruffy pup of Matt and Kimber.  Theo is amazing and a crucial member of the brewing process.

The Always Hungry Buff Orpington

Work in progress.  Honey's favorite foods!  Honey is a Buff Orpington.  I am reading a book titled Homegrown and Handmade: A Practical Guide to More Self-Reliant Living by Deborah Niemann and in the book she quotes Lara Caldwell who says "The Buff Orpingtons were certainly the calmest and gentlest, even the rooster was a big softy who got pushed around by bantams, but definitely not feed efficient layers."  page 116

That made me laugh so much because I always noticed that Honey ate a lot more than the other chickens and her figure sure looked like she ate the most food.  Nothing got between Honey and her scraps and I love her for that!

Miss Honey and Her Cow Pie

Work in Progress for page 11.

Cow Pies!

Page 11 will say "Their yolks are so golden because the chickens are free to roam around eating whatever they enjoy, including bugs, greenery, compost and scratch through the occasional nutrient rich cow pie for bugs and larvae."

Chickens actually dig through the cow pies for bugs and larvae.  I only managed to pick Honey up one time while I was at the Wormfarm and she taught me a lesson.  She had just dug through a fresh cow pie.

A Week with Jake

Checking out the High Line, a public park built on an old elevated freight rail line.

Devouring a vegan peanut butter, coconut fudge ice cream sundae after some Absinthe...good times.

Central Park!

Enjoying my vanilla bourbon creme brulee donut from the Cinnamon Snail vegan food truck.

It was a very happy week!

Lying around with Cobey Bear in Central Park.

Dropping Chickens at Champs.

Vegan danishes from Clementine Bakery...the best.

I had so much fun with Jacob this past week.  I hadn't seen him since July.  I miss him everyday.  But I just bought another ticket to NYC in February! 

New York City!

I'm in New York City visiting Cobey Bear a.k.a. Jacob Sanders!

I have been dropping chickens off all over Brooklyn.

We had delicious vegan sushi at Beyond Sushi.

Yum!

Fragility and Strength in Root!

My piece Fragility and Strength will be on display at the opening of Root at the Chicago Art Department on December 13th.  The show was curated by Clementines and Fingernails.  Can't wait to see the artwork!

Reedsburg, I miss you!

It's official.  I am back in Chicago.  I have moved into my new place and unpacked my boxes once again.

On my second to last day, Trouser and I took a walk.

We dared to trespass through the neighbors corn.  I kept looking back thinking I heard someone but it was the corn rustling with the wind.  Then Trouser came running down a row of corn next to me and burst through to my row, scaring me.  He was very pleased with himself.

I sat down for a while to think about my time here in Reedsburg and the many goals I have accomplished.  I also thought of what I want to achieve in Chicago.  I am a different person from when I got to Reedsburg in May.  I feel stronger and more confident in myself.  I have a clearer idea of what I am working towards.  Only recently I realized that we are never done growing and learning. At first that scared me.  But now it excites me and makes me want to experience and do as much as possible!

Jem came out to flirt.  Right before I left for Chicago I went to say goodbye to Jem and Crook.  They were so loveable and clingy that I stayed an extra half hour, unable to leave them.

Brahma Mama, a very sweet, gentle lady.

And dear little Relly Belly soaking up the sun.

Wowee, this summer was AMAZING.  I have made so many awesome friends, made tons of art and ate a lot of really good food.  This is the first summer where my diet was almost entirely local and now that I've experienced that I can't imagine buying a zucchini from the grocery store in February.

Thank you to Jay Salinas and Donna Neuwirth for the incredible opportunity to be the Residency Manager and Farm Manager at the Wormfarm.

And of course, before I left Reedsburg I made sure to stop at St. Vincent's and I found this goofy sweater for $2.50.  Reedsburg, I  miss you and I'll see you sometime soon!