May 17, 2011 – Xiangqi 象棋

I confess, I buy these little games in shops in The Richmond solely because they look cool (they are also very inexpensive). If I was really ambitious, I could learn how to play, but I don’t even care for Western Chess. I repurposed this game set for an art piece and I had to wonder what Chinese people would make of it. Is it really cultural appropriation or just silly? As an American, it is often weird encountering foreign depictions of “American” things. Obviously it can be similar experience for any people when their culture is reconfigured by another culture.

I think for my next trip to the The Richmond it’s time to hit the Russian candy store — if just for the packaging. Plus I’ll have to eat all those sweets for the sake of art.

May 10, 2011 – Papel Picado

When I moved to San Francisco I discovered Paper Picado the Mexican paper-based folk art. Traditionally it is not cut, Papel Picado is chiseled. Huge, tightly layered sheets of colored tissue paper are packed into a block. The patterns are then cut into the block of paper using a chisel. I am yet to try this, and imagine it’s much harder than it looks. I suspect the novice could chisel his hand as easily as the block of paper. The advantage of the chiseling process is it allows one to make hundreds of sheets at once. That they are on tissue paper adds to their ephemeral nature.

Papel Picado was brought north with immigrants from Mexico. It has become as much a Californian Folk Art as it is a Mexican one. Its patterns appear in other forms and have fused with other traditions. I even saw some Chanukah Papel Picado recently. The railings of the BART station at 16^th and Mission are designed to resemble Papel Picado.

Papel Picado has taken a long journey, starting with cut paper art in China about 2,000 years ago. It spread west and found its way to Spain with the Moors and subsequently the Spanish brought it to Mexico. This link has a good article from the International Folk Art Museum in Santa Fe.

April 7, 2011 – Fan

I am a real fan of foreign packaging. When I travel to foreign countries I always head to the supermarket. I can spend hours doing anthropological research just looking at all the “exotic” products and packaging. So much time that I suspect the staff monitoring the CCTV at Marks & Spencer thought I was a shoplifter. In the absence of foreign travel, I live in San Francisco. I have the Mission, Japantown, Chinatown and the Richmond.

One of my rules is, if it is a dollar or less, and you like it, buy it. Last week in the Richmond I came across Fan Medicated Soap. The retro looking packaging and the price of 59¢ had me. The smell is, to be subjective, medicated. It’s pretty awful. And in the spirit of authenticity for the 2011 Project, I used Fan Medicated Soap in the shower this morning. The smell doesn’t linger on the skin. Well, I think the soap removed a layer or two of skin. It’s pretty harsh. But the packaging inspired me for today’s piece.

The bar of soap is actually a rather attractive color. I was thinking that if I wanted to be a new age grifter, I could buy a load of Fan Medicated Soap at 59¢ each. Soak them to remove the embossed logo and then repackage the bars and sell them for $8 each at craft shows. “Homemade” soap indeed. But, in a way, I was too late. A quick search online and I learned the soap is seen as having some spiritual powers. Now, I am not questioning the spiritual powers of the soap and the beliefs of others. But I kept searching and found the bars priced at $5 and even £4.99. You may not live in San Francisco, but shop around because the soap should only cost 59¢.

Now, what do with the bar itself? Do I toss it or save it? It might be the perfect thing for washing my hands after a trip on MUNI.