DANIELLE FODOR
  • Portfolio
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Donate

Oops. I forgot to update my website.... for about 2 years

4/3/2022

0 Comments

 

In the meantime... I've relocated to the beautiful Olympic Peninsula, after over 2 amazing decades in Davis, California, the hometown of my heart.

Thanks so much (forever and ever) for an amazing send-off, from all the friends, family, and neighbors who visited my retrospective show, "What Remains" last May, who bought art, who hosted send-offs of many sorts, who helped me pack up, and who wrote heartfelt notes (some of which I still haven't replied to -- though I loved them all).  The days and months pass, but the memories and kindness stay in my heart.


Then there was the lovely article Stacie Frerichs penned, which humbled and heartened me, just as I was feeling particularly anchorless.  She summarized much of my work over 2 decades, in this gorgeous column in the  Davis Enterprise, printed a few months after I'd hightailed it up north.

Picture
Photo: Wayne Chimenti

So what've I been up to since then?  A lot of unpacking and homeshooling, but some art, too.  At some point I will revise my portfolio and post new work in an organized manner, but for now, I'll just drop some photos here on what's been keeping me busy, artistically. 

While I'm still fighting boxes and clutter at home, I've found a haven at the Community Boat Project (CBP), volunteering to paint murals and signs on Thursday mornings.  CBP is a unique place for people to share skills in a multi-generational learning environment, while working on tiny houses, wooden boats, and other labors of love. In theory, older folks bring skills like engine repair, wood carving, boat building, and painting, while younger folks learn one-on-one while developing job skills through paid internships and drop-in school programs. In reality, I think older folks learn as much as the young people do, which is why we keep coming back.

Much of my work at CBP has gone into decorating tiny houses that serve local people, currently unsheltered, and leading volunteers in various painting projects. We just launched the Meadow Manor this week.  Decorating it with one of my favorite plants, the dandelion, was the culmination of many years of admiring the dandelion.  I hope the people who land there like it as much as I do.

Picture

To me, each plant has its own unique symbolism and story. 

Dandelion is known ecologically as a colonizer. A single plant can produces thousands of seeds that travel, via wind, far away from their origin, before setting down roots in any open patch of soil.  Dandelion grows well in disturbed soils, tolerating difficult conditions like drought, soil compaction, toxicity, and crowding.  Colonizers have a bad name in today's society -- and certainly, dandelions can take over, if left unchecked, but they are also of value, if put to use.  They are bright, beautiful, and resilient.  Their deep taproots bring up nutrients from down below, stabilize soils, provide a nectar source for bees early in the spring, and have bitter, nutritious greens, flowers, and roots (a wild vegetable that plants itself).  Then, of course, there is the tradition of making wishes on dandelion's snowy seedheads. If only all uninvited plants produced such gifts for the eye and palate!

I like to think of dandelions as an unexpected blessing, a symbol of resilience, and a reminder that we all need to be put to good use, feeding and caring for others, lest we become weedy.

Meadow Manor is slated to be farmworker housing for neighboring Chimacum Valley, housing a pair of young people who have come, often from far away, to work on the local farms.  I hope that its beauty will bring them joy and blessing, whether they aim to set roots here or simply stay for a season, traveling on to pursue their dreams.

0 Comments

Announcing new #Plan4Resilience artwork  -- w/shyboytoto, Dianna Craig, and Sarah Craft

7/17/2020

0 Comments

 
Pandemic getting you down?  Take a journey in your imagination…
 
Take a moment, close your eyes, and imagine:

“What can we learn from this moment? What has the pandemic taught us?  What can we carry into the future, that can make us more resilient?”
 
We currently face powerful challenges to our future: the pandemic, institutional racism, economic collapse, and the climate crisis. But how we respond can and does make a difference.  We can build a better world, together.

As part of a public art project called #Plan4Resilience, I invited local artists to answer these questions – and to paint the pavement with their answers.

Here are a few of the answers they gave....

Photo of mural on concrete, showing young woman in hajib talking to woman with afro, carrying books
Detail from "Imagine A World" by shyboytoto @ the I-House in Davis
“Imagine A World” is being painted this week, July 15-25, by local artist shyboytoto at the I-House.

Walk or bike to the I-house Mrak Terrace (10 College Park, Davis) anytime and see the painting come to life.  Viewing benches welcome folks to relax safely, outdoors, at a distance.  Don't forget to bring a mask, to respect our artist's safety!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Two other paintings in the series can still be seen in Central Park. 

Picture
"Resilience Grows in the Backyard", by Sarah Craft, at the South Side of Farmer's Market Plaza in Central Park, Davis
Picture
"Black Lives Matter" by Dianna Craig, at the Solidarity Space for George, Ahmaud, Breonna and Tony
Catch this art while you can -- each of the paintings in #Plan4Resilience is temporary, and fades with sun, rain, and wind – just like the lessons we’ve learned during the pandemic fade into memory, unless we etch them on our hearts.

To plan for resilience, we must renew these messages in our lives -- taking action as individuals -- and as a community -- to build a more just, sustainable world.

Three more #Plan4Resilience paintings are planned for coming months, including "Plant A Seed for Change" by Candice Foster, at the Cannery. 

Thanks so much to the City of Davis for funding this project, the artists who've shared their gifts, the I-House, and to my son, Raul Sierra, who inspired this series of murals when he asked to paint a temporary mural on Earth Day.  That mural got washed away in May rains, but a glimpse of it is recorded in photos below.

Picture
"2 Futures, You Choose", by Raul Sierra and Danielle Fodor, North Davis
About #Plan4Resilience

Each of the artists funded in the #Plan4Resilience project has been economically impacted by the pandemic.  The #Plan4Resilience project uses a model of mutual aid: artists help us imagine a better world and promote mental health, while getting a few days of paid work at a living wage. We can support each other -- with meaningful work that builds a better tomorrow -- through green jobs, including, but not limited to: caregiving, eco-construction, health care, and creative work.  If you'd like to donate to the artists in this project, you can donate online here, and I'll share your "artist tip" with the team of painters and change-makers in #Plan4Resilience.

#Plan4Resilience is funded, in part, by a generous grant from the City of Davis Arts & Cultural Affairs Program.

0 Comments

Street Art for Community Health + Resilience

5/2/2020

0 Comments

 
PictureTempera mural painted in honor of Earth Day 2020.



Hi Artists + Friends,

I am thrilled to announce a new project giving mini-grants in the form of per-day stipends to visual artists to create new public art that promotes community health and resilience during the coronavirus crisis.


  • Are you a professional artist who's been economically impacted by the crisis?
  • Are you confident making murals and large paintings and/or cutting stencils?
  • Do you want to help build hope, health, and resilience at this time?

This is a project employing both a) artists struggling economically, and b) volunteer artists who want to help out in solidarity. Paid artists must be from Davis environs, working/studying, or selling work here.

The project has two components:
-- #healthisinourcommunity uses sidewalk stencils with hip, humorous health messages to promote social distancing, mask wearing, hand washing, and promote mental health.
-- #planforresilience uses temporary murals in parks and plazas to honor public gathering places and holidays while reflecting on long-term resilience and planning. 

Read more about both projects. Artists can participate in 1 or both projects.

Apply for a mini-grant ASAP or as a volunteer artist HERE.  Applications reviewed on a rolling basis. My goal here is to get work and money to artists who need it as quickly as possible -- please apply today!

Studies have shown that art makes public health programs more effective and impactful. All projects will be created while following public health guidelines including wearing masks, sanitizing hands, and physically distancing. #ArtsAreEssential

Got questions?  Ask away at daniellefodor@gmail.com and 530-302-7143.

Danielle Fodor
Lead Artist


This project is supported, in part, by a generous grant from the City of Davis Arts & Cultural Affairs program. THANK YOU City of Davis!


Picture
0 Comments

Get your get your get your voter guide here

10/30/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
It's a bird, it's a plane, it's an ... indie voter guide!

A proud Davis tradition of questionable quality. 

Always amusing, occasionally informative.  Or was it always informative, and occasionally amusing? 

I leave you to your own conclusions. 

Either way, download that baby by click click clicking on the PDF icon below.

ppvgnov2018_final_spreads.pdf
File Size: 7388 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

 Happy to say this season was more team than work.  Thanks to the many may who contributed writing, graphics, editing, and layout.  And yes -- it's still got my funny little sketches in it, augmented by many other artist's work.
0 Comments

2018 Indy Voter Guide -- Davis

6/3/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Hiya folks,

It's that time of year again... When I try my hand at being a political cartoonist.  Except I'm just too goofy for anything except the local Davis Ballots and Burritos (aka Pancakes & Politics) indy voter guide.




Downloadable below. 

Click on that link with the PDF image, yo!

june2018indyvoterguidedavis.7.pdf
File Size: 15869 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

0 Comments

The Bear

12/13/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
This creature popped up in my dreams at the end of November.  Perhaps it was the month of insomnia that brought him to the surface?  After I drew the bear, he disappeared from my dreams. I suppose he just wanted to be acknowledged.
0 Comments

I battle the to do list!

10/3/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
I woke up three times last night, my dreams interrupted by uncompleted items on my daily "to do" list. For that level of disturbance -- you'd think the things on the list would be more critical than "write thank you notes" "buy supplies" and "call portapotty company".  Sometimes I think we (as a society) suffer from anxiety because our battles aren't quite as epic as our emotions are.  My emotions are so epic -- I need bigger dragons.
0 Comments

Wings

8/16/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Here's a pastel drawing from last winter's vault.

Sometimes I wish I had wings. 

But if I did, would I be brave enough to fly?  What would I have to give up to soar?
0 Comments

Voter Guide 2016

10/29/2016

0 Comments

 
I joined up with old friends today, to hold an annual voter forum, aka Politics and Pancakes.  Too tired to think or prepare any research for the event, I sat back and drew instead.
Picture
0 Comments

    DRAWING

    Work-in-progress, musings, and random doodles

    FIND MY COMICS
    at thepillbug.com.

    TOPICS

    All
    Pastel
    Voter Guide

    RSS Feed

    ARCHIVES

    April 2022
    July 2020
    May 2020
    October 2018
    June 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    October 2016

SUPPORT LIVING ARTISTS.


DONATE

Be a Patron --
donate $3 monthly to support my work with community

  • Portfolio
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Donate