Tina M. Dillman

As many of you know I am a graduate student at the San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI), studying abroad this semester in Europe, as an independent study that I put together through personal contacts that I developed over the last year. I am the first graduate student at SFAI to put together a semester study such as this.

In February, I taught a four day performance workshop at Ecole Superieure des Beaux-Artes at Tours (ESBAT), that involved daily exercises in performance, along with a final performance on the last day, where the students produced site-specific performances for the vacant apartment on campus. I also did one-hour studio visits with all 15 students, and gave an artist talk that was open to the entire school. I was then invited by one of the faculty at ESBAT, to travel to Madrid for a week with a group of students to visit museums, galleries and meet local artists and curators. I then toured Italy for a month, where I visited 10 cities, meeting locals and artists, and visited galleries and museums.

Currently, I am an artist in residence at the Lichtenberg Studios, in Berlin, Germany, where I am doing daily walking tours of the neighborhood, learning about the history, culture and people of the old East Berlin. My goal at the end of the week is to produce an installation in the neighboring park of objects that I have collected through my walks that will dissipate over time, as a result of the climate.

My next stop, is Scotland! I was recently (as in a couple of days ago), awarded a three-week Emerging Artist Residency at the Scottish Sculpture Workshop (SSW), in Lumsden. I am very excited about this opportunity, but unfortunately, I am not prepared financially and this is where I need your help. In order to travel here and produce work (that I will need to ship back) I will need to raise about $1000. Since this is a last minute opportunity I am on my own with the fundraising, so that is why I am reaching out you, to the community that I know.

I would like to show my appreciation for your support by offering a range of thank you gifts based on your donation amount.
-For gifts of $5-25, you will receive a 4″x6″ (postcard size) color photo print from my travels
-For gifts of $26-50, you will receive a 4″x6″ (postcard size) collage made from magazines and other materials that I collected along my travels.
-For gifts of $51-100, you will receive both a color photo print and a collage
-For gifts of $101-250, you will receive a ceramic and mixed media sculpture that I plan on creating at the SSW
-And for gifts of over $250, I will cook you and 3 other guests a delicious traditional Florentine dinner

Please consider making a contribution today to assist me in achieving my artistic goals. Every little bit counts and I greatly appreciate everybody’s support.

To make a contribution using a debit/credit card, please click on the link below. If you would like to mail a check, please send me an email at: tinamdillman@gmail.com.

Thank you!!!

I was invited by the artist, Nathalie Talec, to teach a performance workshop to her students at ESBAT. Over the course of four days: I did 15 studio visits, gave an artist talk to the school, and gave the students daily exercises and research assignments to introduce them to different modes of performance. On the last day, the students prepared their own performance piece that was intended to be site-specific.

First Assignment: Bring in a personal object. Chose an object that is not yours and create a work in response to the object. Works and ideas for works produced included: actions, paintings, videos, poems and a screenplay for a film.

Second Assignment: Think of an action that you can do repetitively for 10 minutes straight. This is what the classroom looked like:

Third Assignment: Develop a performance piece for the class that utilizes the abandoned apartment space. Use whatever materials are present in the space and/or bring in your own objects. Duration can vary. Most of the students utilized what materials were present in the space and created work that was specific to the space. Here are some images from works that were produced.

On Monday Dec 10, 2012, I will leave the Bay Area for the longest period since I moved here in 2004. I look forward to what lies out there across The Pond. Adieu. [Below: Me and Barbara, 2012]

On Friday May 11, I will be performing (solo) at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts from 3-5pm.

As some of you know, I’ve been involved in a project at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in SF. Some fellow graduate students and I, collaborated with French artist, Nathalie Talec for her opening reception in April, and we’ve been asked to activate the space built within her exhibition everyday that the show is up. I will be doing a series of performances there till July, so please check out the dates and times and come visit. There will be some interesting things happening, since we all have different art practices, so I recommend checking the show out more than once.

On Saturday May 12, I will be embarking on my first visit to Cuba, with a class from the San Francisco Art Institute. We will be partaking in the Havana Biennial festivities and working with students from the local art school. I’ve extended my stay so that I may be able to travel around the island and see more of the culture in this once in a lifetime opportunity. In order to make this trip happen, I’ve had to pay for everything out of my pocket and now that it’s time to go I’m counting my pennies, so help support a local artist and come out next Saturday for this amazing event. There will be plenty of delicious food, great music and performances and beautiful art work for sale in a silent auction. I hope to see you there!

This Saturday, April 14, from 12-5pm, the San Francisco Art Institute Graduate Campus will be holding it’s yearly Open Studios. My studio is in Bay H #20 and Naaman can be found right next door in Bay I #5. The graduate campus is located at 2565 Third Street
 in SF, cross-street is 22nd. It’s easy to get to by the T-Rail on Muni or you can usually find lots of non-metered street parking. I hope if you live in the area, you’ll come out. There are over 200 studios to visit, all on the second floor. See you then!