Detroit

Esteban and I took a trip out to Detroit this week and we had an amazing time. It was a nice drive to Michigan which is only 5 hours away from the city of Chicago. For those of you wanting to plan a road trip to a nearby city, Detroit is always a great one to visit. While in Detroit we visited the General Motors Corporation, The Henry Ford Plant and the Chrysler Dealership, in an attempt to see as much as we could in just one day! We spent a lot of time looking for interesting buildings to photograph for a new series of work that Esteban is working on. To see his Used Buildings series visit his website http://www.estebanschimpf.com where you will also find Lush Gardens, White-Colored Sunglasses, and Jupiter's Storm!



We did it! Esteban and I after having arrived in Detroit.



A view outside of the GM building, Downtown Detroit, Michigan.



Esteban trying to find a good viewpoint of a building alongside the highway towards Detroit.


At one point while driving downtown we noticed a rather absurd site as we drove past the new MGM Grand Casino, with over 50 pumpkins weighing anywhere between 900-1300 lbs. Carrying these monstrosities were construction workers who arranged a wild installation of giant pumpkins and tree-trunk fences in front of the casino which will open up on October 2, 2007.



A close-up of the Halloween scene.



A building on the way out...


The drive back to Chicago was also enjoyable, we stopped at a local diner before leaving which probably wasn't a good idea because it made us full and sleepy, but we made it back nonetheless. It's always a great feeling as you re-enter Chicago after a road trip away...TGIF!

Matt and Matt Garage Sale After Party!!! woohoo....

Matthew Hilshorst and Matthew Brennan hosts of the G-sale.


My two dear friends, Matt and Matt, had a garage sale yesterday. They were selling everything from China to Blazers to Sunglass gazers! Because I was in the studio all day I missed out on their big sale, but with Matt and Matt the fun doesn't end when the sun goes down...In fact, the garage sale had only just begun. The second Esteban and I arrived at the Home of the Matt's we were greeted with a box of amazing sunglasses, which the Matt and Matt duo had purchased for us while at their summer home on a lake in Michigan. We were also greeted by an infinite rack of sports coats. There were so many things we wanted to buy and the buying was what made it, oh so fun. The price of any item was determined by a heads or tails game in which heads=50 cents and tails=$50.


We all left with our pockets empty and our stomachs full on hotdogs, Dr. Praeggers veggie burgers, and bananas. At one point we had a contest to see who could put on the most clothing at once and everyone forfeited as Amy Mayfield proved to be no competition at all.



Glintentica and Molly wearing their newly acquired coats.



Loren, Esteban, Amy, Glintentica, and Matt H. beginning the layering game and dancing to Chopin. ;)



Brian and Jenny help Amy into her 45th layer.

Exchequer: Happy Birthday Morgan

On Tuesday many of my friends headed over to Exchequer in celebration of our friend Morgan's 21st Birthday. Since we all had attended class that day it was nice to get together despite our busy schedules. One can always find a group of SAIC students and sometimes faculty lingering around Exchequer after school: conversing about art over cigarettes and beer. It was a wonderful birthday indeed......HAPPY BIRTHDAY MORGAN!



Morgan and Emily pose for Tina the camera.



Esteban and I converse over orange soda and pizza.



Harley, Emily, and George smile at one another.

In the Studio

I have been working in my studio day in and day out on several projects that I have had on my mind for quite some time now. I do most of my work in the sculpture department and have been taking an Advanced Sculpture course for 3 semesters now. The great thing about the course is that students are supplied with their own studio on-campus and a rigorous schedule which includes two days of class and meeting with two instructors to exchange thoughts and ideas. The studio spaces are rather small but it still gives one room to store smaller projects and materials. I have included images below of my recent sculptures made of butcher paper, masking tape and glue. The finishing touches have been done with the use of enamel paint. I plan to create a larger scene where these sculptures are interacting with one another and screaming at something far away.


Here they are, my newest MonSTARS...



Blinky, 2007



MonSTAR, 2007 in the making...





For more images of my work please visit http://www.samiamirza.com Too-da-loo!

Labor Day Sunny Day!

So school has officially begun and things have started to fall back into place as far as consistent schedules. The fall semester always begins on the Thursday before Labor Day, giving all of us an extra 3 day weekend right as the summer fades away. Many friends and I decided to lay out in the sun from 12 in the afternoon till about sunset with a bbq concluding the day. The lake had finally warmed up after an entire summer of defrosting so we all took advantage of the opportunity (being from cities with warm climates and oceans nearby) and immersed our bodies into the still-cold lake.


Cheers to all the laborers that make our world go 'round!



Happy to have the day off and mesmerized with that beautiful day is recent graduate Tim Louis, second-year grad student Ben Fain, and third-year undergraduate Michael Lehman.



Third-year undergraduate student, Elizabeth Weiss, chuckles beside none other than Dagger-doom, Chicago's famous chihuahua.


A very close childhood friend from home was also in town and we made sure to show him an amazing time here in Chicago. He flew all the way from Honolulu for this heart-warming visit...



My best pals, Kuponohi'ipoi Aweau and Esteban Schimpf sun bathe and smile gleefully for the camera.



Aloha and A hui hou Kuponohi'ipoi! ;)