Recap: 8/17/18

Hosted at the wonderful c3:initiative – an organization dedicated to connecting creators and communities.

We were excited and inspired to have LWD member Laura O’Quin lead us through a designed experience, an education without knowing we are being educated.

Laura is an artist, designer, and cultural producer. She blurs the lines between her professional and personal practices, working between curatorial, community engagement, and educational initiatives. As an artist and designer, she explores publishing as an artistic practice.

Laura O’Quin’s collaborative project, Working Library was awarded the 2017-2018 c3:project incubator.

Select project partners include: Frye Art Museum, Screen Printing: Decorative Patterns and Textile Design; New Museum: Ideas City, Tender, Seth Kinmont; Frye Art Museum, Intangible Effects No.1; Seattle Art Museum, Design Your ‘Hood; Bullseye Projects’ Glass Lab to name a few.

After a tenure in the non profit art world, Laura O’Quin currently works at Nike’s Blue Ribbon Studio overseeing program and curriculum development as their program manager. Blue Ribbon Studio is an on campus spot for educational offerings around craft and creativity that all Nike employees can take advantage of.

It is rare that a LWD meeting is hard to put into words or recap. This one was more of a “you had to be there to experience” sort of thing and that is exactly the way Laura wanted it. Seated in a salon sort of style, Laura talked us through her work, showing us examples of beautifully bound books and works, all which are beyond detailed and thoughtful. We highly recommend looking through her website to get a better idea of her current and past work – http://www.lauraoquin.net

Laura also read us a work titled “A Publication Manual” outlining the real human experience of making a piece of work. This finished work being the project she was working through – http://www.lauraoquin.net/index.php?/susie-j-lee-of-breath-and-rain/

It has to be said this reading was also riso printed on beautiful paper and folded into a booklet as a takeaway.

One crowd favorite was talking us through this project title “Between You and Me” – http://www.lauraoquin.net/index.php?/between-you-and-me/

This meeting was also in combo with our annual bbq which the c3:initiative backyard hosted perfectly for a Portland summer.