New findings from the gulf floor

NPR news has an informative story about the findings and ongoing research concerning the sludge now covering the gulf floor.

Check it out here.

oil spill panel discussion

On November 4th thespillsmiths.org hosted an oil spill panel discussion at Mr. Beast Gallery in Savannah, GA. The moderator was Orlando Montoya of NPR/ Georgia Public Broadcasting and the panelists were Scott Eustis of the Louisiana wetlands restoration organization Bayou Rebirth; Lieutenant Commander Emily Sadler of the United States Coast Guard; and Bill Hodgins of the Savannah Water Resources Bureau. Thank you to the panelists who generously donated their time.

The podcast is 54 minutes and covers a lot of ground from local spill response, to events in the gulf, to how pollution enters the watershed. It was a lively discussion the contributed much to the education of our audience. To listen simply click on the title above.

The Oiled Oceans

Scale is hard to convey - but each of these three canvases stand at 8 feet tall. The triptych is about 15 feet wide, and each of the small dots you see are the 1500 brooches we created. The clusters of brooches are organized around areas that have experienced catastrophic spills, but they spread around the oceans to remind us that no spill is ever contained.

During the exhibition, visitors helped us 'clean-up' our world by purchasing brooches and removing them from the oceans. This symbolic act can't change what happened in the Gulf, but the jewelry now carries a message of warning out into the world.

We also created a series of special edition brooches, featuring wildlife that has been directly effected by the spill; From Blue Crab to the Brown Pelican (Louisiana's State Bird), to Kemp Ridley's Sea Turtle, the Dwarf Sea Horse, and Dolphins.

Final Preparations

First - Be sure to join us at 6pm on Thursday November 4th for a discussion with folks who have worked and volunteered to clean and rehabilitate the Gulf Coast this summer, and those who are charged with protecting the Georgia Coast from a similar disaster.

OR - Come down on Friday November 5th for the Opening Reception and talk given by Karen Grainey of Wilderness Southeast on the impact of oil and pollution on wildlife, and recent talk of opening off-shore drilling on the east coast. Of course, there will be food and drinks and your chance to see the show in person before it goes digital.

With that said, here are pictures of the team in preparation. We actually just finished the installation an hour ago, and those pictures will be up shortly. Til then, here's a teaser of yesterday's labors:

We stretched and painted three 8 foot tall canvases,

applied a finish coat to the acrylic brooches

and Cut through an Oil Drum. It's how we roll.

Preparing for Pin Making Workshop Part 2

On Oct 28, we are preparing 1500 brooches for Pin Making Workshop Part 2 (on Oct 28, 8pm, Fahm Building)

Process Pictures

Got the frames done for 1500 awareness badges installation

Pin Workshop is a Success

Thanks to all those who showed up this Thursday for our evening of sanding and finishing. The Pin Workshop was a success - 40 young artists and designers came by to enjoy pizza and a little factory-style labor! They helped bring us about 75% closer to completion... which is a lot, when we're talking about 1500 pieces of jewelry. That's the pile in the box below.

And an extra shout out to our friends at MJSA who recruited such a talented group. Much luck on your mining expedition this weekend.

We are hitting the numbers: 1500 badges!!!

Preparing for the big day....Workshop on Oct 21, 8pm, Fahm building, R104

We are hitting the numbers......1500 awareness badges!!!

Process Including:

Dip-a-grip x 1500

Peeling off plastic protection sheet x 3000

Plasti-Dip x 3000

More than 50 hrs of labor

thespillsmiths.org on larkcrafts.com jewelry blog

Check out our generous spread on the front page of Lark's web site. Thanks Lark. Let's hope that publicity = action. We have coastline, fish, pelicans, crabs, and turtles to save!

Pin-Making Workshop

Now that the designs are complete, and the 1500 brooches are cut, it's time to assemble and construct!

We are lucky to have an active Metals and Jewelry Student Association here at SCAD. They are enlisting members to join with the Spill Smiths to help build the brooches for our installation. This Thursday evening at the studio in Savannah we are going to enjoy pizza and knock out over a thousand pieces of jewelry.

Thanks to everyone who is volunteering their efforts - we couldn't do it without you!

The Gulf of Mexico Half a Year Later

The Gulf of Mexico Half a Year Later

The most recent episode of the radio program Living on Earth has a piece on the impact of the Gulf Oil Spill six months on. You can listen to it here or just click play above.

Poster & Postcard

Arresting Spill Wildlife Images

Everyone should check out the new issue of National Geographic, which includes an article about habitat restoration in Louisiana. The article features arresting images of wildlife by Joel Sartore, who is a rare wildlife photographer.


You can see more of Sartore's work at his website: http://www.joelsartore.com/

Credit: Joel Sartore/National Geographic

However, the most dramatic images of spill effected wildlife were taken by Charlie Riedel, who was responsible for the images that ran in the Associated Press in June. You can see them at The Boston Globe website.

A bird is mired in oil on the beach at East Grand Terre Island along the Louisiana coast on Thursday, June 3, 2010. (Charlie Riedel)

Gallery Booked

Today we booked the gallery. Renderings and installation plans are being finalized.  Our events schedule is shaping up and our 

jewelry 

prototypes are going to the laser cutter tomorrow. Marketing and PR for the exhibition is just starting to hit its stride. Please share our website and help us get the word out. More images and updates will be rolled out soon! Check back often.

Study Affirms Gulf Oil Spill's Vastness - The Earth Institute, Columbia University

Study Affirms Gulf Oil Spill's Vastness - The Earth Institute, Columbia University

"Initially after the April 20 explosion, officials claimed that the flow could not be measured. Then, as public pressure for information mounted, they looked for ways to measure it, and started producing estimates: at first, 1,000 barrels a day; then 5,000; then 12,000 to 19,000; then upward from there. Now, in the first independent, peer-reviewed paper on the leak’s volume, scientists have affirmed heightened estimates of what is now acknowledged as the largest marine oil accident ever.

Using a new technique to analyze underwater video of the well riser, they say it leaked some 56,000 to 68,000 barrels daily--maybe more--until the first effective cap was installed, on July 15. Their estimate of the total oil escaped into the open ocean is some 4.4 million barrels--close to the most recent consensus of government advisors, whose methods have not been detailed publicly. The paper appears in this week’s early online edition of the leading journal Science..."

To those of us who have filled up a gas tank, and think in gallons, that's equivalent to 184,800,000 gallons. (there are 42 gallons in a barrel)

Savannah oil spill shuts down river | The Augusta Chronicle

Savannah oil spill shuts down river The Augusta Chronicle

Volunteer in Your Community or with Your Wallet

It seems we here at the spill smiths .org have been brazen, brash and lucky. For now it seems the best way to help the clean up effort in the gulf is to raise awareness locally and to donate funds to organizations with the volunteers and resources to make a difference. We were hoping to help recruit volunteers for other organizations through our awareness efforts, but for now we will keep working away on our art/jewelry/video/installation project to raise awareness and funds, those things most vital to our cause.


From the Sierra Club volunteer fact sheet: 


"Do not attempt disaster clean ups or wildlife rehabilitation without the proper training, as the oil and by-products of oil disasters & response can be hazardous to your health. Attempting habitat or wildlife clean ups without proper training may further harm habitats & wildlife, and put you in danger. As of now, British Petroleum controls official clean up and oiled wildlife efforts. Their hot-lines and volunteer sign-ups are overwhelmed. Please consider helping out by instead organizing in your own community."