about the project

thespillsmiths.org is a two part awareness project created in response to the 2010 gulf oil spill. Part one is an art, jewelry, and video installation project which was held at Mr. Beast Gallery in Savannah, GA, November 4-9, 2010. Part two is the online interactive education platform, thespillsmiths.org, which includes documentation of the Savannah project and an online retail store where visitors can buy jewelry to support gulf oil spill clean-up efforts.





Oct 22, 2010

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.


Oct 21, 2010

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

Oct 20, 2010

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!

Oct 18, 2010

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!


Oct 17, 2010

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.

Oct 8, 2010

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)






Oct 5, 2010

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.

Oct 2, 2010

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)