In keeping with WAT WE DO as FLOMMISTS, part one of our annual 423 event happened last week – with a dousing of yellow (and green) lighting.
Because Johannes Itten (1888–1967).
Because Josef Albers (1888–1976).
At a new location, Myrtle Press in Sacramento. And as usual, we were making it up as we go. FOUR printing presses, with four press operators jumping in to do things they’ve never done before.
423 has been about volunteering. And attempting to share wat we enjoy in a hands on atmosphere. And it happened again this year. FLOMMISTS filled the room and everyone was printing. Something.
“We’re gunna be running 100 year old printing presses that we haven’t used before. This Monday. So Louis – the guy standing in front of you? Can you give him a crash course in letterpress?”
Last Saturday – TWO DAYS before our event – Louis found my mentor; who, back in the 1980s, got me involved in printing my own ’zine.
Steve Robison was at the SF Bay Area Printers Fair & Wayzgoose in San Jose. And Louis was determined to learn. In about an hour.
“Did you kno this press was sitting here upsidedown?”
“THAT’S why we couldn’t get it to work!”
Pull up patent office drawings and BOOM big chunk of the puzzle is figured out.
Louis jumped in, joined by Connie Ortiz and Ethan Cameron to use the equipment Myrtle Press had sitting around. They made the things work.
The woodtype collection of Lyndsie Ross with Ethan’s own printer cuts – with some ink and cleaning supplies from Full Circle Press (hi Judith!) made it all come together. Plus, Myrtle’s Dixie Laws was on hand keep things running smoothly.
People who’ve never used presses before – such as Milk and honeyfruit – became printers for the evening, exploring letters and cuts and seeing wat could be made.
Off to the side, Bwargh von Modnar performed her latest while backed by Eddy, Rose and the Foreign Locals in a weird, but oddly functional space. A hallway. That was fun to light. And was perfect for acoustics. Kayla Le Masters was DJ, filled any gaps with YELLOW music and Cliff Allen ran cords, carried monitors and put lights everywhere.
Our ART WALL was set up by the incredible Lee Canas; who jumped in with paints – AND shot some video.
Plus, joining us for the first time was nü flommist Peter Gomez. Getting people to pick up a tool and jump in just required a little nudging. Cause this is FLOMM.
Attempt everything, swallow only wat seems to eventually stick. No fault in the attempt.
Some great, fucked up and brilliant works came next!
Our art food was yellow. Lots of yellow. Yellow CHEESE pizza, yellow cheese crackers, yellow bean salad. Mello Yello soda, Lemonheads, Tangy Taffy, M&Ms. Only thing we couldn’t find was iconic Screaming Yellow Zonkers, which Walgreens carries in a ‘limited edition,’ tho it was too limited edition this time of year.
Julio Gonzalez of the amazing FRESHER Sacramento brought some delicious handmade low glycemic ginger snap cookies. And the pudding – and vocals – of Tammy of Fatso’s Famous ’Nana Pudding kept us in bananas.
Aside from the fun, when we ‘make it up as we go,’ some things actually do go sideways. Tho we had less fuckups than usual.
For starters, we had a car break down. Which was solved quickly by superhero Louis jumping in to save the day (every art movement needs a Louis). And then, a bunch of volunteers simply did not show up (tho oddly enough, third year in, I was ready for this. For a change.)
Our opening act – the incredible guerilla poet Andru Defeye found himself in a last minute emergency and was unable to join us – tho I will be dragging him to our RED event, cause we have a mic with his name already on it (And if not, I have a sharpie I can write on the mic with). Andru has to be seen live and we will somehow make this happen.
(or just show up at THE INTERSECTION, ’cause he’s there mostly every week)
And Famous Dutch Artist Mondain WAS on site this year, about an hour before we started, but he couldn’t find our speakeasy-like hidden blue door. So he texted me, and along the way asked about our slide projector. Then all hell broke loose.
“Hellllo. I’m standing outside here. IS ANYBODY THERE? Like, you were SUPPOSED to send a DRIVER. NOT AN UBER. NOT A LYFT. BUT A REAL DRIVER. HELLLLLOO??”
“YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING. I do NOT do digital slides. Slides should be on film. And all my yellow art slides are on a Kodak Carousel. Do you know what a Kodak Carousel is? It’s how you show slides. And YOU left me with no way to show slides. And no way to get in. There’s things that say Verge and Axis all over the place. AND this UBER guy kept pointing to the back of the building and babbling about something blue. EXCUSE ME, but it says 423 YELLOW, he WON’T listen TO ME.”
Then later:
“You painted the door blue. Blue. FUCKING BLUE. WAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE??????”
But it all somehow worked. Again.
Smol space, printing, music and FLOMMISTS creating and doing.
As always I am in awe of the volunteer energy that makes an event like this happen. From our old standbys to the newest members of our FLOMMWORLD. Everything was pulled together on a actual shoestring.
HUGE THANKS to my wife Jeanne, Dixie Laws, Lee Canas, Renee Thompson, Jackie Garcia, Christine Zullo, Alex Troyan, Sophie Traverse, Jes Deprez, Louis Hernandez, Claudia Ortiz, Ethan Cameron, Matt Roper, Milk Surface, Bwargh von Modnar, Eddie & Rose and those guys, Andru Defeye, Kayla Le Masters, Cliff Allen, Peter Gomez, Monica Odeh, Bill Mead, The Design Departments at Sacramento City College, UC Davis, Art New Media and The Oak Café at American River College and Laura Benson at Oblivion Comics.
Additional 423 thanks go out to everyone else who helped with donations, publicity, set up, lighting, sound, food recommendations (several people helped here), clean up and all the costumes and berets and hair colour and totally suave shoes.
Plus, EVEN MOR THANKS for the contributions of supplies, materials + food from:
The Art Institute of California – Sacramento
Please be sure to thank them AGAIN for us. Tell ’em FLOMM sent you.
Up next for 423 is:
SOMETHING TOTALLY DIFFERENT
le TRIPTIQUE de FLOMM
PART TWO
salty
la forme articulée de FLOMM 423 RED
held in PARIS FRANCE + SACRAMENTO California USA
a
ONE-DAY-ONLY FLOMM event
art + noise + music + open mic + history + yoga + divas
with
Stay Salty
Activism Articulated
Norcal Noisefest
The Diva Market
Afro Yoga
and whoever else ends up in the mix
(we’re still mixing!)
SATURDAY 9 JUNE 2018
DETAILS TO COME
READ derTUNG and watch THIS SPACE, we’ll post INFO as we figure things out.
(or just join us at the DEAR MOTHER BALL in Sacramento on 12 May 2018. It’ll give you a taste of where RED is headed)
—steve mehallo
Flommist Steve Mehallo is a graphic designer, illustrator, font designer, educator, foodie and gadfly. He is the creator and founder of FLOMM! Additional photos by Cliff Allen.
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