grinnell8

My work for Roots of Renewal included 250 linear feet of signboards hand-painted with quotations from a 1909 handbook titled, “Handy Farm Devices and How to Make Them” by Rolfe Cobleigh. The messages alternate between practical advice and moral admonitions, such as: "never confuse board foot measure with square feet; cheerfulness is as contagious as the measles; the room in which to kill cattle and hogs should not be less than 15 feet square . . .”

Together with Orlan Mitchell, a retired Congregationalist minister, I built a dozen or so of the handy devices illustrated in the book. These include, among other things—a feed hopper, a fleece box, and a gate that won’t sag. The objects are painted the same colors as the signboards—white, and farm implement grey, green, yellow and brown. Once the exhibit was installed these “simple but valuable things” were scattered among the other artworks in the show, but without lighting or wall labels.

Related articles and writings
Grinnell Herald Register. “Roots of Renewal exhibit at Faulconer.” (1 September 2003) pp. 1; 5.
Ode, Susan. “A Pilgrims Progress Too Far: Roots of Renewal . . .” Review (December 2003-January 2004) pp. 64-65.
Ode, Susan. “Roots of Renewal: Faulconer Gallery, Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa.” Dialogue, The Art, Architecture and
Design Journal of the Heartland (January-February 2004) pp. 48-49.
Wright, Lesley, et al. Roots of Renewal (exhibition catalog) 2004. Grinnell, Iowa. Faulconer Gallery, Grinnell College.
pp. 8; 32-33; 48; 75-78.