For 19 months, Artchilles has worked on getting some of his "Build a Dream" drawings of homes, created on the factory floor, at Kempsville Building Materials, back to the location they were created, the Housing Resource Center, that opens there Aug. 23. What makes more sense than placing in the facility, works that were created there, by a struggling artist, who salvaged a dream there. He was down on his luck just like the people the center is to help. He is an artist that has come up in the School of Hard Knocks of the Door Plant, to develope an award-winning drawing style. He drew on old invoices, bearing the KBM logo, and building developments of the bustling late 1980's and early 1990's, adding history to the works. The invoioces were ripped to adapt to the small drawing board. In between assembling doors on the line, he drew his heart out. To improve efficiency, he took up karate. He was the most efficient worker on his machine, and when there was a contest for cost saving ideas, he won the Grand Prize.
homelessness
Homes created in Va Bch Factory Vibe with Location's new purpose 30 years later /
Without an art studio, a local Virginia Beach / Norfolk artist, threw together with scrap wood, a drawing board, at his work station, on the factory floor. In between assembling doors, he turned 180 degrees to draw. With a change in management, the drawing board was destroyed, and bundled drawings trashed. Of course he dived into the dumpster and saved them. And, after the dust settled, mounted a more discrete, smaller drawing board, ripping his paper - old company invoices - in half. The backside sported the classic KBM logo, builders, dates, other info, depending onwhat side was used. "Dream Homes" series has a special relevance and meaning to 104 Withduck Rd., now that it is a Homeless Center.
Over a year ago, artist proposed the idea of displaying some of them at the homeless center, but was rejected, by every local institution, submitted to. Despite their perfect fit for the center, despite the mayor of the time calling the story behind them "powerful," despite a museum away from his hometown, displaying the story unfolded in that factory, and despite the fast-paced drawing style begun there being selected for national and international awards, by leaders in the art world, like the Director of Harvard Art Museums, who selected works for the Outstanding Drawing Prize.
