Hello to all, large and small! Sorry we’ve been away neglecting our new Picklebird project. It’s because we’ve been bamboozled with other immediate projects that needed to get done. Our feets are truly in too many waters, but do not fret. We have not forgotten the bird, as it will be a sort of life-long project to document and organize the collection. We got a lot of stuff ya know.

We are trying to learn a new content management software and it is very different from coding from scratch. In the end it will be easier to maintain, but learning how everything works is becoming increasingly time-consuming. In the meantime, we are keeping you updated on our progress. And it is an organic process of building a springboard for not just an art and book collection, but a virtual home for a vast network of the artists we love.

We want to share the joy of collecting with the world. Perhaps you are reading this and wondering how you too can start a collection of your own. Passing the torch is something we have in mind, as well as many other ambitious endeavors to help out artists and connect collectors to those artists. One of the other things we are working on is a new mission statement for this overall project, so that we can focus and streamline our goals.

Thanks for reading and being part of the process. And thank you for bearing with the intermittent appearances of the elusive picklebird.

Welcome to the Picklebird Blog. Please, take a moment to read about what a Picklebird is and where it came from in our recent posts.

What does the Picklebird do exactly? Well, The Picklebird can not fly, yet it manages to wake up very, very early every morning and find art from across the land to bring back into its nest, adding to its vast collection of art and books. With more than 70 artists in the collection, now it’s time to start showing it off and ramble on about how great the artworks are, because they are great! But we will not blab about it in some academic way with intellectual jargon and theory bullshit. Picklebird poops on the elite and strives to bridge understanding between humans and the art that humans make. We are not interested in starting debates with art snobs and cantankerous assholes. We just want to show our love for the artists in our collection, and share it with the world.

We are currently configuring the database for our artists and setting up an online store. We are cleaning up our mailing list and getting our shit in order, and it’s damn exciting. It’s going to take some time though, since we are just a staff of 2 and there is a LOT of stuff to document. Cataloging each and every work of art is going to be time consuming, so we have put together this blog to begin to feature some of the work in the meantime.

Eventually we will be showing off our Bukowski manuscripts, editions on paper, original paintings, drawings, handmade books, and special signed editions – all from artists like Niki de Saint Phalle, Elizabeth Hoffman, Mary Ellen Mark, Leigh Salgado, Matt Sesow, Anne Grgich, Andy Jenkins, Richard Burnside, James Scott, Clint Griffin, and so many more.

And while we get this show on the road, we will feature an artist from the collection every week or so. So stay tuned and join the mailing list to receive updates and newsletters from the bird. We will also have a little online store that will sell t-shirts and prints, handmade books and zines, editions and other odds and ends. You’ll see. It will be fun.

Long ago, way back in 1999, the Picklebird was hatched from the minds of artists, writers, and collectors to form an online alternative magazine for Los Angeles. It consisted of articles, reviews, and trade secrets from gallerists and insiders. It featured under-recognized artists of yesteryear that you should have known more about, reader polls and a comments section (mind you this was pre-blog craze). We had your artist websites, your personal artist horror stories, and the greatest show under the big top. There was also Ebay advice (although not very encouraging to the dabbling artist, and a bit too sarcastic for the easily offended.) Plus, Outisder Art definitions, links to the Visionary Art world, art resources, poetry, random artist’s quotes, and an events calendar, not to mention a bi-monthly newsletter, mailing list database, and the management of advertising…

Needless to say it was a LOT of work for 2 people to manage, and especially difficult for the CEO, Ferguson Yahn, who was really just a finger puppet we bought on Olvera Street for a dollar. He was made of embroidery yarn and had demented fingers. He could hardly type, let along manage the monster of a site that Picklebird came to be. He only knew how to say “Si!”

The project that picklebird was lasted about 3 years and was then finally laid to rest because of the overwhelming work that it was to manage writers, gather content, and deal with the mass amounts of hate mail.

Here is a glimpse of Ferguson Yahn’s inspired mission statement as it was in 2001:

“…started by a small group of artists, collectors and art lovers who were tired of the local run-around and mainstream BS, picklebird came here to make you aware of art that may never be seen at local galleries or museums. we hope to shine a light on a few of the unappreciated geniuses out there and the artists in our collections. this is about the artists we love, and a way to find more of them…”

What the hell is a picklebird?

No one really knows for sure what it is. We do know that the picklebird is nocturnal and feeds on fodder and the unconventional. Even those who have caught a glimpse of this rare and puzzling creature cannot wholly define this mysterious and legendary reclusive beast. Questions bombard the minds of the curious… Can it fly? Does it peck? Sadly, no one knows if the picklebird is a scarce, fermented animal, or just a complex vegetable. Truthfully, it doesn’t really matter.