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Studio M Covarrubias

@modestoc_studio

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Artist • Curator • Educator • Provocateur.
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@rococoprojects
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Art days. “Happiness (Peace & Freedom)” is made of wool and nylon over inert repaired revolvers (metal, and wood). Created in 2012 as part of the on-going “Happiness” series, this diptych of crochet-covered pistols references two recognizable banners often seen on homes, government buildings, and storefronts throughout the Bay Area, and beyond (other flags using similar color schemes referencing national identity and cultural movements are also considered). This work focuses on the ways in which the ideals and meaning of the flags (and the significance of rainbows and colors in general) are shaped, marketed, and enforced. #tbthursday #tbt❤️ #happinessisawarmgun #peaceandfreedom #crochetedgun #rainbow #rainbow🌈 #rainbowrevolver #rainbowrevolvers❤️🧡💛💚💙💜 #bayareaart #fiberart #elmocostudio #modestocovarrubias #fiberartist #happinesspeaceandfreedom #pride #rainbowflag #paceflag #prideflag #🏳️‍🌈 #uselessweapons #extremecrochet @gross_mag #modestoc_studio #makingartfromweapons #artnotviolence #gunsloadedconversations #❤️🧡💛💚💙💜 by @modestoc_studio

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8 years ago

Art days. I have donated this piece for Kala's annual auction fundraiser. It is on view, along with many other amazing works also available to bid upon, as part of the auction exhibition.
Art|Kala is up now through the auction gala on Saturday, April 21, 2018, which takes place from 6-9:30pm. You may also see the works online at Kala's website www.kala.org/kala_auction/ "Happiness (LemonAde)" is approximately 4 x 2.25 x 2.5 inches, made of Merino wool, metal, cashmere, and nylon. 2018.
#happinessisawarmgun #lemonade🍋 #grenade #grenadeart #textileart #kala #kalaartinstitute #kalaart #crochetedgun #crochet #guyswhocrochet #uselessweapons #happinesslemonade #bayareaartist #bayareaart #modestocovarrubias taken in Kala Art Institute by @modestoc_studio

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9 years ago

Art days. “Happiness (sub silentio),” 2016.
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Private collection.
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#happinessisawarmgun #fiberart #fiberartist #elmocostudio #handgrenadeart #grenade #grenadeart #crochetart #happinessseries #alpacayarn #merinowool #mohair #mohairyarn #contemporaryart #contemporarysculpture #bayareaart #bayareaartist #uselessweapons #uselessweaponsseries #extremecrochet #guyswhoknit #guyswhocrochet #makingartfromweapons #artnotviolence #artnotwar #makeart #makeartnotwar #uselessweapon #modestocovarrubias #modestoc_studio by @modestoc_studio

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7 years ago

Educator days. The final ones. I end my 13 years of teaching at CCA. It’s been an incredible journey. Here are a few of the many likenesses of me that students have made over the years. I’m honored to have inspired them to create and splatter (and sever 😱) my face all over the place. I truly feel the ❤️.

Oh, and a few cakes from the days of Drawing midterms for good measure 🤎…and me in a clown nose 🤡 (IYKYK). Drawing, 2D, 3D, and 4D…did it all.

Now, it’s time for the next adventure. I am excited to move on with all things art, curatorial, community based, and provocative. My educator days end with the beloved program where I encountered so many crazily creative people - goodbye First Year.

Do it because you love it, not because you have to.

#ccafirstyearprogram #theultimatefirstyearclass #we❤️sketchbooks taken in HooperTown (CCA Grad Studios) by @modestoc_studio

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5 months ago

The First Year Program at California College of the Arts is no more.

Thousands of CCA students made their way through this program over the decades of its existence. And a cohort of dedicated faculty and staff have provided them the opportunity to discover what it takes and means to lead a creative life; that the process is not about perfection but about remaining curious and to keep making no matter what. Artists, designers, writers, poets, and architects are necessary to what we call humanity and civilization and are dutifully charged with questioning the very nature of both…and to create from this questioning.

It is difficult to put into words what this moment, this ending, this final community means as we vacate the college and program we have dedicated our professional lives to. In these uncertain times, we look to the words of an inspirational artist, Toni Morrison: “This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

Please remember this program for its part in this chapter known as CCA.

🩷❤️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜🤎🩶🖤

#californiacollegeofthearts #theultimatefirstyearclass #ccafirstyearprogram taken in California College of the Arts by @modestoc_studio

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5 months ago

The Final First Year All College Honors (ACH) Ceremony. May 8, 2026.

Thank you to the nominees and congratulations to our awardees!

It was an energetic event; the First Year Co-Chairs are grateful to our amazing cohort of faculty and staff, and are so honored that many of our fellow chairs as well as the deans were able to join in on the festivities. We were all delighted to have been joined by the many family and friends of our current students and to see many past ACH awardees in attendance. 💛

What a positive way to celebrate this unique program. This was the ultimate gathering of our program and we could not have hoped for a more joyful experience. 💛💛💛

📸 by @yannie.h3e 💕

#ccafirstyearprogram #californiacollegeofthearts #theultimatefirstyearclass taken in HooperTown (CCA Grad Studios) by @modestoc_studio

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5 months ago

Taxidermy, the final First Year exhibition of CCA’s undergraduate students, featured a photo wall made up of dozens of images contributed by students, staff, and faculty. The centerpiece was a hand-made, stuffed Chimera head. Above it hung the first photo of the final First Year meeting of the co-chairs with the students during welcome week at the beginning of the academic year (August 27, 2025 to be exact).

This video begins with the stuffed Chimera head being placed in preparation for the opening reception. The creative hands responsible for making this remarkable piece belong to one of the 11 First Year Advisory Board members, Thalassa. The other members were responsible for organizing and installing the photo wall.

This video is comprised of most of the submissions for the photo wall, plus a few extra images and video, too.

The work featured in the exhibition was curated by Nasim Moghadam, our First Year Events & Exhibitions faculty coordinator. Each of the 21 First Year courses contributed work, and the show featured nearly 300 works, ranging from graphite drawings, to cardboard and wood sculptures, to paintings, to video and performance documentation.

Thanks to all those who contributed to this project.

#ccafirstyearprogram #theultimatefirstyearclass #californiacollegeofthearts taken in HooperTown (CCA Grad Studios) by @modestoc_studio

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5 months ago

Teaching days. It doesn’t get better than this…a Saturday field trip (class on a weekend?) When I get to share an eye opening experience with students, it’s simply divine. “The Visitors” proved to be just what we all needed. I usually take my 4D students after we begin working on video projects, but this piece closes tomorrow (9/28/25). So we had to shift the discussion forward, and these students absorbed it all. Our reflection and critique afterwards was so uplifting and insightful. They all seemed moved by the experience (some went back after class was over). It was reassuring to listen to students talk about why something was moving, inspiring, and also benevolently puzzling to them. To watch them melt into the experience in a room filled with others doing the same was monumentally beautiful.
This will be the last class I will get to share this wonderful piece with, and it could not have been any more splendid.

“There are stars exploding
around you
and there is nothing
nothing
you can do.”

#ccafirstyearprogram #4D #ragnarkjartanssonthevisitors taken in SFMOMA San Francisco Museum of Modern Art by @modestoc_studio

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a year ago

Art days. A quick flash of the art experience in Paris and Montpellier this summer.

#Paris #montpellier #Nîmes #boursedecommercepinaultcollection #pompidoucentre #museepicassoparis #muséedelachasseetdelanature #pèrelachaisecemetery #cemetairemontparnasse #bellevilleparis #muséedemontmartre #sainteustacheparis #notredamedeparis🇫🇷 taken in France by @modestoc_studio

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a year ago

What a moment…I am grateful for the gift of time this opportunity provided. Time in nature, in the studio, and in community. Filled with moments of stillness, laughter, discovery, and creativity.
25 days to reconnect with my creative drive and feel the passion, curiosity, and focus return.
A big thanks to the team at Montalvo’s Lucas Artists Program and Residency for this amazing opportunity. 💛
Days with great food, hiking, and fresh air were more than enough…throw in connecting with an amazing group of artists and making new friends and it becomes a slice of heaven.
What a beautiful moment.
😍🧡⭐️
#lucasartistsprogram #montalvoartscenter
#greensauce #hachijuhachi #chacha #lanaturner #visionquest #archery #nomoreturkey #astoryaboutsilk #stargazing #planetalignment #bananaslugfinding #mushrooms #panoramaphotomodel #dailyhike #susanomalley #thisbeautifulmoment

Additional 📸 by:
Andre, Erik, Leonard, Mike and Tana! taken in Montalvo Arts Center by @modestoc_studio

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2 years ago

Unspoken poem for the last dance of this adventure…

@lucasartres @montalvoarts #lucasartistsprogram #lucasartistsresidency #montalvoartscenter #wildviolets #unspokenpoetry #lastdance #bayareaartist #bayareaartists taken in Montalvo Arts Center by @modestoc_studio

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2 years ago

2024 - So many hours gloriously spent experiencing art. From Tasmania to Melbourne to Sydney. From Venice to Florence to Rome. From Barcelona to Sitges to Menorca to Madrid. And from my own studio to the classroom to Paris. I literally had the privilege of experiencing thousands of artworks this year. Works having been made hundreds or thousands of years ago and works freshly made by young artists. I can’t wait to experience more in 2025.
#museumofoldandnewart #hasthedayinvadedthenightorhasthenightinvadedtheday #louisebourgeois #maman #TraceyEmin #candicebreitz #hauserandwirthmenorca #thePrado #eduardochillida #lasagradafamilia #gaudi #ronihorn #fundacioantonitapies #jamesleebyars #casavicens #diedrickbrackens #yayoikusama #olgadeamaral #wimdelvoye #francisupritchard #barbarachaseriboud #juliemehretu #louisfrattino #anselmkiefer #palazzostrozzi #BerlindedeBruyckere #Xiyadie #JessicaRankin #jeancocteau #laBiennalediVenezia by @modestoc_studio

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2 years ago