For the first time in the history of SFMOMA’s biennial award program honoring Bay Area artists, the museum has commissioned the four recipients of the 2012 SECA Art Award to create work outside the traditional gallery context. Their site-responsive projects appear in a number of locations around the Bay Area; David Wilson‘s project begins at a trailhead at 151 Third Street in front of the now closed SFMOMA building.

SFMOMA’s Interpretive Media team visited David Wilson in his home, which also serves as a home base for his art activities. Since so much of his work involves being in the field, his studio is not a work space so much as it is a departure point.  “The world studio approach is my approach right now,” David told me in our interview.

As with any artist’s studio, though, David’s space is filled with the things that comprise his artwork: souvenirs from his journeys and gatherings, stones and other natural specimens line his shelves, and drawings and field notes cover the walls above his eclectic record collection.  While we were there, he played us some tunes and showed us a variety of invitations to the gatherings he’s hosted over the years, while we enjoyed the spectacular view of the landscape from his window.  David’s space seemed filled with his appreciation for the natural world, his sense of wonder, and his incredibly generous desire to share it with strangers and new friends.”  — Erica Gangsei, SFMOMA manager of interpretive media

Follow our SECA 2012 series here. See David Wilson and the other SECA artists November 13 – November 17 as they talk with Michelle Tea at SFJAZZ. You can also check out Wilson’s final map on Sunday, November 17^th which will take you to a secret location for a sing-along! Learn more at sfmoma.org/liveprojects