Thursday, March 19, 2009
ArtPact #82: Procrastinate NOW!
That is my all times favorite quote of Ellen DeGeneres: "Procrastinate now, don't put it off".
And I always follow this advice, diligently. As - well, Ellen's gotta be right.
Several months ago, I created this collage that was exhibited in a show at a big-shot hi-tech company. I made it especially for that show, and it ended up with a red label of "Sold". Almost none of my artist friends got to see it, as doing it for that exhibit was a very spontaneous decision, and it was finished at 3am the night before the deadline, hung in the morning and then sold within a week. . .
(to continue reading, click here)
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Labels: Art, ArtPact, Meta Bloggin', Profoundness, Stating The Obvious
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
A Little Lunch For Thought (TM) #16
Val has sent me this, and I just had to share it with y'all. (Thanks, Val!!).
President Bush's economic stimulus package, which appears so far to have
been ineffective in stroking the economy to life, is giving an unexpected raise to the porn industry.
From an Adult Internet Market Research Company press release:
An independent market-research firm, AIMRCo (Adult Internet Market Research Company), has discovered that many websites focused on adult or erotic material have experienced an upswing in sales in the recent weeks since checks have appeared in millions of Americans' mailboxes across the country.
According to Kirk Mishkin, Head Research Consultant for AIMRCo, "Many of the sites we surveyed have reported 20-30% growth in membership rates since mid-May when the checks were first sent out, and typically the summer is a slow period for this market.
OK then. I guess they called it 'Package' for a reason...
.
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Labels: Little Lunch for Thought, Major Achievements, Making a Difference, Meta Bloggin', Stating The Obvious
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
A Little Lunch For Thought (TM) #14
Got this in the email yesterday:
A bit oversimplified, I'd say.
Just a touch.
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Labels: Desecration, Little Lunch for Thought, Meta Bloggin', Profoundness, Stating The Obvious
Thursday, January 24, 2008
A Thousand Words - And Then Some #17
"Nooooo, this no pink! This red!" said the guy at the bakery with utter self-conviction.
Yesterday when I ordered this cake (raspberry filling), I specifically asked them to not put pink or purple on the cake.
"It's a guy's birthday", I informed the bakery dude. "Please use blue, or green. No pink. Please!".
And today, he looked me in the eye, assuring me that this is not pink. Y'know, I'm an artist. I kinda know about color. You simply cannot tell an artist that this is red. This is sooooooooo pink! And a horrifying one!! And - they also put a rose...
But - I didn't argue. I took this manly, masculine creation and presented it to the birthday boy.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, THE JOHNNYB!!!
(and this font is not pink, either...).
Next year, I'm baking the cake.
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Labels: Birthday, Desecration, Food, People, Stating The Obvious, WTF?
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Sentence of The Month: January
...and sometimes, you should just not listen to your husband.
Remember I shared with y'all that The JohnnyB had some comments about the portrait I did at the Salminen workshop? That the forehead was protruding, and there was a bold spot on the left temple.
Well, it did not bother me.
It did not bother others who saw the painting.
In fact, I was soooooooo proud of the luminosity and pureness of the white shape; I was at awe that I have actually managed to maintain its virginity and not screw it (OK - minds out of the gutter, everyone! I am talking about a white shape, for heaven's sake!).
But last night, I decided to listen to The JohnnyB.
At 1am, I started to do some changes, intermittently using Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to lift some of the whites and a brush to paint around some of the white shapes in order to make them more approvable by the JohnnyB.
Big, MAJOR mistake. As once you go into a painting that is pretty good and at the stage it could be ruined, you need to seriously consider what you are about to do.
And, as I have learned more than once, if my gut feeling and The JohnnyB say contradicting things, well - my gut feeling is right. This is what I tell a lot of fellow artists, this is what we always tell each other.
And yet - I chose to hush my guts.
And I regret it, deeply, as that is what it looks like right now.
And I can only blame myslef. (which makes it all even more annoying!).
Y'see, while the magic eraser indeed lifts the color very efficiently, it is not a time machine. Nor is it Superman. Thus, it does not bring back the pure white of the paper. What it does is create a shape that has an opaque-ish residue of the paint. This can be a beautiful effect, but not when you want a glowing pure area. AND it bruises the surface a bit, so now you have a different texture that - when painted on - stands out.
I know, this is all very "Duh!". But don't be so smug - if you're a painter, you know very well that once you have a brush in your hand, your left brain shuts down and all logic and common sense take a backseat to the right brain that cheerfully rushes forward with a stupid grin.
The thing with watercolor is that you can never get back that pure white. If you want to have the white of the paper showing, you have to save, protect and guard it with your life. (Hmm.. maybe that's why I hardly ever have white in my work - with my style of painting, the chances of me leaving the white of the paper untouched are slimmer than a super model.
So now, with a partly erased eye, a scrubbed face and a lost glow, Salminen looks like he is about to cry. I almost did!
Went to bed, totally pissed (as the most annoying part is that I can only blame myself!!!), and in the morning informed WackieM that I am going to shove my head in the oven, as I have destroyed the painting. I also wrote why I did it.
She gave me some helpful advice about situations when you have a good painting that you think of changing, then comforted me with the it's-only-a-piece-of-paper mantra, and then provided me with the sentence of the month, as she wrote:
And that well-sharpened sarcasm is worth it all!
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Labels: Art, Sentence of The Month, Stating The Obvious, Venting, Wonders of The JohnnyB
Sunday, January 20, 2008
A Little Lunch For Thought (TM) #11
I'm almost recovered from the intensive and extensive 5-day workshop, and have some time to breathe. I got several comments on the breakthrough I've made at the end of the workshop. Retrospecting on the experience, I did get a lot from it: using shapes to create interest and introduce abstraction to realistic paintings, applying value bridges to achieve gradation and softness. Also, I am notorious for being the master in knocking back bright colors, and I think this workshop has finally convinced me to spare some of the color and leave it pure, so it can sing among all the neutrals. (and yes, color can sing! All you need to do is listen).
So, a big part of it is thanks to the tedious process of exactly following the rules that John Salminen gave us, and doing his process, step by step, grunting and hair-tearing included.
However - around the second day of the workshop, I realized that if I hadn't taken Mike Bailey's 'Watercolor Beyond The Obvious' class (twice!!), I honestly don't think I would have gotten all the things that John Salminen was teaching. Looking around at the workshop, you could easily tell those of us who went through Mike's class (which also comes with its share of hair tearing and being kicked out of your comfort zone), from those who didn't; the latter looked utterly puzzled and didn't quite know what to do with all that knowledge that was so generously showered upon them.
So Mike - I know I've said it to you many times, but it's never enough:
THANK YOU!
This class you're teaching is truly, utterly and absolutely invaluable! And the fact it keeps proving itself over and over again, even more than a year after I took it, speaks for itself. OK, now you can go blush at your convenience.
Y'see, sometimes, when the rain is plenty but the soil is too dry, the abundance of water form paddles or flow away rather than penetrate, enrich and bring new growth. It's the same with art (and many other domains). The more you know, the more you can absorb additional knowledge. And once you found a really good teacher - you don't let go. You take the same classes over and over again.
'cause even if the class is the same, you are different. Each time you start from a higher place; things you already know get deeper meanings and connect with other bits of knowledge; things that were Greek to you suddenly click and make sense - and your level of knowledge is spiraling upwards. And this is what growing is all about.
I consider myself very lucky to have found several such teachers (four, so far). Now, if I only had the time to be a frequent taker of their classes...
And, to two of these teachers (who are actually closer to being mentors!) who read my blog, Mike and WackieM: I often wonder if you are aware of the impact you have, and I think it would be so cool if one day I could be the same to some artist who's doing his or her first steps in the ocean of creating.
A friend from my hi-tech past once asked me, "you are taking this class again??? Why? did you fail it last time?".
Quite scary to think that I also used to think like this only 5 years ago...
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Labels: Art, Little Lunch for Thought, Ode to other blogs, Stating The Obvious
Monday, December 03, 2007
Sentence of The Month: December
The doorbell rang.
Looking through the window, I saw two teenaged girls at the door, assuming that tiresome we-want-your-money position.
I was in a bad mood. I didn't even open the door.
"Yes?", I said impatiently.
"Ah...", squeaked the one who was playing with her hair, "...we were wondering: did someone already knock on your door today and, with an annoying voice, already ask you to - - - "
I cut her in mid-sentence. I wasn't in the mood for pretense cutesiness; as a matter fact, I was in no mood for anything, so I pointed at the very strict "No Soliciting" sign that adorns our kitchen window.
Her eyes filled with question marks.
"We have a 'No Soliciting' sign - right here, see?", I combined pointing with close captioning.
"Huh?", she pondered, chewing on her hair.
"W-e . h-a-v-e . a . 'N-o . S-o-l-i-c-i-t-i-n-g' . s-i-g-n", I repeated, slower, giving her the benefit of the accent (mine).
"I thought that means 'No Smoking'?!", she shared her profound thoughts with me, still chewing.
So much for benefit... Plus, by now, I figured the two of them were finalists in the blank expression contest.
"No", I volunteered to educate the uninitiated, "it pretty much means do-not-knock-on-our-door-offering-us-something".
"Huh?", she started chewing on a new lock of hair, moving to a philosophical debate, "are you sure it does not mean 'No Smoking' in Spanish?".
(OK, a disclaimer here: I realize it could have been a wonderful opportunity for a highly amusing conversation. And yet - did I mention I was not in the mood?)
"I have no idea what it means in Spanish", I said, "but in English it means DO NOT KNOCK ON OUR DOOR OFFERING US ANYTHING!". Oh yeah, I can be a bitch.
Three interesting facts:
1. Not for a second did the talkative teenager stop chewing her hair. (alas, her friend had too short a hair to join her in the feast)
2. Only when I turned my back to them, I realized they were not only finalists, but very probably the winners of that expression contest. Why? 'cause they did not just go for a blank, empty expression. Oh no. They went way beyond it.
3. This charming conversation did not cheer me up as much as I thought it should.
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Labels: Languages, People, Profoundness, Sentence of The Month, Stating The Obvious, WTF?
Monday, November 12, 2007
ArtPact #37
Ah, I am such a procrastinating chicken!
Big busy times are over for now. I can paint for real, and stop escaping to these little sketches in front of the TV. no more excuses. On Friday, stretched 8 half-sheets of watercolor paper, all ready to go - - - and there I am, yet again, sketching from a photo I found in a magazine.
"It's only an exercise", I tell myself.
"Just for practicing", I assure me.
"It's not gonna come out good anyway", I plead to the little voice in me that keeps saying 'Stop it!'.
And it's not like I do not have enough photos of my own. Noooooooooooooo... I have plenty of those, taken with LumiB and her predecessors, and I keep taking more and more. And some of them are good! REALLY good!
So, why do I keep reverting to TV and magazines? I will never be able to show them at an exhibit or sell them, as they are actually someone else's art that I based mine on. So, does that fact make me feel less committed, thus more free, when I sketch or paint? Two of my favorite - and most successful - paintings were done from a photo I found online, or in a magazine. They both turned out incredible! Those who see them gasp "Ah, you just HAVE to enter these in a show!!!". And yet, alas, both can only be hung on our own walls.
With that in mind, why do I keep doing the same mistake over and over again? Am I just a repetitive idiot? (that is a rhetorical questiion. No need to answer it, thankyouverymuch).
OK then. I hereby decide, pledge and make a pact: from now on, I shall paint from my own photos only. No more wading in the shallow water comprising the comfort zone of uncommitment.
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Labels: Art, ArtPact, Damn Technology, Stating The Obvious
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
ArtPact #35
Busy times call for lack of painting. The couple of months have been crazy, and last week I decided that in order to keep my ability to ever paint again, I have to keep exercise my eye, hand and brush, just so to not lose it altogether.
WackieM's blog keeps me going, big time. I try to find the time to follow the drawing and painting challenges she comes up with, and they then yield new fun ideas, opening new doors and setting me off on new journeys. Very short journeys, for now, but one day...
Recently, I found that I can no longer sit still and watch TV. Whenever a great face, a compelling expression or a wonderful light pattern appears on the screen, I grab whatever I have in hand, and start drawing/sketching it. Just can't resist the urge. Poor The JohnnyB, he is getting used to coming home and then gaze for an hour at a frozen picture on the screen. So, to be fair to him, I do try to do it mostly during the day, in between the trillion things that need to be done. 10 minutes here, and hour there - and I actually manage to produce some art. On a small scale, not at the quality of an actual painting done when you have the time and mental bandwidth to really do it, but - it helps to get the stress away.
Well, most of the time...
Yesterday I was trying to use the Elegant Writer pen, that has ink that gorgeously separates when you touch a wet brush to it. At least when WackieM touches it. I took my highest quality sketchbook, took one of these pens, and did a loose drawing, intending to dissolve some of the lines. I then took a brush, wetted it, touched the drawing, and waited for the magic to happen.Nothin'.
"Must be the color. I'll try the black, which is more responsive", I heartened myself.
Again - nothing.
The lines stood still, as if they are Californians during an earthquake that has not proven yet to be serious. The drawing stared at me, crude and coarse-lined.
Needless to say, I was not at all relaxed.
I called WackieM with wrath, and made an S.O.S. plea. She was surprised, and advised me to try it on different papers. Nothing worked, until I remembered a Bristol Smooth Surface drawing block that I once bought at the art store, not quite sure why.
I decided to give it one more try...
(click to enlarge)
...and then proceeded to a couple of hours of pure fun. I love it!!!
These are done from paused scenes of the British movie "Enchanted April", which offered a wealth of great faces and expressions. And no, the one in the middle is not a broken-nosed female wrestler. I just did not have the time to go back and fix it...
On a different note, I was watching the Van Gogh episode of Simon Schama's Power of Art.
The actor playing Van Gogh was very convincing (two ears, though...), and one scene had the most irresistible light pattern, which yielded a very long TiVo pause, and four bozzettos. I took the artistic license to not show the fourth one, which turned out pathetic! (Hey, it's my blog - I can cheat...).
The JohnnyB claims the color scheme I chose is weird and haunting. Duh! color is one way to convey mood. "weird and haunting", Eh? Well, so was Van Gogh.
And so, on this cheery note:
Labels: Art, ArtPact, Stating The Obvious
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Fall?
Not to tread on the corns of those from Austin or other tropical areas...
But here, in sunny and warm California, we are starting to spot clouds in the sky.
- - - The last few evenings were somewhat-chilly.
- - - - - - And the leaves of our neighbor's tree are deep in premature blush.
I do believe that autumn is coming.
Oh, that's Keith Jarret, playing "Autumn leaves".
Labels: Meta Bloggin', Nature, Stating The Obvious
