Artists Passion

Okay, I admit it. I love cute things. I like cutesy anime, fuzzy woodland creatures, and even the color pink.

That was hard, but I had to come clean. You guys might remember my post about Ashling’s bright and energetic paintings. Or, my love for Orianna Kurrus’s gothic Lolita, cute horror art.

But, neither of them make art half as cute as L3mn. His cartoon-like paintings are so sweet they make my teeth hurt.

He also has a mass-production appeal. He’s working on a Web site where he’s collaborating to make toys under the brand Citris. He has painted his fruity designs on lunch boxes, thermoses, photos, and even sneakers.

He’s even plastered his tag over an OBEY poster, which I think is fabulous. I’ve seen those signs all over Downtown Tampa and Ybor City in Florida; putting his own mark on a trendy movement is something I wholeheartedly stand behind.

He also used to make art under the name Lost, which he states on his Myspace is now very dead. I find his squigglies compelling; they remind me of the forest spirits in Princess Mononoke.

What really got me hooked, though, was the L3mn Halloween pictures. There was a lemon Frankenstein, a lemon ghostie, a lemon zombie, and so much more. They were all sickly cute in the L3mn brand’s way, but I fell in love.

Before now, I didn’t realize how versatile lemons really were.

L3mn has been featured in art galleries and magazines across North America. They include the No Regrets gallery in Naugatuck, CT, My Cheap Ass Life, and The Channel One Online Lunchbox Show.

The winner of my exciting art contest is Barbara Waters for her super-duper spooky poem! So, I’ll be sending out her book on Monday!

Now for the excitement. Tomorrow, there will be an art festival in Ybor City (part of Tampa). I’ll be there taking pictures, interviewing artists, and generally making a nuisance of myself.

Tickets are $8, and there will be jugglers, puppeteers, an art gallery showing, and so much more! Thanks to some of my friends who told me about this event. My friend Kenny is a juggler and will be there showing off his mad skills.

I have some video of his contact juggling and fire breathing on my other blog.

Before I head out to the art festival, I will be at Flavor Fest, a big-time Christian type hiphop festival. I’ll be there doing some research for an article I’m working on; it should be interesting.

Before I sign off, I thought I’d mention something I saw on Barbara Waters’s blog while I was grabbing my link for her contest winning announcement.

Halloween’s over, so quite a few people are moving their focus over to the winter holidays, i.e. the gift-giving holidays. I found this on Barbara’s blog:

I decided to take the pledge; every year I make my presents, unless I give someone a book from my overwhelming collection. Or, I buy from the artists I’ve found on Etsy. You can also take the pledge. My recommendation is to go to Etsy. They have a huge selection of products for Yule, Christmas, Channukah, Kwanza, Hunnuwanzmas, and any other holiday we can think of to give presents on.

National Novel Writing Month is officially upon us.

For those who accept the challenge, it is a stressful and fun 30 days to write 50,000 words. The site offers forums, meet-ups, word counters, and updates on NaNoWriMo news to keep participants motivated.

I have never won the challenge, but I expect to this year. I’ve already started writing my novel. It’s a chick lit zombie romance involving a young expert on Voudou, her mother, her ex boyfriend, and her new romance. There will be a zombie baby AND a zombie cat.

Last year, I got stuck writing a drama about a young, rich author whose privileged upbringing was holding her back. Surprisingly enough, the word count for part of my novel last year was more than for the novel I started afterwards. I’m about to finish the first draft; the word count will be a bit shy of 20,000 words. It will be my first completed novel first draft, which I’m excited about.

So, here’s a question for everyone out there: do competitions help art by getting people working creatively, or do they hurt art by focusing on quantity over quality?

Contest Update My contest is now over. I will be announcing the winners on Friday, which is tomorrow, and sending out the prize in the mail on Monday, when I send out a few other packages.

Other NaNoWriMoers Over at Fiction Scribe, there is 13 ways to start your NaNo and at The Book Stacks 13 books to help you with NaNoWriMo or NaNoBloMo. At The Poisoned Apple, the word count is already over 2,000. And, I don’t think Thomas Kingsley Troupe of Tappity Tappity will be participated, but I like reading about authors, and he just finished his last novel in 31 days, so he obviously doesn’t need the inspiration NaNoWriMo gives to the rest of us.

I’m going to start writing for Sticks of Fire, a blog about, for, and by Tampa residents! I’m going to cover the art beat!

http://sticksoffire.com

What constitutes art is a concept I often think of and wonder about. Is a narrow view of art more acceptable, or can we open the definition to include digitally manipulated images, multimedia presentations, and controversial subjects?

I’m a fan for the latter; I love a variety of art forms for different reasons. Just because some of them aren’t as respected as others doesn’t stop me from proudly proclaiming my loyalties to outsider art, mixed media pieces, and comics.

Jennie Breeden, creator of The Devil’s Panties, is a versatile artist who illustrates and writes the autobiographical comic, proudly proclaiming it’s “not Satanic porn.” With an observant eye and a geek-chic wit, Breeden chonicles her adventures in the world of comic conventions, where she hangs with pirates and is handy with a leaf blower whenever there’s a man wearing a kilt in the vicinity. With her varied interests, her strips often show a mixture of influences from different nerdy cultures.

What isn’t such a big draw to her comic fans is her online portfolio of fine art. There are no jokes, no cute versions of Breeden in devil or angel gear, just serious representations of a professional artist.

To me, many of Breeden’s fine art images seem to portray people pondering the world around them in some form. Other pieces portray different emotions, set onto the page in watercolors.

While I enjoy her quirky and biographical comic every day (I make sure to follow her updates as regularly as possible), I also make a point of checking out her portfolio for updates on occasion as well.

As a side note, for all those who want to get their hands dirty with a new project, Jummy has a new challenge. I have also managed to put exactly $25 aside for my study abroad funds. Only $7,975 to go.

I’m awake at 2 a.m. For those of you who don’t know, I work at a theme park for their Halloween event. I get paid to scare people, but it also means I’m awake late at night when I should be sleeping, because I have to get up at 8 in the morning for a class. Unfortunately, the adrenaline won’t let me sleep. So, I’m working on my newest obsession, I mean passion, knitting squiddies.

I love squids more than any other animal besides the cat and the tarsier. So, of course, one of my favorite artists, Ashling is also an artist who draws squids. She also makes tiny, tiny boob necklaces, which may one day be sent as gifts to elderly family members to see if they notice the necklaces are in fact tiny boobs.

I love Ashling’s art, because it is bright and cheerful even when it doesn’t deal with squid topics.

Or, at least to me, they’re bright and cheerful. They might be about death and despair; I’m not the best when it comes to interpreting the art of others. But, these paintings make me happy just looking at them.

I am now finishing up my third knitted squid; this one is going to my mom for the holidays. The second one, a rainbow squid, is going up for sale at a craft fair next month. For a look at my first ever knitted squid, take a gander here. And, just a reminder, my contest is still underway. Anyone interested in winning a copy of Calligraphy of the Witch should take a look.

It can seem hard to put pen or paintbrush to paper. Sometimes, fingers pressed into clay can feel like fingers set against unyielding granite. Sometimes the muse isn’t with us.

Think about how much harder it is for someone who can make art out of their own image.

Antoinette, a model in Tampa, is an example of someone who can turn themselves into a work of art. She has modeled for photographers, fashion designers, and at conventions and concerts. Whether she is set in a trihawk or cyberlox, her personal beauty shines through.

From the stylized and fantastical photos of Jennifer Pajor to the surreal and zany pics from Warren G. Whitmore, there always seems to be something more than meets the eye when Antoinette is before the lens or onstage.

In person, her whimsical personality makes the mundane fun, and her eyes sparkle as she embraces the ridiculous. Passion, and art, can take many forms.

On another note, my contest is still going on. You can find the info here. And, the Lez Keep it Real contest appears to still be going on as well.
Additionally, as a bit of housekeeping and a plea for help, I’m announcing a fundraiser I’m doing to go towards a study abroad fund. I want to go to either Ireland or the U.K. to do a little studying in a foreign country after I graduate. I’m going to need THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. Probably somewhere between $5-8,000 to go. To me, this is an astronomical sum. If anyone wants to help out, to the tune of anywhere between $.50- ONE BILLION DOLLARS, email me at wendy.withers@451press.net. I’ll be sure to send you some sort of thank you. I’m also going to be taking all sorts of commissions, including squiddie commissions. Here’s what I’m going to do to try to raise the funds:
Work extra jobs.
Sell my squiddies online and at craft fairs.
Write this blog.
If anyone wants to donate, go ahead. Here’s where I really need the help, though. Where can I get a free ticker to keep track of how much money I’ve raised? I’ve seen some online and even tried to create one for my savings, but none of them worked when it came time to type in my goal and the amount of money I have saved up. (Which is $0.) Please help!

As a book reviewer, I have many, many books stacking up around my house at any given time. One of the books I’ve read recently was Calligraphy of the Witch by Alicia Gaspar de Alba.

The story follows the life of Concepcion, who is sold into slavery by pirates. Unfortunately, she is sold to Puritans living in Massachusetts a few years before the Salem witch trials. Due to growing up in New Spain (Mexico) Concepcion is unprepared for life in the drab colony she is forced into. Through her ordeals, she clings to her culture and the art she learned as a child: the fine embroidery of linens. She also makes her daughter poppets, and we all know how poppet-making was received during the trials. (Women were killed because they had small dolls in their homes.)

To make room for more yarn, I am willing to part ways with this powerful novel. However, I require something in return. So, I’m holding a contest.

In honor of Halloween (or, as I like to call it, October) I’m requesting people send me their best horror-themed artwork. It can be spooky, gory, scary, thrilling, or anything else that represents Halloween to the artist. It can even be cute.

Types of works I’m accepting: just about anything. Feel free to send me images of your artwork, whether it be a doll, a knitted piece, embroidery, a painting, a sculpture, a comic, or whatever else you worked so hard on. If it’s a written work, paste it into the body of an email. Send it to wendy.withers@451press.net.

I will not use your images or written work without your expressed permission. If you win or get an honorable mention, let me know if I can present your work in my blog. Once again, I won’t publish anything without your permission.

The last day to enter will be Oct. 31, and I will try to have all submissions reviewed by Sat. Oct. 3. I will send out the book by Mon. Oct. 5. If you have any questions, leave a comment or email me. I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

Other contests floating around out there:

Lez: Keep It Real is having a contest for a signed edition of The Best Lesbian Love Stories: Summer Flings. All you have to do is leave a comment about a romantic memory on the post for a chance to win.

And, there is one more day to win an iPod case from Karen Lynch of Discussing Breast Cancer.

Knitting. Crocheting. Cross stitch. Sewing. Baking. Scrapbooking.

They all fall under the category of pseudo-art to most people. Not quite art, even though the people who craft devote their time, loads of money, and their creative talent to the crafts they are passionate about. In fact, handmade crafts can be more expensive to produce than some art forms. Yarn can cost up to $20 a skein for the good stuff, anywhere between $1-$6 a skein for the yucky, scratchy stuff. (Sugar and Cream and Peaches and Cream cotton yarns are the exception; they’re inexpensive, soft, and live through many laundry cycles.) Making jewelry requires wire, beads, clasps, pliers, wire cutters, and countless other pieces and trinkets to make a nice piece. Scrapbooking is the same way, except with expensive paper, books, pens, and glue.

Why aren’t crafts considered art? The products are meant to please the senses. They cost time and money to make, and can be sold and given away as easily as “real art.”

With all of the effort going into it, a squid I knit realistically would cost about $10 if I wanted to sell it.

My Orianna Kurrus original (which I paid for in coffee) would realistically cost a few hundred dollars if bought from the artist or a gallery.

(I originally wrote about “Blood and Milk” here and later followed up on Orianna Kurrus here.

It isn’t just regular folks out there who get crafty, either. Artists do, too. Etsy.com is full of artists who craft; Orianna Kurrus used to crochet little hats with kitty ears and sell them on her Web site.

So, why is it people view artists who work in traditional artsy mediums artists and people who work in crafty mediums hobbyists? I think it has something to do with the artist mystique. Artists are somehow more than regular folk. They’re more tormented. They’re more creative. They’re more in-the-know.

Fortunately, with all of the blogs, shopping sites, and magazines dedicated to crafty folks, crafts are beginning to gain ground.

And, for those who like to do instead of reading about others doing, Jummy is holding a crafting challenge: handmade birthday cards.

As I promised before, I’m going to include tips on living with passion in all aspects of life but with an emphasis on art.

Spontaneity is important not only to an artist’s life, but also the the lives of everyone on this planet. While routine and order can be calming and set us on the path to achievement, it is also important to follow the winds every once in a while. They will take us where fate decrees.

If we don’t act spontaneously every once in a while, we miss out on hidden opportunities. The muse might strike at the beach while we’re holed up in our homes in front of our computers or in a quiet coffee shop while we’re watching TV. When days begin to blend in together, it’s time to put away our ordinary things and do something a little bit crazy.

Spontaneity is also a path towards creativity. In a previous post, Anjuelle wrote:

The mind likes order, as it should. Spontaneous occurrences disrupt the routine flow of things. But creativity is about messiness, abrupt changes in the moment.

If spontaneity is so important, how can we begin to embrace it in our lives? By taking small steps.

For some, deciding at some random moment to go skydiving is a regular part of daily life, but for the rest of us, such extreme measures aren’t realistic. Embracing spontaneity can be as simple as singing along with the radio, kicking off our shoes in the park and dancing, or lying in a grassy patch of sunlight. A next step might be taking an afternoon to go to the beach or teaching a child how to whistle. With each new step, the extraordinary becomes ordinary, and we open ourselves up to new possibilities.

Watching children feed ducks might lead to a new short story or a weekend silent retreat could become a tranquil oil painting. The way we view the world changes with each new experience; it’s up to us to cultivate these experiences to make an interesting whole.

I realized that more could be said about Orianna Kurrus and her art than just a single link to her page. In my first post, I displayed the painting I have hanging up in my own home, “Blood and Cupcakes.� I love it so, even though friends who have seen it call it creepy.

Here’s what I know about this enigmatic artist. She is an ex-clown for hire. She lives in Virginia in a commune full o’ hippies. She is Jewish and integrates many themes from her faith into her art. She loves dolls, especially ones splashed with blood or an acceptable blood facsimile. She’s a Southerner at heart, even though she loves Boston. And, she’ll barter her art for coffee, which is how I got “Blood and Cupcakes.� I did some modeling for her when she lived in Florida, which was definitely an interesting experience.

I love her whimsical and sometimes outrageous style.

Speaking of whimsical, according to Web Urbanist, there is a man making art by making tiny, tiny cityscapes with tiny, tiny people in them. So, keep your eyes open! You might just find one. I especially love this one of a painting falling in an art gallery and wreaking havoc in the city below, although it’s weird to see the Domino’s Pizza in there.

And, last but not least, there is a new contest out there for jewelry makers. Find the details here.

I know my predecessor spent a lot of time contemplating what makes the universe tick and how to work with inspiration and muses. In the next few posts, I plan to put my own spin on these issues as well as introduce more artists, artistic contests, and lifestyle concepts. Let the good times roll.

Some of you might be wondering who I am and why I’ve taken over this blog. The simple answer is I’m an art lover who wants the world to be a better place. I think art is the simplest and best form to change the world, whether it be through literature, graphic works, music, dance, and other pleasing mediums.

The complicated answer is I’m a senior finishing up a bachelor’s in journalism. I’ve written for a number of publications, including The Tampa Tribune, Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, and Mookychick. I’ve been an art reviewer, book reviewer, movie reviewer, theatre reviewer (I was once a theatre major), and go-fer intern. I can also be found at Mookychick, Blogspot, and Myspace.

In my spare time, I tend to read for long stretches, but I’ve also been known to dance and take on various modeling gigs.

When I found out there was an opening for writing about the arts, I jumped on it. The world needs more art, not less. I live in a town where artists struggle to survive before moving on to locales where they are better appreciated. I think every town should jump at the chance to roll out the red carpet for their dreamers and creators. I hope to make this space an oasis for everyone who needs a breather from the harsh realities of the world.

Welcome.

Midway through my vacation in Maui, more settled and relaxed, and having given myself permission to refrain from checking my e-mails daily, I clicked into the action. The wormhole that every book or story has, be it novel or short, eased before me. The waters parted. And I was determined to see Bessie and her observations through. I had to know what was going to happen to Bessie, whether all would be well wit her. I had to know that I would be okay with the outcome—her outcome.

This is where not only the story became more interesting, but my process in reading it revealed something to me. Sometimes the quality of an experience or a work is not how quick you accomplish it or undergo it. Sometimes the value of the experience is in having been able to give yourself time to achieve it.

In other words the quality is in the patience you showed another and yourself in waiting to here what they had to say, what we need to hear and then are inspired to write or paint.

This is a difficult concept to learn in a culture where so much value is placed on youth, agility and quickness. But knowledge of this, like age and wisdom, comes in its own way, along its own unique path, and in its own time.

In that I cared and was going to see the book through, I did not feel the need to speed up. Instead I wanted to savor it. I now realize that on an unconscious level I did not want the story to end, something I did not realize until the end. Arriving at that point of no return, I wanted to settle in and experience Bessie’s world, live it with her, see all the nooks and crannies, share life with her.

This is also where the learning and my transformation began—one that I only recognized when preparing to write this blog. For Bessie and her story, The Observations, are like paintings we start, novels we begin, poems that in being only three lines require hours of work to refine.

Our ability and skill at remaining rooted in ourselves, and in the moments that lead to change and understanding, allowing ourselves patience to develop is directly tied to the capacity to step back from all the external distractions that legitimately require our attention—to stop and breathe in, and in so doing read each word carefully, examine the painter’s brush stroke creating the texture and aesthetics.

These steps toward the worm hole transporting us to the gamma quadrant of change are like the marathon runner’s footsteps leading up Kilimanjaro or around it’s base—all in the effort of running that Boston Marathon or San Francisco’s Bay to Breakers. Her or his destination that though having traveled there numerous times possesses exponential areas yet discovered, uncharted terrains we have yet to trod.

I returned home 10 days after purchasing Jane Harris’, The Observations. I had begun to read it–was about 100 pages into it. Three days later I left for vacation on Maui. During the 72 hours between I didn’t open the book. Everything was crazy with the children and trying to pack–impossible to read.

Reaching the resort and settling in, I set about to work some more on the publicity of my book, Keeper of Secrets…Translations of an Incident, communicating daily with my publisher about ongoing publicity projects.
In short I was busy. Upon lying down at night I couldn’t get into The Observations as I had in Bilbao, Spain and London. I was tired. Also I had yet to reach the part of the story where things begin to happen, and I the reader, clicked in, and am committed to the full ride.

This point is much the same as when writing a novel, or learning a new piece of music, or reaching that part in the painting when you are tired, bored—no stroke seems to contribute to the painting. You want to give up.

Reaching this part is much like arriving at the point in a painting where despite the possibility of not being totally pleased with the work, one has to see it through to the end.
And then you add a smattering of a mix of colors, or a flat out mistake happens—one that you don’t correct. A drop of that new color falls onto a place in the painting you would never intentionally place it. The painting comes alive and the path you are to take appears before you.

The practice of art requires time. Much like the art we create it is about growth.

I felt sad, on completing Jane Harris’ new novel, The Observations. I was also enlivened.
I had lived the last month with the main character, Bessie, whose story, set in 1863 England, drew me in from the first word. I purchased my copy of the book at Shakespeare & Co. Bookstore in Paris, France an hour or so after I had read to an audience of 20 or more from my collection of short stories, “Keeper of Secrets…Translations of an Incident.�

The Observations is a great novel and I highly recommend it, particularly to anyone who has a penchant, like me, for Victorian England. But the book is more than a period piece. Like it’s title, The Observations, the story in and of itself is a meditation on observing not just those around us, but ourselves. The voice of Bessie, the domestic, of a woman named, Arabella Reid, directs us through Bessie’s past with Arabella, shows how she came to meet Arabella and the circumstances that brought the two to where are now. You have to read to the end to learn this. But this is not what kept me committed to the story.

The Observations is well written, suspenseful and downright magnetic, and is every bit story as it is explanation–the latter seamlessly embedded in the former. Yet it is the experience of observing Bessie witness and recollect herself during and because of her times with Arabella that inspires the reader to peer more deeply into one’s own self –through not simply the eyes of another, but rather one’s relationship with another—that makes Harris’ The Observations so unique. The Observations is quite simply a novel of observance—both internal and external for the two are indelibly bound.

Bessie’s relationship with the beautiful Arabella is like a painting, a work of art, and the path of whose development the reader can never be sure. Uncertainty is a major character alongside Bessie. And it is this uncertainty, this unknowing, if you will that casts not only a pall, but also a glow over the narrative.

During my stay in Europe and London, I read The Observations, steadily devoting an hour before bedtime. Prior to starting it book I completed another novel that I had begun in Washington while waiting to board my flight to Paris. This first novel, set in Edwardian England was an excellent and thoroughly enjoyable read. But The Observations, at just over 400 pages, was a different work. It required more–asked patience of me—patience toward Jane Harris the writer in telling Bessie’s story, hearing what Bessie had to say—and patience also with myself in reading The Observations.