Happy belated New Year! 

Many unforeseen events (aka life) happened at the end of 2012, and so writing here was put on the backburner more times than I liked. With the new year and some new opportunities on the horizon, I hope to stroll through the blogosphere more often. I know you're glad. I am.

I've made a few pieces so far this year, and I'm sharing some of them today.

Aubrey paint pen and sharpie on window sash $235

I'm continuing to work on the window drawings which has been really enjoyable.

Aubrey (detail)

For me, first finding each image is the most fun aspect of these pieces.

I find most of the images in magazines, but Google Search takes this process to a completely different level of wonder and delight. For example, for Aubrey I searched "Aubrey Plaza fashion ads" (because over Christmas "break" I watched what feels like 100 episodes of Parks and Rec) which led me to Miu Miu's short film It's Getting Late, which led me to Spotify to listen to Zola Jesus, which pointed me to Polica, which just so happens to be a sound I've been in search of for some time.

Oh, the magic World of the Wide Web.

 

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Elle paint pen and sharpie on window sash $235

Last year, I watched The September Issue, a documentary about Vogue, where Anna Wintour discusses the phenomenal impact photographing celebrities instead of models has had on the fashion industry.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately because I had never intended to draw celebrities, such as Aubrey Plaza or Elle Fanning (above), but when you're looking at fashion as an inspiration, I suppose it's inevitable. While I'm more interested in the image than the fact that they're famous, I did choose photographs based on if I like the celebrity or not. Something about this feels... I don't know... too easy?

 

I struggle when things come too naturally, wondering if it's worth making if it's too enjoyable. Should work cause some amount of tension if it's challenging in the right way or is making art about finding the least resistance?

 

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Elle (detail)



 

I'm ready to expound on and expand these drawings. Green Room (below) is the start of using the whole window and more "scenic" subject matter. The image is from an Anthropologie catalog. 

Green Room paint pen, sharpie, and acrylic on window sash

I'm not satisfied with the outcome of this one, but I'll keep toying around with the idea to see if I can improve. I have high hopes.

 

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Below are images from my show at the Tomato Head in West Knoxville. Some work from the end of last year, the drawings on windows above, and some new fabric pieces are there until Feb 3.

Please go take a look because (my) photographs don't do many of these pieces justice.

My friend texted me last night:

"If I was Martha Stewart, tomorrow I'd be boat tripping and picnic lunching on an island in Maine. Oh, and doing yoga."

When I read the text, it was 4:30 am* so my brain couldn't register what she meant. Then it hit me that she was referring to the calendar in Martha Stewart Living where Martha tells all the normal people who subscribe to her magazine all the outlandish things she'll be doing that month. It's really good entertainment.

It would be fun to start posting a calendar of my own here, so I can have a visual of how much my life is not like hers.

Yesterday's entry would have been:

July 31, 2012
Make myself sick off BBQ nachos at Smokies baseball game

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I'm learning how important it is as an artist (and as a human being) to write down everything I think about doing. Everything. I think I may have hit a level of "planner/to-do list lunacy" however.

I have a planner to carry around with me, I have physical calendars of each month til Dec 2012 hanging in my studio, I have a calendar online, I have a dry erase board at home and in my studio, I have a sketch book, I have a bulletin board, and I've become a post-it fanatic at work and home.

The outcome of this is that I'm actually getting things done. Well, no. I'm getting a lot of things started, which is more than half the battle in most cases. It feels really good.

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November 17, 2014
Assess whether my life is moving toward or away from resembling Martha Stewart's

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I could use a little more glamor in my life, and because of that, I can't say I'm never jealous of Martha's Month. I would never want too much glamor, though. That way, I can enjoy reading what this cat and Car Talk say about these sorts of things and also keep pondering the ramifications of such a lifestyle.


* August 8, 2012
   Consider prescription for Ambien