So I updated my website, and consolidated the various stores online that I have my stuff in, such as my Etsy store which houses anything I make or craft by hand, like paintings, prints, etc. By the way, I know I can sell paintings through my website but I don't want to have to manage several stores that house the same stuff. There's another store I have at Greeting Card Universe where people can buy individual cards and have them sent to them (there are wholesale options too for shops). Then there's the Skreened shop I have, which has items like American Apparel shirts and tote bags with my stuff on them. They're local to Columbus Ohio, and they're good people. Finally there's the zazzle shop I mentioned in the last post, which has some shirts also, but also has other goods like mugs, hats, buttons, etc. Once I have the book published there will be another URL that I'll add to the 'store' section on my website.
So I set all that up, as well as add links and just cleaned things up... I do all that, and then I decided to try something and messed around with my domain name info and I screwed something up and now my website is down. I'm currently away from home so I won't be able to fix it until tonight. Kinda frustrating. I create and manage everything at http://saraadrian.com/, I don't like to have to wait for someone else to do things for me and it's a heck of a lot cheaper this way. But sometimes, I have an oops... but usually it's not this bad. My website is pretty simple, but I think it works... well it does most of the time.
Anyway, that's what is going on. This is what I get for trying to be clever!
UPDATE: Website is back up. I'm working on my bio and statement as well, so if you're interested in such things check back soon. As far as the art updates go, I'm going to do a major one when the book is finished. I want to do a major -reveal' when it's all done.
Have a good one!
Showing posts with label book. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Truckin'
Hey folks. Been under the weather for a day or so. But things are coming along (as things often do). The book is beginning to take real form, so that's something (sample on the right... I was going to add color, but maybe not). Coming up, if you're anywhere near Roanoke Virgina from the 11th thru the 16th, stop by the Marginal Arts Festival. I'd be there, but due to other obligations I have to miss it this year. However I've been getting lots of updates on what will be happening and it looks like fun. I look forward to seeing the video. Next, if you are or know someone who is an alumni of Fort Hayes here in Columbus Ohio, some of us are putting together an Alumni Arts Show in November-December. This will be a juried competition, and anyone from any of the departments can apply, including the general high school. We're putting together the call for entries now, so if you want to recieve that just email me or join us at our Facebook page to receive updates.
Well, it's been a minute since I posted a video.
So enjoy Lhasa de Sela, from her self titled album, Rising
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Kind of an FAQ...
Most common question I get is 'Who are those people in your paintings?'. I generally give a quick answer 'they aren't anyone, I make them up'. That is both true and not true. N' so I better give a more fleshed out answer for the folks who want to know.
Yes, most of the people in my work do not exist. I don't use models, the type of technique I've been developing requires I know & understand anatomy, and I will pull references when I need to... but I don't have people pose for me. There are times when I do paint from life, and those paintings are titled with the individuals name.
So where does it come from? The ideas for my paintings come from stories (my own or inspired by others I've met), mythology, and some deep whatever that regurgitates out of me from time to time (generally emotional or a reaction to something I've seen or read, but not always). Probably the best way to explain how this works is to go into detail about one of the paintings I've done, and the best one I think to tell that s
tory is Callisto.
This was originally inspired by the painting by Francois Boucher "Jupiter In the Guise of Diana and the Nymph Callisto," (1759). For those unfamiliar with the story, click here. Basically Zeus seduces her in the guise of the Goddess she served & loved (Artemis/Diana), who gets pissed off & blames her for what happened and casts her away. Depending on which story you read, either Diana turns Callisto into a bear, or Zeus does to hide what he did from his wife. At some point she gives birth to a son, & it's either he who later tries to kill her when Callisto attacks him out of revenge for what was done to her, or Diana does. Zeus in order to avert tragedy puts Callisto and her son in the sky as Ursa Major and Minor, AKA the big and little dipper.
So, in my painting we have Callisto (note she's in somewhat the same position as Ursa Major) laying on a blanket (the blue and white of the blanket are supposed to be reminiscent of Boucher's painting). Because I painted her from above, she looks suspended. The peach she's holding is a reference to a romantic devotion to the divine feminine, and I used 'hot' colors to indicate arousal. I got inspired to create the pattern around her from looking at photographs of trees in sunlight and the shadows they form on the ground. She's curvy, because I wanted to paint a curvy nude, and I also wanted to include pubic hair because I don't see female pubic hair in art very often. So here, Callisto is reclaiming her own sexuality apart from anyone or anything else, by being her own raw naked self.
Or that's the general idea anyway. Part of this came from many conversations I've had with women growing up with negative self images of themselves (a common conversation brought up over and over again). I've learned a while back that people identify with the images they see, often they identify with the subject either as part something they are, or as a part of the story or experience of someone they may know or identify with. A big part of what influences me are icons, especially medieval icons, frescoes, & tapestries. They capture a whole idea, story, emotional play in a single image. This relates directly to how I think and approach image making. My work is a snapshot of part of a story that you'll never be told... they relate to archetypes, in a way. I get asked, 'Are these self portraits?'. On the surface no, but in a way they are perhaps indirectly. Bus Stop Waiting relates to a trip I took when I was 19, and was painted at a period in my life where I was quasi-homeless. The girl isn't supposed to be me, but the emotions are. Girl in Tall Grass is about a memory of fields in Ohio I wandered through when I was young. The red bird indicates change (menstruation, growing up), and there's more symbolism, but I don't want to go too much into it. I really would rather the viewer come up with their own symbolism in relation to the painting. While I may have abstract reasons (be they personal or historical) into why I created the image, I know full well the viewer may not have the same knowledge or experience, and that's ok. It's not required.
The book I'm working on is a slight departure from the figurative work I've done in the past, sorta. I can't help but be literal, it's also in how I think and relate. But yeah, things are coming along, and I'll write more about that later.
So for this round, here's something I've been listening to lately. Song: Alive! Band: Omina
Yes, most of the people in my work do not exist. I don't use models, the type of technique I've been developing requires I know & understand anatomy, and I will pull references when I need to... but I don't have people pose for me. There are times when I do paint from life, and those paintings are titled with the individuals name.
So where does it come from? The ideas for my paintings come from stories (my own or inspired by others I've met), mythology, and some deep whatever that regurgitates out of me from time to time (generally emotional or a reaction to something I've seen or read, but not always). Probably the best way to explain how this works is to go into detail about one of the paintings I've done, and the best one I think to tell that s
tory is Callisto.This was originally inspired by the painting by Francois Boucher "Jupiter In the Guise of Diana and the Nymph Callisto," (1759). For those unfamiliar with the story, click here. Basically Zeus seduces her in the guise of the Goddess she served & loved (Artemis/Diana), who gets pissed off & blames her for what happened and casts her away. Depending on which story you read, either Diana turns Callisto into a bear, or Zeus does to hide what he did from his wife. At some point she gives birth to a son, & it's either he who later tries to kill her when Callisto attacks him out of revenge for what was done to her, or Diana does. Zeus in order to avert tragedy puts Callisto and her son in the sky as Ursa Major and Minor, AKA the big and little dipper.
So, in my painting we have Callisto (note she's in somewhat the same position as Ursa Major) laying on a blanket (the blue and white of the blanket are supposed to be reminiscent of Boucher's painting). Because I painted her from above, she looks suspended. The peach she's holding is a reference to a romantic devotion to the divine feminine, and I used 'hot' colors to indicate arousal. I got inspired to create the pattern around her from looking at photographs of trees in sunlight and the shadows they form on the ground. She's curvy, because I wanted to paint a curvy nude, and I also wanted to include pubic hair because I don't see female pubic hair in art very often. So here, Callisto is reclaiming her own sexuality apart from anyone or anything else, by being her own raw naked self.
Or that's the general idea anyway. Part of this came from many conversations I've had with women growing up with negative self images of themselves (a common conversation brought up over and over again). I've learned a while back that people identify with the images they see, often they identify with the subject either as part something they are, or as a part of the story or experience of someone they may know or identify with. A big part of what influences me are icons, especially medieval icons, frescoes, & tapestries. They capture a whole idea, story, emotional play in a single image. This relates directly to how I think and approach image making. My work is a snapshot of part of a story that you'll never be told... they relate to archetypes, in a way. I get asked, 'Are these self portraits?'. On the surface no, but in a way they are perhaps indirectly. Bus Stop Waiting relates to a trip I took when I was 19, and was painted at a period in my life where I was quasi-homeless. The girl isn't supposed to be me, but the emotions are. Girl in Tall Grass is about a memory of fields in Ohio I wandered through when I was young. The red bird indicates change (menstruation, growing up), and there's more symbolism, but I don't want to go too much into it. I really would rather the viewer come up with their own symbolism in relation to the painting. While I may have abstract reasons (be they personal or historical) into why I created the image, I know full well the viewer may not have the same knowledge or experience, and that's ok. It's not required.
The book I'm working on is a slight departure from the figurative work I've done in the past, sorta. I can't help but be literal, it's also in how I think and relate. But yeah, things are coming along, and I'll write more about that later.
So for this round, here's something I've been listening to lately. Song: Alive! Band: Omina
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Festivus!
This past week has been busy. The Halloween/Samhain season is always chock full of parties, social activities, and for me personally, quiet contemplation. For you folks in America it's time to set your clocks back as daylight dwindles. The leaves on the weeping cherry are just about fallen, and huzzah fall is in full swing.
I find things in life have a rhythm. I also notice that people panic when they think they're supposed to be doing something else instead of listening to the rhythm. Like my friend who freaks out because they are no longer involved in a relationship & feels that they must move on right now. If there's no person in their life, there is something wrong... or another who has reached a certain age and worries that they're not where they're supposed to be in life (not married, their career hasn't developed the way they expected, or their life just has not gone as planned). It's taken me longer than I would have wished, but I realize that things happen when they happen. Relax and just move forward and don't worry what others think or listen to what others say about what you should be or shouldn't be. Being yourself (and yourself truly without pushing your shit onto others) is really the only way to be happy, I find.
I had a dream about a little girl who had a talent, but her mother sent her to a surgeon to make her beautiful instead. She sat in a dentist chair, white medical tape on her forehead, cheeks, and chin to pull her skin back. Mother was at her ear telling her who she should be and what to think. I was thinking about how so many children get lost this way. Parents want their kids to be happy, and they do the best they can, but still, it's amazing what fear can make a person do.
What I wonder is if this has any relation to the preliminary work I'm doing for the book. People who are not really all that interested in that foo-foo pagan new agey stuff still relate to totems. Logos, team mascots, 'power colors', and the like have a psychological effect on us. We may choose a favorite animal as a child because we like how they look and what they can do. Perhaps subconsciously we want to be like them, to run, or fly, or fight, or to know what they know. From what I noticed this is less talked or thought about but changes little as an adult. We still align ourselves with things we want to manifest, only now in our consumer driven culture we focus on brand names, video game characters, and other icons linked to products and entertainment. The need is still there, but instead of exploring ideas and concepts that are truly outside ourselves we are attaching ourselves to concepts and ideas conceived of by another individual or group, and they often have a manipulative agenda to have us buy into their product or service line.
I am wondering how this affects our base spirituality. Providing products and services isn't wrong, we need each other to specialise, one person can't make everything that each individual needs to survive as a collective whole, it's not how our species works. But can't we go to far? Get lost in what is really important?
So anyway, I wonder how this relates to the concepts of demons, and fear. Studies show that people are more isolated, and have less close friends than they did when I was a kid. The way people communicate now is less personal, more surface information. My friend was trying online dating for a while and found most of the men preferred to talk via text. While they were very chatty with that form of communication, they were monosyllabic, stilted, and uncomfortable. I know that's not true for everyone, but it seems to me a growing trend. How does this relate to folklore, and fear? I'm trying to find a relationship. People fear what is unknown to them, and if there's a growing trend of people not connecting and fearing close personal interaction then I personally think this is what may be leading to why eating disorders, depression, and others mental disorders are on the rise.
The arts is the only gateway I know to lead people outside of themselves. So back to folklore. Stories is how people illustrate the relationships between ourselves and the rest of the world. Even if the story is about mathematics or quantum physics, it's still a story. As I write I'll work to illustrate the relationships of archetype, and uncover how the relationship or lack there of manifests in how we connect and relate to ourselves and each other.
Does this make sense? Heh, does it matter? ... probably not yet.
So from Ethopia, here's Getatchew Mekuria & The Ex & Guests, song Tezalegn Yetentu
I find things in life have a rhythm. I also notice that people panic when they think they're supposed to be doing something else instead of listening to the rhythm. Like my friend who freaks out because they are no longer involved in a relationship & feels that they must move on right now. If there's no person in their life, there is something wrong... or another who has reached a certain age and worries that they're not where they're supposed to be in life (not married, their career hasn't developed the way they expected, or their life just has not gone as planned). It's taken me longer than I would have wished, but I realize that things happen when they happen. Relax and just move forward and don't worry what others think or listen to what others say about what you should be or shouldn't be. Being yourself (and yourself truly without pushing your shit onto others) is really the only way to be happy, I find.
I had a dream about a little girl who had a talent, but her mother sent her to a surgeon to make her beautiful instead. She sat in a dentist chair, white medical tape on her forehead, cheeks, and chin to pull her skin back. Mother was at her ear telling her who she should be and what to think. I was thinking about how so many children get lost this way. Parents want their kids to be happy, and they do the best they can, but still, it's amazing what fear can make a person do.
What I wonder is if this has any relation to the preliminary work I'm doing for the book. People who are not really all that interested in that foo-foo pagan new agey stuff still relate to totems. Logos, team mascots, 'power colors', and the like have a psychological effect on us. We may choose a favorite animal as a child because we like how they look and what they can do. Perhaps subconsciously we want to be like them, to run, or fly, or fight, or to know what they know. From what I noticed this is less talked or thought about but changes little as an adult. We still align ourselves with things we want to manifest, only now in our consumer driven culture we focus on brand names, video game characters, and other icons linked to products and entertainment. The need is still there, but instead of exploring ideas and concepts that are truly outside ourselves we are attaching ourselves to concepts and ideas conceived of by another individual or group, and they often have a manipulative agenda to have us buy into their product or service line.
I am wondering how this affects our base spirituality. Providing products and services isn't wrong, we need each other to specialise, one person can't make everything that each individual needs to survive as a collective whole, it's not how our species works. But can't we go to far? Get lost in what is really important?
So anyway, I wonder how this relates to the concepts of demons, and fear. Studies show that people are more isolated, and have less close friends than they did when I was a kid. The way people communicate now is less personal, more surface information. My friend was trying online dating for a while and found most of the men preferred to talk via text. While they were very chatty with that form of communication, they were monosyllabic, stilted, and uncomfortable. I know that's not true for everyone, but it seems to me a growing trend. How does this relate to folklore, and fear? I'm trying to find a relationship. People fear what is unknown to them, and if there's a growing trend of people not connecting and fearing close personal interaction then I personally think this is what may be leading to why eating disorders, depression, and others mental disorders are on the rise.
The arts is the only gateway I know to lead people outside of themselves. So back to folklore. Stories is how people illustrate the relationships between ourselves and the rest of the world. Even if the story is about mathematics or quantum physics, it's still a story. As I write I'll work to illustrate the relationships of archetype, and uncover how the relationship or lack there of manifests in how we connect and relate to ourselves and each other.
Does this make sense? Heh, does it matter? ... probably not yet.
So from Ethopia, here's Getatchew Mekuria & The Ex & Guests, song Tezalegn Yetentu
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
What's Next?
So I'm making a book.
This has been in the planning/brain cookin' stage for a while now. Basically, here's the plan; This will contain 30 images, & once complete I'll publish to LuLu, which will distribute to Amazon, and through that, the whole world. BWAHAHAHAHA!
Yah! It'll be sweet!
Now to make it...
I've been moving in a different direction artistically. This next series will be as much about the method of creation as the work itself will be for me. All will start as a drawing, that I will digitally manipulate. The purpose of this will be for control, and because I may produce these as prints after the fact... and the imagery will work better in this kind of format. The source of these images will be from visions from meditation and alligorical stories from my memory, and/or both. That's the rub, I've never done a body of work based off of my personal mythology. I think it will make for some interesting viewing. Also I find that if it's something that I'm hesitant to do, then I should probably go do it.
This has been in the planning/brain cookin' stage for a while now. Basically, here's the plan; This will contain 30 images, & once complete I'll publish to LuLu, which will distribute to Amazon, and through that, the whole world. BWAHAHAHAHA!
Yah! It'll be sweet!
Now to make it...
I've been moving in a different direction artistically. This next series will be as much about the method of creation as the work itself will be for me. All will start as a drawing, that I will digitally manipulate. The purpose of this will be for control, and because I may produce these as prints after the fact... and the imagery will work better in this kind of format. The source of these images will be from visions from meditation and alligorical stories from my memory, and/or both. That's the rub, I've never done a body of work based off of my personal mythology. I think it will make for some interesting viewing. Also I find that if it's something that I'm hesitant to do, then I should probably go do it.
To give you an idea of what you may expect, this print is a precursor to what's coming next. The symbols in the print (titled Kingsnake, 18" x 24") are alchmey based. The snake, the egg, and the young woman (virgin) represent fertility, new beginings, and the snake crowned in the Oborous (tail biting) position speak of rebirth... and maybe some other things that I just don't want to tell you because if I did... well that would be too easy. I prefer the folks who view my work to come up with their own definitions.
Yeah, I'm a bit of a nerd when it comes to obscure symbols, that's the other advantage of the book format, I can write a blurb or prose to illumiate the subject for the viewer. In the next few weeks/months from time to time I'll preview parts of what I'm working on, & you're welcome to give feedback of course.
This is going to be my main focus, and I don't plan on having any other shows at this time so I can just work on this. But stuff comes up, and of course I'll tell you about it if it does.
Until next time, here's Billy Bragg & Wilco
This is going to be my main focus, and I don't plan on having any other shows at this time so I can just work on this. But stuff comes up, and of course I'll tell you about it if it does.
Until next time, here's Billy Bragg & Wilco
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)