Truly truly truly outrageous...

I was recently invited to participate in a nearby show where artists were asked to create an image based on a toy from childhood. I tried to think of things that were influential to me while also thinking of the way I make art. I had been doing so many hair portraits lately so I immediately thought of Jem and The Holograms. Do you remember her? She's truly outrageous. I always imagined myself growing up and dressing exactly like her, in the fluffy skirts with larger than life pink hair and a big star drawn on my face. I think Jem's color palette has definitely had a huge influence on my work. So for this piece I pay tribute to her. It was supposed to be an editioned piece so I started out with a very small run of hair portraits but now I am going into each one and personalizing them. I have including text from the theme song and now I can't get the song out of my head. I would like for the portraits to be displayed together rather than only showing one piece. I am still in the middle of working on them so please excuse the terrible photos of the work lying on the floor.

What toy was influential to you when you were little?

Etsyians Among Us

Since I graduated I have been working a lot at home in my studio. Lately I have had a lot of print exchanges due so it has forced me out of my private space and into the printmaking studio at school. I'm lucky to still be able to use the shop every once in a while when I really need it.

I was nervous at first to start working around people again but once I did I was reminded of why I love printmaking so much in the first place. The need for a shop helps create a community. When I work at home I make all kind of decisions about my work in a bubble. No one is around to give their input. At a shop, there is always someone who is willing to take a look at what you are doing and give an opinion. That's how I met Hesper. We were both working quietly on our own stuff but I was freaking out about potentially making a mistake on my print so I called her over to take a look. She gave me some great input and after that I was much more comfortable about what I was doing.

I complimented her handmade bag and discovered that she has her own Etsy shop where she makes bags out of up-cycled fabrics. I love the different styles that she makes and the materials are beautiful. Check out Subversive Seamstress for much more.

And if you are having trouble with your own work and feel like you're working in a bubble go find someone who is willing to step in and say if a color is wrong or a line is not working. It can make all the difference!

Revival

My beautiful friend Cameron was recently featured on this blog. I showed you Cameron's work back in November when she had her deliciously inspiring BFA show. Now Kelsey Sykes of the cute and vintage blog Revival Boutique is showing off Cameron's personal style. I think it's obvious from seeing Cameron's house and style how much her life informs her work and vice versa. Cameron's an amazing girl who is destined to do amazing things. Check her out here.

Hey look! That's an old print by me!

Art2Love

Before I start really digging into my SGC experience I want to share an artist's work that will blow your photographic mind! I met Kimberly Waite through her boyfriend Kyle Turner who is a grad school classmate. Kim studies photo in Bloomington, IN. When she put together this website I finally got to see the kind of work she was doing and I loved it. This is the kind of work that makes me wish I knew so much more about photography. Her layering and combinations of photo and drawing makes me salivate. And even though salivating is not very lady-like I'm not ashamed to admit it.

This particular body of work really caught my eye. It's titled:

A Lesson In Socioeconomics. This is Kim's statement:

This work was created through my experience of growing up in a blue-collar town. The imagery I am building spawns from a mix of personal situations, stereotypes, as well as statistics based around lower income households. Each piece expresses my interpretation of an issue that surrounds growing up or living in the lower tier of society. I approach topics such as labor, child care, health, religion, finances, leisure, etc. with familiarity as I attempt to represent the working class culture as I witness and interpret it.

See much much more from this body and others at Kim's website here.

SGC and Back

I'm back! I was off for four days at SGC, a printmaking conference held this year in St. Louis, MO. It was lots of non-stop fun. It was weird to get home and sit down and do nothing for a few hours. The best thing about SGC is that it really gets your art adrenaline going and when you leave you're ready to print the artworld red. I have tons of ideas and lots of excitement. I think I am officially out of my post-grad slump!

There are many posts that I am preparing for the future. I have several artists to feature and am working on those posts now. For now, here's a quick run-down of my trip as told by Iphone photos...

Right before my trip I was working on this print for an exchange. I like the prints all together like this but am not certain they work well on their own.

I saw this delicious zine show and was reminded of how much I love zines and want to make more more more.

I finally got to see a Squeak Carnwath print in person. I almost fell over. She was my absolute favorite in undergrad. Seeing this piece reminded me to keep her as my favorite now.

I also got to see this beautiful piece by my undergrad professor. Sorry it's so blurry. Nicole Hand makes really beautiful juicy etchings.Here's my friend Rachael and I meeting Tony Fitzpatrick. I'm pretty sure I totally geeked out in front of him. Never mix drinking beer and meeting one of your favorite printmakers. It just equals nerdienss. Oh well, he was a super nice guy and makes fantastic work. So does Rachael.
I took glamour shots with my friend in this classy bar bathroom. The wall paper was flocked!
Firecracker Press was beautiful and everything I want in a studio.
I got to see this lovely girl in a lovely hat.
Sneak peak at arts that will be featured here soon...

One of the highlights of the trip was seeing this amazing couple get married. I cried.
And I was involved in one of the most intense drawing contests ever with some pretty amazing printmakers including my good friend Adrienne who I always miss.

And then I came home and my little rabbit was hopping around and happy to see me!

Much much more to come. I met so many amazing artists and can't wait to start putting together features for them.

SGC forever....

So Many Things!

I have been a pretty busy girl lately. Mostly because I've been making lots of art!! Here is a pic of my bunny in the studio critiquing some work. She has a masters degree in awesome.

I thought I would just show you some things quickly before I make myself an egg sandwich and rush off to work. Pretty soon I need to do some posts on some pretty neat people doing pretty neat work including a new artful couple!

Okay.... here are some things...

I'm just MAD! about these little houses and you can be, too. They are in my shop here. Check out the vintage goodness!

I have a couple of in-progress things happening in my studio. I have got to put together a crit group so I can get some feedback before I pull these puppies to a close. From looking at these not-great photos can you tell me anything? Suggestions??

And here is a piece that is actually finished! I think I would like to list it in my shop but I also would like to get prints made so I can sell it cheaply. I'm pretty satisfied with this piece. It's one of the few ones that I've made lately that really feels finished.

My new favorite color is gold.

Next week I'm going to the SGC printmaking conference in St. Louis. I'm super excited to see printmakers in one place again. Will you be there?

Okay. It's egg sandwich time!

yummy scrumptious yummies

When I first started grad school I had some pretty fantastic neighbors living in the apartment below me. They were three boys who loved playing original nintendo. When they first saw my artwork they all agreed that I had to see this game Fantasy Zone 2 for a Sega system. I fell madly in love as I am often prone to do with anything involving rainbows and flower worlds. I would often make the boys play the game while I sat back with my sketchbook and drew these amazing graphics. Now every once in a while I like to bring up images from this game and remember the time when my work looked like video games and electronic music. I would like to get back to that aesthetic again. I just have to find my Daft Punk CD.

Happy Weekend!

inspurrrrrration

There are certain buzz words that really send a jolt of inspiration through me. Heatherette is one of them. As soon as I think about the design team I get an itch in my hands to make something. I love everything about their aesthetic sensibility. It's like all my favorite kinds of artwork come to life.

I also loooove their muse Amande Lepore. In this picture she is the one on the far right. After scrolling through pics of her on google image I realize Amanda really is the original Lady Gaga. At least fashion wise. Through working with Heatherette she has worn some pretty amazing pieces. Though Amanda isn't as mainstream as Lady Gaga I think in some ways she really set the stage for LG to wear the things she wears.

About four or five years ago I came across this amazing video of Amanda created by Heatherette and David Lachapelle in collaboration with MAC. I fell so hard in love with its glamorous weirdness. In the past few years I have been trying to find the video but to no avail. Finally today I found it! It's still super weird but so inspiring. I don't want to post it here because Amanda is completely nude in the video. But you should definitely watch it. This is the link. Let me know what you think!

I hope you are just as inspired as I am!