Recording day!

Just recorded our first podcast, isn't posted or edited yet but had to tell you. #artypants

The only healthy addiction is the persuit of knowledge.

Some great quotes about art from some of the greatest artists ever.

(excerpt from my journal)

Sketching Leia (again)

Sometimes a certain character just speaks to us. 

One year since the first time I tattooed

It has been one year since the day I first tattooed someone. I hardly know how to describe it and it's too late at night so I'll explain that exciting story later. For now, just know it's my anniversary, and I'm still very much in love.

finding artistry in the world of makekup

There is artistry everywhere, often where we never thought to look. Sometimes I close myself off to new experiences because they're "not something I like to do", but really they're new so I don't really know yet whether I like them or not. 

My makeup goal has been to make cheap makeup stretch for as long as possible, and to wear as little of it as possible so I can sleep in. The "look" I go for is roughly "look at my eyes so you don't notice my big nose, thin lips, undefined cheek and chin bones, and bad skin" and probably will be for life.

In casual conversation I mentioned an interest in makeup and confessed my lack of knowledge to my mom who got me a gift card to Sephora for us to get made up by professionals and get some info.

Right off the bat, this is a vast world I know nothing about except what I picked up in commercials, a few friends on the internet, stage makeup for theater, and of course my art background. While we waited for our appointments, my mom looked around for deals on products she likes, but without knowing these products I wandered. I looked at the displays and found them beautiful rows of colors and shades, only including the prismatic particles that flatter and glitter on the body. I found it to be a really interesting color study, and may go back and take more pictures another time (or just pillage the internet) for these types of spectrums and dissect what's omitted.A sweet girl gave me a skin care regimen which I understood some of, and was grateful because I have horrible skin and needed to learn a bit about how the other half lives, so to speak. I imagined girls doing this whole process which took 30 minutes, even refining that to half could be burdensome for me. As it is, I hardly remember to wash my mascara off at night.

Then the makeup makeover bit began. I was paired up with a really talented artist named Kimberly MacPhee (she's on about.me, check her out *by clicking here*) who was really informative and patient with my lack of preparedness. I don't mean to advertise the Stanford Sephora, or teach anyone anything, because as I said I know nothing and have no comparison on which to base a review. I want to record what I learned because as an artist this shit is fascinating.

• As with other arts, rank of importance seems to be as follows; skill/technique, equipment, supplies. Like the artist's skill, then their tattoo machine, lastly their ink. 
• Health=Beauty and Beauty=Health. If your skin is healthier, it looks better because we are attracted to health. Everyone I spoke to agreed that stopping acne starts with hydration.
• As in watercolor, color choice doesn't seem as important as definition of form. When watercoloring I can make a girl's face yellow and purple and she looks beautiful as long as I define her flattering features with distinct shapes. I have very bushy eyebrows and when she said she wanted to pencil them in I laughed and said "sure, you're the artist". Instead of looking bigger, they defined my eyesocket better and made the overall form look more precise and therefore more appealing despite being larger.
• Makeup Artists are a lot like Tattoo Artists. We see clients everyday who sometimes know us, often don't. They come with a level of expectation without knowing our work or our background. Despite any flaws in their skin or body, we have to work intimately in contact with them to change what they look like without insulting the flaws in their appearance or health we may be addressing, avoiding, or covering up. We are expected to crank out miracles with artistic mastery without letting our personal artistry interfere with the vision of our clients, no matter how unreasonable or against our own intent. Guns for hire.
• Just like in art, brushes and media are fucking expensive, yo.

Here's what I looked like leaving the shop. I didn't take one inside the store because the lighting in there is very unfortunately crap and the natural light is better. For those who don't know me, this is as good as it gets- I'm not a model, so yeah, she did some awesome work for me. This morning I looked at my new makeup brushes with bewilderment, wanting to pick them like paintbrushes, but resisting. Barely. My friend *Marissa is a brilliant MUA you can see here* (not in California anymore or I'd have sought her help first) and she suggested I try out all the brushes and use all the shit and post my clown face up and I'm going to. Not right now, but soon. I'll keep you posted because I'm sure it'll be hilarious (and a little weird) like the rest of my life.

Time Catcher

There are lot of dreamcatchers being tattooed, I see them all the time. That was one of the first tattoos I ever wanted but I never got one, possibly because of money or possibly I wasn't really sure. I have had chronic nightmares for years, since puberty onward. I can remember one or two dreams, but mostly they're all nightmares. I don't see monsters technically, or fantasy worlds, and I can't seem to get control like some people. My ex-husband used to tell me that if something bothered him in a dream, he'd pull out a gun and shoot it because it's in his mind and he's in control of it. Whether that's true or not, I don't have that kind of control when I'm unconcious. I have a dream catcher hanging above my bed with three little ones hanging from it; all rainbow colored and made in Tibet-in-Exile. I love it, and every so often I cleanse it with sage, but it doesn't help me much.

Yet the story of dreamcatchers is so mystifying and personal. The concept of such a practical solution to an irrational problem, that one may use a net to catch bad dreams. Simply put the net in the room you sleep in, and the device does the task. That is crazy, but yet comforting. 

I still want one someday, but I hate the idea of having a tattoo on me that some other person has, because I'm an artist and that's nuts when I can make as much art as I want to fit my body. I have been toying with modifications of this classic talisman and thought, "What if it caught bad time instead of bad dreams? What if it let the good times through, but the bad would remain until cleansed out with sage like I do with my dreamcatcher? Is that any crazier?" I don't think it's crazier, I want to think of more now. 

What else is inside our life but out of our control and needs a net to catch the bad, but let the good through?

Sketch Mob Redwood City

The newest incarnation of our impromptu sketch parties has arrived; the sketch mob. A few friends descending on Redwood City to talk about life and art, to discuss tools and methods, to eat food and drink coffee to their hearts' content, and to draw together in the little time we can share within this busy world. 

I'm a witch and believe in the power of energy transference. When you want any opportunity or "luck" (which doesn't exist), your best bet is to release that energy into the universe and it'll come back stronger, some say even three to ten times stronger. It sounds like hippy-mumbo-jumbo, I know, but consider it a moment with me. 

The book Show Your Work by Austin Kleon says “Make stuff you love and talk about stuff you love and you’ll attract people who love that kind of stuff. It’s that simple.” This is a rudimentary Art World concept that is universally understood with every artist I've talked to about it.

When you want money or work, you can go online and update your resume and send it to ATTN: Mr. Whomever but you'll be unnoticed. But if you go out in the world and offer to help some people in (or related to) your industry, you'll make new contacts in a positive light, learn more about your field to stay relevant, and open your sight to more opportunities than you would sitting at home on LinkedIn. 

When you want love, you can scour the internet, swiping right and waiting for the next few years, only barely settling on people who may deserve a meet-up. Or, you can spend time with your friends and loved ones helping to enrich their relationships and collaborating in their lives. When you do that, you'll meet the casual acquaintances of these connections which will be stronger matches than any anal-gorythm, you'll be more enriched and confident when you meet new people because of your buff social-muscles, and you won't reek of desperation.

My mother is a Christian, and we enjoy sharing the overlaps between our faiths. She told me the Bible reinforces this Pagan and Art World concept too: "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."(Luke 6:38 NIV)  I think that the most fundamentally critical ideals (the only ones worth fighting for) are echoed in all the great religions and throughout the spiritual pit of every agnostic/athiest/scientist. The message here is that what you put out comes back to you three-fold, ten-fold, "runing over", more than you'd imagine. But it takes the faith to act on it.

So when I realized I wanted people to spend more time with me making art, I needed to give more of my time to others. I spent years drawing alone and I enjoy every day that I spend tattooing with my fellow artists, but sometimes I just want to jam with the band instead of playing the hits. Our sketch parties used to be a few friends around my kitchen table, but I'm bored to death of being at home and I think art is better when you go out into the world and find inspiration that's new and interesting to you (because that interest is passed to your viewer!)

George Flores showed me this awesome red drafting pencil he got at the Sanrio Store. I have to get one, and other colors if they've got 'em! It is 2B so it's really soft, and being red (instead of black) it lays down light and easy. The pencil nib is an oval so you can hold at a slant to get great text or line effects, similarly to a calligraphy pen or tattoo shader needle. I highly reccomend it. We were discussing the fact that some products available in Asian marketplaces haven't been adopted with American artists yet and that's a shame. I'd love to become aware of other tools and materials I'm not using simply because they're not in my regional art stores. This kind of discussion, and the sudden awareness of new information is unavailable to a solitary artist. Even with a full world of inspiration surrounding, each one of us can only be as good as our exposure. Without contributing your insights to others, you risk missing opportunities to improve your process, content, or frequency of work. Surround yourself with people who are better than you, and you will be your best self.

"That's my mathematician who examines problems which I put before him and checks their validity. You see, I am not myself a good mathematician." Albert Einstein

The shot deer I drew "Oh deer" was a quick sketch using reference on my phone I had used for a tattoo design last week. The arrow is an obvious nod/ripoff of Frida Khalo, and the bad pun is a nod/ripoff of my boyfriend Steve Silver and his awesome cartoons with captions (which can be seen in the background of the picture showing George's red pencil. )

I hope to find some local businesses open late we can crash next week. Any suggestions? Leave a comment!