Sunday Music: The Runaways

Recently I watched The Runaways starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning. I have to say, though I wasn't expecting too, I really enjoyed this movie! It is based on the story of the all-girl rock band that rose to fame in the last 1970s. The Runaways became a hit in 1977 thanks to there single "Cherry Bomb" in Japan.

So I have two videos today, both are of the there single "Cherry Bomb".  The first video is of The Runways in Japan in 1977.

The second is from the movie(embedding has been disabled click link). I gained some respect for both the lead actresses, and if you watch both videos I think you might see why.

A la Prochaine!

Burning the Midnight Oil

I've been writing the silliest poems. There very short and are usually written near bedtime or right as I'm waking up. Proof, I think, that my brain never really shuts down. I sometimes fall asleep thinking about all the things I need to dothen wake up and continue my internal convorsations. Either that, or that my subconscious mind runs wild at night when my conscious mind rest.

Have a poem:

Dear Mother,

Can you warm our cores,
so that we can free ourselves from our bidding layers

So that Spring can bring me hope and wash away my troubles,

So that your parks can turn green again,
instead of the muddy brown

So that summer can lull me to sleep at night

So that the boys can chase after me in my short skirts

Most importantly trhough,
 so that I can walk around my apartment in my undies!

But only if it pleases you can you do these things dear Mother,

...Dear Mother of all things green.

A la prochaine!

Maps

I've been doing some thinking about where I want to travel to this fall. I'm staying in the US. This time. I've never been farther then NJ, and have only been there because my father used to live there. I can't plan with out some kind of visual inspiration so I went to Barnes and Nobles and brought a map of the USA last week. Here's what I'm planning on doing.

From NY I'm going to go too:

• Charlotte, NC
• Then on to Virgina(where my father now lives),
• Then Baltimore(to see one of my uncle, I have two favorites. the other lives in Chicago)
• New Jersey(to see my nephew)
• and then back home to NY.

 If you look at all of these places on a map you'll see that I'll be going in a straight path from NC onward. That's kind of why I chose these places. That and the fact that I will only need to stay in a hotel in NC, all the other places I can stay with family! So that's the plan, and though plans change I hope this one doesn't.

A la prochaine!

A Mental Check-In

(Photo Taken 6/2010 in Brooklyn, NY)

So its been maybe a week since I decided that I wasn't going to do project 365 this year. I stand by that decision still. It won't have felt right doing the project any other way then I had originally planned. What's bugging me now is that all the things I said I was going to do instead I haven't been doing. I've "reinvented" this blog over a couple of times.

Recently I decided on a topic that I wanted to stick with. Art, duh, ofcourse. I wanted to start interviewing all kinds of artists(I'm doing it!) I wanted to start doing photography again for myself(most importantly!), and I wanted to start going to see more art. I love opening receptions at galleries! I love going to museums, and I hardly ever do these things.

I haven't been taking photographs as much as I would like too. My bag is stuffed with to many textbooks these days. When I do take out my camera, though,its to take an image(s) that I've thought long and about. I'm happy with the direction that I'm going in. I haven't been going to opening/museums because at the end of the day I'm exhausted.

I think the reason I don't always accomplish the goals I set for myself is because I set unrealistic goals. Yes I want to go run around NYC marveling at everything, but I don't have the time! I'm a working full-time college student who WILL be graduating at the end of the summer!

So here are my new goals for this blog:

• At the beginning of every month I'll post an Artist Talk.
• Once a month I'll go to an opening reception or museum and marvel at everything!
• Twice the month I'll go exploring with my camera. I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to do this yet. Should I go exploring in the city(randomly) or find free events to go to? Like live music shows.

I'm keep my list short for now. If I can manage doing these things then I'll add more. That's what being responsible is all about. Right?

A la prochaine!

Bob Marley on a Sunday Morning

Morning All!
When I started this post it was going to be all Bob Marley. All(or most) of the videos of Bob Marley performing live that I want to post I couldn't get the code to embed. So this post became a tribute to Mr. Marley.

Click the link to see Bob Marley perform Jamming live!

A la prochaine!

My Mini Vacation

 This is what I did last weekend. I ate, I drank, I watch movies(and season 1 of Veronica Mar) on netflix, and I neglected my studies.  I was puppy-sitting a wonderful beagle. The first night he let me have the bed all to my self, but the second night we spooned. That was the highlight of my weekend.

"Ralphie, drop it!"

This dog showed me a a couple of things about stealing food of peoples plates while there in the room. Some times while there right next to you! 1: with you eyes closed located direction of people food. 2: Open eyes while stretching and looking around to see whose watching. If your being watched stare at them until they get bored (or feel uncomfortable) and look away. 3: trying not to make much noise slide of couch and move towards table, don't rush its a dead give away! 4: rest your face on table and grab food. If you get caught don't worry the fight isn't over. Resume staring, throw in a whine, your bond to get something!

A la prochaine!

A Peek into my Sketchbook

Just a small peek into my sketchbook to see what I did in my life drawing 1 class last semester. Not to bad for a girl that has only taken drawing 100, and who used to hate drawing so much so that she was to afraid to even try it. I'm working on my hands, feet, and faces the most this semester. I'm tired of making faceless drawings.

I need to find a place I can go to that quiet with alot of space so that I can draw more. The only way I'll get better is if I practice alot more then I have in the past. I need to find some way to motivate my self outside of the classroom also. Contrary to what my professors tell me I don't think I have a natural talent to draw. I love it though so it's something that I what to become good at. One of my last goals this semester in life drawing 2 is to stop looking at other peoples work. It messes me up every time!

A la prochaine!

Project 365: Day 26/ The End

I had a plan, but things never go exactly as you want them to go. My project 365 didn't get funded. Boo hoo. Though I am disappointed I'll get over it. Just because one part of my plan fell through doesn't mean I'm going to give up on the things I want to accomplish this year. Though this is going to be a little bit harder now. I'm still going to have my degree by the end of the summer. I'm still going to travel somewhere outside of NY twice.  At the end of this year I'm still going to create my first book.

I'm just going to have to be a tad more creative now that I don't have any extra funds. Money is VERY tight for me these days! Actually money is always tight for me. My time is also very limited so project 365 is going to be postponed for now. Let me explain what that means. When I decided to do this project I wanted to do it a certain way. I wanted to do it with instant film. That's just not possible right now.  So though I will be taking alot of photographs, and sharing them here, I won't be doing a photography every day. For the majority of the time I'll be using my digital camera. A soon as I can I will buy an external hard drive.

At the end of the year my book is going to be a little bit different, now that I'm not taking a photograph every day. For now though I'm keeping the details of that my little secret.

 A la prochaine!

Artist Talk: Mike Estabrook

Who?

Mike Estabrook

Where are you from?
A little town on the Mississippi River in Illinois called Quincy.

What do you call yourself (writer, rapper, photographer, etc)?
I am a visual artist who makes drawings, animations, paintings and installations.

How do you create (your inspiration)?
A really, really wide range of things inspire me: politics, mythology, books I've read, movies I've seen, music, public and personal events- the list could go on forever. So many different things catch my attention and fire up my passions, my biggest challenge is how to focus all this inspiration into something that makes a little bit of sense.

As to how I do it... Sometimes I just sit down and draw whatever comes to mind. This is the most fun, but it doesn't satisfy when I get a bug about something more specific; whether it's some historical figure I want to explore, a movie clip that has a meaningful resonance, or a couple of ongoing, frustrating wars that just won't end. In these cases, I'll usually have some kind of brain-flare, one in which the subject at hand fits perfectly with some parallel idea that informs both of them in a weird way. I then think about how best to embody this idea: as a video, drawing, painting, or installation. The way it gains form should enhance the original concept, but not be so tied to it that the spontaneity is taken away.

Why do you do it?
I have always been somebody who draws. I think I was drawing pictures before I even learned how to talk. My way of interpreting and dialoguing with the world has always been a visual thing. Art is a voice I use to praise, critique, or simply yell at the world.

Are you currently working on anything?
Yes, I am working on several projects right now: a bestiary of extinct animals (that I'm doing with a collective called Artcodex), a painting of Karl Marx fused with Mark Twain (wandering, on a tour like Dante's, through several circles of hell, and a video installation I'll be finishing in February about Ostriches sticking their heads in the sand while Dodos do not.

Advice you would give a young Artist?
Know that being an artist is a hard road, and be prepared for some bad days. Most of the time, though, have a blast! Don't be afraid to do the boring marketing part of art, it sucks but you need to do it. Definitely have fun, travel, always look, always think, always be amazed, and never, ever take yourself too seriously!

I plan on traveling outside of NYC twice this year. Where would you recommend I travel to in the US?
Portland, Seattle, and the Olympic Rain forest.
New Orleans.
All around the south-west.
San Francisco.

To view Mike's work click here.