flower power

I've been lucky enough to have a couple fun flower-y projects come my way as of late - the one above was actually just for fun though! Sometimes I like to pretend that I own a line of good smelling body products and that I get to choose the scents and design the packaging... and someone else does the rest of the work. Wouldn't that be ideal? Doesn't eucalyptus have the prettiest leaves? All answers point to yes.

Other floral things happening in my life currently:

On Saturday I took a quick jaunt out to the ocean to do a little boogie boarding (newest obsession) and Gwen Stefani ogling (she was RIGHT. THERE) and then headed back inland so I could be Katie's official floral crown-maker at the Bust Craftacular. The whole thing was MAJORLY fun, there were cute ladies and amazing goods everywhere. In case you want to drop some hard earned cash on something pretty and fun, here are some of the vendors I was crushing on:

Selvedge Dry Goods (for your fashion truck-y, watermelon shorts-y needs) | Sienne Josselin (for your earthy illustration needs) | Hannah Nance (for your Babe Alert print-y needs) | Paola Loves to Shop (for your dreamy jewelry needs) | Small Adventure (for your gorgeously illustrated cards-y needs)

And DUH, the Good Twin for your best letterpressed cards ever-y needs!

And here are two photos from my trip to Michigan - a gorgeous letter "B" made by my future sister-in-law's sister (what is that? is there a term for that?) and a happily full windowbox in my parent's backyard. If you ever wonder where my love for mint and teal comes from... well.. it's probably because I grew up in a perfect minty green house.

performance anxiety

nude with skeleton / source 

I'm working on a piece for the next Light Grey Art Lab show called Girls: Fact or Fiction. Each artist chose a real or imagined woman and is doing a portrait of her. After thinking for a long time about the many ladies I love, I decided upon a challenge. Marina Abramovic (a-bra-moh-vitch, in case you were wondering) is considered one of the most influential performance artists of all time, and even if you're not a big fan of performance art I can guarantee her work is going to move you.

rest energy / source

A lot of her work deals with the limits of the body and the role of the observer. Some of it gets a little hairy - she wasn't afraid of hurting herself for the sake of art.  If you're really curious about her you should watch this UH-MAZE-ING documentary made about her most recent show at the MOMA: the Artist is Present. Here's a trailer, which is pretty NSFW, by the by.

Trailer - Marina Abramovic The Artist is Present from Show of Force on Vimeo.

Bryan and I were lucky enough to catch this show when we visited New York last year. The featured piece, where Marina sits in front of volunteer audience members without speaking during all open gallery hours, was powerful. There's even a tumblr dedicated to all the people who sat across from Marina and shed a couple tears.

It's going to be a challenge to create a deserving portrait of this amazing and talented woman, that's for sure!!

oh, did I forget to mention that she is totally gorrrrgeous dahling? /  source

busy work

phew. It's been a long couple weeks. Things started up on Wednesday two weeks, and didn't slow down until Friday! There were birthday parties, grilled cheeses, karaoke, haircuts, brunch, shopping trips, multiple visits to the neighborhood bar, parents in town, pokemon to be seen, museums visited and SO so so much food consumed.

I'm pooped. So here, look at some photos I've taken on my phone. I know, I've been a delinquent blogger - I promise to be better!

brunch at bar abilene with the ladies - I'll wager it was one of the best ever!

I got this dress from modcloth and this awesome poetry package from my best online poetry buddy lisa cicarello on the same day! SERENDIPITY. Those little square poems are stickers... I can't wait to use them!

Photolettering's amazing brochure, Aoife ready to attack.

general Pokemon Battle Royal bad ass-ery with Bill and Chris, plus my Omanyte and a little peek-a-boo from Marisa Seguin's Porygon. You can see all the amazing pieces here!

Katie and I got haircuts at the same time while she was in town - it was adorable. Also adorable: this oven mitt my parents brought for me.

let's end this post on a food related note. Froyo with mochi, grilled buffalo chicken and blue cheese sammies.

ladie's night

Jessie Schneider

Going to art school has to be one of the greatest times of my life. It's so wonderful to meet people who really care about creating and actively discovering great artwork, past and present. I met a lot of great folks at MCAD, and have continued really meaningful relationships with a lot of these folks beyond school. Recently I've been reconnecting with a few that I haven't seen as much since graduation, and man. There are a lot of really talented ladies! Of course there were talented dudes too, but since I'm a lady and I love ladies, I think its time that some of my favorite MCAD girlz got the spotlight!

(I'm only posting a few, but I should seriously make this a regular series... when I went back to edit this I realized that I left out SO MANY talented MCAD women. Keep your eyes peeled!)



 
Jessie Schneider again, this girl has an enviable knowledge of color.... and also has some very enviable hair. Seriously, I think I need her hair cut.
 
Kelly Abeln is a whiz at skee ball and illustrates regularly for ROOKIE, making her my hero
 Sami Foust, you make graphic design and rollerskating look like a breeze.
 
Carla lives in the apartment below me, makes amazing/haunting photographs and is the best dancer you've ever seen. 
 Annnnnd of course, my best ladies: 
Katie Wilson is one half of Dude & Chick. She's visiting in a few weeks from LA and my excitement is tenfold!
 
You probably know Allison from her blog, dotluv, but I met Alli BEFORE the blog - we've been friends since our early college years! She's a fabtastic photographer, but I didn't have to tell you that.