#My Old Art Class Clay Artworks

[bluepoodle7]

#MyOldArtClassClayArtworks #Scratcho #ZeldaOc #Wolfos #ClayArtworks #PurpleElephantPlushFigure #PlushPals

These are images of the elephant plush figure.

The colorful ribbon on the trunk needs to be hot glued back in place and the saddle has wear.

Part 1

A blog about obscurity stuff, plushies and food. on Tumblr

[buck-yyyy]

hi yes hello i'm here to share some of my favorite artworks with all of you because i love art with my whole heart (ew rhyming) and i just wanna be able to put that somewhere, yk?

Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe, Monet i've only just discovered this painting today, but my god is it beautiful. i'm not even the biggest fan of impressionism, but something about the dappled lighting and the clothing and the style and the heart drawn on the tree and- okay. it's also quite interesting because i'm not entirely sure what it's really called? when you look up the name, another painting comes up as well, and they both seem to be monet's work, both titled Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe (luncheon on the grass, i believe?), so i'm not entirely sure. either way, i love it.

2. The Calling of St. Matthew, Caravaggio so, fun fact about me- i absolutely adore baroque art, and caravaggio in particular. something about his style of lighting is so beautiful to me, the way that the faces and bodies are lit up as opposed to the really dark background is so <333 (TENEBRISM BAYBEE!!!!!)

3. The Ecstasy of St. Teresa, Bernini ohhhhh, god. god i love this sculpture. first of all- THAT'S MARBLE!!! THAT'S FUCKIN MARBLE!!! secondly, there's so much incredible detail in everything. the exaggerated texture in the folds of the fabric creates such a dramatic feel to the piece, which i LOVE- and, fun fact! there's a special window up above and behind the piece, out of view, so that light will stream in through it and highlight the piece, looking like light from heaven up above. IS THAT NOT SO COOL??? there's such a fascinating erotic undertone to the entire thing as well- the posing, the expressions, the everything. this was one of my favorite works that we went over in the art history class i took last year :)

4. The Ambum Stone, unknown guys. guys look at him. LOOK AT HIM!!!!! it's about 3,500 years old, and was originally used as a pestle. i actually made a replica of this out of clay last year- it's not quite the same, but i love him nonetheless. funky lil dude

5. The Harvesters, Pieter Bruegel the Elder PRETTY PRETTY PRETTY! i love any kind of painting that has an emphasis on farming, there's something so peaceful yet riveting about them. the color scheme on this is absolutely stunning- the toned down greens next to the vibrant golden yellows make my heart go WHEEEEEEEEE

6. Queer Body, Queer Nation, Anonymous Queers

okay, so. as you can tell, this image is shit. this is because, no matter how hard i try, i can't find this piece online ANYWHERE- so we're rolling with the picture i took of it when i saw it myself in person, in a history museum in new york. just- i mean, just look at it. it says so fuckin much. fuck me i love this piece.

anyways. i have loads more art that i love, but these in particular are really special to me <333 MWAH

[rararazaquato]

so i'm going to tell a bit of a personal story in the reblogs here, because this post resonated with me in a way that i think other creatives deserve to hear.

i had an art teacher in middle school who once told me that art needs to be special to someone other than the creator for it to be considered "art".

he said this to bring us down, because he was an asshole who wanted to take his anger out on a classroom full of 11-year-olds.

but what he misunderstood was that it is physically impossible to create something that someone doesn't find special.

if you think your art is special, someone out there will agree. the human range of experiences is so broad that someone, somewhere, will see themselves, or their friends, or just something they love, in your artwork. if you make something that you're proud of, if you make something that you put your heart and soul into, or even just if you make something you kind of like, someone will see that. your art will be appreciated, and i can guarantee you that.

in that art class, i made a statue of a person melting into the floor. my teacher grilled me for it every step of the way. "this doesn't mean anything!" "it's crap!" "it's not special!" "i feel nothing when i see this!"

but the other students, surprisingly, really liked it. i had modeled it after a friend of mine, and people told me i had captured his likeness really well. they thought it was super creative. i wasn't well-liked in school, so these were students i had never spoken to, students i thought hated me. and here they were, telling me something i had made was special.

that teacher eventually conceded. he displayed my creation at the end-of-year student art showcase (and he also got fired by the time i was in high school). parents and students alike came up to me to tell me how much they loved the piece. how impressive it was. and when the other students did it, i knew they weren't lying. kids don't spare each other's feelings like that when they're so young.

nearly ten years later, i can see the flaws in it. the head is too small. the facial features were scratched in with a sharp stick instead of being actually modeled out of clay. it's covered in fingerprints that i didn't smooth out. but it was special to me, and all these years later, i can still see the passion that was put into it. it's still special, long after i got over the initial creation process. it's still something that people like.

if you create art, someone will find it special. if an 11-year-old with a block of clay can create something that people react to, something that people like, then i can guarantee you that there's someone out there who will see your work and feel the same way.

tl;dr your art is special. ignore the mean art teacher in your head. i love you.

the fear of sharing your work not because you're worried people will hate it or mock it or think it's terrible...but instead that it will elicit nothing from them. that it will be unremarkable. that it won't matter to anyone but you

[astrum99]

I think I learned how to self-destruct from a very young age.

My mother is a very tidy person. Keen on keeping things perfectly clean, wiping until the handles sparkle like stars, and hiding everything in closets, cabinets, and drawers. The house looked like a hotel. There were very little signs of life.

I used to be messy as a child. The complete opposite of her vision. Keeping nicknacks on the table, every writing utensil, every collected rock, every sticker and stamp. I thought I knew where things were, I didn't. I hid things I treasured, and then I lost them. I used to think that I was just bad at keeping things organized.

My mother hated it. She loves me, of course, but she hated the mess. She despised the chaos and randomness, and gosh, the dust! So every once in a while, she cleaned for me. Putting things away into the little boxes; tucking the boxes away onto shelves. She tossed away things for me, too. She tossed away waste. Sometimes not-waste. She didn’t mean to, she didn’t know. I can’t possibly blame her.

After the third time it happened to something I genuinely treasured with all my heart, I learned the fragility and worthlessness of the “things I love”; and by extension, my attachment itself. It was a lesson ingrained in me. Useless items, useless affections. One time I wondered if she thought that of me too.

It didn’t help that my family moved so much when I was young. Renting only a few years before changing locations. Keeping things light and simple so we can move easily again. That means nothing big, nothing heavy, nothing to keep except items that are expensive and important. Old drawings, old writing, volumes of signed yearbooks were tossed because I can’t be greedy and take up precious space reserved for other practical things like bowls and computers and bars of soap.

I started organizing my own room when I was in high school. All the items, fit neatly into little spaces. A few drawers that were stuffed full, so my desk can be devoid of life. It looks like a fucking cubicle. I was praised for it.

During my final year in high school, I left my first and only art sculpture in a place I knew my mother would accidentally smash. I was terribly proud of it. I remember leaving it on the desk, imagining the broken pieces, and choosing to leave it there anyway. She did, of course. So I spend a whole class mending the broken parts. Water, clay, fuse, repeat. I left it in the classroom to “bake” and never took it back. I loved that thing. It was big, and heavy, and useless. I see myself in its image. (I don’t even have a photo of it. Isn't that hilarious?)

Every so often I think about burning my artwork. Tearing off the pages. Smearing jet-black ink. Submerge in bleach. Toss into a river. Scratch and shred and stab until it turns into scraps.

I think about smashing my favourite bowls and cups on the ceramic tiles, until they break into razor-sharp pieces. I think about sticking my hands in them until they dig into the softest part of my flesh and draw crimson.

I stay awake far longer than I should. I binge eat far more than I should. I delay things that I know I must do until I panic to make them perfect, because they must be perfect.

My bedroom wall is falling apart. Something to do with the drywall and plaster. The floors creak. The windows shake in strong winds. This house is my parents’. I imagine it all coming down on me. I stay. It tethers me.

The desire to destroy still engulfs me sometimes, but I’d like to think I’m better now. Time brings strength and reflection. Buying posters. Putting up paintings. Trying to convince myself to purchase something that I wanted but not needed.

It has to be better, because I’m terrified that one day I’ll find myself unable to tell if my apathy comes from my body, or from the imprint of my mother.

That desperate, anxious distancing from the eventual loss.

God, I hope my room is messy.

[jeileeze]

''We continued when the world stopped.''

Time to adjust wasn’t an option as everything went online. Some had blended classes and others were focused on their modules. We were introduced to new platforms such as Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. The only enemy to this story? The slow internet would give us a hard time.

From teachers to students, everything felt new despite frequent orientations. 

The sudden shift gave the idea that another impossible path is being taken on. You’ll continue to walk yet the barriers are too many for you to handle. This was the school year wherein I had to shed a lot of tears before finishing the given requirements.

Aside from math, I really don’t like being near arts. I’m so bad at it.

But because of those frequent art projects, I found my solace in music. Those songs were from Keshi, NIKI and HONNE. I would repeat them whenever I feel like art is making me breakdown once more.

Such incidents happened a lot as another challenge came. All of our art works and projects must be posted online. ON FACEBOOK. Every friend sees it.

From zumba dances to your live video of your artwork to singing a well-known play aka Les Miserables.

Is there anything more challenging than this? 🙂

Of course.

English was a subject that taught us how to create a research introduction of a topic you want to further investigate. Another subject I had to shed my tears on. It was frustrating as everything went on too fast.

Gladly, I still ended up with good grades and being in the honour list. To be honest, I feel like the online setting will really make a person even more lazy.

Just sitting on a couch, watching the recordings or actually being in a live class would make you feel even more sleepy. Our school also didn’t pursue turning the cameras on as it will just make the meeting slower.

But that advantage became a disadvantage. A student could be playing games while letting the class play, no idea what the teacher just said as distractions were inevitable. I would also hear my mother liking that setting more as we wouldn’t receive allowances as we were stuck at home, with enough food and water.

Still, I wouldn’t go back to such a situation as it will just become an endless loop. This pandemic was called endemic for a reason.

I also wouldn’t say that this setting made me closer to my family, the situation was just rough and it was hard to cope with it. Despite knowing that you can lean onto them, they also become those reasons why failure couldn’t be avoided. Not everyone can be emotionally okay, not everyone can be mentally present. Everything will just become a lump of clay, no chances of being molded into something beautiful since you’ll have no physical strength to do anything.

However, their help and knowingness towards our health became a stepping stone. I sometimes would get irritated with how my mother’s mindset works in terms of health. Eat more greens! Drink your vitamins! Do not sleep late.

There’s many more to that actually but it was just frustrating to hear on a daily basis. Still, that small act of service made sure that our health is indeed our wealth. We weren’t prone to any sickness.

By the time that we were given a chance to do a face-to-face moving up photoshoot, I wasn't truly thrilled as everything felt so fast. I met an old friend there and kept my photoshoot quick. I was even told that my body is stiff and I needed to loosen up. Of course our school photographer, Cher Annie Pasion would know.

Something about that shot made me think that maybe, I did survived but I feel like something was still missing. There were a lot of puzzle pieces scattered and I have no clue where I could find them.

I just really do hope that my next school year will be good to me. No more arts please!

[jeanniermcoles]

Personal Statement for university 2021

I am applying for this course in order to learn new skills that I will need to carry on into my future career. I love being creative and I know I will thrive artistically in a university environment. Growing up, I have always thrown myself into art. I have been part of an art class where we would work for three hours each week in a professional potters studio experimenting with different media such as clay, inks and paint. After finding a love for clay work, I attended a pottery day course where we learnt how to use a potters wheel to throw our own pots. I am still very interested in clay work and have continued using the medium into my foundation degree, studying artists such as Andrea Gregson.

 I believe that as someone with autism who finds it difficult to express emotions and thoughts verbally, art really helps me present these in a physical way. Creativity has helped with my ASD as a way of distracting myself from the struggles I face mentally.

 I have enjoyed working around the theme of self image and the way we see ourselves. In a society and age where someone's image can define their happiness, I aimed to detach the insecurities from the person. By focusing purely on a part of the body, I made it into a thing of beauty and confidence. After painting my own stomach, I blew it up to a much larger scale and presented it in the school corridor where many people could see it. I was met with the mental challenge of working on something deeply personal, and presenting it in a public space led me to gain confidence in myself and how I look.

 Each year I go to Cornwall on holiday and I will visit the Tate St Ives each time. I love seeing how local artists such as Alfred Wallace and the Leach Pottery collective have been inspired by the historical shapes of the land and vast ocean. The comparison of Bernard Leach and Barbara Hepworth's work show that two people with the same sea view can create pieces so different. My family has been drawn to Leach pottery and have continued to collect pieces over several years. I have attended a clay class in the Leach studio where we created our own tiles which were then fired with their unique glazes.

One of my recent pieces I have done during my art foundation course is an outline of a collection of photos from my childhood on acetate, with emphasis on both 2D and 3D negative space made from paper and plaster. I chose to present the piece in a corridor at college where it could hang at different levels and distances. This has triggered an interest in transparent materials which I would love to experiment further with on a university degree.

At GCSE I spent a large amount of my time in the textiles room exploring new techniques I could develop into my coursework. My sixth form did not offer Textiles at A Levels and so I put the hours I used to spend working with textiles into my art. However I have continued to use the techniques learnt to create wearable items and accessories, taking inspiration from designers such as Mary Quant and Christian Dior.

As my mother is an actress, I have spent a lot of time experiencing the backstage elements such as prosthetics, wigs and makeup. Her childhood friend is a costume designer working for big names such as Disney. While she was working on Cirque du Soleil, I was lucky enough to go backstage and see how the set and costumes worked. This really inspired me artistically and the vision of huge creatures and incredibly realistic flowers has stuck in my mind since.

This year has been tough due to corona virus however, I have been able to get a part-time childcare job looking after a one year old girl. She has taught me patience and responsibility which I have been able to apply to my artwork and has prepared me for the future.

Considering myself ready for higher education I believe that there are still so many more amazing skills to learn on either a fine art or textiles course, including the use of materials I have not had chance to use on my creative journey so far.

[joycelynrogersart-blog]

1. WRITING AND RESEARCH –

THIS part of the assignment is a class discussion – deadline May 15, 2020 11:59pm.

Discussion: Introductions/First Artworks

Related materials: First Clues-art work list .doc, introduction art works.ppt

2. ART AND WRITING - Select a work of art from your life. It must be something that hangs in your house or your room, something that is important to you or that you look at everyday. Include a picture. In paragraph form (4 sentences), tell me about the art – what media were used to create it? What use does it serve? Do you think it is beautiful? Why?

Below is a picture of a piece of pottery I made my senior year of highschool. This golden pineapple is my most favorite piece I have made and am very proud of. I used clay and a gold high fire glaze. It serves the purpose of being my familys dining table center piece (my mom loves pineapples). I do in fact think it is beautiful, I love it!

3. WRITING A SELF-PORTRAIT - Create a perceptual profile. What “baggage” are you bringing along when you look at art? Answer the following questions – How old are you? What is the gender you primarily align with? Where are you from? What is your ethnicity? What do you do for fun? Are you a member of any organized group? Where do you work? What makes you uniquely you? This helps us see from what exact point in the world we view and receive visual information.

I grew up creating and looking at art for as long as I can remember. I am a white nineteen year old female from Sarasota, Florida. I also go to school is Tallahassee and attened FSU. For fun, I love going to the beach and hanging out with my friends. I have always loved the ocean and sea life! I also love cooking and painting. I am a member of the NEA (National Education Association) since I am an aspiring educator. My major is elementary education. I currently work at a pilates studio called Club Pilates! I am a sales associate there and work the front desk. When I am in Tallahassee, I work at a trampoline park called Urban Air, which I love and miss! 

4. ART PROJECT (SELF-PORTRAIT) – Look at the work of Romare Bearden in REVEL or online. He created collages that combine media (gouache, pencil, colored pencil) and photographs to express things from his life that he thought people could universally relate to. He was representing himself powerfully long before the advent of selfies. What are you fascinated by in your daily life? Create a self-portrait that somehow represents YOU. This could be a selfie (remember this is ART - your representation should encompass the definition as introduced in our text, and this is a graded assignment), a virtual collage, anything you assemble that communicates something to the viewer. But don’t let me (or anyone else) limit you – be as creative as you desire!

My best friend and I decided to have a photo shoot the other day. We decided to hang up a white sheet outside and get creative. I remember looking at this photo of me and thinking “Wow! This is so me!”. To me, this picture is artsy, which I am. I am super girly, which this portrait of me represents with all the pink I am wearing. Another thing about me is that I am fascinated with makeup. Which in a sense, is another form of art I love. Looking better is a perk I guess, but I genuinely just love doing my makeup for fun! 

[bluepoodle7]

#MyOldArtClassClayArtworks #Scratcho #ZeldaOc #Wolfos #ClayArtworks #PurpleElephantPlushFigure #PlushPals

These are some of my old clay artworks I did in high school a long time ago.

One is a Scratcho mask but It was chipped on the face where the skin is missing and some cracks with scratches on it.

A spiral jar that I would put stuff in like mini plushies or pens in.

The Scratcho mask is 9 inches from tip of the ear to his necklace and 7 inches from the hair to the head to his bangs.

The spiral jar vase thing is 9 inches from the top of the vase to the bottom.

The colorful purple elephant plush figure is 4 inches from the trunk to the foot.

I kind of want to redraw this oc someday.

This is my oc Scratcho he is a wolfos boy and I used him as a ref for the ! and ? tails or as I call them emotion tails.

I used a base for the caramelldansen one but this was back in 2010 I started uploading art in 2009.

I don't use bases anymore and try my best to draw a character but might use clip art as a pose ref like for a character holding something.

I was just messing around with this dream avatar character maker that I found but the link is dead.

I did have a gaia account and it was a okay experience.

I wish I knew if my Gaia account is still there.

And the avatar and items belong to gaia.

The Wolfos.

Wolfos | Nintendo | Fandom

White Wolfos - Zelda Wiki (fandom.com)

[houseofvans]

SKETCHY BEHAVIORS | INTERVIEW W/ CRYSTAL HABITATS

Combining stain glass, metal smithing and mineralogy, founder of Crystal Habitats, Rachel Pitler transformed her drawing and painting skills into a magical world of 3D stained glass and molten metal sculptures – from jewel adorned cardholders, wands, daggers (athames), to ring holders, just to mention a few. Not only one thing, Rachel is also a co-founder of Bitchcraft, an unique holiday event featuring over 60 vendors, selling everything dark & magical. We’re excited to talk to Rachel and find out more about how she started her creations, what inspires them, and what she has planned for 2019! 

Take the leap below!

Photographs courtesy of the artist. 

Introduce yourself. My name is Rachel Pitler Hsiung. I am a mixed-media artist (stained glass, molten metal, oil painting, and clay). Originally I am from Detroit; however, I have been living in Los Angeles now for many years. My professional background is in the rock & mineral industry. Working in this field allows me to travel to all the big gem shows where I am able to work with interesting specimens on a daily basis... as well as being surrounded by these beauties is a huge creative plus for me and where I draw much of my inspiration.

Tell us a little about your background in art? I never had any formal training in drawing & painting. My mom is a fantasy illustrator, so growing up I often sat with my mom and watched her paint/draw, and I took to it myself pretty quickly. I got a job in my 20s teaching art to kids & teens on the basics of drawing, watercolor & oil painting. I taught art for 8 years. It was a really important time in my life for me to grow as an artist. Through teaching others I discovered a lot about myself, I learned to enjoy my process of making art, to never stop learning, and to push myself out of my comfort zone into new mediums.

How did you go from working with traditional material like oil paints and pastels to a medium like stain glass and solder?  When did you start creating pieces out of glass, metal, and so forth? A little over 5 years ago one of my best friends Erin Coovert (Moontan Stain Glass) started taking a glass class. She encouraged me to try out her class, I did and have been forever changed by this incredible medium. I am so grateful to her for sharing this path with me as it opened up so much more for me in terms of my creative abilities. It's really hard when you have a lot of creative ideas, but little tools to make them into reality. I was such a two dimensional art person trying to be a 3D artist and for whatever reason stained glass opened that part of my brain up to problem solve and tackle art projects that I would have otherwise given up on.

Tell us a little about Crystal Habitats and the unique pieces that you create for it? In mineralogy, the word crystal habit is a characteristic of crystal groups & individual crystals. I wanted to make artwork that reflected my own take on crystals and create pieces that are like little worlds within themselves, little habitats that harness magick and cast their energy onto whoever uses them. Art for me has always been a refuge and a place of healing. 

I love making tools that do just that. I make wands & daggers (athames) that are adorned with crystals & molten metal. I make three sided pyramids (often with crystals adhered to them), jewelry, ring holders, and a lot of other items. In my drawings & paintings, I have a fantasy world I came up with called The Ice Crags. Many of my paintings & drawings take place in this realm. My characters are often High Priestess (and wizards). Recently I have started to making these characters in stained glass.

Of the many things you create–from wands to daggers–which is your favorite to make and why? What is the process like for one of these, from start to finish? Right now I am really enjoying the process of making my snake athames (a type of dagger). Snakes represent healing & transformation, when paired with a stone setting and blade, these pieces really become a source of internal empowerment.

My friend John (@jabforge) makes my blades, I make the hilt with molten metal...I cut out a copper/metal sheet with my metal cutter to create a handle. I hand solder the entire base...there are different ways to solder...I have adapted a painting style of soldering, you can create patterns within the metal to give it a unique look. When I add the crystals I make bezels out of metal, and solder it to the hilt, and I hand make the the snakes out of epoxy clay. I give my pieces a dark patina and I often use my dremel to smooth out parts and I sand it down to give it an interesting aged look. I enjoy making these in particular as it is a collaboration which I always love and each piece has such a unique character to them. When working with molten metal, I never know what pattern I am going to make till I start soldering, it's always fun to see how they turn out.  

In your studio, what type of art materials and tools would we find on your desk? Too many tools and never enough tools! Lead free solder, soldering iron, flux, glass cutting materials, dremel, jewelry wax, metal cutter, thin wires, metal sheets, copper sheets, all sorts of dental tools (I use them for carving) epoxy clay, lots of glues, torch, hammers, paint, glass, wood, my lapidary wheel, patina, cabochons and crystals parts, there's a lot of stuff! Im super obsessed with working with new materials. Since I work in a handful of mediums, it becomes a real science project in my studio mashing them together to see what works and what doesn’t.

What are some of the cool collaborations you’ve done? How do collaborators incorporate your works into what they’re doing?  A recent collaboration I did was with my good friend Alex from Acid Queen Jewelry. She makes incredible jewelry and we often talk shop on a weekly basis. She made a gorgeous ring and I made a matching glass ring holder (glass base with a quartz point as the holder for the ring). She and I will have more collabs in 2019! Very excited to work with her again! And as mentioned earlier John from Jab Forge. He is a blacksmith, his blade work is my favorite...his blades look like moon craters, they have a real old world look to them and I enjoy matching my style of metal work with his work.  

What medium haven’t you tried that you’d definitely like to get your hands on? Metalsmithing. Well this is a medium I have dabbled in but really haven’t gone deep and it’s my goal for 2019 to get into it more. Specifically so that I can incorporate a different type of metal work into my stained glass & my solder work. Medium cross over is my favorite thing to mess around with, good for the brain ;)

Not only are you behind Crystal Habitats and its creations, but you had an active role in creating an event/community called Bitchcraft. Can you tell us more about Bitchcraft, how it started and the idea behind it? When was the last one and when’s the next one? Yes! 10 years ago I co-founded it with 4 of my friends. We all made things and wanted an all female handmade collective where we could barter/sell goods.  I believe we had like 10 vendors at the first one in our friend’s backyard...now there are over 60 vendors, it's a pretty large holiday event. It's a collective that celebrates everything dark & magickal, a curated group of like-minded makers filled with everything from metal goods, apothecary, altar items, capes, wands, jewelry, and really a lot of items related to other worldly and the occult. We just had our annual holiday show in December! There's always a chance for a mid year show but for now not till Dec 2019 :)

Who are some of your favorite vendors or artists from that Bitchcraft community? What’s your favorite thing about that community? Oh that is really hard for me to say!! Most of these people have been my friends for a long time and have been a creative support system and I cherish all of them and appreciate & admire all of their works. My favorite thing about the Bcraft community is the friendships! There is so much love and support with this crew...outside of this event a lot of the vendors work with each other on projects, do shows together, help promote and support one another. Having a strong group of makers is super important to me and has helped me grow so much as an artist, and I am so thankful for all of them!

Who are some other artists you’re inspired by? What kind of things inspire you? I have the longest list of artist who have inspired me!! But I have to say my very top inspirational artist would be my mom, Sheri-Pitler McClure. Her work is everything to me...she has a way of drawing people that is so out of this time, totally belongs in Middle Earth. Growing up my mom surrounded our household with fantasy - wizard & unicorn statues spread throughout our my childhood home...she is a big fan of science fiction, so as a kid I was exposed to all movies and books on the subject. She is also a rock collector (she did opal lapidary work back in the day) so I guess all of these things had a big impact on me. When I was really young she painted a series of these goddesses that represented the different seasonal full moons. These women were painted as strong ethereal beings, who’s magick reached out from the canvas and wided my eyes to endless worlds one could create. That was my first memory of how art can really change your perspective and it has stuck with me ever since.  

Other things that inspire me spans from crystal formations, old medieval paintings, everything Tolkien, old lore & fantasy books/movies. I am also really into the color pallet of the Dark Crystal, I often watch and think about that movie when I am making.

What’s been the most challenging part of maintaining Crystal Habitats? What’s been the most rewarding? What do you do to keep the balance? I would say compartmenting my time has been a big challenge….often people tell me to do my art full time but working in the mineral business is my dream job and it is also is a place where I come up with my concepts...its like one can’t exist without the other, so figuring out the balance of them has been something that I am always working on. The most rewarding part is when I have a really fresh new idea and I am able to execute it….there are some designs that I will do over and over, but when a new design pops into my head it becomes extremely exciting to work on.

Recently I have been bringing balance into my work space by not taking on too many custom orders or too many shows...allowing myself to have breaks...through these breaks I have been able to come back fresh and renewed, which is very important to my process.

What’s your advice to folks who see what you do and want to pursue it as a career? Don’t compare yourself to others. Keep learning, discover new mediums, always be a student of something it really opens your mind to concepts that otherwise could be dormant.

What’s your best advice for creative folks on social media platforms, like Instagram? Have fun! I know that sounds lame, be seriously don’t get caught up in it too much. The more stress you surround yourself with social media & the more it takes away from your art. I love using social media, I love using it to showcase my art and be connected to other artists/communities, but don’t allow it to become overwhelming. I think being true to your art is the most important part:)

What are your FAVORITE Vans?  Slip-Ons!

Finally can you share with us what exciting things you may have lined up for 2019? I’ll be working on a new line of handmade jewelry boxes. A lot more snake themed items for sure!! I have been working on some Shield Maiden jewelry through metalsmithing/lost wax mediums, it is something I have been really taking my time with and I am hoping to have some completed soon. I will also being vending at the Culver City Gem & Mineral Show in June 2019.

FOLLOW RACHEL | INSTAGRAM | WEBSITE 

[nataliehegert]

I met Catherine Czacki in a Zoom yoga class. The instructor was our mutual friend Linnea Vedder, an artist based in New York whom I’ve known since we were both high school exchange students in Germany twenty years ago. Participants in the class were scattered around the U.S., from New York to Wisconsin, to California.

“Oh, you two should know each other,” Linnea said to me and Catherine, “I think you live really close to each other.”

I live in Lubbock, Texas, out in the middle of the high plains, far from pretty much everything. Turns out, Catherine lives in Portales, New Mexico, a mere hundred miles away. That day, Linnea sent us both an email with the subject line “connections.” “What a wild coincidence that you both live so close and are so like-minded and interested in similar things!” she wrote.

The isolating effect of the pandemic, with our bodies sheltering in our respective domestic spaces, has conversely allowed us, in some cases, to reach out and intermix with others in virtual spaces while geographically dispersed. If there is one bright spot from the pandemic, for me, it is that I have been able to seek connections with old friends in far-flung places, and participate in or watch events such as artist’s talks and readings that I would not have been able to attend otherwise, in any capacity. These social spaces, performed virtually, intimate yet removed, are one way I have been able to push against the motivation-sucking crisis-mode-reaction of my everyday life and try to regain a sense of being here, being present, and still listening.

As Catherine and I talked in a virtual “studio visit,” the sun set and our respective rooms darkened, with only the glow from our laptops illuminating our faces. We traced the orbits of our mutual friends, between San Francisco, New York, San Diego, and now the Southwest and Llano Estacado region. We would have met eventually, that much is certain, but our meeting would not have had the same emotional tenor.

Czacki moved to Portales in 2019 to teach art history and ceramics studio classes at Eastern New Mexico University. She lives with a large and lovable, mischievous dog named Big Buddy. She makes objects, sculptures, paintings, talismans, and wall hangings from a variety of different materials—clay, fabric, beads, found objects—and writes poetry and sews clothes and plays music and works in her garden. These multifarious practices find their ways in and around her oeuvre.

While the pandemic and the lockdowns hit many of us hard, coping with limitations and finding workarounds is a practice Czacki has honed over many years. “There have been so many times that I was going and going, and then suddenly everything fell apart and I just had to stop everything,” she says. “But going through it so many times, I know what to do.” Meditation, yoga, and other spiritual practices, and eating clean, healthy food are part of it, but the real trick is adaptability, switching tasks frequently, and finding ways to circumvent problems. Can’t type? Record with the voice. Right hand injured? Make a sculpture or play music with the left hand “and whatever comes out is the art.” “I think that is partly why my artwork is so idiosyncratic,” she says.

Czacki studied painting in undergraduate school at the San Francisco Art Institute, but soon switched to new genres, intending to focus on video and installation. At the time, she says, she wanted to make “big objects,” but it never really felt right. For many years she felt the pressure to “follow that bureaucratic hierarchical order” and “get really good at one thing,” as either a painter or a sculptor, or to go big-time contemporary artist-style and form a studio with hired assistants. None of this felt right. In grad school, at Columbia University in New York, a faculty member stated “We didn’t know if you were an outsider artist or a genius,” she reveals. “For a while I let it poison me, and then I gained my self-confidence back.” After New York, Czacki pursued a PhD in art history, theory, and criticism at the University of California, San Diego where she produced a dissertation that is part theory and art history, part experimental writing and poetry. Through all these experiences, as some of her peers abandoned object making in the name of Marxist critique, Czacki continued to be drawn to “the making impulse.” “I had read all the art history and theory, but what was missing was the making,” she says.

Returning to object making, and exploring craft, she felt she was accused of participating in “some kind of fetishism” with regards to material. “I did a lot of research on the idea of the fetish as a colonial concept,” she says. “This idea of us being separate from the material world has a lot to do with Cartesian dualism; it’s a very masculine and Western-centric concept of the world.” Western art history privileges history painting over craft, and hand-made ritual objects that existed outside of European aesthetics were denigrated as “fetishes” and eyed with suspicion. Contemporary art theory continues to support this negative view of the “fetish” with the primary means of discussing the value ascribed to objects as “commodities.” Czacki resists this ascribing of hierarchies of value as supporting entrenched institutional, bureaucratic powers. “How those things do and don’t get seen as serious art has a lot to do with people’s relationship to institutional power,” she claims.

“There’s something radically healing about making my own art, and taking the time, turning off my phone for a whole day and focusing on cooking a bunch of meals, making one or two ceramic objects and sewing a patch on a shirt,” she says. For Czacki, the pleasure of indulging in the material, the “beauty and magic” of making, has a subversive side. “I could have continued to launch a critique against Western art history and I still do feel that,” she says, “but in the work is that [critique] while also giving me the pleasure and the healing that I need.”

In her research, Czacki discovered a kind of ancestral link in her attraction to the handmade and her own family history, though she is wary of emphasis on biography. Czacki lived in Poland in her twenties and learned there were deeply complex and conflicting narratives to her family history. “A lot of what I’m doing feels recuperative,” she says. Her relations on the maternal side were farmers and quilters and exhibited a strong relationship to the land—something Czacki has returned to in some ways as well, in the form of growing her own food and creating artworks from leftover fabric and stolen beads (her mother has an impressive bead collection).

Czacki’s fabric works are created intuitively, sometimes suggesting clothing or referencing the body, sometimes taking the form of wall-hangings or tapestries. Her clay works range from the functional to the talismanic, including a whole series of what she calls her “demons.” “I’ll make them when I’m feeling frustrated,” she says, showing me a green-glazed clay object that fits in the palm of her hand. “When I was doing union organizing work I had my ‘union demon’; I had my ‘PhD demon,’ or my ‘person-I-was-dating-last-week demon,’ or ‘my-dog-ate-a-whole-bag-of-rice demon.’” The most planned works, she says, are the paintings, which start from a vision, a color, or a drawing. “I don’t have a hierarchy between the planned or the intuitive,” she notes. “I let myself flow. The art is the easy thing at this point.”

This flow continues through Czacki’s practice in poetry and music. “My poems are telling people verbal information about the art that’s not didactic or narrative or essayistic,” she notes. “It’s pretty simplified and it’s on purpose. I want it to be about a sort of resonance with the material world that I’m trying to have.” The poetry contains an anticolonial endeavor as well: in her dissertation, she references Audre Lorde in how poetry strives for an “irreducible form of knowledge,” and Aimé Césaire, that “Poetic knowledge is born in the great silence of scientific knowledge.” Czacki recently published a 310-page book of poetry and images, entitled Creosote, with Line Script Diary Press, in collaboration with editor Adrienne Garbini.

Czacki is currently collaborating on an album of sounds with Andrew Weathers and Gretchen Korsmo of Full Spectrum Records, based in Littlefield, Texas—between Lubbock and Portales—who are more mutual friends between us (since 2019, Andrew and Gretchen have curated an experimental concert series at the gallery I co-founded in Lubbock). She met them by playing in the Llano Estacado Monad Band (LEMB), which bills itself as a “decentralized, asynchronous, collective, free” improvisational group, and discovered they all had friends in common from San Diego. “This is not uncommon in my life,” she says. “With a lot of my collaborators we will circle around each other in life, and then find a resonance. Collaboration is like everything else in my practice, I end up in a space and a time and a moment where you’re just around certain people and it makes sense.” The limitations of digital collaboration offer another opportunity to discover workarounds and circumventions. Since the pandemic began, LEMB has produced several improvisational pieces performed and recorded via Skype, as well as a couple of socially distant concerts. “I have learned to forgive the digital,” she says. “We’re all having this existential moment where we are learning the limits of the digital while at the same time we have to allow ourselves to let it be what we need.”

The real isolation Czacki felt after her move to Portales became a reality for most of us as we entered this age of social distancing. Czacki evocatively describes her dispersed social world as a “gummy tendrilled support network” or a “forcefield” of people scattered around the world that she can draw on for support. “These ways that we have these spread-out networks—this softness, these reserves—that we have to touch base with,” she gestures with her fingers inching forward. “At this moment we are feeling disjuncted in a lot of ways, so we are reconnecting with people that we’ve gathered along the way.” She adds, “If at any point in life we can take a positive view of something, it’s important, because life is shit and life is hard.”

As we talked, Czacki’s words struck chords of wisdom. Slowing down, pursuing contentment in everyday tasks, focusing on art every day, remaining optimistic—all are ways she has found to “deal with all the pain and trauma in life.” Everyday things become spiritual groundings—“write a poem, make a sculpture, do the wash.” Repeat, rotate, switch tasks. Work with the material, and find pleasure in it.

Feature Posted on 2/8/2021, Printed in Southwest Contemporary, Vol 1, Spring 2021

[asamustardseed3]

Main Street Arts

God’s grace has been ABUNDANTLY exposed throughout this pandemic and in various ways. For some of us, it’s as simple as time spent with a family member who has been laid off. For others, more outdoor walks when travel isn’t exactly an option. For how very wrong the turn into electronics can go, I myself have been exposed to the beautiful side of options like zoom. One of those options has been provided (and greatly appreciated by me!) by Main Street Arts in Clifton Springs, NY, about 45 minutes north east of my town. 

Not only is this an amazing and every changing gallery that you absolutely MUST see but the youth programming provided for our kids during this pandemic is unmatched. Brad and Pam have given those who can’t be in studio a chance to experience the gallery and learn art technique virtually but in a very virtual reality way as Brad often handholds his phone during our zoom meetings to take Addison and Gavin “through” the exhibits as if they were there. They make their way through the paintings and Brad “takes” them upstairs so it’s as if we are right there with the class. 

Fortunately, we have been able to schedule visits to the gallery to see the work live and in living color, texture, and vibrancy. The kids are currently in their second session but I have some photos here of their first session which included both working with air drying clay as well as multimedia artwork using markers, colored pencils and pastels. At a reasonable cost, you can purchase a generous art kit when you register which can be used for any and all of the sessions. If you do end up taking their sessions virtually, your kids can look forward to seeing unique exhibits and interacting with Pam, Brad and the in house students while learning new ways of creating!

An amazing bonus to visiting this gallery is enjoying this gorgeous town. I feel like I’m stepping back in time whenever we are there. I highly recommend planning a visit to the exhibits followed by a meal across the street at Warfield’s Restaurant and Bakery (I’ve had amazing dishes and desserts here - HIGHLY RECOMMEND)! There is a lovely bookstore down the street called Sulfur Books that I absolutely loved and went on a surprise shopping spree recently. On our way over we passed an old timey barbershop, a pizza joint which I can only imagine from the line has the best local NY style slices, a comic store, hardware store and so on. We were there on a Saturday evening so most of these places were closing up but I can see enjoying a wonderful afternoon in Clifton Springs gushing over the architecture, the shops and the whole eclectic scene in this storybook town. When in a pandemic, seek out places like this! 

[jeremystrele]

Keep Your Eyes On These 8 Emerging Makers!

Keep Your Eyes On These 8 Emerging Makers!

Creative People

by Sally Tabart

A collection of vessels, inspired by architectural forms. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Artichoke magazine editor and passionate ceramicist Cassie Hansen in her Kyneton studio. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Cassie Hansen

Cassie Hansen took her first beginner’s pottery course just three years ago. For the last seven years Cassie has been the editor of Artichoke, an interior design and architecture magazine, where she still works a few days a week. The rest of her time she spends in her studio in Kyneton, working on refining the style of her elegant, functional vessels.

It’s easy to see the influences she’s absorbed from all those years of covering excellent architecture, elements of which she translates brilliantly to her pieces.

Revisit the original story here.

Vessels by Lucy Tolan. Photo – Shelley Horan. Art Direction + Styling by Mildred & Duck. Tiled plinths by Occasional Pieces.

Vessels by Lucy Tolan. Photo – Shelley Horan. Art Direction + Styling by Mildred & Duck. Tiled plinths by Occasional Pieces.

Vessels by Lucy Tolan. Photo – Shelley Horan. Art Direction + Styling by Mildred & Duck. Tiled plinths by Occasional Pieces.

Lucy Tolan

Newcomer Lucy Tolan went straight from high school to art school, graduating from a Bachelor of Fine Arts specialising in ceramics in 2018. Last year, Lucy launchd her professional ceramics practice (mid lockdown!).

Primarily using the techniques of slab-building and hand coiling, Lucy’s first collection Seams has since been exhibited at Craft Victoria, and is now stocked at Modern Times. We love her wonderfully wobbly designs, and can’t wait to see what she does next!

Revisit the original story here.

Dinzi Amobi left behind her law career to pursue design, and started Ulo from her kitchen table! Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Dinzi uses wax fabrics to create her designs, the staple fabric of the African continent. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Ulo Australia

Although Dinzi Amobi isn’t technically a ‘new’ maker, her textiles brand Ulo Australia caught our eye for the first time in late 2020. Three years ago Dinzi quit her job as a lawyer and took a chance on Ulo Australia, the fashion and homewares business she’d been spending her nights working on from her kitchen table. Dinzi has developed a network of market stall-holders in Africa, where she sources fabrics to create her brilliant wares.

‘All of our collections are inspired by what I was surrounded by growing up in Nigeria and then London,’ Dinzi explains. ‘Whether it be home textiles or fashion, everything is motivated by the styles and shapes that filled my family home.’

Revisit the original story here.

Inside the Preston studio of ceramicist Ella Reweti. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Ella unstacking the kiln in her studio. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Ella’s soft, ridged vases and planters are her signature form! Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Ella Reweti

Melbourne-based ceramicist Ella Reweti first started exploring pottery during her postgraduate studies in anthropology, making ‘wonky little pinch pots’ for her friends. When the PhD didn’t work out, Ella scored a job as a pottery assistant, and discovered her love for handcrafting pieces. Slowly but surely, she built up her skills working for other makers, but it wasn’t until she had her baby (now 15-month old, Hemi!) that she had the opportunity to really invest in her own practice.

Fast-forward to now and Ella is making some of the most coveted ceramics pieces around. She’s developed a distinct style for her planters, vases and tableware with their soft, corrugated edges. ‘This is the first time (maybe ever!) that I’ve not had to supplement my income with a job in hospitality, and that feels really good.’ Go Ella!

Revisit the original story here.

Lucas Wearne, the maker behind Neighbourhood Studio. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Lighting and sculptures made from Australian limestone, by Lucas Wearne of Neighbourhood Studio. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Neighbourhood Studio on show! Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

Neighbourhood Studio

Early last year we proclaimed that Lucas Wearne of Neighbourhood Studio would be the next big thing…and we weren’t wrong! Working out the back of his Thornbury home in Melbourne’s North, Lucas makes functional, sculptural objects, hand-carved from Australian natural limestone.

Working across lighting, sculpture and artwork, Lucas has developed a bit of a cult following, and his pieces are in hot demand!

Revisit the original story here.

Left: The J7 Daybed by James Howe. Photo – James Howe. Right: The J5 Cabinet by James Howe. Photo – Peter Ryle.

James Howe

Before he was an award-winning furniture maker, James Howe used to be a journalist. When he couldn’t find the kind of furniture he wanted, he went home to research online. It was then that he stumbled across the work of Danish modernist designer Børge Mogensen, whose work triggered a deep, emotional experience James couldn’t ignore. The former journalist decided to make the furniture he couldn’t find for himself, and completely change his career path!

As one of the finalists in the TDF Design Awards Emerging Designer category this year, James has clearly made his mark in this relatively new career!

Revisit the original story here.

A range of crinkly vessels from Softedge. Photo – Layla Cluer.

The ‘Ewer’ vase by Softedge. Photo – Layla Cluer.

Soft Edge Studio

Northern Rivers-based artist and ceramicist Layla Cluer initially studied architecture at university, and spent a few years working for firms in Melbourne before applying to art school. In 2019 she quit her full-time job working, spent a month crewing on a yacht from New Zealand to Tonga (as you do!), and enrolled in ceramics classes at Lismore TAFE. This windy route to handcrafted clay was the beginnings of Softedge, her fledgling practice which she now runs from a studio on her friend’s farm outside Byron Bay.

We could not be more in love with her distinctive Ewer jug, a vessel with a pot-bellied silhouette that comes in a range of different colours. Softedge is certainly one to watch!

Revisit the original story here.

Georgie Brunmayr, founder of Curio Practice. Photo – Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.

A Curio Practice blanket in the Cherry colourway. Photo – courtesy of Curio Practice.

Curio Practice

Textile Designer Georgie Brunmayr had been dreaming of creating her own brand for years before she finally did it. After some time working in China, Georgie returned home in mid-2019, which is when the idea for her blanket brand Curio Practice first started bubbling away. When Melbourne went into lockdown earlier this year Georgie was finally able to invest the time and energy to Curio Practice a real thing.

Georgie is passionate about making special pieces that last a lifetime, and keeping the skills of the textiles industry in Australia alive. She works with a local knitting factory in Reservoir to produce her luxurious knitted blankets, which each uses around 1.9kg of high-grade Australian Merino wool sourced from farms across Victoria, New South Wales, and Western Australia.

Revisit the original story here.

[mikqueen12]

Week 13 Draft (Read Me!)

Sheridan Clark is a friend of mine I’ve taken a few classes with. When you look at her, you might get the overwhelming feeling that you just have to be their friend. Her quiet and bubbly personality meshes well with her perfectionist tendencies. Considering I am also quite shy, it took me forever to get up the nerve to talk to her! We went through almost an entire semester before I was giving more than a friendly nod. I learned that we were both taking our same professor the next semester, and this moment is when we both blossomed and really started chatting! 

On the day of the interview, I picked her up at campus. I had already heard that she doesn’t like driving places she doesn’t usually go, and I can relate entirely. I had to grab gas at the nearby gas station, and it was right at 5:00. After struggling with my gas cap and pumping gas, we prepared for take-off. I went to turn left on a busy road and instead turned right, defeated.

“Oh, well I should have known that wouldn’t work during rush hour. I’ll just make a u-turn up here. That is if I can…” I drawled off. Sheridan pointed out the sign and said “There it is! Canada has some weird laws dealing with u-turns.” “Oh, really? I thought you said you were like 3 when you moved down here, how do you remember?” 

“That’s a good question,” she says as she laughs with me. “I guess sometimes you just remember random details for life.” 

I must have made a grimace, because Sheridan and I broke out into a little laughter. “How long have you lived in the U.S.?” 

“Uh, for about as long as I can remember. I think for about 17 years?” She ended her sentence, as if questioning if she was fact checking herself. When I asked her about her memories of Canada, most of them involved her family. 

Sheridan was not a U.S. citizen, and had never had been. One time in class we all showed younger pictures of us (old drivers license photos and such) and we all saw child Sheridan on her green card. She’s a passionate Canadian, usually representing her country with a little button on her hat. The rest of our conversation was rambles about classes and any little thing we felt like talking about. 

The apartment isn’t the cleanest one you will ever see, but it is far from dirty either.  The bar separating the kitchen and the living room tries to fool you that people use the common space. The wax warmer was turned on, illuminating the side of the wall with good lights and a slight cherry smell. The key rack is varying shades of blue, it looks as if it was painted with care at home and was hung up with an off colored green string. It was at an angle and the wall behind it had a few scuff marks, showing continuous use. However, the unopened mail and the red money gun that gets used only when guests are over begs to differ. It seems things are tidy simply because the common space isn’t usually used. Two wood panels hang above the TV in completely different styles. The first looks rustic with blues and beiges. It states “The more people I meet, the more I like my cat.” The second one would be an important item in a mystery video game, if the game was about this apartment; it is brightly colored with orange, turquoise, pinks, and purples and says “Stay Salty.” 

We sat on opposite couches, which faced each other perfectly for this type of activity. The lamp behind us helped fill the room, both with light and space. The furniture in this apartment doesn’t match, but it doesn’t look completely out of place either. The dark brown coffee table housed a few figurines: a snowman left behind from Christmas storage, handed-down coasters holding our halloween cups, and a very round green frog wearing sunglasses playing a saxophone. The TV stand was located in front of us, and held some of my artwork from classes we shared. A pumpkin was painted with a panoramic view of the night sky, with a cat walking on its fence. A metal bust of a cat with his tongue sticking out hides beneath my favorite 3D art. Made of only foamcore, masking tape, and a little glue after it was turned in, these triangles scream activated space. Activated Space was a meme from our 3-D design class, threatened to become a T-shirt design several times.

Sheridan would have a lot to say about this scene. When asked “What do all of your buttons on your bag and hat say about you?” She responded with the idea that it’s a way to learn alot about someone right from the beginning. If you look at her beanie, you’ll see LGBT+ pins, Twenty One Pilot pins, Canada pins, and many more. This shouldn’t be the only way you learn about someone, but you can find out if you will get along if you see some of these little signs. I can relate to this, as I watched back the interview footage I noticed I was wearing a flannel I have dubbed the “Bi Shirt” due to its color scheme. Nods to things like these can go unnoticed, but can become a conversation starter if one wishes.

Expressing yourself is one of her favorite qualities. This can be done through everyday life, but it can also be expressed through art. I once in the interview asked her, as a fellow artist, how she is able to express her emotions so well in her art. As children become teenagers, they obtain more vocabulary to express how they feel. One study done by Nancy Johnson took school age kids and asked them how to answer the question “What is art?” or “What do you think art is?” (61). The younger the child, the more their response would have been like this: something fun to do, making something, using clay, etc. As the grade levels rose, so did their responses. Once you ask the third graders, they began to use emotions along with actions. One student said “it’s just something you have fun with!” and others art as beautiful or playful (Johnson 63). High schoolers who were asked these questions responded with things that please you, an opinion, something that is relative, and other answers (Johnson 64). As we get older, we can describe our feelings better, and Sheridan is very in tune with her feelings.

Back in Professor Peterson’s class, our classmates were shy. However, by the end of the semester, we were all cracking up. The class was Concepts, Creativity, and Studio Practices. This class had little rules; the first project was simply to “make a time machine” and no further explanation was given. The last project was a research art project. It followed the usual frame of do whatever you want, no restrictions. This allowed everyone to create what they wanted, and the class had varying projects. Mine was a poster I created to advocate for the cats on the Marietta campus, and call for them to be TNR’d (trap, neuter, return). 

Even sunshine will eventually meet rain. Sheridan briefly mentions that she meets with her therapist to manage her anxiety and depression. One of the things that I can resonate with her the most on is these topics. Just by looking at her, I can tell she was called “mature for her age” as a child. When I was smaller, I took it as a compliment, thinking I was one step closer to being an adult. However, as I got older, I started realizing it was a soft way of saying “you’ve been through some stuff, and it’s made you into a peacemaker.” Despite the origins, Sheridan appears to be one of the most peaceful people I have ever met.   

However, Sheridan’s project was a real show stopper. She chose to research some of the most common mental illnesses and recreate them in her own way. The below piece she named “Anxiety.” The eyes everywhere to her represented the feeling of anxiety, and other ways of expressing that feeling. She also created 3 more types, with her interpretations of depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. Her determination for a perfect project-- or 4 for that matter, is prevalent here. This piece represents the feeling of being anxious in its entirety; sometimes when we feel anxious, we might wonder if we have general anxiety too. That’s what the research done by Takeshi Hamamura and Christian Chan focused on. The mere concept of being anxious correlated with increased googling “symptoms of anxiety” and reports of self diagnosed anxiety rise as well (Hamamura and Chan 2). The good thing about Google is how soon we can pull up information, and in this case someone might be able to schedule an appointment if they need to. (Hamamura and Chan 1). If not, researching the symptoms can give you some piece of mind!

Something I envy about my interviewee is her determination to have a perfect, well, anything. This expresses itself most often in the form of art projects. For example, in our 3D Design class we had a project called “Paper and Metal.” The goal was to make a casting of pewter and have it suspended in air only by paper and glue. The class met 6 hours a week, and she never had a moment of downtime; she was always creating the paper trees, grass, or leaves for her project. Whereas I only spent about 7 hours on my project (pictured below so you can get the idea) outside of class, I’m fairly certain she spent twice that on hers. Hard work pays off, and I hope she got a well deserved break after the completion of this pristine project. 

Sheridan doesn’t stop at expressing herself through art, or style. She also has a new hobby: Furbys! In the interview, she described them as the toy she always wanted until right before Christmas, when she forgot it existed. Now that she’s out on her own, she has more freedom and goes to  buy them, clean their fur, and revamp them! The tech that hides within these furbies is quite impressive. The article “There’s a lot of smart electronics inside a furby” describes this perfectly. For example, furbies are programmed to begin speaking “Furbish” and progressively learn English. (Edgar 28) To a child (or even me until I read this article), it would look like the Furby is learning directly from you! The realism packed into the fury creature is shocking, as many of its responses don’t seem to have a rhyme or reason. If you hold a furby upside down at first it will giggle, but if you keep holding it upside down it may say “I’m scared.” (Edgar 29)

Out of all the furbies I’ve seen, Cabbage is the one I’ve seen the most. But she has a variety, ranging from Big Mama, Shifty, and Maw. Since most of the ones she owns are ~15-20 years old, few of them work. She enjoys taking them apart, “deskinning” them and attempting to fix them. A project she’s had in the making is to make a rainbow pride furby by dying their fur. This furby is beginning to come together as of me writing this, and has been named June. Although Cabbage doesn’t work yet, I still have hope for him! 

Being LGBT+ is an important part of both of our lives, and we both identify as Bisexual. A paper that Sheridan is writing this semester focuses on more education for LGBT+ students as well as just acceptance in schools. When I went to look up this topic, I found this research that came from Canada and thought it was fitting. Catherine Nash and Kath Browne talked about the importance of these topics being taught in school. With LGBT+ issues being more accepted and acknowledged, we have to remember that our society is centered around a hetronormalitive lifestyle. It has to be remembered that “The drive for LGBT integration often works in concert with broader efforts to teach multiculturalism, diversity and inclusiveness.” (Nash and Browne) School is the place where you can learn things you wouldn’t have at home, and these schools need to be a safe environment where a student won’t feel judged. Not only in Canada do LGBT+ students in school feel they are not accepted or wanted. If the environment you learn in isn’t a good one, there is a likelihood this student may not want to do work. 

In the end, I feel I got to know Sheridan on a more personal level than I did from small talk from class. It’s important to listen and understand in friendships and relationships, and if you do it might help you grow. It reminded me that expressing yourself is important, and perhaps you should consider more ways than one. Picking up a hobby that others might think is quirky might just be the thing you need to ease your mind at the end of the day. If asked “Who is Sheridan?” I feel that I can confidently answer this question. Sheridan is the single beam of sunshine that sneaks through your window to wake you up gently. She is wise beyond her years, and typically acts as a “Mom Friend” in her friend group. She won’t let herself get walked all over, and she will find a better way to live! Sheridan is the definition of expressing. Whether it is through art, furbies, buttons, music, or plants, you can find a bit of Sheridan everywhere. 

[painterlegendx]

Simple Guidance For You In Famous Dark Forest Paintings - Famous Dark Forest Paintings

Oberkirch is a baby angel of about 20,000 bodies in Renchtal, a arena on the western bend of Germany’s Black Forest. Like abounding added villages nearby, bodies arrangement actuality for world-class restaurants, centuries-old boondocks centers and hiking. Oberkirch’s hiking is a little different, though. Actuality is breadth you’ll acquisition the Oberkircher Brennersteig. Airing this about nine-mile bend through a abundant blooming mural and you will canyon eight distilleries, affectionate family-run operations bearing baby batches of schnapps from melancholia fruits — Mirabelle plums, cherries, raspberries, strawberries, pears.

Théodore Rousseau Artworks & Famous Paintings | TheArtStory - famous dark forest paintings | famous dark forest paintings Many distilleries are amid in bashful buildings, the affectionate of balk homes generally associated with Germany. You can acquaint which ones are distilleries, though, because there are bottles of schnapps alfresco alternating the path. Some distilleries accumulate bottles of their articles in little board boxes accepted as “birdhouses.” Some accept them in “schnapps fountains.” Back I aboriginal abstruse about this, my acuteness ran agrarian with visions of limestone angels spewing alternating the bounded spirit — a Dionysian chantry breadth Willy Wonka and the Brothers Grimm ability go on a bender. It’s absolutely a bit added alert than that but nonetheless amazing. The “fountains” resemble bean tubs abounding with arctic baptize that cools bottles of schnapps. There’s about a tray of apple-pie baby glasses and a tray for acclimated ones. Bead a few euros in a box, cascade yourself a helping, enjoy, and off you go.The Familie Halter distillery, however, presents a added complex experience. On a absolute Thursday afternoon in August, I met Johannes Halter, a fifth-generation distiller with adolescent acceptable looks and a New York Burghal T-shirt. He abstruse the art from his father, who lives in a abode beside the distillery. His parents alive downstairs, and Johannes and his ancestors abide above. The fruits (if you will) of Johannes’s activity sit in board boxes that accessible at the top. Anniversary is nailed to a board post, and they’re lined up in analogously spaced assumption alternating the pathway, anchored in advanced of the backcountry or backcountry of its corresponding fruit: peach, cherry, raspberry. Johannes caked me a aftertaste of his Zibartenwild, a asset variety. It was affluent with a annular bake-apple acidity that accustomed like an aria and vanished quickly, abrogation no trace of the asperous alcoholic bake generally associated with the grain-alcohol-and-fruit-flavoring concoctions that are labeled “schnapps” in the United States.About a kilometer airing south, alternating rows of coniferous trees, is Waldhotel Grüner Baum, a across-the-board auberge with blond-wood appliance and floor-to-ceiling windows everywhere. At the end of a advanced driveway is a cottage-like architecture breadth Johannes Müller-Herold runs Distillery Grüner Baum, a tiny operation trafficking in big ideas. The baby board box added to the architecture like a mailbox assured me I was in the appropriate place. I aerial the lid and, abiding enough, schnapps. And brochures.The distillery has been in Johannes’s ancestors for 10 generations. A affable adventure-seeker in the Hemingway mold, he alternate to Oberkirch 11 years ago afterwards active in Hamburg, Switzerland and New Zealand with his family. They catholic Asia. He rode his motorbike above the Sahara. He adapted in chic restaurants. His wife teaches affiliated abdomen dancing. Little surprise, then, that although he produces acceptable schnapps like his ancestor did, he’s added agog to concoct “mouth-rocking” flavors, breadth he veers off in with his liqueurs. Sitting in his brilliant shop, he caked a aftertaste of his elderberry-chocolate-chili liqueur, a adorable sip of acute cacao with a fruity tang. It delivered a delayed kick. My eyes widened; he nodded approvingly.Grüner Baum is above the aisle from Die Alm, a adorable restaurant breadth a acquaintance and I dined that night on a card that pairs bounded schnapps with all-around takes on Bavarian fare. Combinations such as angel schnapps and angle formed in means that had me advertent the shortfalls of Chardonnay.Schnapps, or bake-apple brandy, has continued been acutely alloyed into this region, amid in the accompaniment of Baden-Württemberg. The altitude that’s fabricated genitalia of the Black Forest able-bodied accepted for its wines additionally provides admirable growing altitude for cherries, plums, apples and more. Back the bake-apple is mashed, brewed and distilled (or “burned,” in bounded parlance) at aiguille ripeness, a distiller can abduction its beginning aspect — an abundant acidity after sweetness. There are 14,000 distillery licenses throughout the Black Forest, 796 of them in Oberkirch. Best are bare-bones setups in people’s homes. A German law grants a assembly authorization to any acreage that grows fruit. There are additionally bigger bartering producers. One of the bigger ones, Franz Fies, was accustomed in 1948 and is run by Heinz-Peter Fies, son of the founders. In 2017 he opened a huge, glassy assembly ability with a avant-garde visitors center. He can accomplish up to 1.5 actor liters of brew annually.

DAU: Dark Forest by dark-artists-united on DeviantArt - famous dark forest paintings | famous dark forest paintings The afterward morning, a 10-mile drive took me alternating the western abruptness of the Black Forest to Sasbachwalden, a close accumulating of heritage-protected half-timbered houses with annual boxes blind from windowsills. There’s a bounded attitude actuality alleged “restaurant jumping”: One catch gets you a multicourse meal, anniversary advance at a altered restaurant, an changeable person’s fantasy. An breadth arranged with vineyards, it’s home to a winegrowers’ cooperative, Alde Gott, breadth you can acquirement bounded producers’ wines at the all-inclusive shop. At Alde Gott, they additionally accomplish schnapps — absorbing kirschwasser (sour cherry) and plum.At Spinnerhof, a restaurant and inn, it became bright that “they additionally accomplish schnapps” could be the bounded motto. On a acropolis alfresco the boondocks center, the rustic enactment is the affectionate of abode breadth Facebook and headline-making protests do not cantankerous your mind. Congenital as a barn in 1640, it was adapted into a restaurant in 1976 by Rudolf Spinner, who has blooming cheeks, an accessible smile and asperous easily acknowledgment to his abounding hobbies, mainly architecture things, such as a baby abbey abaft the restaurant, a accolade to his grandmother. His still is in the aback of the restaurant in a dark, stone-walled allowance that feels like a alcove in a medieval castle. Spinnerhof, which offers a continued card of archetypal bounded fare, is one of the few locations breadth you acquisition a distillery in a accessible restaurant space. At the bar, Rudolf acicular out his handiwork: the blond-wood bar, the bean entrance that forms the restaurant’s advanced door, the chiefly ambrosial raspberry, acceptable and alike hazelnut schnapps laid out afore us. “There has to be 150 things that I appetite to do, never abundant time,” he said, cloudburst me addition attempt and behest me farewell.One abode breadth schnapps is not an reconsideration is in a continued chicken architecture with a pitched roof and bittersweet shutters about 15 account from Eichstetten, breadth a bus from Sasbachwalden delivered me in 90 minutes. Baumgartner is in Kaiserstuhl, a acclaimed Rhine Valley wine arena belted by France and Switzerland. Its clay is volcanic, ideal for growing grapes, and its awkward valleys are dotted with hikers on nicer days.Fridolin Baumgartner grew up here. His father, a carpenter, endemic vineyards and a few bake-apple orchards, so, in befitting with the German law, he had a authorization to distill, although he ran a winery. He died back Fridolin and his adolescent brother Ulrich were teenagers. Ulrich went to medical academy and today works as a surgeon. Fridolin runs the distillery he congenital on the property. He affiliated his wife, Anneliese, 43 years ago, and they started authoritative schnapps. Today their prize­winning small-batch marvels are awash in celebrated confined and restaurants throughout Germany.Fridolin is a affable buck of a man with a beating baritone. It’s accessible to brainstorm him singing a active arrangement of “Riders on the Storm.” On the day I visited, he had aloof accustomed a commitment of accomplished plums that appeared the admeasurement of cherries in his paw-like hands. The crates sat in the bunched still room. He and Anneliese, who does the aggregate and bottling, would array through the compensation that afternoon and get rid of any subpar fruits. Only the juiciest are called to accomplish that brew to be brewed and burned. But first, to the tasting room. I anchored myself at the adverse with Uli, who helped with interpretation. Anniversary sample — raspberry, plum, acerb cherry, Williams pear, quince, hazelnut — offered a abounding autumn division abridged into a moment.Florian Faude grew up in the Kaiserstuhl and had met Fridolin several times. A adventitious accord angry into an adventitious mentorship. Florian, who had formed in wine, started Faude Feine Braende in an old wine barn and appear his aboriginal bake-apple brandy in 2006. If Fridolin’s schnapps are like a archetypal bedrock song — energetic, harmonized and accustomed — Florian’s are punk, the aforementioned instruments played by a abolitionist thinker. Earthy beetroot and cucumber schnapps are amid the added aberrant selections. Mandarin and claret orange are others. He absolved me through them back I visited the abutting day.

Dark Forest by TheNexusInfinity on DeviantArt - famous dark forest paintings | famous dark forest paintings “When you aroma this, acquaint me what it makes you anticipate about, what it makes you remember,” he said, boring breath in the garden raspberry schnapps in his glass. “The jam your grandmother made? The aboriginal raspberry ice chrism you’ve anytime eaten?”Yes.I was alien to Florian by Hank Strummer, a drifting DJ from the arena whom I met in New York. He has a affection for close shirts and a acceptability for alive everyone, an actionable ambassador of the Black Forest. Through him, it became bright to me that the adroitness aggressive by the region’s majesty extends far above aberrant schnapps and the able takes on archetypal Bavarian cuisine that chefs actuality are acclaimed for. Hank founded One Trick Pony Ultras, an breezy bunch of self-proclaimed “barflies.” Modeled on groups of hardcore soccer fans, these accompany are committed to acknowledging and furthering the bounded bar arena and their own artistic pursuits, reminding me of a hip latter-day apotheosis of the early-20th-century arcane salons of Paris. And on a Tuesday night, he aggregate abounding of them for banquet at Romantik Auberge Spielweg, a abstraction in archetypal Bavarian architecture about an hour northeast of Basel, Switzerland. There was Markus Ruf, a photographer, and Rudi Raschke, a above Playboy contributor and now editor in arch of Netzwerk, a bounded business and political magazine. There were inventors and a vintage-store owner. And there was adept of ceremonies Viktoria Fuchs, Spielweg’s arch chef and sixth-generation affiliate of the ancestors that owns the absorbing old-world-style place. As dishes such as porcini egg pan, fabricated with mushrooms she and her cheesemaker admirer foraged that morning, were served, she catalogued capacity with fanfare.As postprandial drinks of obstbrande, an apple/pear schnapps accurate to the region, were poured, badinage about music, backroom and the Fuchs family’s hunting and foraging adventures formed the soundtrack.An arrangement to accommodated Philipp Schladerer, the sixth-­generation distillery owner, took us about 15 account west to Staufen aboriginal the abutting morning. According to legend, Faust fabricated his accord with the devil here. Now it’s bigger accepted for behemothic cracks in old barrio acquired by conduct for a geothermic activity activity gone awry. It’s additionally accepted for Schladerer Schwarzwälder Hausbrennerei, a tourist-friendly distillery that’s footsteps from the centermost of town.As visitors wandered into the museum-like distillery, Philipp acicular out photos of his ancestors and best bottles. He absolved us through the alveolate still room, showed off the astronomic ceramics containers acclimated for crumbling schnapps and gave us a aftertaste of his admired Roter Williams-Birnenbrand, a pear array that delivered the acidity agnate of a glint of ablaze reflected off a diamond.From there, we headed arctic about an hour to Offenburg, endlessly alternating the way to arrangement Stefan Strumbel, a painter and sculptor whose bright and disorientingly antic assignment pulls the rug out from beneath accustomed Black Forest imagery. (See: adulterated cuckoo clocks, neon crosses.) His creations are apparent in galleries throughout the world. He met us after for a alcohol at Schoellmanns, a hip restaurant with a accepted bar. The shelves are lined with added than 100 bottles of bake-apple brandies. Buyer Willi Schoellmann knows best of the producers, and sometimes they visit. Joseph, an octogenarian schnapps-maker, had aloof been by that morning to bead off some kirschwasser.

Night Forest Painting #beautiful! Wish i was there right now .. | famous dark forest paintings Stefan’s assignment — a neon assurance that reads “This is for all the abandoned people” and paintings — is on the wall, and Florian’s beetroot brandy is in the Negroni. It was like a blind alarm of the personalities I met alternating the way. I strolled above a advanced balcony: To the west was the Vosges, a abundance ambit in France. To the east were the hills and vineyards of the Black Forest, a mural anachronistic in time. Weisstuch is a biographer based in New York City. Acquisition her on Twitter and Instagram: @livingtheproof. More from Travel:A Black Forest expedition to German philosopher Heidegger’s autograph ‘hut’Bamberg, Germany: A burghal of aloof 70,000 bodies but nine breweriesA quiet German boondocks welcomes some 2 actor visitors for Martin Luther’s 500th Simple Guidance For You In Famous Dark Forest Paintings - Famous Dark Forest Paintings - famous dark forest paintings | Encouraged to be able to my personal website, in this time I'll show you about keyword. And after this, here is the 1st photograph:

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In class, we have been discussing two main categories of artwork - traditional media and emerging technologies. I have highlighted which media I like most from each and added a few examples above.

I really like paintings, especially ones created using oil paints, acrylics, or water colour. One of my favourite artists is Vincent van Gogh, and I have included his famous Starry Night above. This isn’t visible in a photo of the painting, but I find the technique fascinating that van Gogh uses in this painting and many others: he applies a very thick layer of oil paint, in which you can see his brushstrokes. This adds a unique texture to his work.

I used to love to sketch, and still occasionally do when I have the time. I also like looking at old sketches, such as Leonardo DaVinci’s horse studies. Sketches allow artists to practice many different techniques, such as realism and shading. Graphite, charcoal, and other grey-scale sketch mediums show that artists don’t always have to have colour to create an effective work.

As for newer art mediums, I find 3D printing fascinating. The particular work shown above was made by Kate Blacklock, using 3D-printed clay. I analyze it further in a different post. 

Finally, probably my favourite art medium is music videos. I find myself watching them and listening to the music almost every day. Music videos allow song-writers to give their music a visual and a deeper meaning. They are entertaining and captivating. The one shown above is the song “This is Gospel” by Panic! at the Disco, an artist I have been listening to a lot recently. Other artists I enjoy are Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith.

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I was tagged by @tshifty , thanks!

FIVE THINGS YOU’D FIND IN MY BAG

1. Art pencils 2. Folded papers (idk why) 3. Subway passes from old trips 4. My keys (and many key chains) 5. My phone

FIVE THINGS IN MY BEDROOM

1. Video games (a lot......i need to organize) 2. Clay jars 3. Rosary beads 4. Books 5. Artwork from art class

FIVE THINGS I WANT TO DO IN LIFE

1. Explore Europe 2. Hopefully meet Taylor 3. Visit my parents’ home country 4. Learn to swim.... 5. Contribute to cancer research

FIVE THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY

1. The arts 2. My friends & family 3. Baking 4. Anything science related (esp Astronomy & Biology) 5. Halloween

FIVE THINGS I’M CURRENTLY INTO

1. Getting organized 2. Classic movies 3. Indie music 4. Enjoying the outdoors more 5. Meeting new people

FIVE THINGS IN MY TO DO LIST

1. Complete my driving hours so I can get my license 2. Start my first job next week 3. Finish my art assignments for AP Studio 4. Volunteer over the summer 5. Read more 

I’ll tag @wearingmybestapology @1989swiftieuk @the-ravenclaw-swiftie @tinaakatiny and @causeallyouareisaswift