I don’t know what it is, but I’ve been in a particularly crafty mood lately. I guess it’s because it’s summer, it’s beautiful outdoors and I can sit on my balcony and craft away as I watch the world ride by on their bicycles. Doesn’t that sound fabulous? I wish all of my days could be like that, but alas, we’ve all got responsibilities and mine these days are fairly hefty. But when I do get to slip away to dedicate some time to my crafting, I like to work on art pieces for my house. I’ve been living in my apartment for the last three years and the walls are still looking pretty sparse. I just wasn’t finding anything that was particularly interesting, so I needed to become an artist!

This week, I’ve been running around trying to get ready for my trip to Europe in a couple of weeks and I’ve been taking things to the recycling bin downstairs. Among the bits and bobs that I was getting rid of, I came across a box of books and wondered what I was going to do with it. I usually donate all of my books to a local charity, or I take them into my favorite second hand book store and trade them in for some newer titles. But then I remembered reading something on the internet about a neat art project that involved old books. So I after I found the tutorial, of which I’m going to share with you momentarily, I went through all of my books thoroughly to make sure that they were all common titles, and that no one would miss them if I started to cut a bunch of them up! Thankfully, I was all in the clear, so I was able to get started without a hitch.

Okay, so you’re first going to need these things to get started:

Acrylic matte medium
Paintbrush, medium or wide
A Canvas (Choose your size)
Scissors
A photocopy of a high contrast image in black and white
Oil pastels, liquid watercolors or acrylic paints as desired

Alright, if you’ve got everything you need, it’s time to start cutting! You’re going to need about 2-3 pages work of paper strips, so rip out a bunch of pages from some of the books and start cutting between the lines so you end up with whole sentences in strip form. Okay, next, it’s time to slather your canvas with the acrylic matte. You’ll find that working with the acrylic is a lot like working with glue, and that what you’re doing is a lot like like creating”decoupage”. Use a palette knife, or a large flat brush to quickly spread a layer of acrylic over your canvas. It’s important that the canvas stays wet, so if your canvas pieces is really large, you’ll want to do it it sections.

Now it’s time to place the paper strips on the wet canvas. Lay the strips of paper by pushing them down with your fingers, making sure to smooth them out. You have to be careful that the paper doesn’t ripple or tear, but keep in mind that the acrylic sets quickly. Keep layering strips until you get that decoupage effect, then grab your photocopied image, slather it with some acrylic and press it against your paper strips long after they are dry.

Peel back the piece of paper, your photocopies image will have transferred onto your masterpiece! The next part takes a little creativity. I focused on emphasizing certain words to make the piece pop. And voila! You have a fabulous new art piece for your wall!

I think I’ve moved something like ten times in the last five years, that’s a lot! And while I absolutely despise packing, I always found the unpacking part to be rather therapeutic. In fact, the last time we moved, I kicked my boyfriend out of the house and sent him off for an evening of drinking and general merriment with the boys while I rearranged and unpacked the apartment, just to ensure everything was to my liking. I know, I know, call me a princess, but trust me, it would have been a War of the Roses if the two of us had spent the whole day moving and then attempted to unpack our lives together. And while we have lovely furniture, and everything fit like a dream, what we were severely lacking was art.

Personally, I never really been into art, but then my concept of art was so one dimensional. Whenever I thought of art, I always thought of absurdly overpriced commission works that people only had up in their homes because they thought it was a way to boost their social status. Of course this isn’t the case! Art can be whatever you make it. After flipping through a fabulous design book depicting different’ people’s homemade art projects, I realized that art was much the same as tattoo artistry, art wasn’t art because someone else said it was, art was art because you said it was! So after I had that little epiphany, I started to look at our barren walls, and I started to brainstorm ideas.

Art doesn’t need to be expensive, despite what everyone thinks. I mean, have you been to an art gallery lately? You can pay hundreds, thousands and for the super wealthy hundreds of thousands of dollars! Hundreds of thousands? For some swirls of paint? So where do you get inspiration? First, try to figure out what kind of design style you like. For me, I’m a huge fan of rich, bold colours. I walked around my house taking note of furniture pieces that I thought would best be accented. My couches are a rich red, and most of my furniture is made from reclaimed woods from old Russian doors during the 19th century. I know that if I didn’t want my apartment to look like some sort of Russian boudoir, I’d have to chose a colour palette that would keep things light.

After you’ve figured out what colours you’d like to work with, make a list of what you think represents you and your personality. For me, my love for travel, literature, animals, mother nature and different cultures were things that I had down on my list. I wanted to create pieces of art that represented not only who I was, but how I looked at the world, so when my guests were sitting down to dinner, or wandering my halls, they would look up at my art and think, “yup, that’s represents her perfectly”. So first, figure out what colours you think would work, and second, consider different facets of your life and determine how you can represent it in your work. The final step is to brainstorm materials, what are you going to use? For me, this was actually the toughest part since I was never very artistically inclined! I knew nothing about paints, let along the different kinds, so it was a bit of an education! In the end, I actually opted for pieces that had a blend of materials, and over the next few months, I’ll share with you not only my very first works of art, but I’ll hopefully inspire you to start looking around your house for materials to start your next project!

It was the first time I’d ever been on a trail in the Rockies, and it was a little more difficult than what I was used to in the Ozarks, but it was utterly rewarding. There were a lot of firsts on that small mountain. It was the first time that I grabbed the massive rocks with my hands and hoisted myself up the boulders. It was the first time that I made it to the top of something that high. As a matter of fact, I didn’t realize I had a fear of heights until I was on a ledge overlooking Colorado. I suppose there’s no better time to conquer your fears then at the same moment you discover them. I learned a lot from others on the trail in that three hours. I learned about climbing, about professional roller derby, about Colorado, about law school, and about dog training.

I know what you’re thinking… What does this have to do with art? Stay with me folks. We’ll get there. I can’t tell you what a gratifying experience it was to make it all the way to where the trail ended. I can’t describe what it was like to climb up past where the trail ended into an alcove in the first Flatiron. But I can tell you that it was an incredible experience that taught me a lot, and seemed to put everything in perspective.

When we got to the bottom of the trail, we decided to have a look at the historical information on the boards, something that we quickly overlooked in our excitement to get started. The board displayed a picture of women in the “olden days” climbing onto the same rock that we just travelled up. As you can see, they’re all wearing skirts and stiff blouses. It was an interesting piece of odd nostalgia. A look back into a time of what looked like female oppression, and a backwards mentality.

When I finally got the chance to read the information on the sign, it turns out that this era was much more progressive than you would think. Ostensibly, the Chautauqua could be considered the first artist commune. Before radio and television, this is where performers of all kinds got their chops. It also created teaching jobs for artists and nature enthusiasts. They used the Chautauqua circuit to spread new ideas around and to create an audience for their expression. I’m absolutely fascinated with this idea. So fascinated, in fact, that when I start my own intentional artist community, that’s the name that I’m going to use.

Do you think we could use a revival of the Chautauqua?

Have you been Shpongled lately?

Hey there art kids! I’m sorry to interrupt you while you’re smoking marijuana behind the dumpsters during fourth period (don’t worry, I’m not a police officer), or painting your nails black in gym class (I’m also not your gym teacher). But I am a super inspired lady, and I have some super awesome stuff to share with you! First off, I’d like to share that I went and saw Shpongle in Denver last night and would highly recommend catching that show if it’s ever in your area, and you’re in need of some social and musical inspiration. If dancing to futuristic eastern inspired trance music with a bunch of 16-25 year olds (still my demographic!) isn’t the most inspiring thing you can do on a Saturday night, well, then I don’t know what is.

I walk up to the theater and see tons of people dressed in playful festie gear and homemade costumes. And they’re practically buzzing with energy. They wander in and out of the theater, catching a little bit of Phutureprimitive, and then coming back out to talk about how amazing it is to their friends smoking outside. I get in just in time to see some Phutureprimitive and was really impressed. I’ll come back to this time and again, but the good energy in the venue was palpable even before Shpongle began. It’s no wonder why, when the sheet drops, it reveals what I can only describe as a giant futuristic throne. The king of positive creative energy, Simon Posford, A.K.A. Hallucinogen appears in an opening of the magnificent vessel and starts the show.

After a few moments, I grabbed my phone and started writing down all of the thoughts I was having about the people, the show, and the world at large. I looked around the venue and realized why I was feeling so inspired. The music, lighting design and the fans are all such an amalgamation of pure creative energy. I put the phone back in my pocket and danced the night away. When I got home, the stories kept coming. It was incredible how much of a muse that collective of people, music and lights became for me.

If you need a creative boost, I’d suggest catching Shpongle if they’re anywhere near you. Otherwise, check them out on Spotify.

Have you been Shpongled?

It’s April first, and that means that the world will soon fill up with the screams and cries reacting to April Fools jokes gone wrong. It’s that time of year when you can feel that building resentment for the coworker/family member/lover who thinks they’re the ultimate prankster.

Everyone has that person in their life, the person who thinks it’s their duty to make April fools day “hilarious”. They take things into their own hands and they put things into your shoes. They rig the sink to soak you for the fourth year in a row. Perhaps you’re this person. Maybe you’re the joker who methodically emptied all of the eggs in the fridge and left only the shells. Don’t you realize that April fools pranks don’t have to alienate you from your loved ones? Pranks don’t have to be just for high school seniors either. You can join in on the fun without pushing your friends and family members away for the rest of the spring.

Funny Food

There are plenty of good natured April fools jokes that you can pull on your pals that are creative and fun for everyone. My favorite this year is the colored food thing. Green eggs and ham, tiny breakfast, blue milk… All fantastical.

Wha?ter

Apparently, I’m really into dying things different colors this year. I found a super easy prank that will bring joy and delight to even the most humbug fool. You can change the color of the water that comes out of their faucet for a short lived, and shocking joke. How amazing is that? I think it would be fantastic to do a different color in every sink in the house.

All you have to do is unscrew the cap of the faucet and place non-toxic colored dye pellets (you can get them from Crayola) in the cap. Then you screw it back on and hide in the shower with a video camera. The color burst won’t last for a very long time, so nobody will get annoyed when they can’t wash their hands for the next several months.

What pranks are you pulling this year?

Greetings from Denver! That’s right. The artsy student is on the road for the indefinite future and it’s all starting in the city that’s a mile high in the sky, nestled in the front range of the… uh… Rockies? Man I’m really good at my geography and knowing names of mountain ranges and stuff. Let’s just stick to some of the kick a** street art that I’ve been running into.

I’ve been in this for a few weeks now, and I’m smack dab in the middle of becoming a certified yoga teacher (boo to the yah). I’m still pretty shocked to walk outside of the gym/ yoga studio I’m training at and having the wave of marijuana tinged Denver air just wash over me. I’m also still pretty shocked at how much street art there is in these streets. It seems to cover at least one building on each block and all of it is gorgeous.

I do know that the art from behind the studio that we study at is just covered in street art (otherwise known as graffiti by a crotchetier generation). It’s really cool stuff and lends a super lovely atmosphere to what would otherwise be a baron parking lot.

I’m staying up near five corners and I took a little walk around the area to check out what I could find in the neighborhood. Check it out…

I’ll admit that I know absolutely nothing about the Denver street art scene or who’s responsible for these sweet little art bombs, but I’d love to know if anyone has insight into what it’s all about. Also, I’m thinking about getting a tat while I’m in town. Anyone know any good tattoo artists in this city?

Do you have any Denver street art to share? Are you a street artist from Denver, or any other city for that matter?

 Do you have an appreciation for do-it-yourself art pieces, but find yourself being not very artsy? Do you want to see what it would look like if crayons could cry? This is a perfect project with lovely results anyone would be proud to hang on their wall.  

Supplies- You’ll need a canvas, hot glue gun, glue sticks,  hair dryer, and obviously hella crayons.

Next, take the labels off the crayons, you can choose any color you want. Line them up along the top of the canvas, gluing them in place until you run out of space.

Next, take your hair-dryer and start blow-drying the crayons. There isn’t much to technique here, just play around with it seeing the different patterns and results you can get.

The result? A great piece of art you can tell everyone you made yourself, or a great gift for someone you care about. Having this hanging in your apartment will help you solidify your creative, alternative lifestyle. Perhaps next you can start eating all organic food like you’ve been meaning too. Go here to get started on that.

Not only is the results awesome, you get to have fun making it. It’s a perfect way to class up your place, and also give you something more productive to do on a Tuesday afternoon than binge drink gin with the homeless guy who lives in the dumpster behind your building. Heck, maybe you could give it to him and he can hang it up on the trashcan he eats from, giving his ally just enough class to invite the other homeless people in the area over for a dinner party.

There is literally no situation that won’t benefit from the class a bit of crayon art can bring to a space. it’s a great activity to do with friends and family, no matter the age. This is of course you’re not a wax figure that comes to life every night trying to steal the skin of the living, and in that case you’ve probably got enough on your plate to worry about.

This week, I’ve been pretty bummed out about my personal space and surroundings. Everything seems uninspired and colorless. Those little touches that you made to your dorm room in the beginning of the year, are probably mocking you at this point. Everything is lame and outdated, crummy and blecht, icky and gooey.

Well hopefully not that last one. If there’s something icky and gooey going on in your room, you better be working for an A on a biology project. Unless it’s your roommate’s mess and you’re in a mess cleaning cold war with that person. I totally feel you on that one. Messy roommates… well, they’re just the worst. The… Worst. Who am I kidding? I was always on the messy roommate side of that cold war. It’s just too fun to watch you neat freaks squirm.

Anywho, why not end the war by making your dorm room a little bit cooler and cozier this week. It will help your entire semester run more smoothly on the roommate front. It will help bolster your creativity if you take the time and effort to personalize your digs. Here are some things I found on Apartment Therapy.

DIY

Mirrors will make your dorm room look bigger, but who wants a room full of plain mirrors. This isn’t the victorian era, mirrors aren’t the show stoppers they used to be. So get creative with it. Here are a few DIY Mirror options for your viewing pleasure via Apartment Therapy.

You can use rope to frame a circular mirror if you’re going for a lasso themed thing.

You could frost your favorite silhouette onto any shaped mirror. This seems like a fun project. You could do simple circles in different shapes that look like bubbles.

Orrrr… How about making a sunburst mirror using shims? If you want something more colorful, you could paint the shims in whatever hues you think would say “inner peace” to your cranky roomie.

Hidden Gem

If you don’t have a roommie to make peace with, or you live at home with your parents while you attend one of the best online colleges, then do something for yourself this week.

Take some leftover or sale wallpaper, and line your drawers for a colorful pop. It won’t take but a few minutes of your time and is one of those little details that can bring a little joy to your day when you’re feeling uninspired.

“I always paint drunk. Now that I don’t do opiates or pain killers anymore, I always paint and drink.” -an artist I talked to once

I know that that sounds like really awful and shoddy advice. But is it? A ton of artists are notorious drinkers. As far as writers are concerned Hemmingway, Poe, Hunter Thompson, Tennessee Williams, Oscar Wilde, Jack Karoac, William Faulkner, and Charles Bukowski all fall under the drink and create tent.

What about musicians? Dean Martin, Courtney Love, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, the entire band of Led Zepplin, Marvin Gaye, Elton John, Ozzy Osborne, and Janis Joplin are all notable drunken creators.

How about artists? Well, Van Gough, Jackson Pollock… okay, now we’re too drunk to make lists.

Now, I’m not saying that this is the desirable state. Booze can cause all sorts of problems. Those problems range from harmless to out of control, namely, panty dropping, beer goggles, and crappy list making skills.

But it seems like there is a correlation between artists and booze, does it not? Even though those two may not go hand in hand, they at least go head to head every now and again.

“I would like to drink my desert.” -that same artist

Okay, so now that we’ve gotten this far in this post about booze and artists, I’ll admit that the inspiration for this post about booze and art came from several over dinner tonight. I’ve got a little buzz and it made me wonder about the connection between drinking and art.

This isn’t art. This is a blog. But I kinda wanted to to a little experiment. I wanted to see what it was like to be aware of the connection and set my brain free whilst I got my drink on.

So, here I will write a drunken poem:

It’s a haiku, yes.

Drunk haikus are the best.

I drink. I write. Yes.

So what do you think? Do I deserve a haiku Pulitzer for that alcohol inspired poem? 

It seems almost sacrilegious to give up one of art’s greatest companions. No, I’m not giving up booze, drugs, cigarettes or nudity. I’ve already crossed a few of those off the list and am well on my way to being kicked out of the art world. If I keep up with nudity, can I stay? I promise, I look like a muse when I’m naked.

Now that I’ve whored myself out in order to continue to consider myself an artist, I can finally kick the coffee. That’s right. It’s good. And it kinda sucks. Well, not really. As you can see, I have really strong feelings about this. In one hand, coffee has always helped me create. It’s been my friend, lover and crutch. I saw it as a romantic thing. Coffee and art on Sunday mornings make the entire week worth living.

On the other hand, I’m kinda sick of being dependent on stuff. It’s annoying that I have to head to the coffee shop and spend at least three bucks to get my fix every single day. Otherwise, you get struck with those insurmountable caffeine headaches. I never really noticed them in the past, because I never skipped my daily dose of caffeine. But when I was told that I wouldn’t be able to ingest caffeine for the month of March, I figured, why not just kick it now? No big deal. It’ll save me some cash. It’ll help me kick the jitters (not good for drawing straight lines). I won’t be kept up all night wondering why, oh why, on gods green earth, did I drink a cup of coffee at 8 p.m.

It’s been three days without coffee, and I won’t lie to you and say that the last few days have been easy. I was cripplingly tired on Weds. I fell asleep in the middle of the day for several hours. I tried to apply for some easy scholarships, but that was a no go as well. Thursday I was struck with the craziest headaches that made me want to take a drill to my brain. But today, I woke up filled with natural energy after (gasp!) eight hours of sleep. When I got up, I was flooded with all of this inspiration. My day has really been flowing smoothly and filled with creative energy.

Do you make art without coffee? Are you trying to kick the habit?

A friend of mine once said that comic books were the most amazing populist art. How else could a person buy at least fifty pieces of art for a couple of bucks? It really made me appreciate how awesome comic books truly are, but it also took me out of the writer’s mindset to realize that comic books are mostly art (gasp!). Only a writer could miss something that’s so obvious. I can hear the resounding “DUH!” coming through the screen even as I write this.

Personally, when I think of comic books, I think of Superman and Spiderman. That style of comic book art never really seemed very “artsy” to me. Now I think that’s a pretty poor attitude when it comes to comic books. Not only do those styles have their own artistic merit, they’re not the only graphic styles in the world of comic books.

It seems that the older I get, the more serious and beautiful the art in comic books  gets. When I picked up Habibi by Craig Thompson, I was taken aback by how intricate every single page was. The artwork was exotic and delicate. It made every page seem as ornate as the Taj Mahal and it made every image so captivating that I’m not sure I’ll ever make it through the entire thing.

Watchmen was one of the first graphic novels (the grownup term for comic books) I had ever read, and looking over it again to notice the artwork seemed to make it a much more intricate story. The first time I read it, I must have taken the images at face value, like they were just there to serve the story. I realize this time that the images are the story. The color palette in Watchmen set this beautiful tone and cohesiveness.

This image from Black Hole by Charles Burnes is a great example of how artful comic books are. This comic is pure black and white genius. The images completely make the story. They’re so grotesque and unsettling that you can’t help but become engrossed in the artful and uncomfortable nature of the story.

What are your favorite artsy comic books?

Here in Chicago, the snow is piling up. The fluffy mounds make the cold finally seem worth it. It feels like it’s time to come out of hibernation and the inspiration seems to pile up with every inch of white that blankets the city. It seems right to spend a Friday evening indoors, browsing through my favorite art blogs, plucking around on a ukulele I just found, writing and eating Thai food until I burst.

As for Saturday, well that’s reserved for a day indoors with the fake fireplace playing on your TV, dubstep bumping while you scroll through your favorite art blogs, drink tea and create to your little heart’s content. Or I suppose you could reserve it for another day with the ukulele (those things may or may not be made out of heroin). There’s something that’s really calming and inspirational about the first big snow of winter.

Winter seems to slow us all down. Since we’re not running around, we seem to have more time to focus and to create. It can be a time to rest and hibernate, or it can be a time to withdraw and become motivated to make, build, write, photograph or whatever your medium is.

Last night, I came across some great winter inspirationals while I was sifting through some blogs I dig. Hopefully they’re as moving to you as they were to me last night. They prompted me to learn two songs on the uke and write two more. That’s right. The artsy student is now officially a musician… Watch out Jimmy Hendrix. It seems that your Ukulele counterpart has finally arrived.

Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival 

This is a photograph from the Big Picture covering the Ice and Snow Festival. The shots are beautiful and I think this serves as a reminder that there’s no such thing as a ridiculous dream. One day, back in the 60′s a dude dreamed up an entire village made out of ice, snow and colorful lights. That dude’s dream came true.

Tweet by Brian Cook

I’m not sure this qualfies as an inspirational, but I loved this print by Brian Cook.

Polaboy

Yeah, I was saving the best for last. As soon as I have a crazy surplus of money (super soon), I’m going to invest in a Poloroid camera. Then when I have a crazy crazy surplus of money (when I’m ballin’ with my software engineer salary), I’m going to send away my favorite shot to Polaboy and have them make me one of these amazing LED back lit, custom, giant Polaroids.

I just realized that I went off my inspirational topic. Oh well, maybe I’ll be able to stick with my theme next week.

What inspirationals have you found this week?

The Letter Writer... This guy knows how to work it.

Whether you’re a visual artist, novelist, playwright, or musician, this question is relevant to your creative process, isn’t it? What I mean is that the creative process isn’t necessarily over when you’re done with your work of art, piece of music, novel, etc. There’s one more step that takes just as much creative thinking as the actual creation part, if not more. You have to get people to see/read/listen to your creative work.

That’s what I’d like to discuss today. I’d like to take a moment to talk about ways to market your creative work. It’s one of those things that’s constantly changing as people are finding new and more accessible outlets for sharing and selling their artwork.

As a writer, I know that sharing work on sites like Twitter and Tumblr is a great way to tap into viral success, but most of the time that seems like a crap shoot. You can use twitter for years before someone important retweets you or follows you, and even that might not lead to anything tangible. As a art, education, wellness and vegan blog writer, I know that YouTube videos and Facebook fanpages can help market your “blog brand” but again, these outlets can take a lot of effort with little to no return. You can put it all out there, but how do you get people to read your stuff?

Musicians can take advantage of the internet in unfathomable ways. With sites like My [____] (almost as bad of a name change as SyFy) and Soundcloud, you have a whole new way to share music. But how do you get people to listen to it?

Artists benefit from art direct selling websites like Artweb, you can sell your art without having to give the middle man a huge chunk of commission. Again, you can put it out there, but how do you get people to buy it?

I guess putting it out there might be all you can do. Perhaps if it’s good enough, and people love it, you’ll eventually make a living creating. Maybe not.

I’d love to hear from you on this one… How do you market your art? Do you think marketing is an important part of being a successful artist?

You’ve got a deadline for a creative project that’s coming up in a few short days, hours, or minutes. Hopefully it’s not minutes, otherwise you definitely have a procrastination problem. Why would you be reading a blog if you’ve only got a few minutes to finish something? Oh, that’s right. Because you’re trying to get inspired and I’m supposed to be telling you how to do that. Sorry.

So you might have been staring at the same blank canvas, page for weeks or you might have written or created something that amounts to virtual crap (I didn’t mean digital poop, but something that’s completely useless). So now the time has come to get some creative work onto the page, to think creatively and come up with something genius.

How do you do that? How did you figure out how to become an artist? There are no absolutes, but there are three simple things you can do to get you creatively motivated in a hurry.

Change Your Space

Sometimes, getting creative is as simple as changing the place that you’re in. I’m not saying that you have to pack up and head down to a Starbucks or new art studio, but try moving around a little bit and getting right back to it. Change rooms or just change the space you occupy in the room you’re in and give it another go. If that doesn’t work…

Take a Shower

Again, this stuff isn’t brain surgery. It’s just about wiping the slate clean and getting a new perspective. Do that literally. Hop in the shower. Do your thang. Take a cold rinse. When you get out of the shower, towel off, tie your hair back and get to it. No primping folks. This isn’t an excuse to put fake eyelashes on. Get right back to your work space. If you don’t have time for a quick shower…

Run and Shake

Getting physical is a good way to quickly get your mind on the task at hand. Run in place as fast as you can for two minutes, then jog at a medium pace for three minutes. Next, shake every limb of your body, one at a time, like you’re doing the hokey pokey. Now get back on the ball.

How do you get inspired in a hurry.

Like most of you, I’m wasting years of my life surfing the internet. Like you guys, I too sit down at the computer to “check something” and find myself there four hours later. Sometimes this sudden realization sucks. Sometimes I weigh out all of the things that I could have gotten accomplished instead of keeping my eyes glued to the new boob tube. Sometimes I think, “I just want to click. I can’t stop clicking. Why do they make it so easy to click? Why can’t I find the bottom of this thing? When will it end? Sh*t. I have an internet addiction.” And then I give in and continue to click anyway.

Other times, I think, I’ve seen so many cool things these last four hours, that my eyes could explode out of my head and I want to go make stuff, write stuff and do stuff, because I’m craaaazy inspired (and a little crazy).

I have that one friend on Facebook that actually posts amazing creative stuff from artists and funny folks all over the interwebs. I consider him my internet filter for cool art stuff. He’s a fantastic artist in Chicago, so he’s got a good eye for amaaaazing things (today has been one of those internet days. Can you tell?) Here’s some stuff from a link he posted this week that shows some of Eric Drooker’s illustrations:

Loverly.

Irony?

But stalking isn’t the only way I get my art and design inspiration on. I also get it from my Google reader, where it comes pre-packaged in bite sized muse morsels. British designer Patrick Smith created these graphically pleasing posters to get us talking about an uncomfortable subject, mental disorders. They’re fantastic.

And last but not least, I get my inspiration from http://realworld.com… I mean the real world (yeah, that was a stretch. I’m sleepy). Today, I got to walk the same confusing hallways that Tina Fey, Chris Farley and John Belushi walked down when I went for orientation at The Second City. It was generally the most inspiring moment of my year.

So what did you find inspirational this week?

Buenas! I just got back from Central America a few days ago, and I’m fresh from checking out the local flavor in Panama City. I just wanted to check in and show you some amazing street art and handmade art from the Kuna people of Panama.

Traveling is such a great way to get exposed to new art. One way to get a feel for a culture’s creative side is to wander around and check out the street art. The street art in Panama City is great and I wanted to stop in and share some of it with you.

I spent my time out in Casco Viejo, which is a beautiful little part of old Panama. You can see the big city skyline on the other side of the bay plus it’s this beautiful little delapedated area that’s being heavily restored. I was told that the city was destroyed in the 1600′s by the pirate, Captain Morgan when he ravaged Panama City in a spiced rum, drunken stupor. I recently found out that this isn’t really accurate. Most of the coastal towns were burnt down by the Spanish themselves to keep them from the pirates. Interesting stuff, huh?

What’s even more fascinating is that Casco lies in a state of internal dichotomy. On one of the narrow brick roads, you’ll see fancy sushi restaurants next to hollowed out ruins, next to a heaping piles of garbage. If you close your eyes, you can even smell how the opposites play at each other. In one inhalation, you can capture the scent of the humid sea, hot grease, expensive perfume, the dust of hammered brick, and said heaping pile of garbage.

Here are some images that I captured around town…

This is Mola made by the Kuna people in Panama. It's beautiful stuff.

I honestly loved Casco Viejo and would highly recommend a trip to Panama City and a stay at Luna’s Castle especially if you get a break from your online classes and you can truly enjoy the break. But enough about my trip… Do you have any street art to share?

This year, instead of hitting the conglomerates and corporate mega stores, why not help out a local artist and buy some art for your loved ones? Why not? Seriously, why not? This is not a new concept, supporting local art, especially during the holidays. So why is it something that we still rarely do? Do we think it’s too expensive? Do we find it inconvenient? Are we scared of artists?
The answers to these three questions can only be found from within. But don’t let your misconceptions about buying local art get in your way of at least shopping around for local art. Many talented artists didn’t benefit from scholarships for college students so they’re not just starving, they’re starving and paying back student loans.

Here are three things you should know about buying local art for christmas presents.
1. Get a budget together: What are you really going to spend on Christmas gifts this year? Include all of those piddly gifts, stocking stuffers and the gifts to people at work that you don’t really like anyway. Once you know that, you will know what you’re working with. If you only have a few hundred dollars, you can visit some local jewelers for the ladies in your life and some screen print shops to get some gear for the cool dudes that you know. If you’re looking to spend a little more, consider hiring a fine artist. You could have portraits done, or you can shop around for some high quality work by a talented up and coming artist.
2. Get some resources: You have at least one artsy friend, who has an artsier friend, who has the artsiest friend on the face of the planet. Did you know that we’re all only separated by less than 4 degrees now? Meaning, I know someone who knows someone, who knows someone, who knows someone, who knows Kevin Bacon. It used to be six, but the world is getting more connected, folks. I think it’s because of blogs. Anywho, those friends are a great resource. So is the internet. Spend an evening poking around the search results when you look for “artist in ____” You’re likely to find articles about local artists that you can then seek out. If you’re lucky, your future art maker might be tech saavy enough to have a website.
3. Don’t Drag Your Feet: This is especially true if you want something done before Christmas. You probably should have began this a month ago. Still, give it a shot, but give it a shot now. Find out how quickly your artist will turn stuff over naturally. Ask him how long it takes him to finish a piece on average before you begin talking about having something made. Even if you’re just going to buy art that an artist has on hand, do it now. Sometimes artists give their stuff away for Christmas, so if you want to buy it, you better do it before they decide to give it to their cousin Jenny.

So get out there and buy some art guys! It’s better than getting them something plastic that will end up in one of the Five Gyres someday.

So, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. I’ve been thinking about you, about becoming a tattoo artist, about this blog, well, mainly about this blog. I launched this blog because I really love art and design blogs and I wanted to create a place where I could bookmark amazing things I discover on the interwebs and elsewhere.

I also wanted a place to talk about my favorite young artists and to display their work. Ultimately, a few months ago, I decided to be less rigid about all of that and let this blog go wherever it wanted to go. Now, I’m really not happy with the direction it’s headed in. I got so concerned with my own personal crap and my own creative journey, that this blog turned into that… and personally, it’s something I would never read. So no more! This is a student art blog! It’s a design and art appreciation blog! It’s not Corinne’s House of Whiny Nonsense and Creative Tips.

So I’m going to switch gears today! Here’s some cool stuff I’ve found lately that I thought was cool or thought provoking. Check it out.

Drowning in images 

As an avid Flickr and Creative Commons user, I really appreciated this installation, but not really in the way it was intended. Erik Kessels printed out a million photos to represent the pictures that are uploaded via Flickr every day. His intent was to show that Facebook, Flicker and what he calls “photo based search engines” are making us drown in other people’s experiences. Kessels seems like the kind of guy who throws around condescending remarks like, “I guess everybody’s a photographer now.” I’m not sure I agree. When I come across beautiful viral circulated images on Flickr and Facebook, it feels a lot less like drowning, and a lot more like learning to breathe underwater. It’s evolution Kessels, get with it.

DIY Gift Idea

Simple, cheap, creative, pretty. Just get some rope, grab your hot glue gun and spray sealant and go to town creating an endless variety of decorative dishes that make a great gift for everyone in the family. Decorative bowls are universal! Check the method here.

Gorgeous Weather App

These are images from a beautifully designed weather app for the iPad. Yandex.Weather had some artists create weather images for the background of the app. The result is infinitely more inspiring than your average sun with clouds image that most apps use.

I’m not one to apologize for having feelings, but I’d like to say that I’m sorry for letting them ooze out on here. I apologize for the F-bombs and negativity in the past couple of posts. That kind of stuff really isn’t my bag. I was in a bad place and this blog just happened to be in my path of letting it all out.

There’s something to be said about learning poise during turmoil in your twenties. Having to see what I put out into the world when I was in emotional duress, puts me in pain all over again. The thing is, now that I’m no longer devastated or infuriated, it pains me to see that I could air my dirty laundry in such a way. I constantly remind myself that all of these thoughts and feelings are fleeting. But sometimes instead of heeding your own advice, it feels easier to let the emotions drive your actions.

It’s not that I am worried about what anyone will think of me or the way I feel, but those posts have a negative tone that could hurt someone or make them empathize with my pain. It’s just not what I think I want to put out there. I did, however, get a lot of creative work out of that emotionally draining experience, so what I said in my last two posts wasn’t completely true.

At any rate, I’d like to turn over a new leaf in the spirit of learning the lesson of letting go.

There are a lot of lessons that we can learn when we’re caught in the mud. I think devastation, fear and anger are neccesary for getting in touch with something inside our creative psyches that gives our work more depth. But I think the lessons of letting go, of non attachment, of freedom from those negative emotions are even more valuable. It’s not just important to let go of all of the negativity. During these times, we often cling to positive fantasies. We envision things working out the way we want them to. We can spend hours dwelling on these musings that waste our time and inevitably cause disappointment (great, now I sound like a clinical psychologist).

The act of taking flight is more beautiful than flying, and much more inspiring than the act of tumbling to the ground. There’s a lesson in the latter, but there’s power in the former.

I think this song sums it up pretty well…

So, next week, we’ll start looking at some artsy, designy, crafty stuff again! Yay! Let’s drag this blog out of the mud together!

How do you let go?

Yeah, this is supposed to be a blog dedicated to student art. Over the past few months it has turned into a student creativity blog with tips about creativity, finding inspiration and leading a creative life. Like every good organism, this blog has evolved over time and right now it’s just at one of those in between places. It’s not a fish anymore, but it’s not quite a salamander yet. It’s more like angryranticus blogimus at the moment, which is totally Latin.

The last post was about finding inspiration in sadness and how difficult it is to turn something painful into art. This post is going to be about anger and how it’s much worse for artistic creation. You could say that I’m at stage 3 of loss.

I’d like to begin this post by saying, fuck this shit. That’s right, you read me. Fuck. This. Shit. Relationships are the bain of an artistic existence. I mean, seriously, what a fucking waste of time. If I look at it artistically, it really amounts to shit. What came of the “ever inspiring” love part? Were there tomes of sonnets? No. There was some shitty poetry likening our love to a fictional indestructible substance that gave Wolverine his claws. Wow. That crap’s going to win me a Pulitzer.

Or how about the calm, middle part; when our love was in a good place and I had time to write it all down? Between the fighting and the making up, who had time to create? Not this girl.

Oh and the post break up shit? That is supposed to be gold. God, even though the pain is unbearable and I write all day long, nothing good comes from it. It’s just some sad sack, who’s vocabulary is whack, crying about a dude named Zach. Do you see what I’m talking about here? I almost thought that was good.

And can you believe that I still want it to work out in spite of it all? I mean, I only have one stage of grief left and then this could all roll back on the upswing. Why is it that I want to put myself through all of this nonsense again?

It’s obviously not for creative purposes. So why? Is it because he’s the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen? Is it because our hands fit together perfectly, like they were made to fold into each other? Is it because he makes me laugh at nothing like it’s nobody’s business? Is it because sometimes he grants me the right to be crazy about the small stuff? Is it because I truly believe that he’s going to do something great for this world? It might be because of the way he told me I was a good writer with conviction in his eyes and because, like I said in that old poem I wrote when we were falling in love, we’re both nerd bombs.

Nerd Bombs

Your will may not be adimantium
Or as strong as an iron man
Or as quick witted as an iron chef
Your will might not be able to escape me
Or what we’re seeing in all that eye fucking we do
Or all that real fucking you think about
That freeze framed dream frame
With my frame on your frame
And the sun in the back
And my hands in my hair
And I imagine that from my point of view
You’d be looking at me
Sensitively, yet pensively and yet intensely

But that’s not the problem is it?
My will can’t escape the
Feeling that comes
When I understand the words coming out of your mouth
Before you explain them
When I have to look away and up
And you make the sound,
That monosylobic sound,
That sounds like, hm and huh.
The way we’ve stopped waiting for the other shoe
Because we go ten out of ten
And the parallel lives we might be leading are probably doing this
exact
same
thing
and 30 percent of our time together is spent in awe
that we found each other
and it didn’t even take that long
and we didn’t have to look that hard
and it was perfect timing
The way those eye fucking eyes
Glanced
When I said
“Drawer full of comic books”
And you said
“Adamantium”