Spring Equinox

I, unlike many of my art major peers, knew nothing about the moon and the sun and the stars before this semester. I am getting a BS in Art degree which means I have to take a bunch of absolutely ridiculous science classes that will never contribute to my life as an artist. This semester I enrolled in Astronomy to fill one of my many prerequisites and as much as I despise spending my money on learning about stars and nebulae, I have learned more than I could ever imagine. There is so much out there, and not only are we an astronomically small blip in the Milky Way galaxy, and our galaxy is an astronomically small blip in the vast and ever expanding universe. I enjoyed this spring equinox project because it gave me the opportunity to not only spend the day being creative and making art but also a chance to study and learn things about our place in our solar system.

As you all know, I have a deep obsession and appreciation for the Black American musicians who have shaped and influenced generations of musicians and artists and have spent my time as an artist trying to incorporate sound and visuals. I enjoy learning the practice routines of my favorite musicians and trying to apply them to my practices. I transcribe, I improvise, I develop motifs and themes, and use the visual languages of the artists I am influenced by most.

About a year and a half ago, I began experimenting with a new way of manipulating my photographs so that I can begin using 2, 10, 15 even 24 photos in a final image. The more photos I use, the more abstract it gets. But learning to use a roll of 24 exposure B&W film and creating a single artwork that describes the aura of the photographs inside.

The night of the equinox I went out on bike with my camera and photographed the sunset at James Madison Park with my new favorite people from Art 470. Then as I went to bike home, I decided to impulsively go to the jazz club, Cafe Coda and photograph both sets of their grand re-opening show.

Below are my final images for this project. I really enjoyed the outcome of these pieces and had a great time doing what I love with the people I love.

Spring Break... or lack thereof...

I'm tired. I need a break. we deserve it. Margaritas! (?)

Every morning up until about a week ago I woke up virtually every morning to the smell of spray paint enamel (which I'm sure cannot be good for my already depleted brain cells) and a new thought on a brightly colored cardboard tree. . . you know, like we all do.

For our lack of spring break project, I became friends with 5 of the most wildly different people on the planet along with a handful of heart-warmingly adorable kindergarteners.

You were all there. You know what we did. But I know your'e all here to hear my thoughts. I think that, naturally, this project was totally different from each other, the ways we thought about it, what our expectations were, what we got out of it, etc.. For me, it was a 4 hour break from the nonsensical astronomy and biological anthropology classwork that was assigned during what would be my annual visit to visit my grandparents. I had a few hours of bliss to drink some fresh-pressed lime juice with my new friends in my utopian experiment class with the magically talented professor of love, Michael Peterson.

I need a break, too. This virus has affected each one of us as differently as anyone can imagine, its ways are so random and nefarious, but I know for damn sure that we have all had a hard time adjusting to the pain of not being able to see the smiles on your friends faces, and the small interactions with complete strangers. But for a second, we captured it. I saw the smiles through my camera's lens and was able to be a part of a random act of kindness that brightened everyone's day. And don't get me started on the weather!

Audio Tour

This blog begins and ends with music. The music and vibrations have provided a consistent flow of inspiration and creative ideas in my life as an artist. I am drawn to the idea that musicality in a person largely comes from understanding the language and honoring the traditions of the musicians that one listens to in their lifetime.

For the second assignment for this class I was tasked with creating an outdoor audio/walking piece. I never walk around outside without my music. I first had the idea to take the listener into my shoes. . . literally - have the listener do my everyday walk down the sidewalk (site specific), but after going on the first days round of tours, I thought it could be powerful to a wider rage of people if I could make the tour site unspecific.

This post may be jumping around a lot in terms of topics but you all know me well enough to know that is just how I am. I'm sorry. Anyways -- I decided to go though my little orange external hard drive of bootlegs and physical music and find a few tracks that I know note-for-note and compile them into a little podcast radio show for the listener to enjoy and explore.

I chose to take a little journey in time and jazz history starting with Charlie Parker and ending with Emmet Cohen. The aural experience of my project, for me, brough a fresh light and a creative twist to my daily life. Though I may walk around everywhere listening intensely to my music, I have never really taken a walk and focused on taking in the sights and sounds around me and comparing or contrasting that with the sounds of the Black American musicans who shaped this music that we all know as "Jazz" today.