//P/A\W/P/A/W\\ //M/E \ //P/A/W/P/A\W//: 2010

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.......................... a taste of Tomboy

Thom Yorke added his voice to the growing chorus of artists supporting the first-ever planetary art show: 350 EARTH
350 Earth is an international climate campaign, and from November 20-28, the week before the UN Climate Meetings in Cancun, Mexico, artists are working with citizens in over a dozen locations to create massive, climate-themed public art installations that will be photographed by satellites traveling 17,000 m.p.h. nearly 400 miles above the surface of the planet.

Yorke explained on the Radiohead website, “The plan is to make images visible from the skies to remind those in Cancun that we’re running out of time. We can’t keep putting this off.”
“Art can convey in a different way than science the threat that climate change poses to our planet,” said 350.org founder and environmental author Bill McKibben. “The world’s best scientists have tried to wake-up politicians to the climate crisis, now we’re counting on artists to help.”

Adding to the project, Yorke is working with 350.org to gather thousands of people on the coastline in Brighton, UK on November 27 to form an enormous version of the image from the cover of his album The Eraser: the picture of King Canute, a Norse ruler who futilely tried to control the ocean.......................

In a 2006 interview, Yorke explained the symbolism of the story:
“In the paper one day, [Friends of the Earth activist] Jonathan Porrit was basically dismissing any commitment that the working government has toward addressing global warming, saying that their gestures were like King Canute trying to stop the tide. And that just went “kaching” in my head. It’s not political, but that’s what I feel is happening. We’re all King Canutes, holding our hands out, saying, “It’ll go away. I can make it stop.” No, you can’t.”

If you visit 350.org you can not only check out the "far-out" images displayed all over the planet, but you can also sign up to get involved//posted on what's going on. Sooooooo an idea of mine that I would have loved to have worked on if I hadn't missed the deadline was to illustrate an image of the earth through a collection of leaves. The beautiful array of red-yellow-orange- Autumn leaves would portray//symbolize a "hot planet," and underneath I would have liked to form "350" or "too hot" or something a little more clever with sticks or what not.....and here's the best part; I would gather up some cool cats to help me set up my land art..................ON THE GRAND CANYON! Pretty grand idea. I find it so refreshing to see an organization that uses creativity as a way to convey the urgency of such important issues such as climate change. I would definitely check this site out, and if at all possible check out some ways to get involved.

Paper or Plastic?

Josh Blackwell is a contemporary artist that I stumbled upon a few days ago. I've fallen in love with the work he does with plastic bags. It's amazing how he transforms a simple item like a grocery bag to a unique piece of art. It kind of makes you wish you had saved all your Safeway bags after shopping doesn't it? I wish I knew more about Josh Blackwells' work, preferably more on his aesthetic approach; but nonetheless this guy has some skills..............and baggage. A former student from the Art Institute of California, he is now launching out a book called "Plastic Bag as Humble Present," in NY. Be sure to check out more of his beautifully designed bags on his website!

Unwrapped

Found some of my old pottery while unpacking my kitchen//dishes box in the apartment..................

just bsing around

B S

Spent the last day in Hatteras drinking//talking//laughing//eating..... & drinking with these hombres.

It was pretty strange/interesting how similar our personalities, and also our relationships were: Brian was like me; a restless scatterbrain with a strong soul who loves getting things done. & his bf Alex was more or less like Ben; a calm collected ponderer with a kind heart that enjoys watching the grass grow. They were beautiful people that Ben and I were destined to meet. Thank you Brain and Alex for the company, thoughts, laughs, sandwiches, and booze

W@T U B33N W8ING 4

a flash of time lapse has passed..............

so my laziness has kept me from keeping everyone updated on my travels..........................sorry.

maybe a quick montage will make it better./?

?

September 17

Breakthrough. (Cape Hatteras, N.C.)

Ben and I spent a good chunk of our morning SWEATING//SLEEPING//ITCHING//STRUGGLING. When we couldn't take it anymore, the unanimous decision was to take showers and plan our first day in the gorgeous outer banks.........Located in a shack, separated from the bathrooms were the showers; they were beautiful little holes in the wall that had pull strings to run the cold water on. The shower walls had been painted 3 times through the course of time: a creamsicle orange, an off-white, and a sky blue. All showing through in a rustic, speckled, abstract way.

We later set off to grab a little breakie and fell into a small food shack called the HATTERASMAN. >>50 cent bottomless cup of coffee>> bacon, egg & cheese on a biscuit>> the start of a wonderful day!

After breakie, we spent the rest of our day soaking up the sun and playing with the ocean.

September 16

Had a late start leaving for Cape Hatteras, but Ben a I enjoyed saying our last "goodbyes" to the McGuckin family.....and the hot shower was good too. We had decided to take the ferry to Lewes, where I lost my sunglasses in the Delaware River. I guess it's a good spot for them though, because now I'll never forget where they've run off to.................... After heading out on the road again, I offered to drive the rest of the 7 hours to the Cape, but didn't realize how shitty of a driver I was until I watched myself struggle driving strait down the highway for 5....... I don't think I would ever want to move to Virginia, the air quality is so bad. There may be some good areas that I had missed somehow, but what I had experienced was that the state just smells like processed chickens..........with the exception of the Tysons's factory, who is responsible for slicing and dicing these poor birds.

Journal Entry

So many good byes// swollen eyes// & phone calls................we packed that jeep tighter than sardines in a can....."

ON THE ROAD

The jeep is packed up and ready to go! Ben and I have been working all summer for this trip & the time is now! Ben and I are very excited about what's to come. The new friends we will meet, the places we will see, and the good and bad experiences that will be had will all be a part of this life changing journey! I will never forget N.H. and all the beautiful people and places. I love you all; ADIOS!

Evolution Of The Visual System Is Key To Abstract Art

Famous works of abstract art achieve popularity by using shapes that resonate with the neural mechanisms in the brain linked to visual information, a psychologist at the University of Liverpool has discovered.

Piet Mondrian, Composition with Yellow, Blue, and Red, 1921

University of Liverpool, November 22, 2008 — Humans make aesthetic judgements about shapes and forms quickly and easily, preferring certain shapes to others, even in the absence of any narrative. Dr Richard Latto, from the University’s Psychology department, has discovered that these shapes resonate with the processing properties of the human visual system, which is responsible for analyzing what we have seen.

Dr Latto said: “Humans inherit a basic visual system through genetics. That system provides very selective information about the world around us. It has evolved to provide only the information that we need to survive – for example, we cannot see most electromagnetic radiation or follow the leg movement of a galloping horse.

“Of course our visual systems can be influenced by social factors, like fashion and the number of abstract images that we expose ourselves to, but evolution had given us some genetically determined responses to certain shapes and forms. In popular abstract works such as Matisse’s The Snail (1953), Mondrian’s Composition with Red, Blue and Yellow (1921), and Malevich’s Supremus No. 50 (1915), the artists start with a blank canvas and arrange shapes and colours in a way that is aesthetically pleasing, using their own brain to monitor the effect.

“We like to look at the human body or parts of the body like the face and hands, stylized representations like stick figures and organic forms of the kind incorporated into the work of Salvador Dali and Francis Bacon. Certain landscapes and horizontal and vertical lines are also popular because they resonate with our visual systems, which have been tuned by evolution and experience to respond particularly to these biologically and socially important stimuli.

“We know that neurons in the brain need to be kept active to flourish and develop, so it is important for the visual system to be stimulated and sometimes pushed to the limit to function effectively. As with other adaptive behaviors, we have evolved a mechanism for encouraging this by rewarding ourselves with good feelings. Perhaps we enjoy looking at faces, landscapes and Mondrian’s work because it is good for us and good for our brains.”

Dr Latto added: “Artists were experimenting with abstract shapes long before scientists began analyzing our nature of perception. Through observation or trial-and-error, artists have been identifying these aesthetic primitives – critical shapes and arrangements – and have indirectly defined the nature of our visual processes. In purely abstract painting, as with much music, form is all we have. Popular works have shown that essentially we like looking at what we are good at seeing.”

Kazimir Malevich, Supremus No. 50, 1915

WIP

From a few months of searching and collecting, I've finally have some pieces finished. I'm hoping to have an easier time constructing some of these pieces in the future now that I'm learning more about the materials.

/will have more soon when I've decided how I want the display to look.

Color Rings

Pieces of jewelery carved from layers of colored paint applied to a wooden table >>>

The rings often include slices of timber from the table beneath the paintwork.

<<< The process takes a few months; applying a layer of acrylic paint per day, then slices through the thick surface to create the raw material for the rings.

ITINERARY:

Blast Off// New Hampshire- Sept. 15 New Jersey- Sept. 16 Cape Hatteras, NC- Sept. 17th-20th Chapel Hill- Sept. 21 Farm Haus Appalachia// Asheville- 22nd-29th Atlanta, GA- Sept. 30th-Oct. 1st New Orleans- Oct. 1st-3rd Mississippi- Oct. 4 Paradise Produce// Arkansas- Oct. 5th-15th Oklahoma- Oct. 16 Santa Fe, NM- Oct. 17 Albuquerque-Oct. 18 Petrified Forest National Park// Arizona- Oct. 19 FIN// Flagstaff- Oct. 20

J3W3LRY S000000000N

While working 2 jobs, & planning out my next direction, I've found time 2 make a few pieces of jewelery. All jewelery r made from natural objects. From reeds//leaves//bark//& mushrooms, I've gathered these objects from all over 4 the past 3 months. The jewelery is an experiment in drawing nature toward man, as nature being the assumption of life. My natural jewelery is designed virtually 4 everyone. I have had a few thoughts on ways 2 present my pieces 2 the public: I thought I might send them off 2 different addresses with a letter or statement of what my visions r. I also thought I might give them away as gifts 2 people that I feel may understand the value of life..........or may not yet realize it, & perhaps start a trend. Or, of course, I may just sell them 2 ppl that enjoy them.......All of the above?? >>photos will b coming soon.

Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, when cares will drop off like autumn leaves...............