It's been a short while...

This winter has been really rough on my creative process, more so than the winter typically is. I am definitely one of the millions of Minnesotans who is negatively affected by five months of the perma-cloud. But the sun has shown its lovely face and I have felt its warm rays upon my skin, even if it is shortlived. I feel very much renewed! One of the many projects I want to continue working on this spring is my alphabet book that I started early this winter but from which I have since taken a couple months hiatus. I like to look at this project as my autobiography at its simplest. Every letter references an important object or memory in my childhood and what that object or memory symbolizes to me now as an adult. Each illustration includes a little Liz, how I picture myself as a child. Here's a peak at a few of the letters I have been working on:

Roads

Most of my recent art has been centered around the theme of memories, especially my own childhood memories. Typically I stick to drawings and paintings and I am rather tech shy, but the experimental media arts class I took last semester forced me out of my comfort zone. Our final project was to create a cinematic essay through non-linear video. My essay is all about Papa, my grandfather, who died in the summer of 1992 when I was six years old. It focuses on my memories of him and how even these few memories are slowly fading. Now it has become more of an association of specific objects with him as opposed to particular moments in time. In my six year old mind, Papa was a brilliant bard, a singer of songs and a smoker of smokes. For sources, I used old home video footage from that summer and everything else I recorded myself (with some help from my mom and brother, Josh). And here's the part where I have to admit that I loved doing this project. I really enjoyed the entire process, especially the editing portion, so much so that I am considering buying my own video camera and I desperately want Final Cut Pro. What has this done to me?! Hopefully I will be making more films in the future.

The Dark Places

In my experimental media arts class we were asked to create a 90 second video using only appropriated materials that gave new meaning to the material. I chose to work with the music videos of some of today's most popular female "singers." Here's what I ended up with:

Interiors and Exteriors

In my drawing class, we were asked to create both an interior and exterior psychological space. It was intended to be an exercise in perspective.  My professor had previously suggested that I might enjoy working with scratchboard, so I decided to try it out. She was absolutely right; I think I have found the new love of my life. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys experimenting with new drawing materials. It's essential a black board and you use special tools to scratch the black off, revealing the white below. I think it's an especially wonderful material for those of us who do a lot of visible cross hatching. That's what I do mostly, so lucky me. For my interior space, I chose to draw a section of my niece's bedroom. Here is an in progress photo:

And the final product. This took me about 3 hours to finish. The bad thing about scratchboard? There's no erasing. So that can be troublesome.

The inability to erase was a much bigger issue with my exterior space. For this, I simply drove by some lovely old houses in St. Paul and picked one I thought looked a tish bit spooky. The angles of the house and all the various vanishing points meant one thing: way more planning time! Before I actually permanantly scratched lines into the board, I used white charcoal to draw the lines and double check angles. Here's an in progress for this one: 

And after way too many hours (I'd say at least 13), the finished product:

In my opinion it was definitely worth the time (and the hand cramps, since I essentially did the entire thing in one day) but I would warn you, it's not for the faint of heart or the impatient.

Pretty Music: Husky

This is an all around beauty. See them tonight in Minneapolis. I'll be there!

Toddlers and Tiaras

Happy Halloween (almost)! Here's a painting I did last spring, based on the regrettably popular TLC show "Toddlers and Tiaras." It's 3 feet by 2 feet on wood, so it's definitely larger than life. My intention was for it to be a commentary on the themes and values American parents are presenting to their children as desirable, and whether or not it's appropriate for their age. Obviously Toddlers & Tiaras is an extreme example, but that doesn't mean it isn't happening in smaller doses in our own houses. Additionally, what does the fact that we find such things entertaining say about us, as viewers?

Up next, "Here Comes Honey Booboo." Not seriously, but...I wouldn't rule it out as a possibility. There is nothing worse in my mind than watching a show, depicting genuine human beings, solely for the purpose of laughing at their "sad" lives.

Beware What Lies Beneath

My attempt to paint an octo-UFO. Is it sinking into the depths of the ocean or rising from the water, about to fly home? We shall never know. All a bit of silliness really.