Yesterday I was among a bunch of people watching David Bryne display and talk about his powerpoint art at the George Eastman House. I found the talk amusing and thought-provoking as the discussion moved more towards the conflict and connections of meaning and media and away from the particulars of Powerpoint. But then, there were wonderfully funny and beautiful powerpoint images. How does he get the bleeds between image? Not just that but how does one manage to create such a diverse body of work revolving always around stories of the ordinary. As I watched and listened, I kept thinking of the image of Bryne as a jittery guy, of which a little seemed true from my view 6 rows up, but maybe the energy is less paranoia and more the stuff that happens when you are constantly creating.)

The exhibit also includes some of Bryne's tree drawings; I'm hoping to get a chance to give these a closer look because I'm intrigued by how the language and the drawing can weave together and separate. David was there to sell his book no doubt but combined his talk with enough images and such humor that I left wanting to play more with powerpoint.
But instead of do that I looked up more about these Powerpoint presentations and found this Onion interviewand at the DJ Alchemi blog an interesting summation of some of the powerpoint art scene .
In other news, now that we have entered October, it feels cold and almost cold. Today started dark and gloomy and then was brightened by sunlight, creativity, and a cappucino. I'm painting a few pieces now and even if it is slow going I have a sense that the tinkering I'm doing now will result in something. Who knows what. As my friend Shelly reminded me today, "drawings (and I call paintings, too) have a life of their own."


Oh and apparently I won the lottery.
INTERNATIONAL PRIZE AWARD DEPT.
REF Number: NLL/231-ILGI0431/04
BATCH No: DAL/15/096/PTNL
TICKET No: 40611465897-6291
SERIAL No: 342-891103
LUCKY No: 8-66-11-20-71-64
RE: WINNING FINAL NOTIFICATION

Sir, Madam
We are pleased to inform you of the result of the Lottery Winners International
programs held on the 28th of September 2004 Your E-mail address attached
to
Ticket number 40611465897-6291 with Serial number 342-891103 drew the lucky
numbers 8-66-11-20-71-64, which consequently won in the 1st category, you
have therefore been approved for a lump sum payout of US$ 1,000,000.00 (One
Million United States Dollars). This is from a total cash prize of USD$10,000,000.00
Million shared amongst Ten International Lucky Winners in the Category A
+ (Plus).

CONGRATULATIONS!!!
This lottery is a promotional program by DE LOTTO, (Biggest lottery Organization
in the Netherlands) to advertise to the world its existence. All participants
were selected through a computer ballot system drawn from over 50,000 companies
and 2,000,000 individual email addresses and names from all over the world,
as part of our international promotions program, which we conduct several
times a year.

Be informed that your documents have to pass our authority to obtain a clearance....

To file for your claim, please contact our /your processing Officer
Mr.James Mash
Email:pgl_inc@mail2agent.com


yeah, right. I wouldn't buy that even if it were in Powerpoint !

take care,
Rachael

Well, OK, I don't know what the survey will say but I am very curious. Having art blogged for over six-months now and having spent a longer time reading and thinking about art, I wanna know you think. So, please do spend some time filling this out.

So, then, this has been a busy week at work, and with my adjusting to a new climate, but at this moment I'm loving the chill in the air, excited about seeing David Byrne's powerpoint presentation , thinking about how I'm gonna win the lottery ($101 million). Yes, I will remember you. I will remember the funny gang over at Yankee Pot Roast , even though they don't know me. But with that kind of hard cash, they will.

If my money doesn't come in, I suppose I'll be OK... I'm off to draw and look up some old friends from Atlanta and their projects (like this show at Agnes Scott college) .

take care,
Rachael

Watching the world go by sometimes results in drawings like this. Go look around, why don't cha?

Take care,
Rachael

It is easy for me to forget that we've just landed here. After seven years in Atlanta, and several years of feeling pulled back up north, now that we are here I half-expected to know where I was all the time. I kind of thought I would know what I was doing here. I know, I know....it's pretty funny. I am definitely meeting craetive people, finding inspiration, and, yes, I am cleaning out and cleaning up the room that will be my studio. I'm writing and reading more and am doing all the things the folks who advise new kids in town would have us do... but well, it is just so much easier to cause creative trouble, to help people make change in their own lives and those of others, to get to know new folks when you are connected to a place. Or so it seems to the new kid.

Today is my day off. And after drawing pea pods and and finishing my book , I set out to discover. The University of Rochester keeps their art books stacks underground. There are tremendously bright (like cadmium orange) trees all over this campus, and the co-eds all have their noses stuck in books and laptops...

The new kid looks out the window and wonders where she is. But I have a couple of books and a couple of ideas and plenty of time to fit in here. Might as well fix my head to consider the simpleposie question for today:

simpleposie question for the day #202
simpleposie wants to know:

What descriptive passage from a novel do you think would make the best
painting? Or to rephrase it, what is the most painterly excerpt from a
work of fiction that you ever read?

Oh, and before you ask, the pea pods are fascinating for the seed forms, for the long shapes which hold little round pods and I was thrilled to find that the mottled red and white pods hold mottled maroon and cream beans. And doesn't this sound good?

So, maybe that's the thing, as my mom used to say, "whereever you go, there you are," and the kid is the kid wherever she is, new and old, same and not so same. Just looking around and making art and trouble and hopefully some friends...

take care,
Rachael

Just read both Anna's great little bit (from Sept 23) about her old art store job, and the NYTimes article that sparked her memories, and I am sitting here thinking that I don't know an artist who HASN'T worked as a clerk in an art supply store. Maybe I'm wrong.

A couple years ago when a writing job fell through, I started working a few days a week selling brushes and paints and papers. I've done a lot of retail work in my day and all of it helps give me the human contact I need as I aim to make art that connects (or maybe that's how I rationalize?).

At the art store, I was able to save enough money on supplies with my discount that I went off on my residency with fancy new colors and brushes...I found myself considering more materials and reading more product labels when it was slow in the art store, and I did try a few new directions. Most of the people I worked with were artists, but the bosses weren't.

It's funny to me how in smaller communities (not Atlanta, San Fran or NY) the art stores have a little less artist attitude (in what other retail field would it be OK for a store to display a book of satirical drawings and insults of customers?) and a little more of a craft store, strip mall feel...

So, any artists care to share how their time spent working in an art supply store changed their work? I'm curious.

Now for something completely different, a nice web gallery of Women printers, book-makers, and whatnot at Princeton . Lots of time this weekend for exploring, painting, and writing...

take care,
Rachael