This 12-Year-Old painter has a serious voice
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The Memory Book
My grandfather didn’t leave me any journals, but he did leave me tools, and I cannot thank him enough.
I love these short videos - for a myriad of reasons. But what draws me to them the most is the idea of simple acts that carry with them great and lasting consequences. How we can live on beyond our days when we create or make something beautiful.
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-N- Stuff : Open Thoughts : On Parenting : My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes
Three Videos
I love annotating music videos. Especially when they’re sent to me by previous students, “Thought you’d like these” they say, after months of living different lives on different continents, and I just love that.
These three came in the last few weeks. If you have any thoughts, don’t be afraid to share.
Enjoy!
“All art,” according to Gene Roddenberry, “Is an attempt to answer the question, ‘What is it all about?’”
What, according to these videos, is the answer?
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Symmetry : A short film by Daniel Mercadante
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The Eggshibit
My wife showed me this guy today. As advertised, it was a “life changing eggsperience!”
This one is my favorite.
You can follow @the_eggshibit for more, and watch his Youtube video to see how it all started. Enjoy!
Also check out:
Smallest Sushi on Earth : Smallest Cup of Coffee : Cracked - art made out of saltine crackers.
How to Paint War, with Karl Kopinski
If you look closely, you’ll find the characteristic shadows, the armor, the weapons, and the portraits that make Karl’s work his own. And more than that, you’ll find a composition full of many, many moments.
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How creativity comes from the unexpected
Love this video.
Its easy to get lost in the art and lose his words, but listen carefully. His process of creating is inspiring, and encouraging.
“I had no idea what this animation would be when I started, and that’s really my big tip. If you’re ever feeling stuck or blank creatively, take a step into the unknown and start doing something . . . until it starts your interest or sparks an idea, and then build on that.”
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-N- Stuff : Inspiration : Art
Bugs:
I hate em. And I love em.
The process of drawing a female face
Gerhard Haderer's art reveals us
"Art isn't created just to please our eyes; it also transfers ideas and provokes thought. Austrian cartoonist Gerhard Haderer has been producing satirical illustrations for decades now, highlighting why today's society is nowhere near perfect" (via).
I really appreciated these illustrations by Gerard Haderer because although some were a bit funny, some were also desperately on point.
As a collection (of which you can see more here), I quickly noticed a running theme of greed, distraction, and altered reality. All of which, at any given time, are exactly what my heart and mind wrestle with. Which is why, I think, I connected with these images. Because they illustrate the absurdity of what my mind can easily mask and camoflage.
How to Keep Going
image by Austin Kleon
I really appreciated this talk by Austin Kleon. Not only does it inspire and encourage any artist who struggles with endurance and purpose, it's also pretty poignant to life - as all good art should be.
"What would you do if you were stuck in one place, and every day was exactly the same and nothing that you did mattered?" How we answer this question is not only how we live our lives, it's our art.
But what I like most about the mindset of creativity within a Groundhog Day world is the insulation of pretending like there is no tomorrow. That there's no chance of success nor is there chance of failure, "there's just the day and what you can do with it."
Damn. That's good.
I was also challenged by number three, "forget the noun, do the verb."
Lots of people want to be the noun without doing the verb. They want the job title without doing the work. Forget about being a writer . . . 'follow the impulse to write.' Because if you let go of the thing you are trying to be . . . and you focus on the actual work you need to be doing . . . it will take you some place further and far more interesting.
But really, the whole thing is pretty fantastic.
Here's a list of his 10 Ways to Keep Going
"Everything you need to make extraordinary work can be found in your ordinary life. You just have to pay attention to it."
Here's a similarly inspiring chart, Successful VS Unsuccessful people, and the habits that define them.
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on Why we Create : by Salomon Ligthelm
In our home, the discussion of why we create, why we pursue the arts, and if the intentional, and often unintentional, consequences are worth it.
This video didn’t answer all our questions, but it helped. And inspired.
Thank you John Blanchard for sending it our way!
“It’s not about you, it’s not about all your talents because all those things create this sort of pseudo reality where you find all your validation in what you do. And if you surrender yourself to it then those things don’t become as important and you find your creativity again.
Creativity is for others. It’s not to serve yourself. It’s for others”
You can watch more of Salomon Ligthelm's work here.
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Drummers who steal the show
Most bands and musical artists are known for their singing or guitar playing, not their drumming because drummers aren't often the spotlight of any band, even though drummers tend to be more intelligent. Instead, they tend to take a back seat to everyone else, tucked behind a sea of drums and cymbals and sound.
These guys - and a gorilla - are an exception (in spotlight, not intelligence).
Steve Moore (The Mad Drummer) Check out his website at: http://www.themaddrummer.com
Kwon Soon Keun - just wait till the 1:17 minute mark.
Cadbury's Gorilla
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-N- Stuff : Music : The Story Behind Soundtracks
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Stunning Native American portraits, by Kirby Sattler
Using an extremely thin brush, the main focus is now on the eyes - the most essential part of the painting.
That last line needs repeating - "the most essential part of the painting." These are paintings, not photographs, and they are truly fantastic.
As this precise work is demanding and tiring, the work must alternate channeling the soul of the subject through the eyes, and other less involving details such as feathers, "models" for which are temporarily taped to the canvas.
The background and landscape elements are sketched as rough outlines.
Out of all the stages of painting a portrait, this stage is the most crucial. This is when the painting's future is being investigated.
If Kirby decides that he did not portray the emotion he envisioned, he will destroy the canvas (via).
I came across Mr. Sattler because, in my junior English class, we're studying Native American mythology. The other day, we used these paintings to discuss the inherited worldview of the various Native American people, which, although varied, tends to agree upon a few basic truths: mankind is subject and responsible to Nature. In many of their mythological stories, it is Nature - not the heavenly beings - that bring and sustain life. So it is Nature that they respect, worship, and honor.
Their intricate headdresses are an extension and manifestation of their beliefs, their answers to the essential questions of life: what is the role of God, the role of Man, and the purpose of Life?
So we studied their faces.
This activity was the product of a hopeful new adventure in my teaching - Art Starts. It's a new theory and practice that stems from Gene Roddenberry's quote, "All art is an attempt to answer the question, 'What is it all about?'"
Not only do I fully agree with this statement, absorbing its truth into the classroom has provided me (and us) a powerful foundation to begin the school year, a sure rudder to guide each discussion, and an answer to the repeated question, "Why are we doing this? Is this important?"
"Because," I tell them, "Someone is giving you their answer to the greatest question we can ever ask, and if we aren't careful, we might begin to believe it. Whether we want to or not."
This methodology is in its infancy stage, so as of now there isn't much to write or produce, but I hope to share more as the year continues.
But as of now, only two weeks in, I'm loving. So do the students because, whether they've been able to articulated it or not, deep down, they agree with Lyndon B. Johnson: "Art is a nation's most precious heritage. For it is in our works of art that we reveal to ourselves and to others the inner vision which guides us as a nation. And where there is no vision, the people perish."
What better place to dissect, discuss, and interact with art than a classroom?
You can see more of Kirby Sattler's ridiculous art at his website.
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-N- Stuff : Portraits : President Bush paints those who went to war : Art
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Music in Objects
Anytime someone can find the ordinary and make it extraordinary, I'm all in. The vast skills and abilities it takes to create these songs is astounding. But there's also a healthy dosage of patience, persistence, and . . . what's another "p" word . . . let's go with personal confidence involve here too, which creates a few minutes of pure entertainment.
You can learn more about Music in Objects, click here.
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-N- Stuff : Art from War Weapons : Escobar's Son Building Peace
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Syrian Artist Creates Sculptures From Remnants of War
Abu Ali al-Bitar, a 45-year-old house painter who collected dozens of rocket debris and spent ammunition casings, flattens bread dough using a leftover rocket in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus, on April 20, 2017. Eastern Ghouta, a besieged opposition stronghold east of Damascus, has been battered by regime air strikes and shelling since Syria's conflict erupted in 2011. Since then, children have grown accustomed to warnings not to play outside -- but the grown-ups are finding creative ways to make sure kids can still have fun (via).
In spite of pain, like a clawing and kicking against the dark, art and beauty and the human spirit survive. Perhaps even thrives, because we're made for it. Not to kill and break and destroy, but to create and cultivate. To rise above, and for holding flowers.
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-N- Stuff : On Living : Real People : Humanity
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The Ostrich
Sometimes the art that sticks with us the most are the ones not easily explained.
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There was an (ahem) operations error and it didn't go through (sorry about that).
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Artist creates the world’s smallest cup of coffee, with a single bean
Paulig asked Luca Zannoto to make the smallest cup of coffee, out of one bean.
Music and Sound Design: Ulrich Troyer
Lucas Zanotto was born in the Alps of Northern Italy but is currently based in Helsinki. He speaks four languages, creates faces out of nature, and started YATATOY - a website that makes high quality simple apps for kids.
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Found Sounds: Making Instruments From Trash
Ken Butler is a Brooklyn-based artist and musician who has built over 400 musical instruments from discarded objects. It's pretty nifty (via).
I love this concept - of taking something discarded, something "unworthy" and making it beautiful once more.
Such is art.
Such is life.
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