Tyger, Tyger

One of my mosaic masks, posted as a sort of prelude to the face plant posts, which I'll set to go up at midnight tomorrow. Any contributions will be accepted and added to the list, don't worry - any time next week is fine. Very excited about what I've seen so far.

Tears of a Legend (W.I.P.)

Normally I don't show work in progress, but this fitted in with the prompt "artificial" on Illustration Friday. The original photo is a Hollywood studio photo by John Reed, it may be Lana Turner (Edit:Titus has now identified this actress as Evelyn Keyes. But wait...according to California Girl, it's Gloria Grahame...). I've been working on this on and off for a couple of months, I don't know whether I exactly like it, I got kind of captivated by the idea that the tears of a star/goddess would be larger than life. It may eventually get larger too, and more of the original should disappear.

Edit: Ooh...I could do a bombshell shape...No, not the hourglass thing, I mean like a bomb with the fins at the top. Thanks again, Saint Terry, for the use of the amazing saw.

Man of Science

I'm hereby announcing the opening of my Etsy shop, where I have put six of the Altered Ancestors posted here for sale. They're wall plaques, I have mounted them on pine, with a hole in the back to that they can be hung from a small nail driven into the wall at a 45 degree angle.

What superpower would be a big help right about now?

I think I've asked the question before, or possibly I have unconsciously thieved it(?) from someplace. Anyway, it was an excuse to post this photo of my dear not scary friend Ben in his souvenir mask.

Secret Melody

I didn't know these existed - on random shots

Saint Bunny has your back

Redbubble is now doing t-shirts with designs on the back, so I have uploaded my patron saint on there as a t-shirt.

The Eiger Sanction vs. Infamous

No, there is not much excuse for comparing them, other than that I just watched one of these with my father and the other on my own. The Eiger Sanction is extremely silly (I found out on the web that it is meant to be silly). It gives short shrift to women, African- and Native Americans, gays and small dogs, with special contempt reserved for an evil albino. Question I am left with : how did Miles Bellow get gorgeous George off drugs?

Infamous is weirdly like a mashup of Entertainment Tonight and a story out of Dostoyevsky. Toby Jones' Capote is wonderful and the film is quite moving. The murderer Perry White oddly resembles a Clint Eastwood character in his buttoned-upness/lashing out in violence. And Truman Capote is frequently pictured in a red room - the albino appears in a red room in Eiger sanction, they're both hothouse environments. It poses numerous questions about the redemptive and destructive qualities of story-telling (the film, not the red room).

Anyone else seen either of these?

Found on the Ground

Illustration for TFE's Poetry Bus Anthology.

This is a lovely story of artist and audience on flickr: Rowan Berry Swoosh, If you look at the series you can see the audience member in question as well as the art.

J.T. has an inspiring image up at Dog a Day.

Ooh, look at this on Windthread- a sort bejewelled functionality, mysterious potential.

What are you reading?

...Also looking for DVD (film) recommendations.

Incident from the Life of the Saint

I love my bunnyhead.

Haunt of the forgotten

Who are the people in the photograph, and where are they? Who was here before they came, and where did they go? Does anything live on, hidden, underneath? I am reading a book called 1491, about the Americas before the Europeans came. The Western hemisphere may have been more populous than the Eastern - there was simply no immunity to the diseases that came with the Europeans.

Face Plant Challenge

Make a face, or more than one, somewhere on the street, or in the forest, vertical or horizontal and post a photo of it on or before Monday, August 2. It's most fun if you make your face somewhere where you'll surprise someone who comes across it. I'll link all the posts up here on that day. As always, let me know in comments here where it's posted on the web.

Please Note: I won't be posting the photos themeselves on my blog, just links to your photos where you have them posted - your blog, or flickr, or tumblr. I am thinking of starting a flickr group for this.

Aw, come on - it'll be fun.

.....................

Jude has an early face up at Spiritcloth.

Wedding with Pollen

What do you think their names are?

Don't get that chance every day...

I parked behind somebody in front of my apartment building who had the license plate "NNSFREE", so I drew this and left it under their windshield wiper. Heh.

It can never be...

Celery stalk fantasizing about pear. I started cutting out pieces of pine today as backing for these, they will be self-hanging.

Something else to do in London this weekend - Sunday the Clerkenwell Kid is playing at the Battersea One on One festival, for all you Real Tuesday Weld Fans

Oh, and for those whose thirst for the perverse is unslaked by the above visual, you might enjoy this post on Dinosaur Casserole.

Art on the Street

A small windowless building at Ashby and Telegraph in Berkeley serves as an outdoor gallery wall for these sophisticated pieces of street art- the inside of the building may be where it is made, it does have doors. The bison/bomber is by Jesse Hazelip, I'm not sure about the others. Ooh, , here's some more on tattooed city.

Betwixt

Can you spot the Estonian influence (via Colorful Research)?

If you're in London, go see Joe's work this week. Delightful!

Damsel with a....

An old engraving in my host's house in London...of course it made me think of the damsel with a dulcimer in Colerdige's poem. Note the many pear/paisley/yin-yang curves of the figure and the instrument, echoed in the lilies in the background, circling around to meet each other.

(De)fault Line

The consolation of belief, the consolation of art, the consolation of a good meal.

The inspiration of belief, the inspiration of art, the inspiration of a good meal.

The limitations of belief, the limitations of art, the limitations of a good meal

Snug as a Bug in a Pub

My last day in England, Jenny and I were joined for a drink...

by this moocher.

Is this how he got in? We put him outside when we left.

License

Trying to encourage myself to proceed with gallery-hunting.

Bad attitude: B..b...but I just want to show my work, I don't want to write a $#@&! PHD thesis. Well, everybody else has to do that, what makes you think you're so special?

Heh.

Some of us prefer to vent.

New t-shirt on redbubble......several sources for the idea (Thanks, C, for the email). Seems to be another in my series of animals with unusual things coming out their mouths.

TFE suggests an alternate lion in his comment, you can see Parsley on youtube.

Life in California

My vegetable love should grow

Vaster than empires, and more slow...

---from To his Coy Mistress, Andrew Marvell

Ed: Should probably have read: with apologies to Archimbaldo.

For more unusual forms of life, Blu has a new wall animation on vimeo.

Be Polite to the New Neighbors...

...and they will let you photograph decorative items awaiting placement.

Personality: Bedrock or (magnetized) Gravel?

King Lear

Wordsworth speaks about "The fountain light of all our days", Yeats of "The foul rag and bone shop of the heart". The stuff that forms us - what we hold on to - is it loss or freedom to let it go? If the weather is too hot where you are, I understand completely if you don't want to ponder this.

Things are actually better with the king in question for now. But in the lil world o art here, I may be working it out for awhile.

Chabui on her Wedding Day

At the Antique Centre

You never know who you'll meet...

Overheard, James getting fed up with a regular: "If you'd just pay me the money you owe me, you could shop like a normal person". Did I mention the Antique Centre is on Telegraph Avenue? Many crunchy colorful characters. Oh - also I picked up 14 wonderful photos and postcards there, a world of possibilities. In one of them I seem to recognize myself, but no one else in the photo...

To the owner of Aria (I seem to remember your name is Bill) the work I used the birds print for is actually on my other blog, Tinytheatre - Blame it on artistic absent-mindedness.

Southern Gothic

Anyone else out there dealing with elderly parents who refuse to take care of themselves? I'm tired and and angry these days. And as one friend said, with children, they grow up.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Slightly later: and now, I'm going to listen to Madredeus - Good for stress.

Pollack's Toy Museum

This wonderful establishment is located near the Goodge Street and Tottenham Court Road Tube stops. It's a stack of rooms connected by narrow staircases with every kind of toy imaginable climbing up its walls. Also there are some wonderful squeaky floors. More views on Tinytheatre.