Monday, June 30, 2008
photography lesson #1
take your camera everywhere you go.
yesterday while walking the streets+national mall of dc i (had i brought my camera) would have had the opportunity to photograph:
a bulldog drinking from a starbucks cup.
a duckling swimming.
ducklings playing.
ducklings following their mother.
geese lined up poolside like they were ready for a polo match.
three helicopters hovering just above the trees.
children climbing+playing in those trees minutes later.
faces of the passionate german+espana fans (felicitaciones) cheering on their club @ the espnzone... and plenty more.
the beautiful sun (while the infamous 'they' were calling for thunderstorms) contributed her share of shadows+highlights which only made the would-be-photographs even more spectacular. this mistake will not happen again. i'ma glue my viewfinder to my eyelids.
... and to prove i'm worth my stone as a photographer, i'm working on a photo post to showcase some of my favourite images in the last few months. talk soon.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
artomatic 2008
2weeks of sleeping on my stomach and i was ready to wander back into the place that left me scarred for life; artomatic. this time, ms.mundy made the trip with me for increased companionship, entertainment and perspective - not to mention awesome art. we were both involved in shows @ the time (she's still is: doing great work as bette in the marriage of bette and boo in the black box @ montgomery college and about to rock the capitol fringe festival in rock muscial bear beach @ the warehouse) so we could only reach artomatic late 1friday night, having just enough time to get lifted and see 3 of the 12floors of art.
we grabbed a couple beers and hit 12th floor so i could take my shoulders to paul for final judgement which is when touch-ups were originally discussed (scheduled for monday coming). two other floors made their way to our makeshift agenda; 11 and another which i can't recall. while looking @ the awesome art, mundy+i found ourselves creating too; leaving our marks in crayon, in chalk, and in blacklight paint. again, i'll let the photos do the storytelling... and run commentary whenever necessary. oh yeah, and i tend to shrink the images on this block from their original size so that they a. load faster, and b. can be viewed as a whole in one browser window. enjoy.
we grabbed a couple beers and hit 12th floor so i could take my shoulders to paul for final judgement which is when touch-ups were originally discussed (scheduled for monday coming). two other floors made their way to our makeshift agenda; 11 and another which i can't recall. while looking @ the awesome art, mundy+i found ourselves creating too; leaving our marks in crayon, in chalk, and in blacklight paint. again, i'll let the photos do the storytelling... and run commentary whenever necessary. oh yeah, and i tend to shrink the images on this block from their original size so that they a. load faster, and b. can be viewed as a whole in one browser window. enjoy.
Monday, June 16, 2008
artomatic stabbing...
...millions of them actually. i went to my artist, paul roe, not too many weeks ago, anxious for another round of jet black stabbed into my skin. i took the design, originally created for sweet trini, to paul with great anticipation for what would become my second tattoo. 
i had a very distinct idea of where these new images would be placed on my body and @ paul's suggestion found myself awaiting an appointment three weeks later to get inked @ the dc area's largest local art exhibit, artomatic. this year, 800 artists filled a 12story building with every kind of art imaginable (even a lawn chair made entirely of aluminum can tabs+wire). britishink's tattoo parlor could be found in the 12th floor ne corner penthouse... or you could just follow the buzzing, as many seemed to upon exiting the elevator.
i arrived for my 6pm appointment, ready to feel complete again and came to realise that it was 'meet the artist night,' meaning paul and his cohort cyn would be answering questions all night long, and i would be continueously answering the same question with the same answer: 'no, it tickles.' 
what started as a cloudy, dreary day suddenly became a beautiful skyline on two walls of the parlor as sun seemed to kiss the low, dark clouds and the newly green treetops with an incredible orange light, before eventually giving way to the horizon and turning those walls into the faces of the crowd behind me. 
the needle buzzing in one ear @ a time, i was able to watch the reflections of 'oohs,' 'ahhs' and 'ouches' on each viewer's face as they watched me literally becoming my own living art exhibit.
i found myself in my head a while, the buzz+tickle drowning out the questions+comments, leaving me to think about the new images being branded onto my body. their meaning, their purpose, how somehow they make me stronger; carrying with them a strength not my own, like armor passed down from a braver generation.
upon completion, just over 4hours after the first prick, i followed paul (who carried a large mirror) toward the restroom through artomatic with an immense sense of pride, displaying my work on my body; my canvas. it turned heads. the restroom+paul, decked out in his classic victorian drab, centered me between their mirrors so i could rejoice in the inks beauty and nearly shed a tear, before losing my head with excitement and the feeling of being whole again. it really was a great night.
the next 4 shirtless days were followed by 2weeks of sleeping on my stomach to allow the tattoo to heal proper. with a few touch-ups scheduled next week, i couldn't be happier with journey and the product. the images tell the story better than i do.
i had a very distinct idea of where these new images would be placed on my body and @ paul's suggestion found myself awaiting an appointment three weeks later to get inked @ the dc area's largest local art exhibit, artomatic. this year, 800 artists filled a 12story building with every kind of art imaginable (even a lawn chair made entirely of aluminum can tabs+wire). britishink's tattoo parlor could be found in the 12th floor ne corner penthouse... or you could just follow the buzzing, as many seemed to upon exiting the elevator.
i arrived for my 6pm appointment, ready to feel complete again and came to realise that it was 'meet the artist night,' meaning paul and his cohort cyn would be answering questions all night long, and i would be continueously answering the same question with the same answer: 'no, it tickles.' 
what started as a cloudy, dreary day suddenly became a beautiful skyline on two walls of the parlor as sun seemed to kiss the low, dark clouds and the newly green treetops with an incredible orange light, before eventually giving way to the horizon and turning those walls into the faces of the crowd behind me. 
the needle buzzing in one ear @ a time, i was able to watch the reflections of 'oohs,' 'ahhs' and 'ouches' on each viewer's face as they watched me literally becoming my own living art exhibit.i found myself in my head a while, the buzz+tickle drowning out the questions+comments, leaving me to think about the new images being branded onto my body. their meaning, their purpose, how somehow they make me stronger; carrying with them a strength not my own, like armor passed down from a braver generation.
upon completion, just over 4hours after the first prick, i followed paul (who carried a large mirror) toward the restroom through artomatic with an immense sense of pride, displaying my work on my body; my canvas. it turned heads. the restroom+paul, decked out in his classic victorian drab, centered me between their mirrors so i could rejoice in the inks beauty and nearly shed a tear, before losing my head with excitement and the feeling of being whole again. it really was a great night.
the next 4 shirtless days were followed by 2weeks of sleeping on my stomach to allow the tattoo to heal proper. with a few touch-ups scheduled next week, i couldn't be happier with journey and the product. the images tell the story better than i do.
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