Christmas in California!!

It's December and the weather has finally dropped into the 30's (Fahrenheit). We've been debating on whether or not to get a Christmas tree. I know, how could you have Christmas without a Christmas tree? A real one can be pricey and comes with maintenence and clean up. A fake one is fake. So, we found the perfect solution!!

TADA!

It's Christmas in California!

Horse? Made of what??

I don't remember when I came across these magnificent art pieces, but I do remember not being able to understand how the artist could be able to create so many pieces with such intricate detail using the materials she used.

These are the Driftwood Horses of Heather Jansch. She finds random pieces of driftwood and forms them into statues of life-like animals. She was inspired by simply finding one piece of driftwood. which looked like the torso of a horse, while out looking for firewood with her son.

The more I researched, the more I am amazed at her passion for creating such majestic creatures using the simple, yet hard to find, materials of nature.

Here is some of her amazing work:











Art can be found anywhere. You just need to change how you would normally see things sometimes. Stretch yourself.

A New Kind of Art; CAMERA TOSSING!!

Camera tossing...it's a kind of photography that looks digitally designed. The name says it all....camera tossing. You literally press the button and toss the camera up in the air and catch it in hopes of finding a beautiful mess of swirls and glowing light beams intertwined to create something like these following pictures...




Now, of course I had to try it on my own. I don't have colored light bulbs so these are two of 30 attempts that turned out somewhat "artistic" looking.

It's a lot harder than it looks. If you're not very good at art, this might be a great place to start. Although I must say, don't toss up your $1200 SLR camera please. Try a cheaper digital camera for this kind of project. If you're a bit clumsy, make sure you have a soft landing for your camera below or better yet, don't try it at all.

Another suggestion is getting a few elastic rubber bands and chaining them together then tying it to your camera. The other end of the elastic chain can be secured around your wrist. That way, your camera wont hit the hard ground surface. Don't hit your face either hahaha!

The best lighting for this work would be a darker room with both dark corners and lighted areas. Dim rooms with random lighted corners with colored bulbs would be a good place to start too.


Happy camera tossing!

Natural Disasters

Sometimes I think about where I would like to live and grow old. One of the first things I think about is the weather. Usually, the next thing I think about are the natural disasters in those areas. California has earthquakes and fires. The East has storms and hurricanes. The south has more hurricanes. The central states has tornadoes. The mid west has too much snow.

Lately, we've been hearing about hurricane Ike all over the news. Like other hurricanes, there is no mercy in the midst of a storm like that. I found some pictures telling the story of Ike and his aftermath disaster. Please pray for those effected by Hurricane Ike.

I think I'll stay in Fresno for a while...our natural disaster here is fog and auto theft.

Phil In The Circle Art

Phil Hansen is a well known artist on Youtube featuring his "Goodbye Art" which last only up to the point of being completed and then he destroys it permanently. His ideas are like no other in which they make a statement - political, humane, sentimental or for entertainment. I am always amazed at how creative and patient he is as I utterly enjoy the "time-lapsed" videos that show the final product almost immediately. Here are some of my favorite works of his...

"Dandelions were organized then photographed. This
process was repeated 24 times."



"This picture of Fidel Castro when he was young and old was
painted with a quote from a 1959 interview. 'When we have
fulfilled our promise of good government I will cut my beard.'" Watch the video



"I broadcast my phone number via the internet and
asked people to call me and tell me a moment that
changed their life. All of these moments were
written over the course of 136 hours of which I
didn't leave the work space except for restroom
breaks." Watch the video



"Colored matches white and black, then arranged them
to create the portrait. It was then set on fire." Video of this piece.




"By dipping my hands in paint and hitting the canvas." He basically karate chopped it all hahaha!


"This picture of President George W. Bush
was made with the names of Coalition
soldiers that died in the Iraq war."


Check him out! Support him!

Inspiring Hmong Artist

I have been intrigued by an artist by the name of Kao Lee Thao. I discovered her art a few years ago and her work has grown so beautifully. Her style of work is very dreamy and soft, yet the edges are unclear with bold colors that seem to drag off the canvas in a subtle and random way. She often uses images of Hmong women as her inspiration and muse. A distinct and continuous feature of her work and one of the first things you will notice are the swirls within swirls among splashes of color. She has a way with controlling these swirls and splashes into a calming and beautifully balanced mess. Her characters seem to be in constant motion and frozen in the moment. Here are some of her work...