The REV It Up List

Brandi Carlile: A concert to remember

Brandi Carlile is DIVINE. Her music, her vibrant lyrics, and the way in which she connects with her audience, are spectacular!

Linda and I attended Brandi's concert earlier this week and I cannot possibly think of a better time I have had in a long time! I can tell you that nothing can be better than getting the chance to take pictures without anyone telling us not to, and getting the chance to get as close as we wanted to (or needed to in order to get good shots) to the artists! We got to listen to some of our all time favorite songs (most of which Linda and I have heard over and over again only because we both have similar quirky ways in which we over-listen to our favorite tunes) and we even got a sound preview of Brandi's upcoming CD, due to be released in the Fall.  This was truly an amazing concert that I highly recommend to everyone!

If you are already a fan of Brandi's music, you probably already know that her lyrics are fantastic! If you haven't heard her music yet, you need to do that now! Really. Two of my favorite songs are called The Story, from her second CD and Follow, from her first CD. Both songs have lyrics I can deeply connect to. And who doesn't relate to the fact that we all must follow our heart to see where it might take us, or that all the lines across our face tell the story of who we are. I think I better go now, I need to go listen to her CDs one more time!

I'll share a few pictures of the concert here, but you can also visit my flickr page as well as Linda's blog and flickr page for more pictures of this event!

   

   

 

David Ben and the Ring Dragon

David Ben had a dream that woke him up at 2 or 3 in the morning one day in 2001. It was all "like a movie," he explains, it was vividly explicit allowing him to see the story unfolding right before his eyes and he could even "clearly see the final act of the book!" He woke up that day and knew he had to write it all down.

And that, he did. He turned his dream into a beautiful reality: The Ring Dragon.

David tells me that Ring Dragon is unlike any other dragon that exists in the fantasy world out there. "This is a new brand, a new type of dragon." A dragon whose main target audience is fifth graders (or other dreamers, like me, who love fantasy books even at the still young age of 38.) 

David is an elementary school teacher who graduated from UCSC in 1998 with a degree in film and video production. He later obtained his substitute teaching credentials and has been teaching for the past nine years. In addition to his role as a school teacher, and now a book author, he has also created music for a local school play, Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream.  You can hear all the tracks for this musical in this link. The interesting thing about David's musical talent is that he does not play any instruments, he uses a computer software called MIDI Synthesis to create his artful music. He simply has a natural given talent to create music! Specially classical music.

And from reading Ring Dragon, I can also say he has a talent for words! Many of the characters in Ring Dragon were inspired by David's students, and even by himself and his wife at a younger age. And perhaps because of its youthful sources of inspiration, Ring Dragon offers its readers a beautiful story filled with fantasy and excitement as well as a keen sense of humor and frankness. When the characters are faced with life and death situations, they react in the natural way in which normal fifth graders would react. Completely unpretentious with heroes who struggle and make mistakes, but learn from their experiences. Ring Dragon offers a true sense of freshness and fun. 

Like most dreams, the making of them can be a hard task. I asked David if his process of making his dream turn into reality was an easy one. "I had to knock on many doors. I got an agent and sent easily about 100 queries," he explained.

-Can you share a piece of advise to any young writers out there?

"There is no mystery. It's all about hard work. There is no quick way around it. Anyone who wants a successful book can do it if he or she works hard. If there was a secret I would like to find it. For me, it's all been a process of hard work."

David explains that Ring Dragon is intended to be a lengthy series and I am happy about that because I am already anxious to read the next volume! You can pre-order Ring Dragon here. It will be on sale in bookstores by late August. 

Frida Kahlo: A Diary of Inspiration and Art

Written by Maria Hammon

 

I have always felt that Frida Kahlo (Mexican painter 1919-1954) was one of the pioneer women of art journaling. If you ever get a chance to read it, her diary is a piece every artist should experience at least once. Even if you do not speak Spanish, you can SEE so much through her journal pages. Words, art and emotion are mixed in a beautiful array of colors and vivid imaginary. To me, her diary is breathtaking. It invites me in as an observant of her trials and tribulations during the last decade of her life. It shares her love letters, her political ideas, her visions, her art, her passions, her dreams, her fears and also her nightmares.

The diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self Portrait  includes an introduction by authors Carlos Fuentes and Sarah Lowe. One of the quotes by Fuentes that I loved explains, "...a streetcar crashed into the fragile bus she was riding, broke her spinal column, her collarbone, her ribs, her pelvis.... The impact of the crash left Frida naked and bloodied, but covered with gold dust."

And gold dust is indeed what seems to be the enchanting, riveting effect left by Frida’s art legacy.

Since we are talking Friday Kahlo, I should also say that if you haven’t yet seen the movie Frida, with one of Salma Hayek’s best performances of her life paired with Julie Taymor’s brilliant direction, this is a memorable artful film not to be missed.

Gifts For Anyone From Everyone!

Written by Maria Hammon

Have you ever faced the predicament involved in having to figure out a gift to give to a teacher, or a coach, when you have several people involved in the giving? 

Oh, just thinking of what to get, how to get the funds together, and coordinate everyone.  It all seems to cause a little extra stress for me.  Specially at the end of each school year when we all seem to be running around like chickens without a head.  At least that's how I feel each year in the month of May for some reason. Well, this year I found a marvelous new alternative!  There is a new website run by two local moms here in the Bay Area. It's called From Everyone.  Their mission: "to make group gift giving simple, thoughtful and convenient for all." What a great idea!  I hope it can help you as much as it is helping me this year!

 

Connecting with Arboretum

Reviewed by Maria Hammon

 

Today I found a new book I fell in love with. It is always a thrill to me when I find a book that makes me feel connected. Not to the concepts and ideas in it, although that is always a plus, too; but to the fact that no matter who we are, we all are small puzzle pieces of the same big picture. That with a pencil in our hands, we can all, in our own individual way, explore ourselves and recognize the parts of us that were meant to fit in this world, and the parts that are unique to each of us. In Arboretum, David Byrne explores himself and finds connections “where none were thought to exist.” His faux science, his personal drawings, and diagrams are incredibly fun to discover.

Through his tree-shaped drawings, Arboretum discusses many subjects. It is often philosophical and artistic. And perhaps even poetic. It is like a little bit of freedom and fresh air.

David Byrne is perhaps one of the most talented artists of our era. From his music with Talking Heads; his thought provoking books Your Action World, The new Sins and Arboretum, to most recently, his outspoken online journal, Mr. Byrne continues to show a true creative spirit in his work. And that, is certainly something to admire and applaud.

 

Blog Stalking: Artist Dina Wakley

Interview by Maria Hammon

I cannot tell you how truly inspiring the art of Dina Wakley is to me, specially considering that I have diligently been stalking her blog for at least two years!  This is one of the reasons I find this interview so exciting! 

Dina, just how and when did you get started in the world of art journaling?

I've always been art-minded and I subscribed to Somerset Studio from the day it was first published. I devoured every issue, but was too chicken to try art myself. I started stamping and my skill level grew. Finally, I bought a blank book and started creating a visual journal. I've kept a regular journal since I was 9 years old, so I'm familiar with the process of putting yourself down onto paper. But with the visual journal I was combining words and paint. My very first art journal was about how I was too insecure to call myself an "artist." The great thing about art journaling is that it's a way to experiment and express yourself and it doesn't have to be "good"...it just has to be honest.

That is one of the many things I love about what you do, it is SO real. Raw. I love it!  What is your favorite art medium?                                     

I love collage and mixed media--acrylic paint and odds and ends and bits of whatever is laying around.

I love it when you say you "slapped a quick page together" and I see this masterpiece (from your current post.) Exactly how do you manage to create your art?  What is your process; does the theme come first?  Or is it the kind of colors?  The concept?  How do you typically start and finish a project?

This is a hard question...I rarely ever have an end product in mind when I start a page. I just start putting down paint and layers and see where it takes me. Often I'm driven by my emotions, or by something that is bothering me. I'll work on a page in my art journal, and as I have extra paint I'll wipe it on pages further back in the journal...I figure one day I'll get to those pages and there will be a little paint or something there to jump start me. I tend to work quickly, too...I don't agonize over the perfect thing to put on the page. I use what is within reach. I guess the process is kind of organic and intuitive. I love to layer...paints, inks, collage elements, etc. I think the layers create visual interest and combined together have meaning. I also love to use letters in my work. I was an English major in college and the written word has always moved me.

How do you manage life, family (with boys!) and the never ending daily chores and still find the time you need to create the beautiful works of art you create?  Come on, share the secrets!

Well, there's no secret. I'm always behind on housework. I figure the dishes can wait.

I love that!  Thank you.  I really needed to hear that today. Specially since my dishes haven't been done yet...this interview is much more important!  If you could pick any place in the world to live, where would it be and why? 

How about Del Mar in a house on the beach...or Lake Tahoe (North shore, Nevada side)...or Tuscany...or in a fun flat in London....oh wait, you said one place, right?

It is quite all right...we can always have more than one favorite place.  There are no rules when dreaming, right?  Now on a sweeter note, what is your favorite candy bar?

Milky Way Midnight...yum...and anything by Cadbury. When we lived in England we got hooked on British chocolate. I still crave Curly Wurlys and Star Bars and Double Deckers!

Where do you create?  Do you have a dedicated space at home? 

I do have a room...it's not really a studio, and it's not decorated nicely. But it's functional and it's mine. Someday I want built-in shelving, a sealed concrete floor, and a utility sink.

Funny you mention a utility sink...that's one of my dreams, too!  Specially because I always find myself splattered in paint!  What do you find most inspiring to you and why?

I find so many things in life inspiring...poetry, art, people who triumph over adversity, hummingbirds outside my window...I think I get inspiration from everything.

Here is one of my favorite pieces created by you last year, have you ever considered selling your art in Etsy or other similar places? 

No...I'm not trying to be self-defeating, but I really don't consider myself at the caliber I would need to be to sell anything. I feel like an infant when it comes to art...I have so much to learn. I look at how far I've come since I first started art journaling, and I'm amazed at the growth.

Where do you see yourself in the future?  Any goals or plans you'd like to share with us?

I just want to keep creating! :)

Blog Stalking: Artist Claudine Hellmuth

I am sure you have read about her before. Or read her blog. Perhaps even been a fan of her books or saw her at the Martha Stewart show last year. And if you haven't done any of these things yet, it is time you get caught up with current times and join all of us who love her work!  Here are a few questions that might help you get to know the wonderful, charismatic, Claudine Hellmuth that we know! 

1. When did you decide you would become an artist? Did you ever have a moment of epiphany about it as a child, or a young adult?

I never really did have a moment where I said "I am going to be an artist" it's always been something that has been present in my life for as long as I can remember. I have always made things and taken art lessons and been creative and except for a brief moment (one day when I was 8) when I thought I wanted to be an archaeologist -- artist has always been what I thought I would be or be doing in some way.

2. What is your favorite part of what you do and why?
I like different parts of what I do for different reasons. Some days I think it's the actual art making that is the most fun. But when things aren't working right in the studio I find the art making stressful and I decide that I like doing the business part best. I find that toggling between business person and artist works well for me because it gives me a break from each!

3. What are your three favorite TV shows and what is what makes you like them?
Pushing Daisies - my favorite and I pray this doesn't get canceled. I love how it is like Amelie +  Big Fish rolled into one. I love how they match colors on that show, all the orange and green. yummy!! And the story is so cute!

Project Runway -- of course!!

Breaking Bad -- this is my new fav, I love the darkness of this show. It must appeal to my moody German side.

I do like a lot of TV and I do not feel guilty about watching it. It's one of the few ways I relax.

4. And I'm sure many people would want to read about (I know I do) how many times did you change outfits the day of your Martha Stewart show? 
Actually only once! I knew I would be wearing jeans and heels on the bottoms because that is my uniform that I wear all the time. So I wore a regular shirt on my way over there with my jeans and heels and then I brought 4 different shirts for the wardrobe guy to pick from. All the others that I brought wouldn't work for one reason or another, too much pattern or the fabric would moire on the camera so we were left at the last shirt which I ended up wearing. It actually wasn't my favorite choice, but oh well. it looked OK. I ran out of time before the show to do proper shirt shopping and there are so many rules with what you can and can not wear on camera, things that don't film well etc. And one shirt I actually wore on TV before -- the Martha wardrobe guy said I couldn't because it would moire. Just when I thought I was figuring it out. it is very confusing.

5. Were you nervous the moments before the show started?  And, what was your BEST memory of that day? 
I was nervous in a crazy way the night before - I knew it was going to be live TV so that is what freaked me out the most. I had to take an Ambien to get to sleep. In the morning when I was getting ready in the hotel i as nervous. And then in the dressing room, But once I was there on the set and it was time, I got really calm. Paul (my husband) got really nervous right before, I could tell because his hands were all sweaty!!!

My best memory of that day.... hmmm. it was sort of like my wedding day. A big blur. I would have to say my best memory was after the segment I got to sit in the audience with Paul and watch the rest of the show being filmed and knowing I had done it and I hadn't messed up and it was OK. Later that day Paul took me canoing on the lake in central park which was so cute and fun!

Loving Life: Artist Kal Barteski

She loves life and creates art every day. This is, in fact, her core, as she tells us. She is one busy woman making art daily, being a new mom, becoming a baby book author, being a photographer, getting ready to teach, and continue to inspire so many of us while still being who she is, Kal Barteski. Her bulletproof positive attitude is contagious. Her vibrant energy travels as fast as light. One can't help to just LOVE her and her fabulous artful creations. This is why I am so very happy to share this interview which she so candidly agreed to do with us.

As an artist, a woman and now a mother; what is the single most important thing in your life that keeps you motivated in your search for creative expression?

Ouch! You started right off the top with a hard question... It's part of my core to create - it has nothing to do with being an 'artist' or a woman or a mother and everything to do with just being who I am... I'm not sure it that makes any sense at all - but, I don't paint or create to try to fill quotas or sell canvasses. I paint and I move when the mood strikes me - and it strikes me a lot. It's who I am and how I operate. There's a need within my art - like breathing.

I know create in more ways than one, what is your favorite medium, if you could pick just one?   

If I had to pick only one medium that would be like choosing to see through only one colour - or visit one place. I believe that media are just tools to express a basic need - a basic art - a communication of life. Like breathing. I would say that I feel most comfortable in paint, pencil crayons, chalks and pens. I'm comfortable with words. I like to work on papers, woods, canvasses and boards. I like to work with my hands but, I also work digitally and with photography... That said - if I had to pick just one medium or you would kill me - then I would say paint.

Who, or what, are the major influences in your art?

I was pretty traditional growing up. I liked to paint wildlife. I liked to paint what I saw. I studied Bateman, Carr, O'Keefe - until I got to college where I ran into the works of Basquiat. He sort of ripped opened a new deal for me - art with WORDS and attitude and a rawness that moved me so much more than anything I had seen before. From his work, I learned to paint what I felt. I went to design school and learned (and loved) the idea of language as a visual form. I loved his total unapologetic way of looking at things. I loved his courage.

Some people are lucky to know from a very young age what they want the rest of their life to be, and others must take a few years to discover their calling. When did you know that you were meant to be an artist?

I don't know that people are meant to be anything in particular - I know that creating brings me a level of peace and happiness that I don't find in other activities. There's a freedom in putting yourself into a painting that's hard to replicate within a conversation or an equation... I've always known that this was my passion and this is what I did best and this is what drew people towards me. I consciously decided that this was how I would earn my living.

Can you imagine your life without the benefit of self expression through your art?

After reading this question - I actually tried. Really hard. The answer is no.

Blog Stalking: Shutter Sisters

A new blog I have been stalking visiting lately is called Shutter Sisters. I initially found these photo inspiring sisters at the recommendation of the wonderful Ali Edwards and I always trust her judgment on such things as good places to get inspiration from. And, oh boy, she was certainly right. Again.

Plus, who doesn't just love a blog that includes the word "sisters" in it? And those sisters happen to be a group of phenomenal shutter happy photographers with a willingness to share their art, inspiration, ideas and so much more!

A recent post by Karen Walrond called Love Thursday got my attention recently. It's all about how love can help to halve the potato. Karen's perspective on this totally captured me. Life is indeed about giving and sharing, isn't it? And Easter day is a reminder of that, too. God shared the life of his only son to save us from our sins. He had no problem when it was time to half the potato because his infinite LOVE for us made it all happen. We can too, follow that example and half our potatoes for the sake of love.

One fun fact about Karen Walrond is not only that she shares her first name with our own Karen Dinino and is an amazing photographer, but also, she is an attorney, too! Must be a trait for those named Karen. They are attorneys, and also creative, fun, great photographers and fabulous sisters!

And while you are visiting this wonderful new blog, be sure to meet the rest of the shutter sisters!

I'll share with you the picture that Karen Walrond so kindly linked in her post, one of my favorite pictures of a recent photoshoot with my very own adopted two seesters, Linda and Karen! 

Originally downloaded by Justmeagain2006 as a contribution for the flickr shutter sisters' pool.

Secret skin...a rebirth into the world of adventure.

Last weekend, in my way flight back from L.A., I picked up the March 10, 2008 edition of the New Yorker.  I don't read that magazine very often to be honest, but I noticed the front page had a very artsy looking face with swirls which I thought would be perfect to use, in part, for an altered journal of sorts (if you are a literary genius and/or a fan of the New Yorker you'll just have to get over it.) But then, I noticed that the magazine actually had an essay written by Michael Chabon. I remember Chabon from his brilliant 2000 novel, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for the following year, "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay." Chabon's novel has been one of my favorites since then! Not only because it was beautifully written and included so much history (the Holocaust and WWII) as well as an overall view of the American culture from the mid-20s, but also because of its ground breaking narrative of the development of the comic book industry while maintaining a fresh and vivid story with lovely characters. Chabon's characters are missed -well after you are finished reading the book...in fact, I still do!

Needless to say, the discovery of his essay in the magazine, certainly made my day. He talked about his memories from Sunday school religious classes (Jewish Ethics), to the meaning behind superhero costumes. I particularly loved these two paragraphs:

We say “secret identity,” and adopt a series of cloaking strategies to preserve it, but what we are actually trying to conceal is a narrative: not who we are but the story of how we got that way—and, by implication, of all that we lacked, and all that we were not, before the spider bit us. Yet our costume conceals nothing, reveals everything: it is our secret skin, exposed and exposing us for all the world to see. Superheroism is a kind of transvestism; our superdrag serves at once to obscure the exterior self that no longer defines us while betraying, with half-unconscious panache, the truth of the story we carry in our hearts, the story of our transformation, of our story’s recommencement, of our rebirth into the world of adventure, of story itself.

He later shares of his own childhood escapism through his "secret skin" when he became his own superhero, "Aztec" (gotta love the fact that he created a Mesoamerican wizard for his superhero):

And the self you knew you contained, the story you knew you had inside you, might find its way like an emblem onto the spot right over your heart. All we needed to do was accept the standing invitation that superhero comics extended to us by means of a towel. It was an invitation to enter into the world of story, to join in the ongoing business of comic books, and, with the knotting of a magical beach towel, to begin to wear what we knew to be hidden inside us.

I loved Chabon's topics: superheros, childhood and memories. I loved that his essay invites us to the idea that superhero costumes are really nothing else than the "the truth of the story we carry in our hearts...our rebirth into the world of adventure, of story itself."

I loved his essay. In fact, think I'll have to dust off the old Kavalier and Clay and read it, again. For the sake of good memories.