pride + joy

K!
Just wanted to share some pics from the pride parade today. It was super fun! My fave acts were the line-dancing cowboys and a float of parents bearing signs that say "My Son is Gay and He's Great! (actually he's awesome!)". Really adorable! J and I were equally as proud of our city---extra CTA workers, security, police---all enabling an organized and peaceful flow through the crazy crowds. There was a little animosity (as was expected): a group of holy-roller protesters with signs of condemnation and megaphones blaring. On our way back we noticed the same corner of protesters only this time, LGBT's for God stood right in front of them out-yelling the megaphone--"You are God's Pride and Joy!" and "Don't listen to those guys, God loves you just as you are!"--with sweet little handmade signs. J + J staged a mini "Kiss-in". ;)
Overall, it was a beautiful, fuzzy feeling day!

Love you!
k

drawing from life

Hey K!

Love your pics of Montreal--cool color schemes--and ships post! Sorry I've been blog M.I.A. lately. I'm burnt out on thinking for the summer. ;)

Above are some pics of drawings by my Life Drawing students. They're doing pretty well. The last one almost seems Gauguin-ish.

I'm avoiding my lists. Good luck with yours!

love and miss,
k

The doors of Montreal

Dear K,

Hope you are having a lovely week. A quick look at some Montreal architecture. . . I loved looking into the many doors and thinking about who might live behind them. With colored panes and graphic numbers, the streets were a delight. Plus, we stumbled upon this fantastic sculpture! What I loved best were the expressions and silky color of these figures. They were boisterous and fun and exuded the warm summer breeze that went with us throughout the city.

Back to work.

One the list for tonight:

1. 10 bookmarks out of the total 100 I need to make
2. Pay bills
3. Seep tea
4. Go to bed early
5. Lecture tomorrow!

Happy night.
Love,
K.

Ships Central

My darling K!

Damn.. I have been missing you. More apologies (damn, and I've been so good at keeping my promise of apologizing less!) for my lack of blogging. Turns out I had mono of all things, and coupled with sickness, traveling and end of semester, I have been a little incognito. Alas, I have many things on my lists... and ships seem to be at the top lately. I've always been intrigued by old ships, ships in bottles (Haven't actually made one yet - but want to soo badly!), and sails of all kinds. The irony in this is that I practically get sea sick in a canoe. Oh well... 

In my summertime wanderings, I remembered my love for MassMOCA and decided to see what they have been up to lately, since I'm down here in the heat and won't be visiting the mountains anytime soon. Via their website, I discovered this fantastic collective called Miss Rockaway Armada. Their current exhibit which started my heart a little is called, "Being Here is Better than Wishing We'd Stayed." Constructed ships, fun times down rivers, assembling of disparate objects - makes me think of a modern day Huck Finn. Be sure to check out their Flickr site - its quite fantastical. 

Speaking of Flickr, I know you have been barking at me to start mine... its on my "little" list for tonight. - By the way, love that blank notepad, it's perfect for feminist musings. Look for Montreal photos soon!

Love, 

K. 

little notes + L words

Yay K---Summer color in saturated Florida! I miss it. I've been collecting color schemes, too, on my Flickr page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/k-see/sets/72157603976856902/
Which reminds me, with your new camera, you should totally put up a Flickr page. I want to see your pics!

I saw the "What it is" book on my way to lunch the other day at the bookshop in Macy's. I'll have to go back and spend more time with it. Looks like fun to get lost in the scattered text + playful doodles. Makes me wish we did more drawing and physical writing to each other (like we used to)!

Speaking of little notes, I just received a postcard from the girl I bought that painting from, ya know, from the 8x8 show last summer. She was featured on the virtual cover of Flavorpill. Look: http://flavorpill.com/covers/jennifer-lewis?cover_id=142&publication=newyork

I just returned from a Graduate Student Symposium, Intervening Feminism, in relation to the Fem. show @ ARC. I haven't been in such an academic setting in a while! It was nice to listen to the language of Art Historians on contemporary artists and feminist theory. What a different world from "in the making" critical thought! I listened to papers about Orlan, a photographer in Evanston, and Lesbian images + the Mainstream Media, for which (as I had guessed) the 'L Word' was a topic of discussion. As you know, I went through a brief fascination with the L. But I recently watched the entire Season 3 in two days, guiltily binging---Life, Love, Lust as dramatic sexual overload---and now (purging), am officially "over" it!
More on the topic "shock value + sexuality--paradoxical approaches to the feminist discussion" after I let this simmer a few days.

That's all for now!
Love you!

k

Summer Schematics

Happy Friday, K.

I'm happy to see the weekend... and to be noticing a shift in colors in my life. There are few words to explain the quality of light here in the summer... I'm always amazed by how bright everyday things are. Building are pink and teal, leaves are an almost flourescent green and even browns have a life of their own. As an ever-inspiring "colorist" here are some new color (or colour, for my trip to Montreal next week) schemes that I just love. The delicate combining of pastels and neutrals create patterns of subdued yet pleasant happiness.

What colors are you today?

Love,
K.

What it is... What IS it?

Dearest K, 

Hello! I miss you.. we both have been swamped. I have been drifting into the dog days of Florida summer - which makes my eyes hurt and my body sleepy. My only remedy? - The darkest pair of sunglasses and a plethora of afternoon smoothie making. I'm so glad that you have found this new job (as if we both don't already have 10 jobs each!) as an Alterna-artologist! -Love it. I like this inventing of jobs, words, etc. I had my students invent their own "isms" the other day based on their life.. pretty funny. Your post totally reminds me of one of my favorite artists Andrea Zittel (whom SarahL delightfully jogged my memory of). Legitimate business is the key.

While I loved your conceptual banter, my brain is feeling tired today. Apparently, I have been drawn to cartooning lately. (Which is strange because it has never been my thing.) In my previous life laying out newspapers, I remember Lynda Barry's sketchy lines. - Her inspiration and wit gave solace to my days of writing obituaries.  She has a new book, "What it is" and npr.org has a great spread on her. Check it out.. it's delightful, light and colorful - exactly what I need to counteract summer burnout. 

Over and out, 

K.