Recycling Myths

No, not as in the claims that recycling is bs. Think Joseph Campbell.

I finished the super secret painting. Unfortunately, I can not show you this piece until its great reveal, so stay tuned for next week: the return to aquarelle!

3 weeks ’til Faerieworlds! I am still enjoying my internship as the social media extraordinaire for Faerieworlds LLC. This weekend I will be at an exciting pre-event celebration for FW down in Eugene, OR doing live tweeting, facebooking, and enjoying myself. If you are in the area, or are within driving distance, you should come out. All the details are here on this lovely flier:

Since I haven’t any of my own art that I can share with you at the moment, I thought I would share this beautiful piece of video art that I came across last week. Even though it is old news in the world of fine art theory and practice, I can never get over the many ways that mythology is recycled and manifests in the arts. I definitely subscribe to the Jungian and Campbell-ian theories about myth, in the sense that studying mythology is the path to understanding the human psyche and the human experience. This exercise is one of the biggest inspirations behind my work.

This video is a contemporary rendition of the Actaeon myth recreated in a Victorian setting. It was inspired by the painting Diana and Actaeon by baroque artist Titian. I would also like to point out his painting The Death of Actaeon for further context. The video was created by Tell No One for the National Gallery in London.

Updates!

Hello, everyone! I apologize the lack of posts in the last few weeks. I made it through finals, and I took a little break from the world to decompress. Never fear, I’m back now 🙂

My plans for the summer:

– I will be working one of two possible ambitious internships during the week

– I will be doing a ton of research and creative writing for my thesis project, which begins in the fall

– I will be doing daily work on watercolor studies

– I will be finishing a portrait of the infamous Elle Noir

– I will be filming and creating videos for Raqs Obliettes

– I will be putting together my costume for Faerieworlds with my girl, Tina

– I will be renovating my website

Now that I’ve announced all of that publicly, I have to do it. Damn. I will share the process of these projects as they unfold. Wish me luck, and send me vibes of productivity.

Curiouser and Curiouser…

Hello everyone. I have been so insanely busy it is just…. insane. Amongst all of this insanity, progress has been made on the Creatures of the Deep project. Here’s a little preview of the progress so far:

Who knew Deep Ones could be so cute? I will post the results when the project is finished. I also will begin painting my Crowley triptych tomorrow.

Tonight, I will be filming! At The Lovecraft, Raqs Obliettes will be performing a much anticipated show, Curiouser & Curiouser.

Now to decrypt that sentence:

ceiling of the Lovecraft Bar

The Lovecraft Bar is a horror-themed nightclub in Portland, OR. It is one of my favorite places in Portland, run by one of my favorite people in Portland, Jon Horrid. As you can imagine, they have several different theme nights (goth night, metal night, Tom Waits night, etc.) and host many different performances and events of the same ilk. The place looks like LaVey Satanists and H.P. Lovecraft enthusiast were hired for the interior decorating. Most likely, this is the case. One feature I love about this place is that they have a vegan menu that fits the Lovecraftian theme, and a selection of high quality teas that you can order in 16 – 24 oz pots. Again, I can not speak highly enough about this place, and you can often find me there. It is a must see if you come to Portland, OR.

Raqs Obliettes is a belly-dancing troupe with a dark aesthetic. Hands down, I have seen these ladies perform the best fusion belly-dancing EVAR! I believe this is the first themed show that they have performed, and I am most excited to see this Alice in Wonderland themed production of dark-fusion belly dancing, Curiouser & Curiouser. If you are in Portland, why on earth would you not go see this tonight? Doors open at the Lovecraft for this at 9pm. Just sayin’ 😉

Sushila - digital media, Valerie Herron 2011

Raqs Obliettes is led/produced by another one of my favorite people, Sushila Battagione.  She is an experienced tarot-reader and energy worker, as well as Doula and enviably talented dancer.

Alright, I must get ready go do a million things. At what point did I cease to be a lazy person?

Moon Raven Designs, Crowley update, and Video Art

Every once in awhile I like to write up a little something about fellow Pacific Northwest artists who I know or purchase items from. – There is currently one looooooooong over due for the amazing Vajra, proprietress of Conjure Oils. Soon to come!  –

Today I received my package from Moon Raven Designs. I’m so stoked on it I thought that I would share. Mike and Diane Doyle are self taught jewelry artisans in Victoria BC, Canada (still totally the Pacific NW!) They specialize in metal casted animal jewelry.

First, I wanted to complement Moon Raven Designs on their packaging. I’m a sucker for this sort of simple and elegant (and dare I say a bit gothy?) design:

And here is my necklace:

This is a silver, antiqued crow skull. The forehead is pitted and the metal blackened in the recesses. It’s 1-5/8″ long,and even though its pretty durable, it feels light as a feather.It is mounted on an adjustable black cord with four solid brass nickel plated beads that are spaced with two blood red translucent glass beads.

It’s pretty much my new favorite thing in the world.

I ordered this 10 days ago, which is super fast from Canada. I had one question I sent the sellers which Mike answered for me in minutes. The folks at Moon Raven Designs shipped it the very next day, complete with a tracking number. Plus, it was very reasonably priced, as are the other items I was drooling over in their online shop.

If you didn’t catch the link, you can find Moon Raven Designs’s Etsy store HERE. I highly recommend these folks.

I will be starting my thumbnails for the Crowley triptych tonight. I am super excited for this series. I have already shot two model photo-shoots for reference, and I’ll be shooting the last one Thursday.

This is going to be a busy week. After classes Thursday I will be doing the aforementioned photo-shoot and all day Friday I will be filming for my friend’s music video. More details when the video is nearer to finish. Oh yeah, did I ever mention my love of making film art?? I’m still a Neophyte video artist, but I really enjoy writing, filming and editing.

On that note, I leave you with this RIDICULOUS (silent) animation I made my very first semester of art school: