There's not a whole lot of minor-to-medium stress that an hour and a half at the gym, five-hour chili, and a nice malbec won't relieve.

I woke up with the blues and muddled about in a fog for most of the morning, hating that I was wasting a precious day off like that. Minor health ick, bad dreams, the end of one show but not quite on the next one yet kind of blues. Wrote a couple of work-related e-mails, stewed about that for a while. Looked at my art resume and put it away without working on it. Still rebelling against going into the studio.

But now I'm relaxed and full and the house smells amazing. Have to be careful about not wolfing down too much though because...ya know...beans. New Seasons only sells buffalo at the meat counter Thursday to Sunday (why?), so I used lamb instead, with four kinds of chiles fresh & dried, black beans, sweet onions, all fresh tomatoes and a load of spices with just a touch of lime juice. mmmmmmmm! extravagant.

Now I'm having more of that malbec and getting ready to read more about one author's adventures in Siberia. Makes me want to go there too though in reality I'm probably way too wimpy. Vyvenka does sound like an intriguing place, though. Reading the book makes me want to start learning Russian (a recurring desire, so it seems). Or Koryak.

A dear dear friend also sent me some more information about ancient harpoon point assembly designs and other related things. The information about pre-Ainu Jomon items looks to be pretty cool. This makes me very happy. It of course also makes me want to go to Hokkaido.

But in the mean time, it's file some wood, read books, do shows, make art. Not bad. Not bad at all.

hey Mel, the GOAT loves you...feel better soon  :)

Listening to a song called "I Like Bananas Because They Got No Bones" on Dismuke right now. I love that station.

To enjoy turkey bacon, avoid thinking of it as bacon. It's not bacon, but it is good.

Today will be for finishing Monster Box 4. Though I do like the eye and jaw, I don't think it works very well overall. There's something klunky about it . Too many small elements on a too-large field - I want the eyeball to be bigger for the size of the box. Or maybe the positioning of the elements is not what it could be. It's close to done. Gotta do that, and go find a shadow box for Seven of Spades/Futility, 'cause it ain't done until it's mounted.

On Saturday I went to the Contracts and Consignments class out at OCAC. For a three hour class I felt there was too much meandering and air in the presentation - the presenters took a whole half-hour of that time to introduce themselves - and one of the presenters really liked to hear himself talk about himself. It didn't blow my mind but it was worth the $55 I paid. The last 40 minutes covered the part that was most useful to me, the bits about gallery contracts and consignments. We did get a decent handout that has some good pieces of legalese in the back that will be handy for contract-writing purposes. And I did learn a bit about copyrights, trade marks, and patents that I didn't know before. I do still want to take the Taxes for Artists class and the Dispute Resolution and Negotiation class.

The summer schedule is out, and I see one class I want to do, a one week intensive in low-tech forming techniques. Since I won't be buying a hydraulic press anytime soon, this will be great. I'm guessing it'll be like chasing/repousse, only without the pitch. The fact that it's a one week intensive rather than an 8-12 week class is great because that means I can simply block that week in July out, and have the rest of my schedule more open to take jobs. I inevitably have to miss some sessions in the longer-running classes due to work, which I hate. (Attn Universe: IT'S NOT THAT I DON'T WANT SUMMER WORK...DON'T GET ME WRONG! I JUST WANT WORK THAT DOESN'T CONFLICT WITH THE STUDIO WORK!! SEND ME WHAT YA GOT!)

Next year about this time it'll be T's and my 20th anniversary (yeah, I can't believe it either). Thinking it would be cool to go somewhere in the "dream trips" category, I've been doing some poking around for info. What I've found out is that it would be very very expensive to go to Iceland. It would also be very expensive to go to Japan or Siberia. Perhaps I'll do more poking around.

Also need to look at plane tickets for the visit to KCMO in May, and nail some things down about that.

Allright, time to get started...

this is what was in it:

Please join us for a Champagne & Chocolate reception in honor of the exhibition The Company We Keep, a masterful array of paintings, prints, photography, fashion, craft, and multimedia installation by the employees of Portland Center Stage. 

FEATURING
Paula Buchert | Michael Buchino | Barbara Casement | Kelly Cullom
Katherine Fitch | Geno Franco | Bonnie Henderson-Winnie | Susi Jenkins 
Michael Jones | Megan K. Kahrs | Kelly Keiler
Fuchsia Lin | Timothy McGarry | Patrick Weishampel

FIRST THURSDAY
February 4, 2010 
5-7 pm

PGE Gallery & Ellyn Bye Studio Lobbies
Gerding Theater at the Armory
(128 NW Eleventh avenue, Portland)

 
I'll be there around 5-6, in between our two shows.

My, what a week! Every now and again the wheels speed up to zoom, and I am always surprised. I conveniently forget about all the pushing I'd been doing that let up to it...

One of the cast of Snow is also a commercial photographer who has shot jewelry and other very small objects, and was kind enough to offer to give me some tips for shooting my work. "Some tips" turned into what was really an hour long class on lights, diffusers, and setup principles for beginners.  He gave me some incredibly useful information (which I can't wait to try out once I pick up a couple of things).  I took copious notes and he pointed out examples of what he was talking about in one of my Inuit (and Yupiik) art books I had in the green room, do's and don'ts. Yesterday he had a look at my camera and we'll probably talk some more. He's so excited to show me stuff because it's obvious he loves photography and loves talking about technique. Lucky lucky lucky me. I need to get him a very nice bottle of whisky, definitely.

Working on Monster Locket 4. The jaw mechanism is a departure from the first 3, more like a storage bin drawer that slides out and down. It's got a big ol' bug-eye too.   Monster Locket 5 will have a telescoping eye or eyes if I can figure out how to pull that off.

Also working on a second lance. Joined the ebony foot and bronze spacer to the main body of the lance. Decided to wait at least a week for the epoxy to cure before filing so as to give it maximum cure time. Hoping to avoid gumming up my hand files too awfully much. The colors look good even now, and will only get better with working.

Finding all kinds of great information about bone & ivory carving....now all I need is 8 more hours in the day and no need for sleep. Currently captivated by ancient far northern lances and harpoon head assemblies, and by Siberian shamans' chains and bells. The currency project is digesting nicely and starting to bloop up some bubbles of well-formed ideas. Trying to keep loose rein on all of it, so as to not lose it.

Contracts and Consignments class on Saturday morning. I had originally hoped to take both professional practices classes offered on that day (Taxes for Artists is the other one), but once we added two more performances of Snow that weekend, the schedule will only allow me to do the contracts class. I'll have to stay late on Friday and hustle once I'm in on Saturday to do it, but it is doable. I'll hopefully be able to pick up the other ones this summer, when they're offered again. It's fine- I could use the extra work hours, and C&C is the one I wanted to take the most out of the four. It's the most immediately useful to me.

Kicking my own ass at the gym. The excitement from all this movement in the art works gives me extra enthusiasm for everything else. It's great.

The opening for The Company We Keep is going to happen on First Thursday in February, it's official. I got the notice today and will soon be posting it everywhere.

MKShNH!

...while I continue to try to get my computer to be agreeable about downloading the goats all you lovelies sent me.

I love Mondays. On Mondays I finally get to have a whole day to be with/do whatever I spent the whole weekend thinking about.

Today one piece was restored and another pushed farther along, both lances. The first is back on its stand in the main room (T's studio). I can't stop touching it!

The new one will be a bloodwood beauty with a bronze blade and ebony foot. I found I had a little more money this week than I thought, and so bought a new coarse wood file and ingredients for what was a delicious dinner. The new file takes some elbow grease to work with, but removes a lot of wood relatively quickly.  Making the lower 3/4 length of the red section of the new lance octagonal was accomplished. Made a big pile of scarlet shavings. Looked for suitable piece of ebony for the foot, might already have one that will work.

While making this detour back into the land of carving, have been looking at the incredibly sophisticated dart, spear, and three-part harpoon tip lances made by the ancient Bering Strait region Inuit again. It's just astounding how beautiful and incredibly well-designed for their purpose these objects are. Yes, highly ornamented art that can bring down a 3000 lb walrus impresses the hell out of me.

I'm now a little high on a great dinner- made catfish tikka masala slow-cooked for about an hour, with broiled vegetables and avocado. At the store, catfish fillets were nine bucks a pound while catfish pieces were a good bit less than half that- fantastic! We can have spendy fish for cheap! I was a little concerned that the masala recipe I like best might be too strong for the fish and overpower the sweetness of the catfish, but it was perfect. After, coffee and a little square of heavenly lemon rosemary shortbread that T split with me.

Time has had the consistency of honey today. In a good way. Savoring event-time until I need to switch back to clock-time.

New piece up over at   http://jackbird-arts.livejournal.com

Great Nights Returning

Great nights returning, midnight's constellations
Gather from groundfrost that unnatural brilliance.
Night now transfigures, walking in the starred ways,
Tears for the living.

Earth now takes back the secret of her changes.
All the wood's dropped leaves listen to your footfall.
Night has no tears, no sound among the branches;
Stopped is the swift stream.

Spirits were joined when hazel leaves were falling.
Then the stream hurrying told of separation.
This is the fires' world, and the voice of Autumn
Stilled by the death-wand.

Under your heels the icy breath of Winter
Hardens all roots. The Leonids are flying.
Now the crisp stars, the circle of beginning;
Death, birth, united.

Nothing declines here. Energy is fire-born.
Twigs catch like stars or serve for your divining.
Lean down and hear the subterranean water
Crossed by the quick dead.

Now the soul knows the fire that first composed it
Sinks not with time but is renewed hereafter.
Death cannot steal the light which love has kindled
Nor the years change it.

-Vernon Watkins

Happy Solstice everyone!

this week's goat courtesy of reynard52

brass and copper, 2 3/4" long (72mm)

I just got surprise art in the mail! Thanks Ren!

OCAC is offering their four professional practices classes again in January- Copyrights and Forms of Doing Business & Dispute Resolution on the 23rd then Contracts and Consignments and Taxes for Artists on the 30th. They're $55 each, but there's a discount if you sign up for all 4.

My schedule will allow me to take three of those (everything but Copyrights). See you there?

More info at the OCAC website.