Putting the "Rabbit" in Atomic "Rabbit"

I don't know what you're looking for, so here's a rabbit with a pancake on its head.

(Surely you weren't looking for some kind of professionalism, were you?) :)

Quote of the Week

"But as the saying goes, it isn't paranoia if people are really after you."

~J. Patterson The Lake House

Work that will be for sale at the DCCA gift shop. Opening June 5th.

Process Shot of the Week

And you thought I forgot, didn't you?! Well, I remembered to take the picture, but I forgot to post it. Here's a wee taste of what I've been working on for the DCCA show. Check back tomorrow for pics of the finished products!

Spiny Mouse

This is a picture of a spiny mouse. They get their name from the hairs on their back which are kinda like hedgehog spines. I have a pet spiny mouse, who looks almost exactly like this. I would take more pictures of him, but sitting still is not one of his strong points.

Quote of the Week Twofer!

"Who would sup with the mighty must first climb the path of daggers."

"On the heights, all paths are paved with daggers."
~Seanchan Saying

A special surprise to anyone who can tell me where these quotes come from.

Print Swap

I swapped prints with the lovely Leslie Shellow. You can't tell from this picture, but there's an incredible amount of detail in this print. Thanks Leslie!

Review Preview

Bonus Quote of the Week.

Because I just watched "Fight Club" So awesome!

"All God does is watch us and kill us when we get boring. We must never, ever be boring."
— Chuck Palahniuk

I think this quote comes from the book.

Tyler Durden says use soap!

!!!

Sorry if the posting has been lame or infrequent lately, but we're rapidly approaching the end of the semester (I have final review on Tuesday!!!) and my brain and body know it. I'm exhausted and I can't focus. It feels like someone had been stuffing cotton in though my ear cannal at night, so that it gets stuck in my brain. Right in front. Ugh.
It wouldn't be so bad if I didn't have SO much to do. I feel moderatly ok, about review (I finally have work I love!!!), but once that's over, I have a whole new set of things to deal with. The main one being making work for FOUR exhibitions. (I'm not trying to brag, I actually never thought I'd be able to say that I have to make work for four shows.) My first deadline is for a show that my proffessor, Jan Baum, is putting together at the DCCA. (More on this next week.) Work for this is due the 27th! A week after my review!
Next up are the Old School Exhibiton (see below if you missed it) and "Printed Matter", a show curated by the fantastic Allison Long, where some of us at Towson U. are exhibiting prints at the University of Deleware, and later at LSU.
I will also be showing work with the rest of Towson's fabulous MFA students at a show in Florida sometime in the fall.
I'm also bound and determined to set up an etsy shop, something I've been putting off for over a year. Since I do both paper goods and jewelry, I'm thinking about setting up separate sites. If anyone can offer any suggestions about selling on etsy, I would greatly appriciate it!!!
Thanks for reading!

Quote of the Week

"I swear to God that if you tell anyone of this incident, I will throttle you by the throat."
- Steve Steiner Colonel MacTagart

Old School Goodies

I got my Old School packet in the mail today! Woo Hoo! I have no idea what I'm going to do, but I'm super excited!

Old School

I just found out I get to participate in Uppercase Gallery's "Old School" Exhibition!!! Sweet!
Here's a blurb about the show:
"The "Old School" theme will celebrate the aesthetics of twentieth century education through an art exhibition and companion book, as well as curated objects. It is inspired by vintage flash cards, old desks, biology class, science fairs, crayons, card catalogs, textbooks, class photos, teachers, yearbooks, lunchboxes, gym class, maps, lockers, report cards, film strips, recess, spelling, chalk... and the list goes on!

In addition to drawing, painting and collage, we will be exploring old school technology such as typewriters, mimeographs, photocopying, film projections and polaroid, toy camera, and Holga photography.

The exhibition will be documented in a commemorative book, available in September."

They're sending out "inspiration packets" in the mail. Can't wait to get mine! So excited!!!

Here's blurb about the gallery:
"UPPERCASE highlights the world of graphic design through its gallery, books & papergoods. The gallery presents work by illustrators, photographers and graphic designers. The eclectic book selection features titles hand-picked for their uniqueness and quality of design and content. The collection of greeting cards and paper products are designed by Vangool Design & Typography which shares the space with UPPERCASE."

Zuda Update

My broher's web comic came in 10th in the initial ranking over at Zuda!!! Oh the injustice!!! Please go vote for him! Or even vote for the comic you like the best. Or at the very least go look at the site!

Behind on Blogging. . .

It's that time in the semester where things are crazy, crazy busy, so I've been busy doing, and not so much busy blogging about what I've been doing. So, today, I'm going to try and catch up a little.
On Friday, I went to Rebecca's Honor's Thesis opening. It was a lot of fun and the work was fantastic! It was so great to see all that hard work finally come together in the final product. Great job Rebecca!



Metals Club also had its annual Spring Sale. Things were a little slow, due to weather, but we made a few sales.
Yesterday, I went to NY to see the "Design and the Elastic Mind" Exhibition at MoMA. The exhibition was very thought provoking, and it was really great to see the rest of the museum, and all the big hitters you find in the history books. In the video section, there was this great installation that included these "lamps" that were made by shaping barbed wire and then submerging them in the Dead Sea, causing salt to crytalize on the wire. It wsa a great trip, and I'll probably be posting more indepth thoughts about what I saw made me realize about my work. Maybe. We'll see.

Process Shot of the Week

Neckpiece of prints tinted with gouache, stitched together with enameled electroforms.

Quote of the Week

"Where you stumble and fall, there you will find gold."
—Joseph Campbell

Process Shot of the Week (preview)

A sneak peak at what I've been working on, just because I'm so in love with these rock guys. Tomorrow's agenda: rings and neckpieces.

Back to Jewelry. . .

Ok, Zuda revelry over for the time being. Here's some cool rings I found by Paul Beelen, on Klimt02.

Puppies!!!!!!!

Steve Steiner will give a cute puppy to anyone who votes for his web comic!!!

More Confessions (sort of. . .)

So I have a few of my own alt-craft confessions to make:
I am a Zuda addict.
I check it obsessively for up dates, I read all the ongoing series (even the scary ones), I read and vote for my favorite each month, I read the blog, I even listened to the Zuda podcast from the New York Comic Con. I get angry when my comics don't win. (My favorite has never won.)
For those of you who don't know, zudacomics.com was launched last fall by DC Comics. Artists submit the first 8 screens of their original web comic and compete for a year long contract to continue the series. Each month, Zuda editors pick 10 competitors and then the general public votes for the comic they would like to become an ongoing series. Whoever gets the most votes is the winner of a year long contract.
I had to wait until today to blog about this, because as the first Monday in May, today is the start of the May Competition My brother Steve has his SECOND webcomic on Zuda this month. His first webcomic "Everyone Laughs at the Crocodile Man", was part of the February competition, and unfortunately didn't win (apparently people want to see violent fantasy comics as opposed to funny comics about reptilian humanoids). This time he takes a more serious (but not too serious) turn with "Colonel MacTagart". Seriously, go online and vote for him!!! (You have to register, but it's free.)
Other things I love about Zuda:
- I love "The Night Owls", it's a high point of my Tues./Thurs.
- For the month of July (the one year anniversary of announcing the site) Zuda is running an invitational. Readers submit the 10 comics they would like to see return, and those top artists will be invited to submit the NEXT 8 screens to their story!!!
- I love seeing how a field so different from our own is using technology and alternative methods to get their product out there.
- This is a great way to support other artits and it's completly FREE!

So, now that I've confessed to my freakish tendencies, go check out the site!!!

Oh, and for you local Baltimore people, Atomic Books, now carries Steve's zine "Nobody Can Eat 50 Eggs". My day always instantly got better when I got my copy of "50 Eggs" in the mail.

Read. Vote. Create. Zuda.

May 4th

For those of you with a Kent connection, happy May 4th.
Think I'll have a beer. . .

Oh! Check back tomorrow for some awesome news. . . !!!!

Israeli Design

Aqua Creations: Ayala Serfaty


Ezri Tarazi (worked as a partner of the branch of IDEO)
Balloon Carpet by Pini Leibovich
From DesignBoom:
"For a while now, Israeli design has been getting
more and more recognition internationally.
there is a push for good design education,
design galleries and shops.

We’ve been told that there are not many companies
interested to collaborate with local designers.
people are looking for opportunities or new challenges,
to find an entry point to work in the creative world.
this is one reason why Israeli design has concentrated
more on artistic expression then on functional / technical
aspects. young israeli design in the recent past has
focused on reuse of objects and recycling of materials,
giving a certain ‘raw’ aesthetic to their design.

Israel’s DIY industry now build ultramodern production plants
- employ cutting-edge computer-aided design tools,
production is fully automated and employs advanced,
high-technology equipment.
talented designers have been quick to learn and shifted to
more high tech materials and the use of these production
techniques. the development of the design industry is still
weak but a few israeli industries have learned that products
have to be designed for future customer segments and
specific applications."

Sounds similar to what's going on here. So why does the work look so different?


http://www.designboom.com/contemporary/insideviewisrael.html

Further thoughts. . .

Relationships! It's all about relationships! (Isn't all art about some relationship or another? Our relationship to nature, our relationship to food, our relationship to technology, to each other, to the social organism, to anything, everything?)

Thoughts. . .

Oolitic Limestone (look familiar?)
History/ Determining the past/Inferring the past
Identity/Identification
Time/Geologic Time
Weathering/Erosion = Passage of Time
Relationship of mineral grains indicates formation of rock
Relationship of chemical elements determines mineral type
Our (human) relationship to the earth? To time? To adorment? To the things we wear (dare I say fashion?!)
Collection. Collecting as means to identify/investigate
Collecting as human nature
Stability/Near permanent
The beginning of everything, the end of everything
More later. . . .

Process Shot(s) of the Week

*Sigh*

I wish I has something clever and witty to post, or some amazing process shots of some awesome work or something cool I'm working on, but I don't. I guess this pic will have to do for now.I'll try to post pics of my mediocre and stymied work tomorrow.

Quote of the Week

"The only difference between martyrdom and suicide is press coverage"
—Chuck Palahniuk (Survivor)