November Wrap Up

December 4, 2016

Happy December all! I am writing this as I watch the first snowfall of the season in Chicago. I am definitely missing the Vegas sunshine that I had while on Thanksgiving vacation!

Here are the art and creative things I saw/did this month.

November Recap:

Saw a lot of great murals in Downtown Vegas. If you ever find yourself there make sure to check out the Arts District
Discovered the Art Supplies Posse podcast and I am so happy! I worked at an art store for a few years during college and I love talking about supplies. I found out about this podcast through Kathy Weller's instagram when she shared that she was on an interview on the podcast.
Checked out the clothing line launch of Pintl + Keyt at the Greenheart Shop in Old Town. Such beautiful patterns and fabric!
Attended the Day Job/Night Job/Art Job talk put on by Chicago Artist Resource. It was more geared towards artists who make most/all their money from their art, but I still enjoyed the discussion (I have a day job and do art on the side).
Went to Alexee McNulty's art opening at Reed's Local in Avondale. She had beautiful abstracts and pop culture pieces as well as prints of her work for sale. I picked up a print as part of my Christmas shopping.

Here are some photos from the month, enjoy!

How rad are these paintings by Alexee McNulty???

October Wrap Up

November 1, 2016

I have been itching to share more here and decided to start with a monthly wrap up series where I take a look at creative items from the previous month.

Let's take a look at October:

I have been inspired by Tara Swiger's podcast and decided to become a supporter on Patreon
A friend gave me some old books and papers that I can use for collage
Set goal to work more in abstract with paintings
Went to the Cornelia Arts Center open house
Studio/office is actually set up and usable

Below are images from the month, enjoy!

P.S- I love instagram, make sure to follow me there!

Early stages in October of the office/studio set up

Reality Right Now

September 17, 2016

I'd love to be sharing a new piece that I've been working on, but that's not happening. The reality right now is we dealt with a stressful move and there are still unpacked boxes a month later. We are renting an apartment that was rehabbed and unfortunately not finished in time, causing us to board our cat and couch surf for close to a week before we could actually move in with our stuff. There is still work being finished up while we live here (hence the unpacked boxes), and well, it's made life stressful. I haven't fully set up my studio and I haven't painted since the last apartment. Moving every year is no fun but we gotta make it work since this is the situation we’re currently in.

The reality of the office/studio right now is pictured below. I didn't move, pick up, or style anything. This is the messy reality. I look at Pinterest multiple times a week, and while it's a great place to collect ideas, it's also giving me some serious guilt about our place not looking perfect. I just recently finished reading “Real Artists Have Day Jobs” by Sara Benincasa and one of the major takeaways I got is that life isn’t perfect and that is totally OK. So I'm sharing this picture for anyone who also feels their life is a little bit messy and chaotic right now.

I'm in an accountability group online and this week I set the goal for myself to paint/draw/collage anything no matter how small or ugly, to get myself back in the habit. I look forward to see what I end up making and will share here (yet another format of accountability). I'm a little behind, but if I get something done tomorrow I'll be within the week I set.

Thanks for reading! It’s rather cathartic for me to share this and I can’t wait to be settled in!

Home Studio Inspiration

July 27, 2016

As I mentioned in my last post we are moving in about a week and a half and while moving sucks, I LOVE nesting. I am always looking to maximize space with organization techniques to make the most of a small home office/studio.

I wanted to share some inspiration I found online, I definitely noticed some trends of what draws my eye!

I notice that what draws my eye is an organized chaos. I appreciate the minimalist aesthetic but it's just not for me. I have a good amount of stuff and I like it to at least look organized and have its own place. I like wall shelving since there is only so much floor space in a small room that I also share with Scott's desk. Having art and other various imagery and inspiration hanging where I can easily see it is also important to me. I'll take a moment to sit back in my chair to think and I always enjoy looking at the art hanging nearby.

We'll see how the new space turns out! I'll take pictures and share once it's set up. It won't be magazine pretty like these images above, but it will be my space! For more of my inspiration follow me on Pinterest.