wrapped

the sign project has ended, and i feel a sense of emptiness. so on to the next thing.

still working on that letterform sculpture. here is my statement on that one:

"this project was inspired by Frederick Goudy's engravings of the letter G, from 7th century uncial to Goudy's own 20th century type design. that is the form the project takes, but the overarching concept is that of a blob defined by OED as 'an indeterminate mass or shape.' a blob is also 'a drop of a thick liquid or viscous substance,' which brings to mind the concept of evolution, of mankind's origins as primordial soup, and the painful climb of civilization, which language has brought us the history of, both in written and oral tradition. letters evolved from brushstrokes, and from one language to another, their unfamiliarity can make them resemble nothing more than a blob on a page, an arbitrary mark. words and the symbols that compose them- signifiers- are arbitrary, and can never take the shape of the signified. so blobs they will always be, regardless of their seeming evolution. is the refinement of letterforms lateral movement, is it pointless? why haven't they changed again yet? is this a symbol of mankind's current developmental inertia?"

and i still have to find the right way to connect the pieces. so more to come on that one. it's just that i savor the satisfaction of completing each piece, and the individual flavor of each one. and yes, i like resting on my laurels before i leave the plateau.

work- slightly unfinished

commercial & academic. sign painting, sculpture. and no one ought say i don't love lettering.

branding

presenting: great moments in identity design history

(hint: hold it up to a mirror...)

spoiler alert

Dumbledore is gay, y'all.

more thoughts

quotes from the perennial sage, Woody Allen, on civil disobedience:

"the groups who revolt are called the 'oppressed' & can generally be seen milling about & grumbling or claiming to have headaches. (It should be noted that the oppressors never revolt & attempt to become the oppressed as that would entail a change of underwear.)"

"it should be noted that after a revolution is over, the 'oppressed' frequently take over & begin acting like the 'oppressors.' Of course by then it is very hard to get them on the phone & money lent for cigarettes & gum during the fighting may as well be forgotten about."

"the key point about a demonstration is that it must be seen. Hence the term 'demonstration.' if a person demonstrates privately in his own home, this is not technically a demonstration but merely 'acting silly' or 'behaving like an ass.'"

"the problem with the hunger strike is that after several days one can get quite hungry, particularly since sound trucks are paid to go through the street saying, 'um... what nice chicken... ummmm... some peas.... ummm...'"

"miscellaneous forms of Civil Disobedience:  standing in front of City Hall & chanting the word 'pudding' until one's demands are met.   Tying up traffic by leading a flock of sheep into the shopping area.   Phoning members of 'the establishment' & singing, 'Bess, You Is My Woman Now' into the phone.   Dressing as a policeman & then skipping.   Pretending to be an artichoke but punching people as they pass."

My Boss

... thinks he knows everything. I hate when he just stares at me like that, all peaceful-like. I'm like, "sure, because everyone else does the work for you. if we could all chill out, nothing would ever get done. then let's see who's peaceful. ha!"

sunday koan

if "nature morte" is still life, what is the "living dead"?

nobody pays attention to me

fancy

other artists

these are some things i found at the library. i especially love the ledger art. it is a genre i didn't know about except that i have drawn in notebooks sometimes. at least one of the ledger drawings is attributed to Howling Wolf, but as for the others i can only say they are not mine. the dog sculptures are by artist Rick Bartow, a contemporary Native American artist. if you want to see more ledger art use the link in the previous entry.

too bad i have nothing new to say today.

link

go. http://plainsledgerart.org/

Candy Cow

touching chewed up now & laters and bubblegum makes me think seriously about the excessive consumption of sugar.

Thought of the Day

"The thinker thinks his thoughts through habit, through repetition, through copying, which brings ignorance & sorrow. Is not habit thoughtlessness? Awareness creates order, but it never creates habit. Settled tendencies only bring about thoughtlessness. Why is one thoughtless? Because to think is painful, it creates disturbances, it brings opposition, it may cause one's actions to go contrary to the established pattern. To think-feel extensionally, to become choicelessly aware may lead to unknown depths, and the mind rebels against the unknown; so it moves from the known to the known, from habit to habit, from pattern to pattern. Such a mind never abandons the known to discover the unknown. Realizing the pain of thought, the thinker becomes thoughtless through copying, through habit; being afraid to think, he creates patterns of thoughtlessness. As the thinker is afraid, his actions are born of fear, and then he regards his actions and tries to change them. The thinker is afraid of this own creations, but the deed is the doer, so the thinker is afraid of himself. The thinker is fear itself; the thinker is the cause of ignorance, of sorrow. The thinker may divide himself into many categories of thought, but the thought is still the thinker. The thinker and his efforts to be, to become, are the very cause of conflict and confusion."

J. Krishnamurti

ghosts

maybe this sounds silly but going through all these old things has made me jumpy & given me thoughts of ghosts & spirits around me.

objects

3 & 4- this makeup was only 50 cents and enabled you to adopt the attributes of any age or race of man/womankind. amazing! see the numbered list?

2- do you have a "Favorite" BEST & CHEAPEST letter & invoice file? It's also IMPROVED.

1- apparently Juicy Couture was making stationery in the 1920's. seriously though, this is beautifully decorated for a throwaway item. 

I don't like nostalgia for its own sake nor do I desire to imitate Art Nouveau; however, these objects hold a powerful attraction nonetheless. I wonder why... do I inwardly crave decoration, preciousness, kitsch, hyper-sincere branding, outmoded standards of beauty? Is it being in the presence of "the dead"? Is it escaping my own constraints for the while? am I- unbeknownst to myself- a genre person, like a Goth or something? Or, is it CRAFT? Is it wondering how these items were produced and distributed in a pre-digital age? I will ponder these questions in my sleep.

messages from beyond

"What shall I do, whip him or send him to West Texas? I believe I send him to West Texas." (Mr. Mag)

"Tsch bibble I should worry" (Bill)

This vignette was found in the leaves of a hanging daily proverbs calendar from the year 1918. It seems to be the property of a great-granduncle who was killed in military service in WWI. I just found out about the existence of this departed relative and this is a very endearing glimpse of him (because I do love the comics, especially of one's teachers).

AND- he can't draw hands!!! haha.

1894 pipe advertisement

In case you can't read the text from your screen,

it says it is made of asbestos. :)

This also reminds me of the oft-referred-to

Magritte painting. "This is not a pipe."

I may never sleep again (SPOILER ALERT!)

David Lynch's Inland Empire contains the scariest thing i have ever seen. and believe me i have seen more than my share of supposedly scary things.

hand-drawn (but digitally "remastered") text

this is not what the text originally said; it's just an example.

editorial cartoon (a commission)

T-Shirts are available! Ask me how... or why...

a sticker about choices

Soda good, malt liquor bad. :)