I Do Not Care For the Winter Sun

Hey peoples,

sorry for the delay, I really wasn't expecting it. And I really don't have any excuses for not posting lately, so lets just get to it!

The holidays had their ups and downs, Christmas eve was very intense. I dont know what was up with everyone but people just seemed to be so stressed out! We tried to play a round of Pictionary but it turned into a screaming match. But I suppose thats bound to happen when you try to play a game with about 25 people.....

Also, I sprained my neck really bad. So much so I wasnt able to look to the right or downward so I looked kind of gimpy. Then Christmas morning I woke up with a nasty cold that made less enthusiastic than usual about opening presents. I KNOW! Crazy.

But Christmas Day I went with Sean to go see Black Swan. Which if you havent seen it yet, you most definitely should.



For those of you guys reading that don't think you want to see a ballet movie, there is a steamy girl on girl scene. Take that. But ASIDE from that, awesome movie, go seeeee

So I tend to be attracted to the odd and things that are a little strange. So I found this set of tableware and decor by artist Ronit Baranga and thought it was pretty nifty and unique. How would you like to find these every morning on your kitchen table?



























I personally would like one of those bowls with the fingers on the bottom.

So thats all for now. My boyfriend got me a lomography camera (a Diana F+) for Chrsitmas like I wanted! So once I get some film developed I'll be uploading those. Also I've been working on some different art pieces so you can look out for those too!

Until then, here's a music video for a kid who I think has some serious potential. I fell in love with this song because I think it fit in so well with the foggy, dreary morning that I first heard it. Can you believe he's only 16?



Happy days :)

Ruffle These Feathers

So basically I'm at the Starbucks across the street from my apartment complex because my internet blows so hard I need to go places with free wifi to get any buisness done. So I figured while I was here I'd do a quick post.

Anyway, I've come back to some of my crativity lately,mostly just junk that has been in my mind, that I finally put on paper. More recently its been all about geometric shapes. Here's the two I have to start. Oh be warned, I don't think I really wanted them to turn out good, they just had to be done. So if you think they suck, they probably do. I call the series 'Depressed Geometry".





Believe it or not, they do have meaning. They say something. For me anyway. Stupid exposure crappyness. Cosmo is taking the one of the single cube. One day when Im famous and the SFMOMA is featuring my collection, he'll have something thats worth millions. Im going to make more like those, maybe experiment with some pyramids.

Anyhoo, since I feel awkward just sitting here at Starbucks, I'm going to leave you all with two songs, both of which have amazing videos.



I think this one is so beautiful.


Oh yeah, and on a kind of related note, I finally got a sound system for my turntable. I've been enjoying it a lot.

Anyway, I guess I'll go home now. More from me within this next week.

-Caitlin

SFO to LAX, Baby!

So basically right now Im up at a hotel in South San Francisco. Tomorrow afternoon my flight is scheduled to take me to Los Angeles. Work is over for now, school is over for now, and Im ready to have some good times with my buddy Jenna!

School ended last week, which is pretty awesome. I was getting sick of having to write essays every week. It was close to no fun whatsoever. But anyway, my mom and I celebrated the old fashioned way with margaritas and...mustaches????



So I guess I was Salvador Dali/Frida Kahlo and my mom was Emiliano Zapata/Pancho Villa???

It was good times until Office Depot called and said some asshole regular customer went psycho in the copy center and I had to come in early to do damage control. Then he didn't even come pick up his shit the next day!! Ugh...But thats all in the past, and Im headed for good times, so no worries!

Anyway, here's something cool I found recently. An artist/interior designer built an 'invisible' tree house in a forrest in Sweeden. Its super cool! At first he had some issues with getting some approval because officials thought it would be a harm to the environment, and birds could hurt themselves by flying into it. But he developed a mesh protective shield for the birds, and the tree house is almost 100% eco friendly.

Super cool.




Heres a pic of the inside


Man, what Id give to check that out for myself! Its gorgeous, a real piece of art.

Here's another cool thing I found in the news recently,

So a collector went to a yard sale a few years ago and bought a set of glass negatives from some old photographs. After barganing down the price down to $45 for the whole set, said collector heard an off hand comment that these negatives look similar to those photographs taken by famed American photographer, Ansel Adams.

So, this gentleman took his collection to some experts, and the confirmed that the negatives were indeed missing Ansel Adams originals, and that $45 dollar find turned out to be worth 200 million dollars!

However, what I found to be the best part of the article was that this garage sale that the negatives were found at was in FRESNO, CALIFORNIA. As many of you know, I have lots of family in Fresno, and I have a few relatives who love going to yard sales and finding goodies, myself included. THAT COULDA BEEN US!!!

Anyway, I better get going. I had a long day today getting ready for my trip, and I also went to an open house for a grad school Im thinking about going to after SSU. Its located in San Francisco and called CIIS (California Institute of Integral Studies). Its a pretty groovy place, maybe I'll be there in just over a year ^_^

Wish me luck on my flight tomorrow!

-Caitlin

Goodnight and Sweet Dreams My Friend

Hope you all enjoy the new layout. Since the blog is now only mine, I felt like I was well overdue for a change. I suppose the official title is now Things I Like. Fitting, given that I always post things I like. It also reminds me of this scene in "The Fall", one of my favorite movies.



Oh Lee Pace, you sexy man. What I'd give for a piece of that...

Anyway, last night I cut my bangs because I was having difficulties seeing. Sooo I decided to do them a little different and go for a little bit of a subdued Betty Paige look. A little longer in the middle and shorter on the sides.



I just realized they totally dont look even in that picture...but they are in real life I swear! Yeah, and you guys only get to see half of my mug today because my face was just not cooperating in being photogenic today. So suck it.

So in my English class we read this novel called 'The Bridge of San Luis Rey' for which we had to do presentations on based on a specific chapter. Today I had a consultation with my teacher about revising one of my essays and he made the suggestion that I make an art piece. This is what I cranked out. Its water color and colored pencils.



The novel is about this bridge in Peru that suddenly collapses, and the five people crossing this bridge all fall to their deaths. A monk, Brother Juniper, happens to witness this event and wonders why those particular individuals died that day, whether it was by accident or by some work of fate. Each chapter is a look into the lives of each person, and poses big questions about fate and destiny. Really interesting story.

So I'll be heading to LA again in about 2 weeks to visit my buddy Jenna. I miss her!



This was when we were webcamming at the dorms, she was upstairs and I was downstairs. We're such big nerds.

I also made a cosmic owl for her that she just recieved via mail today.


Lately I've really been listening to the band HEALTH a lot. About a week ago, I found this video of them playing a song that's apparently new. It's slower but still them. Also, it wasn't until listening to them live that I was able to better hear the lead singer's voice with more clarity. I think he's pretty good.

Radio K Live at the 7th St. Entry: HEALTH - "Drugs Beach" from Radio K on Vimeo.

-Caitlin

I Love You

Out with June, in with July.

Here's what's been going on in my art journal that I started earlier this year



I think I want to add some more to this piece, there's too much open space.

I draw a lot of hearts, its a symbol I'm very much drawn to.
(I didn't draw these but I thought they were cool)






Maybe its because growing up Catholic I was quite often exposed to religious iconography like the Sacred Heart and what not, I love all that imagery







I drew the Virgin Mary once, I think I will again but on a bigger canvas.

Oh yeah, I found this rad tattoo on the internet the other day. I find it interesting that a lot of the imagery in it are symbols that I use in my art a lot. Collective unconscious anyone?



Oh Carl Jung.

Anyway, going back to all things holy, I came across this song about a week ago and have become absolutely addicted to it. It's actually a new genre emerging from the indie scene called witch core, or drag. Its dark and full of heavy beats...a good change of pace after all the bombardment of chillwave. Don't get me wrong, I love many of the chillwave artists, but I find this refreshing. 'King Night' by Salem is an excellent example of upcoming sounds


(Get the title of this post now?)

Oh yeah, and did you notice that the basic melody of this song is a choir singing 'O Holy Night'? Yeah, mad props Salem. Keep those beats coming!

-Caitlin

PS I went to San Francisco yesterday, pics from that adventure up tomorrow or the day after. Promise!

Days of Summer (On and On...)

Summer goes and goes and goes.

These last few days have been quite nice. For once I have had three consecutive days off work and I've been able to enjoy myself completely.

On Saturday, my friend Alexander and I found a nice shady area in a park to go and do some art work, it was really nice! We played the scribble game, where one person would draw a random shape, or scribble, and the other person would have to turn it into a picture of something, and then we'd switch off. It's not as easy as it sounds. Here are some crappy scans:





I wish they were bigger but Im too lazy to resize them on photobucket myself. But anyway, the game becomes more complicated as you go on, because the 'scribbles' become more difficult. I have to say I believe Alexander was a bit more creative at it than I was.

One thing that Im happy about for this summer is that I actually feel more motivated to be creative and stuff. Which is a good thing. Here's something I did a while ago for those of you who never saw it:

Im working on another owl as a gift for a friend, I'll upload pictures of it once I give it to her.

Aaaanyway

today I went to the beach with my mom and three nephews and we made sand candles, it was pretty fun.

Thats Kai, burried in the sand.


That's how my candle came out. I know it looks like a weird cookie thing, but it actually came out pretty cute for a first try. I even gave three legs so it stands up on its own.

I also go sunburned on ONE arm. It's pretty crispy. So far I've just been drenching it in aloe vera.

I don't do well in the heat, Pippin and I can agree on that

Poor baby looks like road kill!

Anyway, so I know I posted this video on my facebook not too long ago but I think it is absolutely beautiful

Black on white,
sharp images,
so surreal,
rhinocerous beetle

Oh Interpol, Im ready to be amazed.

It kind of reminds me of Bjork's 'All Is Full of Love' music video. Being able to make a comparison between the two is a very, very good thing.

More soon.

-Caitlin

Put the Pen to the Paper

So one of my favorite things about summer is garage sales. They're so much fun. I went this last weekend and had a really great time.

Got this guy for 50 cents


and I also go this awesome leather purse


here's a close up of the other side, it has an Aztec calendar!


I've been wanting a purse like that for so long! Ive seen them at vintage stores for $30 and up and I got this gorgeous thing for 2 dollars! Its all leather and hecho in Mexico, baby!

So anyway...

I feel lame because I never have any time anymore to do the things I enjoy. But regardless of that, Ive been trying to explore my creativity and how I express myself artistically. Last week while hanging out with my friend Alexander, I did some free minded drawing where I just put onto paper whatever my mind came up with. Last week I also began my English summer course and we do a lot of work with poetry. So I guess I kind of combined the two and am writing streams of consciousness (or maybe subconscious) in my journal instead of writing structured retellings of my day. Here's a few, if you can read them anyway.


cont.....


There's always more to say on a bad day I suppose.


I tore those out from my journal. You people got to read some of my journal. How does that make you feel? You all probably think Im just an emo bitch, but I thought it was quite liberating to do.

I used my parents new scanner to upload those, now that they have a nice one I can upload my art more easily, ha!

More tasty things coming soon.

-Caitlin

Days of Summer

So summer break is finally here. That pretty much sums a lot of everything up.

I don't feel quite free. Work holds me down. But I have to say that when I'm not at work, I've been enjoying the warm weather and good company.

But for the most part I've been trying to enjoy my time away from academia. Although thats about to end too as I will soon be starting my summer school course which begins at 7:30 am. Thats gonne be fun. But for some reason Im not dreading it too much.

Anyway, I bought this really cool necklace over the weekend when I went out and about with Sean.



Ignore my gigantic mole :(

I have a ton of jewlery with birds and clocks. And this one is both!!! I really like it, kind of reminds me a bit of art deco 1920's. By the way, thats a real clock too, it ticks and has the real time.

So anyway, while Im at work (bored) I sometimes browse the New York Times for their art reviews. Recently I read a review on an artist named Henry Darger. His art is controversial yet whimsical and in my opinion quite stunning. He makes the kind of art that you can look at multiple times and discover new things about his pieces each time. Here's just a few:













There's a few different ideas about what he was trying to convey through his art, and some of it can be pretty brutal. I feel like art should provoke you in some way, if it doesn't, well then its just not art.

I've become very pretentious. Just a warning.

So this is what has been in my playlist as of late

Sleigh Bells


Portishead


Gonjasufi


Flying Lotus


HEALTH- USA Boys (really NSFW, there's some sexy time in it)


More to come.

Ta ta for now

-Caitlin