Creation

I always understood that Carrie Fisher quote, “I don’t want life to imitate art. I want life to BE art.” I did want that. I often do.

I draw. And paint. And act, write, sculpt, sing, direct, photograph, model, cook, cater, sew, design, perform and am an amateur makeup artist.

I do a lot of things. Or I CAN. I am able to do many things.

After my teenage years and up until about 5 years ago, I rarely created anything. I was afraid. Afraid the things I made would not be good enough. Uncertain what the value of anything that I created might be. If it was something funny or silly or frivolous, it didn't seem to have enough meaning. If I tried to write or paint something serious, it seemed too self-important.

I was made of doubt. So I created little. And kept even less.

I began acting again 5 years ago. By accident really. Anyone who has spent time with a community theater will understand that one day I was helping a friend out by stage managing her play and a few months later I was on stage, in costume for the next production, looking around and wondering how the heck I got there.

The acting community led to other things. And slowly I found myself surrounded by people who make art. Play music, paint pictures, film movies, put on comedy shows... Crazy people. Wonderful people. People brave enough to create. People who don't seem to be frozen by the doubt that haunts me.

A friend I made recently brought this into sharp focus for me. He creates constantly. He is a newspaper columnist, an independent filmmaker, a talented photographer, a natural comedian, and a very capable musician - and he does one or another of these things all of the time. No day goes past without him creating something. Being near this consistent creative force feels strange and wonderful and a little intimidating. But the biggest lesson to me has been the experience of watching someone who doesn't hesitate. Doesn't pull back from trying because he is uncertain if each thing he does will be perfect. He produces work and shares ideas and makes something every single day. It floors me. He is so talented. But also so brave.

I'm still afraid. But I'm slowly starting to draw and write again. Those were the things that came first. When I was too young to understand that directing a play or designing a burlesque costume were things a person COULD do, I was drawing pictures and writing things down. And I am trying new things. And I am learning to have faith.

It took me so long to figure out that part of the beauty is in the creating itself. So many things live inside me. If I start now and I try to get them out of me, making something each and every day, I will never finish. I will never run out. And not everything I make will be good. It won't be beautiful or have value to everyone who sees it. And that's okay. Even if I only make things for myself, these things are evidence of a life lived, of days spent not in fear or self-doubt but instead actively engaged in the act of creating.

I want the art of my life to be in the making of things and expression of ideas and the sharing of joy and experience. I want to actually do all the many things I am able to do.

I want to be brave, too.

The Art of Meredith Dittmar

© Meredith Dittmar, screencap from her home page - adorable animation!

Meredith Dittmar's work appears on her website, Corporate Pig. Her site features both her adorable "My Guys" - funny little critters handmade out of brightly colored polymer clay that you can buy the original of or, for a little less dough, you can purchase a "cloned" favorite. All of them are handmade - the original guys and their clones.


© Meredith Dittmar, I believe these are four separate pieces but they were in the gallery side by side and obviously follow a theme.

Dittmar also, however, has a gallery of her artwork on the site. Her works are formed in polymer clay with backgrounds created with spraypaint and hand-drawn stencils mounted on plexiglass. Each one like a little scene taking place in some otherworld, her art takes her ability to create unusual characters much further and places them in contexts that evoke emotions and stimulate the imagination.


© Meredith Dittmar

Fine art and cute critters collide in Dittmar's fanciful, unique work. Definitely a great site to peruse. Lots to see and lots of little lopsided smiles to brighten your day.

I also found this link to a wedding album of a friend of Dittmar's (isn't the bride just gorgeous?)- the couple had Dittmar create an adorable wedding topper for them. ALSO - another artist I featured on here previously, Trish Grantham, created the artwork that surrounded them during the ceremony! What lovely and innovative wedding ideas!

The Art of Annette Lauder (Nut and Bee)

#167, Shake Shake Shake, © Nut and Bee

Nut and Bee is the name under which Annette Lauder publishes and sells her sweet, whimsical artwork. I was fortunate enough to receive Nut and Bee stationary and bookplates for Christmas from The Guy and, of course, had to look her up right away. From a Ninja Giraffe to sheep posing as cloud formations, her style is simple and clean and her subjects are funny and cheerful. The website displays new sketches three times a week and has a link to a shop where you can buy stickers, T-shirts, notepads and an assortment of other stationary emblazoned with her adorable critters.


#155, Toastybreath, © Nut and Bee

The website shares very little information about Ms. Lauder herself, telling us only that: "Nut and Bee goods are designed and hand-assembled by Annette Lauder in Auckland, New Zealand. We aim to spread sweetness, whimsy and pleasant thoughts across the world!"

A worthwhile aim,don't you think?


My favorite - #089 Bunnylump, © Nut and Bee

Trek Earth

photo © Maciek Duczynski
Maciek Duczynski's gallery includes photographs of Italy, Sweden, Poland, Iceland and Croatia... I find his photographs of Norway particularly striking and unusually beautiful.

New favorite website. Trek Earth has gallery upon gallery of photographs taken all over the world by what appear to be both amateur and professional photographers. While you can certainly search Google or Flickr for images of these same places, the difference is that these photographs have been uploaded for the specific purpose of sharing the travel experience. Typically the images are of high quality (and often quite breathtaking), while a Google or Flickr search will result in a hodgepodge of good, bad and occasionally quite ugly. The photographs are organized by country, region, and city or town. You can look up any place on earth. The city where my mother grew up in Australia - which I had seen few photos of before, the place where my friend lives in Scotland, the small town in the Southern United States that I call home - They are all there. Places I have been. Places I have dreamed of visiting. I am completely thrilled with this treasure chest of gorgeous images. Pick a place, search on Trek Earth, and spend a few minutes transported.



photo © Tom Hill
This street in Edinburgh is very near where my friend lives and, to my mind, does a good job of capturing the feel of walking those streets.

The Art of LeUyen Pham

"Shino" © LeUyen Pham

I collect the Annual Spectrum editions - they are collections of "contemporary fantastic art" - artwork that explores anything outside the "real" world as we know it, really. It covers a lot of ground. I first saw LeUyen Pham's "Shino" in the 8th edition of Spectrum. I loved how she had taken a mythical creature like a mermaid and made her so of this world; with the string of pearls in her hair fallen to one side, her slouched posture, her morose expression and the casually held cigarette. Honestly, she looks like a young woman contemplating a shit situation that she's unhappily resigned to... beautifully mundane and familiar except for the fish tail. The detail of the little mer-kitty biting it's tail balances the piece, makes it feel a little less hopeless to me. I found her approach to this subject absolutely fascinating.

THEN I found LeUyen Pham's website, leUyenpham.com. Predictably, she has a wonderful sense of humor - as evidenced by her bio page (it's a hoot!). Her work also varies from gorgeous fantastical adult work to whimsical children's illustration. All presented to you in a highly entertaining web page. I strongly recommend taking the time to peruse her gallery.

The Art of Rachel Salomon

landscape 1, 24" x 36", acrylic and ink on board
© Rachel Salomon

Rachel Salomon's work is layered and organic in feel and I love the line drawings superimposed over washes of color in her paintings. Her other work is interesting, but it's the paintings that really draw me in. View her gallery at rachelsalomon.com.

For her bio, Salomon writes simply and directly: "I was raised in the mountains of Utah. When I was young, I spent afternoons with my grandmother surrounded by her Japanese art, mid-century modern furniture, antiques, illustrated storybooks, and books about painters. Later, I competed as a downhill ski-racer, traveling throughout the country and internationally. I studied Fine Art at Brown University, and Illustration at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. I've been living in Brooklyn, New York since 2002."

I don't know why, but I love that. First person. Without pretension. And the insight into where she was raised and what she was surrounded by is relevant when viewing her work. Nice.

The Art of Oksana Badrak

© Oksana Badrak

Oksana Badrak uses mixed media to create surreal landscapes and depict impossible interior spaces populated by seemingly out-of-place animals, cartoonish creatures and lush botanical elements. The images are unique and seem like representations of otherworldly dreams or nightmares. Most importantly (to me) she uses bunnies. Which is what grabbed my attention to begin with. I like her work. It was difficult to locate much information about her online, but the following is what I was able to find. Prints of her work can be purchased at Thumbtack Press.

"Oksana Badrak was born in 1978, in Moscow, Russia. In 1993, the Badrak family moved from Moscow to California. She was accepted to ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, CA in 1998. There, with the help of her amazing teachers, Rob Clayton, Jason Holley, Tony Zepeda and friends, Oksana began to develop her own distinctive style in illustration. While at ArtCenter, she became a recipient of several prestigious scholarships and graduated with distinction. After graduation her career quickly took off and her professional work was recognized by Society of Illustrators and American Illustration in their annual publications. Oksana Badrak has had several group and solo exhibitions, and her work has been published in major editorial publications including Entertainment Weekly, Nickelodeon, Playboy and eDesign to name a few.badrak.com" - From an old article by Rob McBroom on mnartists.org.

I also found this brief interview with her on flavorpill.net.

The Art of Trish Grantham

© Trish Grantham

I really can't say it better than her work is described on her website, trishgrantham.com: "Using a variety of media and acrylic paint on wood panels, Grantham paints a cast of doe-eyed, cartoon-like characters: Bunny, Robot-Panda, Girl, Carl the Squirrel, Think-Monster, Toast, Birds, and more populate her surfaces. The simple lines and stylized characters parallel Japanese anime, and the fantasy world they inhabit is wholly original. Appearing alternately wistful, pensive, punch-drunk, in love, or troubled, these characters play out classic themes of good versus evil, and romantic love." Wistful is a good word for it. Her gallery is full of off-kilter, subtly sweet and intrictely layered work. And her website is gorgeous.

Keeping Busy

Thunderstorn, 1948, Grandma Moses

"Paintin's not important.
The important thing is keepin' busy."

- Anna Mary Robertson “Grandma” Moses

The Art of Danielle Corsetto:Girls With Slingshots

© Danielle Corsetto


I just came across Danielle Corsetto's BRILLIANT "Girls With Slingshots" online comic strip. Read everything she has up in one sitting.


© Danielle Corsetto


The strip follows the escapades of Hazel and Jamie, and their various buddies / love interests / house plants. LOVE the strip. Comic strip characters I can personally relate to.


© Danielle Corsetto


I love that it's chick centric but guy friendly, only occasionally touches on the issue of weight (because THAT's been done to death), actually addresses work / career stress and completely, unapologetically has sex as a regular topic. Because any two women over the age of 15 who spend all their time together are talking about sex. Seriously. I think we're worse than men about it. So any honest work about 20-30 something women shouldn't neglect that. And she definitely doesn't.

The comic strips here are reproduced with the artist's permission and honestly, I had trouble selecting only a few. Originally I intended to just put one up but I just couldn't make a decision.

So I highly recommend Danielle Corsetto's Girls With Slingshots. Love her drawing style, the wry humor, the distinct characters, and the cyber savvy and socially progressive mindset.

...And the cactus. I freaking LOVE the cactus.

The Art of Camilla Engman

© Camilla Engman, click image to visit her website

Camilla Engman’s work features muted colors and the use of somewhat simplified forms to create emotive images. Her work has an off-kilter folk art feel that I find incredibly appealing. In addition to her paintings and illustrations, she works in paper collage and crochets one-of-a-kind stuffed animals. Visit her website here to see more of her work or puchase a calendar or print of one of her creations.

She also has stationary available here on artstar and there is a short interview with her here on decor8.

The Art of Wednesday Kirwan

Kirwan’s “Maneaters: Harpies”
© Wednesday Kirwan

Wednesday Kirwan is a children’s illustrator and artist. Her fine art often uses the same sweet moon faces as her children’s illustration, but is combined for an almost startling effect with mythological imagery and more mature themes. Really fascinating work. View her gallery at wednesdaykirwan.com. The website features a shop where she sells prints of her work as well as really clever little cameo reproductions of her work.

Of course, I am also very taken with her illustration depicting children with rabbits (which can be found in the illustration gallery). I’m a sucker for bunnies.

The Art of Sylvia Ji

© 2003-2006 Sylvia Ji

Sylvia Ji’s website says, “In her art, she explores themes of beauty, sexual provocation, and social notions of femininity juxtaposed against the dystopian reality of modern cities to create highly charged paintings of women.” They certainly are. Her paintings of brash, strong and often overtly sexual female figures are rendered in vivid color and are arresting to the eye. Her gallery at sylviaji.com is worth a visit.

The Art of Fumi Nakamura

© 2006 Fumi Nakamura

The work of Fumi Nakamura can be viewed at miniminiaturemouse.com. Her drawings vary from frenetic and overflowing with macabe details to muted line drawings with restrained use of color. The men and women in her work have distinct, interesting faces usually with ruddy rosy noses and cheeks. Often paired with animals, there is a rawness to them that appeals to me. She shows all over the States, as indicated on her exhibitions page.

The Art of Jen Corace

“growing into a respectable lady no. 14” by Jen Corace
© Jen Corace

Jen Corace’s work has an old world feel with a modern sensibility. Her figures are often children or child-like and there is an innocence about her work that I find compelling. But it is an innocence that in no way implies simplicity of concept or intent. Her work has a subtle underlying sharpness to it as well. And it manages all this while being quite beautiful. Visit her gallery and learn more about the artist at jencorace.com.

The Art of Audrey Kawasaki

© 2004 Audrey Kawasaki (detail from an oil painting on wood)

Audrey Kawasaki’s paintings are sensual, flawlessly executed and vaguely disturbing. Her paintings (often executed on wood and allowing the wood grain to show through) seem like haunted daydream visions, fly-on-the-wall views of intimate women or vintage portraits that have never seen the light of day. Kawasaki's paintings and illustrations are populated with truncated bodies, limbless beauties, sleepy eyes and open mouths. They are gorgeous, innovative, unique and impossible to look away from. View her gallery at audrey-kawasaki.com. She also has a blog here where you can see her most recent work and works in progress.

The Art of Stella Im Hultberg

Insomnia, 2006 ©stella im hultberg

Her sensual washed-out paintings full of pillow-lipped women make me think of rainy days and antique linens. Her website is stellaimhultberg.com, it includes a place to view her sketchbook page by page which is really great and the angular, sophisticated drawings have the same faces but a completely different feel. She has some of her work for sale on her other website, momomoogie.com. Really interesting, beautiful work .

The Art of Lori Earley

Hope, © Lori Earley

Kinda eerie. Kinda beautiful. Worth a look. Check her out at loriearley.com.

The Art of Linda Bergkvist

detail of Linda Bergkvist’s “Spoiled” - © Linda Bergkvist

Breathtaking, dark and ethereal artwork. She is tremendously talented and I really reccommend visiting her gallery at furiae.com. I believe it also contains a link for those interested in purchasing prints or a posterbook of her work.

On her site she writes, "I'm planning a book on dark fairytales, and all the images are part of a world I've created. If you do not like fantasy, or pictures of fae and elves, I suggest you look elsewhere. It's the world of the fantastic that fascinates me, you see. I don't draw big guns, and I don't draw realistic things: I simply don't want to (unless, of course, you pay me - in which case it's another matter altogether!)."

Great Art Prints!

Relocation (minature) by Lilly Piri - available at Thumbtack Press!
Lilly Piri’s website is here.

Thumbtack Press sells digital prints of innovative high-quality artwork. I haven’t ordered from them YET (I’m still deciding what to buy), so I am not guaranteeing anything, but I have been impressed with the interesting work they have available and the reasonable prices. They feature several really interesting female artists. Well worth checking out at thumbtackpress.com.