New Stuff

These are two sketches that I worked on today. One is for a children's book that I am think about doing on the side called Mr Pea Pod's Adventures in Art and the other is a Copper Goddess series. Just wanted to bless you guys with some of my recent stuff.

Until sometime next week, namaste and stay strong...

Blogging away.

I love the fact that I am so used to blogging. There was never any doubt in my mind that I wouldn't take a liking to it but I am amazed at how consistent and dedicated to it I am. I am/was(?) an extreme procrastinist (is that even a word, lol?) I have on several occasion told you guys how I started this blog to help me with my procrastination and help me to focus on meeting my deadlines but the endeavour has become so much more. I mean every weekend I look forward to bring you guys the happenings going on in my world.

I loved that I branched out and started doing Vlog for you guys as well. Its pretty awesome to be able to actually tell you guys whats going on and what I am thinking verbally. I may start doing reviews on certain things I have viewed or had the opportunity to play around with. (Movies, electronics, games and things like that) I will def tell you guys about art happening I see and art endeavors I embark on. After all this is an ART BLOG. Thats all for now my faithful few.

Until sometime next week, namaste and stay strong...

Labels...

I was walking to work on Thursday and caught a glimpse of a newspaper article . It was about a gay Zimbabwe priest I believe that had died. It got me to think about labels. Pretty weird huh, but in this society it seems like everything is about labels. He couldn't have been just a Zimbabwe priest, we had to know that he was gay as well. Anyway before I get off of what it got me thinking about, I recall growing up wanting to be an artist. All I wanted to do was be an artist.

I didn't have any cares in the world beyond getting older and being an artist. It was never about making "black art" for me, it was just about making art. It wasn't until after the events of 9/11 that I even thought of the concept of a label. I was in art school in DC at the time so I was right in the back door of what America was going through at that time. Like my classmates and peers at that time, I begin to create art that showed that I was proud to be an American. What ever I did, somewhere in my work was an homage to the great US of A. Out of this work was born a deeper meaning in my work. I took a step back and realized that all those years of creating art and wanting to be recognized as an artist never approached the fact that I was an artist who was black. I mean I was conscious of the fact but I didn't want that label. I didn't want to be known as a black artist because I wanted my work to have an identity of it's own. I am not saying that I am/was ashamed of being labeled a black artist, I just felt that I could say more through my work without the label. Roland Barthe felt that the death of the "author" (artist in this case) would open up the author's work. If you took away the identity it would be up to the viewer/reader to determine what they thought of the work based on what was presented and not based on what they knew/know of the author.

I dove headfirst into revealing myself as a black artist. I have actually written artist statements and grad School entrance essays based around my self-exploration into accepting the "blackness" in my work. As I get older, I fully intend on embracing the "blackness" of my work.

Until sometime next week, namaste and stay strong...

Love in the time of the Obamas:)

I have been in love a couple of times. So I can say that I have loved and I have been loved. I have also lost love only to have found it and lose it again. 
When it comes to love, I was always a late bloomer. I was always afraid to love, afraid to let someone love me. When I first got bit by the love bug, I didn't know how to handle it. When I found it again, I thought I had a handle on it. I thought that I knew what it was and what it involved. The love was still there but like the first time it didn't pan out. 
One of the reasons I feel I was such a late bloomer is because I was afraid to love or be loved. I just never felt like I found the right person or if that person was genuinely into me.  
Now in the present...right now in this moment...I understand love alot more.  I learned that it's not something that you should go out and hunt for. It's not something you can really control. It's a feeling which over times nurtures you and seeks you out. It's an emotion that Is guided by the heart and soul. 
I have known my girl for about a decade. We were always friends. Every now and then we would check on each other to see how the other one was doing. We would catch up and see where things were going in our respective lives. Somewhere along the way our love was building.  When we started talking on a regular basis I could feel it but didn't know how to act on it. While I believe that she felt it and really began to act on it. Last year while I was in Chicago, I made sure every chance I had I was talking to her and that every night I would either fall asleep on the phone with her or atleast said good night to her before I went to sleep. It was at this time that she told me she felt so much love and that she could tell that I loved her. 
I have gotten so used to her. She knows how to make me smile. She always say or tell me what I need to hear whether it be good or bad. I love the fact that I can show my true emotions around her and let her know how I really feel.  I love that she will take time out of her day to call me and see how I am doing or see if I am ok if she hasn't heard from her. I love how she will call me at work simply to say I love you. I love that I can make her smile. I love that I can her happy and I love how happy she makes me feel. Everyday I look forward to talking to her. She is the spark to my life. She is my future.  She is a large part of my life and she totally has my heart. I love her so much. 

Until sometime next week, namaste and stay strong...   

Raining in Baltimore by Counting Crows

Hey you guys I just wanted to share a song I just fell in love with not too long ago. So enjoy.

Until sometime next week, namaste and stay strong.

Clouds.

I have a weird fascination with clouds. I love drawing and painting clouds. Glorious clusters of clouds. The last time I was in the air, I took quite a few pictures of the clouds. It is a beautiful sight up in the clouds.

I remember as a kid looking up at the sky and just being amazed at the clouds. I never was one for; oh the cloud looks like a dog, or oh that cloud looks like the statue of liberty. No I admired them for what they were; CLOUDS.

Watching the clouds move in a sense remind me of life. They roam aimlessly with the wind. I wish to be like the clouds and just go with the wind. I would love to just go where the day takes me. In a way I think I am beginning to.

Until sometime next week, namaste and stay strong...

Pickles or something like that...

I somehow always manage to get caught up in the whole "what should I be doing" or "am I doing enough" debate in my head. I think of ways I can overcome this and try to act upon them but it always lead me back to the same debate. Alot of my stuff end up being not works of art but constant works in progress. I mean I jump gung-ho into them but then I jump gung-ho into the next thing. The more I think about it, that's not such a bad idea. It makes them more of, something like; an investigative journeys into my mind. Which sometimes can be quite complex. I wonder how many of my friends secretly think that I think I am a total genius...LOL. I am not that bad.

Sometimes I wonder what it would look like if I could leave my body and enter my mind. What would I see swirling about? What kind of tinkering would be going on? I know what you guys are thinking. What is he on about? What the hell are you rambling and ranting about man? Well my faithful few, you guys will just have to wait and see.

Until sometime next week, namaste and stay strong...

Side note: Isn't it funny that I say that every week, yet I always post on Saturdays...Or do I????