Better Not Cry..........Better Not Pout.......

The circus, or maybe the carnival is coming to town. I love the things, animals etc. that could be of the circus or the carnival, almost as much as I love the characters and lore of Halloween. There is such artistic freedom to create any manner of circus or carnival you choose to imagine. I think that the vagabond life style also appeals to me too. I often have thoughts of being a gypsy.

There is a language known only to circus and carnival insiders. It is called their "lingo". What if we all had our own "lingo". I guess in a way we do...........by speaking through our art, as well as with words. All the same, I have many books filled with nonsensical words, words once used, but not used anymore, imaginary words, imaginary places, and lingo. I am especially fond of a book called The Word Museum. I sometimes think that I can just touch a book, and that I will know everything that is contained inside. You can do this too, in a similar fashion by going to a place, or an event and by just stepping inside, or maybe passing through quickly............ say for instance an art, or craft show, or a place where there are found objects/a garage sale, junk store.........and by raising your hand at the entrance, or maybe quickly walking through, you can survey the surroundings, and without doing more than that you will have an awareness of all of what you might find there. This instant knowledge can tell you to go in and investigate further, or not to. Sometimes the senses reach farther than we realize. I think you can will the knowledge of things to be. I once made myself invisible in a room full of people. I played a whole game of imaginary tennis with a willing partner, and no one saw us. Being invisible has only happened once, but I will forever try to recreate the experience.

The tangents are rampant.......so back to the circus and carnival...........a few pictures for now, and a few words, and lingo later..........

Breaking Free

When it comes to expressing myself artistically, and otherwise.............

I always think about the above pictures I took of some unfinished sculptures by Michelangelo............they say all that needs to be said about breaking free...

Tag..........I love it!

Wow........I love games.......Thank You Sylvia for thinking of me. I won't even be a bad sport ...........because here it would be quite noticeable............no sneaking Monopoly property under the table. Ok six unimportant things about myself.........hmmmmm there are so many unimportant things it's hard to choose.

1. I am obsessed with keeping my floor clean........it all stems from when I was a preteen girl and I used to visit the house of one of the High School thugs who lived near me on Cherry Lane........his name was Art and I knew his grandmother with whom he lived. I used to watch her sweep the floor and she used to push around great mounds of trash with a broom on a daily basis. I have been forever scared that my floor might look that way if I don't keep it swept. I remember Art's last name, but I will take it to my dying grave to protect his identity.

2. When I was young I used to have many usual pets. My father worked for the Department of Fish and Game........so we had to watch over, take into custody etc. a variety of animals. I had a pet porcupine, a deer, a bobcat, a skunk, and a chipmunk to name a few. We also used to have a freezer full of evidence................my mother would go out to find something for dinner and there might be a frozen deer embryo in there among the hot dogs..........no pun intended there, although there could be.

3. I like the color green and the number 6..........although I have no idea why. I really don't own anything green to speak of, and the number 6 has never helped me in any way...........as a lucky number.

4. I have literally thousands of books and magazines........you might say I am obsessed with them. I want to read all the time, I try to read all the time, but it seems the only place, or time I get any reading done is on the treadmill at the gym, which is about 20 minutes a day, when I make it to the gym. It took me about a year to read The Courtesan and then I left it at the gym one day. To my horror they announced over the loudspeaker. Will the person who is reading The Courtesan please come to the front desk and get your book, you might need it! Every one's a comedian.

5. This refers to the statement above.........you can see that not being able to read issue is really bothering me. But here's the situation............If any of you have read The Teachings of Don Juan, then you will know what I am talking about. I just cannot find my spot to read. Like Don Juan's protege...........I keep circling my house trying to find my exact spot where I should read.

6. I think that I have the power to will myself parking spots............and I am usually able to do so. ....after following people in the lot. I think that I have the ability to take excess energy from the minds of creative people while they sleep......that's why I work late at night and into the early morning. I have premonitions, but I never tell about them until they have happened, so no one ever believes me.

TAG RULES
1.Link back to the person that tagged you.
2.Post these rules on your blog.
3.Share six unimportant things about yourself.
4.Tag six people at the end of your entry.So Tag "You're It!".....here are my (three) participants;
hopefully. I am new to blogging, and am still acquiring links.

http://melissatereck.typepad.com/melissa_d_tereck_papierma/
http://sabiiwabii.blogspot.com/
http://edgarandedgar.typepad.com/my_weblog/

What I Am To Bee I Am Now Becoming

So what does that mean? Wellllllll......it means I am never what I am for very long. I used to worry about not having an artistic identity as a sculpture, a painter, a papier mache artist, and so on......I have finally made a decision to be whatever I am at the moment, and if so ..........for only the moment. I am happy without having an identity............for that matter I guess having no artistic identity is an identity after all...........you can't seem to get away from one. I like to work in many different artistic mediums. I bore easily, and have resigned myself to the fact that most of the time I actually like the challenge of the creative process more than the completed work. So, that means using many different mediums, many different ways..............to end up with whatever happens. I don't like be limited to working in one medium, or in one style, or on one project at a time. I think the best work usually comes by accident, .............just like the best relationships do. You have no preconceived notions, or expectations, so what occurs is pure..........concidence..........back to my reoccurring raw vision theme of purity in the creation of art. Everyone struggles with their look.............but not having one is a look too! A look that is subject to change at any moment. As the picture above is titled.........What Is It Like to Bee Me?............not in any one spot for very long! I would love to have someone share where they have been.

The Artist Has No Shoes

If you were to come into my home in some ways you would never know I lived there. There is something to be said about keeping some secrets about yourself. Let everyone have a few preconceived notions about what is going on inside artistically. A most cherished compliment was paid to me recently, when someone who has been collecting my work, and I finally met said........."Oh, you don't look anything like how I pictured you in my mind." Secretly I thought YESSSSSSSSS........., I am not just the sum and parts of what I create. There is some mystery about what goes on in my head that may not be revealed all at once. And so the same goes for my house...........there is not a blatant presence there of my work....plus, let's be honest, I either give it to others, or sell much of what I make. It is sort of like the cobbler who has no shoes. There is however, that one occasional piece that I cannot quite part with.......the one that may reveal a little quickly too much soul. Here is a most recent keeper ..........Tater Tots Realization That There Is No More Three Ring Circus. This one will remain with me at least a little longer, maybe even hang on a wall. I wonder what your "shoe" is that manages to bear a bit of your soul?

Thinking About Kevin

I don't know if this happens to any of you.......but sometimes the people that acquire my little figures invent a life for them other than what should have been their destiny. Case in point........I once created a figure that became Kevin the fox. A frequent buyer of my work........a very flamboyant man who always wore a long, black, flowing trench coat, and was a refuse yard scavenger, which by the way I respect, grabbed Kevin from the table at the show with one fell swoop. He loved the name Kevin.......so at least Kevin did not suffer an identity crisis. He put him in his coat pocket with Kevin's head and front legs sticking out. He said until his dying day Kevin would remain there as his life long friend. Nothing surprises me, because I usually draw as my buyer base, individuals that tend to be a little left of center, which of course I would not have any other way.........anyway the point being that Kevin actually became his side kick.......his wing man, his confidant, his partner in crime, etc. Throughout the years had me create a wardrobe (costumes) for Kevin and home accessories........which were limited since he lived in a pocket. He and Kevin both kept journals of their adventures, and I received monthly updates on their exploits. I wish I could say that this is not a common occurrence, but not so. I have many people that keep me abreast of the personal activities of their figurative sculptures. Anyone else.........have similar experiences with their work that has found a new home? These little Kitty Ditty Bags pictured here have found new homes too..........and I can only wonder if I will get a late night call, about one of them putting one of their nine lives in jeopardy, sleepwalking, or a call to bail them out kitty jail.........they do like to hang out in the alley late at night.

THERE IS SOMETHING NAGGING AT MY HEAD

I never create art for a specific purpose...........there is usually a reason involved, however.....AND it's the need to create. I prefer to always have WHATEVER happen when I start a piece. I cannot control what happens. I don't want to control what happens, so the art usually takes on a life of its own. For years I have had an open debate with anyone who cares to debate, on who constitutes an artist creating art in its purist form, and with the purist of intentions. What I mean is who creates art only for arts sake. The artists who do this, in my opinion, are art brut, or sometimes they are called outsider artists. The people who do this art can be the insane, institutionalized, imprisoned, or the reclusive. Most art brut artists are visionaries and their art demonstrates little influence from the mainstream art world. I wish I had total freedom in creation, but old knowledge from artistic instruction, somewhere back in time, sometimes rears its head. Total abandonment in art only happens to me when I preceive a misstep in something I have done............this mistake to me is freedom. I have found the magazine RAW VISION to be an inspiration in my quest for artistic purity. Here is their website....... http://www.rawvision.com/outsiderart/whatisoa.html I guess if I was a true "Art Brut" artist, or I might become one, you might not ever see any of my work again!

It Had to Happen Sooner or Later!

My passion for the spectacle of Halloween art had to appear. Bat Boy could hardly contain himself any longer. I mean it is bad enough to have to have to change appearances throughout the year, but when he heard about the blog ............it was all over, or out I should say. I love love love Halloween and everything about it. I have found throughout the years that people have very definite ideas about Halloween they either love it, or they hate it. There are not too many people that take the middle ground. I think people's past experiences with the holiday, or perhaps sometimes their religious upbringing has influenced their feelings on the subject. As an artist, however, how could you not like the holiday. You have such a variety of subjects to create and you can take them in any direction you wish. Their are no religious icons for Halloween. I think that has a lot to do with the freedom you have to create with no limitations. People, I have found, do not like you to make alterations to their holiday icons whether they be religious, or not as in the subject of Santa. You will be up against some hard times if you mess with the image of Santa........believe me I know. So, be prepared for the "Halloween" in me to pop out unexpectedly from time to time. I know that the secret society of Halloween lovers would recognize me if they saw me, because I always try wear hidden, or not something of the holiday. Hell........O

from Bat Boy!

Who Knows When the Next Ship Will Dock

Opps.............forgot one...........he told me in a husky voice as he ran off the ship........."I have come to America for a good life. There was no way out in the old country..........I had a dead end job...........I was Rocco the hitman with my constant companion Stella. Now, I am hitting my marks onstage every night as a man of song and dance. I am timeless...........the Man of the Hour."

Roma, the Foundlings, and the Brides

Roma, a fresh little tomato from Italy, just stepped off the boat at Ellis Island carrying her chick sidekick, and a map of the Island. Next came the Foundlings carrying all their worldly possessions. Finally, the "board" "male" order brides from Sweden lumbered off the ship......... bound for the midwest.