These are a series of photographs I took with an inexpensive, disposable camera I kept in my bag for a few weeks one summer, so that I could have snapshots of my neighborhood in Buenos Aires.  Something about the throw away aspect of the camera, the way the colors were processed and the borders  I intentionally keep on the pictures reminded me of postcards… I juxtaposed them onto the background of torn out pages from a 1960s book about the neighborhoods of BsAs and colorized some of them for a soft, continuous effect.  I wanted to show how little the city seems to have changed since then (in architecture, the elegant way some men and women still dress, the gracious trees) and how remarkable some of the similarities are between then and now. You can spot my boys in a few of the shots, and I did sneak in a polaroid for the first spread…

this is me, as drawn by wally. a while ago i was invited to rama’s portrait party, but we can arrive fashionably late since there is a little summer hiatus. i’m pretty sure that wally is bringing the milk and so i’m bringing some oreos. (yup, there’s even oreos in uruguay!)

and this is wally, as drawn sketched by me. i just realized we were all squinting that day.

☆ no one ever dreamed about the sideshow | colored pencils & paper

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nyc photographer jennifer causey recently asked her blog readers the question:

“i really want to produce more art for art’s sake. it is so hard when i am also trying to make a living. it is a tough balance. any advice or things that work for you?”

recently i’ve found that working in a different medium just for myself is working incredibly well for me. as soon as i divided the painting/drawing from the jewelry making (though they enrich each other) i began to feel so liberated.

you take out the purpose, detach from the audience, and what you are left with is exercising a reliance on your own skill. just for the pleasure of doing so.

the catch about art is that it is all personal, so it always must begin with what is meaningful for you before you let it go to the relationship of those who receive it. honing your sense of art before the spectators decide what is worthy about it helps confidence tremendously. and speaking from miles of experience, i know that confidence can be a fragile thing for us artists.

working without the pressure to show anyone comes with a side order of emotional satisfaction as well. ah, brings me back to the stale condition of the sitting in art classes where i was never truly productive without my own music in my headphones. teachers and fellow students glancing over my shoulder. assignments. a time limit. bah! but as soon as i was in my own room at home, or outside lying on a blanket in the grass, in the sunshine…then i could create without any restraints. for hours. and it allowed for a more honest communication to develop in my making. (and what do you know? i felt ready to share it!)

p.s. if it’s marketing you struggle with, look no further than this guy. if he can create a demand for garbage from the streets of new york city, successfully, then you should have no problemo making a living from your art….right? smile.

thank you for supporting and encouraging so many of us lisa, inspiration seems to go full circle sometimes.

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drawing for me is a constant transmission in my life. a communication of putting me in such a clear place of meaning. focus. being in touch. if i go without it for a few days, i forget how much i miss (need) the signal.

what’s your frequency? have you got it in you?

want to hear something i like about uruguay? hear a short glimpse here.

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some link love:

pinhole van a project fueled by photography + road trips, found via veronica (her husband is half the creative team behind the project)

cosas minimas blanca hace arte tan preciosa! everything blanca makes is precious! and reading blogs in spanish are so helpful…good practice. i’m beginning to understand spanish the most through reading, which is really exciting for me.

i am so pumped for laura’s 101 faces to develop. botticelli is one of my favorite painters and so i literally gasped when i saw her first portrait. i’ve been lucky enough to meet laura in person, she just lights up when she talks about art and you can get that same feeling from her blog.

liz tran a painter from seattle, link via mom, who thinks we have similar styles, thanks mom!

i know i have linked and bookmarked and favorite*d svane’s photos before, but hey, i just really like looking at her work. so full of talent. her images always transport me to a introspective place, and that’s what i love about photography. especially when you want to live inside each photo.

happiness 101

inkfinger is really producing some genius designs with their new letterpress. my favorite is sans serif.

she traced the narrow blue line with her finger…it twisted crazily across the paper, as random as a fingerprint. it was going to take longer than she had planned. she smiled and folded the map back up. {seen somewhere…a car ad i think? anyway, it’s fitting. the she is me.}

he brings me the sun (& i provide the rain} we’re a smashing team. well, the evening has come. i’m off to window shop, maybe find something pretty to wear and scrumptious to eat. we’ll hold hands and stay out late.

this is one of my latest pendants, she’s a sunset muse. currently there is just one are two lovely customers in line for a custom design, if you would like one, just give me a hollar! i love the challenge of fitting the teensy details into the design and even better is making you all pretty!

i’m so in love with this image by artist melanie moore (found via filtered magazine.) some of my favorites from her site are stranded, exude & taken by hidden places. so magical! they all look like they could be paintings. i love it when photography pushes that limit on reality and plays with your eyes in that realm. lots of other brilliant contributions in issue no. 9, next time i plan to submit.

and yay for the wonderful new kiddley by claire & co! this new site idea couldn’t have come with better timing, max is so ready for preschool! we’re really excited to try out some potato people, but i think we’ll have to wait on letting him get behind our digital camera. since the last one had to be replaced because he decided to give it a “bubble bath.”