Art Therapy (for me)

This semester I went to an art therapist regularly for a few reasons... 1) I was having a really hard time with a lot of things relating to school, so I needed some support; and 2) I am an art therapist so I'd really like to know what it would be like to be a client.

Because I'm an artist I didn't use my time in sessions to make artwork. I used the sessions to process the work I made at home or in other classes/situation that I felt related to what was going on. I also decided that I would use the time in one of my classes this past semester to make art for my therapy sessions - in this class we were supposed to outline a project at the beginning of the semester and work on it consistently during class. I decided to explore myself through art making.

July 1 was my last day because we are moving this week, so we put up all of my artwork on the wall and talked about it. I didn't put it up in chronological order, but rather the order that seemed to make sense visually.



The pieces at the bottom are print-outs of large scribbles I did at my internship (many of which I featured here).

I think I will show some of the paintings from this exercise throughout the month, especially if I can't think of anything else to write about!

Being a client was an interesting and educational experience for me. We took a narrative approach, by that I mean I identified characters I play in different situations and really analyzed them (instead of analyzing me). I learned what some of these characters feel like when I'm playing them, when/why they show up, and how they affect others. Well, mostly anyway. It didn't feel like it was enough time to really get into it! But you can see the characters showing up in the paintings and interacting with each other, which is really cool.

I'm definitely glad I had that opportunity and I can't wait until I actually get to see clients again...

July 3

I have to quickly post before it's midnight. Shabbat ends so late that it's hard to stay on top of things!

Yesterday I went on a Segway tour with SportyJew (JewishGuy's sister, my sister-in-law). I have been wanting to do one of these for a very long time. Segways seem so awesome and - guess what - they are!

This is a photo of all of the Segways lined up when we had our 10 minute break (it was a 2 hour tour).



I guess you could say, in a way, I saved the tour for the very end of my stay in Chicago... Leaving on Monday!!

Button Flowers

For our wedding, we had felt and button flowers commissioned from Princess Lasertron (aka Megan Hunt). I am so happy that we did this - not only did we get beautiful, unique additions to every bouquet and centerpiece, not only did we support an independent artist, but also we have fun little reminders of our wedding around the house in little vases. I definitely recommend having some non-fresh flowers in weddings because you can save them or give them to guests / bridesmaids as presents.






Other things we were able to save from the wedding: kippot with our names in them, and a copy of the booklets we made ourselves that served both as place cards and helped explain the ceremony to our guests. There's a lot that goes on in a very short period of time in a Jewish wedding ceremony (well, it's short if you leave the explanation to the booklet and just go-go-go!).




We also had bentchers made for our wedding (of course). They are little prayer books that have the blessing for before and after meals as well as some songs. We have a ton of these left over, actually! But it's great because now when we have people over for meals we have plenty to go around.



I love that a lot of the things we saved from the wedding show up in our regular, every-day lives. :)



(Photo Credit: Amy Raab Photography - our fabulous wedding photographer!)

The Art Room

I wrote about how moving makes you take inventory and how I am sad over the loss of our books, among other things (though it's an important purge). Recently, we also gave away our couches and coffee table, as well as JewishGuy's office furniture. We're giving JewishGuy's sister our dining room furniture to hold on to for an indefinite amount of time. We will arrive in New York with... what?

Having my own art room has provided me with the space to collect a large number of art supplies, especially over the course of the last two years. I've always had this cart:

(This picture is from 2005, when Lilly was a baby, but already a budding assistant)

This cart contained basically all of my art supplies until grad school, when my art room became a new frontier for all kinds of media I hadn't much explored before: screenprinting, fabric dying, small found-objects sculptures, fiber art (crochet, embroidery, felt sculptures, etc). I began making stationary and small books last summer, and had a whole shelf dedicated to that inventory, plus what I collected from others. Before this art room, my art cart mostly had supplies for linoleum cut relief printing, collaging, and painting (acrylic). These supplies, too, exploded - even before the new art room - as I bought more magazines than I could handle, bought new linoleum blocks, and collected a massive amount of acrylic paint for the mural project that inspired this blog.

When we moved to Chicago I had the art cart, a folder of paper and prints, and maybe a box of miscellaneous supplies. Packing up the art room now took at least 8 boxes, some of them very large.

Our apartment in New York isn't very large. It could sort of be considered as being a two bedroom, but one of those bedrooms is very narrow and long, which makes it practically impossible to use as a bedroom. The last time we had a two bedroom apartment (in Houston), the spare room became JewishGuy's office, where I kept my art supplies and a small table to sometimes make art on. Now the second room is going to be my art room, with a small table for JewishGuy to put his laptop on when he's at home.

I'm going to buy a new, fold-up drafting table. I've already imagined how I can set up the space for optimal use of the drafting table while still having a place for my computer - I have a desktop now (old school!) so it actually needs a permanent place to sit. I imagined where the plants would go and where I would keep my art supplies so they are within easy reach of my seat.

I'm so excited!



(This month's theme is "saved.")

NaBloPoMo

I think it might be time again for me to dive into another NaBloPoMo! It might be challenging because we will be moving next week, but I feel like it's a shame that the last one I did was March 2008 - two years ago! It was such a crazy month, too - I interviewed for grad schools, got into two schools, GOT ENGAGED, decided to move to Chicago, and so much more...

They haven't announced what July's theme will be, but I'm already getting excited. NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) started with the challenge of blogging every day for one month. It was so successful that they decided to make a new challenge every month so you can choose your challenge month! The inspiration for NaBloPoMo comes from NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), in which writers are challenged to write an entire novel during the month of November. I once began NaNoWriMo and became totally overwhelmed, but NaBloPoMo is more within my reach - though still very challenging! Especially for me, being Shomer Shabbat, I will have to make sure to post late Saturday night.

Who's with me?!

Classic March 2008 NaBloPoMo Lists (the theme for that month), in list form, of course.

• "Donate for Purim" - a list of items JewishGuy, HillelLady and I donated to Texas Children's Hospital Art in Medicine program
  
  
• "Top Remarks Re: Art" - a list of some of the things I hear people say (to me) about art, especially modern art.
  
  
• "Favorite Media" - my favorite art materials!
  
  
• "Things I Capture on Camera" - some favorite subjects :)
  
  
  
  
  

Failed NaBloPoMo again - by 1 entry!

September was a bust!  I was supposed to do 30 posts in 30 days, and I did 29.  FAIL.  Just kidding, it was close, I'm going to say it counts.

This month's theme is voting.  I'm going to stay out of the political arena.  I don't think I want to promise 31 posts this month because of all the holidays and I'm going out of town, but I like the theme.  How about I will STRIVE for 31 posts this month, many of which will be progress pictures of artwork and the like.  I seem to be getting more visitors recently, so maybe some of you want to participate in a poll or two or thirty-one.

What is your favorite cutting tool?
	teeth
	x-acto knife
	scissors
	car keys
pollcode.com free polls

Ha! #1

In Houston there is a store called "Texas Junk Supply" that advertises as having over 1800 "pre-owned" cowboy boots.

Of course, I bought a pair, and they were only $35:

If you are ever in Houston, check out this store.  It is definitely worth it as a unique Houstonian experience.  Also, the boots are pretty awesome.  If you know anything about cowboy boots you know how expensive they are, but many of these boots are in great condition and are quite cheap.  If you're willing to walk in another man's shoes [I am hilarious], you should get a pair for your very own.

PS: I thoroughly cleaned and disinfected the boots before wearing.

NaBloPoMo: September

OK, for real, I am going to try September.  This month's theme is "Ha!" as in, jokes, or things that go "ha!"  So we'll see what I do with that.

NaBloPoMo: July

OK I am thinking of tackling another month!  July's theme is "FOOD," which is something I love to talk about, take pictures of, and eat.  So I think I can handle it, even with moving and going to a wedding and starting grad school.  What do you think?

I Made It! (List #6)

Phew, that was hard.  I had to backdate a couple of posts just because life got crazy, but this has been one insane month!  I am glad I was able to keep up with all the posting!

And now, for one last list:

Reasons why NaBloPoMo was really hard this month:

1. I went to New York and Maryland and had limited access to the internet for a couple of days.
2. Posting every day is hard to do!  I kept having writer's block and ended up having posts that were simply photos with little or no text.
3. Interesting lists are hard to come up with.  I could list all kinds of things, like what are my next 10 songs on my playlist, or what shows I watch on Tuesdays.  But I wanted something to be interesting and related to the blog, which brings me to #4
4. Not only is posting every day hard to do, but making a post related to art every day is hard to do.  It's good because it kept me thinking about arty things every day, not just on days when I went to class or to the studio.

OK So thus ends NaBloPoMo March: Lists.  Maybe I will do it again another month, but probably not April!

Interview #3/List #6: New York, revisted

Yesterday I had an interview at one of my very most top schools. It is a little nerve-wracking to have your admission to a university be based on 20 minutes. The Chicago interview was a whole day, so by the time I got to my individual interview after the first 6(ish) hours of being there, I was pretty relaxed and it went well.

I'm not saying the interview in New York didn't go well, I just think I was a little more nervous because it was really just a short period, and very very intense.

I went with my friend GeckoMan. We had lunch beforehand, where I drank lots of tea to be awake as I haven't slept much in a week for various reasons. GeckoMan waited in the lobby while I was interrogated. Basically, three people sat and asked me questions in rapid succession for twenty minutes. I think I was pretty good at answering them and handled myself well. Then, they set me up in a room to complete a short writing assignment - I had fifteen minutes to explain how I would react to a certain circumstance that could come up on the job. I answered it in probably five or six sentences, and then spent the next ten minutes rereading it trying to figure out if I missed anything. Nope. I was pretty much direct and to the point, so I let it be and handed it in.

I should find out by mid-April, which is good because I need to let the Chicago school know by the beginning of May. So far, still no word from the third New York school I applied to, and the Boston school keeps saying I don't have my prerequisites even though I am working on them right now. We'll see what happens with that.

A few differences between this interview and the other NY interview:

1. They remembered me from December! Even the administrative person remembered me, and I barely talked to her! They didn't remember that I had been there in December, but they recognized me and knew that I had already come in. That's why I went in for the information session, so I am glad that trip was worth it. Remember at the other interview, she had no idea who I was, even though I had talked to her for a while in December.

2. They took me in on time, and while I was waiting gave me updates as to whether or not they would be on time. At the other interview, I was taken in over thirty minutes late, with no status updates. At one point I was afraid she had forgotten, and the receptionist basically did not pay any attention to me - just let me sit out there like an idiot, wondering what was going on!

3. They didn't seem to have an attitude of, you are person #198237012 that we have seen, and we are bored of interviews and probably don't like you much anyway. They seemed interested in me, seemed to have read most of my application (even though they focused mostly on my volunteering in the hospital and not as much on the years of experience with people). At the other school, she basically treated me like she was doing me a favor by interviewing me, like giving me oooone last chance to change her mind. Also, she made me tell her about my slides on the spot - I had no idea that I would have to talk about my work, which really caught me off guard.

4. Even though they had a very interrogative style, they asked a wide variety of questions and didn't focus mostly on why I feel I should go to their school - ie, didn't make me sit there and tell them how great they are. They also didn't keep asking me why I chose to do things, they just asked me about my experience. At the other interview, I had questions like, "So, why art therapy?" "Why our school?" "Why art therapy at our school?" (I'm not even joking)

5. I didn't leave with a sense of utter rejection and loser-y-ness. I left feeling kind of jittery, and although I was unsure of the impression I left on the committee I was pretty positive. After the other interview, I wanted to cry. I also had to go straight to the airport. I basically left the building and immediately called JewishGuy to rant at him and feel hopeless about ever getting into school.

More on my adventures with GeckoMan in my next entry, where I talk about St. Patrick's day in NYC!

List #5: Arty Produce

Like I said, I'm in NY, so here's another list/short post. I happen to be helping my aunt and uncle make salads and various other foods for the rest of the week, so that what made me think of today's topic...

Produce I think is Arty or That I Like to Use in Art Projects (in no particular order, and I won't even say this is remotely a comprehensive list!)

1. Red onions. These are really fun if you cut them the right way, red and white stripey-ness abounds.

2. Avocados. Basically I love avocados in any situation. I also like to draw them.

3. Bananas. These are kind of fun because they are a range of yellows and browns. I especially like the peels because they can make all kinds of interesting shapes.

4. Berries. I like to draw lots of little circles anyway, so this would be nice in a still life or as some kind of abstract accent to another drawing.

5. Bell peppers. Maybe you can see a trend where the foods I like to eat are also the foods I like to use in my art. I like bell peppers because they have a really fun shape and when you cut them open they look kind of interesting (and pretty challenging). I usually use them in monochromatic drawings or prints because they kind of lend themselves to that.

6. Peanuts. I haven't actually used these in any art projects but I bet it would be really fun! They're all pitted and fun-ly shaped, plus if you break up the shells you could have something interesting to work with for more abstract pieces. I don't know if nuts count as produce, but I'm going to pretend that they do.

OK it's actually time for dinner so I had better get running. Yummy vegetarian chili!

List #4: Top Remarks Re: Art

I'm in New York right now so I don't have much time to post, so here's a quick list of the Top remarks I get regarding art from "Non-Art People" and my reactions to them in no particular order (whether I express these feelings to the people who say these things is another story).

1) "I don't get it." This is usually when we're at a show or an exhibit or in a museum looking at something relatively modern. I usually feel like this statement is a kind of invitation for me, with all my wisdom and learning, to explain the deep meaning behind whatever it is we're looking at. My response is, Like I do? Modern art has this great thing about it where you have to know more than just what it looks like to understand it. This means I don't "get" most modern art. I only "get" the things I've read about, or if what I'm looking at seems to relate to things I've learned. And, to be honest, there is a good chance that a lot of stuff doesn't have any real meaning behind it, which is why you'll only find it hanging in coffee shops or McDonald's. So don't ask me, I don't know! :)

2) "An art major, huh? What are you going to do with that?" I got this when I was in college, but now that I tell people I am applying for grad school, I am more likely to get the helpful "warnings" about lack of funding for art programs. My response, usually in my head, is, Not everyone can be a doctor. I mean, what's the difference between an Art degree and a History degree? Or any other degree that doesn't obviously lead to some kind of job (like Education, Journalism, Pre-med/law, etc). Why does education have to be a means to an end? And, PS, art students sometimes have an advantage that history students don't, in the sense that many of us are also trained to write and argue a point (through art history/art theory classes), but on top of that we are trained in design, so there are diverse options other than teaching if you want to stay "true" to your major. Nothing against history students, but I know a few and they're all struggling to find jobs that are related to their degree that aren't necessarily in schools.

3) "I'm just no good at art." Sometimes I will respond to this by laughing it off, but other times (especially when working with kids), I will respond, You may just surprise yourself. I taught a class where I took a bunch of random students who had to make a book from scratch in 6 weeks. They found texts, did artwork, bound the book themselves - you name it, they did it. They had no formal training and the books were amazing. A lot of people either haven't been trained how to draw or have no natural talent, but there are so many things you can do and still call it "art," without having to represent something as you see it.

4) "What's the big deal? I can make something just like this!" This is also usually in response to some modern art. My response is usually twofold, although not usually out loud, Maybe you could, but you didn't, and, One of the great things about modern art is that it isn't all about what's on the surface. It's great and it's frustrating. If you go to a show where you are given no explanation, I think it's a natural gut reaction to look at something kind of ugly or really simple and wonder how that person ended up with a show and you still haven't gotten anywhere. So the next time you stand next to a giant canvas that just happens to be all painted one shade of blue, wonder why it was made, not how. ;)

5) "That looks really cool." Assuming this is (hopefully) a response to something I've made, I say, Thank you!

So there you have it... a short post from me today, from New York. Coming soon, St. Patrick's Day in NYC experience, plus interview #3 which just happens to be at my NUMBER ONE TOP SCHOOL!

List #3: Favorite Media

Okay it's lack of interesting things to update day, so here's LIST NUMBER THREE: MY FAVORITE MEDIA. I'm going to specify "Visual Arts" for this list.

1. Pen and paper. Yes, even more so than printmaking and photography, I love doodling with a pen and paper. I like making intricate drawings where you can't make mistakes, and if a line doesn't go where you want you have to, as Tim Gunn would say, "make it work." I've been making crazy drawings with just pen and paper since I was in high school, and before that I would do similar drawings with just pencil and paper (I stopped using pencils because I kept smudging them with my hand). When I was in elementary school I would spend hours creating very intricate mazes. Now I make intricate doodles. Good times.

2. Digital photography. I love photography in general. I got my first camera when I was 7, a 144mm hot pink camera, with which I took extremely artsy photos of my brother. Over and over. He was my only subject for a very long time - he was very compliant as well ... always posing and doing whatever I told him to do like a good little brother :) I got my first digital camera for my 18th birthday and went nuts. I love taking pictures and it's even better when you don't have to worry about wasting film and you can fix it up later.

3. Misc printmaking media. Specifically, I love linoleum cuts. They are so fun to make, very calming to sit and carve and carve. I also love that you make more than one so I can give them away and still keep one for myself. I like experimenting with different kinds of printmaking media, but often I am daunted by the toxic qualities that so many posses (although there are non-toxic ways of doing everything, I don't know them that well).

4. Acrylic paints. I love painting. I love how you can't mess up, you can just keep working on it and it will look good. And if it doesn't look good, you can just paint over it! I love acrylics because they dry quickly and mix with other things well. They're very versatile paints, I think, and can do some pretty cool things. I also like that they're relatively non-toxic, so you don't have to worry about ventilation or mineral spirits or anything like that.

5. Oil pastels. These are basically just oversized crayons. They are really fun to play with. Not only do they mix and smear like really nice quality crayons, but you can do fun things with them like in combination with water colors, or you can paint with them using paint thinner. Good times. They are also SUPER cheap - I bought a nice, large set of oil pastels for $9!

6. Markers. Markers are super fun, probably as fun as oil pastels but not as easy to smear or mix. I usually like them in conjunction with pen drawings, although not always. I really like brightly colors markers, especially pink, yellow and orange, contrasting with a bright blue. For a while I was doing a lot of marker drawings in my sketchbook as sketches for multi-color prints.

7. Magazine pictures and other collage-making materials. I love collaging. One thing I've discovered recently is collaging as a color Xerox. I cut out a bunch of interesting pictures and then color copy them in interesting positions. This way you can have the cohesiveness of a single image copied throughout a series. I did a bunch of these and framed them and now they are hanging up in our living room. When I was an undergrad I actually started a collage right on the wall of my apartment, taping pictures up there. That was fun for a few minutes.

8. Polaroid cameras. For a while I was really into Polaroids. I still like them but I am not as into it as I was last year. I learned how to do Polaroid transfers, which are neat but hard to do and somewhat toxic. (A Polaroid transfer is when you take the image from a polaroid picture and stick it onto another surface. It's pretty cool - the image really just slides off of the paper.) I've heard that Polaroid is going to stop making film after 2009, so that's sad.

9. Paper (and scissors). I first tried paper-cutting when I was at camp when I was in middle school. It's actually really hard and looks really nice. I haven't done much paper cutting since then, although I planned this really elaborate one with a pomegranate and a quote from the Song of Solomon (cheesy Judaica, ahhh), but I never just sit down and do it. However, I did do some small paper cuts when I was in college to satisfy some of my 2D Elementals projects, and I think I can safely say that it's one of my favorite media even though I don't use it much. :)

10. Chalk pastels. I do like chalk pastels a lot but when I'm going to do a project with them I really have to allot quite a bit of time to set up and clean up, as they are super, duper messy (more messy than paint, I'd say). Plus you have to fix everything you do so it won't rub off after. Even though there are a lot of negative points to using chalk pastels, they do create beautiful images and are really fun to mix together. I made a series of giant flower chalk pastel drawings which are pretty cool. If only I could find them and frame them!

OK that's my list! I finished just in time to still get the time stamp for today... I kind of worked on this post on and off for a few hours, so ... phew!

List #2: Cutest Boys

I'm watching Southpark right now and tonight's episode is directly related to NaBloPoMo. The girls make lists, and the list in question is the Cutest Boys list. It's arranged in cutest to ugliest.

1. Clyde
2. Token
3. Stan
4. Bradley
5. Jason
6. Leroy
7. Kenny
8. Tweek
9. Kevin
10. Jimmy
11. Butters
12. Craig
13. Timmy
14. Francis
15. Cartman
16. Kyle

Kyle is really upset because he is the ugliest, so he starts hanging out with the "ugly" kids. The funniest ugly kid is this kid Jamal (pronounced "yamal"), who makes me laugh every time they show him on TV:
I don't know why he's so funny, but something about him is so hilarious. Maybe I knew someone like him when I was in elementary school.

Anyway, Kyle gets his ex-girlfriend Wendy to help him figure out how he ended up on the bottom of the list, and it turns out it was a conspiracy to make Clyde the top of the list because his dad owns a shoe store in the mall. The girls thought if he was rated the cutest, they could justify dating him and he would woo them all by buying them free shoes.

Sorry this list was unrelated to art or anything I post about in my blog, but it's funny and related to the month's assignment.

List #1: Things I Capture on Camera

My top ten most common subjects (other than me and my friends, since I won't post pictures of us on this blog) in no particular order:

1. Food, especially food that I make or eat at home.


Thanksgiving Dinner

2. Funny signs.


Christmas Rejects


3. Funny random things


Giant Purple Godzilla Speaks Spanish


4. My cat being cute


Sleeping Like a Human

5. Trees


Construction Backdrop

6. Interesting people


Yellow Mime

7. Sunsets


Sunset in the Harbor

8. Interesting/artsy scenes without people


View in Rhode Island

9. Animals


Mommy and Baby

10. Nature-y things that look cool


In the Caves

---

How was that for my first NaBloPoMo list?

(I should add that none of these photos are color-corrected - this is just how they looked when I downloaded them from the camera)

NaBloPoMo

I'm going to try it on this blog. It will be a challenge, I have lots of blogs and this is the most specialized one, but I think this is the one that will be the best for me to try to write in every day. I'm going to keep it related to my blog theme, however, just to really keep to the challenge.

This month's theme is "lists." To me, this means that every day I can't think of a real post or don't have any new art to show you, I will post a list.

Today's entry is just me talking about how I'm going to do NaBloPoMo. I know, I'm cheating. Look forward to new entries every day! (And this will be hard, because I will be in Maryland and New York this month)