$5 Knoll chair

so how excited am i to discover that my five dollar thrift store chair is actually a $350 knoll chair!?!?!?!? the picture posted isnt mine. same exact seat style, but mine has wooden legs (which actually look a little nicer) and a different upholstery.

its hot again today. i cant really get much done around the house....can you believe i am still not settled? ugh. hopefully tomorrow will be cooler.

i started my new job this past week, so ive been pretty beat....hence the lack of updates. hopefully, things will start to get a little more regular soon.

Its hot. A little too hot to accomplish much today, as far as the house goes. Things are definitely coming together though. Its nice to finally get things settled. I really need to focus and get stuff done today though, because i have a sneaky suspicion that I'll be distracted for the next few days...... DANA'S COMING FOR A VISIT!!! I'm super excited! Dana is one of my bestest friends and its been several years since I've seen her, due to the fact that her life is much more exciting than mine and she lives in a new place every year or so.

Ill probably be updating my flickr at some point today.

a.

The work of Neil Bender. Super inspiring. There are only a handful of paintings on this site....but he's definately worth a google images search.

Today has been completely exhausting. Ive been working my butt off in the apartment, and its finally coming around... i would say, i am over half way done with my unpacking and decorating. I really didn't think that it would take me so long to get things settled, but then again, I've never had to unpack for two!
I spent a good part of the day finishing up the kitchen and go through stuff. I didn't take into consider how much storage we were losing by moving into an apartment from a four bedroom house. I wouldn't really refer to Justin and I as "pack-rats" but stuff has definitely accumulated over the past couple of years. I have a lot of trouble getting rid of clothes, but I managed to sort out two garbage bags of clothes to get rid of. One bag that is just trash and another to give away. Hopefully, Justin will be as proactive in his process of uncluttering.
I changed the template for my blog and will update the links section soon.
I won't be starting my new job for another week, which I'm really excited about. It's a huge relief that I'll have plenty of time to unpack and get settled before I get back to the daily grind.
Things are going so well right now. I'm feeling really positive and excited about being back.

a.

today is a completely exciting day....
First.... THE HEAT FINALLY BROKE!!! What a freaking relief! After five completely miserable days of, essentially, being annexed into one little room, i can finally venture out and experience my new home!
I started a flickr account to document my ongoing process of decorating my apartment.
flickrrrrr
hopefully that link works.... its been a little while since ive done any code. (ive become so rusty at blogging!)
So anyway, I should probably be working in my apartment today, but i cant help wanting to venture out and do a little thrifting. im SO addicted.
In other completely exciting news.... JUSTIN and I both got jobs yesterday. Everything is coming together so nicely. Ill be making $3/hour more than i was making at my old job!
So, needless to say, we both had a lot of celebrating to do.... and we did! we had our first night out on the town last night. we had such a great time. it was SO great hanging out with my other Justin. im so happy to be back....however, we were definately feeling the drinks/dehydration this morning....ugh. (nothing a little red bull and gatorade wont fix!)
alright. im going to motivate. check my flickr later for pics from my walk to the store this morning.

a.

IM BACK!
Geez, a lot of stuff has happened since Ive been gone. For one, I moved back to Richmond on Monday.... OH JOY! Im really glad to back to civilization. Justin is commuting for now, and I am temporarily unemployed, but Ive got a few things in the works.
The heat here has been absolutely disgusting. So much so, that I got up today at 7:30am in order to try and get some work done around the house. Justin dug out my camera last night, so Im going to take so before and after shots of my new place. Its really freaking cute.
In other news.... ive decided that I am completely abandoning the fine art community. No, that doesnt mean I wont be making art, but I will be focusing more on interior design and making paintings and objects that are more design related.
I just feel like design is real and tangible. Its purposeful and has a clear objective. Im sick of the over-intellectualized bs of the fine art world....

I could barely sleep last night because my mind was racing with tons of ideas for new goodies to make.

a.

heres a piece i just did last night. it went really fast and im really happy with it. looks like i have a show in the works for next month...hosted by escapist productions
more on that when i find out the info.

I took some snap shots today of a couple of new pieces. Ive actually been trying to paint and make art as much as possible lately. try to ignore the shadows. i took these out in my yard.

this is a detail of a drawing i started a little while back. this thing is pretty huge. once i get around to finishing up the little details ill post a full pic of it.

i cleaned my stu-stu-studio.

ive slowly aquired a bunch of pictures of cutesy japanese sculptures. this is an older yoshitomo nara piece.

chiho aoshima. im so jealous of her sculptures. they are the cutest.










Im pretty sure if justin and i had a love child, it would look something like this.










Im pretty sure justin and i will be the next bjork/barney wunder-couple

a day in the life of.....

so i guess im getting used to this whole "house-wife" gig. ive got a little routine going, which is kind of nice. After dropping justin off at the shop i come home and play on the internet for a couple hours....get inspired, check my mail, look for jobs, crap like that.....then i work on art. ive making making some really fun stuff lately, and it seems to take a lot of the stress off the actual process of "working". I cleaned out one of our smaller rooms, so now i have another little work space. this is important because i like to make a mess, and justin cant handle that.
i started on this plush tooth project, which is pretty fun and easy. i gave one to dj (my roomie) yesterday for his birthday, and now i have 5 orders to fill. thats pretty exciting. i can definately use the extra income, regardless of how insignificant it might be.

oh. so i managed to really stick my foot in my mouth the other day, it was pretty amazing.
justin and i stopped by quirk gallery up in richmond. that place is really amazing. by far the best gallery in the richmond area. they have a really cute little shop with a lot of cute, hip, fun stuff.....(including these little ghost salt and pepper shakers by marcel dzama)
anyway.....
so im in there, looking around, not breaking anything, and im buying a couple of "the drama" magazines, and the girls in there are talking about the wearable art 9 show thats coming up. so i of course bring up the fact that the year i was in it all the girls who won were naked....and that the judges must've been putses....."some ukrop guy, some radio dj..." and the owner says, "oh yeah, thats my husband" ......shit......
ha. the one gallery that i would be potentially interested in working with, and i have to go talk shit about the owners husband. awesome.
it was true though. one girl won that was literally in a bra and panties with coat hangers tied to her body. im sorry, but that is about as lame, literal, and uninventive as you can possibly be.
so yeah....i have a big mouth.

umm....i finally got my tattoo on my arm finished. once it heals completely ill post a picture or something. (ive been really bad about keeping up with that stuff lately.
im already itching for another one. i dont know what yet, and im really not trying to fill myself up at this point in time....i need to save skin for really amazing artists to work on.

i submitted work to 3 online mags yesterday. keep your fingers crossed....

....sigh..... i need to go change out of my jammies and get some work done.

xo.
a.

rest in peace sweet ginger fish.

There is some really exciting stuff going on at plant delights, an online catalog for rare and unusual plants.

My families oldest dog, Lizzie, passed away yesterday. RIP

its nice to be able to browse around the internet and find cute art.

jillian tamaki

why are asian people so much cooler than white people???

I was SO bored growing up in Maine. It wasnt until I surrounded myself with garbage, smog, and urban plight, that I realized how beautiful it is there.

My recent trip there was the first time I had returned home during the summer since I left 7 years ago....needless to say, I wasnt ready to return home after my 5 day retreat to "America's Vacationland".

On my third day there we drove down route one and stopped at this marine salvage place on our way to the beach. The beach was definately my favorite part of the trip. The water was completely unswimmable, but I had a blast climbing all over the rocks, photographing the tide pools, and searching for treasure.

I returned home super refreshed and inspired. Nature completely fascinates and amazes me. These tide pools created the most amazing abstract images. I cant wait to play with the textures in Photoshop.

alright, im pretty beat today, but i have about a thousand more pictures i want to upload, plus i want to post some pictures of my new homestead...(im finally starting to feel a little settled....)

ooohhh....my site is up. its nowhere near complete, but i finally splurged and have my own domain name and all that. im going to be working on getting it all up and finalized over the next couple weeks.

check it out and let me know what you think....
tiny palpitation

i seriously NEEEED one of these....artist designed USB devices...amAzing. check out the other designs at mimoco
also...be sure to stop by tower (or where ever) and pick up a copy of new art/design/culture mag hi fructose

Dr. Laura Schlessinger is a radio personality who
dispenses advice to people who call in to her radio
show. Recently, she said that, as an observant
Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination
according to Leviticus 18:22 and cannot be condoned
under any circumstance. The following is an open
letter to Dr. Laura penned by an east coast resident,
which was posted on the Internet. It's funny, as well
as informative:

Dear Dr. Laura:

Thank you for doing so much to educate people
regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from
your show, and try to share that knowledge with as
many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the
homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind
them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an
abomination. End of debate. I do need some advice from
you, however, regarding some of the other specific
laws and how to follow them:

When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know
it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The
problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not
pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as
sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what
do you think would be a fair price for her?

I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while
she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness -
Lev.15:19- 24. The problem is, how do I tell? I have
tried asking, but most women take offense.

Lev. 25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves,
both male and female, provided they are purchased from
neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this
applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you
clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

I have a neighbor who insists on working on the
Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put
to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself?

A friend of mine feels that even though eating
shellfish is an abomination - Lev. 11:10, it is a
lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree.
Can you settle this?

Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of
God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit
that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be
20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?

Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed,
including the hair around their temples, even though
this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should
they die?

I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a
dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play
football if I wear gloves?

My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev. 19:19 by
planting two different crops in the same field, as
does his wife by wearing garments made of two
different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He
also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really
necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the
whole town together to stone them? - Lev.24:10-16.
Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private
family affair like we do with people who sleep with
their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively, so I
am confident you can help. Thank you again for
reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging

i think religion and spirituality are great things, but i am sincerely disgusted by all the hatred that people derive from them, and this is a perfect example.
these religious fuck heads personally feel uncomfortable with homosexuality...(most likely because they want to hump a member of their own gender) and therefore they find some obscure bullshit line in the bible that can probably be interpreted a thousand ways. it just really upsets me. why cant we all just be good to eachother???

david cross is brilliant....
Okay, here's what I said in the RS interview: "He's good at what he does. It's a lot of anti-gay, racist humor -- which people like in America - all couched in 'I'm telling it like it is.' He's in the right place at the right time for that gee-shucks, proud-to-be-a-redneck, I'm-just-a-straight-shooter-multimillionaire-in-cutoff-flannel, selling-ring tones-act. That's where we are as a nation now. We're in a state of vague American values and anti-intellectual pride."
(an excerpt from his "open letter to larry the cable guy")
view the entire letter here

let me start off by saying that david lachapelle is hot shit. of course you already new that! his use of color makes my mouth water. it makes me want to jump in and run around in his pictures.

i read an interview with wilfrid wood on being hunted dot com and i really liked his silly sculptures.

umm...what else? im really into this site design sponge. it looks like justin and i may find ourselves co-habitating the next couple of months and im really excited to have my own place to decorate again.
everyone keep your fingers crossed that i get a new job sooooon!
xoxoxox

for lack of anything else to do, i thought id create a mass post of a bunch of links that youve probably already seen...oh well, im trying to kill time here.

fevolution

process recess the blog of one of my fav artists, james jean.
ernesto neto i have a super soft spot for soft sculpture, and i think this guy is amazing....his work reminds me of lee bul whos site is under reconstruction right now, but if you google her name you can find tons of images.

my interview with rva mag is up now, so check it out and let me know how you think it went. its the first time ive actually been interviewed, so i just tried to be honest, or whatever.
i talked to one of the people from teach in VA and faxed them over a copy of my unofficial transcript....hopefully, this time next year ill be teaching!
i have a job interview tomorrow....keep your fingers crossed.

alexander mcqueens new line is so effing ridiculous...i love it. see it here.

"People rely too heavily on CGI. Digital filmmaking should be used to do more edgy stuff, not to replace techniques that are already functioning well. I like to take a digital effect and push it to do something different." Michele Gondry in his interview with wired. found courtesy of pixel surgeon.
"I stopped my son from playing videogames, and he began to develop all kinds of creative skills. It's human to seek out the quickest reward, but if you get the reward immediately, you don't go anywhere else. You learn that the delayed reward is more rewarding." michele gondry.

okay, ive been really lazy about updating this week...so shoot me. i guess ive been doing other things, i dont even know what.
visit the rebel8 site and check out the new designs mike giant has been spitting out. also, go see my new boyfriends site demon baby. okay, so hes not really my new boyfriend, and ive actually never met him, but hatever, he's really funny. umm... in other news, i created a tiny palp myspace page...be my friend???
lately ive been really obsessed with naked juice its like a deliciously nutricious meal!
oh yeah, tomorrow i have a few pieces being shown at gallery5. i havent officially decided if im going to the opening or not...is that terrible? maybe im just not ready for socializing yet?
okay. i think thats it for a minute....

i updated my tattoos section of my IAM page. this one is "rufus the toofus," hes my most recent aquisition, and the first tattoo ive ever gotten that i actually drew myself. go me!

Im trying to get rid of this bike. there isnt anything wrong with it, i just never ride it and its taking up too much space, and i need the money to buy tattoo supplies.
Its a free agent "hellcat 3"
its on 24in rims and a bit bigger than normal trick bikes.
its really heavy and slow, but definately fun to ride.
it can all be your for one fiddie.

ell.oh.ell.aye. Lola

tiny palp loves John K

meditative.
intest.
ines.

ive been trying to work on "loosening up" so ive been doing these silly free association drawings.

"only boring people get bored!"

i drew this while waiting for my sushi take-out!

happy valentines day to meeeee!!! ( i got justin drunk and bugged him about what he got me!)

ooh la la. skwak skwak skwak!