Body Painting

For more than a couple of months, Awatiro and I have been thinking of doing something like this - a body painting session!  We're kinda bored and we wanted to entertain ourselves and we're lucky that we found people who are willing to contribute their time and services for free all for the sake of art!

I did most of the color splashing on Mina and Johnny with the help of Sharon.  I already had ideas in my head on what to paint but I had been under so much stress and I didn't have enough sleep, I messed up with the plans!  Well excuses aside, I was more than ready to give up but they cheered on... I didn't want to take them down with me that's why we pushed through until almost 9pm...

I know I could have done better if I didn't give in to my mood swings but hey, we were already there that day...There's no turning back!

To the four of you, thank you very much! 

*Photos are not to be used without permission from the blog author.

Kill Boredom With A Paintbrush

Here's some stuff squeezed out from boredom...

Beads

I have always loved beads.  I love them as accessories on the neck, wrists, or ankles.   I even love them on clothes too!  I love stringing beads and this latest project is courtesy of that DIY kit I found at Toy Kingdom.  I found "Egyptian" beads and I don't think they look Egyptian at all but I bought the set.  I added some of my own beads to create this neck thingy...

Aum

AUM
3x3 ft/ 36x36 in
Oil on Canvas

AUM is the most sacred symbol in Hindu dharma. Aum (OM) is the sound of the infinite.

Aum is said to be the essence of all mantras, the highest of all matras or divine word (shabda), Brahman (ultimate reality) itself. Aum is said to be the essence of the Vedas.

By sound and form, AUM symbolizes the infinite Brahman (ultimate reality) and the entire universe.

A stands for Creation

U stands for Preservation

M stands for Destruction or dissolution

This is representative of the Trinity of God in Hindu dharma (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva)

The three portions of AUM relate to the states of waking, dream and deep sleep and the three gunas (rajas, satva, tamas)

The three letters also indicates three planes of existence, heaven (swarga), earth (martya) and netherworld (patala)

All the words produced by the human vocal organ can be represented by AUM. A is produced by the throat, U & M by the lips

In the Vedas, AUM is the sound of the Sun, the sound of Light. It is the sound of assent (affirmation) and ascent (it has an upwards movement and uplifts the soul, as the sound of the divine eagle or falcon.

As the creation began, the divine, all-encompassing consciousness took the form of the first and original vibration manifesting as sound "AUM".

Aum provides a dualistic viewpoint. On one hand, it projects the mind beyond the immediate to what is abstract and inexpressible. On the other hand, it makes the absolute more tangible and comprehensive. It encompasses all potentialities and possibilities; it is everything that was, is, or can yet be. It is omnipotent and likewise remains undefined.

Source

PAGLANTAW: Visions of the Past and of the Future

PAGLANTAW
Visions of the Past and of the Future

"You cannot change the past or the future. Instead of changing the past and future, what you do is create them."

The past and the future cannot be changed, yet they can be created and re-created in various ways through a person’s imagination and they can be manifested in various forms whether through literature, the performing arts, or the visual arts.

Memories and dreams help a person create or re-create a distant past or a forthcoming future. With visual art, these visions can be exhibited through paintings and works of various media that is why Circulo de Arte and the Circulo de Arte Alumni have come together to look back on the past and look forward to the future through PAGLANTAW: Visions of the Past and of the Future, a collaborative group art exhibit.

A vision of the past: In 1995, students of Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan who were art enthusiasts gathered together and formed the Ateneo Art Society and looked forward to create an established art organization in the campus.

In 1996, the core group of students through the help of the organization moderator Mr. Pennessencio “Nonoy” Estarte, renamed the group into Circulo de Arte, and aimed to gather more art enthusiasts in Xavier University in order to share, develop, and exhibit various art ideas and techniques. From then on, generations of young artists and their art have graced the halls and walls of Xavier University and other establishments through Circulo de Arte group art exhibits.

Now celebrating its 14th year as a school-based art organization, Circulo de Arte looks forward to creating a flourishing future in art by creating visions that are never impossible to attain, always within reach through art and imagination.

We invite you to view PAGLANTAW and have the opportunity to see different visions of the past and of the future through colorful works by young artists.

Blood Head Sculpture Acquired By The National Portrait Gallery

Self, Marc Quinn (2006)

Click image to go to original story

Most museums that hold precious art in their premises protect their art by maintaining a temperature of around 70 degrees Fahrenheit in their halls. In the National Portrait Gallery in London, a colder climate is needed for its newest acquisition, a work known to be one of the most important works of the BritArt era.

The National Portrait Gallery has purchased a newly minted version of Marc Quinn’s Self sculpture; the artwork is the fourth reproduction of the British artist’s head made out of nine pints of his own frozen blood. Three previous versions of the art piece sit in private collections yet this one was acquired by the gallery in order to show to the public.

The Art Fund, a charity in the UK that is devoted to collecting important works for public collections contributed £100,000 to the £300,000 ($500,000) cost of the sculpture. It was already an arranged discounted price since the work was intended for the museum. The remainder of the funds used to purchase the blood head sculpture came from other nonprofit organizations.

The National Blood Service in the UK recommends that there should be a 16 week waiting period in between blood donations. If Quinn follows the necessary protocol, it takes him almost three years to collect the necessary amount of blood to make another version of the sculpture. If Quinn aspires to create another version, the next sculpture will be available for sale in 2011.

Deranged Woman Throws a Cup at the Mona Lisa

Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa

It's not the first time that the world's most recognizable portrait has suffered an attack from a viewer; in fact the Mona Lisa has had suffered a lot of woes from people who must be out of their minds.

I have read from a website just recently that the famous painting got attacked on 2 August 2009 -- a Russian woman hurled a ceramic cup at the Mona Lisa out of frustration from being denied French citizenship!

The Mona Lisa is a portrait known the world over for its enigmatic smile and for its artist, the great Leonardo da Vinci. A portrait of Francesco del Giocondo's wife, Lisa Gherardini, the Mona Lisa is also refered to as La Gioconda. The painting was created with great skill with Leonardo's own sfumato technique and brilliant artistry. The painting is owned by the Government of France that is why it is gracing its own wall at the world-famous Louvre Museum in Paris.

The woman visited the museum on a Sunday when the entrance to the museum is free and suddenly threw the cup out of frustration. The Mona Lisa went through that attack unharmed since it is covered in bulletproof glass. The Russian woman however, was arrested by the police and underwent psychiatric testing for her behavior. She was eventually released but the Louvre filed a legal complaint against her for the incident.

I have watched several documentaries about the Mona Lisa and it is deemed to be da Vinci's most favorite of his works because he always took it with him while traveling from one place to another and had it with him until his death.

My friend Odessa is a big fan of da Vinci and the Mona Lisa...I wonder how she'd react to this weird piece of news in the art world.

I was appalled when I first read the headline... Thank goodness for bulletproof glass I can still keep dreaming of seeing her someday!

A Car Made of Matches

Michael Arndt and his F1 Match Car

It was in February of 2008 when the news broke out about a man who created an F1 car from almost a million match sticks. I know this post may seem stale because it is nothing new but I love the handiwork of the guy that's why it's on my blog!

Anyway, Michael Arndt of Germany used 956,000 match sticks to make a Formula One car. It took him thousands of hours for more than six years to make such a masterpiece. He used 1,686 tubes of glue to put the sticks together in order to create the life-size F1 model. He spent a total of £4,500 on the said project.

Creativity and patience can make a person do great things.

Are you creative and patient enough to do great stuff?

Broken Wings

detail from Topsy-Turvy

ICARUS

In hope
I surrendered my wings
for mortality
for senses
for life

While he
so vain
wanted to escape
through
flight

With wax
he attached
the wings which were
once
mine

He flew
so near
to my
beloved friend
the sun

Unlucky
he was
the warmth
of my ally
melted the wax

My frail wings
dropped him
the mortal
Icarus
fell.

Nothing Is Real

Chimerical Harmony

These swirls of colors may seem vibrant and happy at first glance but in reality the vibrancy of the colors is chimerical---UNREAL... Not all things in this world are what they seem...

I made and sold this painting in February 2006. I don't know where it is right now but the buyer said she'll be sending it to her then newlywed daughter in the US. I wish the girl and her spouse a good marriage... something real... something not chimerical...

Lego Jesus

Bertel Thorvaldsen's Christus and images of the Lego Jesus

As a kid I have been fascinated with Lego even though I did not have my own set (we can't afford it and the product was not available in local stores yet) . The only chance I played with Lego was whenever I dropped by my cousin's house (and when she was IN THE MOOD to let me delve into my imagination). I have been fantasizing of owning my own set of blocks yet I lost interest. Now that I am earning my own dough, maybe I should give that childhood hangover/fixation a chance to resolve itself by buying my very own Lego... Hmmm...on my birthday perhaps! :D

Anyway, I found out earlier today that Bertel Thorvaldsen's Christus was copied and the copy is made of more or less 30,000 white Lego blocks donated by church-goers! The 5.8 ft statue was painstakingly created for more than a year and was unveiled yesterday, Easter Sunday in Oensta Gryta Church in Vaesteras, Sweden.

Jesus and Lego...Lego and Jesus... Great combo???

Sand and Art

I stumbled upon this video of Ilana Yahav's Sand Art. This is just one of the many clips she has on YouTube and on her site. Enjoy!

“To see a world in a grain of sand and a heaven in a wild flower, Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand and Eternity in an hour.” -William Blake

“If you must speak ill of another, do not speak it, write it in the sand near the water's edge" -Napoleon Hill

“Our best built certainties are but sand-houses and subject to damage from any wind of doubt that blows” - Mark Twain

“The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it.” - Niccolo Machiavelli

“Nothing is built on stone; all is built on sand, but we must build as if the sand were stone.” - Jorge Luis Borges

“Time is like a handful of sand- the tighter you grasp it, the faster it runs through your fingers.”

“Relationships-of all kinds-are like sand held in your hand. Held loosely, with an open hand, the sand remains where it is. The minute you close your hand and squeeze tightly to hold on, the sand trickles through your fingers. You may hold onto some of it, but most will be spilled. A relationship is like that. Held loosely, with respect and freedom for the other person, it is likely to remain intact. But hold too tightly, too possessively, and the relationship slips away and is lost.”

“Art is never finished, only abandoned.” - Leonardo da Vinci

“In art the hand can never execute anything higher than the heart can inspire.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known.” - Oscar Wilde

“There is one thing one has to have: either a soul that is cheerful by nature, or a soul made cheerful by work, love, art, and knowledge." - Friedrich Nietzsche

“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” - Thomas Merton

“To a true artist only that face is beautiful which, quite apart from its exterior, shines with the truth within the soul.” - Mahatma Gandhi

“I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.” - Vincent van Gogh

Color My World

I took this pic last night before I TRIED to draw something nice (it turned up ugly). The pencils are proof that I have been quite lazy with drawing and stuff. Would you believe that these darlings are in my possession for more or less four years??? They don't look like they have been used often.

These babies are actually Ian's "old stuff" and he sent them over so I can make use of them. Well I haven't!!! Somebody told me I should refresh my memory and tell my hands that there had been a time I knew how to draw...

Hmmm maybe I knew how...maybe I THOUGHT I knew how but actually I DON'T... Tsk tsk...

I quote one of my heroes: "Believe it or not, I can actually draw." -- Jean Michel Basquiat

Stuck

In The Middle Of Nowhere
3ft x 4ft
Oil on Canvas

I was browsing through one of my work mate's blogs and was surprised to find this cropped image as a subject of one of her posts. This thing here was one of my so-called products in art years ago. I made it in August 2003 and fixed it up in January 2005. It's not professional looking, it had been even called a Disney character to my dismay but hey, it was a product of the past and in a way I am proud of it even if it looks like shit to some people.

The woman in the painting is stuck in the middle of nowhere...in a desert where no one is around. She looks like she's praying for something or someone to take her away from that barren place. A savior perhaps? God are you there? Is there a God?

I was once stuck in a confusing situation that was why I made that painting. The time I fixed it almost a couple of years later, I was also stuck in a similar situation.

I am posting this right now because I think I am stuck again...

In a barren land where there is no vegetation, no sign of life...

In a situation where I am not certain if there is a way out without having to suffer the tough conditions and consequences...

In a dilemma whether I should keep my feet on the ground or fly like the dust in the wind...



In the middle of nowhere...that's where my soul is...

Señor Pablo

The great artist Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruíz y Picasso (whew! such a looong name) who was born on October 25, 1881 and died on April 8, 1973, was an Andalusian-Spanish painter, sculptor, and draftsman. He's best known for being one of the co-founders of the Cubist movement. Picasso is one of the revolutionary artists of the century having created a great impact in the art world and inspired a new generation of artists and enthusiasts.

Picasso already showed great skill as an artist at a young age and later on developed into a better artist. He studied art in Madrid and made his way to Paris which was then the art capital of Europe. He divided most of his time between Barcelona and Paris during the early part of the twentieth century.

Picasso's art has had several periods and most of his popular works have significant subjects either the people in his life or depictions of social and historic events. He was also known for having several lovers, a wife and four children.

Picasso's Guernica is considered to be one of his masterpieces and it is indeed a sight to behold!

Picasso lived his life in a way which was not the norm during his time. He had famous friends from various fields and he had Communist political views.

Picasso's last words were said to be: “Drink to me, drink to my health, you know I can’t drink any more.”

Picasso was one of the brilliant men who walked the earth. His art has inspired a lot of people to break the barriers of classicism and helped paved the way for modern art.

I love this guy and his art!

TRAPO (Sept 2003)

Sa una limpyo ka

Karon hugaw na…

Gipahid ka sa singot

Sa pangit

Nga

Dagway…

Gipahid

ka

sa

mga

kamot

nga

naghawid

ug

nagbuhat

ug

dautan…

Gitamakan ka

ug gipahid

sa

imo

ang mga

hugaw ug

baho nga

mga tiil…

Trapo limpyo man

unta ka…tungod sa tao

ikaw hugaw na…

Ang ako lang pangutana:

NGANO NAGPAGAMIT

KA?