Art, Creativity, and Value

Good day, Blogger world! 

Just this past week, someone stole 2 large, black and white photoprints from the Assumption Life Art Gallery in Moncton, or more specifically from Aleksandr "Sasha" Onyshchenko, the artist whose photos said gallery was exhibiting.  More info here: 

http://kravetzphotographics.blogspot.ca/2013/10/photo-art-work-was-stolen-in-broad-day.html

One wonders at the motivations of this thief, whether profit or kleptomania.  Knowing how hard it can be to sell art that ISN'T stolen, it's hard to say, though these particular photos really are breathtaking.  Either way, there is a very bitter irony about the whole thing from an artist's perspective. 

Art isn't one of those fields you get into because you want to get rich.  It's considered impractical, and in fact it's one of those areas of study that people refer to when speaking of college students with unrealistic expectations - and yet it is one of those things that gets taken for granted every day. 

A great deal of creativity goes into the world we live in.  One might consider advertising, to start out.  You might think we don't pay for the images and other creative elements of advertising, but they are the reason that sites like Youtube and Facebook are free for us to use.

It occurs to me that one reason the arts tend to be undervalued is that creative people never really stop making creative works.  We might make less, and it might be of lesser quality, but to actually stop creating is something we are profoundly unwilling to do.  Whether it's paintings, photographs, or Gifs the content always appears one way or another. 

Knowing this makes me grateful to all the grant programs and people who support the arts out there.  Because people do realize that, even though you can't eat a painting or cure AIDS with a photograph, art and creative works are things we need in our lives. 

'Till next time, Blogger world! 

Back to Jobsearchland

Good Day Blogger world!

Once again I have been an absentee. To rectify that I've come back with nothing particularly new to tell you. The job hunt continues. I have recently been handed a link to another potential job. Walk with me as I explore this new lead.

Seasonal, but well paid. Buzz words "fast-paced" and "dynamic" in their usual use of describing the work place. Looks as if I qualify. Haven't got much extra to boast, but I qualify. Candidates will be required to complete a security screening process. Should be fun. Seems they're looking for the business-minded, leadership-oriented type of candidate, and I'm more than willing to fake it 'till I make it...or don't. I will also be required to pass pre-employment tests. Looking forward to those too. Really. I'll be required to present a character reference letter. Can't remember the last (or possibly even the first) time I was asked for one of those. I'm assuming that's in the case of an interview.

Let the games begin.

"This job is not a permanent full time job. We cannot guarantee when you will work or how often you will work. This job is for on-call casual employment. Are you still interested?"

I pretty much have to be. Full-time work is the unicorn of today's job market.

"Do you have the ability to lift up to 22.7 kgs (50 lbs) and carry up to 15.9 kgs (35 lbs)?"

Clearly I need to start hitting the weights, if only to figure out how much I am currently capable of lifting.

"You have been moved to two different area's and you are close to the end of your shift and you are asked to move again. What would you do?"

I have no idea what this would entail or how it would effect what I'm doing or when I leave. The truth of the matter, in any case, is that I'll probably be going along with it.

"What is the main reason you applied to this position?"

Mortgage money. Probably should have chosen something better sounding that "Prefer not to say", but it was an option....

These are just a few of the questions I must consider.  All told, it's not too arduous.  Inevitably, I am creating yet another profile. This calls for another resume. I remove my most recent stint in retail from my work history with a certain satisfaction, as though it had never been there at all.  Only the good stuff belongs on this page.

"My primary career interest". Is not on the list. Perhaps they mean at this particular place. Employers do have a way of implying that the only candidates they want to see are the ones that want the job they're offering more than anything in the world. Optional question, thank goodness.

Alright, t'is done. Another foray into jobsearchland completed.

I have not grown to like this process any better, but I'll keep at it until I land something permanent or manage to get on my feet some other way. This will be my motivation - once I'm on my feet I won't have to fill out job applications anymore ^_^.

In other news, I've been entering the weekly contests on Spoonflower.  Haven't won anything yet, but it's worth it to have some new designs in my library. Here's the one I'm entering for the next contest:



As I write this, I also have an entry in the current contest, which will probably close tomorrow: 

Feel free to go over to Spoonflower and vote! Always worth checking out! :)

I'll end tonight with a Facebook haiku.  I believe I've posted these here before. The process was invented by my Mom, where you take statuses and pieces of statuses posted by people on your Facebook feed and put them together to form a haiku. It can be very entertaining. ^_^

I watched the debate
New season, 1st episode
It is bad enough

'Till next time, Blogger world!

Review: The Mount Saint Vincent University Art Gallery

Good Day Blogger world!

On Monday I posted a review of an exhibit at MSVU, and it occurs to me that the gallery itself would be worthy of further description.   It's a nice little space, just off the main entrance of the Seaton building, but it tends to escape notice.  That's a shame, because boring content is a rarity in this venue.

It's not a big gallery - technically just one room - but the gymnasium-height ceiling allows for some very unique exhibitions.  Most recently, artist-in-residence Steve Higgens constructed a very large wooden structure devised of clashing architectural elements reminiscent of his charcoal drawings.  This took up most of the lower gallery, which made for an amazing view from the mezannine.  There's been art of all sizes in this space.  The one that sticks out in my memory is the life-sized latex lighthouse by Kim Mornga, which hung diagonally from the ceiling in front of the Mezzanine to the floor a the opposite end of the gallery http://www.canadianart.ca/see-it/2010/11/11/kim_morgan/.  I think this openness also speaks to the kind of art that has been housed here over the years.

Part of the MSVU Art Gallery's mandate is to give representation to women artists and their work, as well as local artists and artisans, often in the early stages of their careers.  I love that about the place, and I feel it's brought in some really interesting and unique content.  I've made reference to the exhibit by Christine Redfern that included the actual drawn cartoon panels of "Who is Ana Mendieta", the graphic novel, specifically in this post:  http://sketchesandswatches.blogspot.ca/2013/05/book-review-who-is-ana-mendieta.html).  Also included in this exhibit was a film that showed one of Mendieta's art works, a flaming armature silhouette, possibly a goddess symbol, burning on a continuous loop.  Sharing the gallery, and the exhibit, with these, was a curtained-off projecting of a woman in a sheet, seeming to be asleep and shifting around in charcoal dust.  The animation would speed up and slow down as the viewers' movements were detected by motion sensors.  This installation by Philomne Longpre (titled "Xia"), and the "Who is Ana Mendieta" display, were shown as a joint exhibit.  I find them both to be good examples of work focused on women's issues, one on the struggles of decades past, and the other on the lingering struggles that still permeate culture, society, and psychological conditioning.  http://philox.net/xiasystem/

The gallery does not shy way from controversial subjects or potentially offensive subject matter.  The exhibit "Oriental Ornamental" featured walls full of giant silk flowers, each featuring what appeared to be human genitalia, complete with human hair.  These were also made of fabric, and perhaps this went some way toward disguising their intended nature, as there were people who actually took each other's graduation day pictures in front of them.  Or perhaps this was completely deliberate.  I like to think that MSVU attracts people with a healthy sense of humour, or at least irony.  This exhibit also featured a giant wig, on which visitors could pin origami flowers with over-sexualized images of oriental women printed on them.  In the upper gallery, there was an entire faux opium den, put together by another artist and assembled entirely from "oriental" style decor such as one might find at wicker emporium and other decidedly inauthentic sources.  I found this exhibit to be exceptionally interesting.  The one thing I found really off-putting was the background soundtrack in the opium den, which included 5 minutes of screaming every 15 minutes.  A key to the intent of the work, but it did begin to grate after a while.  The subject of this joint exhibit was to do with ethnic stereotyping, specifically of Oriental people.  Plenty of food for thought to be had.

Other exhibits have brought large colour photos of railway systems across North America, a forest of umbrellas attached to toy accordions that played themselves on loop, gigantic canvasses painted with poured acrylic, a pile of 1 million pennies, and numerous other wonders of contemporary art. The work often takes some explaining, but that's what makes it interesting.  Definitely worth a visit, or two, or more if you get the chance.

Website: 
http://msvuart.ca/index.php?menid=01&mtyp=3
Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/MSVU-Art-Gallery/177537538924695

Exhibit Review - Arthur Lismer: Halifax Harbour at War Time

Good Day, Blogger world! 

I've decided to devote some time to actual art review on this blog.  I often have the opportunity to see good art, and it's an experience worth sharing. 

Today I'd like to talk about a small collection of paintings and lithographs by Arthur Lismer currently on display at the Mount Saint Vincent University Art Gallery.  This is a slightly unusual exhibit for this particular gallery.  The kind of work on display in this venue tends to be very contemporary, by artists who are still midway through their careers, or at least still alive.  This work has more history behind it, not to mention the name of one of the Group of 7 members.  It has a lot of local relevance too, which is part of what MSVU looks for.  As indicated in the name, all the work in this exhibit depicts scenes of Halifax Harbour during World War I, in the form of lithographs and paintings which Arthur Lismer was commissioned by the Canadian War Records to create.  All told, this is a pretty special show for the gallery. 

Seascape and landscape painting are one of those genres that gets taken for granted in this era.  We think of them as something nice to have on one's wall - tasteful, unobtrusive, and unexciting.  Even though we can usually appreciate the work that goes into such a thing, it's hard to get fired up about them, no matter what the historical significance.  At first glance, the paintngs included in this exhibit are calm, even tranquil-looking.  The lithographs are somewhat more exciting, perhaps because they have more images of people, or perhaps because of the raw sketchiness of the medium.  The paintings may hold one's interest too on second glance.  Once we get past the instantaneous impression of the collection of shapes and colours that says "seascape", it's worth it to look at the paint itself. 

The quality of mark-making is really spontaneous, careless even.  In the long panoramic painting "View From Chebucto Head", the strokes are clearly visible.  You can see canvas between the strokes in some spots, but the paint goes on thick, forming glossy ridges where the bristles drew it along.  This particular painting reminds me of something I heard second/third-hand about Lismer and his practice:  that he would collection garbage and detritus on the way to his studio, and then ask his studio assistant "Landscape or seascape?".  He would then arrange his findings in some kind of formation and paint said land or seascape from that arrangement.  Not sure that this is an established truth, but looking at that one painting I can imagine him doing that.  Great idea, really. 

When looking at these paintings, it's interesting to look at the painting technique and try to imagine what the artist was thinking at the time.  The technical competence is clear, even thought the technique does not imply that minute detail was the be-all-end-all for this artist.  This wasn't created as an image rendered in paint - it is a painting.  The subject matter is stayed, though impressive - the technique is exciting. 

This exhibit is up until August 11th, so if you have a chance, I recommend checking it out.  Thanks for reading.  Later Blogger world!  :)

The Self-Conscious Electron and the Creative Process

Good day Blogger world!

On a not completely unrelated note to the previous blog, I'd like to talk a little bit about quantum physics.  This isn't the first time this has come up - you may remember me touching on the subject while reviewing the book "Is There Life After Death?", which had a surprising amount of quantum physics to it.  Recently I came across a  Youtube video that explains one of the quintessential quantum physics experiments, and also one of its most tantalizing mysteries.



The "Double Slit Experiment" presents two mysteries:  that of how an electron can act like both a wave and a particle, and that of how the act of observing said electron actually changes how they act in the experiment.  I find this fascinating, and inspiring, on a number of levels.  

To start off, this makes for an apt metaphor for many situations in life.  You've heard that a watched pot never boils.  Not literally, of course, but it certainly feels that way at first.  This one (probably) has more to do with the way our mind perceives time (which is something else that becomes more interesting through the lens of quantum physics).  Still, the fact that a watched electron will not act like a wave (though the actions of the unobserved electron indicate it can), draws some interesting parallels.

As often happens, I find myself thinking of art making.  In the last post I talked about how a spontaneous drawing can end up being a really good piece of art, in a different way than the piece that took months to plan and execute.  In the same way that direct observation scares the little electron into acting like a true particle, sometimes it's as though thorough planning scares off that special something about spontaneous art.  This isn't taking anything away from a really well-planned and well-worked piece of art.  I'm just saying it's different.

I don't mind being observed when I'm making art, but I will sometimes keep ideas to myself until I've had a chance to get the real-world work started.  In the past, when I've admitted one of these ideas to, say, a teacher, it almost feels like premature contact with open air kills it instantly.  Without anything solid to back it up, it shrivels and dies under scrutiny, and no amount of explaining on my part can save it.

How interesting to observe something like an electron acting...self-conscious.  We all know it's more difficult to perform while being hyper-scrutinized - that we tend to change things, consciously or sub-consciously when being observed.  But what is this power of observation that it changes the behavior of an electron?  Alternatively, what is the power of the electron that it can react to the act of being measured, as if psychically aware?  Even we as human beings don't always know when we're being observed.  What tips off the electron?  What is this connection that is being made?!

The real-world implications of this are mind-boggling.  This is just one example of proof that there's way more going on in our world than we know.  As both a metaphor and an experiment, it makes one want to observe the world around us with new attention, and at the same time to stop over-thinking and start living with a new openness to the unknown.

Facebook, Surrealism, and Collaboration

Good Day, Blogger world!

Another week begins.  I just finished writing a haiku.  Not just any haiku, and not just for me.  Some time ago, my mother started piecing together haikus, one each day, from her friends' Facebook statuses.  There is a surprising amount of material for this, especially when she just takes pieces of statuses and not the whole thing.  Her friends seem to love it, and so do I :).  This week I'm actually standing in for her in capacity of Facebook haiku poet.  Here is what I came up with tonight:

The perfect revenge

practically writes itself! 

sweet or unsweetened

(To see more of her work, you can follow her on twitter at @PeggyMackinnon.  To see more of mine, come visit me at @art_rat.  :)

I started writing some of my own, just sporadically.  I've been posting them on Facebook and twitter, and I'm noticing my twitter follower numbers picking up of late.  People have even specifically said that they like the haikus.  It's cool to see this kind of thing actually catching on.  

This makes me think of something that came my way on Facebook a while ago - a meme that one of my friends tagged me for:  

1 - Go to "wikipedia." Hit “random”
or click this link.
The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - Go to "Random quotations"
or click this link.
The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

3 - Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click this link.
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 - Use photoshop or similar to put it all together.

5 - Post it with this text in the "caption" and TAG the friends you want to join in.

This was what I came up with.  The original picture can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/geoff_robson/3294959868/

I feel like this kind of thing must have been at least partially inspired by the surrealists' "Exquisite Corpse" game.  This was originally a word game:  Each player (minimum 3) writes down a definite or indefinite article as well as an adjective, conceals it, and passes their paper to the player beside them.  That player then writes a noun, conceals it, and then passes the paper on to the next person, who writes a verb.  The next person proceeds with another definite or indefinite article and adjective, and the next person another noun.  This completes a sentence that nobody has read yet, which could be anything, and usually ends up being pretty amusing.  The game was actually named for one such sentence:  "The exquisite corpse shall drink the new wine".  

Most of us have been introduced to this kind of thing as a drawing game.  That was true for me, at least, and I've had a lot of fun with it.  This is part of what I love about surrealism - finding the creative potential in chaos.  Chance elements, not chosen by the creator/artist/player, acting as fertile ground for the creation of something unique, strange, and potentially challenging.  One wonders what kind of work we'd have seen from Salvador Dali, had he lived in this day and age, with a resource like the internet as his disposal.  No doubt he and his fellow surrealists had a hand in shaping this era, setting the stage for new ways of thinking and being creative.  

What's interesting is how purely original the results of these games can be, even though they are collaborative works.  Of course, there is the element of chance that gives it true spontaneity.  As an artist, one can spend many agonizing hours coming up with "original" work, straining for that final result that is just as often achieved by letting go and allowing whatever happens to happen.  Speaking from my own experience, a lot of my best work has come about that way.  I've even illustrated some of my Mom's Facebook haikus, and been pretty happy with the results:  

Nothing is really, truly original - as Carl Sagan once said, to make an apple pie from scratch, one must first invent the universe.   We don't create our own materials, but we do decide what we create with them.  There is, of course, plenty to be said for collaboration.  The internet age has made it so much easier to find inspiration, resources, and even collaborators.  As long as we can respect each other's abilities and remain open-minded, the possibilities are endless.  

If I may leave you with a couple more links, here is a Deviantart group dedicated to the creation of Exquisite Corpse works. All of these works are collaborations by different artists, and the results are consistently mindblowing! http://theexquisitecorpse.deviantart.com/gallery/

Also, if you like the look of my Facebook haiku illustrations, you may want to check out this Cafepress shop, a collaboration of 3 creative minds, including mine and Mom's: http://www.cafepress.com/threepartharmony

Thanks so much for reading.  Later, Blogger world!  :)

Warning! References to Lady Parts!

Good Day, Blogger World!

As I started my day, I saw a link to this article in Bust Magazine go by on Facebook.  It featured this Kotex advertisment,



followed by this stand-up comic, making a really good point through a comedic skit:



Rather than making me angry, this thing brightened up my day.  That's what I love about comedy, that it can be used to raise consciousness without raising negativity.  Seriously (and this was pointed out in the second video) wasn't it Kotex that was supposedly trying to get us to be less self-conscious with our lady parts?  With their pretty pads and "Why are tampons such a big deal" video?

I don't want to make Kotex out to be the enemy.  But neither am I buying that they're as progressive as they say.  Making more money tends to trump the social issues angle when it comes to business.  What troubles me about this product is that it seems to be edging in the direction of maxi pads become required women's wear for everyday life, not just that special time each month.  Creating a problem and then solving it - one of my least favorite tricks of marketing.  What's next - pads for everywhere else we sweat?  Even outside the women's issues angle, think of all the pantyliners that end up in landfills already!  Overall, I don't believe a lot of thinking went into this product.  But at least it's good for a laugh.  :P

I had some fun with panty liners back in art school.  Here's what I came up with:


Lily - the maxi pad dress by ~Eseopia on deviantART


Lightdays Party Dress by ~Eseopia on deviantART

One was to address the deeper cultural issues around women's menstruation, while the other was more a celebration of the freedom we've come to enjoy compared to generations past.  I made both of these dresses with pads from the dollar store.  It was fun, and they've actually had quite a bit of attention over the years.  It sparks an interesting dialogue, at least.  I thought of making another one with the fancy new Kotex pads, though I've lacked the funds to take on big projects lately.  Now I'm thinking I might hold off for different reasons....

Anyway, this has been the most interesting part of my morning so far.  Until next time, blogger world!  :)

Meme Day!

Good day Blogger world! 

I'm gong to try to do one meme day a week here on Sketches and Swatches :P.  Here is the latest one from Steampunk on facebook:

Lady or Lord + First Name of the Last Video Game Character you played + Name of the last tea you drank + Favorite weapon = your Steampunk name

So today I'm writing to you as Lady Bubbles Chocolate Monkey Scimitar :P.

Steampunk is awesome.  I have come to believe this.  I'm not even totally sure I can explain it fully.  Maybe it's the sci-fi aspect with Victorian aesthetics.  I'm definitely a fan of Steampunk fashion, as well as books and tea (2 other important things in the Steampunk world).  Needless to say, the movement has inspired some beautiful artwork.  I've attempted to create some of my own in the same spirit:


Woman With Octopus Fan by ~Eseopia on deviantART


Inkblot Steampunk Gentleman by ~Eseopia on deviantART


Ink Scratch Steampunk Gentleman With Gears by ~Eseopia on deviantART

I DO NOT consider myself a Steampunk expert.  I can name (and have even seen) some Steampunk movies, such as Wild Wild West, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and the Sherlock Holmes movies (I gather that these count).  The fact that I'm still discovering Steampunk makes it extra fun for me, especially now that there are so many ways to explore the movement.  Conventions, communities, artwork...and yes, even internet memes :P.

BTW, I should also include this drawing, which is actually half of a drawing mirrored:


Ink Scratch Octopus 1 by ~Eseopia on deviantART

Octopi are a part of Steampunk culture too, which I'm told has to do with Jules Verne.  Whatever the reason, I'm for it ^_^.

All of these drawings are done in pen (brush pen for "Inkblot Steampunk Gentleman") on paper.  Lady Bubbles was of course coloured in Photoshop.  I look forward to doing more work on this theme.

This seems like a good place to end this post right now.  Thanks for reading, and have a good day Blogger world!

Following Your Dreams

365 day project, # 31:


February 23rd, 2013:  Aang and Sketches by ~Eseopia on deviantART

Now to business.

Good Day Blogger world!

Following your dreams.  A lot of people - including reputable minds - are for this.  But lots of people see a problem.  Most of the time, it's to do with sacrificing the practical for your "dream".  I would like to weigh on this.

I'm sure you know the practical and the dream need not be in opposition - for some lucky people, they will be one and the same.  But I would go further to say that what is practical may be an integral part of achieving this dream.  We know they don't have to be opposed, but we do tend to see them in opposition, just as part of a narrative that we've come to accept "life".  Consider this - suppose follow your dream doesn't mean giving up that job at Tim Hortons to live your dream, but working overtime at Tim Hortons to save up the money to go to the school that will lead to the achievement of your dream?  Or working at Tim's while taking those classes that will ultimately lead to the achievement of your dream?  Or just working there long enough to save up the money to buy that plane ticket that will help you achieve your dream?  Perhaps what the Follow Your Dream-ers are saying, is that it's worth the extra work to achieve your dreams.  After all, it's entirely possible to work at Tim Hortons for the rest of your life and be "comfortable".

Having said that, I'd like to look at another thing we take for granted - that to achieve anything in life, you must suffer, sacrificing your physical and mental health for whatever that prize is at the end of the line.  There will be sacrifice, and pain, but are these the things that get you there?  Probably not.  Commitment would seem to be the thing that gets us there.  There is no law of nature that says your level of suffering is directly related to your level of success.  Also, while hard work is a very safe bet, it's perfectly legal for a lucky break to be part of your success story.  It's OK if you find a different way of getting there than most people.  Chances are you'll have to struggle somewhere along the line, so you might as well save your strength for that.  But staying committed seems like the best strategy.  

Finally, there are no rules as to what your dream has to be.  If you can actually be comfortable and happy working at Tim Hortons, there is no rule against it.  I find my dreams and goals hard to define sometimes.  I love making art - nothing will keep me from doing that.  I'd LIKE for it to be what I make my living on, because then I could spend more time doing it.  But I'll never not make art, so that's one thing I have.  At the same time, I know that's not all I want to do.  I won't digress to far on this - I'd just like to say there doesn't have to be just one way to achieve one's dream, and dreams don't have to take just one form.

Those are my thoughts on the subject.  If you're (understandably) a little uncertain about my expertise, you may want to hear what someone with some serious achievements to his name has to say:



'Till next time, Blogger world :)!

Book Review: "Is There Life After Death?" by Anthony Peake

Book review # 2! I don't plan on always doing 2 books in a row, but I had reasons for doing so this time. Hope you enjoy!


I finished reading this book about 2 years ago, but it continues to be one of my favorites. I had originally picked it up off the sale table out of passing curiosity, thinking I knew what I'd find: anecdotes and ancient belief systems, but very little scientific proof regarding the afterlife (or lack thereof). What I found was a turning point in my understanding of quantum physics (which, I admit, had been next to nothing before this), accompanied by fascinating accounts of scientific investigation on this and related subjects. Anecdotes and information about various belief systems also make up the picture, and it is a very detailed picture in the end.


The range of subjects covered by this book is broad and varied, reaching to various parts of the world, history, and science. Unlike what I might have expected, this book doesn't shy away from conclusions or possibilities that may seem less than appealing to the reader. This is not a self-help or motivational book - it is a scientific study. That said, don't be surprised if thoughts of the Matrix come to mind, and you find yourself more interested in movies like Groundhog Day and Vanilla Sky. This author does a good job of keeping the reader's attention on some very complicated subject matter. You won't be a quantum physicist by the end of this, but you may have a better understanding of the scientific conclusions to be drawn on the subject.


While one goes in thinking to learn more about what comes after the end of life, this book has a lot to tell us about life itself, in terms of the nature of reality. You may find yourself thinking of everything a little bit differently, including time, matter, and your own psyche. The fact that the author is explaining things that the human brain does not have the capacity to perceive leads to that exciting feeling that you are learning something you're not supposed to know, which is definitely part of the overall appeal of this book.


I won't give away anything more, because the book does save its ultimate conclusion for the end. I will say that the eventual answer is very much theoretical - the best answer that science can come up with at the moment, but as plausible a conclusion as I've come across anywhere. This, of course, is only one part of what I got out of this book, and hopefully it will be as fascinating a read for you as it was for me.


February 22nd, 2013:  Birthday Effects... by ~Eseopia on deviantART


February 21th, 2013:  Beach Birthday Sunset by ~Eseopia on deviantART


February 20th, 2013:  Blackout at the Beach... by ~Eseopia on deviantART

Book Review: Who is Ana Mendieta?

After giving it some thought, I'd like to make a little room in this blog for book reviews.  I have a fair number of books in my possession, many of which I am quite fond of.  This week, I'd like to introduce you to a recent favorite of mine - a graphic novel titled "Who is Ana Mendieta", the work of Christine Redfern and Caro Caron.

I was lucky enough, not only to see the original artwork for this graphic novel, but to have the chance to study it up close over a matter of about two months.  During this time, the panels were on display in the art gallery at which I work.  They told a compelling story in a cartoon style not quite like anything I'd seen before - elastic and raw, with so much punch and emotion I would almost forget it was all in black and white.  I found this format to be really effective at communicating the passionate and unapologetic nature of the story, and its heroine.

The novel itself reads as a biography of Ana Mendieta.  It focuses mostly on her years and work as an artist in the 70s and 80s, working in sculpture, film, and most notably her "earth-body" works.  It also focuses on her role in the feminist movement of the day, and the overall climate of that time in history.  While the biographical nature of the work, and the depiction of the influences surrounding Mendieta's life, make it seem at first like a snapshot of the time in which she lived, there is a story arc, which makes itself most clear toward the end.

A word of warning - this is a "graphic" novel in more than one sense.  Nudity and violence are not shied away from in the telling of this story, being as they are a significant part of it.  It is a very honest depiction, and the greater part of it is very beautiful.  Not gratuitous, but beautiful, brutal, and honest.  One of the big accomplishments of this novel, I think, is that there is so much focus on the beauty of Mendieta's life, such that it stays in the mind as strongly as the hardships and tragedy of it.

On either side of this story are longer pieces of text:  A forward by Lucy R. Lippard, and then an end part titled "Blind Spot - a note to readers".  At the very end is a newspaper-layout of articles giving more information on certain details of the story, illustrated with thumbnail cartoons from the main part of the novel.  Each of these sections holds interest, fleshing out the main narrative with smaller ones, using different formats to make it easier to take in piece by piece.  I am impressed by how well this technique works for this book.  It really is an accomplishment to be able to tell this story in a way that keeps the readers' attention, while providing the context of an incredibly complicated time in history.

Long story short, this book took me right in.  I wound up feeling as if I had a personal connection to this artist, whom I might otherwise never even have heard of.  The novel as a whole is fascinating and thoughtfully crafted, even as it delivers a hard emotional punch.  Not a book I'd recommend for all ages, but I feel it is important to have Ana Mendieta's story out there to be read like this.

Thanks for reading, Blogger world!  Before I go, the 365-part project continues :P -


February 19th, 2013:  Surrealist Jam in the Sun by ~Eseopia on deviantART


February 18th, 2013:  The Sun and Sands of Time by ~Eseopia on deviantART


February 17th, 2013:  Storm Before the Calm by ~Eseopia on deviantART

'Till next time!

Do I really have to sign up for everything?

February 16th 2013:  Priorities... by ~Eseopia on deviantART

February 15th 2013:  Another Day... by ~Eseopia on deviantART

February 14th 2013:  Wriggley Oversees... by ~Eseopia on deviantART

Hello blogger world!

I'm trying to edit this entry to make it sound more civilized.  I am writing today with regards to the amount of signing up that is involved in job hunting these days.  Some places still accept a resume and cover letter and let you let that be that.  Others, as I may have mentioned before, have full-on psych exams to fill out so they can make a profile of you, to go with your resume of course.  Ideally, this makes it so that if you want to apply for multiple jobs, you can just select whichever ones you want and they do the rest.  What really bothers me is the number of passwords I have out there.

There are a number of things you may have to sign up for during your job hunt.  With some places, you just have to create a profile with the company itself.  This on its own can lead to quite a few profiles depending on where and how many places you apply.  Some companies hire through job search/hiring sites like CareerBeacon.com.  This can potentially cut back on the number of passwords you need to create, but only when applying for jobs at places that hire through the site.  And of course, you have to sign up for the site itself.

One thing that has become a little bit irksome for me is when I find a job I want to apply for on one of these sites, only to find that it's been posted by another, similar site, who is doing the hiring for said company.  In theory it's good to have profiles on 2 sites instead of one, but I've often found the second site to be a little more weakly structured, and honestly, it's just one more layer of 'security' I don't feel comfortable being compelled to deal with.

Beyond that, I recently discovered a new potential layer of password-guarded security.  While applying for jobs at Michael's (arts and crafts), I was required to create a profile with PeopleAnswers (the site that created the questionnaire I had to fill out for my Michael's).  Granted, this ultimately made it easier to apply for job openings, but it occurs to me that my information is getting spread around quite a bit in an age where information is a hot commodity.

So let's review:  There's the company itself one may have to sign up for, and the job search site that lead you to that company (and potentially the job search site that posted on that job search site on behalf of that company), and even, potentially, the company that created the questionnaire you must fill out in order to create a profile on the original company's site.  So far I haven't run across that many levels of passwords, but in theory, it could very easily happen.

On that note, it's easy to feel gypped when job searching.  I can't help thinking someone out there (probably a few someones) are making money on my efforts to find gainful employment.  I'd like to be making money too here.  Every site I have to sign up on starts looking like a password guarded information eater.  Maybe I should ditch the job hunt and start an internet job search engine.

So that's been my pet peeve of late.  Thanks for reading!  :)

'Till next time, blogger world!

Venturing into the Talent Industry

February 9th - Coin Belt,... by ~Eseopia on deviantART

February 8th - Rise Above by ~Eseopia on deviantART

February 7th - Time for Questions by ~Eseopia on deviantART

The game of catch-up continues.  In fact, what follows is a draft entry from a few months ago :P.  Enjoy!

Good Day Blogger world!

In addition to a few more entries to my picture-within-picture daily journal, I bring you another scenario from my job-searching experience.

I am creating a profile on Hennessey Casting.  This is fairly new experience for me, despite the fact that I've accumulated more than a few years of dance training.  I've been training as though I will ultimately audition for something, though my forays into actual auditions have been few as yet.

Understandably, Hennessey wants to know more about me than the typical recruitment site.  My dress size is something I'm going to have to do a little research on (I suspect they don't mean department-store vanity sizing).  There is also "Leg size".  I can only assume they mean length, and I'm uncertain where to start from.  Maybe they mean inseam.

So far this is kind of fun.  I get to talk about the things I like to do, like singing and dancing :).  I consider myself a competent singer, and years of training have given me dance abilities.  I'll have to make up a resume specifically for this - a res-CV of sorts.  I'll also have to get together some good photos of myself.  They need at least 2, and I know I at least have that many.  Hopefully I can give them a good idea of what I look like and what I do.

I'm non-union and self-represented.  Not sure what that'll do for my chances.  Doesn't exactly scream 'experience', but it's the truth.  The final multiple-choice question is "Are you human".  In any other context I'd take this as a security question, though in this case I suspect they recruit performing animals as well.

The last section to fill out is "More Wonderful Details about ME".  It says, "So, what's your 'thang'?  Fire Breathing?  Figure Skating?  Stunts?  Thirty hot dogs in under a minute?  I want to know!".  This section seems to be open to interpretation.  I try to think of what, specifically, a caster would be looking for.  Here's what I came up with:

"I am a visual artist, singer, and dancer with better-than-average flexibility.  I can do full splits, left or right leg, with front leg on 2 yoga blocks (full middle splits are also possible for me, but only after considerable warm-up).  I can bend backwards into bridge from a standing position."

I really ought to have paid more attention to this category of employment.  This is the first site like this that I've come across.  So far it seems very user-friendly.  Time will tell if it turns up anything, but it's not like I've had significantly better luck with other recruitment sites.  I'll have to explore more of those with you in future blog posts.  For now, I think I'll wrap this one up, hoping for some opportunities to come from my favorite sector - the cultural one.

Later Blogger world :)!

PS:  Taken aback that the Hennessey Casting website gives a non-existent physical address.  Went to all the trouble of signing up, so I guess I'll stay there a little while at least.  The twitter feed seems to have legit casting ops.  The phoney address is the only thing that throws me off, really.

About Work From Home Ads And Affiliate Programs

Hello Blogger world!

Sorry for being in absentia :(.  I return with more of a a game of catch-up to play than ever, but play I shall!

February 6th, 2013

February 5th, 2013

February 4th, 2013

Fortunately I haven't been completely idle in my blog work.  I've been composing entries sporadically, one of which I finished today:

I've seen these ads, as you probably have, boasting $55/hour earnings working part time online.  I've checked this out a couple of times.  Never taken it so far that I can actually say how effective it is, but it appears to be some website that claims to make it easy to make money through the Amazon Affiliate program.  The sense seems to be that they take care of the technical stuff, so you don't have to be a web designer or some such.  This kind of thing seems to be cropping up everywhere, not just on facebook.  Sifting through local online classifieds, these ads are all I see in some categories.  They promise work-from-home opportunities with handsome part-time earnings.  With the Facebook ads, they even specify that they are looking to "fill positions" in my local area.  Maybe they are, but I'm finding myself doubtful that the Amazon Affiliate program needs people specifically working in certain areas for this kind of thing.

I've looked into the Amazon Affiliate program.  THAT seems legitimate.  That they had any part in those Facebook ads is something I doubt, but the program does exist.  It's something you can plug into a website or going online concern that you already have, not something you can start from scratch with and expect to have it work.  You need to have a "thing" already.  With the Amazon Affiliate program, you can run ads for products related to your content.  You can even have your own little "shop".  I've searched some videos on this.  Here are a couple of youtube videos to give you an idea of what the Amazon Affiliate program is like (They are both pretty realistic.  Despite the title pic of the first video, the narrator points out right off the bat that she doesn't make a lot of money with the Amazon Affiliate program, though it is enough to make it worth it for her.)





This is for avid bloggers and people who know how to get traffic to websites.  Having a pre-existing  following is what really makes this work.

What these ads seem to promise is to make this process easier for everyday people.  But can they really do that kind of work for you - generating a following and everything?  And even if they can, is it worth paying them, or putting your trust in them?

The Amazon program isn't the only affiliate program out there either.  There are more than a few big companies out there who are willing to pay ordinary people a little extra to advertise for them.  That's what this comes down to.  Businesses want advertising time.  It's what allows Youtube to remain a free service, and it's why events have sponsors.  We've had it for quite some time, but now people not necessarily in the biz can benefit in a small way.  Maybe that can even be a big way, if you've got the mind for it.

Where am I going with this?  Bottom line, I still don't trust these work-from-home ads, but I think they're cropping up everywhere because they're just inside the boundary of legal.  Kind of like pyramid schemes.  If I were interested in affiliate programs (and I'm not saying I'm not) and had a going online concern with a following, then I would go straight to one of the programs themselves.  I don't believe there needs to be a middle man if this is really going to work.

Catch Up and Job Hunt

Good Day, Blogger world!

(I started this entry a while ago, so bear with me.  Most of it was written earlier today, and only edited just now.)

I actually just got back from Cayo Coco, Cuba.  Hadn't counted on having zero internet access for most of the week, so I am REALLY playing catch up now.  At this particular moment in time, I have gotten caught up on another online job application process.  Wasn't the first thing on my to-do list, but I have to grab these things as they go by.

Job application in the digital age is always more time-consuming than you think - kind of a series of nesting-doll steps, where you don't know where or when the process will end.  Time was you just passed in a resume.  These days you have to create a site profile just to apply to work in a store.  That's how this all started.  I saw the ad on Facebook:  The Home Depot, looking for workers.  Sounds not bad.  I go to the site, from which I can apply to any Home Depot in the country. With some business you can apply to locations in other countries, but I guess The Home Depot is more of a down home type of outfit.

At first it looked pretty straight forward:  Create a profile, upload a resume, write a little cover letter...discover my references list is crooked because one 'tab' is off, even though I've corrected it repeatedly >_<.  Hit back, find that the information I entered just now has disappeared, (had intended to copy the fresh new cover letter I was typing, so of course that didn't happen), get frustrated, give up, go back to the resume screen, submit it as is and hope the original cover letter made it too....I'm currently at the part where the "machine" has tried (unsuccessfully), to fill in my work history from my resume.  This might take longer than I thought.

Now I've gotten to the "Education" section.  Better try on the part of the machine.  I must fill in the name of the institution, then the "Subject or Area of Study", "Qualification", and grad year.  The term "Qualification" threw me just a bit.  The machine had chosen the word "BACHELOR" for this slot.  Just "BACHELOR".  So I'm going to assume they mean the qualification I achieved (ie, what I earned).  Sometimes you have to interpret.  I think they'll understand, though sometimes I wonder if there's any "they" to "understand".  The way the machine has interpreted my resume, I must think (and hope) that there is.

There is the constant reminder that by pressing "next" I am submitting the Home Depot Privacy Policy.  That's another potential time sink - the Terms and Conditions, followed by the Privacy Policy.  I generally give these a look, but not much more.  It is ever so slightly infuriating when certain sites (so far not this one) feel the need to tell you that you "MUST" read these terms to know what you're agreeing to.  Terms that could easily take at least an hour to read.  Terms not designed for the human mind to take in and process in one, two or even three tries.  There must actually be that many people out there looking for a loop hole, or else we are all just hopelessly entangled in a web of fine print.  In the meantime, I have a job to apply for.

OK, on too...a questionaire.   What kind of employment am I seeking.  Full Time, Part Time, Temporary/Contract, or "Flexible".  Since I can only choose one, I'm taking a chance on "Flexible".  I'm hoping this is similar to "All of the above", because I'd like to keep my options open.  Now they want to know how effective their recruitment techniques are.  How did I hear about this job?  The list is lengthy - The Home Depot is not one to be left out of the loop.  They have a list of possibilities beginning with "Online".  "Online - JobBoom.com", "Online - Monster.ca", "Online - Workopolis",...I'll have to go with "Online - Other (banner, ad, adword)".  OK, almost done, I think.  Yes, I do, once again, consent to the Privacy Policy.

"Please Answer a few additional questions".

It's a survey, and it's optional.  *Procrastinates on Deviantart*

I'll bite.  It's an equal opportunity survey.  Questions pertaining to my gender, ethnic background, whether I am disabled or otherwise challenged... and that's it.  Short, which is nice.


Overall, the Home Depot application process was not bad.  They have me on file now, so hopefully that'll make other applications easier.

The new job market can be by turns amusing and infuriating.  It's convenient to be able to do some much online, but harder to know where one's information is going.  Some of the recruitment techniques out there seem a little extreme, like the veritable psych test that began the last Chapters/Indigo/Smithbooks application I filled out.  Then there are those ads that are big on pep talks but never quite get around to telling you things like the name of the company or what, specifically, the job is.  These are just some of the things I get to thinking about while on the hunt for additional income.

Well, this ended up being a long one.  Thanks for reading to the end, and for visiting my humble blog :).  Later Blogger world!

Space Jam

Just finished 2 more entries for my year of pictures and I'm abuzz with the exhiliration :)!  Well, exhiliration and stress - equal parts.  I also just discovered how stupid easy it is to move pictures around on this blog :P!  I learn something new every day.

I saw the performance of Chris Hadfield, Ed Robertson, and the Wexford Gleeks on video this morning.  Obviously it was cool, but I hadn't expected to like the song as much as I did.  I was into the inspiration and the wonder of it all to a degree that I hadn't expected. (Just heard they're just about to air it on CBC radio 2, which I'm listening to at this moment). Here's the link to that if you haven't seen it yet:

Premiere of ISS Is Somebody Singing

I liked the part of the song where they reference how outer space exploration had its roots in conflict, but now we're all in it together, with so many different nations represented at the Space Station.  Just started following Chris Hadfield on twitter, and it's fun to see what he tweets, as you may have heard.  Awful good of him to share this with us all ^_^.

I think I'll make this a short one today - or is it already long?  Either way, glad to have the last of the January pics posted - and only 8 days into February ^_^.  Hopefully I can pick up the pace a little more after this.  I'll have to get snowed in with my drawing implements.

Later blogger world!

Not finished yet....

Good evening/morning/day blogger world :)!

I had to put my picture-within-picture project on hold for longer than I would have liked, but I haven't given up yet!  Hence how this posting is a double feature - pictures for January 28th and 29th, which I actually feel pretty good about.   I used a sketch from the life drawing session I went to on the 28th as part of my design for the 28th, but the rest of that one and the next one were done this evening.  We'll see how fast I can get caught up :P.

I've been busy trying to attain employment such as will allow me to stop going broke, which is why I've gotten so behind.  Haven't given up on that either, but I had to do a little project in the process of chasing after this one job, which I actually feel somewhat optimistic about.  More optimistic than I've felt about a job opportunity in a while, at least.  In the meantime, residual income does find its way to me through Cafepress, and other sources occasionally.  I'm still going broke, but it's happening slowly.

In anticipation of Valentine's Day (depending on how you feel about this holiday, I suppose), I've made a new mug design.  I made the original heart design a while ago, a combination of pen work and Photoshop colouring, and I was thinking it would look so good on a black mug.  Then I realized I could put more than one on a mug, like this:


3 Beating Hearts Mug Design by ~Eseopia on deviantART

Or like this:


2 Beating Hearts Mug Design by ~Eseopia on deviantART

Both of these designs are now available on mugs through my Deviantart print shop (holy shameless self promotion, Batman! :D).   I should mention that the original singular version is available too, as mugs and other items :).


Inkblot Beating Heart by ~Eseopia on deviantART

So now that I've plugged this design to within an inch of its life, I think I should wrap this up.  I feel kind of proud of this one, in case you hadn't guessed ^_^.  Hopefully I'll bring you two more nested pictures next posting  Catching up slowly but surely.....

Later blogger world!

Playing Catch-up and Fighting Zombies

Good day blogger world!

Still playing catch-up, though the fact that I have this picture up this early in the afternoon means I'm making progress.  We'll see how fast I can get yesterdays drawn up and posted....

I'm between commitments at the moment, having gone to a promising job interview and being as I am now anticipating going to a free workshop this evening.  Here, I will learn the art empty-handed self-defense against the scourge of the undead.  You read right - I'm going to an anti-zombie defense workshop :).  Here's an idea of the material we'll be learning:



There's a related twitter feed too:  https://twitter.com/zombiedefend101

So that will be my evening :).  I think I'll make this a short & sweet update so I can play a little more catch-up.  'Till next time, blogger world!

Hot Cocoa on a Monday...Also, Theories About Time

Good day, blogger world!

The title of today's blog was the first thing that came to mind as something I'm doing/having right now.  As with most of my Mondays, I have most of it free to fill my time with tasks and projects.  Tomorrow I have a job interview, at a place I think I would actually like to work doing something I might actually like to do.  So wish me luck on that, if you would.

Feeling pretty good about this pictures-within-pictures project, all told.  Already thinking of ways I could do it differently, of course, but that's a thought for later.  About 352 days later.  What you're seeing here is my illustrations for the 26th.  Hopefully there won't be too many hiccups like these, but I suspect this won't be the last.  While I wasn't thinking about this when I created the line art, this image makes me think of a book I read a little while ago that changed my perspective on a lot of things.  It's called "Is There Life After Death" by Anthony Peake, and it was quite a bit different from what I was expecting.  One of the things I got out of it was a crash course in quantum physics and a lot of different theories about time.  That we should be able to remember the future the way we remember the past, that time may simply be a mechanism of our minds for interpreting the world such that it makes sense to us, that everything that has every happened is always 'happening' and always will be 'happening'.....A real interesting read.  Some of these things actually did occur to me when I started this project.  We measure time in a forward, linear fashion, with each moment followed by another, and another, disappearing as the next one takes its place - but what if one thought of it in a picture-within-picture kind of way.  As we get farther away from each moment, and the next one is revealed, what we experience in that moment just becomes part of the next, and each becomes part of the bigger picture.  So that the final picture, if there is one, is the whole of time, with everything that's ever happened all in one place.  Not completely different from how we think of time now, the only difference being that all of time is right there in one moment.   Maybe that's what one or more of these theories was getting at.  I really need to find time to do some more research.

Anyway, that's my entry for now.  I may try to get one more in today just to get up to speed.  Until then, later blogger world!

Day 2

Day two of the 1-year-of-nested-images-journal-project (I decided I'd like to have the pictures figure into one another - hopefully it works out).  I haven't thought of a particularly good name for it, and it may well take the entire year to think of one.  Thinking of names for things often annoys me because they seem so irrelevant to the actually things.  You can have the best idea in the world, but if there's nothing to call it, it can be very hard to put it into reality.

I'm looking up at the picture of Broccoli, Ham 'N' Cheddar Strata recipe on my milk calendar, thinking I'd love to make that up for supper some night.  Then I remember that every-present to-do list that never gets any shorter, and realize I only ever seem to find time for a few things and special cooking isn't one of them.  Seriously, I think the days have shrunk since I became an adult.  Of course, speed has never been my strength.  The only thing I seem to do with speed is drawing.  By contrast, ask me to ring up a sandwich or prep a pair of pants for hemming, and I apparently enter a time vortex.  That's how I lost 2 of the worst jobs I've ever had.  I'm just worried it could be costing me things I like in the long run.

On that note, I guess I should wrap this up.  I'll tell you about today in a picture tomorrow.  Until next time, Blogger world :)!