Guess what I do for adventure?

I hang glide on a Dorito.  

MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON from Dean Fleischer-Camp on Vimeo.

Newness

Although I have totally been dissing my "Blogtown and Z Boys," as my friend Mandee says, it is finally time for a new blog post and a new painting!  This little number was inspired by some of the many wonderful shapes in the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens.  Tulips, budding flowers, leaves, and as always, cloud shapes.  The rusty oranges and dull browns look great with aqua blues, mint greens, dusty pinks, and dark plums.  And the white and yellow shapes break away from the pack.  For as flat as I like my paintings to be, I like the movement in this one.  And, for being balanced in composition, almost strictly so, it still escapes being static.  I look forward to more painting adventures now that summer is winding down and I don't have magical places like Cape Cod to distract me!

Detail:

Brooklyn halfsie finisher!

On May 22nd, I finished my second half-marathon, this time in Brooklyn, NY!  The race started in lovely Prospect Park and ended on the Coney Island boardwalk, where finishers were rewarded with a banana and water.  Hahahaha!  That's right, the Brooklyn edition of the half-marathon series offered no medal!  While Brooklyn always keeps it real, we all know accomplishments mean nothing if you don't have a medal to prove it;)

  

So how does a lady celebrate an achievement like this?  A growler of Heffen Weissen from Brouwerij Lane  (Greenpoint Brooklyn), a huge bottle of Smart Water, and a Netflix movie marathon!

Here's to half-marathon #2! I wonder if I have it in me to do one in all five boroughs!?

P.S. Someone quite thoughtful made sure I got that medal!

my first bunting!

 

Nothing cheers me up like bunting! Recently, I acquired this adorable trio of mini bunting (above) from the Knotted Nest store on Etsy. 

Knotted Nest

Inspired by this crafty idea, I took on a quite a challenge for my first sewing project ever.  With a dear friend having a baby soon, I thought it would be the perfect handmade gift for decorating the new lil' one's room.  Needing an inspirational message, I turned to Hip Hop, my go-to for life mottos!  Nas' "The World is Yours" is pretty much the best advice for a new baby, so I started there.  

After a crash course in operating a sewing machine from my awesome roommate, I began the project with some nervousness, but mostly determination.  Measuring and cutting came first.  I made a triangle stencil, 7 inches on each side for good luck!  I cut the fabric out using serrated scissors, which make an adorable zig zag edge.  Each triangle had another triangle behind it, so that the banner could be reversible!  Then I cut out the felt letters, using fabric chalk to outline the font.  After all the cutting was finished, it was time to assemble!  To hang the banner, I used a thick mint green ribbon.  I folded it in half, ironed it, and tucked the triangles in, pinning them securely. After sewing was complete, I added some finishing touches: streamers on each end and white Ric Rac trim on the letters.                                            

The finished banner was a hit!  Handmade gifts are always so charming and I was thrilled I pulled it off without it looking too much like a Dr. Frankenstein job.  Cheers to baby Willem, who hopefully won't get the wrong idea and end up a dictator:)  

my best friend forever makes art.

Meghan Rennie takes pretty photographs about the space in between things.  The opening reception for "We're so Much Alike, We Must be Brothers" is on May 6th in Toronto.  Just sayin'.  Also, I love her.

PIGEON FIGHT

www.meghanrennie.com

flower party!

Each Spring, one of the most enchanting events takes place at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens: Hanami.  Hanami literally means "flower viewing" in Japanese. Since we don't have the cherry blossom forecast  (sakurazensen) here in America, I went twice to experience the different stages of this amazing process, as the blossoms only last one or two weeks! The first time I went the blossoms must have just bloomed that morning all at once.  They were so perfectly in place, as you can see in the polaroids.  When I returned a week later, it was just completely different and magical!!!  The breeze had created all this wonderful blossom snow, and tiny petals were flying through the air and showering down onto the ground.  It was the most cheerful and relaxing vision I've ever seen!  Nature is really cool.

new art story: Process Makes Perfect!

(Jodie Jill, 2009.  Ink, gouache, and colored pencil on paper. 58 1/2 x 42 1/4 inches. By Storm Tharp)

CHEEK Magazine has a hot new issue out!  In issue sweet 16, I wrote a little story on this year's Whitney Biennial.  The MVPs of this year's selection use some pretty mind bending processes that can be read about here:

Process Makes Perfect