Wednesday, November 26, 2008

chogyam trungpa


Who is Chogyam Trungpa? To me, he is the author of Dharma Art, one of my favorite books. There is far more to know about Chogyam Trungpa, and this post's title will link to his bio, but it is important to see this photograph that he took, which I love.
Click here to see the photo, I'm not allowed to copy it to my blog.

Monday, November 17, 2008

yesterday's siting

The birds are out in force here in Arizona. Or maybe I'm just that more tuned in because there are so many new species to see in a new environment. We live in a preserved habitat (excepting our own habitat infringement of course) so there are plenty of interesting visitors to our back yard. This morning, a Bell's Vireo (the grayest Arizona kind) and a gaggle of Gambel's Quail (adorable) in our little backyard plot. Yesterday late afternoon, this Western Great Plains Screech Owl peeked out of tree at the Botanic Garden here in Scottsdale.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

C M Y K

For those of you like me until 4 days ago, who never knew what the K stands for in CMYK, it stands for 'Key.' Good to know. Beyond that, the 'key line' was printed with the black plate of the four printing plates, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and the Key plates. The key line is used to register or align all of the plates in 4 color printing. So so interesting. Now, onto color theory... I wish.

What I'm really sharing with the blog-o-sphere today is my current drawings. Slideshow below...

I'm starting this new drawing project based on the color and/or black & white test prints that printers make when you put in a new ink cartridge. I have 2 so far that I've collected out of inspiration, and now I want as many as I can find. I'm looking at these, inspired beyond my initial appreciation for the print by Mr. Michael Desbarres, as a kind of modern mark-making. Mark-making has become important to me because it is repetitive and thereby meditative in process. Meditation often moves beyond the internal thought process of repeating thought upon one idea and becomes an action (running can be viewed as meditation) and even a product (woven blankets, sand paintings, etc.). To go back to my requested printer tests, I'm viewing these as modern artifacts of manufactured mark-making. Sure, the machine is not meditating, but the product of the printer evokes meditative process. I'm using these printouts for my own work by enlarging and drawing (mark-making) the lines, bars, squares, etc. onto artist's grade paper.
Because I know you all use printers pretty frequently at home or at your offices, I hope you will think of me when you do a test print or see one in the recycle bin. Mail it to me (fold it up, no problem) so that I can use it!

My current address is:
12621 N. Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd.
Scottsdale, AZ 12621

I'll be here until the middle of December and I'll try to update my address as we move along the countryside.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

newest neighbors

Some of my new neighbors who have been visiting with me in the backyard recently:

from left, the Western Mockingbird, Cactus Wren, and the House Finch.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008