Lady GaGa's Hairy Monster

Ok, this may seem weird, but for whatever reason, Lady GaGa's blonde, I'll call it "Hairy Monster" costume instantly reminded me of this creature. I haven't thought of this thing in years!
....maybe crossed with a Scooby Doo ghost....and in black and white? Am I nuts?

Lady GaGa

Went to Lady GaGa last Tuesday, she was fantastic of course. I took my daughter (14) and her friend as her birthday present and they loved it, totally worth the dosh
The set and costume changes were, as expected, incredibly elaborate. I totally appreciate the artistry and the concept of us all on this journey to find the "Monster Ball" but I'm not sure if the complexity of the sets and wardrobe were worth it in the end..... Because both elements were so "heavy" they essentially stopped the show about 3 or 4 times for set and costume changes. The curtain would come down which was also a large screen that had projections of her posing, etc. canned music would come on and you would wait like 3min. each time. Not a big deal really, and it was all totally amazing, but I think she could be amazing with less "stuff" and no drop in momentum. And to be totally honest, where we were sitting stage left, quite a few of the larger props and set pieces actually interfered with sight lines. Oh well, if you've seen one bleeding statue, you've seen them all, right?

Here are some photos of our exciting evening with the Queen of Freak. I am in the pink wig, my daughter is in the red and her friend is in her lovely natural look.
Also a couple pics of the amazing people who got into full regalia....I love it!

More Lady GaGa

Lady GaGa's "Little Monsters"

Indigo

Here are a couple pics of me doing some indigo dying this summer.
Very fun.

It's been awhile....

Yes, my bad, its been forever since I've posted, but its been a busy summer full of great stuff. New jobs, house reno's, festivals (too many to keep up with!) and great weather!
I'm posting a few photos of the jousting match at the Renaissance Festival out in Langley. It goes on every summer and is a nice day trip. The jousting definitely is the highlight for me, but there is also an on-going story line that is acted out throughout the weekend by Renaissance garbed actors. Pretty fun, pretty grass roots, low budget. There are also some fun games, aimed mostly at kids, but personally, there is no greater satisfaction than "shooting the nobles of the little castle" target game played with plastic guns loaded with little plungers...juvenile, I know, but there it is.

I'm so loving the jousting armour, the one gal made hers completely out of recycled material. I believe there was a kitchen sink involved. Seriously. Some great innovation.

floor cloth

Just a quick post of a shot of the floor cloth I painted with my dog lying on it.
Literally and figuratively.
Not the best photo, but kinda funny none the less....

Henry Rollins Last Night

Checked out the Henry Rollins show last night, he is on his "Frequent Flyer" tour, so spoken word.
He was really great, super funny and of course, smart. He has this ability to make things funny, but still talk about important topics and drive it home. I guess this is why its called spoken word and not just comedy. I think people went home with lots to think and talk about and thats always good. Pretty clever too, his ability to tell us, "Canadians are no better than Americans so shut it" without being confrontational in any way. In his self depreciating way, he manages to insult his homeland and our homeland, take us all down a notch and make everyone laugh at it.... pretty great. He talked for close to 3 hours straight, I kid you not. And no water. Huh?? At the end of that show he must have ran off that stage and latched onto the nearest water bottle with the force of a shop vac.

My friend and I hung around a bit aprez the show, he does a meet and greet at the bus every night. He came out and was super friendly with everyone. I failed in my groupie endeavour and just took a few shots of him from the crowd. I totally could have hung out to do the hand shake, but I guess I prefer to fangirl from afar. And lets face it, the part of me that isn't too shy, is just weirded out by the whole "celebrity/average people" thing. I am torn.

Anyways, as I "fangirl-ed from afar" I have to say he was so great with everyone, totally engaged with whoever he was talking to at the moment. Impressive. If that were me with people all around, taking pictures, etc. my eyes would be like marbles on a washing machine.....

Problem solved! The painting is of Danae (don't ask me about the spelling mishap, I swear thats what I was told!) by Artemisia Gentileschi in 1612. The painting depicts Zeus having turned himself into gold mist, blows in through the open window and impregnates Danae.....hmmm, the original "golden shower".....?

Hey there!
So the Doxa films were both great. The one, "Orgasm Inc." was shocking and funny at the same time, but mostly shocking. Really takes a good look at the major contenders in the pharmaceutical industry race for FDA approval on FSD drug treatments. Was pretty crazy. Its easy to see that "Female Sexual Dysfunction" is completely manufactured by the pharmaceutical industry.
The second film "Sin by Silence" was really moving. This is the one about the women who are in prison for murdering their abusive husbands. There were tears for sure, and just so you know, I'm not much of a crier. The women in this film, their stories....I think unless you've really been there, you can't possibly imagine what they've been through. Also, important to remember none of these women ever thought for a second that they would be where they are today. Made me wonder (as I often do after seeing these kinds of films) why I'm not doing something more important with my life.

I highly recommend seeing both films.
Check them out if you can!!

So now I have a question for you guys. I need help! I am supposed to come up with an analyses for this painting (see below) by next thursday. I have the name of the painting, but I cannot find out anything else about it. Who did it, when, etc. etc. Anyone out there have any input?? Please? The title of the peice is: DanaA.....

Hi there, just a reminder that the DOXA is up and running, opened on Friday. I have tickets to a couple different shows that look really interesting, "Orgasm inc." a look into the new, and some would say manufactured, phenomena of female sexual dysfunction, and "Sin by Silence" which is about women who are in prison for murdering their abusive husbands. Looks pretty intense. There are a ton of others I want to see, but I'm not sure how much more time I can make...there is one on Buffy Saint-Marie that I would really like to take in, we'll see....
I took a workshop on a material called "Foss Shape" last week, very fun stuff that supposedly is the new replacement for buckram. It can be used for millinery and armour and all kinds of sculptural projects. I will definitely be picking up some more of this stuff to have fun with. My studio mate had a full 2 day workshop on it, and brought back a couple really great pieces and some fantastic information. I'm posting the unpainted and very rough product I put out at the end of my 2 hour workshop, complete with blue pen mark. Nothing too special to look at really, but you can see the potential. It will fuse to itself, and harden into whatever shape you can mould it into just using steam.



Also, I want take a moment to plug the Georgia Strait Alliance, if you love our Straight of Georgia, go to this link and vote for the Georgia Straight Alliance to help them win a grant from RBC. Do it every day. These guys work super hard and deserve all the help they can get. Heres the link:
http://www.rbc-granfondowhistler-bluewaterproject.com/
And heres the link to the Alliance's webpage:
http://www.georgiastrait.org/
On that note, I'm going to post a peice I put together last year, it didn't get great reviews, too didactic, too whatever, but I really enjoyed putting it together, and I feel pretty strongly about the issue. I was inspired by the drastic state of the oceans, and all the issues surrounding it. It is mixed media, paper, paint, wax, rocks, fishing hooks, pocket watch, etc. on panel board.




And on a lighter note: Happy Mother's Day Mommies!!

Bonjour ma chéries,
I just hit up the "Make It!" hand made show at the Croatian Cultural centre, I just heard about it yesterday and today is the last day, but I believe they hold it every year. It was fantastic! Really great stuff and reasonable prices for hand made goods.
I'm sorry to be passing on the info now that its over, but I have posted some pics of the fantastic earrings I picked up for myself and for my friend's birthday. They are amazing, I had such a hard time deciding which pair to buy for myself, I wanted them all! Lots of vintage circus and curio type imagery. The gal who makes them seemed like a real doll too, so always nice to support not just the local artists, but also the nice ones!
Here is her website: www.phaulet.com
The earrings are all are double sided too, which I love. I picked the tattooed woman with the cycling women on the back for myself and the dissected brain and figure with the crazy flower for my friend.
Looks like May will be a busy month full of interesting lectures and fun shows. So I am looking forward to sharing!

terminal city rollergirls...

Went to see the rollergirls last night! Was SO great, and super packed. A really diverse turn out, seemed like a bit of every neighbourhood in the city there. Very cool.
We were pitched against the Atomic City Rollergirls (WA) who we wailed on. In a very sportsman like way. The Atomic city girls were great, but of course, we were rooting for our home team, the Faster Pussycats....who clearly had the superior outfits, even though they could have used a little more elastic around the edges of their shorts....
I took lots of photos, but only these two were usable, I will have to become a little more savvy with the camera for next time. Hard to get good photos with them whipping around the track like that, knockin' each other down and getting sent off to the "Penalty Palace".....
They really are a decidedly tough bunch of bitches.

Now all I can think is..."if I were a rollergirl, what would my name be??"

hand made soap...

Here are a couple shots of my sisters hand made soap in my teacup soap dish. Smells great and looks super pretty too. I will let you know when I know where it will be available.

Gasp, who would do something like this?? Could this be someone trying to intercept the corporate agenda by suggesting that going into debt won't lead to a glamourous jet setting lifestyle....?

Here are a few photos of the show I was working on as costume designer. Italian American Reconciliation, Tara Arnett did the set design (brilliant as usual) Dave Winstanley was lighting designer (also brilliant) and Steven Drover directed. He's quite good I must say, have worked with him a few times now and so far I haven't seen a show he did that I didn't like....

Hey peeps, just a real quick one here to let you all know in case you haven't yet heard, LEGENDS of Main St is going out of business. Very very sad, loved that shop, and have been frequenting it for years. Always the best prices and quality. They are having a closing out week sale that started last Saturday and I can tell you Diane is practically giving it away. Everyday more stock is brought out from the back room, so good to try and go a couple times if possible. Also, there is a guest book at the front desk for you to leave your contact information should you be interested in attending some smaller shows, etc. that she will no doubt be hosting in the not so distant future.
I've posted a photo of the lovely Diane and a couple of the store front.
Try not too feel too guilty walking out with all that loot.......
.....and hats off to the fashionista proprietor who lovingly dressed us (and our casts) for so many years, we will be looking forward to keeping up with you and whatever new adventures you have in store! xo

Things have been crazy busy around here, so hence the belated updates!

I have posted some fabulous photos of a workshop I attended by Kathy Soucie, of Sans Soucie Clothing and Textile Design. It was a fantastic class on what is called Subtractive Cutting, a garment pattern cutting technique developed by Julian Roberts. I won't list all the ins and outs of it, but I will say its an incredibly intuitive process and creates really sculptural unique garments. Definitely worth learning, especially for those of us who dislike the "pattern" in pattern drafting.

Here is Julian Roberts' site: http://www.julianand.com/school/THEBANANAMILKSHAKE.htm

Of course everything Kathy creates is always fantastic and her teaching skills are no different. Was a really fun, relaxing and playful workshop, with easy to understand instructions on what could have been very confusing material.

This is Kathy's website: http://www.sanssoucie.ca/

I highly recommend checking her out. Her stuff is amazing and her success well deserved.

Am heading into tech week for the show I'm designing, so I'll have some great photos of that to post within the next week or so!