(I’d think that Meet the Press will be starting off with some discussion about Pres. Zardari slowly relinquishing powers he inherited from President Musharraf.  But this is the tolling bell on Zardari’s tenure in office.  Any theorist of democratic transitions knows that it is not rational for an autocrat to liberalize, if he is motivated by tenure in office.  The only explanation of liberalization of regime is the wrongheaded assumption on the part of the autocrat that appeasement will ensure survival; but that move is viewed by the opposition as weakness.  The opposition parties–in this case, the Pakistani military and the opposition party led by former PM. Nawaz Sharif–are the anchors that are holding Zardari’s adminstration at bay.  This move only ensures that Zardari will be departing from office.)

Today’s broadcast of Meet the Press promises to be interesting.  As before, the quotes are approximations to the words spoken, but are close to the spirit of the truth.  Passages in parentheses, are my thoughts on the exchange between David Gregory and his guests.  (Okay, I was wrong, Rick Warren is talking on faith and charity; Bill and Melinda Gates is talking about public health.  Yes, its interesting, but not as interesting as I would like the conversation to be on Meet the Press.)

Rick Warren (whose book is the second most translated book in history, next to the bible): Love is spelled G-I-V-E.  We’re most like god when we’re giving. (He gives away 90% of his earnings.  I wonder if this is the case)

DG: citing a Rabbi, We are good not when we think good thoughts, but when we do good deeds over and over.  (This is a bit of Aristotlian ethics, that I find a bit too harsh)

(The thing about this talk is that I cannot shy away from the idea that in listening to Pastor Rick, he strikes me as a egoist who gets his ego rent by professing self-sacrifice.  He does not draw a pay check from Saddle Back Church, nor does he wear an expensive watch.  He does not profit much from his books, etc.  All with the intention of insisting that what he does he does not for money, but for the love of god.  I do think that his works do point to good outcomes and better life choices for the individuals so affected.  I just think that his claims to self-sacrifice are egoistic.  Does the psychological basis of his behavior matter much, in the long-run.  No, probably not.)

DG: Proposition 8.  This might be interesting.  Do you think that money spent have been better spent on the fight for AIDS.

RW: I think we spent too much money on most things.  You know the biblical teaching, teach a man how to fish.  I think that’s too little.  You have to teach a man to sell a fish; you have to teach a man to build a boat.  Its all about free enterprise.  This is a well-thought out argument for free-marketism.  The right should jot down talking points from this gentleman.

DG: Would you fight for anti-gay legislation?

RW: My beliefs on gay marriage are biblical.  (That’s a honest take, of course)  But I think my job is to love everyone.  (This is a dodge.)

(Rick Warren is citing a Solomonic prayer that he gain power and influence to help the poor and the helpless.  Rick Warren just said that the supposed 46 million who are not here, because they were aborted fetuses, have suffered a holocaust)

DG: Is there a moral equivalency between the abortion debate and health care coverage?

RW: I’m not pro-life, I’m whole life.  Expand the agenda, care about the child after she’s born.

RW: There are fundamentalists in all and no religions.  Meanings change.  A Fundamentalist used to be a good thing: he was someone who believed in the fundamentals of the Bible.  But now I would say that a fundamentalist is someone who has stopped listening.  (I would agree with this assessment; I think in so far as I can take a Evangelical leader, I’d have to say Rick Warren is as smart and as respectable as anyone within the current leadership can be.  That is to say, he is the heir to Billy Graham.)

RW (To some question, I’ve forgotten, because RW’s response is so compelling):  Something like 70% of Americans are in the wrong job.  They are not wired for what they do, and are unhappy doing it. SOme people are wired to do deals, to be accountants, to be oceanographers.  I say do the thing that makes you fruitful and gives you sustenance.   Do what you would do for free.  I don’t draw a paycheck.  You’re net worth is not hte same thing as your self worth. Your value is not the same thing as your valuables.  Sometimes you might not even know what it is that you’re good at; someone might actually point out that you’re good at this one thing. (That is a damn good answer.  Very convincing. No wonder he’s sold the number of books as he has)

DG is talking to Bill and Melinda Gates.

(I think the big issue at question is how do you harness individual research projects to arrive at a particular goal: AID’s vaccines for example.  How do you deliver this research product to the poor and the non-empowered.  And how do you entice investors to invest in public health projects.  The Gates’ argue that allowing individuals to seek greater technology but focus it through one or another funding infrastructure. Deliver using technology the poor already have.  The poor now have cell-phones, through the Grameen Bank and other organizations.  Send a text message to a mother to come in to get her child checked, etc.  On the point of getting individuals to invest in public health: Link ego rents to investment opportunities.)

(Its interesting to think that Gates is arguing for health care, innovation and capitalism in the same way that Joseph Schumpeter would have defended each one of these substantive issues)

]]> http://lynnemedsker.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/new-work-and-a-last-chance/ Sun, 29 Nov 2009 16:21:30 +0000 lynnemedsker http://lynnemedsker.wordpress.com/2009/11/29/new-work-and-a-last-chance/

When I posted my original offer for mini art at a special price a few weeks ago I mentioned that there might be some new pieces added to the mix.  Today they are being added! Four more lovely pieces for you to choose from.

"mini art #55" mixed media, 5x7" $75 (c) 2009, Lynne Medsker

"mini art #56" mixed media, 5x7" $75 (c) 2009, Lynne Medsker

"mini art #57" mixed media, 5x7" $75 (c) 2009, Lynne Medsker

"mini art #58" mixed media, 5x7" $75 (c) 2009, Lynne Medsker

To get them at a very special price you need to act quickly – the offer expires Monday night at midnight! See details about this special and view the entire selection of art by clicking HERE. (Be sure to refresh your browser window if you’ve visited recently!)

Enjoy what’s left of your weekend as we head into December!

Lynne

The prep talk in Artist’s studio at The Secret Gallery

View of art work in progress drying on floor of studio mixed media on canvas by Marianne Slevin 2009

Detail of the Mixed Media on Canvas  above

Detail 2 of the Mixed Media on Canvas above

Detail 3 of the painting above

Detail 4 of the drawing above

Detail 5 of the Artwork above

Today, I decided to get back into making some realer art, by “realer” I mean physical, messy art! Getting your hands dirty! This art piece is half way between a painting and a drawing. It turned out to be at least partly to do with the yearly salmon run: where they go back to the same place they were born, to lay their eggs. I think it is amazing! Apparently they can recognise even a couple of drops of water in gallons and gallons of other water, from their home place and they follow that stream all the way back.

Mixed media on Board
Early morning Sunrise
A golden glow
A fireball glow
the exploding sun
early morning glory

Click the newsletter page to the right for invitations to my Holiday Open Studios and ART year in review.

I’m happy to announce that I have two pieces, “In Flames” and “Dreamtime,”on display and available for purchase at Basil’s Restaurant & Bar until Dec. 3. You can find this Buckhead cafe (with yummy Mediterranean food and free Wi-fi!) at 2985 Grandview Ave. NE, Atlanta. If you have a few minutes after your delicious lunch, stop next door at the Atlanta Artists Center & Gallery to see the current show, “Synchronicity.”

TREASURE HUNT: The first person to email a photo of themselves at Basil’s with my art will win a coffee cup featuring original Art by Shelley! Email must be received at art@shelleymhouse.com by 12 noon, eastern time, Dec.  4, 2009. Please include your name and mailing address with your entry.

Bonjour,

Elle s’appelle Azoline, certaines d’entre vous la connaissent déjà, pour ma part j’ai fait sa connaissance “en vrai” à l’occasion de la crop du jardin du mixed media à Prissé… Une belle rencontre, de celles qui font du bien, qui sont vraies. Malgré nos styles si différents, nos sensibilités sont proches : je m’émerveille depuis le début de sa palette de couleurs et de ses créations si vivantes, elle aime les tons pastels qui sont les miens. A la fin de notre week-end nous avons décidé de nous lancer un petit défi : s’envoyer un mail art à la façon de l’autre…

Voilà le résultat obtenu par Azoline :

Et pour voir ce que je lui ai envoyé… C’EST PAR ICI 

Bon week-end !

Self taught artist Hector Frank was born in Havana, Cuba in 1961. After years of working in electronics he decided to pursue his passion and obsession, painting. He wishes to express his inner creativity and surrounding influences, the colors, textures, sounds, and landscape of Cuba through his work.

From the start of Hector Frank’s art career, he preferred to paint abstractly, and continues to be influenced by Cuban and Caribbean artists working with strong forms, and lines. Through drawing, he began expressing figurative forms in a variety of media including wood, handmade paper, and assemblage.

Progressively growing as an artist, he incorporates impasto techniques along with various mixed media and collage to build his images up off the surface and bring them to life. Hectors work has been collected internationally and critiqued against contemporary masters. The composition and shapes of Joan Miro, the layered images of Jean-Michel Basquiat, the colors and forms that Paul Klee, Kandinsky, and Willem de Kooning used, all call to mind the distinct influences of Abstract Expressionism. Hector Frank’s work encompasses the raw native influence of Cuba, while the images reference some of the most accomplished abstract painters of our time. “We know already that we are in front of an approximation to the abstraction, an old artistic language, present in every latitude, but here its creator manipulates the colors without pretending to cheat our sense. It is about characters that sometimes are worked in isolation like an imaginary portrait, sometimes as part of more embracing compositions, candid but grotesque at the same time, embodying mundane, familiar, daily issues without narrating them.” (Jose Manuel Noceda Fernandez, curator nH Central Park Hotel) Hector Frank’s paintings express emotion, memory and the best of what contemporary abstract painting looks like today.

Additionally, he has exhibited in both solo and group expositions in his home city of Havana and throughout the world. He is collected internationally and has shown work in Cuba, France, Mexico, Panama and the Caribbean. Hector Frank is excited to introduce his work to an American audience to help promote the talent and culture of Cuba.

If you would like to see more of Hector Frank’s work please click on our link to our ebay page on the bottom right of this home page.

same with the above

was such a drag man

a much considered offering to church( that is, to alternatively i.e) and (I) have been working on this on and off from , actually, highschool era, the time when i thrived little less than golden, to be honest, completely shit time,, all except for dear friends. dear friends i say, very distinguishing term , friends that were not dear to me, were also part of compete shit.

I first attempted colouring with watercolour set, but , as for everybody, moneys tight and there were insufficient materials, (such ridiculable price they have!) so i moved on using the magic marker set that i FORGOT to return to my previous art teach miss big N.  turns out that its not as easy mixing colour with the marker and the colours contrast each other so damn mush it looks rather shitty.

NOT only that, but also all the paintbrush i had for watercolouring were small , unbearable size for covering large area like that

photo lighting and quality is trash,, im not a photographer.  though i am, the photographer,

-sorry madam.. i have a mockable brain

I began reworking this painting at the beginning of the Art Every Day Challenge Month and committed to spending a month working on a painting, which I never do. I finally finished this. Well, I’ve decided to stop working on it. It is difficult to know when to stop sometimes. But I think I have resolved the things that I didn’t like about the original, including the color choices. The figure of the woman that was in the original and the circular motion of the the original are still here, but there is more energy to this version and more confidence in the presentation. I am pleased with the result. I am also pleased with the process of making this. I learned a lot by waiting, watching and wondering as I worked on this, not rushing through it. Part of making art is knowing when to NOT do anything and let the work speak to you and lead you in the right direction. I still need a title. Suggestions are welcomed. Tell me what you see. Here is the work from beginning to end:

We’re having a Cyber Monday sale over on our ArtFire shop!

Most of us are familiar with Black Friday, I gather – the crazy shopping day after Thanksgiving in preparation for the commercialism of the winter holidays!  You may or may be aware that the online version of this crazy day of sales is called “Cyber Monday.”  Amazing what folks come up with to push consumption, huh? 

Okay, I’m not anti-capitalist.  Promise.  To prove it, use this coupon code when you order from our ArtFire shop from now through Monday, and get 20% off your entire order!

HERE’S THE CODE!         CYBERMONDAY

We’re feeling generous – we’re kind of wacky that way.  You just may find an extra little something packaged up with your order. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Not shopping for yourself?  Hoping for the best when opening your own presents this year?

Put us on your AMAZON WISH LIST!  You know your friends and loved ones like to be pointed in the right direction – help them out.

This button is located in the price box on the upper right side of each listing page.  Simple as that!

We have lots of fun (and lots of kits) in store for December!  If you don’t already have us on your feed reader, might want to consider it – you won’t want to miss a bit of this.

kbyenow.

Tomorrow night I’ll be using this animation at Collins Street Baptist Church, for the first Sunday of Advent.



It is based on the lectionary reading from Jeremiah 33:14-16. Just before this section, Jeremiah has been talking about how God has allowed the Babylonians to destroy Israel, because of their evil. But he says they will have another chance:

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’(Jeremiah 33:14-16)

Jeremiah says that although God is disappointed in Israel, God is going to cause a new branch – a righteous branch – to grow out of the deceased King David. (I see King David as a reminder that the things and people that we put our hope in often disappoint us.) I was thinking, what are the things have been disappointing about the year that has just passed? I was also thinking, what it it we’re hoping and waiting for this Advent? The congregation will be invited to write or draw their disappointments on post-it notes, and stick them onto King David. They’ll also be able to write or draw their hope on a post-it  to stick on the young plant.

This week’s Simon is EBSQ artist Lisa Miller. Her theme choice is music. Her directions were simple: “Serenade me with art, please. Unlimited, any media, deadline next Sunday… Knock my sox off.”

Bang On My Drums - Lisa Miller

All Simon Sez challenges are open to everyone. To enter Simon Sez… Music! and to see  the all the entries,  simply go to the EBSQ Forum, find Member Groups, Challenges & General Art Discussions and then go to Challenge Central. All the challenges past and present – including Simon Sez, can be found there.

Like what you see here?  We hope you’ll consider leaving a comment or subscribing to one of our feeds. Never miss another cool post from EBSQ. Subscribe to EBSQ: Art Meets Blog v2.0 by Email today!

The colors on these beads are very muted from the gold & bronze glaze I applied.  The colors showed more in these photos.  I found that photographing jewelry is much harder than I thought.  I’ll try again with a different camera.  These are the ones in the last post.  The solid bead necklace is about 28 inches long.  All the beads are made by hand, no mold.  So they’re bumpy, lumpy… each one an individual.  Thanks for looking at my latest.  Have a great weekend. xo PJ

Here are a couple of new mixed media pieces I just posted over at my Imagekind gallery:

Mied Media on board 9×8inched
The lighthouse alone and aloof
a landmark by day
a beacon of light at night
A message of hope to sailors
a motife for artists
This was the first a experiment really the full story on here

Fingers: Working up some illustrations from tales and stories in my sketchbook. Just the ground work before starting them in textiles for the next exhibition. They won’t be to everyone’s taste, I understand that.  I enjoy building the images with layers and stylising the faces. So here’s two of the first sketchbook versions, they’ll change as I rework them of course…

Sketchbook painting of Molly Whuppie

Sketchbook illustration of a giant

 Remember the Shakespeare series of illustrations? Well, I’m thinking of developing the new story illustrations along similar lines…I’m planning on adding text, a short pithy summary of each story alongside the image… The Shakespeare series was pretty successful, it particularly went down well at the Nantwich exhibition, selling 5 out of the 8 on show there. Flashback image for reference…

Romeo

  Let me know what you think?

British art: Painting 'Mousehole' by Mike Bernard RI

This painting was delivered to the gallery this week. It features a view of the Cornish harbour and fishing village of Mousehole. Mousehole is a location much favoured by British artists. This contemporary mixed media painting comes from leading British artist Mike Bernard.

Mike Bernard produces highly textured semi-abstract paintings often executed in mixed media incorporating collage and acrylics. Bernard enjoys bringing an experimental approach to his watercolour and oil paintings. Regular subjects include coastal and street scenes in the English West Country and Italy. Speaking about his British Art Mike says: “What attracts me most is the pattern of buildings, boats and similar features in a scene. I build a painting by putting in blocks of colour to develop a pattern which is pleasing to my eye in colours which are harmonious, bringing in feelings of spontaneity, freshness and freedom.”

Red Rag Gallery – Modern Art from British Artists , Irish Artists , Scottish Artists and Limited Edition Prints

Hi all,

I finally snagged ahold of a camera. Here are some pictures of three previously constructed shrines.

The first was meant to avoke the idea of the “old world” roadside shrines. Its meant to be interactive where candles and flowers would slowly build upon it creating an ever-evolving piece. Christian symbolism – while present – is accentuated by the pagentry of ever changing candles, incense, and objects which alter and inform the piece:

Old World Shrine

Detail: Shrine

Detailed 2

The second was an experiment exploring the question… What are the “modern” roadside shrines of today? What spirituality is found within the life of a secularist?  In a sense, I explored the idea of music, film, and technology distilled through the vehicle of television and mp3 players are the modern version of hymns and candles. We connect to a sexualized spirituality through the heavy drum beat of hip hop or house music while watching stylized airbrushed unreal celebrities or models.

Shrine to Modernity

The third piece was simply a characture of a shrine. It neither explored old world spirituality nor its more modern incarnations. Instead I seeked to take from an object and form a shrine around it. The idea of the suit of clubs – also known as acorns or flowers… Appealed to me. The Queen held a sense a femine security: A woman enjoying the scent of a flower and living in a carefree palace.  Indeed… this shrine in a sense followed the ancient idea of shrines or churches or temples being palaces for the object it encased.

The Shrine of the Queen

Queen Shrine (2)

Boogey Man (also called Childhood Nightmares) is a 3-D book and sculpture in one. It was purchased by a student from Russia and now has a home far away… just goes to show you that childhood fears and nightmares are international. (c) 2007

(This piece is in Russia now! It was bought by a student at Kent who took it home with her.)

Bonjour,

La “ronde épistolaire” lancée en juin continue et je reçois de bien belles créations dans ma boîte aux lettres…

Merci Emma, merci Nath !