Archive for the ‘Music’ Category
I’ve written about The Open Field Artists before. You’ll have another opportunity to see them this week at Artini, at the Missoula Art Musuem starting at 5.30PM. From their email invite: “There will be 13 of us presenting at Artini this coming Thursday the 15th. We have been preparing for this since summer. There will be improv throughout the space as well as set pieces up in the Native American Art Gallery. Adelade and Jonathan have created hanging structures which will also be in the space. Our first show is from 5:30-7pm. Then a talk from the visiting artist until 7:30. Then again we have another show from 7:30-8:30. We will have a brief talk-balk opportunity from 8:30-8:50. Peace…and always…Muchas Gracias Words Used for the Creation of Works for MAM’s November Artini: revolution. community. oppression. freedom. revolution. Secret Agents will watching the space, the people. The public should be prepared for questioning. Revolutionary clowns appear with a Technicolor Dragon which will lead humanity toward a further acceptance of self inside-of-other! Perhaps we are connected (Earth). Perhaps we should being doing more. Perhaps…Listening, Questioning, Celebrating. The OpenField Artists is an Interdisciplinary art collective which uses dance, theatre, spoken word, music, video and visual art to explore themes such as Myth, Cultural Identity, and Consumption. Through experimentation, improvisation and the presentation of original works, they create experiences that involve the public in a variety of ways. OFA:
THE ALBUM WILL COME AS A 48.4MB ZIP FILE CONTAINING 10 X 160KBPS DRM FREE MP3s. All you have to do is perform a Google News search for “Radiohead”, and you’ll see that much is already being written about their decision to make their new album “In Rainbows” available for download at a cost of, well, whatever you’re willing to pay as a consumer. Yes, this is revolutionary, but let’s take a closer look, and then let’s draw some parallels before deciding what, if anything other artists can learn from Radiohead’s bold move. Free art has been available for a long time. I have degraded images of some of my art available for your viewing. How am I to stop you from “stealing” it by downloading it to your local machine, or even making prints of it yourself? I can’t stop that. (If you DO decide that is the route you’re going to take, please consider making a donation of whatever amount you’re comfortable with). I’ve also given away my artwork for free before. Sometimes, I don’t know who the recipient of the free art is. Other times, I have the pleasure of meeting the In the case of the restaurants, they are hoping that you’ll come into their establishment and buy more food. Similarly, Radiohead is offering their music for free, if you want it. But, as they say in the email which they send to folks who have signed up to download the album tomorrow, the songs will only be ripped at 160KBPS. I like my digital music at 192 or better, and I’ll bet that audiophile fans of Radiohead are willing to pony up some cash for an actual CD of the music, as there are rumors floating around that Radiohead will sign with a label to distribute the album in 2008. Think you can avoid the lines getting the digital version? Nope, there’s even a digital queue:
But can visual artists, for example, afford to give away their best work for free? Maybe degraded digital copies of it, sure, but originals? No, I don’t think they can. And I’ll go one step further and ask all artists who are just getting started not to underprice their artwork. Doing so de-values artwork by other artists of the same caliber and makes the art-buying public thank that paying full value for art is not necessary. I was in a gallery over the weekend at which the featured artist was selling small 5″x7″ framed original watercolors for less than $100. An original is worth more than that, my friend. For more about how to price artwork, have a look at this article. Donate and Support the Artist If you found this article useful, please consider making a small donation. I accept donations in any amount, none are too small or too large. All donations and gifts will be used to further my artwork. Donations are easy to give online, via Paypal or if you would like to work out any other method of supporting your local arts, please contact me directly via email.
Every day most of us are challenged to use our creativity in some fashion. Maybe we need to become a magician and meet an impossible deadline, or figure out how to make six rolls of sod cover an area that needs eight rolls. Or maybe we’re staring at a blank computer screen, a new text document page open, cursor blinking, awaiting our fingers to touch the keys in a stroke of genius to write that winning proposal, that amazingly heartbreaking poem, the next great American novel or a Grammy Award-winning song. The blank canvas awaiting paint. A glob of clay awaiting shaping. A difficult conversation with a spouse or mate. Whatever creative challenges we each face during our daily lives, sometimes we get stuck, find ourselves in a rut, and allegedly unable to get to the next level. We are uninspired. How do we inspire ourselves? Recently, I received an email from a friend asking that very question. “How do you find inspiration to create?” he wanted to know. He was embarking on a new project and had hit a wall. I thought that it was courageous of him to ask someone like me, an unknown artist on the other side of the country, for advice. I’ve been thinking about it for a while, and I’ve talked with other musicians and artists and asked them where they find their creativity and inspiration when they’ve got a block. I’ll focus this How to Find Inspiration article towards artists, but it can be applied in many different walks of life. 1. Deep Observation. Of self, of your surroundings, your thoughts, goals, successes and failures. I like to start outward and work in. Grab a notebook or sketchpad and head to a place that inspires me. Sometimes it’s out in nature, near a river or up in a mountain. Other times, it’s as an unnoticed face in a crowd as I people-watch. I write down thoughts and ideas as they come to me, and I go back later to reflect on the initial bursts of idea in more depth. I think about how the external themes I’ve recorded may apply to me, and then eventually ask myself how those themes can be expressed with intimate personal depth but still apply as a universal truth. 2. Other Artists. When I feel uninspired, I go to the library and sit on the floor with art books sprawled around me. I always like to choose some favorites, and a few that are unfamiliar. I keep a notebook of ideas that sometimes includes rough sketches of an idea, but always a line or two about a project I want to start. Sometimes, it isn’t the library, but the Internet where I look at inspiring artwork. Drawn!, Flickr, DeviantArt, PhotoJojo, a random Google search, The Wooster Collective, or even a place like Bighappyfunhouse. In the case of my friend, the musician, I’d try head to the record store and browse via the headphones music with which he’s unfamiliar. Ask friends to make mix CDs of new music that they’ve been listening to with which you may be unfamiliar (so that you can use it as a jumping-off point for your own creativity, of course, not to pirate music. And, if you like the stuff on the mix CD, go out and buy the original). Go see some live music of bands or genres with which you aren’t familiar. Always explore the unknown genres of art, music, whatever when finding yourself uninspired. 3. Other Types of Art. If you are a visual artist, go listen to some live music or see a play. Watch a ballet. Check out some performance art. On a budget? Check your weekly independent newspaper, often there are many free cultural events happening around town that you can take in and help fill your creativity cup. 4. Collaboration. Nothing fuels creativity like collaborating with someone else on a piece of art or a project. The major challenge when collaborating is to let go of all expectations, and allow the process to create the art along with you. It’s one of the most challenging things I’ve ever tried, but when it works, it’s a lot of fun and also very rewarding. One of the big problems for many folks when collaborating, including myself, is not only letting go of expectations, but also of ego. When you collaborate, you have to be humble and open to new input and the ideas of others. 5. Experimentation. I work a lot with collage and abstract paintings. A while back, I was tired of the art on my walls that I’d made, and tired of what I was producing. I had some huge canvases that I’d gotten for free, some time on my hands, lots of paint, and no ideas. I decided to try something I’d never done. They reason I think that the paintings were successful is that I gave myself permission to fail. Sometimes in life you may think that you do not have that luxury, but, as James Joyce said, “A man of genius makes no mistakes, his errors are volitional and the portals to discovery.” By experimenting and playing, I found some things that worked that I knew I could apply in the future, and things I didn’t like so much that I likely won’t try again. 6. Deadlines. Sometimes, there is no way around it. You have to git-r-done and you have a specific cut-off point that if you miss it, you could die. Figuratively, of course. The death might be one of public embarrassment, missing a deal at work, or closing doors in the future. Last year, I wasn’t feeling particularly motivated to make art, so I created for myself a deadline. I agreed to do an opening in June with a very short notice. I pulled it off, and the June show lead to a July show, which led to an August show that bled into September. With each show, I learned something about the process of putting a show together, but I also found myself feeling more creative and making more art. 7. Money. There is no way around it, Shakespeare’s got to get paid, Son. There will always be rent or a mortgage to make, car insurance, utilities, groceries. A person needs money to live. And sometimes when I know that I can make money by making a certain piece of art, that motivates me to make the art. If, after I’ve made it, I think it has any less passion or is in any way inferior to my other work, I don’t continue down that path. But money can be a strong motivator and inspiration. 8. Nothing. Sometimes there is absolutely no way I can get motivated or inspire myself. It’s at those times that I “just show up”, as was suggested in The Artist’s Way. Show up at the page. Write. Paint. Collage. Sing. Whatever your chosen art, show up at your specific “page” everyday and make your art. Practice makes perfect, and repetition breeds habit. Habits breed lifestyles, and if you are an artist, it is a lifestyle choice. I met Garrison Keillor once at a reception in Akron, Ohio after having heard him speak, and, at the time, I fancied myself a writer specifically. I was not focused at all on making visual art. I asked him, “What advice do you have for an aspiring young writer?” He said, “Write.” That’s it. Do it every day. This list is, of course, not an exhaustive list. It’s a jumping-off point and can easily be added to. I invite you, especially artists, to share in the comments what inspires you to create, and how you become and remain inspired.
Donate and Support the Artist If you found this article useful, please consider making a small donation. I accept donations in any amount, none are too small or too large. All donations and gifts will be used to further my artwork. Donations are easy to give online, via Paypal or if you would like to work out any other method of supporting your local arts, please contact me directly via email. Tags: art, howto, inspirationart, howto, inspirationIn coordination with CTA Architects Engineers, I am proud to announce the opening of my newest art show, Old Favorites, New Loves. As the title suggests, you’ll see some familiar work as well as some new canvases that I’m pretty excited about. Throw in a couple of never-before-displayed publicly collages and there’s a lot to see (and buy!). The fun starts at six PM and runs until eight. We’ll have some light refreshments, including beer and wine (I’m told). The music is sure to be great, as local musician Damon Vold will be on hand to embrace our ears with his drumming. He said he’s got some surprises up his sleeve too, so I’m looking forward to seeing what that means. As you’re out and about during First Friday Art Walk tomorrow, be certain to swing by CTA Architects Engineers over on Railroad Street, above the Orange Street underpass, across from the old Montana Hotel.
I’ve been insanely busy, plus it’s summer. Who wants to sit in front of a computer if he doesn’t have to? But I haven’t been avoiding work. I painted a foot for a marathon, am working on two individual legs for the AAS Benefit show on Wednesday, and have been getting my work together for an opening in August. I’ll fill you in on details on all of the above in the next few days. Meanwhile, here’s a pic of what happens after the following mathematical equation is completed: Gravel + High Speed Bike + Sharp Turn = ROAD RASH/Swollen Face
I look and feel much better today than I did yesterday, the day after the accident. The mirror effect is a result of having watched the below video and something that Mothersbaugh said about symmetry.
Adaptive Action Sports (AAS) is a non-profit dedicated to athletes with permanent physical disabilities and a diligent supporter of “action” sports. Through grants and private donation, AAS raises the bar to create the most outstanding adaptive snowboard events in the world. This is your opportunity to raise the bar a little higher and make a donation to the adaptive shredder. The Punk Rock Benefit Show is a fund-raiser to help send our adaptive athletes to the world’s premiere snowboard/ski/skateboard camp in the known universe, Windells Camp of Mt. Hood, OR. Once there, our riders will improve their skills with knowledge passed down from today’s top pros in the industry. Please come and rock out at the Badlander or make a donation to AAS at our website www.adaptiveactionsports.org.
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Still playing with some “How To” footage. Still hate iMovie. I don’t want you all to think I’m just sitting on my ass, so I’ll provide an update and then share some open mic love with you that I stumbled across in my experimentations. But first, let me give you the rundown on As my The workaround is to boot into XP and use the proprietary Sony app to import the footage onto my machine. The problem here is that I made the Windows partition pretty small when I created it, so I need to be able to access my external FW drives, which are Mac formatted. Because they are Mac formatted, Windows won’t see them. So I go and find MacDrive, and use that until the free trial expires. I got a lot of footage imported that way, but it’s in the shitty .AVI format. Which my Mac can’t deal with. Seriously, when I merely click on an AVI file, if I don’t attempt to open it right away, Finder crashes. WTF? So I install 3ivx as instructed. Still no love. Quicktime won’t play them, VLC will, but that still doesn’t help me with editing. iMovie won’t recognize them either. I keep getting a “wrong file type” error or something. So I need to convert the AVI files to a format my Mac can digest. I found iSquint, a free program that does just that. Works pretty good. Just takes a long time. The biggest problem I have with this process, though, is that the quality of the footage is being degraded every time I treat it in some fashion. I want to be able to just pull it right from the camera an play with the original footage. To give you an example, the AVI clip that I used for the YouTube video you’ll see here in a bit was 642MB. The .mp4 clip was 47.4MB after conversion from AVI. I know that if I were working with footage streamed directly from the camera, I’d be up into the gigabyte range, so I’m a little pissed that I’m expending large amounts of time on what inevitably will be a film with less than perfect image quality. So, I gained access to a professional quality film editing program. Granted, it’s an old version, but even when running FCP, the program won’t recognize my camera. I might be doing something wrong, too, and I have a call in to a director friend of mine that left me two voicemails explaining the less-than-intuitive way to capture footage into FCP. (Set four scratch discs, File–>Log and Capture. Log and Capture? But there’s an IMPORT option there too, why not just name it IMPORT and call it good? Sheesh.) Until I get a little bit more guidance, I’m leaving it sit for a time while I work on other projects, which I’ll talk about later this week. If anyone has any guidance they can offer me, I’d love hearing about it. Let me know in the comments. Now, though, it’s time to watch a little bit of open mic night. This footage was shot at Red’s Blue Goose Saloon in Gardiner, MT, 1999. The guy running sound was known as Shifty Brian, and Amy was dubbed Amy with the Boom and the Pow. I don’t remember her last name. She does a killer rendition of Hattie McDaneil’s 1929 song “Any Kind of Man Would be Better Than You” … Tags: Hattie McDaniel, iMovie, troubleshooting macHattie McDaniel, iMovie, troubleshooting mac |
