music by jimmie vaughan, yeah!

[the photo set is here]

bettie donovan and myself in front of carlos hernandez’s painting

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Now playing: Boards of Canada – Constants Are Changing
via FoxyTunes

here’s to 2010.

more pix of the event here.

her site

she was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year. kudos!

click

i left early to attend a fellow artist’s birthday bash at the new dean’s on taft. what a great get together that was. it was a shame i left so early, but i was meeting rachel at the House of Blues for the Lawndale afterparty at 11:00. i got there and enjoyed a few songs by Spain Colored Orange, then more friends showed up. I was so happy to see Karina before she got onstage, I am so proud of that girl. i wish i could have stayed longer, but my feet were killing me and it had been a long LONG day for me. but it was delightful to blow off some steam and have a good time.

[the camera began to act up. not sure what's up with it. seems to be flash related. durnit]

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Now playing: The Cure – Charlotte Sometimes
via FoxyTunes

it’s an old remington and BOY is it a BEAUT! she said she figured i could make something out of it. and wow, my head’s been reeling ever since [and, honestly, even BEFORE this, as i have always wanted to stumble on such a find to work into assemblage] over what to do with it. the purist part of me is going to have a hell of a time taking this apart.

steph, you’re the best, thanks

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Now playing: Sigur Ros – Njosnavelin (Nothing Song)
via FoxyTunes

it was held at the sam houston memorial museum in huntsville texas. after setting up, my friend and fellow artist, big al, had come down from trinity to show me around. i had never been to huntsville. we rode around and he showed me the wonderful homes build by dan phillips. what an interesting fellow! and the homes were amazing. the stories behind them even more so. we visited the cemetery for the folks who died in prison [huntsville, afterall, is texas's home of the big house and where executions are still conducted ... although the cemetary itself, known by locals as peckerwood hill, holds inmates either who were executed or died in prison and whose families did not or could not claim their bodies.] it was like a less honorable and less attractive version of the veterans cemetery.

we stopped in for a beer at the stardust, a quaint little bar in the middle of town, then made our way to the show an hour before it opened. we packed the walls with art, a great mix of styles and mediums. jamie and jodie did a fabulous job of putting this all together. some friends from artshouston had driven up all the way from houston and that was a real treat. [thanks, heather and breonny ] and a local who i’ve known online but had never met before dropped by as well. [thanks, carl and xavier!]

all in all, a wonderful event. i sold “sic semper tyrranis” and everyone who showed seemed to be impressed by the artwork. it was nice to have met with the curator and his wonderful wife [she is the one who purchased my piece] and talk art. george russell had also made an appearance, but i didn’t get to say more than a few words to him when he commented on liking my work.

tired and happy, i made my way back home. my regrets for not staying for the afterparty, but it was going to take me a good hour and a half to get back to deer park and mixing in alcohol with that after such a tiring day didn’t seem like a good idea.

oh! i also acquired a piece from my fellow artist, YET Torres [it's the one all the way to the right] :

i loves it.

[my flickr set from the show: click here]

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Now playing: Ulrich Schnauss – As If You’ve Never Been Away
via FoxyTunes

[detail]

full images here

music is “Oakvale” by Danny Elfman and Russell Shaw

i can’t stay away from wonderland for too long.

[unaltered photos of the final piece]

i called lizbeth when i was about 71 miles outside of dallas to see if they had arrived … they were 50 miles BEHIND me. lol! i guess i was making good time. at any rate, i showed up to the hotel and they arrived soon thereafter. we had a lovely room at the sheraton, which seems to be undergoing some remodelling. what a view! it was spectacular 31 floors up. we had a little time to get ready before dashing out the door and getting to the bath house cultural center. and by little time, i mean we were an hour late. [my apologies if i missed anyone who came to the opening].

what an opening. so much wonderful work and so so many people. i got to see Billy and Bettie Bucher again, as it had been almost a year since i had last seen them [on pick up day]. and it was so so nice to see Jose Vargas once again, he really knocked it out of the park with curating it all and making it all look flawless. [thanks, jose]. and thank you, enrique, it was so wonderful to have met you. i look forward to working with you soon

the work was awesome and the girls were radiant. it was so nice to be showing with lizbeth and stephanie again.

i met several artists who were also in the show that night. joe zarate sarate, whose powerfully large assemblage piece was used for the mailouts [drat for me not picking up any for my scrapbook!]; juan valdez whose marvelous assemblage sculpture floored me when he explained what it was made of. good art conceals … and that it did. wow. john morrison, who wasn’t in the show, but i enjoyed speaking to about his silversmithing [he does great work, by the way, crossing cultures, which i love.]

we stayed well past closing time, getting to spend some time with jose and talk about art and dallas and the evolution of El Corazon [this was the 15th annual event]. soon, though, we were making ready to leave. we decided to hit Deep Ellum, a hot art spot near downtown. we found parking along one of the brick paved roads and marvelled at all the quirky buildings and hot spots … which sadly had all seemed to be closed. i’d never been to deep ellum, but the girls had, and they all lamented at how dead it was. we were starving at this point [i hadn't eaten anything all day except some fruit at the show, and i was beginning to feel it] we went into cafe brazil but left after the service was crappy [at least they told us in advance that it would be a while till we were served.]. we walked further down the street, passing up closed restaurant after closed restaurant, until we found a sweet little sushi place. yum.

after eating, we headed back to the hotel for a proper celebration, complete with champagne and libations. after a proper toast and group photo with timer, we all settled in … and promptly began to feel the effects of a long day. one by one, we all nodded off. lol! not even “the history of sex” on the history channel could keep us awake.

the next morning, we took a walk down to the museum of art. what a great experience, we were all so inspired. many photos were taken [that we were allowed to take ... and some that we were NOT allowed to take, but took anyway]. in one hall there was an interactive area complete with a table and some chairs and writing utensils. the girls were really excited and began to put their skills to work. i sat in a corrugated cardboard chair that had been recycled [and i wanted to take home, it was so comfortable] and just snapped photos instead. they found an area where they could hang their work up … and i pointed out the large sign on the wall … and we all cracked up over it.

after a rousing viewing of wonderful works of art, we all agreed that food was in order, so we ate at the cafe there, enjoying one another’s company and the memories we created that weekend.

thanks, ladies, for wonderful weekend. i hope we do it again.

[all the photos from our trip can be found here]

sam houston park

briscoe elem.

they were divine on the dancefloor:

got some great photos of the festivities. umbrella man was awesome, as usual. it was good seeing nick, paloma and robert, as it had been too long:

bettie and bill:

i could not resist this:

the rest of the photos can be seen here.

these were later in the evening than the ones i posted before. by using the flash, you can get a feel for how “heavy” it was coming down.

. . . . .

the boys had a great time building Mr. Hobo. each of them took on a childlike wonder that is hard to come by these days. afterward, they each warmed up with a nice hot cup of cocoa.

. . . . .

the cat still would have none of it. none.

later that evening, Mr. Hobo took on a gangsta lean, all by himself:

today, when no evidence existed that such an event even occurred [aside from some sand on bridges], we still have remnants of such a dream made real: