Owner: The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton URL:http Join Date: Mon, 01 Oct 2007 08:30:37 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: This is a place to read about the everyday creative processes that go into making my work. You can read all about what I'm doing in the studio or if I decided to have oatmeal for breakfast or what I'm thinking at 4:33 AM. Site statistics:Click here
Last Night... 2007-10-07 22:45:00 So... Greg, Cynthia, Azalea and I went to A Touch of Glass to see one of Deb and Gary's friends do a demonstration of making large sculptural glass birds. They were pretty cool. Don't ask me the name, because it has completely escaped me. I think his name was something Sparrow, but I'm not sure. It was hard to try and watch Azalea with all the dangers about... broken glass, jagged metal, flaming Read more:Night
Yard Dog Road Show... 2007-10-06 15:15:00 Last night, to celebrate Tony's birthday, we all went out to see the Yard Dog Road Show at the Orange Peel here in Asheville. It was a lot of fun! The traveling vaudeville troop of performers, musicians, and magicians evoke a certain carnival-esque vibe, combining costumes inspired by 1920's burlesque and road shows from the 1800's and energetic rock and roll. Be sure to check out their tour
New Suzanne Gonsalez ACEOs... 2007-10-05 20:02:00 Here are two new ACEOs
to add to my growing collection. They're both done by artist Suzanne
Gonsalez who is based out of Lexington, Kentucky. She is apart of the duo Raven Wolf Gallery. I acquired these very textured and layered mixed media ACEOs through her Etsy shop. (Yes, perhaps I am addicted!) These particular ones come from two series she's been working on. One of them focuses on
New Jenna Colby a.k.a. Soopajdelux Prints... 2007-10-05 19:36:00 I've been on a print buying binge lately. These are two more goodies that I got from Etsy. Aren't they great? They're both done by artist Jenna
Colby who also goes by Soopajdelux. Right now she's having a sale in her Etsy shop, two for one. But only until Halloween. Afterwards it's back to regular prices. I think these canvas-printed gems are a steal!
New Ashley Goldberg Print... 2007-10-05 18:44:00 This is another print I've been admiring for a while. It's done by AshleyGoldberg
, based out of St. Louis, Missouri. I picked it up from her Etsy store. Her graphic style appeals to my love of simplicity. I also love that she does bird girls! Aren't they cute? She also has her prints done on canvas for extra durability. Check out her blog by CLICKING HERE. Read more:Print
Corvus Vulpes... 2007-10-05 01:15:00 Above: Mixed Media Painting, "corvus vulpes" for Lisa Blackwell, by me - Andrew Thornton.
To complete a trade with Lisa of Zoa Art, I made her a painting. I call it, "corvus vulpes". It's the scientific name for "crow fox". Lisa was telling me about a series of books she was reading that featured this creature that was part crow and part fox. The background is made up of hundreds of layers of
Food for Thought... 2007-10-04 09:05:00 Haven't updated our food creations in a while! The other day, Cynthia made a Vietnamese Fisherman's Soup, I made some rice pudding and last night, Seven Bean Chili. My secret ingredient is adding maple syrup to the ground beef.
Above Left: A bowl of the Seven Bean Chili at my work station. Notice the Elmer's Glue bottle and scissors amongst decorative papers. No time for breaks!
Against and Together... 2007-10-04 05:59:00 It's another late night and still rest does not find me easily. I've been smoothing my mind over ideas of abstraction and figurative painting. Of what these terms have become and how they've changed and are constantly supplanting one another in popularity and debate. I imagine that I do this to attempt to navigate my own work and rediscover what is important for me as an artist.
This brought me
Awesome... 2007-10-03 06:31:00 Since my sleeping schedule has been a bit off lately, I'm finding it hard to sleep at regular hours. I am very disappointed by this, as I want to look rested and youthful and not haggard and oily (I break out when I don't get enough sleep).
So, what does one do when they can't sleep and are tired of working? They surf blogs! (Either that or find a bottle Tylenol PM.)
Anyway, I came across a
Kelly Lynn Jones Interview at Crafty Synergy... 2007-10-03 03:02:00 As I mentioned in an earlier post, I picked up a great print by Daniel St. George at Little Paper Planes. I happened to be browsing the CraftySynergy
blog and found a really great interview with the owner of Little Paper Planes, Kelly Lynn Jones. She's an amazing artist who is really in touch with architecture and space. Check out the interview by CLICKING HERE. And check out Kelly's blog by
Body Modifications... 2007-10-03 01:28:00 A bevy of talented young artists are participating in a group show curated by Jeanne Siegel entitled, "Body Modifications." Among the line up, this show will include the works of Elizabeth Castaldo, Katrina Contreras, and Amanda Amato. The show runs from October 5th to October 20th and will be at the Visual Art Gallery in Chelsea. The Opening Reception is Tuesday, October 9th. CLICK HERE for
An Interesting Idea... 2007-10-03 01:16:00 WOOLOO.ORG is now inviting artists to participate in LIFE EXCHANGE - presented in association with PERFORMA 07, the Biennial of New Visual Art Performance in New York. LIFE EXCHANGE is a one-week exhibition offering applicants the possibility to perform actual Life Exchanges with other individuals for a time. 10 applicants will be selected to open LIFE EXCHANGE on October 31st, 2007. During
Red-Eyed Monster... 2007-10-03 00:51:00 I have been hard at work finishing up projects for Faerie Con. Lots of surprises and goodies will be at this show! It's coming up in a week and some change and is just around the corner. The backgrounds are almost all done and I'm trying to gather together some material for an up-coming newsletter and finish some designs for a magazine. CLICK HERE to go to Cynthia's blog to check out the Read more:Monster
New Sarah Ogren Prints... 2007-10-02 02:05:00 I have been hooked on Etsy lately, treating myself to a belated birthday present of sorts (or so I tell myself). I just adore the idea of a forum for artists and crafters that enables them to share their work. I especially love picking up new prints for my collection. I think it all started with Jen Tong's Bunny Boy, and now I've been possessed with collecting rabbit prints. I especially like the Read more:Sarah
New Daniel St. George Print... 2007-10-02 01:36:00 I've been coveting this print by Daniel
St. George
for a while now. (Of course I would; it has unusual bunnies in it!) I love the juxtaposition of something sweet with a little bit of something scary. It reminds me of that line from Shakespeare's "Scottish Play": "Fair is foul and foul is fair..." After seeing a guide on collecting affordable prints on Design*Sponge this past summer, I Read more:Print
Back from Faerie Con... 2007-10-17 01:58:00 I am just settling back in after our adventures at Faerie
Con 2007 in Philadelphia. What a fun and magical time! For all of the pictures and some brief descriptions of the trip CLICK HERE. I am worn out after such an exciting time. After a long trip up from North Carolina, we got super early every morning after going to bed super late (on account of the Faerie Balls) and worked all day.
Back... 2007-10-16 01:34:00 I'm back from Faerie Con in Philadelphia and back home in New York. I'm ready to pass out now. We were all too busy to update this weekend. I'll update tomorrow with lots of pictures. For the moment... my pillow is calling loudly to my tired head. It says, "SLEEP!"
The Tooth... 2007-10-21 01:57:00 I was on my way back from grabbing a bite to eat when I saw something glinting in the light of a street lamp. Having found a plethora of treasures on the streets of New York, I bent down to retrieve it. Just before I touched it, I realized that it was a TOOTH! Judging from the size and shape, it was probably a human tooth at that. It was large, intact, and looked to have been freshly Read more:Tooth
While I was Gone... 2007-10-20 21:10:00 While I was gone down South, my new Anne Choi beads came in the post. I was so very happy to get them! For one, they're just GORGEOUS! Secondly, I had such a wonderful time with her and Lynn while they were visiting us in Asheville. Thirdly... they're Anne Choi beads, that should be enough in itself! I do love that she's making the mandrakes again and I'm really digging this new raven bead
Big Apple Glass Arts & Bead Festival... 2007-10-20 01:59:00 Today was the first day of the Big AppleGlass
Arts & Bead Festival
! It was so much fun seeing everyone who braved the rain and humidity to join us at the show. I'm really excited for the rest of the weekend. We've got lots of goodies on the table and I love meeting our customers. Above is a picture of the table display. I hope everyone who can make it out swings by! (OH! If you don't see
Elizabeth: The Golden Age... 2007-10-19 01:32:00 After setting up the show at the Big Apple Glass Art & Bead Festival, I dropped by the theater to catch Elizabeth
: The Golden
Age. The feel of it is quite different from the first. Somehow it was much brighter and operatic - almost disconcertingly so. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it quite a bit. Then again, I love Cate Blanchett in almost everything I've seen her in.
Settling In... 2007-10-18 01:46:00 It's Wednesday night and pretty late. I haven't really updated very much lately. Even though I have tons to share, I've just been a little swamped since I got back. I will hopefully be more on top of things tomorrow after a good night's rest.
Please make sure to join us at the Big Apple Glass Art & Bead Festival! It's at the Radisson Martinique on Broadway. 49 West 32nd Street, New York,
Welcome... 2007-10-25 01:59:00 Oh, my dearest Cat Merrick is now back in town! I am very happy to have her back from her West Coast adventures. She is currently staying with me while she looks for a place in the neighborhood. After we looked at one place, we dropped into the Wreck Room, and then for our dinner plans we went to the Bushwick Country Club (where the photo-booth picture on the left came from) and then we went Read more:Welcome
Evening... 2007-10-23 11:49:00 Despite how tired I was last night, I did not slip easily into sleep. Instead, I decided to rent a movie and try to relax. I picked up Evening with Claire Danes, Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Vanessa Redgrave, Toni Collette, Patrick Wilson, Hugh Dancy, and Natasha Richardson. The screenplay was written by Michael Cunningham (who wrote The Hours and A Home at the End of the World) and is based on
Sleepy Tired... 2007-10-22 22:33:00 The Big Apple Glass Art & Bead Festival was a lot of fun! I got to meet so many wonderful custumers and say hello to some of my bead show buddies. Lisa Kan has some beautiful ginkgo leaves that I just had to get, LillyPilly has some knock out new shell designs, Kathryn Bowan of BeadWeaver had some new patterns and etched components, and it was a pleasure making friends with my neighbors, Gregg Read more:Sleepy
Paper Bag... 2007-10-30 01:56:00 I remember hearing a Fiona Apple interview about her song, Paper Bag. In it, she recalled a time in which she felt strongly about symbolism and was seeking out meaning in the metaphor of visuals around her. During that time, she saw a white dove and thought to herself that everything would be okay. That white dove ended up being a plastic bag. She ended up changing the name of the song from
The Optimist... 2007-10-30 00:33:00 Earlier this evening, I met up with Kathy Callahan to discuss the performance piece that I will be participating in. I'm not normally a performance artist, so this should definitely be interesting. We all met up at the T Salon in Chelsea Market. Some of the other artists who will be helping out were there as well, including Essey and Ming. I haven't seen either in quite some time. Both of
Breakfast with Candice Wakumoto... 2007-10-29 13:58:00 Candice Wakumoto and her husband Paul were in town doing a bead show. They extended their trip to pal around New York. Candice is so tremendously talented and Paul is so wonderfully nice. I wanted to see them so much, but I've been so incredibly busy. Luckily we finally got an opportunity to hang out this morning before they went to the airport. They were packing, but it was so nice to catch Read more:Breakfast
, Candice
Closing Time... 2007-10-28 20:37:00 Greg, Cynthia, and Azalea took off today to head back down to Asheville. To say that I'm going to miss them is an understatement. I have come to realize that family is one of the most important things to me. Whether it is my actual family bound by blood-ties, or the family in which we create with friends... it is essential to my happiness. If Cat Merrick wasn't here to keep me company I'd
A New Room... 2007-10-27 23:03:00 Greg and Cynthia took me to Ikea in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Now I have a sofa and a rug and my living room looks like a living room. It is nice. We got everything just in time for an impromptu party. At first we were going to cook a big meal. Instead, we ran out and got a massive selection of dumplings from different Asian restaurants in the neighborhood: Lily Thai, Bin Cafe, and Red House.
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