View from the Athenian

One of Scott's pieces.

This was out on a shelf in the living room, and I took a picture. This is a great piece.  
 

the hoof is finished!

Finally, I have finished the hoof. It is white crackle, with a pink hoof. oh, and it looks like the leg has been cut off.

The Kitchen Sink! And Christmas!

Here's the long-awaited picture of the sink-area of the kitchen. It is a little cluttered, but if I waited for it to be perfectly clean, no pictures would ever be posted.

I decorated the tree this weekend, and as always this year's is the prettiest one.

Here's a dirty little secret. I am a Trekkie. Not even a Trekker, but a Trekkie; you know, the ones looked down upon by the other 40-year old computer jockeys at the DragonCon. Not cool enough for nerds. That is bad. But I love my Hallmark Collectable USS Enterprise Holiday Orniment. It has flashing lights.

This little bird is one of a pair I got from my Grandma Franz. You clip them over a light and they glow what ever color the light was. They are porcelain. I like them.

Blog Against Racism

Today is Blog Against Racism day, so I will use today to relay some anecdotes about racism in my life. As you may or may not know, I have some native american somewhere in my foggy past, enough to know by looking at me that I ain't white enough. While I hardly think I have been discriminated against in my life (I live a charmed existence, mostly) I have encountered attitudes from people from time to time, letting me know that there was something wrong about me, and they didn't want me to think I was getting away with it or passing or anything.

I have just picked two incidents, inconsequential in the long run, but startling at the time. The first was from Middle School, this incomprehensibly evil kid named Robbie took it as his personal mission to make my life a living hell. He had a ton of names he called me; "Chink" and "Jap" were his two favorites for a long time -- (he didn't know I was indian, and I didn't think setting the record straight so he could call me by the correct epithet would help) . Then, I think, as an outgrowth of "Jap" he started calling me "nazi". I think because the japs were our enemies in WWII and so were the Nazis, so what the hell. He did this as a matter of course in front of Teachers and the Principal and the lunch ladies and no one ever thought to stop him. Did I mention this was in Texas? Of course it was. A ton of other things happened over my not being white enough, but that will have to wait for another time.

The other incident happened on September 12th, 2001; you know, The Day After. It was the end of the work day; I was rushing for my bus, and wanted to go to the bathroom really quick before I went out to the bus stop. I had a backpack on, and as I was rushing into the bathroom, the bathroom at my work, where I had worked for the last two years this lady sort of hysterically shouted at me (paraphrasing here, I can't remember precisely) "are you supposed to be here?" "What are you doing in here? What is in the bag?" Now I know on 9/12 we were all freaked out and everything, but that lady wouldn’t have batted an eye if I had been a blonde.

There are times I have had racist reactions to people, and for that I am sorry. It is something I think every American struggles with every day; and I for one, am going to keep fighting those impulses.

The Kitchen!! Woo!

Here is the Before Photo, right after we bought the house.

Then, the fridge and oven were on the other side of the room

Ok, now; moving right along... (ok it has been 4 years. Stop quibbling.)



Here is the kitchen with the drywall up, and no cabinets yet.

The sink is left of us in these photos. I need to take a picture of that, too. It is hard to tell what is going on, really.

And here it is with the counters in. The counter doors are being difficult, but I will keep you updated, gentle reader, I know how you worry.

It turns out I will do anything to keep from going to the gym.

It turns out I will do anything to keep from going to the gym.

Even go look at art.

If you need to avoid anything this month, you’re in luck, because there are some great shows out there.

I actually started out going to the post office (the holiday stamps are out!), and I had every intention of going right to the gym after I got back. However, I remembered Fay Jones was showing at Grover/Thurston this month. I have quite a soft spot for Fay Jones, she curated me into my very first art show, it was in Bellingham and that is all I remember about it, except that she chose my dear friend and wine drinking partner Carolyn Zick to win that show. I feel like alot of what Fay has been doing lately has been by the book for her, dutifully painting sailors dancing with women in polka-dotted dresses. This body of work, however, is beautifully nuanced and chock full of narrative content. A friend of mine told me he went to the opening, and his companion said to him: "I want to go, these paintings make me feel stupid." (ed note: no comment.) Jones usually paints on paper, but in the larger pieces she uses some specific Japanese paper (of course I didn't write down the name) that is the color of parchment. This buttery golden color is a great unifying factor behind the brushy sumi ink and acrylic. You can see where she restates features and moves things around as collage pieces, only to paint them out in the end. The top corners of the drawings are pierced through many times, recording her taking the painting up and down as she worked on it. All this evidence of touching the paintings gives them a melancholy--it gives it human characteristics. They are fragile and resilient all at once.

I also want to encourage you to go to Pacini Lubel, there are two very nice shows there. In the first gallery is the ever more noteable Adrian Arleo. Often skill in a medium can overshadow emotional depth, or the message is not serviced by the facility with the material -- in other words, people are often craftsmen or story tellers, but rarely both; Arleo's figures convey novels, while rarely dipping into the melodramatic, and are hugely skilled. In the back gallery at Pachini Lubel, Eric Bashor's pallet-knifed oil on linen is also on the must see list.

Now get out there you knuckleheads.

David Tallitsch in LineAge at The Drawing Center

My good friend David Tallitsch is in a show called LineAge at the Drawing Center. AND the show was reviewed by the New York Times -- yay!

In 2004 he collaborated with the poet John Ashbery to create Ignorance Of The Law Is No Excuse, a limited edition of 200. I have long been an admirer of David's work, and you can see examples here and a lot more here.

Clay horse parts

First off, I don't know what is up with the formatting and don't have time to troubleshoot, so forgive the annoying format.

Here is the clay horse head I have been working on. It has 3 coats of Milk Glass glaze on it, and I am ready to start painting.

This is the hoof-- it is made of porcelain -- the head was Vashon grey. The porcelain is much smoother and easier to work with.

Hoof view two. You still can't see the detail on this -- I painted the hair on with slip.

The begining of a drawing, this'll be very different when I get done with it. And yes, it is a threat.

Barbeque Table

table top

I have a little metal table I use next to the bbq. I painted it a while back, and am just now getting to posting.

Bbq table

More importantly, Scott and I went on a pizza binge this summer, getting the pre-made Larry's artichoke, sundried tomato, chevre, pesto pizza (EIGHT BUCKS!! NO LIE), (and also the spinach, feta, roasted pepper, portabella); loaded up the briquette starting thing, (if you don't have one of these things, get one) and 15 minutes later, you are ready to go. Put the pizza on a pan, close up the Webber and in another 15 you are in heaven.

I know it is a little late in the barbeque season, but you gotta try this.

Portland

So I went to portland with carolyn this last weekend...

Kind of got off to a shaky start, because I thought Friday was Thursday (long story, ok not really long, but I am still not going in to it here), so when she called me, semi-frantic, semi-pissed I hadn't picked her up yet -- I had a half a second of "Huh? Portland? Aren't we doing that tomorrow?" Before realizing, uh oh, brainiac strikes again; Not much damage done, thankfully. I threw some stuff in a bag, and we were on the road in an hour.


We went to the Affair at the Jupiter. I couldn't agree more with the Willamette Weekly's assesment of the whole thing, quite impressive--artwise, that is. Closing the bar at 10? I thought Seattle's art parties were lackluster -- but at least we let the keg run out.

But honestly, that is quibbling, We had a fabulous time. Local Wundersomthing Jeff Jahn curated an excellent show, Fresh Trouble. In retrospect, the most compelling piece in the show was by Jahn's GF Laura Fritz. Her installation in a small room at the back of the space was disjointed (and it was very dark; what is it with super-dark installations? I realize it covers a multitude of sins, but, oh wait I am rambling) -- but one part of it was a long, low rectangular box, with one end a glowing white-plexi screen, on which were projected shadows of a cat--or was the cat actually in the box? This was by far the most distressing and disconcerting feeling I have had in an art-experience for some time. Who would lock a cat in a box for the sake of an art installation? Surely there was not really a cat in there? As I lingered in the room, listening to the other viewers, it was interesting to listen to them question if there were a live cat in the box, and reason their way to concluding it just couldn't be...surely he would meow? Anyway, I think anything that makes people spend that much time and energy is a successful piece.

The box of pee, though; I guess I didn't get that.

Anyhow, go if you can, it is up one more weekend.

Another weird thing I just had to have

I just don't know where to start. The hat? The leglessness? The waves in the background? I just don't know........ But I love it.

Labor day trip to Montana

I had a great time in Montanan this last weekend. Lisa has a great horse, named Stella. She's part shire and foxtrotter, and an excellent trail horse. Here we are riding in the woods.

this is how high the grass was.

Dust devil on my way home

Annabelle

Stella

Another lousy day in paradise

I am having a hard time staying in the office today, it is really beautiful outside. This time of year, you never know when the rain is going to start.

Speaking of "this time of year" the art season is about to start, and there are two shows I am really looking forward to. The first being Carolyn Zick at Shift gallery.

Secondly, Ed Wicklander is having a show at Greg Kucera. Go go check 'em out!

And, don't forget Bumbershoot!! Tonight it's FREE!!

some of our fab collection

Scott and I have alot of, um, 'stuff'.


Can you believe someone didn't want this and gave it to a thrift store?


We really like paint by number paintings.


Jesus!


This is a lousy photo of a cool plaster dog.

Clay horse head

So I have been making this horse head out of clay for a really long time.


I probably started it in late May or early June, I can't quite remember.


The mane was really hard, and I still don't like it.


I have decided to be done with it, even though other parts of it bug me, too.


Scott's been working with porcelain, and I really want to finish this one so I can do one in porcelain.


I have no idea what sort of surface treatment I will do after it's fired.

I know I am the only one who finds this the least bit interesting

But I just love the cats and the garden. Here are one or two (or five) more pictures.



This is Jake. He is asleep on the doorstep.




The garden is full of sculpture, mostly found object. This is a rubber glove mold in a cement conduit.




This is one of the fuschias this year -- this one is 'Marshmallow'.



This is 'Goldie Gull'. It was named Dahlia of the year for 2005.



I have forgotten what the name of this geranium is, but it is just beautiful -- with lots of flowers.

I got up a little early today...

so I could hang out in the garden for a while.



Since my yard is pretty shady, my dahlias bloom a little late. These two are the first, a black button dahlia called Fidalgo Blackie and a star dahlia called Pinwheel.



For some reason my jasmine is blooming again -- I have never had that happen before, usually it just blooms in the spring.
This is a shot up through the jasmine arbor, and a closeup of the flowers.



These little guys are just cute.



Bug was so excted I was out there with her, she wouldn't stop racing around. This is the best shot.




Lillies are my favorite of all time -- the spotted stargazers have the most wonderful, complex fragrance; sort of like chocolate.

New Couch!! Yay!

Here is our new couch! It is red leather. I love it.

Carolyn's Show!

I finally made it to Carolyn's show at Highline. I just love her line quality and the strange scary dark she gets. I remember way back in the dark ages when I was learning to draw, I was struggling with something, suddenly the thought came to me, "Carolyn wouldn't be afraid of doing this". It was really a breakthrough for me, to understand the difference between being inspired by someone vs. copying their moves. Thanks Carolyn!

Highline doesn't have Carolyns work up yet on their gallery page, but they do have a webcam! Until the show is taken down, you can look at it that way.

Here are a few of my favorites: