Not-Going-Anywhere Vacation

I'm daydreaming about my days off from work, this coming week. It's going to be nice. I have a list of things I would like to get done on the house and some fun stuff too, of course. And when you live in a town with a beach, it's that much better to stick around town and keep it low key.
 

Architecture + Films, CONTEMPT

I've mostly lost interest in modern day films (other than the HOBBIT) and have been watching more and more old films. Still narrowing down what country and era holds my attention the most but above all, I love a film that reveals some interesting architecture.

And nothing has blown me away like the house built on the cliffs of Capri, Italy in this 1963 french film, CONTEMPT.

Nice shots and a write up of it on arch daily, in their films and architecture series. Also, a trailer. It's totally artsy and moody and wouldn't be complete without the stunning Bridgitte Bardot. At moments, I was honestly ready to turn it off but so glad we stayed with it. You'll see what I mean if you watch it.


Another photo and article on Architectural Digest.


We taped it off TV - do a search and catch it if you can!

Lately

While I take a break from painting, these are some of the other things on my mind:

• Spotted this beauty at home depot yesterday. It's called Lion's Tail.
• Bought a $20 chicken at the farmer's market in Hillcrest when my mother-in-law was here. It was an American Bresse, which is a breed grown under strict regulations in France. You have to cook it long and slow, unlike the modern chicken. The skin was much thicker and the meat was somewhat stringy but not in a bad way. Definitely more flavorful and gamier.
• Bought some fancy beans finally. Got the Good Mother Stallard variety but haven't made them yet.
• Angry Orchard Variety Pack. Trying the Traditional Dry right now.
• Thinking about fall and wondering if and when it will feel like it here in southern California.
• Picking out paint for the new media room. Medium Grey I think.
• Just finished having the outside of the house painted white with dark grey trim.
• Ripping Harry Potter audiobooks CDs from the library and wondering if a subscription to Audibles.com would be easier.
• Probably time to get out the fiber optic jack-o-lantern

Hope you're enjoying some fall colors wherever you are. Enjoy them for me!

....and one more

As the paint was drying, this 5" x 7" work went in the mail for the annual RED DOT sale at Women and their Work in Austin, Texas. That show will be up from September 13 through the 26th.

In other art news, my paintings for the annual Enormous Tiny Art Show (ETA 14) at Nahcotta Gallery are up on their webstore, if you can't be there in person. I'm happy to be in the company of so many other wonderful artists.

That's all, and quite enough for now! And with that, I'm off for a well deserved break. Time to spend some weekends riding bikes, putting the final unpacking touches on my studio and making our new house look like home. At the moment, I think that means kitchen remodel and a few new light fixtures here and there. Sounds like fun and a nice change of pace.

Complete

6 new paintings all finished to ship off to the northeast part of the country. I say good bye to each and every one of you little watercolors that I labored over so dearly. Be well and I hope you all find good homes!

Almost forgot (not really) Comic Con 2013

Here's what I saw at Comic Con:

• Tim Leong, signing copies of his new infographic book, Super Graphic: A Visual Guide to the Comic Book Universe
• Dragon paintings and hobbit bowls
• A panel about an illustrator whose name I already forgot
• Nachos, nachos, nachos 
• Poketo in person!
• Lots of fleshy girls in costume, under bad conference hall lighting
• Things I have never heard of
• Things I want to hear more of
• More faces than I need to see in a long time 

Bay Street Bazaar and Urs Fischer

Downtown bazaar with sprinkler going in the parking lot for a creative summer flair. Nice touch and I'm sure hours later, it was showering little children.

Not only the tried and true food trucks but a flower truck too!

What's a hipster warehouse party without this perfect wooden restroom door?

Urs Fischer Bread House at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art.

Urs Fischer work at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art.

Urs Fischer label detail at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art. He did these drawings himself. Bravo! Well done.

Urs Fischer work at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art.

We made a day trip up to Los Angeles Saturday for an art fix. 

We started with a visit to the Bay Street Bazaar located in a warehouse district with DJ, ice cream floats, various clothing goods and food trucks. It was a fun little scene and I couldn't help but ask myself, "what about this is NOT austin?" Definitely more of a glamour hipster scene then the hippie flavor. Lots of fancy shoes.

Next up was a stop at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art to see the Urs Fischer show. He's a Swiss sculptor that creates some very dreamy textural pieces with a domestic theme. A fantastic show, especially in how the space was transformed with the black painted flooring and the cut out walls. Very glad we were able to see it.

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