Queen Kat

So I'm doing my usual scrolling through Instagram and art caught my eye. I saw phenomenal colors mixed with perfection of lines on a dope canvas. A dear friend to the blog posted this Queens phenomenal work and I just had to get her for a feature. This Queen is dope ya'll check her out.

1. What inspires your work?

Right now Bob Ross, people & cartoons inspire my work. Very odd combo. I grew up watching Bob Ross on PBS & his positive attitude never stopped him from painting even when he made a mistake. He would say "There's no such thing as mistakes, only happy accidents." I mess up a lot when I'm drawing, but I somehow turn it into something creative. I also used to be terrible at drawing portraits. It's now all I seem to be drawing! I try to get creative with the portraits so they aren't simple. I love going wild with the hair or backgrounds. Right now, I'm kind of trapped in this real/cartoony drawing phase. I love the bold lines that give my drawings more of a graphic look. Like on Power Puff Girls or Dexter's Lab. All of these things come together & are shown in my style today.

2. Who are some of your inspirations?

Aside from Bob Ross. I follow a lot of really dope artists on Instagram believe it or not. It's so great to see that there are other people my age out there rocking the art scene. Anything from photographers to sculptors to tattooists to painters. Some of the artists that I'm huge fans on Instagram are fans of my work & that blows my mind! It definitely keeps me going. 

3.Where did you get your start?

I got my start at a young age of 5 years old. My Ma (mother) sat me down on weekends & had craft time. She would teach me how to draw basic things, sew & make some really weird stuff! I made a few ugly monkeys out of panty hose in my day LOL! As I got older she taught me more about how to draw with dimension & perspective. Over time, with help from my Ma & art classes, my skills really grew. My Ma recently taught my 26 year old sister to draw. Drawing is definitely a skill that can be learned at any age.

4.What are you goals and aspirations?

My large goals: I would love to show my work at Art Basel Miami some day. It's a huge exhibition held on South Beach every year with about 50,000 attendees. I also would like to become a well-known artist across the United States if possible. My small goals: I'd like to become less critical of my work & be proud of it. I'm extremely critical of my work if it isn't perfect on the first try. Nothing is perfect on the first try. I'm still struggling with that lesson. 

5.What would you say to aspiring artists?

I would say that this road is rough. Most times people around me don't understand my dream of becoming a great artist. They try to convince me that it's a waste of time & not possible. I've lost a few friends while following my art dreams. This isn't a path that most want to take, but don't give up. I feel like shredding my drawings & throwing all my materials out my window at least once a week. This all takes time. Keep going. Keep practicing. Keep learning. Keep growing.

6.Do you live by a quote? If so what is the quote and how does it motivate you?

I live by 3 quotes:

1) "God is in the details." - Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe 

Details can make or break a picture. I prefer the high detailed route. 

2) "To avoid criticism: say nothing, do nothing, be nothing." - Aristotle

Critique is inevitable if you want to get somewhere. Criticism isn't always bad either. I've received critiques from other artists that have helped improve my work. Some people don't like criticism. I on the other hand welcome it.  

3) "Who am I? I could be anyone." - Rango

Yes. Rango. An animated movie about a lizard who finds his life purpose through a role-playing journey of which he gets lost in the desert. A very existential quote that really hit home for me. I can be whoever I want to be. Right now, I'm working on becoming a great artist. 

7. How can people follow you work?

Simple enough, I post my work on Instagram (@TheKathedral). But I would eventually like to create a small website where my work can by viewed & purchased even for the people who don't have instagrams. 

BeInspired Queen Sara

So all of those lovely pictures you keep seeing all over tumblr and on any of the visual artistry blogs are from this Queen right her. I'm so blessed to be able to have an opportunity to get her words on her art. If you have not heard of Queen Sara then let me brief you really fast. Queen Sara Golish is a visual artist from Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Yes Canada. She received her degree in BFA in Drawing & Painting in 2008. Then she expanded her brand by completing courses at George Brown College in graphic & web design and development. (info taken from her bio). Though I can tell you she is a flawless Queen, I want you to see her work and here her words for yourself.

1. What inspires your work?

My inspirations stems from many varying sources. Some of the most influential being underrated artists of the 19th century, 1970s design and culture, photography and music. Others include various cultures of the African diaspora, old vinyl album covers, fantasy art and film, textiles, wood, colour. The list could go on and on.

2. Who are some of your inspirations?

Contemporary living artists such as Jeremy Lipking, David Kassan, Audrey Kawasaki, Brad Kunkle, Tim Okamura along with a number of others, help keep me going. They are all successful artists making a living at what they do and of course are incredibly talented and doing great things.

3.Where did you get your start?

I’ve been drawing and painting for as long as I can remember. I took an art class as a child and then was part of an art program during high school. From high school I went to an art university and from there I’ve been freelancing and doing contract work in the arts since!

4.What are you goals and aspirations?

To become a successful and famous artist. Soon!

5.What would you say to aspiring artists?

It’s a lot of hard work, but if you are passionate about, it’s your ultimate dream and believe in what you do, it’s worth it!

6.Do you live by a quote? If so what is the quote and how does it motivate you?

I don’t live by any particular quote. There are many that resonate with me and I choose to re-read and remind myself of them. More often though, I try to meditate every day. I’ve been doing guided meditation by Deepak Chopra, someone I have a great deal of love and appreciation for. Listening to his wise words everyday motivates me in so many ways into being the best person I can be. That in itself I am grateful for.

7. How can people follow you work?

The easiest ways are all on social media and my blog. I’m on Twitter, Instagram and have a Facebook page. All links below. There is also a mailing list people can sign up for to keep up to date with news and events through my blog page and contact page on my website.

www.saragolish.com

www.saragolish.com/blog

twitter.com/saragolish

facebook.com/saragolishart

instagram.com/saragolish

BeInspired

So I was walking around the Delmar loop in St.Louis, MO and went into one of my favorite stores, Ziezo. Ziezo is an amazing store with a great ambiance and even greater customer service. I love the ladies at Ziezo and I like the inventory even more. Ziezo has always had affordable apparel, shoes and accessories. (For all my Jeffery Campbell girls, they have an account!) So I glanced in their see through counter to see these fabulous Nefertiti Wood carved earrings. Then, beside them where some continent of Africa pieces! Yes I almost fainted. I bought both! I asked who they were from and they said a local jewelry maker. I did my research! Oh yes honey I did! The line is called "Traces of Truth" by a beautiful Queen by the name of Tracie McKeown. I just had to let everyone know about this Queens "life giving" pieces. She has many other pieces on her site and below

Facebook: Traces of Truth
Instagram: TracesofTruthJewelry
Bigcartel: TracesofTruth
Email: tracesoftruth1@gmail.com

BeInspired!

My name is Robert Peterson or as you and many others know me by my Instagram or twitter profile name of @caleblee81.  I have been drawing most of my life to some degree but didn't really take it serious until Feb of last year after commenting on a post of rapper Fabolous & stating that I was going to sketch him if he would follow back. From that day until today I have drawn or done something art related almost every day.  As for my particular style/ use of color, I discovered it by accident when accepting a request to do a sketch of someone and realizing that the colors required for the piece were all colors I didn't have so I just used what I had and hoped for the best.  After doing to colorful Copic pieces for a few months I decided I wanted to try to teach myself how to paint (I had absolutely no prior experience or training with paint) which was June 29th of 2012.  Since then I have done around 30-40 paintings and have accumulated over 400 Copic pieces of which I have been blessed to have sold work all over the world and to all types of people.  I've said since the beginning that "you have to believe in yourself enough and eventually others will too" it's something that has motivated me daily and baked me to do multiple NYC art shows and gain the support of thousands of people from every corner of the world all from a small town in Oklahoma & from my home where all of my Copic pieces are done either in my room, dinning room or living room and paintings are done in my bathroom.   

Instagram:
@caleblee81
Twitter:
caleblee81

Be Inspired!

Marley Billie D has come to a fork in the road and instead of choosing one path, she's decided to take them all. The Midwesterner-by-heart visual artist is packing up her camera, paintbrushes, pens and pencils and setting out to make the world her canvas. The 21-year-old awakes to Chicago skylines each morning--her home away from home--but her native town of St. Louis will forever live in heart. Matter of fact, it was in her hometown that she started hitchhiking her way to masterpieces, becoming inspired by her mentors Kevin McCoy and Byron Rogers. It is also in St. Louis where Marley had the opportunity to travel to Ghana as a young girl, which sparked her evolving interest in African art. Her traveling shoes most recently led her to New York City where she worked for Natasha Morgan NYC and under the direction of Michael Solis at Sandbox Studio. She's a backpacking, thrift-shopping, camera-shooting, Photoshopping junkie who just wants to produce good art. As she continually strikes her canvas time and time again, Marley is setting out to make a global masterpiece of her journey traveled. Join her if you'd dare, but make sure you wear comfortable shoes because her journey is never, EVER ending. 

Written by Rikki Byrd (Sculpt Magazine) 

Modern-day Minstrel

You often find yourself playing a role. Fitting into some stereotypical box that someone has put you into. Never defining who it is you are outside of the context that has been provided. Or worse, you put on a show to entertain the likes of others. You rather appeal to the expectations of others and hide behind the mask of shame. You are a modern day minstrel.

The mask itself is appealing, in some ways beautiful, but it is a cover up for humiliation.

Minstrel shows began in America as whites performing in blackface imitating stereotypes of black people, soon after black began to take on the blackface paint and perform these minstrel shows as well. Entertaining their white audience while bringing degradation to the black race.

In modern day life the minstrel show has re-produced itself. Same game with a different face, playing into the expectations of those around us while reiterating the same stereotypes that have plagued the black community since the ending of slavery.

Who are we? Now in the century we have been given a chance to redefine what it means to be black. Yet we have limited ourselves to what others say that we can be. At 16 most young men can only dream of being an athlete or a rapper, and with the implementation of reality TV all our young women care about being are basketball wives. We are still being spoon fed who to be, and falling right in line.

Minstrel shows most commonly presented black people as lazy and dumb, and dehumanized them by the creation of a character used for many as a defining representation of the black race.

I have created a project that has added a modern twist to the traditional black face. My goal is to accent the broad definition of a minstrel show and illustrate how they are still very much prevalent today. African Americans are still the number one entertainers for white audiences, but now for us as well.

I'm trying to give a wake up call to not only our people but to White America as well. I find it very interesting that Willie Lynch wrote a speech 300 years ago about how to keep your slave in order, but 2012 marks 300 year after that Willie Lynch wrote his speech and yet we still live in that mentality. You would think now we would finally free ourselves but instead our community has become money driven. The hunger for money has exceeded to the point many do not realize the same institution is still in place, and we are still slaves.

I'm capturing the world’s perspective on personal minstrel shows they may take part in their lives and so forth.