Happy Monday

Too sick not to share. I love international hip-hop, in particular South American stuff.




Check out the super talented Montreal based crew Nomadic Massive

The work that got delivered...

Special Delivery

So, yesterday I dropped off my art at VCAM/RETN to be hung for the Art Hop. I have to say that the entire process of becoming part of this annual mass art show had at first been something truly exciting to me, but in some ways I have retrospectively begun to feel like a member of a herd. The artists don't get to be involved in the hanging of the show, are shuffled in and out without any real input and may (I speak from personal experience) even be treated dismissively by folks whom they might try to ask a question or two. To top it off, the Sevendays Juried show which I had received what appeared to be an open invitation to costs an additional twenty bucks... to enter one piece! It has already cost me $55 to join SEABA, hundreds in supplies to make the paintings, probably close to a hundred hours and thirty years of painting, studying and learning. Why are we charging the artists to show their work people? If this is a artistic collaboration with South End businesses and the purpose is to show off both the city's artists and showcase the revitalized business spaces, thus driving traffic down Pine St. and into spaces often otherwise neglected then why are the artists footing the bill? Am I any more likely to make money as a result of taking part in this show? Unlikely. Are these businesses?

I love what they do and I love art so I will always do whatever I can to support it... Hell I even bought $5 ArtHop buttons for my entire family, but really? Twenty more dollars to show one more piece?


Anyway, enough about all that... this is how I would like to be spending my time...

The Passing of Time...

How did I get here from there?

It has been many months since I have had the time and an internet connection in order to post blogs to this page. I haven't "missed it" but have definitely noted that it wasn't able to happen and wasn't part of my internet existence. In 2010 so much has happened.

It all started with a painting collaboration that took place in the coldest months between myself, Shape, Transplante, Humble and a crew of others who helped to inspire and move a seven panel painting from splatters of latex to a simple direction for my work to follow.

Next, there was the Intrepid Manifestations spoken word theatre piece that took a small event at the Flynn Space by storm. This piece brought Travis Card back in to the fold as a friend and collaborator (more on that later). A 45 minute long conversation between 5 poets with spotlight pieces for each that was one of the most passionate works of art I have been a a part of in years.

This was followed by the rebirth of my personal painting "career." After almost ten years away from working on canvases in any scale that warrants review I have been able to produce some of the best paintings of my life, finally moving away from a strict spraycan world and back to the brush.

In the interim I squeezed in training for, competing in and completing my first triathlon... something that was born both from a physical rebirth and an inspiration from a coworker who I had held dear to my heart before her departure from the Group Home that I have made my job for this period of time.

Throughout this time music has made it's way in and out of my life with a series of freestyle formatted shows, many 2nd Agenda appearances and a continued process of sharing my poetry as both music and written or spoken word.

Now, here I am weeks from my first appearance as part of Burlington's Art Hop; a seminal event that plays host to the majority of Burlington's working artists for one weekend. I await confirmation of my participation in a graffiti competition being hosted by Magic Hat and the Shelburne Art Center (fingers crossed), and have a December show at the North End Studios to look forward to.

So, I'm looking back at a pretty good year. Looking forward to more. In a few days MB starts back up at school and a week later Isabel. This will bring some much needed structure and balance to my schedule. It appears as though the long awaited move is going to happen and this will create a scenario with much less chaos spacially and my ability to have a real painting studio, in-house with access to all of my tools.

I feel like I could go one and on, but I think this serves as a pretty decent update. So, if you've never read my blog before, scroll down and check out some of the stuff I've posted in years past. And if you do know this page and are still interested in my life... well, I'm back.

Here's a little something I found that demonstrates the ability to find beauty in the madness while also pointing out just how many mistakes mankind has made along the way.

The Grain Terminal from Charles le Brigand on Vimeo.