I am back again and here to stay !!!

Hey guys,

I am so glade to be back. Whats been up you ask? Well I had two laptops and a desktop die on me. Its hard to keep up with writing and blogging when I haven’t had a personal computer in a year.

But I am back. I plan to focus more on what I am up to as a writer and artist this time.

After taking almost two years to research and learn I am ready to finally finish Helix. I applied the knowledge as I gained it to my prologue and first chapter. The prologue it perfect and I wont be changing it any time soon. Now I can just write it and go back and edit later.

I recently started working on a short story (May become a short novel for teens I think) for a competition. About a week before the deadline, I found out about it late, I realized I could not finish it on time and be happy with the end result. So instead I will just keep writing it, see what it becomes, and then I do plan to sell this one

I was also asked to do a CD cover. Cant give that one away. I will post a photo when I am done.

So there it is. I am back and on fire. I will post some of my writing soon, but you can check out my page at Yahoo!Voices, I am a freelance writer.

http://contributor.yahoo.com/user/1598766/maria_wood.html

I haven’t gotten on much

I said before I wouldn’t be able to publish much, some things here and there. So now that things are coming down a little I thought I would give you all a link to my contributor page on yahoo. You can look at all the articals I have written lately, short stories, poems ect. Come by and see me

http://contributor.yahoo.com/user/1598766/maria_wood.html

Absent

I know lately I have been absent. I never seem to find the time to do all the projects I have in the works. Sometimes something fall to the wayside, left to wait until I have the time to get back to it. I feel bad about not posting for so long.

I have been up to some new endeavors. I started writing for Yahoo!voices. So far I have published two articles, and one is waiting for approval. I don’t get paid a lot, but I’m not doing it to get rich. Why am I doing it, well it gets my name, my voice out there. Here are the links to the two articles I have done.

This is an article I did on David J Rodger, simply a combo of the blog posts I did on my blog: http://voices.yahoo.com/dark-writer-david-j-rodger-11430790.html?cat=44

This is a poem about summer : http://voices.yahoo.com/first-summer-day-11430124.html?cat=47

This is the link to my profile on yahoo!voices, here you can check out articles I have posted and become a fan : http://voices.yahoo.com/first-summer-day-11430124.html?cat=47

My tattoo business has even picked up lately. I am happy about that but it gives me less time with my kids, less time to write or paint.

I will try to post more. It may be sporadic, but when things calm down I would be happy to go back to the artist of the week or month. I hope you are all still with me

Coming soon a post on tattoos. I will talk about the history of tattooing and post some photos of my latest works of living art (tattoos).

Starting A Writers Group

When I first decided I was ready to write a book it was suggested to me that I join a locale writers group. At the time I only found one, and it wasn’t for me. I can’t remember what style they wrote in, but it had to be that one, but I don’t write in their style. So I settled for online groups, but it’s not personal. Yes I got some good advice, and took heed of what most told me. However I also got comments that told me I should not post a thing because I wasn’t experienced enough, my work unpolished. Reading comments like that made me think ‘But How am I supposed to learn from this if all you have to say is I need to learn more before posting. How do I improve without critiques?’. So I recently decided to start my own group in my area, and open to writers of all forms. So I posted an ad on Craigslist. As of now including me there are three members. Our first meeting is Sunday June 2nd at Barnes and Noble in Webster, NY 7PM. I am  proud of my self for taking this step, for putting my self out there and starting this group. I don’t have a name for it, I don’t have a set meeting schedule, and we are few in number, but it is started. I have taken another step forward, a step closer to my dreams. Even if my group stays small, if it fails, or we gain more members, no matter what I know I tried my hardest. I can be proud in the fact that I did my best.

I want to invite all writers in my area to join us.

Barnes & Noble in Webster NY

Sunday June 2nd at 7PM

Every writer needs constructive feedback. I chance to learn what areas they are strong and weak in. The opportunity to converse with other writers. Find their voice. become a better writer.

I have read many blogs, books, and posts in online writers groups. But nothing can beat that personal connection. I look forward to my first meeting with great excitement.

Finally Finished

I posted this painting before when I thought it was done, but I looked at it with a friend one day and he made some good points. If you look at the before photo you will see that the petals in the middle of the flower bleed   together,  you can’t tell where one ends and another  begins unless you look closely at the brush stroks. So I mixed up a nice dark reddish purple to fix that problem, and I did feel it was a big problem. Then I sat there staring at it and it told me it was still unfinished. A thought came to me out of the blue, photographs , the subject in focus and behind it out of focus. So I played with this idea, I’m not sure how it turned out but the painting finally feels finished. So take a good look at the before and after and let me know what you think, if you want.

Cutting Down

 

I have said before that I try to do to much. For the first time I have to do something, make a choice. After talking to my older brother I know what I now have to do, even though I don’t want to.  I have to  post less on my blog. I spend so much time  researching my blog posts I have no time to write, to read, to do things I need to do for my son’s after school activities, and all the little things that go with being a mom of three young boys. I guess that is why most writers either don’t have kids or wait until they get older. So, what do I plan to do? I plan to free up my time by blogging less. I love blogging every day, or almost every day, but kids take up a lot of time and I do still need to work on  my novel. So I will go back to doing an artist of the week, and my segments will run for 1-2 months. I apologies to all my readers, I will post again on Friday so I can do a great post for you all. Thank you all for reading and liking my posts.

Artist of the day 2/27/12: Graffiti 6: Lady Pink

Sorry for not posting an artist of the day yesterday everyone. It terned out to be a very hectic day. But I am very happy to say I hit a record yesterday, 99 views for one day! Thank you to all my readers!

Lady Pink

Lady Pink’s birth name is Sandra Fabara. She was born 1964 in Ambato, Ecuador, and raised in Queens, New York.

She started her graffiti career in 1979 after the loss of a boyfriend who had been sent to live in Porto Rico after he was arrested. She worked through her grief by tagging his name all over the city. Soon after she started to use the name Lady Pink. The name was inspired by her love of historical romances, England, the Victorian period, and the aristocracy. She studied at the High School of Art & Design in Manhattan. While attending the school she was introduced to graffiti. This was when she was 15, when she lost her boyfriend, and started tagging.
Within a few years she began running with TC5 (The Cool 5) and TPA (The Public Animals) crews. She was soon well known as the only female capable of competing with the boys in the graffiti world.

Lady Pink painted subway trains from 1979 through 1985. In 1980, at only 16 years old she was included in the landmark New York show “GAS: Graffiti Art Succes” at Fashion Moda, which traveled in a modified form downtown to The New Museum of Contemporary Art.

Young, approachable, quick-witted, and one of the only female graffiti writers, Lady Pink became among the most photographed and interviewed graffiti artist of her time.

In 1983, 19 years old, she appeared in theaters in the starring role in Charlie Ahearn’s fill Wild Style as Rose. That same year she worked on a series of large scale paintings with artist Jenny Holzer, The two have since collaborated many times.

So while she was still in high school she was already exhibiting paintings in art galleries, by twenty-one she mounted her first solo show “femmes-Fetales” at the Moore College of Art & Design in Philadelphia.

After 1987 she took a hiatus from painting outdoors, but she returned in 1993 after meeting her future husband, fellow graffiti legend SMITH, with whom she collaborates on murals and commercial work.

Lady Pink’s studio paintings often incorporate images of New York subways weaving and winding through decaying, POP-surrealist cityscapes. They have been widely exhibited throughout the United States and abroad.

Lady Pink is one of the leading participants in the rise of graffiti-based art. Her canvases have entered important art collections such as those of the Whitney Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Groningen Museum of Holland. She has established herself in the fine art world, her paintings highly prized by collectors.

Today she continues to create new paintings on canvas that express her unique vision. She also shares her 30 years of knowledge and experience by holding mural workshops with teens and actively lecturing college students throughout the northeast.

Lady Pink’s website http://www.pinksmith.com/

Her work

Nomination for Kreativ Blogger award

http://quizoxy.wordpress.com/ was so kind as to nominat me for the Kreativ Blogger award, after reciving it as well. Thank you again!

I have only been nominated but there is no reason why I can’t take the steps now and nominate others.

In order to claim the Kreativ Blogger Award here’s what I and the next lucky recipients need to do:

1. Thank the blogger who gave you the award and provide a link.
2. List 7 interesting things about yourself that your readers might find interesting
3. Nominate 7 other bloggers, provide links, and let them know!

 Seven Interesting Things:

1. I am 25 and I still have nightmares, almost every night. But I don’t always see them the way most would, I drawl inspiration from some of them. I may not have used the ideas, but they are there ready and waiting.

2. I once wrote a poem for my creative writing class in 9th grade that scared my teacher. I wish I still had it to share, probably one of my best. At that time it had only been a few years (I can’t remember how long exactly) seance the columbine shootings. I can’t remember the exact parameters of the assignment, but I did my poem on that subject, from the shooters point of view. I have always been able to place my self in the mind of another, someone I have never meant. So as some one who had suffered the torment of my pears for years, it wasn’t all that hard. Lets just say that when I read my poem to the class not only did I get a grate response from them, but my teacher pulled me aside at the end of class to ask if I was planing to shoot up the school. That made me laugh.

3. I don’t think I am interesting at all

4. My mind never stops moving. Even during intimate times (You know what I mean) I have half a dozen things swimming around up there. Its a pain in the a$$.

5. I surprised one of my teachers in middle school one day by reading a paper on her desk upside down. I can read upside down and backwards, because I am dyslexic, but adults in my school wouldn’t test me because they didn’t believe my parents.

 6. I have been through such bad experiences in my life it was thought I would end up with severe mental illness. Things that would and have damaged people to the point of drug abuse, mental illness, and even suicide. But here I am, you can say I am a little crazy but its who I am. I overcame the things that happened to me, and came out stronger on the other side. I know I am not the only one to ever do so, but its a personal triumph for me to prove the masses wrong.

 7. The people I love and care about think I am more talented then I do. But I know I should think the same as them. I won more awards for art and writing when I was in school then I can remember. I paint, tattoo, sketch, write poetry, and I am working on a novel, But I know no matter how much I do I can learn more, do more, be more. So I can’t bring my self to believe.

 Now for my nominations, the blogs I enjoy on a daily bases! Check them out, you may love them as much as I do!

My 7 Kreativ Blogger Award Nominees:

1. http://davidjrodger.wordpress.com/

2. http://kylemew.com/

3. http://fromscott.wordpress.com/

4. http://havardhole.com/

5. http://href.li/?http://theorganicartist.wordpress.com

6. http://href.li/?http://trustusonline.wordpress.com

7. http://rencyphilip.wordpress.com/

So there you have it, my seven. There are meny other blogs I love to read, so just because you aren’t on this list it doesn’t mean I don’t like you!

Artist of the day 2/25/12: graffiti 5: Banksy

Banksy

Banksy has his hands in many artistic treasures as a pseudonymous England-based graffiti artist, political activist, film director, and painter. His artistic works of political and social commentary have been featured on streets, walls, and bridges of cities throughout the world.

According to the author and graphic designer Tristan Manco and the book Home Sweet Home, Banksy “was born 1974 and raised in Bristol, England. The son of a photocopier technician, he trained as a butcher but became involved in graffiti during the great Bristol aerosol boom of the late 1980s.”

Banksy is known for his contempt for the government in labeling graffiti as vandalism, as such he displays his art on public surfaces such as walls and even going so far as to build physical prop pieces.

Banksy does not sell photos of his street graffiti directly himself. However, art auctioneers have been known to attempt to sell his street art on location and leave the problem of its removal in the hands of the winning bidder.

Banksy’s first film Exit through the gift shop, billed as “The world’s first street art disaster movie” made its debut at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. The film was released in the UK on march 5, 2010. In January 2011, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary for the film. Now who said “The world’s first street art disaster movie”? I think its safe to say they where wrong.
From Banksy’s page http://www.banksy.co.uk/ :

Frequently asked questions

Is it cheating to use stencils?
Stencils are good for two reasons;
One – they’re quick ; two – they annoy idiots.

Why are you such a sell out?
I wish I had a pound for every time someone asked me that.

Is Banksy just a big brand these days? Do you even paint your own pictures?
It’s not supposed to be a brand, which is why people in advertising think it’s such a good one. I paint it all myself unless its illegal, in which case I’ve never seen any of it before, your honour.

Is Exit Through the Gift Shop real?
Yes.

Are you still friends with Mr. Brainwash?
I like to think so. When I asked him what he thought about the film he said “This is a cult movie, this is a classic movie, this movie stands alone – like The Godfather.”

Did you paint over Robbo’s piece and have him beaten up?
His piece in Camden had been dogged for more than five years by the time I painted that spot. It’s a real shame about his accident and I hope he fully recovers. I would never deliberately cuss Robbo – he’s a graffiti legend.
And he’s bigger than me. Click Here

Did you rip off Blek le Rat?
No, I copied 3D from Massive Attack. He can actually draw.

Do you need an intern?
No thanks.

Why are you so annoying?
It’s not all my fault, sometimes they make it up – I’ve never vandalized a war memorial, painted Kate Moss’s kitchen or visited the Playboy club with Ashley Cole wearing a skull mask.

What artists do you rate?
Käthe Kollwitz is my favourite. Partly because her drawing style is so beautiful, and partly because she thought being an artist was self-indulgent crap and became a doctor in an orphanage instead.

Can you donate a picture for my charity auction?
What are you? Blind? In which case maybe. I mostly support projects working to restore sight and prevent eye disease. Or as I like to call it ‘expanding the market’.

faq@banksy

Please don’t follow me on facebook or twitter because I’m not on there.

Some of His work

I love this one

A lot of Banksy’s fans have gotten tattoos of his work

link to an article about this photo go check it out, its a good one. About people petitioning to keep his work up in a town where graffiti has been outlawed http://www.westendextra.com/news/2011/may/westminster-council-remove-banksy-art

Artist of the day 2/24/12: Graffiti 4: Xenz

Graeme Brusby AKA Xenz

Brusby was born in 1974. He became a graffiti artist at the age of 14, inspired by films and books documenting the sub culture of New York. He developed the tag “sense” which evolved into what he does today – Xenz (pronounced “zenz”)

Brusby practiced graffiti art for 20 years, developing a unique approach to the well known art form.

If I may say so. He has beautiful work with true depth, color, and invoking feeling. He is now one of my favorite graffiti artist I have seen.

(origin of quote unknown) He has said and I must agree “I paint stuff that floats and stuff that flies, on a mission to capture the ethereal vision behind my eyes”

His early paintings where inside the derelict warehouses of Hull in Yorkshire England. This encouraged a very experimental approach to graffiti, to the point that the simple word graffiti no longer sufficiently describes what he does.

His imagination shows through in the landscapes he paints, using a spray can to capture fragments of memory and ever changing subjects, often drawn from the natural world and enhanced in his eye.

He lived in Bristol where he painted many pieces alongside one of the UK’s longest standing and most respected graffiti crews TCF( twentieth century frescos), He was one of three in the group, and artists such as Banksy, Inkie and Massive Attack’s 3D.

Quote from his web site (about TCF) “I painted with two friends called Eko and Paris, we were known as “The TCF Crew”( twentieth century frescos). If we had a vision we painted it, we did the wackiest stuff possible and really tried to be unique. We expanded our influences and started exploring different styles of painting even sculpture and printing, we always pushed each other’s ideas as far as possible being critical and particular about ideas and aesthetics sat in a small bedroom in the cold North Eastern part of England in a city called Hull.”

Xenz has been shown in exhibitions and art fairs in the UK, Miami, New York, Basel, Ibiza and Sydney. He has had sell-out London solo shows, and his limited edition prints are in huge demand. His work is in private and corporate collections worldwide. He studied at Edinburgh College of Art. He lives and works in London.

Solo Exhibitions

2011 – “Cloud Cuckoo Land” , December 1- 4, 2011, Blackall Studios, 73 Leonard Street, Shoreditch, London, England

2011 – “Pecking Disorder” , Lazarides, Outsiders, Newcastle upon Tyne, England

2010 – “Birds Butterflies and spraycans” , Wk exp, New Delhi, India

2010 – “These flowers grow wild” , La Hora Azul, Santa Gertudis, Ibiza, Spain

2010 – “Wonderlust” , Bicker gallery, Sydney, Australia Sidney Morning Herald

2009 – “Unforscenery” , Forster Gallery, London

2007 – “The Law Of Attraction” , Forster Gallery, London

2007 – “For The Love”, Workshop Gallery, Bristol

2006 – “Big City of Dreams”, This way up gallery, London

2002 – E Shed, Bristol, Uk

1999 – Avant Graff, Chicane, Bristol

Group Exhibitions and events

2011
Urban in Ibiza – Atzaro Ibiza
Ghosts of gone birds – Liverpool school of art and design

2010
Rise of the non conformists, Whitecross street, London

2009
Flying Eyeball, Gallery 24 Mayfair London
Friend & co Bristol
Bristollisboa gallery, Lisbon,
Tunnel 228, Waterloo, London
Meeting of styles, London

2008
Visual Street Performance, Barrio Alto, Lisbon
Artists 11, Truman Brewery, London
Big Chill, Festival
Glastonbury, Festival

2007
The Bad Note, Dragon Bar, London
One in ten, Forster Gallery, London.
Lattitude Festival
Write for Gold, London

2006
One the Seventh Day, Pimp Magazine, London

2005
Natural Selection, British Graffiti Alsopp Contemporary, London
Meeting of styles, Padova ,Italy

2004
Meeting of styles, wintertur ,switzerland

2003
Meeting of styles, Pori , Finland

2002
Attitude festival, Montpellier France,

1999
What’s in a Name, Retrospective of Hull’s Graffiti Scene, Quay Art, Hull
Walls on Fire, Bristol

1996
By Any Means, Wasps Gallery, Edinburgh
His web page http://www.xenz.org/site/ is a must see if you find his work as butiful and inspiering as I do!

Some of Xenz’s Work