Hello Fall

Good afternoon September!

I am staring out my window at my completely and utterly dead sunflower. My brother-in-law gave it to me in June and it started growing...it managed to triple in size before the birds ate all of its leaves and now my sunflower is dead. Awesome.

School has started. Next week the elementary school news broadcast I run begins. This would be the best job ever...if everyone* in the school didn't have an opinion on how the program needs to be run. I love waking up and spending the first hour of my working day in a crowded studio (storage closet) with twelve excited kids jumping off the walls. You can't find caffeine that will wake you up like that. This broadcast is, however a completely thankless job. All of the equipment is analog...analog=VHS tapes. No big deal, just takes more time to edit and put together video clips.

To welcome the children back to their news broadcast and kick off the first week I have been preparing montages of the various grades on the broadcast and participating in school events. Putting the clips together has taken me almost two weeks because of the VHS format.

I felt proud of the work that I had finished so far, but today my pride was beaten into a bloody pulp by "Ms. Swamp"...Principal. After barging in and interrupting the work (she seems to have a habit of doing this), to speak to me about some meaningless crap (like some floating, high-heeled rain cloud), something possessed me to show her the clips I was working on. Stupid. Idiot. Why ?!

Ms. Swamp: "I don't really think the younger kids are going to want to watch this...I mean they won't care."

Me: (Dying inside, trying not to cry about how much time I spent on these clips.) "Um, well, I...uhhh."

...clips continue...and end.

Ms. Swamp: "Well, I guess it is pretty cute, maybe you can show it at the end?"

Me: (I hate you because you never have anything nice to say..EVER!) "Sure."

Hello September, I hope you get better.


*By everyone, I mean the people within the school who seem to be constantly upset by every meaningless imperfection that goes along with children running a live news broadcast.

Random Lovely's from last week

One of the many reasons I love my job is the amount of completely random things I am able to take pictures of in a single day. These are just a few gems from the first week of summer camp:

(Exhibit A) Nothing says safety for your stuffed ferret like Jesus and Spiderman!

Staples with your morning coffee, anyone?




















And, my personal favorite:
Battery in the Crock Pot.

Long Time: No Post

Sorry for the utter lack of posts, life sometimes gets in the way. I am beginning to feel like I can't trust my brain to do anything with any consistency. However, after this weekend I am thinking the saying: "When it rains, it pours," is accurate.

First, my boyfriend and I have been in the process of buying a house for what seems like forever. We have had at least 5 different escrow closing dates since our offer was accepted for a condo down the street from where we live now. As a result, my house is an atrocious mess- complete with packed boxes lining the walls and camping under the dining room table. Not ideal for art-making. None-the-less, I have completed a few pieces, but have yet to do anything with them...should be able to post some pics soon.

Second, the last week of school is upon me...like a truck. Usually not too stressful, this last week is turning out to be an editing nightmare. Events at the school were pushed back and delayed this year, so now I am scrambling to film and edit multiple things at once with only a couple days to complete them and get them on air for the morning broadcast. The icing on the cake was a parent hunting me down last week and bullying me into making a copy of her children's acts in this years talent show...in my spare time. Sure thing, thanks.

In the midst of the obnoxiousness, we managed to score artists passes for the Live 105 BFD music fest last Sunday. It was like Christmas. I had originally purchased lawn seats and ended up being backstage for everything. The highlight was definitely Matt and Kim..they were amazing, blew me away with their energy on stage. Jamie was playing one of those basketball shooting games while I was taking pictures with Brian from the Silversun Pickups. After the picture was taken Brian stood and watched Jamie take shots with our friend Justin. Freaking unreal.

So that being said, I have been freaskishly stressed and awesomely amazed...now I need a nap.

Empty

I need a break from all children all over the world. Open to suggestions!

The Elusive White Rabbit

This story begins in January of this year. I made a resolution to submit my artwork to the mixed media publication Somerset Studio. I would check out themes in each new issue, until I found the one that I wanted to use: Alice in Wonderland...perhaps with a slight nod to Tim Burton's new movie. I created a mood board with the colors and materials I wanted to use in the piece. Before I knew it, my blank canvas board was *almost* complete! There it sat, propped up on top of " art purgatory." In my improvised studio area, art purgatory is the wall mounted coat rack that I use to hang inspirational items and finished or *almost* finished pieces.

The deadline for the Alice in Wonderland submission was a not-so-ambitious October 15th, and before I knew it, the week of the deadline was on my doorstep. My piece was not finished. However, several days before the 15th, I did manage to add the finishing touches to my work and called it "done."

Before I knew it, the deadline had come and gone. I got stuck with my finger on the start button. I never sent the piece in to Somerset. I have decided I am officially losing myself in things I do not care about. I want my life to be art, but my life is getting in the way.

The piece is ironically titled : Late.

Book it, sister!

I will preface this stream of conciousness with the fact, that, I love books! As we all know (I hope), books are an easy way to find inspiration when you are in an artistic slump. Thus, I made the decision over the weekend to continue a tradition my Mom started of collecting Caldecott Honor-winning books for my son. Luca is only 15 months old, and at this point, he does not even pretend to listen when I am reading to him. However, there is always the rare occasion that he does sit and listen (last night he managed to get through the rise and fall of "Max, King of the Wild Things" in Where the Wild Things Are before he got mad that a page wasn't turning and tore part of the cover). Plus, I have come to the conclusion in the past couple years, that the artwork in children's picture books is mostly amazing and always worth exposing your child to- even if they can only sit still long enough to get a glance.

In addition, these books are a cultural connection children get to have with their peers. When they grow up, they will remember what their mommy and daddy read to them before they went to sleep. Evey generation has something they can all remember about growing up in particular decade. The books that were popular when you were little are part of these memories. Books are like songs in a way. You can relate to the characters and the stories and they become a part of you and when you are lost they will always be there. All of this is why I love books, especially childrens picture books, and they are inspiring to me, as an artist and a person in a world that is crappy sometimes.

♥ Paste: Part II

After all of my internet research, I finally went to the source of the great paste mystery. I emailed Elmer's with my query. This is what I got back:

Dear Melissa,

Thank you for contacting us regarding Elmer's products.

Unfortunately, that product has been discontinued and is no longer available. We are sorry for any inconvenience and disappointment.

Sincerely,

Brian Rumschlag
Consumer Response Analyst

That's it?! No explanation at all?! What a disappointment. I bet Brian Rumschlag doesn't even know why paste is off the market. I bet he never made fabulous masterpieces out of construction paper, glitter, macaroni and paste when he was in kindergarten. What a shame.

♥ Paste: Part I

Once upon a time, we all used to create fabulous masterpieces in Kindergarten and Preschool using scissors, construction paper, macaroni, glitter and the all important Elmer's Paste. You remember paste? The oddly textured, minty chemical-smelling, thick wannabe glue that was an embarrassing sign you were not trustworthy enough as a 5 year old to use the real glue. I have been working at an elementary school for the past 4 years and before that, I was on the Preschool scene ( I am trying to relive my childhood, kind of a "let's try this again" experiment, but this time with feeling! Ok, so not really, but it's a wonderful idea, no?) and you know what? The person in charge of mandating adhesives in the "land of little ones" decided children will no longer use paste! Like the friggin' Wizard of Oz or Seinfeld's Soup Nazi: "No more paste for you! Now go!"

I cannot help but wonder: Why? WHEN and HOW did this happen? Now millions of children are being robbed of their rightful title as "the kid who eats paste." Their loyal onlookers have been deprived minutes upon minutes of art activity time entertainment!

What now? My curiosity is sufficiently peaked. Was this paste toxic? Full of hormone-disrupting BPA or Pthalates? Did some kid choke on a wad of paste, ruining it for everyone? I will research this devastating paste mystery and report back with my findings.

Until then: I bid you adieu!

Make Art. Sure.

I watched The Sure Thing while my son, Luca ,was napping today. (Well, I mostly listened to it, because I was working on a painting) I have since decided that no matter what kind of crappy mood I am in, there is a John Cusak movie that will make me feel better. I am not exaggerating either. There is something about every movie he has ever been in that just makes my life a better place to live in.

John Cusak movies are like having a quirky and entertaining neighbor you can always count on to pop by and drink a beer with you while making fun of people walking by your house. You don't want them around all the time because they never clean up after themselves and smoke all your cigarettes, but they totally make your life worth living.

manic musing

A fine romance: The sarcastic love story © 2009 JammyART Studio by Melissa Muller

OHHH Ida

New piece for sale NOW!! I love this colorful canvas and the story that inspired its creation. Two words (a name, really): Ida Pfeiffer. She was an amazing woman! Check out this article on Wikipedia for more information on her incredible life: Ida Laura Pfeiffer.

Love Your Mother/Ode to ReUse

So many reusable items...so little time. My homage to recyclables in art...even the canvas has been "upcycled!"

Experience

Someone once told me: "Never deny yourself an experience." I have since decided, she was right. Some experiences make us feel like throwing up. In the end, the ability for humans to retain their experiences, undeniably shapes our evolution as a species. I met the best people working for Starbucks.

Mind Games or Humorous Anecdotes...

Thrice featured in Numbers Treasury!

Yay!!! Check out my piece, "Thrice" in this Treasury:

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=71700

Saturday Mornings

Mommy mornings. The working mother's Saturday...not a break at all. This morning I ponder, what am I going to do today? When you are a working mother, the week guarantees small breaks from your own children (in my case, I happen to still be surrounded by children at work, but it's somehow different). During these breaks, you have time. Time to breathe. Time to think about doing something, and then actually do it, rather than wait for the ability to do it. Being an artist with this kind of restraint is brutal; being an artist with A.D.D and this kind of restraint is almost too much to handle. I can never count on my brain to be in focus when I need it to...much like having a small child (2 year old) sit inside your head and control all logic and reason. This is what it feels like and it feels ridiculous. Saturdays are the worst days because I don't have the structure of the work week to give me some tangible outside version of focus.

Often, during conversation, I find people believe that if you are medicated for Attention Deficit Disorder, the problem is somehow solved. What they fail to realize is that there are a whole mess of issues that are neatly packaged (bow and all) within the gift of ADD. In my experience, medications treat about 25 percent of ADD symptoms. Thus, Saturdays for my purposes (and weekends in general) will always be my nemesis (sadly). Nothing gets done, my son seems to be bored with me and my art remains on the back-burner until Daddy gets home from work.

Thinking about the "D" word...in my art

My latest piece has been throwing me for a loop. It started out as a desire to use the image of a house, or some building in my work. In almost all of my art, I have a need to make the components perfect and then create blemishes (big or small). I cannot stand when anything looks to put together and proper...I'll be honest, it pisses me off. With that said, the house I ended up creating for this piece was lovely and made with the perfect paper, but something was not quite right. Then it hit me: I must cut it in half! Being a child of divorce, I find the image of the broken heart, jaggedly ripped in two bloody pieces, is a perfect expression of the way I have felt over the years ( it has been almost 15 years since my parents split). I use broken or sewn up hearts in a lot of my sketches and random drawings, but very few in my paintings and mixed media pieces. Never have I put two and two together, so to speak. It has taken a long time for me to be able to put the pain of my parents divorce onto a canvas in such an obvious way and, presently, it feels pretty damn good!

Thrice

'Play Me' in store today!

Signed, sealed, check it out!!!

What came of Strange...

"Strange, but not a stranger" ACEO....I was trying for something a little more grand. The time got away from me, and I had to go miniature. Check this out in my shop soon, it will be for sale with several other of my mini's.