Studio Journal Six.

Today was very successful! It was the day of my Exquisite Corpse Party! I managed to get a mass email approved by the Mason Gross moderators just in time and that brought in some journalists from the Targum. Despite a with time conflict with the visiting artist, quite a few people stopped in and helped out for a while. I'm leaving the supplies out for the rest of the week an
d I have made a large instruction sheet for people to come in and continue the project.

While I still don't know exactly what I want to do with these collaborative creations, I am feeling very good about this jumping off point. Everyone was very supportive and into the project.

I stumbled upon an artist

named Kelly Tunstall (http://www.kellytunstall.com/) who does these great elongated, distorted woman with large eyes that I absolutely love. While our art style is different, I love her lines and shapes. I might try to take some of that and put it into my own art.

I read an interview with her and I particularly enjoyed this Q and A. (http://www.hifructose.com/the-blog/1798-%20an-interview-with-kelly-tunstall.html)

"There is always a peculiar element to your work, such as: the unexpected ways in which you paint eyes, the elements of navigation and exploration, circus freaks, mythological creatures....

It’s external symbology of the internal for me- that girl having extra arms means extra efficiency or desire to be more so, or multiple eyes to see better from the mind or more watchful all over, but I also don’t mind co-opting imagery and symbology from religions, ancient cultures; people know these symbols somewhere in their guts I think.

The eyes are worlds inside of worlds- mirrors to the soul and all, but also I strangely try to reflect where light sources might be in the space they are in at the moment. Ferris and I are very practical- we have to stop ourselves from being like, well, that bear couldn’t possibly be balancing on that piece of string or whatever. Even though we don’t have to, we can’t help but making rules of physics and the physical world apply... most of the time.

I’m never one to try and tell a specific story that someone could literally read, it’s more a feeling that you get. That you’re being looked out for. If I attach myself to one of my pieces- that i need to hold onto one for a bit, I kind of think it knows something I don’t- some attribute I’m looking for aspiring to- something I might need to absorb. I can’t speak for other people and why my work appeals, but I really do think they can be protective.

My father was an airforce navigator, so his maps showed up early on as backgrounds. I love them, they’re so graphic, but that’s also what we wrapped our presents in. Personally, I feel like I’m still out there exploring- living in San Francisco; every day you’re doing ten things to keep it together. It’s all very romantic, good work, but hard for sure."

Look at this guy carve a chess piece with his feet! O.O