Friday, April 22, 2005
Kung Fu Fly Swatter
I spent the afternoon with the entertaining and talented Mari Naomi. By talented, I am not only referring to her artwork - which I admire greatly - but also to her creative insect repelling techniques.
First of all, she has this very cool carnivorous pitcher plant. I envied it so much that I went out and bought one of my own, hoping it would devour my fruit fly inhabitants. Despite my green thumb, the "pitchers" withered away and then the entire plant died. Mari must have the magic touch that I don't.
Her pitcher plant, however, has not attended to its fly eating duties as of late, so there were numerous flies buzzing around Mari's studio yesterday. I probably would not have noticed them were it not for the fact that in the middle of conversation, Mari would snatch up a paint brush towel, lift her leg into the air in a Karate Kid pose and snap the towel out at the flies with a loud "Heeee-yah!"
With her animal-loving subconscious taking control, she didn't kill a single fly. However, her attempts were highly entertaining.
I finally finished the painting that my sister figured out was her very belated birthday present, though I won't post a photo of the painting as I haven't put it in the mail to her yet and I'd rather her see it live before finding it here. It's bad enough that she put two-and-two together and figured out what I was up to via this blog. Alas.
While I started work on my mother's painting, Mari painted me. Although I was tempted to, I may not post them on my blog. You see, I'm feeling rather menstrual at the moment (thanks for sharing, right?) and I am not feeling very purty as a result. And, well, let's just say she captured my likeness a litte too well.
Knowing what she's getting for her birthday, my mother has asked for a painting of trees with their reflection in a pond... with black birds flying with twigs in their mouth... and a painting that is not too gloomy... and preferrably is large enough to go over her fireplace... and will match the colors of her living room.
So... I'm painting flowers. LOL.
I mean, come on, kids. If she is that specific, she obviously has a clear image in her head of what she wants - something that I clearly will not be able to match. I am not a mind reader.
Speaking of art, I was telling my good friend Ben about the painting I did for my sister and he said, "I am such an unwashed philistine when it comes to art appreciation -- I wish all my artist friends would just tell me what meant what, and what was significant!"
I think my favorite artists are in fact also good storytellers. I, too, love when Mari tells me stories about items she included in her collages like the letters from ex-lovers in Road Map to my Broken Heart or when the image itself tells a story like in Deviant Behavior from her bad kitty series.
Not all artists are good storytellers and not all storytellers are good artists. But damn, when you can find both in one package, such as with Mari Naomi... watch out!
First of all, she has this very cool carnivorous pitcher plant. I envied it so much that I went out and bought one of my own, hoping it would devour my fruit fly inhabitants. Despite my green thumb, the "pitchers" withered away and then the entire plant died. Mari must have the magic touch that I don't.
Her pitcher plant, however, has not attended to its fly eating duties as of late, so there were numerous flies buzzing around Mari's studio yesterday. I probably would not have noticed them were it not for the fact that in the middle of conversation, Mari would snatch up a paint brush towel, lift her leg into the air in a Karate Kid pose and snap the towel out at the flies with a loud "Heeee-yah!"
With her animal-loving subconscious taking control, she didn't kill a single fly. However, her attempts were highly entertaining.
I finally finished the painting that my sister figured out was her very belated birthday present, though I won't post a photo of the painting as I haven't put it in the mail to her yet and I'd rather her see it live before finding it here. It's bad enough that she put two-and-two together and figured out what I was up to via this blog. Alas.
While I started work on my mother's painting, Mari painted me. Although I was tempted to, I may not post them on my blog. You see, I'm feeling rather menstrual at the moment (thanks for sharing, right?) and I am not feeling very purty as a result. And, well, let's just say she captured my likeness a litte too well.
Knowing what she's getting for her birthday, my mother has asked for a painting of trees with their reflection in a pond... with black birds flying with twigs in their mouth... and a painting that is not too gloomy... and preferrably is large enough to go over her fireplace... and will match the colors of her living room.
So... I'm painting flowers. LOL.
I mean, come on, kids. If she is that specific, she obviously has a clear image in her head of what she wants - something that I clearly will not be able to match. I am not a mind reader.
Speaking of art, I was telling my good friend Ben about the painting I did for my sister and he said, "I am such an unwashed philistine when it comes to art appreciation -- I wish all my artist friends would just tell me what meant what, and what was significant!"
I think my favorite artists are in fact also good storytellers. I, too, love when Mari tells me stories about items she included in her collages like the letters from ex-lovers in Road Map to my Broken Heart or when the image itself tells a story like in Deviant Behavior from her bad kitty series.
Not all artists are good storytellers and not all storytellers are good artists. But damn, when you can find both in one package, such as with Mari Naomi... watch out!
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