BUFFALO

After packing up all of our stuff and being in San Diego for a week, I'm going a little stir-crazy for my workstation at home...which no longer exists. The following was an older practice, again using Sharon Montrose's WORK  as a reference. This was the first one I did of her work, and remains my favorite. Bison remind me of Christmas in New Mexico near the Jemez mountains, which is always a good memory.

Happy Thanksgiving.

SUSHI FISH

For one of our last night in Tempe, AZ, Nick and I went to a cheap sushi place, the same that we once "celebrated" Valentine's Day. I think it was our second date. The sushi isn't phenomenal, but it isn't $300 a meal, like Jiro Ono's sushi restaurant from JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI. It seems like a sin to go eat cheap sushi after watching such a masterpiece, but alas!

Moving is going well, but I feel like a crazy person, so it's nice to have my watercolours to keep me semi-calm.

Here's to moving to Austin, where FOOD IS ALWAYS BETTER.

TWO HORSES

I felt compelled to follow with the rule of three, based on my TWO FRIDAS and TWO URSAS. Today will be my last day for a week or so since we're packing up and moving to Austin(!); I'm eager about our new prospects in the Lone Star Republic. Speaking of which, Sid Mashburn had some excellent TEXAS-INSPIRED GRAPHIC DESIGN on their webpage right now.

Millie and Trace, my mother-in-law's dog-like horses

Cheers,

Alli

CONSTELLATION: TWO URSA MAJORS

If you were to walk into the room I grew up in, turn off the lights, and look up, you'd see dozens of green-yellow glow-in-the-dark dots arranged in a handful of the most recognizable constellations: Orion, both Ursas, Serpens, etc. As a kid, I had an unspoken obsession with astronomy; I would nerd out in my room with these little information cards about red giants, asteroids, black holes, and all sorts of moons.

This painting was done this summer, inspired by a lovely print of a starry Buffalo in an Apartment Therapy post, but I can't seem to find it again which is very sad.

Enjoy.

And since I'm in the mood for throwbacks, I think this MOUNTAIN GOATS SONG compliments.

TWO FRIDAS

One of my best friends through middle and high school introduced me to Frida Khalo. It wasn't until college that I actually considered her an artist I could enjoy for myself because her work had, in my mind, somehow belonged to the girl I rolled with. This is similar to the phenomena of teenagers trying to own bands and music to their persona; this is especially true for kids growing up in a place like Austin, TX, where your playlist becomes identity. If there's one truth to glean from Khalo's work, it's that identity can be tortuous. Identify is about self, and it separates the we from the they. Recently, several amazing ladies and I discussed identity as a side effect of pride, and how, when you set aside the importance of your identity, you are able to make peace. I liked the conversation simply because my world has seemed quite loud and busy recently, so I enjoy things that re-center my life and allow focus into the hustle and bustle. Painting helps, too.

Hope you enjoy.

PROMOTIONAL POSTER: THE LORD LACKBEARDS

I did a series of posters to promote my friend's theatre company, THE LORD LACKBEARDS, out of Wellington, NZ. They're currently mounting their summer school tour of two plays, R&J, and Bedtime Monsters. I love that their summer is actually during the fall and spring terms for us, being on the opposite side of the equator. My friend would always come back to the states from Christmas break tanned while we were all white as ghosts.

This was a fun project and brought me back to my salad days of undergraduate theatre group posters.

Break a leg, Lackbeards!

SHAKESPEARE AT WINEDALE WATERCOLOR MAP

Time becomes elastic when you live and work in the same place, uninterrupted, with nothing vying for your attention except words, words, words. My summer of 2009 is a non-linear memory of specific locations or buildings (all within a two mile radius) where great things happened with my favorite people. This homage is not only google-mappingly sound, but it represents a private story that brings back good times - and can for most Winedalers. Enjoy, comrades.

SHAKESPEARE AT WINEDALE, affiliated with the University of Texas at Austin

est. 1970