Five creative sites, eh? Okay. Well off the top of my head, NO SEARCHING AROUND FOR THIS ONE, is the magnificent website of Alex Grey. This famed painter has developed a very unique style, that places an emphasis on universal energy in the individual. His paintings are breathtaking and extremely, well... extreme. I had the honor of meeting him in the COSM (Chapel of Sacred Mirrors), his art gallery. The website I've provided as a link here provides many of his paintings and drawings as well as future events scheduled at COSM, located in Manhattan (address is on the website, if you're interested in visiting). I suggest that everyone go there soon, becuase it will be closing this year and relocating to upstate New York.
The next website I condemn you to is http://opieortiz.com/. Opie Ortiz is a tatoo artist that is most famous for his artwork via Sublime. The site includes a plethora of links to his artwork, a flipbook, and a contact /schedule link (just in case you're willing to spend hundreds, possibly thousands, of dollars on official ink from the man himself).
And now, a link to CHARLES BUKOWSKI! Love the man. Providing faithful readers with manuscripts, words, and FBI files (saw that one coming).
!(upside down) Venga aqui senores: http://bukowski.net/ ! OLE. Spend time here!
Want some eye candy? Go here. The website you'll find is full of it. David LaChapelle is on the forefront of pop culture, keeping up with all the controversy, and creating a lot of it.
Salvador Dali, the genius painter. His work (and more) can be viewed here. The gallery is actually organized in chronological order too: http://www.dalinet.com/.
Enjoy!
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Abstraction exercise developed into Poem:
I am an Atticus (atlas moth).
Travel underground, in this fluorescent lit train.
The rails rapidly shift and it reeks of piss.
A blind man yielding poles, nurtures a paper cup.
Softly drop in lint and change from your pocket, and watch them slither to the bottom of his elixir.
Walk hastily towards the street and dwell on starving children withering away; their frail dying bodies.
An old man falls on the crosswalk, buckling under grocery bags filled with condiments.
Retrieve the goods for him, and acknowledge his eyes as they emerge into the universe.
Run home to capture some kind of end; battery acid pumps through your veins.
A bottle of gin lay empty on the table.
The last drops from the rim slide down legs, as I caress the muscles of my lover.
The words in bold are lines from the exercise.
Travel underground, in this fluorescent lit train.
The rails rapidly shift and it reeks of piss.
A blind man yielding poles, nurtures a paper cup.
Softly drop in lint and change from your pocket, and watch them slither to the bottom of his elixir.
Walk hastily towards the street and dwell on starving children withering away; their frail dying bodies.
An old man falls on the crosswalk, buckling under grocery bags filled with condiments.
Retrieve the goods for him, and acknowledge his eyes as they emerge into the universe.
Run home to capture some kind of end; battery acid pumps through your veins.
A bottle of gin lay empty on the table.
The last drops from the rim slide down legs, as I caress the muscles of my lover.
The words in bold are lines from the exercise.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Thank you, Abstraction.
When I closed my eyes and heard the word "rage", images shot through my mind. The abstraction exercise was one of the most powerful writing exercises I have ever done. As strange as it sounds, I felt as if I were in a hypnotic, dream-like kind of place. It fascinates me to focus on the subconscious mind, it has too much to offer, so much to tell; which is probably why we choose to ignore it most of the time. Translating the vivid images I saw onto paper was simply remarkable. The words that were used in the exercise (rage, generosity, control, and charm) offered a world of words through images.
We link ourselves to words, and I suppose, that they have linked their meanings to ourselves as well. The word generosity conveyed to me, the visual of: change gently dropping to the bottom of a dixie cup held by a homeless hand, covered by tattered and frayed gloves.
When reading poetry, it always irks me when the poet inserts words such as happy or beautiful...by abstracting images from these foundation words, one is sure to create a more impactful depiction of their point (if there is one...).
We can choose to listen to each word, and expand on them specifically. In this sense, I believe it can make the individual (willing to do so) become a better writer.
We link ourselves to words, and I suppose, that they have linked their meanings to ourselves as well. The word generosity conveyed to me, the visual of: change gently dropping to the bottom of a dixie cup held by a homeless hand, covered by tattered and frayed gloves.
When reading poetry, it always irks me when the poet inserts words such as happy or beautiful...by abstracting images from these foundation words, one is sure to create a more impactful depiction of their point (if there is one...).
We can choose to listen to each word, and expand on them specifically. In this sense, I believe it can make the individual (willing to do so) become a better writer.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
And now, kind folk, some Inspiration...
I had once belonged to a small private business college located in the heart of midtown Manhattan, called The Laboratory Institute of Merchandising (LIM. Under the school's logo in small print read, The College for the Business of Fashion). I am not sure why I chose to major in Visual Merchandising (which is basically the interior / exterior decor of stores) at some relatively unknown "Fashion School", but something did draw me into it (I'm still not quite sure what exactly this said "something" might've been...). All of the classes I was required to take bore me, my brain thirsted for an education that would stimulate my mind. Save for the one Creative Writing course I decided to enroll in during the spring semester of my Sophomore year.
For the hour and half this course kept me, twice a week, my adoration for writing grew. I knew that the only option I had at the time, in order to be happy was to transfer schools. My professor for this course was a freelance writer and taught at LIM on the side. My frustration with the school had become overwhelming. I spoke with my Creative Writing professor about this, and he told me that it was in my best interest to persue my desire (exactly what I needed to hear). I asked him if there were any great books he might be able to recommend to me. He gave me a list, and Lorrie Moore's "Self-Help" was one of the many he suggested. I read the book.
This piece of work came into my life at the perfect time. After reading "How to Become a Writer", I smiled. Any doubts I had within myself of not being able to succeed were washed away after this read. This piece made me sure of my decision to embarq with Writing as a new major. That summer, I finished up with LIM and graduated with an Associate's Degree in Applied Science (Fashion Merchandising). I transferred to Willy P in the fall and changed my major to English with a concentration in writing. This short story, written by one of my favorite authors Lorrie Moore, will perhaps serve as an inspiration to you as well. You can read the short story "How to Become a Writer" here.
If for some reason that link doesn't work, here is the url: http://www.ninetymeetingsinninetydays.com/lorriemooore.html
"Writers have no real area of expertise. They are merely generalists with a highly inflamed sense of punctuation." — Lorrie Moore
For the hour and half this course kept me, twice a week, my adoration for writing grew. I knew that the only option I had at the time, in order to be happy was to transfer schools. My professor for this course was a freelance writer and taught at LIM on the side. My frustration with the school had become overwhelming. I spoke with my Creative Writing professor about this, and he told me that it was in my best interest to persue my desire (exactly what I needed to hear). I asked him if there were any great books he might be able to recommend to me. He gave me a list, and Lorrie Moore's "Self-Help" was one of the many he suggested. I read the book.
This piece of work came into my life at the perfect time. After reading "How to Become a Writer", I smiled. Any doubts I had within myself of not being able to succeed were washed away after this read. This piece made me sure of my decision to embarq with Writing as a new major. That summer, I finished up with LIM and graduated with an Associate's Degree in Applied Science (Fashion Merchandising). I transferred to Willy P in the fall and changed my major to English with a concentration in writing. This short story, written by one of my favorite authors Lorrie Moore, will perhaps serve as an inspiration to you as well. You can read the short story "How to Become a Writer" here.
If for some reason that link doesn't work, here is the url: http://www.ninetymeetingsinninetydays.com/lorriemooore.html
"Writers have no real area of expertise. They are merely generalists with a highly inflamed sense of punctuation." — Lorrie Moore
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