Ode to Mt. Dew

One day, while having a complete brain fart.. I decided that I needed a Mt. Dew to wake me up and get the juices flowing again, if you will. And out came the 'Ode to Mt. Dew'.

These are available as cards for your Dew-headed friends :)

Enjoy!

2010 'Best of Cincinnati'

GREAT NEWS! I've been nominated for the 'Best of Cincinnati 2010' Local Visual Artist!

I have no idea who nominated me, but thank you to who ever did!

So here's the deal... In order for me to have a shot at winning this, I need you to go here
(Vote for me!) and vote.

Fill in the appropriate fields, and scroll down to "Out and About" and under the drop down menu, you'll find my name.

Make sure you vote for some other things on there.... there are about 200-some categories to vote on. FYI, you can only vote 1 time from each computer.

The cut off date for the contest is February 21st. So make sure you get your vote in!

And please... Spread the word! Tell everyone you know! Email it out!

You all are such a huge factor in my dream of making my passion for art my only career one day!

I Can't Hardly Stand It

Hmm.. that's funny.. that title explains a few things in my life at the moment.. :)

Anyway - new song of the week! It's 'I Can't Hardly Stand It' by the Cramps.

This is from the biography page on www.thecramps.com:

In the spring of 1976, The CRAMPS began to fester in a NYC apartment. Without fresh air or natural light, the group developed its uniquely mutant strain of rock’n’roll aided only by the sickly blue rays of late night TV. While the jackhammer rhythms of punk were proliferating in NYC, The CRAMPS dove into the deepest recesses of the rock’n’roll psyche for the most primal of all rhythmic impulses — rockabilly — the sound of southern culture falling apart in a blaze of shudders and hiccups. As late night sci-fi reruns colored the room, The CRAMPS also picked and chose amongst the psychotic debris of previous rock eras - instrumental rock, surf, psychedelia, and sixties punk. And then they added the junkiest element of all — themselves.

— J. H. Sasfy, Professor of Rockology
from the liner notes of The Cramps 1979 release Gravest Hits

It would be almost impossible to have never heard of The CRAMPS. Their career has been the stuff of legend. Dangerously bizarre but most of all cool, The CRAMPS represent everything that is truly reprehensible about rock’n’roll. Founding members Lux Interior (the psycho-sexual Elvis/Werewolf hybrid from hell) and guitar-slinging soul-mate Poison Ivy (the ultimate bad girl vixen) are the architects of a wicked sound that distills a cross of swamp water, moonshine and nitro down to a dangerous and unstable musical substance. Their cultural impact has spawned a legion of devil cults and dance-floor catfights, and created in its wake a cavalcade of cave-stomping imitators. As punk rock pioneers in the late seventies, they cut their teeth on the stages of CBGB and Max’s Kansas City and recorded their first record at Sam Phillips legendary Sun Studios, funded mainly by Ivy’s income as a dominatrix in NYC. They coined the now popular term “psychobilly” on their 1976 gig posters. Their hair-raising live performances are still a total, no-holds-barred rock’n’roll assault. After a quarter century of mayhem, they’re too far gone to even consider any other course.

It's definitely a different type of music, but also a type that had a huge impact in the music world. I'd suggest checking them out - even if you don't like this type of music - give them a chance!


On another note, I'm working on some new pieces.. a Dave Matthews piece for Gilpin's Bagel and Deli downtown. Currently, my Marilyn sketch is hanging there, and my Beatles Collection will be there after Wednesday this week. I did have the Rat Pack sketch there, but my sneaky boyfriend bought it! Now that's a supportive boyfriend!

I'm also working on an Ava Gardner piece, as a WWII nose art pin up painting. I'm really excited to get going on this one.

I'll keep you updated!

Rapture

Yesterday we were sent home from work at 3:30 because of all the snow we got - it literally didn't stop snowing ALL DAY. So I took advantage of the time I was given and I started - and FINISHED - a painting yesterday!

I brought Debbie Harry back from the good ol' days and spruced the Blondie front woman up!



Here is a side by side...



The colors are a little skewed.. but her eye is green and the background is actually pink - close to the pink writing on the 'side by side' photo.

We did it!

Todd and I have reached a huge milestone in our lives! Our 1 year anniversary was this past January. Todd and I have grown so much since we met; both wild and crazy, and now I find it hard to believe that I ever lived without him.

We met at Sully's, a bar downtown that has since been closed. I won't give you the all the details, but I was dancing on the bar and he was serving shots! Almost 3 years later, we are happily together, loving life!

Todd has played such an important roll in all aspects of my life. He has helped tremendously with my artwork, given me new outlooks on life and the situations that I encounter.

We spent our anniversary going to the Art Museum, then to the Festival of Lights, which it snowed for the first time this winter and it was so perfect! To finish the night off, we had dinner at the Montgomery Inn Boathouse. SO amazing.

Festival of Lights, Cincinnati Zoo

Montgomery Inn Boathouse

And to top it off, he bought the most beautiful diamond earrings!!!

I love you Hot Toddie... you are the best thing that ever happened to me!

Grapevine Fires

There's a new Song of the Week and Restaurant of the Month! Grapevine Fires, by Death Cab for Cutie is awesome. I've been listening to it non stop.

The new restaurant is Pelican's Reef on Beechmont in Anderson Township, Cincinnati OH. They have been there for a long time, and they the best clam chowder in the city! They have cheap drinks too. I highly recommend you check it out. They also have a piece of artwork hanging by a friend of mine, Tyler Hildebrand.

Tyler is an amazing artist. We went to high school together for a year, and I never knew he was artist! A few years went by and all the sudden he showed up in the Cincinnati Art scene. Check out his work at Hilde's Gallery. He also has a storefront gallery in Bellevue, KY.

Well, now that the holidays are over, I have been able to get back to painting. I've finished John Lennon and will be finishing Ringo Starr tonight. I have a meeting with the owner of Gilpin's Deli and Bagel Shop this week to discuss me possibly showing my work in there. So I'm trying to get some of this stuff done so it'll dry in enough time! I'll post pictures later when I'm finished with them.

It dawned on me that I've shared pictures of everywhere else in the new apartment except the living room. It's kind of messy, so when I'll clean it, I'll post it so you can see! But I was able to organize my 'studio' part of my living room.. so here it is!