Friday, November 9, 2012

Its Beautiful Out There

The more time I spend teaching art, the more I have begun to notice that everyone sees the world differently. Something that is beautiful to me may be hideous to you, and vice versa. This could possibly mean that everything is beautiful, its just our opinions that determine exactly how beautiful.

Very often in class, children come up to my desk, full of pride and happiness, wanting to show me their art picture. Sometimes when  I look, I see dull colours and barely recognizable shapes. So I ask the child what they have drawn. The child launches into a detailed story of all the wonderful things that are happening on their page. To them, what they have drawn and what their eye perceives is beautiful. How can I argue with that?

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
You just have to open your eyes, and your mind will follow. Its beautiful out there :)

Friday, April 20, 2012

How To Get By With A Smile


  1. Go to bed on time....and if that doesn't work - just go to bed sometime. Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before.
  2. Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.
  3. Say "No" to projects that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health.
  4. Delegate tasks to capable others.
  5. Simplify and unclutter your life......Just when were you planning to get to all of those piles on your desk anyways?
  6. Get organized so everything has its place....Now we are back to those piles on your desk....
  7. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places....It is finding the extra time that is the hard part.....
  8. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.
  9. Take one day at a time.....If it doesn't get done one day - maybe it wasn't supposed to get done?
  10. Separate worries from concerns. If you can't do anything about a situation ... forget it.
  11. K.M.S. (Keep Mouth Shut). This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble. Talk less and listen more.
  12. Do something for the Kid in You everyday.
  13. Get enough exercise and eat right. Chocolate is not a major food group. Swimming is a wonderful stress reducer. Take a leisurely walk in a relaxing atmosphere.
  14. Take your work seriously, but yourself not at all. Laugh - then laugh some more. Look for humor and laugh out loud every day.
  15. Slow down - Every day, find time to be alone. Plan to use at least 20 minutes a day to pamper yourself. Soak in a hot tub with bubble bath or scented oils. Get a soothing massage.
  16. For those trying to do it all.... Remind yourself that you are not the general manager of the universe.
  17. Get together with a friend and talk about what's bothering you.  
  18. Find an opportunity to take a 10 to 15 minute nap.
  19. Listen to some favorite music while relaxing.
  20. Take some deep breaths for stress elimination
NOW GET ON WITH YOUR DAY, THE HAPPY WAY :)

peace X

Saturday, April 14, 2012

pLAylist 2012: Ron Pope - Whatever It Takes

I should be out on a friday night, but instead i'm listening to Ron Pope's 2011 album Whatever It Takes. My oh my, does this man have maybe like one of the best voices I have ever heard.

Anyway, enough with the gushing. Let's get to business, best tracks on the album include:
- A Drop In The Ocean
- Wait For You
- Our Song

This is the guy you want to be singing these songs about and to you.

A girl can dream.... :)

Check it out for yourself, add Ron Pope to your pLAylist :)
 

Monday, April 2, 2012

Hey, let's keep the peace

In this day and age, social networking is an important part of daily life. You can't deny the way it keeps you connected to pretty much everyone you have ever met. Thats why Facebook has blown to monstrous popularity since its beginnings in 2007.

So if the almost the whole world is available at your fingertips, and all the people you have ever met are part of your newsfeed, you are bound to come across some sinister thoughts of people who choose to use their status update feature as yet another way to bash, bully and hurt.

All I'm saying is, hey, let's keep the peace. If we are all going to play on the playground that is the social network, let's play nice.

And if that doesn't work, laugh it off, move on and possibly unfriend, because those 'kind' of people probably weren't the real deal in the first place.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Nature Documentary Must See: The Last Lions

The first words that come to my mind of how to describe The Last Lions, a 2011 National Geographic documentary, to you are: It's heart-wrenching and it's captivating.

This is one of those nature documentaries you just have to see.
My eyes were firmly rooted to the screen hanging on to every moment of action and my mind was a rollercoaster of emotion as I was pulled deeper into the story of a mother lion trying to protect and fend for her cubs.

I was born in South Africa and have witnessed on many occasions the epic beauty of the lion and the power with which they roam and rule the wild. In the circle of wildlife, the lion is the king and few care to challenge that dominance.

This film, told through the camera lens' of Dereck and Beverly Joubert, as well as the voice of Jeremy Irons, highlights the need for protection of a species that has gone down to as little as 20 000 over the past 50 years. Shocking, right!

If you'd like to find out more about this film and watch the trailer, visit the official website at:
http://movies.nationalgeographic.com/movies/last-lions/

The Last Lions, epic nature documentary, watch it asap!    

pLAylist 2012: Stars - The Five Ghosts

Indie Electro group Stars, released their album The Five Ghosts back in 2010. They are currently on my pLAylist because their amazing track Dead Hearts was recently featured in the movie Like Crazy.

I've been listening to the entire album and I am more then impressed with their haunting and soft sound. Their music cuts down right to the soul and you can't help but want to listen again.

Best tracks on the album include:
- We Don't Want Your Body
- Winter Bones
- The Five Ghosts
- Changes
- The Passenger

In all, the album is really good. As well as the movie Like Crazy, a story about the challenges placed on love when two people are seperated by distance, and factors out of their control. Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones and Jennifer Lawrence bring the story to life.

Watch the Dead Hearts video online at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQT2HVfxJu4

Have a great Sunday, and don't forget to add Stars to your pLAylist :)

Saturday, March 31, 2012

LAB Art 2012: The Artist and Gallery


Thought i'd spent a few moments telling you a bit about myself as an artist, my art style and the themes I am most interested in.

I first started out 'really' experimenting with art in 2007, my first year of university. Of course as a kid, I loved to draw, paint and do creative things, but this was that moment when I realised that art was something I wanted to make part of my life. It was kind of weird how it happened, I was looking at rock album covers on my computer and came across one that had a drawing of a lady with puppet strings attached to her, huge chest and she pretty much looked like a prostitute. So how did that inspire
me, you ask? Haha, well I looked carefully at the drawing, a brilliant executed drawing by the way, breaking the picture down into its most simplest lines, and thought I can draw that. So i picked up a permanent marker and an A3 piece of paper, and started with her eye brows. From there, the drawing came into itself and the end result was what I had hoped for, a picture that showed me I could draw.

Since that day and that moment, art has been a big part of my daily life. I am most interested in drawing people and communicating their feelings, actions and inner most demons visually and sometimes verbally. I focus on relationships between people, and how a person relates to the world, their own struggles and others. I wouldn't call my art dark but just like life, it is sometimes hard to look at or face. I try to keep it real, or at least symbolically real.

I do love painting and am trying it more and more these days, but my real passion lies in drawing and sketching cartoon/comic book style characters and situations. I draw with either pen, fine liner or permanent marker and then digitally add the colouring. So most of my art is print style at the end.

When painting my favourite medium is acrylics because they allow me super bright colours and work well with the speed in which I like to work. Once I have an idea or inspiration, I start immediately and am usually finished with the art work in at most an hour. My art is like my personality: impulsive and wrapped up in the moment.

If you haven't noticed, I love colour. The brighter, the better. At the moment I am working as an art teacher for an elementary school, and I am constantly telling my students "add more colour, make your painting pop, colour is beautiful and it is everywhere". Thats just how I like to see the world, and I hope my art communicates my viewpoint.          

To date I wonder who would my art appeal to, how can I get it out there into the world and what can I do with it. I can't stop now and so far I have not sold any artworks. I am hoping that dream oneday becomes a reality.

For now though, I am happy I have art as one of the biggest parts of my life.

As Andy Warhol once said: " An Artist is someone who produces things that people don't need to have, but that he - for some reason - thinks it would be a good idea to give them".

So from me, LAB, to you, I give you my art, my thoughts and the way I see the world.




pLAylist 2012: Selah Sue

Selah Sue released her debut self-entitled album in 2011 and it was a massive success. I came across it this year and its been on repeat on my pLAylist ever since. Her music is reggae/soul/alternative and if thats not your vibe, her voice will have you quickly coverted.

Best tracks on the album include:
- Black Part Love
- Peace of Mind
- Raggamuffin
- Crazy Vibes

She collaborated with Cee-Lo Green on the track Please. It's not my favourite track but worth a listen if you are a fan of his.

Check out Selah Sue's website for more info on this lyrically amazing lady and her jams: www.selahsue.com.

And add it to your pLAylist of course :) peace