Movie Talk

I've always loved a good documentary or foreign film.  I tend to see them in theater by myself due to lack of interest from friends. So you can tell I was uber excited when Manda J. said she was interested in seeing a few documentaries (she is recently converting over).  I think we're going to make "Documentary Night" a new thing.  The first that was on the list was : Food Inc. (currently on Netflix and Amazon Prime instant watch)

Its a very unflattering and eye opening movie on how involved the government is in America's food industry. And how its cheaper to buy a bag of chips than it is to dozen eggs or another form of "real food." American's are obese but we're aiding this by "growing" our food with chemicals, steroids, etc. therefore increasing production rate and decreasing cost.  Its pretty messed up.  I will no longer be purchasing #Tyson products. And I will continue to grow my own food with whatever space I have.

We haven't decided what we'll watch next, but I decided to list a couple of my recent favorites:

Exit Through the Gift shop
Mad Hot Ballroom
Waiting for Superman
Man on Wire
Buck

What are some of your favorites? Any suggestions to add to my list?

Happy viewing!

Post Its

So if you've followed my blog at all you'll know that I'm a big fan of graffitt art. I headed out to the Motherland for Memmorial and was SO excited when I came across these:

So along the highway through the Navajo Nation, you'l see a lot of these jewelry stands. There are a bunch here to attract Grand Canyon tourists and road trippers. I don't know who the artist is here. Some of the pastes were ripped down and others I didn't get pics of. They were mostly along the Tuba City junction area. So what do you think? I'm just happy to think that the art is spreading through Navajo Lands and its awesome to see that the art is Navajo based as well, our staples: sheep (dibe aren't they so cute?) and corn (nadaan), ha! I'm kicking myself for not turning around to grab some other photos. We decided we could just stop on our way back but ended up heading home a different way. Anyways, let me know what you think!

Aho! :)

Alien Encounters...

I'm sitting here sipping on hot Peppermint tea on this drizzly day...ahhh...todays blog post is solely to post about a recent sighting! I've been a huge graffiti/street art junkie for quite sometime now.  I posted about seeing "Exit Through the Gift Shop" which did a slight background on Space Invader...I was in Hollywood (Larchmont Village) this week and spotted this in a kicks store:

Eek! I was sooo excited (so excited I forgot to ask the shop owner if this was in fact an original).  I'm thinking it is and saying just that.  I get soo giddy when I spot a Shepard Fairey, Banksy, anything else ect. This area is know for its graffitti art (most commonly placed by CBS-City Bomb Squad-a local Hollywood crew)...I try to snap pics when I can (would always carry my camera everywhere I went before it was lost...now I'm just grateful for my 8mpx camera phone)...anyways, hope you guys find this as exciting as I do! "If you don't know...ask someone."

Cool Downloads

I love art, especially when its free. Check out this site. You can download & print free art at your leisure :)

Thought of the Day

Via PersimmonandPink

Goes along with Sunday's lesson on prayer. Was good to help me re-evaluate how thoughtful and sincere my prayers should be.

"If ye would hearken unto the Spirit [of God] which teacheth a man to pray ye would know that ye must pray; for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray. But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint..." (2 Nephi 32:8-9) :)

Dia de Los Muertos

Me encanta Dia de los Muertos. Fuimos a downtown Santa Ana ayer. We caught the tail end of the celebrations. Other highlights of the day included getting to see Rafa for 2 sec. and spending more time with Uyenners and Lenners. I'm pretty sure downtown SNA is going to be one of our regulars (Uyenners and that is). I purchased these cool little magnets (or origninal pices of art) from a photographer named: Cory Lundquist. He's very talented and spends a lot of time in Asia (which is where a lot of his photographs are taken). I ended up buying a small print some kids looking at a koi pond. I had a hard time narrowing it down to a single pic to buy (I really, really, really wanted the magnets, but couldn't justify paying $6 per magnet). He was fantastic and ended up throwing in a free magnet with the purchase of my 5x7 photo. I highly encourage original art and and very photo pro. Anyways, you can check out his cooollll original art magnets here. Keep it up Cory, and thanks for the orginal art!

Life Would Be Sweet if It really Was a Box of Chocolates!

Humm....I wonder who's this could be?

Yeah, that's my Shorty DooWop...

Yes, hello. I ran across this artists stuff the other day. He’s an East Coast artist (NY/DC…) and brings a creative alternative to street art. This is what he says about his art:

"Using colorful media such as twisting balloons, party streamers, and artist tape, I have begun to add visual representations of sound effects to public spaces as a sort of dimensional graffiti. After embellishing the found scenes and photographing the results, I leave my additions in place to engage passers-by for as long as the materials hold up. For me, this process encourages a reexamination of surroundings and objects that are usually taken for granted, and injects a hint of the fantastical surreality that I have established in my other work."

Take a look for yourself:

You can see more original art here on his website D. Billy . Or you can check his flickr out, click here ---->flickr

Keep Ya Head Up

Some of the million stencil art images I've seen out-and-about. I'll frequently be posting images from my finds in and out from here on out :) Utility box, Escondido, CAArt show, Culver City, CA

Let's Dance to Joy Division...and Pretend That We Like It

1st and foremost: H A P P Y I N D E P E N D A N C E D A Y ! ! ! Hope you all had a safe and happy day of celebration.

This is what I got to do today:

P.S. Its 11:11 again? Ahh...lovely wishes on a day off of work :)

Love These Little Guys

...they make me happy and are so fun to open, collect, and buy (not to mention look FANTASTIC on my jackets)...you can get them in different themes (aka my hot pink bullet Zipit comes from the 'Things That Hurt' series...I really wanted the brass knuckles one!).

Here's are more detailed and professional description:

Prozac-infused or just naturally happy, no zipper pull has ever demonstrated this degree of job satisfaction.

From illustrator Kat Leuzinger, these doe-eyed cuties are tickled technicolor at the idea of clipping onto your hoody, bag or sweats.

Or, take a look for yourself here.

Its a beautiful day. I think I'll go for a walk outside...

Its June Gloom. Here's something thats not so gloomy:
This is what became of this years Family Reunion T-shirts. Vileena on Photoshop and me on the scanning skillz. :)

Mas Primeros...

So, thanks to my lovely, ever so eloquent friend Allison Lew, I've "stolen/borrowed" her photographs of what was my 1st printblock? printmaking? (ha, ha...I don't even know what its called). Anyways, I'm still new to this form of art. It was fun, but I seriously need some directions. I think I drew blood twice, SERIOUSLY. I don't know how to use that carving tool! Anyways, presenting...

"My First"

Its double printed here because it didn't "stamp" so well (I used my acrylic paints, but I know I've seen "print blocking" paint at the art supply store, so I'm assuming you need to use that). Well, I'd appreciate any help or input! I'm always looking for more instruction! Thanks peeps...

Paz.

How do you say "Babuska" in Navajo?

Here are those nesting dolls I painted for my mother for Keshmesh. I finally had her take pics of them; however, this is the closest shot she could get without it being completely blurry.

Perhaps I'll take some closer pics with my camera next time I'm at home...whenever that will be.

-N

Hi, My Names Nacolynn and I'm an Addict.

Cupcakes. Are. My. Current. Obsession.

I've been doing a lot of blog browsing for new cupcake ideas, inspiration, and recipes. I figure the only reason why I really enjoy baking these tender little cakes, is because all baking is, is another form of art. My mother and I were discussing this today (she's an AMAZING self taught wedding cake maker), and its just another medium: icing instead of paints, cake instead of paper or a canvas, parchment bags and knifes instead of paint brushes, etc. It still requires an aesthetic eye and creativity, and the way you manipulate the icing (fondant, butter creme, icing, etc) takes time and practice, just as one would when playing with paint.

Anyways, I've been to my share of BBQ/potlucks lately where I've made cupcakes (I use these as an excuse to practice this edible form of art on others) and had troubles with transport. So, yesterday, I clipped that 40% off coupons from the Michaels add and purchased my 1st 3-in-one carrier. It carries 24 cupcakes, mini cupcakes, or a 9x11 flat cake. Its splendid and I love it. Here's a photo documentation of my lovely cupcake baking filled morning :)

Here are a few fellow cupcake blog spots that I check out frequently:
http://the-cupcakery-blog.blogspot.com/
http://cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com/
http://bakerella.blogspot.com/

The End :)

BANFF, Here I Come...

My sister's my inspiration for the following post. In an attempt to be more sustainable, I decided to only bike/walk to places (if possible) within a 2 mile radius of my house. Another thing I had decided to do is to bike to work once a week. Not only is this good on the environment and my gas bill, its also good for me (biking around town, wouldn't hurt this body ONE bit:) Anyways, so this is what aspired from Friday's bike ride back from work...needless to say, I took a little detour.

.

This video is hopefully, the first of many to come, so enjoy and let me know what you think. Perhaps you'll see it at the next Banff Film Festival :) Until then, park the car and RIDE!

Directed and shot on location in Newport Beach by N. Begay.

Song: Carousel by Sydney Wayser

Finished?

So, I've decided its much harder to work with acrylics than it is for watercolors. I've decided to wait to put paint onto the canvas' until I get a feel for the medium. I found out a friend of mine paints and I told her about the new addition to my artistic world. She told me they have cavnas pads (I told you I know NOTHING about acrylics, but I should of guess as much) and gave me a sheet to practice on. Well I decided I should outline something and sort of color in to see what happens. So this is how it begun:

And its completely changed each time I sit down (I think I've changed it 4 times now?)...This is what its become thus far:

And here's another one...(don't ask me why the hearts...I didn't realize it was a theme).

I've purchased 4 different brands of paints now, trying to see which I like better than the next, or if I can even tell a difference. Thus far, I have no idea. I know which one I like best, the Lascaux...but that's only dependant on the packaging:) I did find another art store that I prefer over Sterling Art. Its called Art Supply Warehouse, located in Westmisister. Most of their stuff is discounted, and they sell oh so many supplies (including Kidrobot stuff - who makes the Zipit I love to buy).

Anyways...I'm going to try and paint something else, like a tree or sunset or something...anyways, we'll see what happens. I'll keep you posted.

::Let me know what you think::

Try Something New Everyday...

So, lately I've been trying to "try something new everyday," or at least to "create something new everyday" in the sense of challenging my creativity. Now, I wouldn't consider myself a "painter," but I will say that I do have artistic abilities. For Christmas I turned some DIY Russian nested dolls into my Navajo sanii version. It was my 1s time using a form of "acrylic" paint (does craft kind really count though?) I then realized that I liked what I was doing (painting/creating/calling upon my creative abilities), and to be honest with you, I throught the nested dolls came out pretty well. Anyways, that made me want to FO REALS add acrylics to my painting reportoir... Another spark of interest can be attributed to a Mr. Bunky Echohawk (Yakima/Pawnee), a modern Native painter out of Colorado. I (Dine Nation) went to a hip hop/live paint event @ UCI in November? Where Bunky was the featured artist and painted to the beats of Quese Imc (Pawnee/Seminole). This artistic "Indigenous" event further sparked my "I-wonder-if-I-could-do-that-to" interest (not to mention the LOADS of graffiti art I see daily...I'd also love to learn the art of tagging...". So, I did it (no, not tagging or painting), or started to do it I guess. Yesterday after work, I headed to Sterling Art to purchase some painting products. I guess I should of consulted someone, but I just figure hit the ground running, even if its a "no run" zone...who cares. Anyways, here are a list of my purchases:

-2 Art Alternative 10 x 20 canvases @ 40% off each.

• -4 Stephen Quiller acrylic tubes of paint (cobalt teal, cerulean blue, magenta light, and arylide yellow medium) @ B1G1F.


• -4 assorted brushes (WCF 1 Expressive Arts & Crafts, #7&12 Connoisseur W-Taklon Round, and a 3/4" Princeton Art & rush Co.) @ 50% off each.

Now, you skilled painting professional can be the ones to tell me if I bought crap or wasted money. I've already been told my 1 source that I'd spend TOO MUCH and should never purchase supplies at art stores...and instead should buy wholesale (please have patience, I'm just a younge "painter" getting ready to blossom). Anyways, I honestly don't know much about acrylics (I watercolor, and that's about it), but I'm ready and willing. So today a blank canvas, tomorrow ????? I decided in advance that these pics would be on display at sometime in my home, chances are it will be so hideous that they will only remain in my room, but if what ever I am to create turns out better than expected, you just might see it another room besides the patio ;)

Anyways, so stay tuned, crash or burn, I'll most likely post the final product up here. Oh, and any advice for a novice painter is ALWAYS accepted.

Ahe'hee,

Nakki Davinci :)

P.S. PAINTERS: Please feel free to leave any painting advice/tips...kindly appreciated:)

Monday Madness...

Today's perfect for posting. Here was one of my favorites...



It was a whole section on the side of a building, covered up about a month ago. Off the 5 in Commerce (south of the Citadel). It lasted longer than I thought. Oh to have that kind of talent...someday buddies...someday.

Peace.

Hoo, hoo...hee....

Easier said than done...:) Thank goodness for modern medicine and health insurance!

P.S. The Camp has "tagged" up each parking space with witty little sayings as the above. I definetly a fan of The Camp, and its sister anit-mall The Lab. They often frequent a Sat. afternoon. Also noteworthy, the 1st Wed. of every month is devoted to "12 Minutes of Fame" @ The Lab. Local artists (from acoustic guitar to tamboreen) sign up for a chance to "be heard." Not to mention its my new choice of hair salon (ask for Angelo @ The Crew, he's FANTASTIC), and healty eats (Native Foods anyone?). Not to mention Lena and I had our time to contribute to the artist society one Earth Day afternoon celebration by decoupauging our spot on a nearby wall. Ahh...food, art, music, and fashion...the alternative side to one stop shopping:)