Not to toot my own horn,

but whilst I may not be the best designer (I admit, I'm not always the best in realising concepts- I'm often a lot better in recognising problems and then solving these), I have always had a fair amount of faith in my ability to write- and by that I don't mean just these blog posts, but academic papers as well.

We just got our dissertation results back today, and what a doozy! To fill you in, the title of my dissertation was Inscribing Identity: The Evolution of the Tattoo from Anti-Fashion to a niche fashion object, and the parallels between Dress and Tattoos as embodiments of Identity.

I was aiming for a Distinction, and walked away with a High Distinction instead, hooray!! A lot of the marking sheets were placed on top of the accompanying dissertation, so I did notice that quite a few people shared this mark too (how lucky that we aren't marked on a bell curve). This doesn't bother me at all (I have been known to get a bit jealous)- in fact, congratulations on everyone pulling through and doing so well! And why this doesn't faze me, to know that marks-wise I wasn't a stand out, is that the feedback I got was quite amazing, which is why I just have to share with the world:

"A highly considered analysis. There is evidence of a very high level of engagement with and weighing of theoretical ideas. The thread of the argument is very sophisticated and has been consistently sustained. Well done. Excellent work."

Chuffed, who, me?

On the other side, Post Crit

I'm feeling a little battered, but surprisingly hopeful. I feel as if my collection was ripped to shreds, but at the same time, the light at the end of the tunnel seems brighter and much closer.

All my confusion in my design work was so ridiculously evident to the panel that for those 20 minutes I felt embarrassed to call myself a designer. My muse had undergone so many transformations that in the end I had no idea who she was anymore, so as a result, my design work was all over the place...and very very safe. I'd known that all my initial ideas had gotten lost along the way, and that I'd ended up playing it safe, which was definitely a detriment to me.

My prints had previously received good feedback from my textiles tutor, and there was some acknowledgment that they were good prints, but any good feedback about them was only bout them as prints: as part of my collection, I was still struggling to find a way for them to fit in, and this really showed. Again, this was due to the confusion and complete lost-ness and lack of direction I'd somehow found myself in.

However, it's not all bad! Some of the ideas that I'd had in the beginning (before they got lost), and had brought up as the initial development, were well received, so I was encouraged to go all out with those and not hold back. I was told that there was definitely potential, but I just had to work it through until those ideas came to fruition.

One of the biggest issues, no, THE biggest issue, was my lack of time management. I readily admitted this, but wasn't so ready to admit why, so when I was confronted with the question of "so WHY do you procrastinate?" the floodgates opened and I was reduced to a pile of snot and tears. And I'd been so determined not to cry too! Up until that point I'd been taking on board all the criticism- as it was very constructive, albeit negative...but it's just hard when you have to face your biggest fear, in front of a panel of people you admire and who (almost literally) hold the fate of your final year in your hands.

Deep breath now. My biggest fear is failure, which I allow (obviously too often) to paralyse me. In the last few weeks, I'd gotten to the point where I had zero confidence in my work and no faith in myself. I felt like a machine just going through the motions, trying to complete the crit requirements: all my passion had completely flown out the window. Some days (ok, waaaay too many days), I would hate my work so much I'd do anything to avoid it, which obviously put me even further behind.

So that crit was very bizarre. After that breakdown and subsequent failure to recompose myself, I was still getting negative criticism, but I felt a lot more support and encouragement than I have in any time I've had at uni. Up until now, I'd never felt that I would be able to make it, but I'd stuck with it because I still want to be a designer. I'd always seen myself as mediocre, I'd never felt like I'd impressed my tutors, and I'd rarely created anything that I'd been super proud of, or had received rave reviews. It was definitely good to hear that our tutors do have faith in us, and me, but that reciprocally we have to work to maintain that faith.

What I'm going to take away from this is to remember to be true to myself, and to constantly remind myself of my passion. I'm going to have to face my fear of failure, and am going to deal with all the issues which have lead me to this state. I'm going to clear my head and the drawing board, and try to cement exactly what this year is going to be for me; so following this, what my collection will be should be cemented as well. I'm redefining my concept, my muse, my direction- yes my whole collection (oh, did I mention that I went from my initial instinct of a summer collection, to a winter collection because it seemed more suitable, back to a summer collection? Maybe, we shall see...): I'm redefining who I am as a designer.

Fingers crossed!

So I need to work on my photography skills...

My friend Lingsi is an avid photographer, and is often the designated photographer at our group events- weddings, birthdays, random hanging out.

Last night she posted these photos of Vivid, which is still running at the moment. I've been dying to go see it myself, but her photos are so clear that it's almost good enough. What do you think?


I just love the way that the patterns play with the existing shape and silhouette of the buildings, rather than trying to change them. It really makes me hope that I can develop some awesome enought prints for my range...

The Biennale has come to town!

So scattered within these next few posts will be a little bit of Biennale goodness from Cockatoo Island. Yay for interesting and somewhat relevant procrastination!


First cab off the ranks are these sculptures by Rohan Wealleans. I don't have that much to say about them, because I think you need to see them for themselves to really appreciate all the intricacies in their detailing and embellishment; except, how much do the patterns remind you of tattoos, and of henna tattoos in particular?


And just that little bit creepy and macabre, which both freaks me out (because I never really wanted to experience the inside of a moose like this, even if it's not real), and gets me interested (because it pokes my curiosity about what a moose really looks like from the inside- I'm sure it's not this sanitary).

From the fiery depths of the sewing workrooms,

comes this quote:

"We're wogs. If there isn't taffetta and sequins, there isn't a wedding."

It's funny that she said this just as we were really knuckling down and finalising (or trying to finalise) our fabrics for our collection. It has really been drummed into us to find appropriate fabrics, but sometimes this seems an impossible task.

The Australian winter really just isn't cold enough to necessitate the weight of fabrics used in winter garments overseas: so when creating a winter range that post graduation, would ideally be saleable internationally, the lack of variety of quality winter fabrics (at affordable prices) really starts to become an issue. Just sourcing a quality wool jersey that is warm enough, yet will not be used by every other student doing womenswear has been difficult. I guess that's why when I found a 100% merino wool ponte that I love, is of a great quality, and was available for 30% off because I'm a final year student, I bought 12 metres of it. I think that some other students will also be using it, but I'm planning to put my textiles expertise into play here: to dye it to match my colour palette; to print it with my own prints; and to design other textile applications such as quilting designs, to make this fabric really mine.

Still, 12 metres seems like a lot right now. Hopefully I will use it all: even more hopefully, I hope that I'll have enough. And no matter how far my collection changes from it's current state, this fabric WILL remain.

Some colourful language ahead!

Argh. Colour palettes will be the death of me.

Whoever decided that bright colours are summer, and that dark colours are winter should be shot. I don't believe that colours should be restricted to season; heaven knows that in winter when everything is so drab, some bright colours would certainly (literally) brighten up the day. Even Li Edelkoort agrees: recently, we were treated to a lecture by her assistant and right hand man Phillip, and he showed us the latest Trend Union colour stories book. Admittedly most of the colour stories for winter were darker in tone, but they were all so rich, and most importantly, black was a minority colour! One of my favourite colour stories was based around a photo of a punk mohawk, which had been dyed green and pink.

So, with the idea of bright colours in mind, these were the colour palettes I developed for my final range (each row is a new colour story):


Didn't work. Too summery, spring, or transseasonal. I needed something to pull it back down and give it a more varied and balanced range. After a bit of tweaking and only a little bit of frustration, I've finally come up with:


Hooray, they were approved! I still get my bright colours, but I also have a stronger winter influence. It's hard to admit that the criticism was actually good for me.

Sex Sells

In the recent present, one of our subjects forced us to think really hard about what we really want to gain from this degree and this final year, and where we want to be in 5 years time. In facing all my fears about the real world (responsibilities, what are they??), I looked into my strengths and weaknesses as a designer, my passions and interests, and where these would intersect to give me an idea of what type of company I should be working for.

I decided to give myself the goal of ultimately working for Diesel, a company that I have always found really interesting, not only as a designer but as a shopper. One of my favourite things about Diesel is that they don't take themselves too seriously, which is reflected in their crazy and provocative ad campaigns.

This is my favourite Diesel ad:

I found him!

Good News Week updated their full episodes! So as promised, here is the original clip that made me fall in love with Ash Grunwald:



He comes in about 1.04, and I can't say anymore because I'm watching it on repeat.

I fell in love today

His name is Ash Grunwald. In the spirit of stress relief I allowed myself to watch Good News Week tonight, and he was the musical clue for the Hooper team (or rather, the performer of the musical clue). He's an Aussie blues and roots musician, and seems to have a fairly big profile in the festival and live music scene.

When he first appeared on the stage he seemed a bit shy, a bit dorky, but heaps cheeky; but man oh man, as soon as he started strumming his lapsteel guitar (yes, I looked that one up), you could see his incredible talent and passion, and he had an amazing way of bringing you into the music and feel what he was feeling as his fingers flew across the strings.

Gushing? I could go on. His singing and ad-libbing of lyrics: "I totally forgot the lyrics", was so personal and yet so open. One of the things that I'm most enjoying in this blog project is discovering new music, and with Ash Grunwald, it was just so amazing to see someone's passion transformed into something so beautiful and enjoyable. It was really inspiring, and reminded me how much I hope to one day be able to reach someone, and evoke this level of emotion with something I've created.

Happy Musical Monday!



Ok so that's not the best quality video. As soon as I can find the Good News Week video I'll post that one too.

More Tattoos

My friend finally got married! We did the dance and got rave reviews, and got henna done! Officially it's called mehendi, and boy did we get into it.

This is the bridal mehendi, which is just amazingly detailed and intricate. Can you believe it's all freehand?!?

Photos courtesy of my friend Lingsi Lu.

Just a little pic to show the application of the henna. The ladies paint so fast!

My hand, photo from my friend Caren Zhang

This is the final colour, 2 days after application and after a couple of showers (so the dried henna paste has been washed off).

My friend's hands (Helena and Pam, from top) and my hand, my photo

So, um, what's the point you ask? This form of temporary tattoo was just so beautiful that it got me thinking about ways to incorporate it, or adapt it to my own collection in a textile print, or maybe even embroidery. I'd mentioned to my textiles tutor that it was a shame that I couldn't use the henna paste directly on the fabric because it only comes in one colour, so she suggested that I create the artwork, and then scan it in and manipulate the colours on Photoshop. M also then suggested that I create a print in the mehendi style, incorporating images/motifs that are suitable to my range and aesthetic.

The *semi-rusty* cogs in my head are turning. Stay tuned for sample results!

And so it begins.

We are now firmly entrenched in that time in semester where all of us final years are starting to be sleep deprived, and are definitely all slightly hysterical... and along with this, comes the sharing of silly youtube videos and ridiculous songs whenever someone has their laptop with uni. It's a great bonding process, after which we feel much more comfortable with each other, and are able to give each other critical and constructive feedback, so I would argue it's an integral part of the design process as a student.

This gem was shared with us last Friday, and has been stuck in my head since. Its upbeat and quirky, and whenever I hear it I just think of the amazing work of the girls who were watching it with me and it actually makes me want to work harder so my work can be amazing too! Funny how friendly competition works, especially in conjunction with audio cues...

So without any further rambling, I present to you Darwin Deez with Radar Detector!

The accessories make the man

Or the woman! In thinking about my collection, my mind has been all over the place: I've been trying to hone and refine and pin down my 12 looks, whilst simultaneously thinking about textile prints, worrying about my colour palette, and trying to envision the garments with accessories since my models apparently can't go down the catwalk barefoot.

But why stop at thinking about shoes and jewellery? Current street trends, especially going into winter when it can all get a bit drab, include patterned and textured and brightly coloured stockings, and the headband revival is still going strong....yet as a designer, it's my job to want more.


Socks are always so neglected, but they needn't be! They are like the ugly sister to stockings, often seen as functional and utilitarian, but can't they be fun too? Granted this isn't the best example of 'designed' socks, but the idea is there waiting to be expanded.

And this headband- it's just screaming at me to start thinking about whether headwear can be translated into streetwear; toeing the line of avant garde, without veering into the kitsch...maybe a vintage referenced style would help?

Hmm. Thoughts are brewing, much like the coffee that's keeping me alive.

Choooooocolate!

It's that time of semester when panic levels start to rise, as the realisation dawns that there is only a month left and there is still so much work to do. Our solution? Heads down, bums up, pattern rulers and half finished toiles all over the place, and a truckload of chocolate.

In the spirit of relaxing with a bit of silliness then, today's Musical Monday has to be dedicated to the Japanese band Perfume, with their very aptly named Chocolate Disco.

If I had more time to sit here and chat I would go into the crazy costumes and attempt to learn the dance, but I must go drape and sketch and colour and try not to fall asleep. Instead, you must enjoy, and have a giggle and dance for me!

Textile love

So I mentioned that my Indian friend was getting married, and that our group of friends was performing a dance, right? Well, when we performed the dance, she lent us some saris and Oh. My. God. In love with Indian textiles.

Traditional costume vs fashion: it doesn't really seem to fit well together, but I think sometimes there's a lot we as designers can learn from traditional dress, especially from other cultures. It's not just the novelty of the exotic, but there is so much that is beautiful and just begging to be noticed and adopted.


It was like textile porn: the amazing array of colours in a room full of saris was breathtaking (with heaps of gorgeous colours and in combinations that a lot of Western fashion seems to shy away from), and that was before I even looked at the fantastic embroidery and beading. Guh. The intricate embroidery in such gorgeous threads, the beads used...I think I better just let photos speak for themselves, or I'll be here gushing all night.


I wish I had more photos to share. If I was more shameless I would've stalked every woman in the room and taken photos of her sari: there wasn't a single one that wasn't beautiful and unique. *sigh*

Warehouse Sales

To some, and probably a previous incarnation of myself: great bargains for the discerning shopper; one who is willing to spend the hours needed to trawl through the racks, and has the energy to try on armfuls of clothing and fight with other women over the last remaining garment of a certain style.

Now, 'warehouse sale' means: What. A. Waste.


It hurts to think that potentially, all the hours and hard work put into creating a range comes down to this. What of the clothing that doesn't get sold? Look at the styles in which the unsold volume numbers in double digits. The incredible fabric wastage alone is mind-boggling, let alone the wasted time and money.

Fast fashion. I don't think I want to be there. I hope that I can position myself in a sector that is modern/contemporary yet classic, with my garments being innovative yet with a hint of timelessness- that they are so unique that they can survive the ritual wardrobe clean-out most women have each season/year.


I do NOT want to be so easily disposable, or to have my garments/accessories treated so callously.

Take me away,

to Bollywood! For today's Musical Monday, I thought I'd introduce you to some Bollywood music. It's not something I normally listen to, but an Indian friend of mine is getting married in a couple of weeks and we've been roped into performing a dance. Asian girls doing a Bollywood dance? Yeap, looks as strange as it sounds.

However, we've all gotten really into the music: it's uplifting and fun and so full of life. Another plus: we've all discovered that dancing really does make you feel better. We laugh like crazy and after every practice I get home feeling ready to tackle more uni work, as it has helped me clear my mind and order my thoughts.

This song is called Dhoom Taana from the movie Om Shanti Om. One thing I would pay attention to is the brilliant colours in the costumes. Recently I've been thinking about colours (as I'm working on and hoping to finalise my colour palette), and fabrics; whilst traditional Indian dress isn't relevant to my collection, it is still interesting to take note of the way colour and embellishment is used, to help me figure out good balance and proportion.

Have fun!

Finding my style

So remember the books that I'd ordered online, and then received and was gleefully poring over? Well now they are really coming in handy: we have officially finished dissertation and are diving head first into the collection...eek!

My head has been all wrapped up with all the preliminary research into silhouettes, fabrication, etc, that I haven't really had time to think about what style and aesthetic I want my textile prints to be...at least I've decided on my colours right? Anyway, this is where Art by Tattooists: Beyond Flash comes in!

It's an awesome book by Jo Waterhouse, that is similar to the Juxtapoz books in that each tattooist/artist has a short profile and then a small selection of their work. It's been really interesting for me to see tattooists work in different media and how some traditional tattoo styles translate, and it will definitely help me figure out my own style.

These are some of the tattooists that stood out to me:


The textures and incredible life-like volume in Pink Skull (oil on canvas) by Matt Hunt are just amazing; it looks so 3D, like it's about to jump off the page and land in your lap!


I absolutely adore the aesthetic of these girls by Lina Stigsson: they have very Spanish, romantic, and conventionally pretty faces, but are covered with tattoos- although the tattoos are very delicate and beautifully detailed. These are oil on canvas.


I'm not sure anything I say about Rocketqueen (watercolour on paper) will do Cody Meyer justice. Just, wow. The emotion, the passion, and the amazing likeness to a photograph. Wow.

And finally these ink and watercolour roosters (on watercolour paper) by Erik Von Bartholomaus. I think my favourite thing about these is the way the colours are so bold and strong yet blend smoothly so that it isn't just big chunks of colour in clearly defined panels.

Sigh. I have a lot of work to do.

The formal stuff: Art by Tattooists: Beyond Flash was published by Laurence King Publishing in London in 2009. (hooray for getting my hands on recent books!)

The Future of Fashion?

So today M and I did a little presentation and held a 'fun fashion activity' for some high school kids who visited UTS. These were year 10 students from priority schools in NSW (there were even some who'd been flown in from Dubbo) who had been chosen by their schools as bright young talent who would benefit from a little nudge towards a university education.

It was really interesting to see the students' reactions to our powerpoint presentation- we'd kept it a bit informal and silly, but talked about what studying fashion was like at UTS, especially compared to studying it at other institutions. What was really amazing was the enthusiasm shown by the students when they got to the activity- we came up with a short list of characters, for whom the students had to create costumes for with just newspaper and sticky tape. We'd asked them to think about how to best portray the characteristics and personalities through their clothing.

We were so happy to see the students really consider silhouette, volume, line, and a few groups even created heads for their dressmaker's mannequins, showing that they were really thinking about who their character was, not just what they wear. Here are a few photos:




I really think that we might see some of these students at UTS doing some design course or another, and it feels great to know that we were able to share our passion and hopefully inspire someone to follow their dreams too.

Some mood music, perhaps?

Sigh, where does my time go? My poor neglected Jukebox...

I know I said that I wasn't going to revisit my new oldies music playlist this week, but I had it on my Ipod this morning on the train, and I've literally been Daisy (the) Jukebox ever since. I was mouthing the lyrics and bopping my head, clicking my fingers and wiggling in my seat, whilst studiously avoiding eye contact with everyone else. It never ceases to amaze me how much music can affect your mood- after a couple of weeks of stress over my dissertation (which is done and dusted, woohoo!) and stress about having found a new design direction (which left me feeling a bit lost and overwhelmed, and lacking in work to show to my supervisor, oops), it was just a great moment of relief to have a bright cheery song to lift me up.I think it got me happier, smilier and more awake than coffee did...

However, when I went to youtube the video, the 80s came back and hit me in the face full force. I cannot get over how much her makeup freaks me out- but, I will refrain from being mean, and just focus on how upbeat this song is, and how much it perks me up and makes doing work fun!!

Ti presento Katrina and the Waves, with Walking on Sunshine! The original video can't be embedded on here (boo...) so its under the youtube link above, but here is a live version which is just as good aurally.....but possibly even more amusing visually. Oh 80s.

Stay fit while you sit!

Coming from a university background, one of the most important things we are taught to consider as designers is smart yet practical design. After all, what is the use of creating something that is aesthetically beautiful when it is completely impractical to use?

Whilst it is probably a more common problem for industrial designers, I must admit that I have had issues in the past where garments I've designed haven't been the most practical (I will never forget my tutor blushing madly whilst telling us to leave the fly on men's pants where it is, rather than being 'designerly' and moving it to the side of even to the back, purely for the practicality of going to the bathroom): so now I always think of how easy it would be to get the garment on and off- gorgeous necklines that don't allow for the head to pass through just don't cut it!

One of the things I came across on Oddee (a blog about weird things) today is the Hawaii Chair. How the designers ever thought it could be a worldwide sensation (hey, if Snuggies and Shamwows can break the infomercial barrier to success...) is beyond me. I think I'll let this hilarious video of Ellen DeGeneres trying to use it on her show speak for itself:

Productive procrastination, is that an oxymoron?

My newfound love/admiration/incredible sense of inspiration from illustration is starting to get out of hand. It overwhelms me a little to realise that no matter how fast and how greedily I soak up newly discovered illustrators and their work, this is only the tip of a teeny tiny iceberg floating in a colossal world of amazing illustration. And golly gosh, if it doesn't make me want to just throw all uni assignments to the wind and dive right in!

Today, whilst surfing the net in an attempt to clear my mind and allow me to reorganise dissertation related thoughts, I managed to find a site that keeps calling to me...but I must resist! Productive procrastination is still procrastination, and the knowledge that rewarding myself by going crazy after my dissertation is done and dusted is my only consolation. At least then the shopping-when-I-have-no-money style guilt (i.e. being distracted when I have no time) will cease to exist, and the satisfaction of my lustful eyes will be just that little bit sweeter!

Oh silly me, getting carried away and not even telling you what webpage it is. Drumroll please?

20 Inspiration Illustration from Behance: posted by Vikas Ghodke of, and on, AcrisDesign, "a blog dedicated to web designer,web developers,freelancers,bloggers and internet geeks". Behance itself is a network for people in the creative industries, and a platform for "creative portfolios, projects and collaboration"; similar to The Loop, 2threads, and Carbonmade.

I guess the point of this post is to share some of my random finds and to have a reminder for myself of the awesome sites out there: for inspiration and for self-promotion in this case! I really should get back to work now, before I start gushing about the illustrators that Ghodke has found, and get carried away looking at their portfolios...again.

Daisy Jukebox's Back

Greetings and salutations, and apologies for being awol this past weekend...my bad.

I couldn't help it though, I've been on a big Golden Oldies music kick, and every time I've been on the computer I've had the music going, and I get so distracted bopping and singing along that I forget everything else I'm supposed to do!

One of the songs I'm most addicted to is My Boyfriend's Back by The Angels, though it has been covered zillions of times (I think the original is still the best). It has such fun lyrics and a great foot-tapping/hand-clapping/finger clicking beat that you can't help but sing and dance along! It is one of the songs my mum used to play in the car when I was little, and because I know it so well it is a great song to have in the background when I'm (trying to, or supposed to be) doing work. It inspires me to have more fun and enjoy my work, rather than moaning about approaching due dates- and when I have fun, the work I produce is so much better anyway!

This is a live performance from the 60s- check out the hairstyles! I just wish the quality of the video was better, or that it was in colour so I could see the details of the dresses.



I have a few other Musical Mondays posts up my sleeve, tying into events that are coming up on my calendar (all will be revealed in due time), but hopefully in a few weeks time we'll get to take another trip back to the 60s! or the 70s, or 80s...

She really can be anything...

In the last few days, the remainder of my illustration books have arrived from The Book Depository (hooray!). Since my taste in illustration/art leans towards the lowbrow/neo-pop/graffiti street-styles, it isn't surprising that some of this art can be quite macabre and a bit creepy: I did just share with you Juxtapoz Dark Arts!

All this journey into the illustration fantasy land reminded me of Margaux Lange, an artist/jewellery designer I came across a few years ago. Her work aims at transforming a mass produced product into unique handmade jewellery, using...

Barbie! Her Artist Statement explains more clearly and succintly than I could hope to, why she is so fascinated and inspired by Barbie, and what she aims for in the creation of her wearable art.

For me, her jewellery brings up a whole host of emotions and feelings: nostalgia for my childhood- I had at least 20 Barbies/friends/younger sister Kellys; amusement at the statement Margaux is making, and the way that she has very carefully chosen which body parts to use in which piece of jewellery- when you look at all her pieces, many of them are quite ironic, like these earrings made of ears:

and desire for her jewellery- it's just so bold and out there, definitely my style! Some of it is a little bit creepy:

(who doesn't want a whole army of...arms...around their neck?), but some is actually quite sweet:

but most of it is just kitsch and fun:

Who knew that Barbie would still be so fun and desirable when we're adults?

All these lovely photos were taken from Margaux's Portfolio pages on her personal site. I definitely recommend that you check out all her other work- particularly the one off pieces, as they're all very unique. I love them all, and you can buy some of her jewellery on her site... just saying!

I love packages in the mail

The books just keep coming and coming! I'm getting so excited every morning to go check to see whether another package is waiting patiently for me on my front step; it's like I'm a little girl again, waiting for Santa!

The next book that delivered itself into my waiting hands and eager eyes was Juxtapoz Dark Arts, which is another illustrator collection in the Juxtapoz book series. It has a decidedly darker feel (obvious from the title, yes?) to Juxtapoz Illustration, with many of the artists choosing to deal with deeper or more serious topics such as death, prejudice and persecution, and overconsumption (in a consumerist world). The artworks range from bright and bold:

to soft and melancholy (or, as with some of the other artists, almost ethereal):

and all sorts of in between; soft but bright, dark but ethereal...

The editors of this collection have presented a really exciting mix of artwork, with some artists creating work that is so dark and macabre that it can make the viewer uncomfortable or even a bit sick if it is stared at and studied for too long; whilst the work of other illustrators can conjure up so much emotion that the viewer feels as if the artist has seen into their soul and painted their personal sadness, melancholy, despair and loneliness.

I guess I have painted a fairly grim picture of what this book is about, but I promise that it isn't as bad as it sounds. Yes the imagery and subject content can be a bit depressing, but it is still an amazing book with a great wealth of interesting illustrations, so if you ever manage to prise it from my hands you should definitely check it out!

Oh, but before I forget: Juxtapoz Dark Arts was edited by M. Revelli (Project Manager Saelee Oh and Writer Evan Pricco), and was published by Gingko Press in the USA in 2009.

The Internet Is For My Blog

Last year I had the fortune of seeing Avenue Q on stage (it was only in Sydney for 2 weeks), but it was only on Saturday that I managed to track down the soundtrack at JB Hi Fi.

I'm currently listening to it on repeat, and I just have to share it with everyone who will pay attention to me. For those who don't know, Avenue Q is sort of like an adults version of The Muppets- there are puppets: but they are rude, lewd and crude. It is an insanely funny musical with lots of little truths that most people wouldn't admit like Everyone's A Little Bit Racist; mixed with little life lessons like There's a Fine, Fine Line, which deals with the dilemma of just exactly when non-reciprocated love becomes a waste of time.

I think I would have to say that my favourite song from the whole thing is The Internet Is For Porn- I definitely don't agree, but the melody is just so catchy and the lyrics are too amusing!

Just a word of warning- the content of this song is quite lewd and there is a decent amount of swearing, and I understand that not everyone shares my sense of humour. However, that being said, I watched the stage production with my mum and she enjoyed it immensely, so I hope you like it too:

Slowly filling my bookcase...

A couple of Thursdays ago, I was in Newtown with M. We were just doing a bit of window shopping in between class, and I'd been hoping to pick up a tattoo magazine or tattoo art book so we went to Pentimento and Mag Nation. Whilst there, I fell in love with a few books: mostly on illustrators (see my obsession growing? I have so many illustrators that I'm loving and getting all sorts of inspiration from, who I'm going to slowly introduce you to), but I couldn't decide on which books to buy with my limited funds.

That night at home I went a little bit crazy on Amazon and The Book Depository- I'm not going to admit how many books I bought! Since then I've been waiting with barely controlled excitement for my books to arrive...when on Thursday, what appeared in my mailbox but Juxtapoz Illustration!Originally, the Juxtapoz name was attached only to the Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine established by Robert Williams in 1994, which is a magazine which aimed at validating the developing lowbrow art movement in an intelligent format. In the last few years, Juxtapoz has expanded its publishing empire to include a series of books, including but not limited to, my new favourite book (until the others arrive, perhaps); Juxtapoz Dark Arts; and Juxtapoz Tattoo.

What I really like about the presentation of these books is the neatness- each artist is given a short profile page, with several following pages dedicated to their work. It is clean, simple and uncluttered, and really allows the reader to appreciate the artwork without getting lost in fancy borders or layouts. By presenting the carefully selected artists in alphabetical order, the turn of a page to a new artist's work can be a total surprise and contradiction to what you have just seen: which makes the whole process so much more fun! Each artist chosen has such a different and distinct style, so that you never think "didn't I just see this a few artists ago?"

Here are just a few examples of the incredible variety of illustrators in Juxtapoz Illustration:

...and I could go on, but then this post would never end. I can't wait to go exploring more of the artwork by each illustrator: if I don't get too lost in this magical world of illustration (I feel a little bit like Alice when she fell down the rabbit hole) I'll come back and share the works and artists that I like best.

Just a few formalities: Juxtapoz Illustration was produced by R. Rock Enterprises with Z. Oxford as the Project Manager, and was published by Gingko Press in the USA (California, to be precise) in 2008.

Time for a mini-rant

When drafting up this mini rant, it was suggested to me by M that I should call it Thunderous Thursdays. Whilst it's silly and amusing, I think its enough of the alliteration and I'll just have my Musical Mondays.

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been studying tattooing for my dissertation, and it is a major influence for my final collection. One of the things that has really irked me however, is that when searching for tattoo magazines, there really isn't a very good selection in Australia. Most of the magazines that I've been able to find focus mainly on artwork by tattooists, with page after page of photos of tattoos by selected tattooists. It gets a bit boring after awhile.

What I'd really like to see are magazines that really capture the lifestyle of the tattooing community- it is so much more than just getting artworks inked onto your body. I cannot claim to be a full member, only a peripheral one, but it is still really interesting to me to see everything involved in it: the clothing and fashion, the music, and their other interests and influences. The problem then is- how does someone even begin to immerse themselves in tattoo culture if there isn't really an access point?

The great thing is that since tattoos are now becoming more socially accepted, there are things like the Sydney Tattoo and Body Art Expo (which I've been to both years now, and I look forward to future ones), but it would be nice to have magazines for when these sorts of events aren't on.

The two magazines that I've found that I think are much better for delving into the tattooing world are Inked, which only just recently launched an Australian version- the US version is pretty awesome with great overall articles and images, but a little bit expensive as it is an imported magazine (so I'm excited to see how the Aussie version grows and develops); and Post Modern Ink, which is based in Bondi but unfortunately is only a quarterly. Both these magazines combine photo collections of tattoos and tattoo art, with other articles like interviews with tattooed celebrities. Post Modern Ink's lastest issue has an article about the tradition of facial tattooing the women of Myanmar- really interesting stuff!

So I really hope Australia gets some more interesting tattoo magazines soon. I think I'll be heading to Kinokuniya in the next few days, and they usually have a big magazine selection so if I find anything interesting there I'll post an update.

To be continued...

My new illustration obsession, courtesy of M

For my dissertation I have been looking at tattooing, concentrating mostly on the semiotics of tattoos and how they help create and are part of an individual's identity.

In the process of then researching visuals to help me translate this into my final collection, my friend M of Megamania introduced me to Audrey Kawasaki, an amazing Los Angeles based artist who paints oil paintings directly onto wood panels (she's just done one named Plucked that incorporates bass strings, and she's even painted a skateboard deck before). Her work has also been translated into tattoos, which is why M thought she would be relevant/interesting to me.

Audrey's artwork is full of contradictions: soft and elegant but with a hint of darkness and melancholy; a touch of the whimsical but a little bit macabre; sweet and innocent but erotic and sensual, all at the same time. This is what I love about her work: the aesthetics that initially pull you in (the eyes of her girls are mesmerising and so magnetic; I swear I felt my heart skip a beat at how beautiful they are) give way to a head spin of emotion; you just can't help but stare at the paintings.

Here are a few examples (copyrighted to Audrey, and taken from her website) which I've chosen just because they are great examples of this duality:

Superstition

Kokokara Dokoe (Where the Path Leads)

Carry On

Aren't they ridiculously beautiful?