Personal: "Eupheginia... (Doubtfire, dear)."

So those of you who know me best are not at all surprised at this post.  Yes, I am 31 years old.  And yes, Mrs. Doubtfire is still one of my favorite movies.  At some point in my life I watched it consecutively for weeks.  I'm obsessive-compulsive like that. 
But this piece is special and it isn't just about the movie.  It was inspired by one of my favorite students when I worked at First Street Gallery Art Center, where I was an Art Instructor to adults with disabilities.  "Josh" came to our studio with a passion for his artwork and a great sense of humor.  He was a bit reserved and shy... but that all changed when, somehow, the movie Mrs. Doubtfire came up.  We probably drove the studio nuts quoting all of the best lines from the movie, but we had a time.  So it's no wonder that when the "Staff Selects" Show came up (an annual art show featuring a staff piece along side a student piece) that Josh would be my partner.  For months we both worked on our pieces, exercising attention to detail.  Meanwhile, I saw my student's art skills and confidence flourish.  This is one of my most favorite pieces to date because it reminds me of the hard work, the laughter and the goofy vision shared between a student and a teacher.  I think we brought out the best in each other.  :)

Good Luck on all of your endeavours, Josh! 

Cosmo: Ode to my doll heads...

I truly do think that the Cosmetology doll head does not get enough credit or appreciation from us Cosmo students, or the public for that matter!  Who do you think gets the butt-end of that student's first cut hundreds of times, before you do... haha!  No but really, I owe it to my dolls for allowing me to slowly develop techniques.  Learning to properly blow dry would not be possible without my doll head. (after all it never cries out after getting repeatedly scorched like whimpy humans do)  ;)

So here are some different things I have worked on with my dolls having to do with cuts (shears and clippers), roller sets, blow drying and styling.

 This is my man doll head, Dylan.  He started off looking like a biker-Jesus, but after about 10 different cuts, he ended up here: nice and presentable with an impeccably tidy beard!  I think I was inspired by my friend/old coworker, Seth, for this look :)

"Sam" took on a more contemporary-1950's cut here... kinda sexy! It's all about those bouncy curls!

 This "Sam" was at the end of her hair cut road at this point, so I performed a experimental short cut on her... okay, okay... so I used her to do a guy cut... but I think she pulled it off perfectly!  "Thanks Sam!"

This was around the time of the Death Cab For Cutie concert, so it could explain the Zooey Deschanel inspired look:

Cosmo: Hair Sculpting June-Aug 2011

These are some pics from my Hair Sculpting class that I just completed at Citrus (over the past 8 weeks).  I knew that going into the program, I was really going to enjoy cutting and this class lived up to my expectations.  I learned so much and I loved it.  Enjoy...
(Tomorrow is my first day of Hair Design, aka, Up-Dos)

 My first school victim: Mrs. Amy Maloof....

My cute lil cousin Des....

My beautiful and supportive Auntie Sandra...

 

My great childhood friend Stephanie, who's been letting me do crazy stuff to her hair for years... 

Personal: Elephants of Asia, Jan 2011

Late last year, my husband Aragna was approached about contributing a sculptural painting to the LA Zoo's: Elephants of Asia Exhibit in time for it's opening in January.  The zoo commissioned various Asian artists to decorate an elephant sculpture (provided by the zoo) that represented a country where Asian Elephants naturally inhabit.  A native of Cambodia, Aragna designed his elephant to feature the beautiful ancient stone temple Angkor Watt, which could not have been constructed without the help of the Asian Elephant.  The project was a bit disorganized and by the time we actually received the elephant sculpture, I believe we only had about 3 weeks to get it done in time for the opening reception.  Submitting to my wifely duties, haha, I dove into the project to help Aragna complete it.  I was in charge of the entire elephant's face/head.  It took us all of our free time after work and on the weekends, but we got it done in time to attend the opening where we got to meet Slash (guitarist for Guns N Roses) and I got to meet my teenage crush Gavin Rossdale (lead singer of my then favorite band Bush, aka, Gwen Stefani's husband).  It was a dream come true to work on one of my favorite animals of all time and being able to visit the habitat at night.  We had a lot of fun working on it, as we do all of our art projects together. 
So... if you are at the LA Zoo, keep your eyes open... it's on permanent display in the new Elephants of Asia Exhibit!!!!

 

For more on the exhibit and Aragna's contribution:
Aragna Ker, Elephants of Cambodia  (youtube video)
aragna ker, elephants of asia online article

Personal: Carrying the Past

I created this series as an artistic way to explore my family and their childhoods.  Birds were used to characterize any painful experiences that occured in their lives growing up.  I was able to complete four: my Grandma Bea, my Grandpa Jack, My Mother Jacqeline and my father Peter.  I still wanted to include my great grandmother, my other grandparents, my brother and myself.   Needless to say, I never finished.  But it is still on my life's to-do list...

Poochi-LA Pet Portraits

"Poochi-LA" is what I call my pet portrait project.  I started this by accident one Christmas a few years ago when my aunt asked me to make two small pet paintings for her friends as a Christmas gift.  After Christmas was over, I continued to get inquiries from customers who had seen the paintings displayed and the project grew.  It has been an unexpected and gratifying experience.  I have been touched by my customers appreciation and love for their own animals, as well as customers who have chosen me to memorialize their pets who have passed.  Enjoy!  I do!

Flashback: Personal 2009

This is the point where I started to really fall in love with my own process.  These are some of my favorite pieces still to this day.  Sadly, I haven't had a chance to make work like this lately.  I can't wait to get back to it... when I have the time. 

Flashback: Personal 2008

With help from my husband, cool-artist-boyfriend at that time, haha, I started to get a better handle of the work I was making and began to personalize them with my own aesthetics, including multiple layerings of paint and attention to specific areas of detail.  I kinda feel like "my style" was born at this time. 

Flashback: Personal 2006-2007

These are some of my first paintings, done for friends, myself and painting courses at that time.  As you can see... I love animals :)