Good morning, universe. In just four short days I’ll be cramming my cargo into a little rocket and zooming off to Yantaló. The pile of books and supplies at my front door has gone from this: …to this: On Monday, I’ll do my best to post photos of the contents. it’s time for some serious suitcase Tetris! And maybe more prickly pear juice. LA is filled with all manner of cactus and this fruit is fairly easy to find in parks …
COMPONENTS Boxy dolman sleeve cardigan Skull bodysuit – Black Milk Pencil skirt Black wedge ankle boots Bat skull pendant
This is IT. The home stretch, the final 4 days of the fist D4RT Kickstarter. If you were planning on backing/blogging/tweeting/Facebooking/can-and-stringing about this, the time is now. We’re at $7,233, which means D4RT Yantaló is in good shape! My shopping list is ready, I’m consulting with several child educators, talking to representatives of the Yantaló school, and all other related wheels are in motion. I met with Luis Vaszquez of the Yantaló Peru Foundation over the weekend and am more excited for …
Quick photo-documentation of last night’s outfit for you, which happens to be another good example of my everyday summer look. My friend Josh was playing at the Staples Center, so Courtney and I walked over from her place downtown – comfortable shoes were a must. COMPONENTS Black tank top – H&M White tank top – H&M Leggings – F21 Boots – Amazon.com Net scarf – H&M Hoop earrings – a hardware store in Toronto Watch – Loemanns Square bangles – …
Can you believe this is the 80th Photo Flurry already? Full D4RT Mode is now engaged and my itinerary is making me giddy: I’m flying to Lima on September 13th, then from Lima, I’ll fly to Moyobambo and Yantaló is a short-ish drive from there. Mostly I’m making supply shopping lists, laying down a lesson plan, figuring out how to fit everything into two 50-pound suitcases and commencing the student-wrangling process. The D4RT Kickstarter has a little over a week to …
Over the past month I’ve been busy working on D4RT and trying to keep up with commissions, so it’s been a challenge to stay on track with my streamlined routine – I can’t say that there haven’t been days of slipping into the over-caffeinated, under-hydrated work mode, but I’m adapting and managing to squeeze some life and fun in between all that work. Let’s play a game of breakneck catch-up, shall we? THIS WEEK On Monday, Cris and I went out to the …
When making my video for the D4RT Kisckstarter project, videographer extraordinaire Josh Gibson and I shot hours of footage, much of it consisting of long takes we ruthlessly chopped into bite-sized chunks for the final cut. Going through the footage this week between work and Yantaló-trip-planning, and will be posting some of it here for the curious. And while we’re at it, if you have a Vimeo account, add me, yes? You know, just in case I ever get my own video camera.
Last week, Lumi and I wandered around a secret ghost town, peeking into dusty windows, twisting rusted doorknobs and climbing crumbling rooftops. We sat under an ancient tree and talked about Buddhism, among other things. We also rolled down a grassy hill, microscopic cuts reminding us of our indiscretion for the rest of the day – a perfect day of stillness and awe. And itchy arms.
This year, I decided to keep birthday stuff low-key, asking friends to contribute to the D4RT Kickstarter instead of gifts. 2011 has been strange and amazing and, at times, very overwhelming – so on my birthday I wanted to do something that would inspire and recharge me. This might become a new tradition. The Getty center has a few temporary exhibits closing in a few days: Paris: Life & Luxury [closing on the 7th], Gods of Angkor: Bronzes from the National Museum of …
The D4RT Kickstarter page is now live! If you’re tuning in for the first time, I’m in the process of creating an international mobile art workshop aimed at bringing art education and public art projects to struggling communities all over the world. This September, I want to bring D4RT to Yanlató – a village in the heart of the peruvian jungle. Some time ago, I met a group of documentary filmmakers working on a film about Yantalo. This meeting instilled an idea …
Next week, I’ll be launching a Kickstarter campaign for D4RT. D4RT is a mobile art class that brings workshops and public art projects to impoverished communities all over the world, with its first installment to take place in September of 2011 in Yantaló. Yantaló is a village with a population of less than 3,000, nestled in the Peruvian Amazon jungle. I’ll tell you more about how I came to love this place and more about D4RT in my video, currently …
Me, running on wet sand in Malibu. Photo by Stephanie Inagaki. My purple make up brushes. Photo by Stephanie Inagaki.
Los Angeles, summer 2011 Models: Michael Hans Schelb and Mark Splatter
In response to my Hearltess crest tattoo design, Biorequiem reader Alyssa asks: As a huge (silent, lurking type) fan of your various artistic endeavors, this is really astounding for me. How do you feel about people other than the commissioner having your work tattooed on them? A timely question! Since I’ve been on a tattoo commission kick lately, I’ve gotten lots of positive feedback from my readers. Awesome! I’ve also run into a curious ethical issue: folks asking if they can …
After I posted these photos of tea eggs I made a couple of weeks ago, a bunch of people asked what they were and how they’re made. Tea eggs are a traditional Chinese snack, and are super-easy to make in bulk, thus providing extended snacking potential. I’ll list two recipes here – the traditional Chinese method and my own take. TRADITIONAL TEA EGGS Ingredients 6 eggs 3 tablespoons soy sauce 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon black tea leaves or 1 …