somewhere out there

Sketchbooks

2012-02-06T11:40:00.000-08:00

It is widely know that Sketchbooks are a lifeline for us creative types. They serve as a place to jot things down, and develop ideas. Personally, I cary one on most day. I have one in my bed side drawer, in my studio, at my boyfriends house, in my purse, and in my car. Having multiple books is departure for me. When I was in college I had one, and I carried it with me everywhere. As a result it also served as a journal, and a class notebook. My older books chronicle my life for the time each was with me, and it would have been blasphemes to start a new one, before the last was finished.
These days however, I don't carry a book bag, and it is not as easy to lug a large book around. I recently came to the realization that my habits have changed to fit my life, and these five books help me keep track of everything I am thinking. I brought them all out and looked at them together. The images on the pages are now covering a wider range of content, and they are not the cohesive book that I wanted them to be. No sadness was felt though, because they still reflect what is happening in my head: a million different things.

One Gallon

2011-12-09T12:55:00.001-08:00

In a desperate attempt to rescue myself form never painting again, I started to stalk paper together, one piece of mail at a time. I glued them together to create a little manolith. It felt pathetic at first, sitting in my studio, not drawing, just gluing piece by peice. Now it is a tiny structure. I want to make a second one and see where it goes. It is subtly beautiful when you hold it up and look at all the different kinds of paper next to one another. I ran out of glue so I bought one gallon to make sure it won't happen again.

New Hope

2011-12-06T09:25:00.001-08:00

I went on a trip home form my Mom's birthday. The hope I had for this trip was to see the pacific northwest and to have a renewed sence of confidence in my paintings. What I was not expecting was for it to happen on the plane ride there. A rush of ideas hit me as soon as I pulled out my tiny sketchbook on the plane. How wonderful, and over due. I have been feeling stuck for most of the year, and to finally have some motivation is refreshing. Hopefully over the next few months I will be working on a few projects at a time. There is a fabric project, a paper, and of course my paintings. Hopefully they will all start to inform each other and my work will begin moving forward.

Stuck

2011-11-28T13:28:00.001-08:00

Alright, alright I will admit it, I am stuck in a rut. This rut feels as big as a ditch. Painting is becoming impossible. I simply hate the paintings I have started, and it isn't getting better. After months of looking and making small moves no improvements to the paintings have been made, and I am greatly discouraged. The small collages I started don't feel like they are helping. At least they keep me in the studio and my hands moving. The one breakthrough (if you can call it that) I have had is I now know what is holding me back. It turns out that I don't know what kind of landscape I want to make. I seem to be stuck between the Northern California landscape I see everyday, and the Pacific Northwest landscape I want to continue to paint. When I figure out what I want to do, maybe I will be able to work successfully (I hope).

Installation?

2011-10-24T15:56:00.000-07:00

Does transforming a space for a birthday party count as an art installation? When do decorations cross the line and become an installation? These are the questions I have been asking myself. I was sitting on the floor in my living room ripping paper bags into strips and taping them into tree branches, and after the third evening it occurred to me that this is not a normal way to decorate for a birthday party. People usually put up some streamers, and are done. With the amount of work I am putting in... I might be crazy.

However, my decorations have a goal. The decorations are meant to transform my house, and put my guests in a different mind set. I don't want them to feel that they are in a house, at a party, because that would be the same old thing. I want them to feel surrounded by trees, in a space that makes them smile and laugh. Additionally, I will change the lighting in the house to make is much darker.

How does this fit into my art practice? For one thing, I am reusing paper bags to make all of the trees. I have also been interested in experimenting with art installations for a while, and I think this is good practice for that.

Out of the Box

2011-10-04T08:53:00.000-07:00

A friend called and asked me to be a part of an art show in L.A. to hep celebrate Dia de los Muertos. Of course, I agreed. My inishal thought was to make something in my usual recycled matterials. But upon reconsidering I decided that this was my chance to break out of the usual.

Coastal Clean-up

2011-09-20T11:53:00.000-07:00

This Saturday I participated in a coastal clean-up along the Richmond shoreline. I was very much looking forward to making a difference, and being insired to continue the work that I do. One of these things happend. The trash was everywhere. There were about 200 of us at this one sit, we picked up more than 800 lbs of trash in a 3 hour period. That is all well and good, because that trash really needed to be taken out of the habitat. However, when I left there was still visible trash. The whole experiance sent/is still sending me trough a tug-of-war of emotions.

Arriving at the site, seeing all the people I was just sure we were going to band together and clean up the wetland thoroughly. When I left the path and decended down the hill the garbage was in every direction in front of me. My reaction, "Whoa." I couldn't speak, I literally had to stop in my tracks to take in what I was about to walk into. Once I had regained my bearings I charged into the fray. I would say that waves of emtionent were passing over me, but it wasn't quite like that. It was feeling multipule things at one time. Angery at the people who were making the trash, mixed with emporwerment because I was picking it up. Guilt because I am sertain that some of what I have used has flown off a grabage truck, or out of my hands and ended up in a place like this.

How can I stop this? How can I help? I decided that I would tell all of my friends about it. Particularly those he said they would be there, but negected to do so for whatever reason. Maybe if people knew the severity of the issue steps could be taken by all of us to prevent so much form ending up in the environment. Apart from telling my friends, I am taking some advice from Michael Jackson and stating with the man in the mirror. I am asking myself to change my ways.

Steps to be taken:
Number one (and this is the biggest): Determine where my trash is coming from. Take mental notes whenever I throw something out. The more data i have, the more informed I am about my habits.
Number two: Try to buy product with very little rapping that will produce less waist.
Number three: Buy less. Do buy things I don't need, and try to buy used.
Number four: Reuse plastic bags.Number five: take the time to divide garbage, recycle, and compost.

Craft Monster

2011-09-13T10:43:00.000-07:00

Halloween is just around the corner. October is high season for making Christmas gifts, so my halloween costume needs to be finished this month. That makes end of summer and fall high craft season. This year I am in the middle of cleaning out my house/life, getting rid of supplies that I have not used in a few years. I would rather use the small pieces of fabric than throw anything away, so I am finding places on my costume that could use more ruffles, or another bow. As a result, my costume might be more extravagant than it has been in the passed. Along with costume making I am getting ready to decorate for Halloween in my house, and at work. This gives me a chance to make decorations out of my as yet unused craft supplies. It is exciting that I might be able to make a costume, and decorate a house without buying one thing!

Reflecting on Past Projects

2011-09-08T11:21:00.000-07:00

For a time, my roommate/best friend and I collaborated on what we called "The Door Project." Every time someone went in or out of our door a picture was taken. This project went on for 5 months. The Objective was to show change, and the passing of time. I realized today that I miss it. Thinking about what it would have shown if we had kept it going has made me nostalgic. As we get older, and are no longer in school, time moves faster, and we seem to change even more rapidly without the common grounds of classes and homework to ground us, and bind us together.
My other work, often has an end result that I could not have anticipated, and with these photos it was the same. I thought that we would collect a series of images, that over a few months would show small changes. Hair lengthening or shortening. A change in the weather, and our style. These changes are there in small ways, but there was a much larger, over arching theme. Ultimately, what the photos illustrated, and (what I did not anticipate) was love. A love between friends, who shared and apartment, worked and went to school together. Five months of friends, old, and new boy friends caught in jpegs. The first time we view the photos, in a slide show, as we had intended this feeling became very clear. I enjoyed this project very much, and although I would change somethings next time (the light for example) I would very much like to repeat it again in the feature.

The Trouble with Trashing

2011-08-25T21:53:00.000-07:00

Recently, my dear roommate's dear sister moved into our house from another state. She brought almost nothing with her. Glancing into her newly set up room for the first time, I felt envious of the openness. Though my tiny room was clean it felt crowded. I associated this feeling with messiness. "I have too much stuff," I said to myself in my head. To ditch the thought that I was somehow failing as an adult for keeping everything that has ever been sentamental to me, I decided to trash some of my things.
The trouble with trashing is, it goes against almost all of my values to just throw things away...How do I solve this problem? Clothes are easy; they can be given away, or used as fabric. What about the dead pens, broken jewelry, fake flowers I have used in 3 or so costumes (and now look dead)? What about the warn-out hand bags, shoes, tiny broken boxes? I sit, and stare, and feel guilty. Get discourage, stop cleaing...try again tomorrow. I shuffle, I give some away, I use items as blocks trying to turn them into something useful. I research: disposing responsibly, DIY blogs. I draw, starring.
The trouble with trashing is, it isn't simple.

Keeping the Buzz

2011-07-14T17:05:00.000-07:00

Even more exciting news! For the month of August my paintings will be up in Tara's Organic Ice Cream and Gallery, a small Shop in the Temescal district of Oakland. The opening will be part of Oakland Art Murmur on August 5th. If you're out at the murmur come say "hey" and get some ice cream!

4731 Telegraph Avenue
Oakland, CA 94609

Dear New Painting

2011-06-23T17:02:00.000-07:00

Dear New Painting, I hate you.
Fifty percent of the time I spend in my studio is spent looking at what I have just done, and calculating what I should do next. With every painting I have created there has come a point during my looking when I think, "I hate this painting." As it is nothing new to me it is nothing to be alarmed about, but rather the opposite. It means that it is time for me to decide weather to keep working on the painting, or if putting it a away for a few months would be best. Yesterday I was at this point with my newest painting. I decided to keep working. As I tried to work through the mess I had just created for myself, I realized I had made the wrong choice. I could not fix this painting now. I should have turned the painting around and started a new one. I am too close to it to see it properly, and I will only be able to see it with fresh eyes if I stop, turn it around and come back to it in about a month. I am heading into my studio to do so now.

older work

2011-04-04T13:36:00.000-07:00

After some deliberation I have decided to change my website. The change is small, no restructuring or changing the look, but I have replaced the album "older work" with one called "paper". The album will be dedicated to the new work I am making that is smaller and- as you may have guessed- on paper. I want to make sure that I remember how long it has taken me to get to this place, so I am putting some of my older work on this blog.

More Exciting News!

2011-03-30T09:55:00.000-07:00

There is a new cafe on Piedmont ave in Oakaland. Cafe Crush- a smoothy cafe- opened about a month ago and they have asked that I be the first person to show my work there! They would like the opening to be the day of the merchant's fair during the tulip festival, April 22, 2011! Side note: did you know Peidmount had a tulip festival? I didn't know either, but this year I will be there with smoothies on!
They have some large empty walls, and I am thinking about trying out some new groupings. We shall see, the walls are not white so the space might lend it's self well to new combinations. Also, some of my new, smaller paper work might go up. Right now they are framed, which I am still not very excited about, but I am going to try experimenting with some thicker paper. Maybe I can find a way to hang them that doesn't need a frame. turn them into objects. Having something new to show would also be nice. I am going to try and work hard to get a new painting finished in time, maybe two. Who knows? Spring 2011 here I come.

Exciting News

2011-01-05T13:06:00.000-08:00

The first month of 2011 is already pleasantly eventful. The Rare Bird on Piedmont ave in Oakland is featuring my work for the month of January. It is a whimsical shop full of delightful clothes and nick-nacks. My colorful paintings fit right in. They are hosting a party on January 27th from 6-9. come check it out! http://therarebird.com/

I also have four small drawings art the Cozy Art Club in Oakland. I am particularly excited about this show because this is the first time I will have shown a group of drawings. I am excited to both of these opportunities. And grateful that I live in such pro-art city!

Christmas Gifts

2010-12-10T15:32:00.000-08:00

Before I started working on gifts I took a picture of the materials. I am happy to report that everyones gifts are finished, and turned out rather well. I will post photos of the actual gifts after Christmas.

Labor of Love. A Side Effect of Loneliness

2010-11-24T10:56:00.000-08:00

This years Christmas projects are labor intensive, and time consuming. I don't mind most of the time. I can settle in with some tea and just work. However, I find as we approach Thanksgiving, and more holiday gatherings are coming and going, these projects are keeping me form going to the social activities I am used to attending. These projects are fun and easy to work on, but if I don't spend at least a few hours at a time working I don't get anywhere. On sunday I spent 7 hrs sitting in my orange crushed velvet chair sewing. The result of my 7 hrs was one gift completed. I turned down two invitations from friends to complete this gift, and I have not spent much time with my friends since I started them. Sacrificing social interaction is not a big deal, but in about the 5 hr I do get a bit lonely. I think it is because I know that the next evening I will be back in my orange chair.
Lately I have been feeling like a bit of a bum when I am in my studio. I fumble around, and work on small studies but haven't been able to commit to making a larger painting for a while. Once, Christmas is over and I am back from my vacation I plan on spending a few nights a week in the studio, and I imagine that this will also cut into my social calender. As a result I am hoping to advance my work. I am sure that the side effect will again be loneness.

Late Start

2010-11-08T08:57:00.000-08:00

Normally I am well on my way with my Christmas gifts by this time of year, but I was distracted by one thing or another and have gotten a late start. Finally, yesterday I started making my first set of gifts. I didn't get as far as I wanted to but I am trying not to get discouraged. I just keep reminding myself that as long as I stay focused I will be able to finish in plenty of time. In the past, I have kept tract of my projects on a calender. When I use the calender I have a visual representation of exactly how much I need to do, and the amount of time I have to complete it. Just like a school project. This year, I haven't do that yet, maybe I should start. Also this year I am going to be participating in my first holiday craft fair. On top of these things I am going to be trying to keep my paintings going, and increasing my work out. Add it to the pile! I am excited to be busy.

window coverings

2010-10-08T15:39:00.000-07:00

This project is a bit further along that the picture show. So far I am happy with the result I am getting from these plastic weavings. There is a noticeable difference in temperature when I move my hand form one side to the other. Moreover, I still have plenty of light to work with during the day, and the light in the evening isn't glaring. Mission soon to be accomplished.

Plastic bags

2010-07-20T13:34:00.000-07:00

The widows in my studio are currently covered with paper drawings. The drawings are masking taped on, and are mostly sketches of projects I am working on. It's not a large space-to say the least- and I like that about it, but lately I have been wanting to clean up the way it looks. While sketching about a week ago I came up with the idea of making window coverings out of white plastic bags. These bags would serve two functions: First, they continue to obscure the window, so people who pass on the Freeway won't be able to see in. Second, the while plastic will block out some of the hash light in evening, but still let in enough so that I will not have to turn on a light.

I have tried a few projects with plastic bags, and they never turn out the way I planned. Actually, most of my planned projects fail. This time I am working with an idea, and trying to make something that serves my needs. Thus far it looks like a weaving, and the first square of woven plastic bags has turned out better than I expected. Weaving them seemed natural because, curtains are fabric. I am interested to see the end product. More to come..

Solo Exhibition

2010-03-10T10:30:00.000-08:00

somewhere out there, a solo exhibition by kara nelson
april 6th 2010
6-8pm

Moishe House Oakland
636 Santa Ray Ave.
Oakland, CA, 94610

My first solo exhibition is set in a house off of Lake Shore Ave in Oakland. I am excited to be presenting new work, in conjunction with some older work. Paintings will span two levels of the old house, evoking the feeling of home.

Costume T-Shirts

2010-02-02T14:42:00.000-08:00

New Hobbie! This October as I started my annual brainstorm for personal, and meaningful Christmas gifts I came up with a (in my opinion) brilliant idea! Costume-T shirts.
Giving gifts to the men is my family almost always brings me to the same question: What can I make out of my old clothes, and bits of paper that is masculine? Although my gifts in the past have always been appreciated, the time it takes me to come up with an idea leaves little time for execution. But not this year! This years idea gave me such great enthusiasm that making them was a blast, and happened in a flash.

2009-11-05T10:14:00.000-08:00

2009-10-12T10:13:00.000-07:00

This weekend I spent a good amount of time thinking about what I am going to give friends and family members for Christmas. As I am a lover of giving homemade gifts it is important that I start early in oder to finish everything in time. Last year I gave hats made out of felt, which were a big hit and in my opinion were adorable ( and super cool) but I am not sure they are used. So this year I am striving to make gifts that will be loved, but will not just sit in a closet. just sitting and thinking I came up with very little, so I went through my crafting supplies. I sorted, I examined my fabric, paper and piece and as it turned out not only do I have a lot to work with, but some great ideas.

freaking out

2009-09-16T12:11:00.000-07:00

At the end of my allotted painting time this week I looked at the work that had been done and noticed I did something strange. I had put a paper border around the edge of the forest, and promptly freaked out. What had I done? Why did I just spend so much time on this border? Had I ruined the painting? After calming myself done I decided that it didn't look bad, and that the painting wasn't ruined, but just headed in a direction not yet traveled by my work.
It is important to reassure myself that new is a good thing. That using different colors than normal won't make the painting awful to look at, but in the grand scheme of my work will create more diversity, and will ultimately, hopefully lead to richer paintings. Really, I should not freak out, or worry when I am unsure of the work I have just done, because in the end, even if the painting is terrible diversity is not a bad thing.

in the studio

2009-09-14T10:39:00.000-07:00

I no longer need to work in my room because my new house has space for a studio. This is very exciting, and the difference in the amount of work I am producing has increased greatly. I feel as though a vail has lifted. It is wonderful.

2009-08-16T14:26:00.000-07:00

2009

The Groove

2009-03-03T09:48:00.000-08:00

My favorite part of painting is the time after I have been working for about two hours. There is a moment when my hands start to work independently of me. I suppose it is called being "in the zone". This is the place where I create the best parts of my paintings. not to say I don't need my bairn, but I love when It feels as though my mind has is quite and I thinking about anything. I'm not even thinking about painting. I have been in the groove a lot lately, so hopefully I will post some finished work soon. I will at least post work in progress.

keeping my marbles.

2008-11-09T13:09:00.000-08:00

Each day that I pick up my brush, or bottle of glue, or pencil I find it refreshing to work on something that I know has a feature.
I have been applying for jobs since May. Revising resumes, trying to learn new programs, writing new cover letters, checking job boards, and each time I send an email I can’t help but feel like it goes nowhere. It jets out into cyber space never to be read again. Because of this, creating has become more important. This hard time is helping me to feel more connected to what I am creating because even if it doesn’t get shown right away I have something that I can hold in my hands, and look at with my eyes. The link to my creation keeps me grounded by giving me a place to focus my energy. Seeing the progression keeps me sane because I know that all of my work is not for nothing. I am also reminded of how much I need this. How functioning in my daily life, leaving my house, coping with rejection, and finding happiness all become simpler, because I am sane, and grounded.

2008-11-05T11:57:00.000-08:00

2008-11-05T11:53:00.000-08:00

naming

2008-11-05T11:32:00.000-08:00

Naming each piece of my work in a way that references reuse or the environment continues to allude me. Mostly, everything I can think of sounds cheesy. However, there is hope. My 23rd birthday just passed and one of my gifts was a thesaurus. If i dig deep enough I might be able to find less cheese-ball words for what I am trying to say.

2008-11-03T21:40:00.000-08:00

break through

2008-10-12T15:10:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking a great deal about these landscapes and where in time they exist. The reason for my inability to decide may be that I was thinking of them as a bundle. When in fact, they have had very separate lives and the way each one comes to conclusion has nothing to do with any of the other paintings. My reason for wanting to know in the first place is to find a way to extend the imagery. To make sure I don't paint the same painting over, and over. However, with the understanding that some images are meant to be of potential future landscapes and others are in the present, and (most recently) in the past, I can push the boundaries of what each landscape might look like. Understanding this, I have the ability to make paintings that encompass all of my ideas, and still look different form one another.

Reuse

2008-10-09T09:52:00.000-07:00

I have a very difficult time throwing out my old clothes and paper trash. It stems from the feeling that I am going to need it later and will regret having throw it away. However, this feeling also comes from a concern for the environment, and the thought that if I can find a use for all of these items I won't be consuming or wasting. To deal with the rising trash mountain I created for myself I actively find uses for what is kept. If the trash is not used within a few months of going into the pile I have to get rid of it.
This next project came about because I was forcing myself to throw out my old painting clothes, when I was struck with an idea. What if I used the fabric from my old, warn-out clothes to redecorate the apartment?! So this is what I have been doing. I cut the clothes apart and make them into something pretty to go on top of the t.v., or the chair, or the wall, or who knows what? I am very happy so far with how the first two have turned out. I also think this is a great way to teach myself how to sew.

creating a blog.

2008-10-08T11:28:00.000-07:00

i don't actually know how to blog, i have no idea what people will want to read about so for my first entry i am going to post pictures