RC

We are always discovering

2011-07-29T18:38:00.005-06:00

" Is it possible that there exist human emanations which are still unknown to us? Do you remember how electric currents and 'unseen waves' were laughed at? The knowledge about man is still in its infancy."

-- Albert Einstein

Makes me think of this great On Being piece about Einstein and the Mind of God.

(please click on the picture to enlarge both the image and the relevance of this quote!)

Opening to the Root

2011-07-29T12:59:00.034-06:00

A few weeks ago, I finished my first weekend of the Anusara Immersion that my amazing yoga teachers Deirdre Smith-Gilmer and Joe Taft are offering to the Asheville yoga community. Needless to say, the teachings continue to inspire me.

As students, we were asked to write about our Open to Grace moments each day. Open to Grace is the first principle of Anusara yoga. Before any thing: action, asana, movement-- Open to Grace. What does that even mean, "Open to Grace"? I think there is no one definition to this principle, instead there are many. Most definitions seem to state that aligning with the Divine presence brings you to your true nature--bliss and joy and well being. Because the concept of opening to grace can be defined in so many ways, by so many viewpoints, it can be found by just shifting the lens at which you view life.

So, here I take a look for the spirit--find it in life, even where you least expect. I believe, quite profoundly yet simply, that opening yourself to such a task will only continue to bring more and more awareness to that grace in your being and experiences. And I notice that when I get stuck and can't seem to feel the inner spirit, God, or alignment during my day, I realize: I am getting in the way of experiencing my joy. Therefore, I am the greatest tool for getting myself to that place of JOY.

Last winter, Jason and I were re-potting plants together. We were also charged with the task to save some plants that had decided to no longer thrive. One was an old orchid, that when alive reminded me of a dinosaur with it's prehistoric presence. The orchid had been sitting outside on my veranda during numerous cold, snow drenched nights. I had stopped giving the orchid any attention. But, we were inspired to give it some love, anyway. Jason and I prayed over it, trimmed it's roots, and waited to see if it would change at all. Would it even come back to life?

The theme of this Opening to Grace moment would be really different if the orchid had lived. But no, the story does not take that path. I mean, nature has it's course for a big reason. The story, for me, is that we had loved even in death. Even in that which I wanted to forget, there was beauty worth remembering. The orchid represented the environment of winter; silent and still, monochrome and hibernated. It's contours, it's roots, it's color, it's ability to exist at one time as a flower--all of this was shri in it's majestic form.

Besides taking my mother's advice in this current summertime heat to 'think cool thoughts', I remember this story today because I found the picture of the orchid (at the top of this blog post) this morning. I am a very visual person, so it struck me to see the picture of this beauty. But I also think of this story because it is so relevant in the smallest and largest mountains of emotions in our life.

Find a moment to think of something or someone that you have given up on, or given to death. Can you bring it or they into a space of beauty, a place where the mystery brings you more well being? Then a true test of grace is: can you let that memory/person/idea go back to where it evolved to in your experience? And through that letting go, can you practice non-attachment to allow for more beauty to exist in your life?

And, here we continue, to open to the inner divine light and presence. GRACE.

गरचे

he used to profess

2009-08-09T22:09:00.003-06:00

The title for my solo art show, he used to profess, comes from a fascination with the history of print Advertising. The archives of old magazine advertisements in comparison to today’s advertisements demonstrates the demise of our language in the body of the Ads. Old advertisements used language in a way that we do not see in our mainstream media.

I really believe the comparison of old and new advertisements is a historiographical exploration of the way we communicate.

Do we even speak to one another anymore? I continue to question how language is used to convey or manipulate an idea.

The title for this show, I hope, conveys my desire for communicating my inner workings through a visual platform.

Thank you for being here.

layers and layers of them

2009-06-08T09:26:00.003-06:00

texture really excites me. to feel, to create, to see, and to experience in conversation.

and the erode and decay of buildings helps me to remember that mother nature wins.

this photo is shot from the hip.

Hi, My name is Rose

2009-01-29T08:54:00.002-07:00

Greetings from the high elevation.

Lots of new pieces(well, maybe just two) are emerging out of the musical home mine as of late. Hope you enjoy this little sketch, it is something done really quickly to try out an idea that was swimming in my head for at least a year. And believe me, ideas swim around in this head of mine for multiple years before manifested at times.

Enjoy, keep in touch, and remember to soar and fly through this life of ours.

2008-11-20T06:15:00.003-07:00

Back from sabbatical(2 months off, what bliss) away from updates and art and life. Working now with my numbers and patterns in the day job. Continuing on a series of drawings with faces and horses inspired from national geographic magazine semantic, into those wee hours of the night before the dawn breaks.

I was so humbled to be highlighted by The Post Family, again with MMP (long love standing there), and got to model some t-shirts for the band Sirius.B.

More to come, lots to share. Hope you are doing wonderful and enjoying this reflective and regenerative time.

life in the quiet

2008-10-02T13:47:00.003-06:00

i have been enjoying each moment of my respite and somewhat-off-the-grid life.

things i've been doing: artwork, reading evolutionary psychology, reading pretentious art theory, unpacking, re-packing, writing, photographing in black and white film, swimming, moseying, trail running, and reading way too much new york times.

i updated my site with a few new pieces, entitled solve this indeed appears a puzzle. read the description here.

blessings abound, life is good and precious.

city life and the compromise and the gain

2008-08-27T15:21:00.003-06:00

i was reading through the new york times online and found this intriguing article about city life and 20 something 'transplants'. granted this article is about new york city, but it struck a deep chord inside. i personally don't think living in a city is the be all that ends all. but it is up to each individual to figure his opinion on the matter. and that unique lesson is a beautiful thing.

it is a photograph that saved the world

2008-08-24T19:43:00.007-06:00

flicks

love

2008-08-18T21:54:00.005-06:00

its a sensation that just sings through the soul. and makes one want to fly deep into the oblivion.

transitions and the world is in turmoil

2008-08-12T17:07:00.003-06:00

i have been home the past fews days, with a lot of extra time on my hands. i can't stop reading the news and realize that life is just what we have, in the moment. the world seems to be in a state of turmoil and a nasty flux at that. what can we do, so to ask? keep going, keep positive, and love one another.

i am so blessed to realize i am part of that, and i am at peace within. peace begins with you and me, right?

updates

2008-07-22T15:07:00.005-06:00

after dipping into the sand and gardening at my grandfather's, i got back to chicago in full swing of stepping up my art practice.
so my website has had a beautiful reconfiguring thanks to indexhibit's bad ass layout and to inspiration from mas menos. please check out the link below to take a look, and enjoy.

rc studio

latest and greatest

2008-07-03T07:12:00.004-06:00

here are a few pieces of a puzzle that is my work in progress. going on a retreat soon, hope to come back fresh and full and even more vibrant!

Rest in Peace SOLVE

2008-06-23T18:34:00.006-06:00

our friend Brendan was taken away from us within the recent days.

It is really gorgeous to see his work out and about still.
Check the video we (middle mind project) did about him about 4 months ago.
Also, take a look at this site for a beautiful tribute. check out the art memorial on grand and milwaukee. here is a spot to view some words.

blessings.

interconnect/the note

2008-06-05T12:23:00.003-06:00

i have to post this immediately because i am such a fan of how this project looks under the lens of my friend daniel abide. daniel wrote to me and said his latest work(in photography) has been focused on the cinemographic elements. and by far i agree. thanks for such an awesome contribution!

you are unlimited

2008-05-29T21:49:00.003-06:00

this is what i believe. june is approaching, another fold in the paper sheet that is our life.

below is an image of my new piece, and i am need deep in the process of connecting the images between the pages.

mi vida

2008-05-22T09:38:00.006-06:00

art/love/weddings/friends/brilliant sunsets/food/family/museums and...work work work. here are some photos of my recent life in the spring time chicago and beyond.

also, stayed tuned for images of the 30 or so screen prints+drawings that i did a few weeks ago.

joyful blessings!

to mush, too much

2008-05-12T20:17:00.002-06:00

old school

2008-05-06T19:53:00.006-06:00

about a year ago, i took a few weeks of a retreat(the joy of being self-employed) to my parents home, and completed these books and created a factory of silk screening out doors.
now, i am working on silk screening--again after a year, new methods, lots of experiment. i have always been interested in the stain, the after-mark, the scar. it tells the history in such an eloquent, intimate, and blind way.

success and plentitude

2008-04-21T10:59:00.005-06:00

version fest is well under way; the opening night at cps was wonderful. here are some images of my work in the co-prop space. thanks laura for the photo capturing!

a version of the news

2008-04-16T11:34:00.002-06:00

i am really excited and grateful to be showing my work as a part of the group show for version>dark matter.

the opening is april 18 at 3219 South Morgan St. starts 7pm.

i would love to see you there.

this is where you were when i wore and won

2008-04-05T19:12:00.003-07:00

studio pictures

2008-03-31T17:59:00.004-07:00

a beautiful evening. and that piece is finished now, hurray!

sweep

2008-03-23T20:29:00.001-07:00

new piece. is it spring time yet where you are?

unite

2008-03-21T09:15:00.003-07:00

composed for a friend, inspired by multiple thoughts.

underlooping you

2008-03-12T09:12:00.004-07:00

i have about 100 drawings of this essence. started quickly, ended slowly. i'll just sit on it for about 1 month and then come to a great conclusion. it always takes some time. time time time.

fundred project

2008-03-11T09:43:00.005-07:00

i posted a shout of this on my community blog shift perspective but have to drop another line for the project. mel chin in founded this project as a reaction and response to a city and its people left behind. check out the details here. and visit the site fundred.org(password paydirt). i spent some time in new orleans post katrina to work mel and the paydirt krew and it is shocking to see politics affect human life. can we make a difference? yes we can. yes we can.

fly

2008-03-07T14:36:00.007-07:00

i remembered this week that even as body that contains mass, it is possible to defy gravity. it is part of kinesthetic memory. dancers are a great example of people who use kinesthetic memory. if you follow it, we can fly.

aye saturday

2008-03-01T20:27:00.004-07:00

new visual project. listening to lupe fiasco. kneading dough. love chicago. creating a course outline. do not have a lot of means for new materials, but have decided to use our trash to create.

hows that for a recycling endeavor? constantly shifting perspective. thanks to my people who are contributors to that project. your thoughts are important. always!

spawn

2008-02-28T14:06:00.003-07:00

ah the winter. how i count the ways you make me patient.

media mixtures

2008-02-25T10:50:00.011-07:00

collage and layers and mixed images. click here for my official site link. gratitude.

bling

2008-02-21T20:23:00.003-07:00

bling≠ice≠frozen. sometimes it is hard to look up when walking through the winds, but nature does make an impact. i fall in love more and more each day...

opal strings

2008-02-13T19:36:00.005-07:00

this piece is dedicated to one of my closest friends, amy. the art that pours from her inspires and motivates. amy plays the violin. no wait, amy owns the violin. she introduced me to the violin as an intrument of inner peace. her quartert, the opal string quartet just posted some gorgeous live recordings. please take a minute to listen, quiet the chaos of the day, and energize your soul. thank you amy, thank you franklin, thank you ginger, thank you kara.

foto of the osq, 2007. taken by me at the flood fine arts center, asheville nc.

dignity in unity

2008-02-12T15:51:00.000-07:00

neologism

2008-02-06T15:36:00.000-07:00

i created a word for my latest interactive project. the word is interconnectivity. coining a new word is called neologism.

here is the etymology of my word. and to understand, this is about our connection and our absence of a connection to one another. it is very ordinary to not interact with one another. a majority of the time, i find this to be outlandish. i tried, with this project, to feel connected to people who are far away or down the street, some i know very well, some i know a little. good spirited people, above all. this is a pluralistic project, and it is all about the push and pull.

interconnect-iv-ity: the quality or degree of connection with each other

bind bond bound bundle

2008-02-01T10:56:00.000-07:00

thank you to everyone who took part in my interconnectivity project! its a finished piece with tons of potential energy...i had thoroughly documented my experience of sewing and ripping apart the unified piece of paper, but in the midst of such great technology, somehow the movies won't be movies on my computer. so the movies don't exist right now. i was sick this weekend but my mission is to find a way to free those videos from the camera...

i n t e r c o nn e c t i v i ty

each person who received a piece of interconnectivity was then asked to take a photo of their body with the piece of paper, in a place they feel connected. i have received awesome feedback thus far.
here are all the pages, before being shipped. more to come on the process and results!

sketch

2008-01-30T13:11:00.000-07:00

i like to keep my hand tight with my first passion in drawing, the human body. what a marvelous medium.

archival matter

2008-01-27T14:37:00.000-07:00

2007 was so long ago...from shore to shore, here we are at 2008.

interconnect

2008-01-24T12:22:00.000-07:00

this is a project that involves me and 16 friends who responded to my request of a mailing address. i have a video of the process, but here are some sneak peak photos. thank you to everyone who had the faith to blindly participate, more details to come once my crew receives their packages in the mail!

bluegrass

2008-01-16T10:53:00.000-07:00

it feels good in my soul.

bluegrass music rides on themes of meeting the devil in the garden, jumping from train cart to train cart, and finding the lord one fine day. if music were a mere reflection of my thoughts, then this is one of them. i love feeling connected to a land and i enjoy the music and the tradition it typifies.

but, above and beyond all nostalgia that music intoxicates i love who i am, right here and right now.

happiness is sometimes feels like a great secret that hasn't been whispered to the people. (hint hint, it lies within!)

after the deadline....

2007-12-16T14:44:00.000-07:00

After 3 months of continuous work during my free moments, I have successfully finished the books series. I am happy to have taken the journey through archives of a friends life and family.

Getting ready for holiday and more little art pieces being made for the interconnectivity project.

Stay warm and connected. Namaste.

december interconnectivity joys

2007-12-05T19:21:00.000-07:00

happy december!! its been a while since an update. ive been busy working and creating and slipping in the snow.

id like to share a new art project that i am working on:

in case this isn't clearly defined in the above image(you can click to enlarge the image); id like to receive your mailing address. in turn, you will receive something in the mail. that is step one. step two is to soon be revealed.

thank you to everyone who is currently participating, my friends and colleagues.

this project is about the link between you and me and the thousands of people i see and the thousdands of people you see.

with blessings.

this is where it happens

2007-11-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

working

2007-11-18T16:26:00.000-07:00

peaceful times friends...
been a busy weekend, showed support for to the upcoming ears and eyes festival at heaven gallery, saw feist perform at the rivera, and tons of books books being produced. hope everyone enjoys the upcoming days.

oil spills

2007-11-14T07:29:00.000-07:00

the oil spills that occurred in san francisco's bay area and the other one in the black sea are ecological nightmares. it is estimated that 30,000 birds have died as a result in the black sea region.

the environmental dangers that arise from the spills are nothing new or shocking to ponder. but what i continue to be startled by, is how quickly blame will slide away. the oil companies will hire lawyers, lobby governmental figures, and repercussions will be slim. if any other commodity was dumped into the our earths water, don't you think their market would plummet?

it is a commodity that causes our nature plummet.

queen bee style

2007-11-11T16:30:00.000-07:00

little update from the studio space. i am busy working on a commission book series; 25 identical books being made for a dear friend and patron. it will be a tight few weeks of production, queen bee style.

namaste.

heads

2007-10-31T19:28:00.000-07:00

first in a series of cuando callas posters. check our space for other little projects done in the last year.

happiness is not a matter of intensity, but of balance and of order and of rhythm.--thomas merton

acclamazioni

2007-10-28T18:27:00.000-07:00

salutations from the moz studio,

ive been hard at work: studio items were shipped from nc, and now production will be complete/efficient/brilliant with all the correct tools. everything in its right place...

here are two new drawings. more to come...inquire within.

statements

2007-10-19T19:44:00.000-06:00

in a 1986 interview with painter Joan Mitchell, Yves Michaud says "You talk of feeling, existing, living...[in your inspiration]" and she responds " Feeling, existing, living. I think its all the same, except for quality. Existing is survival; it does not mean necessarily feeling. You can say good morning, good evenings. Feeling is something more:it's feeling your existence. It's not just survival. Painting is a mean of feeling living...Painting is the only art form except still photography which is without time. Music takes time to listen to and ends, writing takes time and ends, movies end, ideas and sculpture take time. Painting does not. It never ends, it is the only thing that is both continuous and still. Then I can be very happy. It's a still place. It is like one word, one image..."(Joan Mitchell pictured above).
Her statements intrigue and inspire.

food for breakfast

2007-10-18T20:58:00.000-06:00

people have their routine that sets them into a clear mental space(like most mammals) and i enjoy the act of eating breakfast in large amounts. morning medicine. varied in type and texture, i am full of gratitude to be able to have a minute in the morning to stretch, to eat, to prepare for the long day.

emergen-c's create such a bright and luscious colour.

find your inner light and glow. drink and eat vitamins. it will aid in the process of self radiance.

know of new

2007-10-15T14:56:00.000-06:00

news from the studio: a few of my little drawings are being displayed at my friend Gladys' boutique, Glad Eye. i am very thrilled for the oppurtunity. she is having an opening event this saturday, at 935 N. Damen(flyer at the bottom of this post).

i am currently working on a large(r) scale, with more details, and having fun with the simplicity of complex ideas. i can't wait to share more images soon. thank you to my friends for all the support and great feedback.

i am reading italo calvino's if on a winters night a traveler, once again. it is a stunning piece of literature, daedalian in its perspective, and entriguing with its textures of language.

i am listening to Jose Gonzalez's new album In Our Nature and Radiohead's child In Rainbows.

Gus Gavino has updated his website. check out all the beautiful and innovative new work. his art uses the digital medium to awaken and reward the grey makeup of our brains.

the rest is up and up. all positive, all hopeful. namaste and stay healthy!

flyer design by Gus Gavino

visitors

2007-10-12T20:48:00.001-06:00

our friends kyoko and christopher came to visit. we walked from end to end of the city and blusters of wind greeted us and guided us along the odyssey.

not many words can express the sensation of transition from place to place, the joyful sight of old friends, and the capacity to share warm drinks and long conversations.

above all, it was one of the most perfect days ive ever seen.

weekend savor

2007-10-07T12:41:00.000-06:00

my sunday was full of relaxation, yummy food(always), and drawing on silk and stumbling upon a john cage re creation at the chicago cultural center.(john cage image below)

i saw these vines on my way to work.

this season is gorgeous. delight in the days as much as possible.

new work

2007-09-30T20:18:00.001-06:00

latest work. completed this week during time away from the check earning.

enjoy your monday, enjoy all that is yours.

(click on image to enlarge)

tempest

2007-09-27T11:47:00.000-06:00

i imagine the sky saturated and full of satisfaction in order to calm our firey spirits when it storms.

inside of chris burden's kinetic sculpture the other vietnam memorial.

dedication

2007-09-24T20:03:00.000-06:00

the term dedication can unfold into a sea of individual and subjective meanings. a definition of the word dedication reads the quality of being dedicated to a task or purpose.

justin theroux's movie dedication(a grab from the film is above) in large, is a cute western exploration on the demise and deconstruction of the mental state. i claim cute, because it is a nice little love film. i posit exploration on the deconstruction of the brain because the main character is in and out lucidity. as an overworked children's book author, billy crudup's character is subject to the pressures of culture's demand on a man to produce work, be romantic, and maintain composure.

dedication is a number in a long string of films/books/art that exposures manhood at its greatest flux in contemporary culture.

i believe that a principle held in such high regard, such as manhood, is constantly unstable. and its only normal and expected that art represents this upchuck. in an aesthetically pleasing way, of course.

all in all dedication is molasses sweet-like, provocative, and a topsy-turvy testament of our task for finding purpose.

Bahá'í

2007-09-21T15:19:00.000-06:00

our visit to the bahai temple.

Toast

2007-09-19T18:57:00.000-06:00

I remember hearing on NPR a long time ago a story about toast. A story about how the smell chemically reminds our bodies and souls of warmth, of being full, of a home. Bread making is an art form, you know? NPR did a whole commentary about toast...a worthy project.

We have the same toaster up here as the one I had in Asheville. Funny how we can buy the same appliances in a completely different place--homogenization at its finest.

I remember the old toaster got something "stuck" inside. It was some odd plastic item that would not exit. Amy and I safely unplugged the device, and stuck chopsticks down inside to assist the foreign object's leaving process. It wouldn't budge. I recall shaking the toaster became a method for getting rid of the rattly artifact. Nothing moved.

Although the toaster is the same all around the world, the moments with our toaster and the toast and the smell of each slice browning, those are memories are individual. Maybe we are not so homogenized after all.

what brings you here

2007-09-18T18:18:00.000-06:00

i was asked what brings you here today while i rode with a delivery driver from my work.

i celebrated my birthday yesterday, so at no other time than now does this seem relevant as a question of conceptual pondering. right??

originally, this question was not proposed as a shell that needs to be broken into. this question did not appear as a cocoon waiting to be unraveled by intense thoughts. its just small talk. but i see it as some spice for our tender brains.

i am everywhere i am meant to be. and it is intensely beautiful.

the coziest corner

2007-09-16T12:41:00.000-06:00

the cozy corner diner is community. to use the word community in a city seems, for a lack of a better word, silly. when out, i pass a different face every 10 seconds. but for some reason, as i am inside the walls of the cozy corner, all the people seem to be there for the same purpose: to eat, to enjoy, to absorb the same nutrients, to sit in the same seats, to watch the same people.

our immediate world and visual surroundings provide nothing but a reflection of our community and the way we interact/speak/treat one another. i like to imagine that we are like sponges, and absorb what is necessary, and release what is not.

that makes for a sensible and unified community, no matter how many people are in the surroundings--it has to do with the simple desire to find the coziest corner.