MIT Researches have produced an amazing set of images as part of their New York Talk Exchange (NYTE) project, which are currently on display at The Museum of Modern Art from February 24th through May 12th 2008. The images are part of the Design and Elastic Mind exhibit which explores the dramatic ways in which changes in human communications have impacted our collective psyche as we gleefully slosh through zeros and ones. This is the age where the Oracle at Delphi is at your fingertips, after all. You don’t know how to do something, or where to turn for help? You are just a few steps away from the keyboard or phone. Our lives are indelibly changed as a people, and as individuals, and this exhibition has alot of cool items on display that explore this kind of thought.

Sources:

• Yahoo News
• Museum of Modern Art
• New York Talk Exchange

Blogger Clint Watson, in his FineArtsView Blog gives a very interesting view on how to price your artwork if it just isn’t selling. He suggests that the normal laws of supply-and-demand do not apply to the art market, and that increasing the price of your pieces may actually be beneficial, as counter-intuitive as it may seem. There apears to be a psychological element to the perceived critical value of a piece based upon its price and how the buyer feels about that price. Although I don’t thinking selling all of your napkin doodles for a million dollars each will get you rich quick soon, he clearly offers some valuable insights into the mind of the art buyer. This is something anyone actively selling their own artwork should read.

[Original story via FineArtsView Blog.]

This week’s theme at Gothic Arches is “History”, which immediately inspired me to work on a piece of artwork reflecting the fall of Rome.

For the background, I selected a map of the Roman Empire at it’s most expansive that was taken from an ancient history book which has been handed down through my family. The poor book is falling to pieces from use so I need to research how to properly glue back the leather spine that came off during this project. (Any tips would be greatly appreciated!)

The other main element of design is the peacock, which is the symbolic animal for Juno, the goddess Protector and special counselor of the Roman state. Quite fitting, don’t you agree?

While I could easily write a good, long post pointing out the similarities in the current issues facing the US in comparison to Rome, I’ll spare you. If you pay attention to current events, you can see the writing on the wall, and while it may never happen in our lifetime, the question is…will we learn from history or simply repeat it once more?

One aspect of my day job involves making sense of the numbers. That is, how are interest rates and foreign exchange rates impacting our portfolio? While these factors are just a piece of the puzzle, they have been important driving factors in the past couple of months. And if you have not been paying attention to financial news within the past month in particular, let me just start off saying it’s looking grim.  Thus, I’ve been wondering how are these changes within the financial markets impacting the art community?

According to the Art Market Confidence Indicator, it dropped by 40% over the past six months in January!  However, according to an article by Nicholas Forrest the method to collect data for this index is seriously flawed.  So who is an artist and art collector to trust?

Speaking for myself, December was a wonderful month full of record sales.  But of course, it was the holiday season when consumers tend to spend more to begin with.

Realistically speaking, the impact from these financial market indicators will depend on who is buying your art and how these indicators fair in the long run.  So the question is, have you felt the impact of this downward spiral of our economy as an artist yet?

SOURCES:

[FXSTRET.COM] Recession? 13 signs it’s here

[ART MARKET BLOG] Art Market Confidence Index Seriously Flawed

[BLOOMBERG.COM] Contemporary Art Market Confidence Slumps 40%, Survey Shows

I’ve designed several Valentines day cards recently, but none of them really move me as much as this one.  Finally, one worthy to give the hubby!

[Submited for Mixed Media Monday’s theme, “Love & Romance”]

Created in response to Created Byhand Challenge’s Tuesday theme, Black and White.

The fish might look familiar. It’s one of the six goldfish featured in my most recent soft pastel paintings created for a surreal theme. This fish is actually the original sketch that I applied a photoshop stamp filter to give it that fossil look. I’m think it would make for a smashing father’s day card.

I’ve been struggling with personal planners for ages.  I started with this mammoth leather planner that I now use as a portfolio for unfinished soft pastel paintings.  Then I moved on to various computer calendar programs like Outlook.  I even moved on to internet services like Yahoo!.  But this past October, I found myself simply using a cheap five dollar planner and have been using it every day since.

I keep frequently used lists organized with these plastic blue lined tabs.  One of the tabs features my weekly goals, which include health, relationships, financial, spiritual, art, and the mundane for items such as laundry.  I also have a slim black calendar and a separate black notebook for career goals.  Maybe one day I’ll slowly merge together, but for now they work good separately.

The inside snapshot of my planner features my current workout, Get Lean and Sculpted in 4 Weeks Flat!,  that was originally published in Fitness Magazine.  It totals six pages and designed with a lot of thought so do check it out!  

I’m on the second day and already feeling the positive benefits.  But then again, I’ve been exercising every day with activities as diverse as dancing to Irish music to going on a walk with Brian in our neighborhood in the moon light.  I guess I should take a day off, but I’ve been on a roll and feeling great!

I also came across this article over at lifehack today that discusses 12 Ways to Upgrade Your Weekly Review, and it’s not talking about a weekly blog post.  It’s a list of ideas to think about during your weekly review of your goals and to-do lists.  The list helps provide structure so your weekly review is really a productive use of your time. 

Some of the ideas mentioned by the author, Scott Young, are things that I used to only have time to think about on a monthly basis, but with my help of Brian, we’ve been more on a regular basis.  So check it out and leave Scott a comment if you find the tips useful. 

I came across this video today and had to share it.  It reminds me of myself several years ago when I used to go to the bookstore in search of the ultimate book that had all the answers.  Then one day I simply realized that all the answers I seek are within myself, and the tools to obtain these answers were all around to begin with.

I started journaling back when I was nine, I believe.  The posts were rather simple.  Not too thought provoking.  Then around sixteen I wrote about my boyfriends.  When I was eighteen, I think I finally broke the gap when I was journaling.  I started to really write about myself and my interaction with the world.  It was a tranformational experience and still is today. 

I have also found that walking is very therapeutic.  It helps me gain clarity on my thoughts.

So tell me, what are some of your ways to discover intuition?

In the past two weeks, I’ve added 10 new features to the site.  Here’s some details on what these updates have to offer along with a credit list on who inspired or created the original code:

Update #1: New Portfolio section 

Last weekend I replaced the old gallery code with the coolest wordpress plugin called NextGen Gallery.  I’ve customized the code to allow users to view my artwork either via a thumbnail gallery that creates pop-up little screens of the images when clicked or by a slideshow that has some pretty cool effects.  Plus the random image header now creates mini pop-up screens of the image you click so you don’t have to search for the images within the galleries themselves.  It’s definitely a lot more user friendly than the old gallery I had set-up and the soft pastel painting section is now in chronological order with some new additions so do go check it out. 

Update #2: Subscribe

Now you can sign up to receive e-mail updates when a new blog post is published, when new items are posted on my online Etsy store, or when a new event is published on the Tampa Bay Art Event’s calendar.  Thanks to Feedburner!

Or simply add the RSS feed of your choice of readers if you already subscribe to other blog and new sources.  Both are available on the new subscribe page.

Update #3:  CSS Horizontal Menu [with gradient rollover effect]

Over at CSS Library, I discovered their CSS Indent Menu, which is just one of many examples of how to design a menu on your website via CSS.  Their code is actually for a left aligned menu, but after while of messing with the code I figured out how to center it and create a style that blended better with my site design.

Update #4: ShareThis

At the bottom of all posts, you’ll now notice a ShareThis link.  ShareThis is a popular WordPress plugin that puts a little “share this” icon at the bottom of each blog post. Click it and you get the option to email the post to your friends or submit it to several popular social bookmarking sites.

Update#6: Google Search

Another update that I’ve been needing to do to the site is update the search feature located on the top right side of the page, which used to come up with duplicate results so I changed it out with help of Dave Taylor. It is now powered completely by Google, which rocks.

Update#7: Links - Inspiration/Proud Member of

I’ve added some new additions to the blog roll located on the right side of the page.  The Inspiration section now contains several new weekly theme challenge sites.  There is also a new section called  “Proud Member of“, which highlights the various local and national art organizations I participate in.

Update#8: Submit your Art Event

And to give proper credit, the code that created the Submit your Tampa Art Event form  with image upload capabilities is created by this Wordpress plugin thanks to Dagon Design.

Update#9: Google Maps

The art events posted on the Tampa Bay Art Events calendar now feature Google Map directions thanks to code offered directly from Google Maps. (However, I shortly discovered you’ve got to install Xinha Here! via this Firefox add-on in order to edit the event listing.)

Update#10: Donate 

And if you’re ever wanting to show your appreciation and help support server costs, I’ve added a Paypal Donate button on the right hand side of the page. 

So that wraps up the new features, if any of the code looks weird in your browser, or if you like the new features, please don’t hesitate to let me know.  Feedback is always much appreciated!

Looking for affordable sensual art to give to the love of your life this Valentine’s Day? Here’s just two selections taken from my collection of fine art prints on Etsy.

Indian Sculpture was created in 2004 using soft pastels. It’s printed on Kodak Professional Endura Metallic Paper, which features a unique pearlescent surface that captures sharp details and beautifully saturated colors resulting in striking, three-dimensional, lasting images on an ultra-bright background.

This 8″ x 9″ print is number two of an open edition and includes an 11″ x 14″ brown acid-free mat with a black bevel edge, a mounting board, and a letter of authenticity all enclosed in a resealable polyethylene bag.

If you’re in the Tampa Bay area, you can also buy the original painting at Mystikal Scents located just east of Tampa near USF at 9545 E. Fowler Avenue in Thonotosassa. The shop is open 11am-7pm Monday-Saturday and 12-4pm on Sundays. You can find directions to the shop here via Google Maps.

Desire is another fabulous art print that looks great in the bedroom or even in the living room. The original painting was created in 2003 using soft pastels, and was featured in the first publication of the Canadian magazine, Hegemony Shift.

My online Etsy store, Surrealmuse Studios, also features some original paintings, nudes, and handmade cards with shipping to international locations! Custom size prints and mats are also available upon request.