Pinterest Picks of the Week

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been spending quite a bit of time on Pinterest lately. One must practice constant vigilance in planning for their future house, defining their personal style, and finding fitness motivation, otherwise who knows what might happen. I figured I'd start sharing my favorite images each week because there really are some beautiful graphics on that site. Check out my Pinterest boards to see the original pins, and don't be surprised if you get sucked into the blackhole of DIYs and OOTDs.

Emoji-Nation

More fun with modernizing art! Ukrainian artist Nastya Nudnik pairs famous paintings with applicable social media-speak. My favorite is the Edward Hopper piece below, which reminds me of this Banksy-esque street art. Because isn't that feeling of no new Instagram followers the worst?

A 4-Day Work Week? Sign Me Up.

I just read the thought-provoking article, "5 Reasons It’s Time for a 4-Day Work Week," and I must admit, I'm convinced. The piece's main stance is that a shorter work week will make people a) happier and b) more productive. The idea is simple: By compacting the hours we have to get work done, we'll waste less time and be more efficient. And imagine having a FULL three days to reset, relax, explore, and live. A few US company have already employed the tactic and report "increases [in] both output and morale." There's also the interesting point that one less day of running electricity in millions of office spaces and one less day of gridlocked commuting would positively impact the environment.

When I got my first full-time job in NYC, it was the middle of winter. As I accustomed myself to a 45-hour work week, not only was I dead tired by the time I headed home, but the lack of sunlight and freezing weather didn't leave much desire to go to the gym, much less socialize. Happy hours? Forget about it (both figuratively and literally ha). I began to realize that the only time I felt like I was doing something with my life was on Saturdays and Sundays. Friday nights didn't even count, because I would go straight home and fall into bed. I promise I'm not as lame as this is sounding! (Just kidding I totally am.)

Needless to say, summer in NYC is a whole other planet. Getting out of work when there's still sunlight left makes it feel like a crime to head home. I've shifted my routine so that gym time comes at 6am (groan) and the infectious joy of summer nights has made me start making plans after work. Revolutionary! Now I'm getting drinks with friends on Monday night, watching a movie with the roomie Tuesday night, heading to a rooftop party Wednesday night, hosting a dinner party Thursday night, and--lo and behold!- going out on Friday nights. Weekends are no longer my only window to fraternize, so I can take things outside the city. This past weekend I rented a car with some buddies and headed upstate to Dia Beacon and Storm King (instas below). Usually I would suffer insane FoMo leaving NYC for so long- but I knew that whatever was going on in the big apple could happen again tomorrow or the next weekend, and life as we know it would continue.

Now as much as that sort of digressed into an argument against the before-mentioned case, my point is that even if you are living your work week to the fullest, it's still exhausting. Having three days to catch up on rest, visit family, or just learn to exist in a new city would raise one's level of living dramatically. Several other highly-productive countries already have the Mon-Thu rule, so let's say we give it a shot, eh?

Things I could do more of with more time: art appreciating.

Hip Hop + Art = Fly Art

It's a surprisingly beautiful marriage you don't often see: the aggressive (if not occasionally witty) rap lyric mixed with the classical beauty of fine art. It's the type of stuff my mother would hate because she would detest the foul language and wouldn't understand the written references. I would suggest she listen to more Jay-Z, but I would also most definitely not suggest she listen to more Jay-Z. A classic catch-22.

Fly Art is a project "born out of boredom, frustration, and the internet" and inspired by other genius art hacks like Swoosh and The Carter Family Portrait Gallery. Class and taste aside, I think it's pretty on point for Millennials (excuse the obnoxious self-awareness) and hip-hop aficionados. The juxtaposition ends up breathing some cultural relevancy into the Old Masters and everything ancient is new again.

I've curated (if you will) a few of my favorite NSFW images below. If you can name the songs titles, you get 2 points. If you can name the paintings, you get 5. And if you can name both, let's date.

Spotted by Ariella.
Spotted by Danielle: Wearable Fly Art x Rad.

 

I Wore This

Am I the only one who hates the abbreviation of Outfit of the Day? Whenever I see people hashtag #ootd on instagram I get a weird feeling because my immediate reaction is to try and sound it out and then I end up say "ooh-t-d" in my head and it's uncomfortable.

I digress. 

I often have these moments where I say to myself, "Hey, I kind of like my outfit today. And the world needs to know." But the idea of forcing my roommate to take glamour pics of me or, even worse, posing in front of my camera on a tripod in self-timer mode gives me amateur shivers. So I figured I'd do a more forgiving version of portraiture using watercolor of what I wore when I had people over for  brunch the other day (post to follow on that).

It was incredibly therapeutic and after having done hundreds of fashion illustrations for my major, it was kind of nice to get back into the grind, as rusty as I may be. I'm still deciding, though, if this is something I should do more often. Thoughts?  Also figured I'd go ahead and put some info on what exactly I have on although, not gonna lie, my life is all URBN all the time since I started working for Anthropologie (you can't really not use the discounts, you know?) so sorry for the lack of excitement in the labels on this one.

Necklace: Anthropologie

V-Neck: Anthropologie

Printed Harem Pants: Urban Outfitters

Chunky Platforms: Topshop

Bangles and Bracelets: Chan Luu and a lil sumin sumin I picked up in Uzbekistan.

Looking back, I got every single thing I'm wearing on sale (the Chan Luu I got at 60% off (!) at a great 2nd Street Boutique in Austin). Guess I'm just naturally thrifty. Also that Anthro V-Neck is the softest thing I own, I highly recommend it. 

peace out.

Gold Heads

As many of you know, I went to Wash U to pursue a sculpture major. I ended up switching to fashion because sculpture is something that, no matter what, I'll always be doing regardless of my job. Fashion, however, was something new to learn and would open many more doors than sculpture would. Since moving to New York, I've been searching for the right career path in fashion, but sculpture is something I've consistently kept up with. I rented some studio space in Brooklyn in a beautiful facility with a wonderful community, and I've been spending a lot of my free-time there. I've working on sculptures that are a smaller version of what I did in high school/college  because I just don't have the storage for any more 5 foot sculptures! The process of making these guys is a rather long-winded one, as I have to sculpt them, wait for them to dry, bisque fire them, apply the white glaze, fire them again, then wait until I have enough of them to fill the small kiln (which I have to rent out) to high-fire for the gold lacquer. So all in all it's taken several months to complete all of these.  

Being in studio is my happy place as I just sculpt while going back and forth between listening to NPR to catch up on world news and serious deep-thinking time. The only problem now is forcing myself out into the polar vortex to get there. I'm also trying to decide/figure out the whole "making money" thing as a sculptor- so let me know if you have any ideas! (There are a few more pictures over at my website)

 

Essentials

Check out Essentials by MIJLO. The sustainable backpack company (watch their kickstarter here) asked a few "global creatives" to photograph their most essential possessions accompanied by an equally essential bag. I love the idea and found it fascinating to see what people consider "essentials", ranging anywhere from their favorite lip balm to their laptop and keys. Below are a few of my favorites. But above is my own rendition of the project. I took it a step further, however, and asked myself, "If my apartment set on fire, what would I grab to take with me?" Pictured above are a few of my favorite things and, if you care to know, I'll explain why. Pictured from top left and moving clockwise:

1. The embroidered jacket I bought in Uzbekistan this past summer.
2. The heaviest book I own: a stunning collection of Gustav Klimt's work, given to me on my 22nd birthday by my grandparents.
3. A Hermès bracelet from my mother.
4. Below that is a textile wood block print from India from my grandfather.
5. Totally rad Alexander Wang sunglasses (with gold tips) from my mother this past Christmas.
6. A wooden shuttle I received in the small village outside Luang Prabang, Laos, where I learned to weave on a traditional loom while researching textiles in Southeast Asia. (One heckuva summer)
7. My favorite piece of jewelry, a Mawi necklace.
8. A wonderful gold bow made for me by my friend Jessie.
9. A bottle of Tom Ford's Noir de Noir (my absolute favorite perfumist).
10. A pair of boots I bought in Ibiza several summers ago, made from Moroccan carpets.
11. A vintage golden chain link cape my parents gave to me as a graduation present after my senior fashion show.  
12. Lastly, a leather bag I bought at Portobello Market in London. It's everything I've always wanted in a backpack, and it's lasted through a lot. 

Now for these guys:

What would YOU pack?

The Good Parts of Being Alive

I wanted to share my friend Anna's Kickstarter with you all. It's an incredible project and she is one of the most talented choreographer/dancers that I know. I'm honored to have her guest post today. Enjoy and please contribute if you can!
...

My name is Anna Reyes, and I’m a professional dancer, choreographer, and teacher based in Boston, MA. I grew up in Austin, Texas, next door to Chantal and her sisters. We spent many hours together, dancing, playing tag, making plays, etc. My favorite memories prove that we were cool and hip beyond our years: we spent many hours dancing to the Eurythmics (Sweet Dreams are made of this...), jumping and shaking our thangs on the living room couch! {Editor's note: This was my favorite part of my childhood no joke)

My moves are just as sweet as a my former six year old self's moves (and hopefully a little more refined after years and years of studying dance). Yet as all artists have experienced, one can start to feel in a rut, no matter HOW cool her art is. About eight months ago, I was nursing a nagging, restless feeling; I knew I needed to make something, but what? Choreographing for the stage seemed like an obvious answer, but for some reason, I couldn’t get excited about it. I knew creating anything without the excitement behind it would be an arduous, unfulfilling task.

            In the interim, I had the opportunity to star in a short film, “Eighteen,” by acclaimed visual artists Teresa Hubbard and Alexander Birchler. (Check them out at hubbardbirchler.net)  Filmed in Austin, Alex and Teresa were generous enough to incorporate my dance improvisation into their film. Starring in the piece was extremely hard work (two of the three shoot days lasted from dinner time until sunrise!), but equally as exhilarating and fulfilling. Upon returning home from Austin, I had an answer to my restlessness – make my own film!

            I’m currently making a dance film entitled “the good parts of being alive.” The film explores the stages of romantic relationships. A relationship is extremely fluid, more like running water than ice, and is easily shifted by the time and space it inhabits. Time - how long you have known one another, how one feels at a specific moment, whether the time you have together is long or short, limited or unlimited. Space - the location of the relationship, if you share a home or are long-distance, whether the space between two bodies is large or small when you're together, how much mental space one has for his/her partner, etc. Around the same time I began to contemplate time and space in within relationships, a friend introduced me to the artwork of Egon Schiele. I fell in love with his portraits and was immediately drawn to the strange, evocative poses he painted. I was surprised that the poses he chose were so contemporary and dance-like. His work inspired me to choreograph, and to incorporate my ideas and experiences to the framework his art provided.

           “the good parts of being alive” is my most exciting project to date, but it’s not finished yet! I’m running a Kickstarter Campaign to raise the funds for finishing film, paying the artists involved, and submitting the film to dance festivals around the world. If it looks like something you want to be a part of, make a pledge! If nothing else, help spread the word! 

Check out the webpage here and the video below: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/483988747/the-good-parts-of-being-alive

If you need a little encouragement to make a contribution, just picture Chantal, her sisters, me and my sister Paulina, all jamming out in the living room. Make that former six year old's (second from the right) future dream come true! 

-Anna Reyes

How To: Glitter Cards

I've had quite a few birthdays and house warming parties to attend recently (I'm so popular) and my go-to has been doing a little watercolor and ink illustration of the receiver (everyone loves a portrait of themselves). But if you want something a little more simple but with some sparkle factor, here's a great way to pull together a card when you remember last minute or just don't want to spend $10 on stationary.

Public Service Announcement

Just so that everyone is aware, there is a blog dedicated to Bruce Springsteen's Butt.

This was discovered through the Buzzfeed titled, "15 Reminders that Bruce Springsteen is a Stone Cold Fox" (worth a gander) which was introduced to me by my insightful sister Lorelei.

Please enjoy this sensual soundtrack as you gaze upon His HEINIEness (see what I did there???)
 (Fun fact: a young Courtney Cox at 2:20 lucky dog):

A few of my favorites <3

 

Oh and then there's this:

Now try and get back to work mwahaha