RIP Old "Arted" Logo

you did good, pig.

Internet Art Caper

It is brought to my attention that art theft has taken place. The 'sketch' image was featured on the EatSleepDraw blog and soon detected by the original artists' friends. 

The images speak for themselves... 

Original image by Collel Massey

"Sketch for a Painting" by epicterror

Not cool...

Feel free to 'terrorize' the impostor: EpicTerror on Tumblr

Thank you, Michael (My Brother!!) at EatMoreTruth Industries for the heads up!

Hopefully EatSleepDraw will be more careful next time!

**************UPDATE 8/31/2011******************

The image has been removed from EatSleepDraw & epicterror has lost their submission rights to the blog.  

Another Painting Complete

I like roads...and ribbons.

Journalism Week at WVU

Well, J-Week 2011 is wrapping up. The theme this year was "Game Changers Under 40." We were lucky to have some really amazing guest speakers including:

• Wendy Harman- Director of Social Media, American Red Cross
• Talia Mark- Manager of Diversity Affairs, NASCAR (A black female..in NASCAR- impressive!)
• David "DigiDave" Cohn- Online Journalist and blogger
• Daniel Gilbert- Pulitzer Prize for Public Service 2010 (Investigative Reporting in Rural Areas)
• Andrew Scritchfield- Cameraman, NBC News

I was able to make it to all of them except Mr. Scritchfield's presentation. Everyone else, however, were very compelling and had great stories of their experiences in the industry.

One presenter that really stuck out was David Cohn's presentation, "Spot.Us: An Experiment in Citizen-Funded Journalism."

From Spot.Us  

We are an open source project to pioneer “community powered reporting.” Through Spot.Us the public can commission and participate with journalists to do reporting on important and perhaps overlooked topics. Contributions are tax deductible and we partner with news organizations to distribute content under appropriate licenses. Donors can also take a survey from our one our sponsors, when available, to support the story of their choice at no cost to them.

Spot.Us - Community Funded Reporting Intro from Digidave on Vimeo.

Cohn's main goal is to keep the information he provides, as well as the allocation of funds, transparent and participatory. He wanted to 'evangelize' the idea that information and money is power, and he wants to keep that within the power of the public. (PS- I think evangelize is his favorite word.)

I am inspired by David Cohn. He stated in his presentation, "Journalism is a process, not a product." I feel right like now there uncertainty on where Journalism is going because of the role of the internet and changing views of the media. But his drive and success encourages me, and I think everyone that saw his presentation, that we can take what we have and use it to our advantage.

Thanks DigiDave!

Who was your favorite speaker? 

Spotted: Human Wrong Campaign

SIGN: "These 'stop signs' represent the 2.7 million slaves in the world today"

This display was spotted on the lawn in front of the Life Science building on WVU's downtown campus today. 

The Human Wrong Campaign has been going on all week with events such as parades, real life trafficking demonstrations. 

The 'stop signs' in the image above was set up after the "Stop the Traffic" parade and symbolized a "victim graveyard" as a reminder of the 2.7 million who need to be freed from slavery.

Jason Gaboury will be speaking in the Blue & Gold room in Towers tonight at 7 p.m. 

To learn more about the Human Wrong Campaign visit their website here 

Monongalia Arts Center: k-12 Exhibit

Children of all ages and parents and teachers alike filled the galleries of the Monongalia Arts Center this past Friday evening. The MAC opened it's K-12 exhibit, celebrating arts in school, featuring artwork from children across the county.

I went with my roommate, Maria, for the opening reception. I had never seen the lobby so crowded! There were so many children there excited to see their artwork on the walls of the MAC.

It is surprising to see how talented kids are from this area. Maria and I would try and guess what grade each artist was in and stood corrected more than half the time.

There were so many colors and creativity in each gallery and in the halls. Plus, it was really fun to see how enthusiastic the children were.

The K-12 Exhibit runs all month. I would definitely recommend checking it out and seeing the work from some young artists.

Here's a taste....

The Monongalia Arts Center is located at the bottom of High St. downtown Morgantown-- next to Hotel Morgan. Admission to the gallery is always free. 
Hours: 
Monday-Friday 11:00 A.M. - 7:00 P.M 
Saturday-11:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.

Joining the MACteam

As mentioned before, I had to find a client and do their PR for my Media Writing course. I showed some interest in the Monongalia Arts Center, The MAC. I even went to the gallery opening and networked with a few heads and finally met Ro.

Well last week I finally had my meeting with the director, Ro Brooks. It lasted FOUR hours! We were having fun chatting about art and the community, the time seemed to slip by us. We talked about my assignment and what I'm going to be doing for The MAC. We bounced ideas off each other and our creativity was flowing. Talks of managing social media, helping coordinate events, writing press releases and newspaper articles were in the works. Possible open-mic nights, auditions for MACglee, and different types of classes were also talked about.

"Here-- you'll be needing this for your green tea!" -Ro Brooks

The meeting was just last week and we are still working on particular items but I'm glad to say that I'm joining forces with the "Macadoodle," as Ro calls it, until I graduate in December. I'm anxious to learn and gain experience from this opportunity!

Stay tuned for updates!

First Time's a Charm!

This past Saturday I attended my first art gallery opening. It was at the Monongalia Arts Center (the MAC) here in Morgantown. I went with my longtime best friend, Jack.

We walked between the giant columns of the historic building and through the lobby.

Right then, we both acknowledged the fact that we were newbies, so we took a deep breath and entered the Benedum gallery. The white walls were adorned by various photographs of different subjects. Fourteen artist's work were on display.

View of the photographs (picture taken later in the week)

Some images included Appalachian wildlife, abandoned factories, portraits, landscapes of foreign countries, our beloved Mountaineer Football players in action, and even the wreckage of the Pentagon attack from September 11, 2001. I felt a balanced mixture of 'overwhelmed' and 'admiration.'

The space in between the was full of chit-chatting bystanders who were too, enjoying to works of the artists. Most artists were from Morgantown so many were networking and sipping red wine.

Fragile Places postcard
for the exhibit

After we grabbed a glass of wine for ourselves, we walked up the marble stairs to see the next exhibit. The work of Raquel Martina Lopez titled Fragile Places (Lugares Fragiles) was set up different than the last.
The theme was women as a place. Half a dozen clay sculptures of native women were placed throughout the room. They all laid in various positions. Brown and grey leaves lined the perimeter of the room and around the sculptures. About 50 or so tiny houses made of black and white paper peeked out of the leaves.

From the MAC website: The delicate and weak houses made of paper are on the hard and heavy ceramic woman that becomes a mountain...The breast becomes a mountain — arms becomes the street of the valley...Rivers and roads come and go between the white and black of the paper. She uses paper to represent dreams: Dreams are made of paper — they are not strong, but fragile. The light builds the dreams.

Cheering to a successful first-time art gallery opening!!

Overall, I feel like the exhibit opening went really well and it was a great event for me to experience. I was able to meet some interesting people and spoke with the director of the MAC, Ro Brooks. I got to see how the gallery operated in action.

Both exhibits will remain in the gallery throughout the month of March. I really suggest checking them out if you have a chance-- Even if it's in between classes or after lunch.

Where do you find inspiration?

More like- where does inspiration find you?

For the last few weeks I have been swamped with papers and midterms. Unfortunately, the chance to get my artistic juices flowing has been null. I have numerous canvases in my closet and under my bed is a neglected crate of paint. But it’s not only because I’ve been so busy lately- I was just as busy last semester.

I just haven’t had any inspiration!

That is until yesterday: It came to me during some much needed retail therapy (shortly after a PR research exam).

A pair of earrings? Yes, I agree. This source of motivation is so random, but it hit me instantly to the point where I took out my phone to take a picture. (Hopefully I didn't come off too creepy). I was attracted to the primary colors and the burst of circles- the earrings were simply lovely. 

I'm not sure if this muse will be of any significant product, but it reminded me of my virtuosity and ignited my desire to create.

If you are under pressure to generate a piece of work- whether it be a painting or paper, then you probably don't have the nonchalance to let inspiration come to you. So you must find it yourself. 

The mall is full of many sources: window displays, fabrics,  a diverse array of people (we all love people watching), and print ads, to name a few. You can hang out in bookstores or your local coffee shop. 

"Headphones Girl"by ~Gh30 on deviantart

Maybe music is your muse. Have you ever put your headphones on, closed your eyes, and let your imagination run wild? Try it sometimes. It's amazing where our mind can take us when listening to different types of songs. 

Inspiration might not come to you right away. It could be hiding in your environment or streaming in the depths of your mind. 

Just relax. You'll find it!

Gallery Granted

Earlier this week, I moseyed down to the Monongalia Arts Center hoping to talk to the director there. Unfortunately, she was not in. A helpful young man named Anthony spoke with me and told me the gallery is always looking for help and that he’d send along my message. He also gave me the executive director, Ro Brooks’, business card.

After speaking with Anthony, I entered the exhibit and was blown away by the artwork on display. The room was well lit and large painted canvases dressed the walls. There were also various sculptures in between paintings and in the middle of the room. In one corner there was a display for ceramics. I felt very serene being in the gallery. 

I took this picture on my phone to share my experience:

View from the ceramics corner

Upon further exploration I discovered a room for performances and an art studio/classroom. There was also an upstairs but there were no exhibits on display at the time.

I emailed Ro Brooks as soon as I got home and was fortunate enough to hear back from her the next morning. I was thrilled by the quick response! She said she'd be more than happy to have me work with the MAC this semester. I have an appointment to meet with her early next week.

I'm really excited for this opportunity because it combines two things that I am passionate about and it's something new that I have never done before.

I can't wait to see what's in store for the rest of the semester.

What's Next?

In my public relations writing class, one of our main assignments is to find a client and do their p.r.

But my professor mentioned that we need to keep in mind an organization that maybe doesn't get the attention they deserve. Someone who needs help.

This idea overwhelms me. I'm still getting into the groove of public relations. I just took the intro course last semester and now I'm in all of the upper-level classes at once. Find a client and do their p.r.?

---I feel like a kid in a swimming pool without her floats.

Then I realized, I don't even know anything about the "art scene" here at WVU or in this great city of Morgantown. I'm aware that there's a lot of history and culture, but I walk past it everyday. I've always been curious but I've never ventured out to explore. 

Just by a single Google search alone, I found that there are at least ten locations in Morgantown that exhibit local artists, including galleries, salons, restaurants, tattoo parlors and of course WVU's Creative Arts Center (The CAC).

Amazing. NOW I'm excited! 

I came across the Monongalia Arts Center's website.

(Sidenote: this is at the bottom of High Street. How did I never encounter this before? apologies, Morgantown, apologies.)

The site reads, The MAC is "Morgantown's Home for Arts and Culture Since 1978". After reading the history of the organization and browsing past exhibits, I came upon the "Donate" tab. I learned that this institution is in need for some serious funding. 

"Fix MAC's radiators," "General Operations Donation, and "One month of warmth in the winter," were a just few choices to Add to Cart right there on the page. 

This is just one possibility, but I really like this idea! This gallery is a hidden gem of Morgantown and deserves more attention. I'm hoping that they're willing to work with me as my client. I'd love to help promote The MAC and local artists.

Figure it out.

Right? That's what we're told to do before we even graduate high school. 

Well. Now I'm a senior in college and I still haven't figured it out yet. 

In the past 12 months I've gone from a business major to a public relations major, with enough sociology and spanish credits to almost fulfill two minors. 

In the midst of changing lanes on my academic career path, and friends exiting onto the real world, I felt lost and confused. I felt a void. Yet, there was a burst of energy that needed to be released. But I didn't know how. 

So I picked up a paintbrush.

Once I started, I couldn't stop. Besides art electives in high school, I barely knew what I was doing. My vision and direction changed half a dozen times. I painted and pasted different media.

It took a while but I hurled out everything I was feeling on the canvas. 

Taking a step back after it was complete and hung up on my apartment's wall, I literally said out loud:

"Really? Did I do that?"

Art has entered my life in a strange way. If I'm not creating, I'm exploring. 

Just to be clear, I'm no "fine arts expert," but I like stumbling upon different artists, of the past and now, and appreciating their work.


This is just the beginning.

I don't know if I've found my way...yet. In a sense, I still feel lost and undirected, but at least I'm enjoying it.

As a student in public relations, I hope I can tie the two together to learn what the art industry entails behind the painting.