Wow

Ok, so I just found out that I did a commissioned piece for a Broadway actor. He's an actor with the Utah Shakespearean Festival, and I know him (not well, mind you) through that, but he asked me to do a picture of him as Batman. So I did, but as I was looking at reference pictures of him, all these things kept popping up about the recent production of Pal Joey on Broadway! So, I have just drawn a picture for an actor on Broadway! I feel so honored!

I love having friends who are artists. I have so many talented friends and they all have talents in different areas. Most of my friends are involved in the theatre arts, but I have many friends who are artists in other aspects as well. I just love seeing people create. A group of my friends and I are trying to start our own theatre company. Even though we're just in beginning discussions, we've begun to realize that we have so many complimentary talents. We have a producer, directors, costumers, actors, publicity/marketing people, writers, etc. We pretty much have everything you need to start a theatre company, and on top of that we are very resourceful people. I have faith that we can do anything we set our minds on! It's amazing how God puts people in our lives to help us fulfill a purpose. I know that art can change someone's life, and that's the kind of theatre we want to do. Theatre that makes one think, makes one change. And every day I realize how amazing it is that I have friends who are changing the world one piece of art at a time. My friends are super heroes as far as I'm concerned.

Happily Overwhelmed

Holy cow! Awhile back I started doing pictures of my roommates as Disney princesses. At first I was just going to keep it to the roommie buddies, but then a couple people asked me for pictures and so I thought, why not? However, after posting these pictures, I have had loads of people lining up for me to do their picture! I'm not quite sure how this happened... My mom thinks I should start charging, but I think that would take the fun out of it for me, and I would just feel too much pressure to make it good... So, I continue to say yes because it is fun. However, it is getting a bit overwhelming! It's nice knowing that people are getting enjoyment out of my art though!

I think I get slightly too obsessive when I'm working on a new piece. When I have to stop in the middle of a piece for any reason, getting back to said piece is all I can think about. It's becoming a bit of a problem. For instance, this is the new piece I just finished. It's my rendition of Dagny Taggart's opening scene in Ayn Rand's novel, Atlas Shrugged. It took me approximately 2 days to complete. However, during those two days I had to work, and clean, and do normal people errands: but as soon as I had a second to spare I was in my room bent over my computer working on it. Is this normal?

Just Take the First Step...

I've said it time and time again, but I find art to be a way to inspire. Through art we can inspire many people as well as ourselves. That being said I recently did a couple of pieces to inspire me. One piece is of Monty Python's "Spanish Inquisition" skit. In the movie Sliding Doors the Spanish Inquisition is used as a metaphor for life: You never know what's going to happen and sometimes things don't pan out as you had planned. That is the first thing I need to remind myself of. The second piece I did was to inspire me to take the first step towards great things. I always want to do things and go places and meet new people, but I don't because I'm often too scared. However, this piece is to remind me that the first step is always the hardest and once you've taken the first step it's not so scary, and furthermore if you don't take that first step you'll never be able to soar to new heights.

"I Heard There Was a Secret Chord..."

I attended and sang at a choir concert at my old high school tonight. I was very pleasantly surprised at how good it was! Even though it wasn't like watching a professional concert, or even a college-level concert, they were very good and entertaining for a high school. It was a whole night of show-tunes, and the new bell choir (one of the best parts of the concert) performed a medley from Beauty and the Beast as well as the Mario theme song (which was my personal favorite). The almost-finale song was a medley from Les Miserables. It moved me to tears. There was one line in particular that said "To love another person is to see the face of God" and it got me thinking. Even though the choir was good, it wasn't the best rendition of that song I've ever heard, but it still moved me. I think there are certain pieces of music that will have an emotional effect on a person, whether the performance is fantastic or not. I felt the same way listening to a recent performance of the song "Being Alive" from Company. That song makes me cry no matter who is performing it, merely because of the music and the words. Perhaps it is just as the song "Hallelujah" by Rufus Wainwright says, "I heard there was a secret chord that David played and it pleased the Lord." Perhaps there are certain chords that just strike a harmony within our souls. I don't know. Just something to think about.

Inspiring Dancers

Dancers are incredible. The ways they can manipulate their bodies to create beautiful images is inspiring. I just saw a night of new, original works presented by Ballet West tonight. I personally am not a dancer, I don't really know ballet terms, and I often have a hard time following the meaning of most dance pieces; however, none of this matters. When watching a dance piece, it doesn't matter if there is a plot that you are able to follow, or a specific meaning you can gain from it. All that matters is the beauty and the emotion that is expressed through the movement. Dance, to me, is one of the most beautiful and expressive art forms out there. There are emotions that can be expressed so much better through raw movement than could ever be expressed through words.