Details of Normality

I think my favorite part of Colorado is the weather. When I was a young child, I used to live in the South, where it’s too hot, and muddy almost all year round, but Colorado is much more interesting. There’s warm weather here as well, but there is also snow, rain, and unpredictable forecasts. I love that one day it can be warm and sunny and the next there could be a blizzard.  Growing up in Colorado, I’ve gotten to see the weather change and develop year to year, and it never ceases to keep me on my feet. And while I would like to live somewhere else some day, the variety in the weather always leaves me excited.

  Image Used in Final Project for Intro to Digital Design I feel that this semester has really forced me to think outside of the box more, and interact with art in a way I hadn’t before. I’ve always been pretty critical and opinionated about things, but this semester has opened me up to the idea that not only should I have opinions about something, but about what I would change about something to make it better. It’s easy to have an opinion without offering solutions, but now I’m in a place where I need to be able to recognize how I can improve my work and focus on growing as an artist. I want to be the best artist I can be too, I want to thrive and do better, and part of that is knowing not only what is good or bad about a piece, but what would make it even better, how to take it to the next level, in matters of taste and professionalism, and I’m excited to be learning and growing in that way.

I started this semester as a digital design major, but quickly switched to illustration once I realized that was an option. I’m sufficient at graphic design, but I feel illustration is where I really thrive, and is the trade I am most passionate about. Luckily I didn’t have to change my schedule either, as all the skills and classes I’ve taken this semester also will advance my illustration degree. I’ve been drawing since before I remember, and I’ve never really stopped, and I’m always working to improve and get better the more I do it. My favorite show ever is an animated cartoon called Steven Universe , and part of what I love is that all of it is illustrative work. It also includes LGBT themes, and themes of depression, abusive relationships, and self reflection, but the fact that it’s also an illustrative work also appeals to me so much. Art and illustration is my passion, and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to major in it.

In the last year or so I’ve learned more about teamwork than I ever have in my life. Being married means being part of a team, and like with all teams, you have to work together to be successful. For example, I don’t mind doing laundry, but I hate putting clothes away. So, how we do laundry at home is that I wash and dry the laundry and my wife is kind enough to put it all away. It takes a huge burden off myself, and distributes responsibility in a way that is satisfying to us both. In this way we successfully achieve our goals by operating as a team.  Sometimes, however, teamwork is difficult. For example, my wife and I both hate taking out the trash, and sometimes we’ll argue about who should have to do it. If we had a system where we work together to make sure the trash is taken out when needed, maybe we could avoid this conflict.  

                I had heard about Meow Wolf from a woman at Xfinity, which in its own is mysterious, given that most people at Xfinity aren’t in the mood to make chit chat. However, her description could never have prepared me for what I discovered. My brother and sister in-law were in town, and generously offered to take my wife and I, and I couldn’t have been more mesmerized. Each room was more magnificent than the next. To be frank, I’m not sure that I could accurately put the experience into words.  Art is my life, and to see a creation of art on this large of a scale, where there are endless details, and more to find each time is something I could never have imagined. Going to Meow Wolf truly is like entering another world, one that’s more interesting and visually engaging than any other work of art I’ve ever seen, because not only are you there to look, but being there and talking to the workers, and discovering the mysteries of Meow Wo...

Something I’ve learned about myself this semester is that I need to set realistic expectations for myself. Sometimes I really am passionate about an idea or concept for a project or assignment, and while it may be a cool idea if I had an unlimited amount of time, it isn’t always feasible when I have time constraints. I’ve also learned to hold myself accountable more, which I believe ties into setting realistic expectations. I hold myself to a standard that is sometimes unfair to myself, and so when I hold others to the same standard, well, I can hurt people’s feelings without meaning too. I’m in therapy again, finally, and I’m glad that I am because it helps me to remind myself that I, and no one else is perfect, and that mistakes are a part of life, and I don’t need to be so afraid of failure and making mistakes. Another thing I’ve taken away from this class is that it’s okay to fail, and to try again. It’s okay to take feedback and make changes to something. I’m learning to be more f...

  I am often fascinated by the domestication of animals. When you think about it, it is quite bizarre and equally incredible, that humans and animals have been able to bond over the course of tens of thousands of years, to the point that we just adopt and let them live inside our homes now. Cats became domesticated simply because they ate our vermin, and now we love and care for them without that expectation, and seemingly, they love and care for us as well. My cat Bootsy has been around about as long as I can remember. I was only seven years old when my mother adopted him. I had wanted a kitten for forever, and finally for my birthday that year she got me a kitten. I got to pick him out, and I selected him from the litter of gray fluff, because I noticed his cheeks were a lot poofier than the rest of his siblings. He was the only boy out of his litter. I knew he was special. Of course, that is, special to me. He's always been lazy, and gluttonous, and moody, but I still love him t...

     I smoke out on my porch a lot, which faces what is essentially a backyard and a frontyard because of the layout of my building. And, I find it easy to find things to observe, so it's a nice time for me to sit down and think. I'm sure the stuff I smoke helps, but also the environment that I am surrounded by really ignites a part of my mind that is creative. There is something about the act of taking time to just sit, and inhale, and look at the scenery before you that gets a train of thought chugging along.   My backyard here is beautiful. Unlike the place I was staying in the Springs. It's drier there, and more red, which isn't to my personal taste. But, here I feel that this is a taste of the inspiring outdoors that I'd like at a forever home. My wife and I have dreamed of living on the Oregon Coast, and I'm sure we will one day, but as we complete our life goals to make that happen, this place has been wonderful.   To give a sense of what it's like, ...

A few weeks ago my Fostering Creativity class went to the Emanuel Art Gallery on campus. Here, I found this piece by artist, Andre Ramos-Woodard. This piece stood out to me unlike any other that we viewed that day. I had been re-listening to another Kendrick album at the time. This time it was How to Pimp a Butterfly , which is all about the Black experience, and what it’s like to be a Black artist, so maybe it had something to do with that, maybe it had something to do with the fact that listening to that album made me think of my own experience as a Black femme artist. Maybe listening to that album and seeing this piece made me think of two themes that come from them both: Blackness and capitalism. One of the many evils of capitalism is that it incentivizes media that makes money, over media that is inclusive. I mean, I suppose that is the main evil of capitalism, that money overrides consciousness, but I digress. Disney made fun of and mocked Black people and Black culture for years...

  “A Nice Dream” Clip Studio Paint, 2021 “Creamsicle Haze” Procreate, 2022 At heart I believe I’m an artist, and the way I create art is through storytelling. So, I guess it makes sense that I want to create graphic novels. In some of the earliest memories I ever have I was drawing pictures and having my mom help me staple together storybooks I’d made. There truly is this instinctive, innate desire as a child to build and create things. It’s almost second nature. I’m lucky enough that I still have that desire, though a lot less time. This is what I wanted to talk about this week. I am a creative person, and part of being creative is realizing your crutches and not letting them get in the way of your work. My biggest issue I have is scheduling my time well. Between social obligations, homework, hobbies, and creative projects, it can be hard to make sure each area is getting the right amount of care. And unfortunately, when I am stressed out, personal creative projects are first to g...

  I didn't know what to expect from a class that's sole focus was on creativity, but I'm really glad I was able to take it. I've always liked to draw, and to write. My dream is to make graphic novels for a living. I have a lot of ideas for graphic novels, plot graphs, sketches--I still haven't finished anything--but I'm working to change that. This class made me start to think about how I can ensure those changes.  I never knew that to cure my creativity block I needed to stop looking for ideas until I took this class and thought about it. To clarify, I spent a lot of time working on my graphic novel ideas, searching for THE perfect idea for them, but now I know that's not how making art should work. Now that I am endowed with the knowledge to consider all options, scribble down all ideas first, even the bad ones, it has completely changed and expedited my own creative process. Now I know to not make a plan, until I have an excess of materials. Even if I don...

      Jonny McCoy, White Flag Stephen Smith, NOCD Creativity is the basis of life and art. As humans we are born parents, not just of the future children we may bear, but of the amazing things we create. Humanity has an intelligent desire to make things, a desire to create and invent media or objects that will help ourselves and other humans. There doesn't always have to be huge paycheck motivating us either. As humans we like to invent, and that is something specific to our species we fail to cherish. As mentioned in my last post, I struggle with mental health issues. Bipolar disorder, OCD, and PTSD. Now, while managing bipolar disorder isn't easy, I have been lucky enough to have the resources to help me learn how to support myself and handle the ups and downs of my mood. There's mood stabilizers, and anxiety pills for those restless manic nights, and for trauma, there is also adequate treatment. A ton of therapists specialize in trauma and PTSD, and given that at the t...

It’s so unfair to judge someone for not being at the same place you were during that stage of your life. People move differently. What’s right for you might not be right for me. I wish I’d known that sooner. I’d just graduated high school in May of 2019, and I had no clue of what I wanted to do with my life. I was an artist. I liked to act. I was a pretty good writer. I knew I wanted to do something creative, but my father had convinced me there was no point in pursuing anything artistic. When I was thirteen, he told me that if I decided to pursue art that I could, “Have fun with an easel under a bridge.” How ignorant. And how silly I was to believe him. Eighteen, fresh out of high school with a passion for art with no faith in my ability to do so professionally. I decided I’d look into being a psychiatrist. It paid decently. It wasn’t an art career, but hey, I’d been through the psychotherapy ringer for years and I figured the least I could do was give back to other adolescents strugg...