Art with Googly Eyes

I don’t know about you, but I’m a big fan of googly eyes. Working on my thesis project for grad school, which will be a lo-fi horror film and live performance titled Red Blob Massacre, I’m all about giving my Red Blob character googly eyes. There’s something about googly eyes that adds a bit of humor to any situation. Googly eyes have a DIY feel to them, you can buy them for cheap at any local JoAnn Fabrics or other art store, and they turn anything into a character. What more could you want?!

Here are several examples I discovered of the creative use of googly eyes:

Baby Googly Eyes

Googly Eye Breakfast

Googly Fashion

Googly Veggies

Googly Framed

Street Art Googly

Googly Googly Monster

Googly Face

Blue Monster Googly

Googly Eyes on a Rock

And I can’t make this blog post featuring googly eyes without including some of the work by my amazing husband, who is a painter and artist:

I have to say that googly eyes in his artwork are my favorite out of all of them. And that’s not just because he’s my husband!! To check out more of his work, visit his website(s): http://swidyoa.com/home.html, http://www.impressionphotography.com/swa/index.html and Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Biantu.

On another note, in the creation of this blog post I realized that my amazing blog post ideas are far from original. There are several googly eye posters out there!! For more interesting googly eye sightings, visit here: http://googlyeyewatch.blogspot.com/.

 

Image Links:

http://www.googlieyes.net/2010/11/my-first-post/ (GoogliEyes)

http://hilobrow.com/2010/09/02/merit-badge-2/ (Hilo Brow)

http://dollarstorecrafts.com/2011/10/fashion-diy-louboutin-googly-eye-slingbacks/ (Dollar Store Crafts)

http://www.thebandfrom.com/indoor-gardening-tips/2009/03/ (Indoor Gardening Tips)

http://artsandcraftss.com/tag/craft-googly-eyes/ (Art Sand Craftss)

http://ny.racked.com/archives/2011/03/30/mr_googly_eyes_replaces_lady_gaga_in_nolita.php (Mr. Googly Eyes Replaces Lady Gaga in Nolita)

http://www.wijom.com/Monster_Paintings.php (Wijom!)

http://www.art.uiowa.edu/gradimages/gradarchive.php?artist=Krueger,%20Adam%20C. (School of Art & Art History, University of Iowa)

http://www.makingthingsmove.com/2011/09/the-blue-monster/ (Making Things Move)

http://googlyeyewatch.blogspot.com/2008/05/nina-katchadourian-loves-googly-eyes.html ( Nina Katchadourian loves googly eyes )

When cooking seems more artistic than actually making artistic work.

Perhaps it’s the change of seasons. Or, perhaps it’s because I’m about to get my period. Or… perhaps it’s just that I’m tired of art this week. Either way, I’m much more inclined to throw a sheet of cookies in the oven, stir-fry up some black beans with onion and bell pepper and stuff them in a taco shell, and in general focus on food and cooking more than spending tedious time trying to figure out what the hell I’m trying to say with art. Because the fact is, I just want to eat. And I want to smell things cooking. And I want to see the finished product of those mouth-watering coconut cookies that offer instant gratification with a nice hot cup of chai and a lingering sweet taste in my mouth. Yum. Thank goodness for food when art-making feels laborious. Here are some good (and interesting) cooking instructional videos I found online, in case you want to do the same.

Great Depression Cooking with Clara: Baked Apples. YUM.

Cooking with Dog: Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Daifuku)

Cooking for Krishna: Vegetable Spring Rolls and Peanut Dipping Sauce

Mouth watering now. Must digest, and then cook again.

How to artfully make your dog look like an idiot.

I think I’m more excited about dressing my adorable chihuahua Jay Jay up for Halloween this year than I am for myself. There’s just something about dressing a dog up in a silly costume that is absolutely HILARIOUS. And the funny thing is, I never thought I’d be much of a dog dresser until I had a dog of my own.

Jay Jay in his favorite mohawk hoodie sweatshirt.

I grew up with chihuahuas. And I was exposed from an early age to the art of dog dressing. Chihuahua dressing, in particular. My Mom was so good at dressing up our miniature chihuahuas Edna and Lucy and taking photos of them that she won several awards at the County Fair for them. Here are a few of her best dressed dog pics:

Edna Mae as Santa Claus.

Lucy Potter.

Lucy sporting her trendy gray hoodie!

If I ever were to make an Etsy or online craft business of my own, it would be a dog clothing business. Because dog clothing: 1) takes less fabric than regular people clothing, which means it costs less to make; 2) offers lots of room for creativity in finding all the many ways you can make your dog and other people’s dogs look ridiculous; and 3) can be sold for high prices. People are suckers for anything ‘dog’. I mean, come on, look at all the puppy calendars. Look at the dog bags. Look at the dog car stickers. Look at the dog psychics and dog masseuses. Look at everything ‘dog’, and then tell me that a dog clothing business is not a marketable endeavor. PLUS, look at the PRICES for dog paraphernalia. You can charge twice as much for a dog jacket as you can for a human one. And do you know why? Because there are way more human jackets than there are dog jackets in the world. In other words, the market is still in need of creative dog clothing innovators.

Anyway, in my search for dog Halloween costume ideas, here are a few memorable dog costume examples that I’ve discovered on the internet in the process:

The Star Wars Costume.

The Big-Eared Sailor.

The Teddy Bear.

The Michael Jackson.

The Dinosaur.

The Darth Vader.

The Clown.

The Scuba Diver.

The Incredible Hulk.

The Dog in Drag.

The Captain Hook.

The Grandma.

The Chia Pet!

The…. Lady in Braids. (poor dog!)

Have to stop.. posting dog costumes. I could do this all day! Now, to seek the most original costume idea for Jay Jay… What are some of your favorite dog costumes? Please share!!

Image Links

http://impressionphotography.com/ (My amazing mother’s photography website!)

http://www.neatorama.com/2011/10/07/at-at-dog-costume/ (AT-AT Dog Costume)

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/life/darling-diy-dog-costumes-258668 (Darling DIY Dog Costumes)

http://boisegoodnews.wordpress.com/2009/10/21/good-pet-costume-contest/ (Good pet costume contest!)

http://extrememichaeljackson.wordpress.com/2011/05/31/dogs-dressed-as-michael-jackson/ (Dogs Dressed as Michael Jackson)

http://i-brain-zombies.blogspot.com/2011/09/doggie-dinos.html (doggie dinos!)

http://candysdailydandy.blogspot.com/2010/05/snoop-jingle-jing.html (Snoop Jingle Jing)

http://www.family-vacation-getaways-at-los-angeles-theme-parks.com/Halloween-Costume-Prize-Winners.html (Halloween Costume Prize Winners)

http://catronfashion.com/Dog_Costumes.htm (Dog Costumes)

http://wiresmash.com/funny/very-cute-halloween-dog-costumes/ (Very Cute Halloween Dog Costumes)

The Art of Sitting in an Art Gallery (and watching lo-fi horror films)

So I’m doing a workstudy job of sitting for four hours every Tuesday in an art gallery. This is the first time I’ve ever worked in an art gallery, and lemme tell ya- for the most part, it’s pretty damn quiet. In fact, as I’m writing this blog post now, I’m sitting in the gallery. I can see straight outside all the passerby with their paper coffee cups, earphones and college t-shirts. Some of them glance at the gallery, a few stop, and most walk right by. In the two hours that I’ve been here today, ONE person has stopped in for a VERY QUICK glance at a few paintings while trying to avoid eye contact with me before rushing out again. So, for the most part, I have lots of time to do my own work, like writing spontaneous blog posts and watching lo-fi horror films on youtube.

Here’s a preview of some of the films I’ve been devouring:

“The Stuff” (1985), directed by Larry Cohen

“Plan 9 From Outer Space” (1959), directed by Ed Wood

“Robot Monster” (1953), directed by Phil Tucker

“The Horror of Party Beach: (1960s), directed by Del Tenney

Seriously, I could go on and on, but I think I’ll stop there for now. Four hours is a decent amount of time to watch this stuff.

I’ve been on a crazy old-school horror film kick for the past few months. It’s funny, because for the most part I’ve never been much of a horror fan- I was the kid who had nightmares for months in 4th grade because of the birthday slumber party that screened Ghost. I’m also the type who squiggles uncomfortably at the slightest drop of blood, and who in general is fearful of imminent death that looms pretty much everywhere. Which is perhaps why my recent interest in lo-fi, DIY horror films is more appropriate; i.e. films that are obviously fake. Fake = not real = it probably won’t ever happen. Which is more comforting than, say, current-day films about real-life serial killers and how they managed to actually slaughter real people like you and me. Thanks, but not thanks. I’ll go for the fake puppet monsters and ice cream containers that explode…

Anyway, that’s what I’m doing today in the art gallery. And just in case you were worried about the future of art in the gallery, there have been a few more people who have wandered in since I started writing this blog post. Luckily, most of them have been more interested in the art than talking to me, leaving me to bathe in my own lo-fi horror watching glory.

When in Doubt, EXERCISE.

Since we’ve been on the topic of self-doubt and artistic struggle for the past couple of weeks, I thought I’d take this opportunity to introduce you to the crazy (and artistic) world of fitness.

When I feel like crap about myself and the work that I’m creating, I exercise.

In the act of focusing on the movement of my own body, I’m able to let go, at least for the moment, of whatever it is that’s dragging me down into the dumps.

Not surprisingly, it’s often when I’m on a run in the park with my dog or swimming laps at the gym that the most profound artistic ideas dawn on me.

Not only does exercise give your bothersome, negative thoughts a breather, but it also makes you feel good about yourself.

Exercise = Wellbeing = Totally Awesome Art.

Or, in the least, it offers you a chance to come back to whatever it is you’re working on with a fresh point of view, PLUS sport killer abs in the locker room.

***Want to check out some awesome, weird fitness videos? Check out my Manic Fitness blob: I’ve been collecting them! : http://manicfitness.blogspot.com/ ***

LINKS:

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-536/Jane-Fonda-Launching-World-Fitness-Day.html (Mind Body Green)

http://factoidz.com/american-womens-fashion-trends-and-times-by-decade-part-3-70s-80s-90s-and-now/ ( American Women’s Fashion Trends and Times by Decade, Part 3 – 70′s, 80′s, 90′s and Now)

http://dpifitness.wordpress.com/2011/03/08/inspirationa-or-fitness-expert/ (Divine Proportion Inc)

http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2009/05/seniors_enjoy_fitness_day_at_t.html (Seniors enjoy fitness day at Tanglewood)

http://sexymalebodybuilder.blogspot.com/ (Armon Adibi Top National Competitive Bodybuilder)

Home is where the hArt is.

Coming home after being away is marvelous. Besides the drag of having to unload all your stuff again, do the dishes, clean the laundry, scrub the house, take a very hot shower, wash your dog, reorganize the refrigerator, re-color your hair, remove the half-left-over nailpolish off your big toes, and feed water to your plants, coming home is wonderful. Here are a few highlights of my recent coming home experience:

1. Sleeping in my own bed.

2. Taking a shower in my own bathroom.

3. Dancing/posing sexily in front of the mirror.

4. Wasting time on the internet.

Photo sources:  http://miniature-pinscher.net/miniature-pinscher-sleeping-in-bed/ (Miniature Pinscher), http://www.superstock.com/stock-photos-images/1538R-49967 (Super Stock), http://www.ebaumsworld.com/user/comments/H0sten/ (eBaum’s World, http://www.onthisdeity.com/7th-april-1969-%E2%80%93-the-birth-of-the-internet/ (The Birth of the Internet)