I got a polaroid camera for my birthday. I've been taking lots of photos (well, as many as I can afford, the pictures are almost $2 a piece..).
I've been very preoccupied lately with work on the World Poker Tour website and new software.
I've also started a few new websites for friends and personal projects:
- uboodu.com is a website for my drawing sessions group
- pokermoons.com is a poker website where I review poker sites and software trying to figure out what is good and what is crap
- kerenjames.com is a website that i'm building for my sister so that she can have a portfolio website for the keepsake albums that she makes
I'm working on a trifecta for the new office in Nahariyya. Here is the right-most panel. This is 1.2m tall by 1.05m wide. It should have been done weeks ago but real work got in the way.
The left-most panel is a group of arms reaching out to catch the bird. I'm not really sure what the theme is, but the image struck me as meaningful and vivid. Strangling freedom, flying higher than others, interference in peace here in israel.
I'm never really sure what the images mean when they come. But they come anyway.
So this afternoon was spent creating some example canvases for the new studio. My dad is showing me how it all goes together, as I have little or no experience with these very fundamental things. Everyone has to start somewhere.
I'm very fortunate to be an artist with a father who has fairly similar interests and a lot of knowledge.
Buying Canvas
Canvas comes in all sorts of thicknesses, qualities and types. The main ones you will come across are cotton, linen, hemp and jute. Here in the studio, we are using a medium grade linen which comes in a large ten meter roll, unprepared.
Canvas Setup
I won't get into the actual creation of frames as that is more carpentry and less interesting. Needless to say, the frame should be sturdy and as square (the corners at perfect right angles) as possible. Most art supply stores will sell frames in either standard sizes or to your required size. It's fairly cheap and worth the miniscule cost to let them make the frames, unless you have the equipment to make your own.
Cut a piece of canvas to the size of the frame and add a margin of 5cm. Set the frame face down on the canvas.
Make sure that you align the weave of the canvas to be square with the frame. This prevents shifting of the canvas when it naturally expands and contracts with temperature and moisture changes. The squarer it is, the more even the expansion and re-contraction.
Pull up one end of the canvas and pull it over the edge. Put in a tack (or staple, nail, whatever) in the center and do the same to the opposite side. Pull it taught, but not so strong as to warp the weave. Do the other two sides, also evenly and tightly. You should have tacks in the center of all four sides now.
Work your way around the canvas, from the centers to the corners. Always do one tack and then the opposite side. Leave no wrinkles or loose canvas. There are a myriad of techniques for folding corners. Find one that suits you (folded, cut, whatever).
Preparation of the Rabbit Glue
Place the glue into the water, in a small pan. Place that pan into water which is hot, but not boiling. Stir the glue until it is completely mixed with the water. It should be fairly liquid. Don't let the glue boil! That's bad!
When applying the glue, make sure to dip your brush into the solution lightly and use extremely thin coats. You want it to sit on the canvas and not in the canvas. Cover all surfaces, including the back. One coat is sufficient. Let dry completely -- around 30m to 1h.
Rabbit Glue putrefies in between two to four weeks. If you have it, use it quickly. Any grounds that are made with it will also have to be used quickly or thrown away.
Tomorrow: grounds, what they are and how to make them!
I opened up an account last night at Haozen Hashlishit -- literal translation from the hebrew: the third ear. Being one of those new-fangled internet users, I've been getting my content fairly regularly online for the last few years. I've come to realize just what it is worth, and it isn't much. A couple of hours of entertainment's monetary value should reflect it's *real value* and more often that, sadly, it does not.
Online downloading is fairly easy, fairly accessible and cheap (often free, depending on the sources). Apple has recently started to offer movies through it's iTunes interface. Once they have a way to connect the computer to the TV, they are going to clean up. But only if they keep the price reasonable! I think around $5 a movie is about the absolute ceiling that I'm willing to pay for a digital movie. I get nothing but the bits and a couple hours of fun. It's a fair price.
Back to the Ozen. The fantastic thing about this place is the just amazing selection that they have. When I say selection, I mean it. These guys have everything. It's one of those experiences in life where there are so many options that they cause inability to select and move forward.
Dana and I ended up renting The Secret of NIMH, a Don Bluth animated movie from the 80s. The quality of the animation is absolutely amazing. The characters are expressive and fun to watch. It also has that special coating of a movie that you remember watching as a young child -- a nostalgia and a longing. It really is very special. If you haven't seen it, see if you can't wrangle yourself up a copy.
The rain has come, winter is here.
Going to spend the afternoon with my dad preparing canvases. I'll take some photos and post them later.
Starting a new blog is something I've tried maybe half a dozen times. The only success I had was, strangely enough, when I had very limited access to email and I was traveling.
My reasoning for that is two-fold: I had lots of free time to actually go out and do things that were *worth writing about* and that i wasn't suckling from the teet that is this wondrous flower, the internet. It's a dangerous see-saw game that we play: too much access leads to dependence, too little leads to disconnection and a discontinuity.
Sigh, why is nothing ever simple? :)
I bought some new plants today and went fishing early this morning. Whee.
