Tuesday, March 12, 2013

"Neither One Can I Spare"


I'm such a huge fan of Michelle Robinson's art. As soon as I was exposed to her work (through instagram) I immediately went to her website and purchased two pieces, the Fires are Burning print and the Helping Hand tee, which I love and wore on a trip to San Jose and was perfect with this ring. Her current exhibition"Neither One Can I Spare," a collection of original works of ink on archival paper,  explores the idea of the alter ego, the duality that exists in all of us. The simplicity and attention to detail is captivating. Check out her website here and follow her on instagram @Mister_Michelle for more. Below are a few of my favorite pieces. 




NEITHER ONE I CAN SPARE EXPLORES THE PERCEPTION OF THE “ALTER EGO”. WE ALL HAVE ONE…SOME ARE MORE DOMINANT OR SUBMISSIVE THAN OTHERS. BUT THIS OTHER SIDE EXISTS WITHIN US AND UNDENIABLY HELPS TO DEFINE WHO WE ARE AS A WHOLE. IN THIS SERIES I WANTED TO SHINE A POSITIVE LIGHT ONTO THE NEGATIVE NOTIONS THAT SOCIETY MAY HAVE OF THE ALTER EGO. INSTEAD OF SEEING THIS ALTERED “YOU” AS A DESTRUCTIVE ENTITY, I SEE IT AS A NURTURING AND CALMING INNER COMPANION, RELEASING US FROM THE CONSTRAINTS OF REALITY, PLAYING PRETEND TO HELP MAINTAIN THE SANITY THAT LIES THINLY BETWEEN THE TWO WORLDS. WE CAN IMAGINE OURSELVES IN THE WORLD OF OUR DREAMS AND REACH OUR GOALS WITH THE HELP OF THIS ALTER EGO. MOST OF THE TIME THE INTEREST OF THE PERSON AND HIS/ HER ALTER EGO ARE THE SAME. THIS THEN BECOMES A COMBINED EFFORT TO HELP US MOVE FORWARD AND BECOME STRONGER. WHEN THERE IS DOUBT OUR ALTER EGO CAN JUMP IN AND PROVIDE CONFIDENCE. AS FREE FLOWING AS THIS SWITCHING OF ROLES CAN BE, WE MUST STAY AWARE OF OUR TRUE SELF AND MAINTAIN BOUNDARIES, GIVING BREATH TO OUR OTHER SELF ONLY WHEN WE PERMIT IT. OUR ALTER EGO SHOULD BE AN AIDING NOT AN OBSTRUCTING COMPONENT TO OUR EVERYDAY LIFE. “I AM THE SUN…I AM THE MOON…EXISTING PEACEFULLY IN A SKY…WHICH THEY BOTH SHARE…TWO SIDES OF MY BEING, NEITHER ONE I CAN SPARE” – MICHELLE ROBINSON




Buy these original paintings HERE.




2013 Mood Board



My 2013 mood board. I made it a while ago so its about time I did a post on this. I tried to do a vision board, with specific goals of things I wanted to accomplish this year, but had a hard time completing it because...really what does GOD want me to accomplish this year? So I decided to make a mood board instead, which has more to do with how I want to feel versus what I want to do. Don't get me wrong, clear cut goals are super important though, but I had to get this out of the way first. Now I have a foundation to build my goals around. It's not always about accomplishing things. First and foremost, I want to be happy.

I do want to feel free this year, unbound by my insecurities, unintimidated by challenges. I want to be bold enough to be who The Creator intended me to be. "The righteous are bold as lions" states Proverbs 28:1, and I want to apply that to my daily life. I want to progress. I want to be surrounded by beauty and things that inspire me. I want happiness, contentment. I want to feel comfortable in my own skin. I want to be bold enough to change the things that are within my control. It's quite interesting actually,  most of what I am internally dissatisfied with are things that are in my power to change. I want to create. I want to be creative. I want to travel. I want new experiences. I want to inspire. I want to BE inspired. I want to change lives. I want to build relationships. I want to restore old ones. I want to give love. I've already received it, and I'm ready.



"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given unto you as well"
-Matthew 6:33

Friday, March 8, 2013

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

YUNA



It's kind of a funny story how I came across discovering musical talent Yuna. A couple months ago I saved the picture below off of tumblr and had been curious about who this person was, wondering if she had a blog of some sort, as the outfit she was wearing had my name written all over it. I needed to know who designed the scarf and bag and wanted a tutorial on the head wrap. I later found out the bag was Alexander Wang but couldn't find any other information about the outfit. A couple months later I came across Yuna's  stunning album cover advertised on the side of a bus and immediately recognized the face I had saved a couple months prior.  As I iTuned her music I was pleasanly surprised by the soulful, sweet melodies that floated out my computer stereo. I will definitley be on the lookout for a live show, hopefully she will be performing in Philly sometime in the near future. 
My favorite tracks are "Lullabies", "Remember My Name,"and "Live Your Life."
Take a listen here.