Fall Trend Must Haves

It's almost that time of year, and now is the perfect time to start searching for the "non-picked over fall trends" here are a few things I am hoping to stumble across this year... especially the gold fish umbrella.

Accidental Art: The works of Maria Seoane

Here is a little peak at Maria Seoane's Artwork. Her show was amazing... she has such a fun personality and is such a great person to work with. At this time Maria is working on pieces of similar nature to those shown below however, she is very interested in doing commission work. If you are at all interested please do contact me.

The following is my review of Maria's Artwork it is NOT her artist statement although it is based off conversation I have had with her.

Maria Seoane’s work has an alluring style that is consistent throughout all of her pieces. Her soft color tones and smooth figures tend to illicit a sense of tranquility however, the narrative within each piece tells that of a different nature. 

         Maria’s ceramic sculptures gained the name “Accidental Art” because they were not preconceived images. Rather, they were born from trial and error much like we all are throughout our lives. This idea is similar to the process of making ceramics. A piece of clay is selected kneaded, beaten, added too and taken away from, fired and glazed until it is something beautiful.

         In each one of Maria’s pieces a stage of life is being addressed whether it is a beginning, ending, a moment of desperation or of peaceful relaxation. One can easily pin these moments from the expressions the figures carry on their faces and through their posture. These pieces are unique and a clever way of picturing life’s brutality along side it’s most precious moments. 

"Pleading and Bargaining"

"Spanish Stairs"

"Ernesto"

"Letting Go"

Well thats all for now so in the words of Maria's incredibly cute granddaughter Lila.... "happy art day"


MARIA IS WANTING TO DO COMMISSIONED ART WORK SO IF YOU HAVE AN IDEA OF SOMETHING YOU WOULD LIKE HER TO MAKE... send me an e-mail @ ashley.cook97@gmail.com

Tribute to an Old Friend: ARI

If you know me then you know Ari. I say that because Ari was my everything from 7th grade until sophomore year of college. Ari and I were a team! we didn't go to big fancy horse shows but the ones we did go to we cleaned up. Ari was what you refer to as a mutt he was a mix of three different types of horses...

PERCHERON

SWEDISH WARMBLOOD

THOROUGHBRED

So I just called him a warmblood to be fancy and to not hurt feelings...

Quirks

Pigeon Toed - It sounds funny, and it looked funny. When Ari would walk his feet would not travel one in front of the other they would fling out to the sides which looked ridiculous from the front but at horse shows some judges mistook it for a beautiful dressage like movement, when only seeing it from the side. (this proved to work in our advantage) 

Bottomless Pit - Ari could eat anything and everything in his path. Taking Ari on trail rides was always challenging because he would try to eat and walk at the same time... eating the tops of tall grass, branches that came up in-front of him, he even figured out that the other horses had our lunches in their saddle bags and figured out how to get his nose into the pack and eat them.

Stories of Ari

Under the carport and down the road
My mom is one tough lady and honestly I have always been really afraid of her. She likes everything clean, organized and perfect. Well, one day I was in Ari's stall brushing him and I had just propped the stall door shut but it wasn't latched. My dog Maddy (who had to always be with me) pushed the door open with her nose. I was brushing Ari's tail so when he jolted out the door I was so afraid that my mom would see the loose horse and be upset that I grabbed his tail and was drug all the way down the barn isle, and across the driveway... I finally let go and he ran under our car port and down our long drive way. My mom saw and ran to help me catch him, the only thing that would help was a bucket full of grain (Ari with his sweet tooth and all) and we finally got the halter over his head. IT WAS A MUST SEE PRETTY FUNNY especially with Ari's funny pigeon toed run.


Western Ari 
I have a twin brother Andy, who also loves horses, he always had a soft spot for Ari (everyone in my family did) one day he said he wanted to try to ride Ari Western. For those of you who don't know, a western saddle is a lot different then an english saddle because 1) it is MUCH heavier 2) it has a back cinch that tightens around the horses girth. I told Andy this was ok but to not tighten the back synch... I knew Ari wasn't used to it and that it would scare him (or at least he would use it as an excuse to throw a tantrum) Long story short Andy grinned at me and tightened the cinch... Ari didn't do anything but I could see every muscle in his body tighten up. Andy said "see I told you he is fine" and I laughed a little. Andy jumped on and gave Ari a kick (which I also told him to not do) Ari jumped as high in the air as he possible could and did a complete 360 Andy when flailing off the side of him... and that ended that no more western saddle, EVER.


"Amaxophobia" or the fear of vehicles (lol)
Ari was deathly afraid of tractors. I could not figure out why for the longest time. He had a fear of water and we worked through that, riding over and over again in mud puddles and ponds until he finally didn't think twice about it. The mystery of the tractor though I could not figure out. Until one day I caught my amazing (sarcastically of course) father driving the tractor up to his pasture with the bucket raised. Ari penned in a small paddock was coming unglued. I thought he was going to run through the fence... this all to explain our most exciting horse show, where Ari spotted the small facilities tractor and went ballistic in the small arena pack full of other horses and riders. Needless to say he never got over the fear of tractors poor guy.


The worlds sincerest hugger, biggest kisser, and bestest friend
I had to part with my friend when I was a sophomore in College... I was not able to give him the attention he needed while I was working, going to school and taking care of two other horses. I ended up returning him to his original owner who then retired him to a summer school for kids. (he needed this because without exercise he would EASILY get morbidly obese it was the percheron in him I think.


Ari Extras:

• Ari LOVED hugs he would always put his head right in my arms and lean into me
• Loved Dorito Chips any and all flavors
• He sounded like a girl horse when he whinnied
• He had BIG FEET and let me paint his hooves with twinkle toes (glitter paint) 
• Did not play well with other horses, but had a soft spot for foals 
• Hated Dogs (most likely due to my blue heeler puppy that attached herself to his tail, another long story)
• Never bit me EVER
• Endured the worst hair cut EVER
• Followed me without the lead rope
• Knew tricks like come, stay, and bow
• Endured long stories and countless hours of singing poor guy

I am not sure if Ari is still alive and I don't really want to know, I always said I didn't want to be there for that I knew it would kill me. All I know is that if I ever have a daughter and she asks me for a pony I will Say "absolutely not you can have a Swedish Warmblood, Percheron, Thoroughbred,... horse."

In Memory of my best buddy Ari

Girls Only!!!

I had a wake up call this last week... I went to an interview for an internship and of course I got dressed up. You know... high heels and a pretty blouse. I was shocked when I sat down and the interviewer grabbed my resume crossed off anything that insinuated receptionist and told me that any idiot could transfer a phone and type on a computer. She said "never wear heels here again and loose the nice outfit" oh and your hired. I was excited but shocked!


On the drive home I thought to myself, I really sort of set myself up for that one however, I am glad that she acted in this way it made me feel more valued that I was being given an important opportunity and not one that just any "idiot" as she so blatantly put it could do.


This reminds me of a few things first, coming up at the Seattle Art Museum beginning October 11, 2012 through January 13, 2013....

Women Artist from the centre Pompidou, Paris

I am so excited for this exhibition to see some of the most influential and great female artist of all time. Really I don't know much about each individual artist and I will take this opportunity to learn more. I find exhibitions like this so motivational.


Second, while I'm on the subject I just looked up the painting "Horse Fair" which is a personal favorite to see who it was done by and it was done by a female artist Rosa Bonheur.... (side tracked I know)

On the other hand...


My new addiction of the Series Downton Abbey reminds me to be careful what you wish for... I know that it is great that women can run around in jeans and a baseball hat and no one thinks twice and don't get me wrong "thats the way it should be!" but every time I watch this series I find myself wishing that it were still the norm to wear gorgeous dresses like these...

well here's to female empowerment... and remember to mark your calendar for October 11th to visit the Seattle Art Museum.

This is the blurb from the LA Times in regards to the bold all girl show:

"Beginning with early 20th century paintings by French artist Suzanne Valadon and ending with works by up-to-the-minute figures such as Japan's Mariko Mori, Switzerland's Pipilotti Rist and England's Rachel Whiteread, "elles" will offer an international array of paintings, sculptures, installations, drawings, photographs, prints, videos, furniture and architectural models.

Visitors who stroll through thematic and chronological sections spread across two floors of the museum will find a mixture of mainstream art, functional design and feminine attitude. Niki de Saint Phalle's towering sculpture of a monstrous bride will be there, along with a sleek aluminum cabinet by Janette Laverrier, a soft-edge abstract painting by Helen Frankenthaler and a Sanja Ivekovic video of a woman cutting holes in a black veil that covers her face."

Click here to see the rest >>> La Times

So what do you think? I think this is fantastic, but would love to hear your thoughts...

"what is art?"... Quality vs. Quantity

First and foremost these are just my thoughts some may not agree and thats ok but here is what I think about the question... What is art? 

Over the last few months I have faced the age old question time and time again..."what is art?" and I now have my answer.

"art is any form of self expression of high quality, consistency, and portrays a clear message (even if that message is to remain unclear) "

qual·i·ty

noun

Character with respect to fineness, or grade of excellence: food of poor quality; silks of fine quality. High grade; superiority; excellence: wood grain of quality.

con·sist·en·cy

noun  

Steadfast adherence to the same principles, course, form, etc. There is consistency in his pattern of behavior. Agreement, harmony, or compatibility, especially correspondence or uniformity among the parts of a complexthing: consistency of colors throughout the house.

To me art is any form of self expression... it is not mass produced (even though I thoroughly believe Mr. Warhol's work is art) to gain a profit ie. Chihuly and Kinkade, but rather an outlet for people to express themselves and be understood.

Quality plays a huge role in whether or not something can be called art. To me quality in the everyday sense means it is well built, well designed, and overall well executed. To me the only way to gain good quality in a piece of artwork is TIME and more time. This is how good artwork is weeded out of the crowd. It is plain as day the painting, sculpture, or whatever it may be that has time involved and even an attachment to the artist. Obviously a piece you have worked on for a day versus ten years will look completely different and this fortunately is very clear to any viewer.

I would like to take a moment to recognize art work that I feel deserves the title as such click on the artist name to view more of their information... there is:

Artist Billy Pappas  

Artist Tip Toland

Artist Julia Aristides

Well there you have it just my opinion...

What do you think the definition of art is... post your thoughts...

1 year since "I Do" ... and being married to my best friend

When I was engaged everyone kept telling me their horror stories of marriage, and warning me that it was difficult, telling me to make sure I was ready....

I guess this must not be something one experiences during the first year of marriage because I feel so incredibly blessed and overwhelmingly happy to be married to Paul Eric Miller.

Our first year of marriage has been a whirlwind of incredible changes and although every morning I leave Paul's side and head out into a world of chaos I am filled with an overwhelming sense of love, home, and compassion. I know that there is absolutely nothing that can bring me down because at the end of the day I will always get to return home to Paul. 

Paul and I have actually been together for 4 years and well, I'm assuming if your still reading your going to be interested in our past, so to share a little piece of my happiness with you here it is.

Paul and I went to high school together but we weren't high school sweethearts, in reality we were two band nerds who never spoke to each other until a homecoming game one year after I graduated and the year Paul graduated... yes, I married a younger man.

Our First Date

 Paul and I talked and he mentioned we should hang out eventually he "My Spaced Messaged" me asking if I would like to go to the Seattle Art Museums Roman Art Exhibit of course I said yes! so on March 21st 2008 we headed to Seattle. We had lunch at Lowells in Pikes Place Market, walked through the Olympic Sculpture Park, and checked out the Seattle Library for it's architecture of course. On the way home we had dinner at the Spaghetti Factory in Tacoma and I remember thinking what a great time I had and how sweet Paul was. We literally could talk for hours and it felt like only minutes had passed.

The Years in Between 

The first summer I spent with Paul was a blast we had fun doing absolutely nothing! Driving nowhere listening to the Ting Tings, talking for hours and hours on end, using every last drop of every second we could possibly spend together. Then winter came and what should have been the most exciting trip of my life... spending a month in Paris turned into a looming black cloud on the horizon. I didn't want to leave Paul and I know, I know it was just one month, but really he is just such a source of pure happiness in my life that the thought of leaving was just to sad. I got to France and could not for the life of me figure out how to use my phone card... this had me distraught I literally thought I would not be able to talk to Paul for a month. Then one morning the phone in my little hostel room rang and it was Paul! He figured it out for himself and called me every morning. One day he even sent me a song him and his friend had written whose girlfriend was also out of the country... This was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for me.

When I returned home from France my world was right again as soon as I saw Paul's big smile... 

When it comes to our relationship there is literally nothing I would ever keep from Paul in fact when ever anything bad happens in my life the first thing I do to possibly amend it is to go and tell Paul, and just like that everything is perfect again as if by him knowing and supporting me all my troubles are over.

I know I'm going on and on, but if you love someone then you know exactly my feeling and my amazement that there can be so much love and happiness found in one individual it just has to be shared...


I was talking to Paul the other night about college days and how I miss them and he reminded me of all the time he spent in the Ingram (The Art Building at PLU) He reminded me that I used him as a "dummy" for my human cast in sculpture class... he literally laid there on the sculpture table letting me mummify him in wet cast strips. Poor guy I've put him through a lot. 


ok, ok enough about the past...


I just have to say Paul is the one for me and until we have a family of our own he will continue to fill the pages of this blog as he is source of almost all the happiness in my life plus or minus a couple family members...

Dance me to the end of... May:

It's June and almost officially summertime, with that being said here are some of my favorite things from May... Wicked Wahine it's sold at the ABC store in Hawaii so it's not very expensive which is a plus. It smells like plumeria and the beach. love love love it.

This has saved my life! I love my keurig coffee machine but not the expensive k-cups. This way you do not use so much plastic, or waste your favorite ground coffee. 

If you don't know me, then you don't know my absolute hate for TV... it's so distracting and well every time I start watching the next thing I know I've lost an hour of my life.... that being said Paul and I have been watching Top Gear and I'm now addicted. They do the craziest things plus I love their british accents, but we won't tell Paul that.

Shellac nails are heaven... where I work I am not aloud to paint my nails but I got a little braver lately and these are my favorite colors so far... 

Oh and then discovering and loving Madeleine Peyroux I love her clear sultry voice, she will be coming to Seattle on August 29th to the Woodland Park Zoo of all places... and I think I shall be there. 

That sums up Mays favorites...