cruising

Hairhoppers, Q. Cassetti, 2012, pen and inkIts been heads down on this presentation I am working on. Delighted with the process and the solutions. I have a few more things and then it will be ready to be shown (I hope tomorrow). I did a little font shopping (something I havent done forever and forever. I forgot how fun that is—and found some fonts that jive with my illustration style and speaks to handmade a bit more than the corporate fonts that I use in the publication work I do. I have been taking these fonts out for a testdrive and am delighted. My heart leaps a bit. I find the fusion of my graphics and my illustration coming together with these projects which is really making my brain work. I know its all good as it is all coming way to easy.

Interestingly, I am finding that I am loving creating these happy brands…things more consumery,more upscale and I wonder how I can do more.

Another cool thing that I have been paying attention to is Pinterest. Pinterest is a visual social networking site that one can “pin” images to virtual boards (or files). One of my new friends used this site to create a clip sheet of what she likes/loves for a project we are working on. And just for that, I thought, wow…this is a cool tool I can take beyond the icing recipes and girlie girl cred that this site has. So, in that spirit, I have launched into pinning…and find that it has far, far more value than Tumblr for me. It is a teaching tool to teach myself, to be a place to reflect on what is hitting me -so I am getting a bit more coming back to me than other social sites. I have posted some illustrations and find a great place to keep my reference materials. I find the posting of new content is far more interesting than repinning/reposting others content. If you want to see what I am pinning, you can follow me here>>

Oh! I got some stickers back from the Sticker Guy. If you would like me to send you a set, send me or post your snail mail address and I will pop them in the mail to you with my compliments! Tattoos on the way.

Tattoo You

Tattoo You, Q. Cassetti, 2012, black and whiteNew tattoo. I am having two done…one of this lovely swallow (pretty big, 2”x2”) and a heart one that is about the size of a business card. Psyched. One more in the works, a bee… 1.5” x 1.5” that can be applied as a singleton or as a group. Next stop is a coaster or two to make sets, and maybe sell them. What with the raft of weddings and parties for all these wonderful women I know, coasters and tattoos will be nice adds to the offerings. Maybe a button too?

I have been cruising on a design/illustration time. I have been really hunkering down on a few projects and enjoying the focus and flow of the work. Plus, it is all for people who will like this work (or so I feel it in my bones). I have a bit more to do in the next few days…and then it will be a wrap.

Tonight is DJAQ’s Dance Jam. We are expecting around 60. Alex says the only offering should be water, however, thanks to Nick (a friend) we will need to have snacks—so I plan on getting to the store to buy out the chips and nibbles. Rob will be working on paperwork, so I will do the same with Farmers Market fun.

This blog is going to take on a few more links, tweaks and changes. Keep your eyes open.

Cheers.

Spring evening

Hairhopper, Q. Cassetti, 2012, pen and inkIt’s been a while. Sorry for my radio silence. But, I am back and ready to chat it up with all of my lovelies. Its after five and I am gazing at a lavender sky that is migrating to pink, gold and salmon. It feels like a lovely almost spring evening with the treat of the mild weather and and light after five. Its a quiet night here at Two Camp with Robbie doing the late night shift at the Museum and Prince Alex Cassetti, singing and dancing his way through “Once Upon a Mattress” as his momma’s little glittering star. I am back from a very invigorating Farmers Market Meeting…where we got into the small points—and got some real work done.

We are back from the trip to Landmark College and Hampshire. Landmark, to be quite blunt, was a disappointment. We all really wanted to have Landmark really rise to our expectations, but were all so saddened to discover that Landmark might be a bit like sending Alex to Siberia with no one as a friend, and no ability to be engaged as a musician and all round people person. We had an interview. Alex had an interview and then we were convinced to have another tour. Our charge to our amiable tourguide, to show us students…lots of students. We saw students…maybe 25 or 30 of them— none of them who were engaged, edgy or excited about anything. We were all trying to piece together a life for Alex with studies at Landmark, jazz studies at the Vermont Jazz Center (in Brattleboro) and a job off campus at the Putney Coop. Unfortunately, even with all this embellishment—we still couldnt see how it all could work to Alex’s benefit.

It would be education without friends, without passion. So, the next day, we focused on passion with help to make the passion ignite. Alex interviewed happily at Hampshire— thrilled at the custom tailored interview where he could gab on about music theory and the like with a lovely third year student. We took the afternoon to see Smith College’s art, music and drama department facilities (thrilling)—and spend time projecting out what that picture could be. What kind of help do they provide the students with learning differences. We hung out with Kitty and her Mod mates…and got some ground level insights into LD, into special help, into personal advocacy and got some interesting stories and great names of people to call, questions to ask. We are going to get moving on Kurtzweil 3000 so that Alex is familiar with this tool. We are going to maybe do a bridge program at Landmark to get him familiar with tools without having the semester committment. We will put his name in the hat for other schools. We are going to drive from the position of passion with skills being secondary…and lean on the things that make our boy happy and challenged. This is the richer slice…and richer rewards for him. Mildly put, its been quite a few days to get to this simple conclusion. All of us are feeling as if we were drawn through a keyhole backwards. Yikes.

Pursue passion. That is a reason to draw breath and live a full life, passion and engagement. We all can get something to pursue for money, a job, a life…but those moments at the dark, velvety late hour of the night when we wake should have a channel where passions can be stirred and anticipated versus focusing on the commonplace of checkbooks and taxes, musts and shoulds versus brilliance and beautiful. Life for Alex needs to unfold and challenge versus lockdown and to some degree, punish. We are all poised to make that chapter happen in the energetic, positive way he deserves. The path is not clear, but we are on it…and now we join together to see how it evolves.

noodles

Hairhopper,Q. Cassetti, 2012, pen and ink.I am sniffling and choking and coughing. Not pleasant in the least bit. Its nice that I can sit up here in my princess tower and drink cups of Gypsy cold care and hope that the phone is on the quiet side today. It was just that.

It must be “Get Free Design Services” Day somewhere. They are beating on my door this week and I am starting to say no. If I offer up the design/illustration, that is one thing…however if it comes artdirected and with a deadline…forget it. Lessons from my theatre project. I have to have happiness around this work in order for it to be worth it. 20 hrs on a free, art directed illustration is not how I want to spend my down time for a few weeks. 

Rob is back from the city today. Alex has another day of play practice. I have two roasting chickens in the oven for dinner and then for the bones tomorrow. We need to open the boneyard. We have eaten all the stock this week with our larger than usual lunch crowd (lots of construction happening with the kitchen and interior steps. electricians, painting and sawsalls). Yesterday I made a big ginger, garlic, carrot, potato and one turnip soup (with my stock). Every drop consumed. Today was celeriac, onion, potato, garlic soup (and my stock). Almost daily, an entire loaf of bread is consumed with sandwiches. So we are back to the big feed. Hello winter share from the CSA. We are going full bore into rooty soups.

Finished the delightful Hardboiled Wonderland book. Cannot recommend it enough. Just started the Hunger Games, recommended by a zillion people though the premise did not seem to be as good as the book is developing. Yay!

Theatre tonight

Hairhopper, Q. Cassetti, 2012, pen and inkIt feels like a teensy fever with a bad head cold. Not enjoying this in the least bit. I am wheezing and fluid. Yuck to the tenth degree. But nothing, not even the extreme desire to sleep will keep me from the freak show on television tonight, better than the Kardashians, better than any estrogen fueled bridal screamfest, better than towers of candycolored cupcakes or the lathered up spewing of the Fox News nuts—-will be  Newt Fest tonight on NBC. The cast of characters today, will be all hyped up and ready to get Newt and get Willard the Mitt—from their infidelities to their extreme wealth just promises to be a true 3 or four ring circus.

I am planning lots of hot tea for my throat, sharp non-photo blue pencils at my elbow and the needle point Optiflow (from Staples) to keep me amused. Alex will be doing the theatre thing…so I am solo for this activity…so drawing and pet cuddling will be in order for this political theater. I hope they play the music with the patriotic bells (only for the election related stuff and the Olympics do we get this treat).

Here is the Hairhopper body of work for now>> I am always kind of stunned when the incoming graduate students worry about their thesis so much as a body of work (only 6 images max) proves to be such a hurtle. I have been working on this grouping since January 8— and have another few weeks on it…before I either go to another thing, or start massaging these drawings by adding color/tone to see where they could go. Of the current group, there is at least 8 that could be culled out for a body of work that could be a thesis….Maybe I should be doing more writing around these bodies of work so as to truly process the thinking and where my head is as I do this. Right now, I am doing this as I am loving the line…and interestingly, hair is a universal too…so there are plenty of heads, hair, and fanasy around that which keeps it amusing.

I had a wonderful, energizing meeting with another pair of young farmers— learning quite a bit from them about local resources, their philosophy and raison d’etre and talk about what sets them apart. More on them soon. Lets just say, I am charged up.

two sweaters looking for three

Hairhopper, Q. Cassetti, 2012 pen and inkQuiet day yesterday. Hopefully the same at the office today. I cooked a bit yesterday and did a few more pictures to add to this group of hairhoppers. Its fun…and its going someplace, so I need to keep in this linear trance to see where the lines lead me. I made a  big pot of turkey stock and cooked some tofu to begin the process of beginning to understand how to cook and work with it. I made up a small batch of pizza dough. Its sitting in the fridge developing flavor.

We all are looking for some heat. Bit freezy here…so maybe a lap blanket on my shoulders to keep things a bit more cuddly wuddly for me.

Time for coffee.

Hairhoppers

Hairhopper four, Q. Cassetti, 2012, pen and ink.To Marina (excerpt)

by Kenneth Koch

Let’s take a walk
Into the world
Where if our shoes get white
With snow, is it snow, Marina,
Is it snow or light?
Let’s take a walk

Every detail is everything in its place (Aristotle). Literature is a cup 
And we are the malted. The time is a glass. A June bug comes
And a carpenter spits on a plane, the flowers ruffle ear rings.
I am so dumb-looking. And you are so beautiful.

from “To Marina” by Kenneth Koch, from The Collected Poems of Kenneth Koch. © Alfred A. Knopf, 2007. from the Writers Almanac (01.12.2012)

Isnt that lovely? I was stunned this morning listening and actually hearing the poem versus Garrison Keillor’s delivery and voice. I am thinking of snow, of course, with many schools in the “2 hr. delay” area of the state, kicking into full 2 hour delays. They are talking snow for us tonight, and tomorrow though for Rob’s sake and his travels, I hope it isnt too horrendous as he has many miles to go. I am ready for the white stuff.

I am ready to settle in with my pens and focus on my new body of work (yes, I have a direction for another 30 or so pix…), “Hairhopper”. Its about hair. Its about line. Its about hair becoming other stuff. Its about hair assuming other roles. Its about hair engaging in environments. its all about line, line and line. Its quick and inspired by the Madhubani work last year around this time. I am not limiting it to be just scans but I can monkey in photoshop/illustrator to work reverses into the mix (like the piece that got into Society of Illustrators LA) but to keep the work in general linear. Rob was very insightful in suggesting I work with this a bit more as this is a technique that is made for children’s books, their stories and it is quick enough that I could really have a run at that. I used to love linear books…black and white, maybe a single color (Lorraine Fox was the queen of that approach)— and settle in to lok at the detail of the images presented.  Maybe the fast pace of the little electronokids today is different…but when you are dealing in the imaginary, time is a different thing.

The holiday break student staffing is winding down. Gotta get a few things done with them tomorrow to make sure we use up the time. Tucker did something interesting. He decided he wanted to scare off the deer and did some research to do things that are nonevasive and are without a shotgun. What he discovered is if you put Milorganite on deer pathes, they will not come back as they hate the scent of the stuff. Milorganite is a fertilizer so its not going to hurt anything…and if it works, between this stuff and the little buzzers he discovered, we might be able to keep the deer on their side of the property and not in my hosta and peonies next summer. Wouldn’t that be a gift? They were staying away today. We will see tomorrow. If the winter team could lick the deer varmit problem…how remarkable that would be.

Need to go. Night is on us.

Advent Day Twenty Two, 2011

Advent Day Twenty Two, Q. Cassetti, 2011, pen and ink.Kitty is back with us to our happiness. She looks great, acts great and has her wits and act together. She has had the flu, so hopefully the time during her break will get her back to full steam ahead. She is all about costume design and vacillates between talking about the historical accuracy and that of sketchbooks and the work involved to make these dreams reality.

It is curious to me as this aspect of people working really really hard, and no one (meaning teachers) giving the student praise for the work is dumbfounding to Kitty. No one praises the student for doing the work—or not doing the work— Its the end result— right? When the character is on stage, in costume, performing…one doesnt think about the hours, the budget, the planning. One thinks of the reality of the moment, the aspect of time suspended—-the believablity of the story and character. That is true with what we do. It is not the hours of study, residencies and practice that we go to the doctor for, but his excellence, his knowledge base, his expertise, his assurance. When we get a carrot from a farmer, we do not think about the hours of planning, preparing, plowing, sowing and cleaning that goes into his job. We focus on the perfection, the tastiness of the carrot assuming (if we even think about it) that all of that effort and time went into the preparing and growing of this vegetable. I think this whole shock of the value of time and effort is a good part of Kitty’s second education, the one beyond the books, tests and projects. The reality part of her education which it seems she is getting a good dose of. Hard work is only recognized by those working hard…and not those who just see the end of the process. It is the journey that is the hard part…not the final goal. That is the shining part that the world remembers while we focus on the path, the work, the time—and the continual education and skill building along that route.

Speaking of skill building, I am feeling pretty smart as I did some technical problem-solving this morning and have the things that were driving me nuts yesterday solved and moving forward. As one faux techie to another, I do not know what I would do without the web and the amazing resources there to help us solve these maddening issues with bits and bytes, electricity and usb ports. If you just peck away you can really find your answer or ten out the in the wild cyberworld.

The day is racing away. I have grabbed some wonderful details from the Liber Floridus (per my last entry) just to share with you the wonder of this book.

 

Advent Day Twenty

Advent Day Twenty, Q. Cassetti, 2011, pen and inkKitty and Rob come home from New York City today. I had a nice chat with Kitty about her relief in gettting the semester done and the fever done. She has had a flubug. We are looking forward to her time here.

Alex, Elly and I had a little time yesterday evening with Alex playing music from his computer featuring an artist Boniver…and dancing in a very cute and funny way. We are nosing the applications along…with hopefully some closure in the next week. Wouldnt that be amazing?

Tucker is here trying to make a little money for the next semester. He is stacking wood, raking etc. with such happiness bringing lots of chit chat and a big appetite (so going to the store is going to be central to the holidays). Mandy just poked her head in…to say hi. She will be here tomorrow—so there will have to be a big, inexpensive lunch (like pancakes?).

I bought a bunch of synthetic, cheap round brushes this Sunday at AC Moore. I was beginning to do some fill work with ink (not the wonderful Pentel Pocket Brush Pen) and found that the watercolor, sable brushes I have were way too wiggly, too long, too fluid…and what I wanted was something a bit stiffer, bit shorter and in a few sizes to do the big stuff and try to do the pointy stuff too. So, I bought these brushes and discovered (at least with these “Majestic” Royal and Langnickel)  there is a range of play/ stiffness in acrylic brushes. And you know, I think I can work it out from here. I tried two of them out this morning to pretty good success with my most favorite, rich carbon inks, Dr Marten’s Black Star matte ink. However, this is not the most fluid…so I may try using Noodlers this evening just to see what the difference might be. Either way, ink on Moleskine watercolor paper is divine. Love how the ink just works with this lovely rich paper.

Another nice thing to muse over is this remarkable book I discovered, The Liber Floridus. What is the Liber Floridus? The site says: “The Liber Floridus (”Book of Flowers”) is an encyclopedia compiled in the early twelfth century by Lambert, canon of the Church of Our Lady in St Omer. The Ghent University Library possesses the autograph of this work, i.e. the actual copy scribed by the author himself. Illustrated autographs of twelfth-century encyclopedias are so rare that this manuscript is now protected by the Flemish Community’s Decree on the acquisition and protection of rare or exceptional movable patrimony.”

A medieval encylopedia! There are some great architecture pix that I plan on learning from, in addition to some insane lettering (above). I am taken with a few styling things…the way the line is handled…So  you probably will hear more about this Belgian book, The Liber Floridus.

Advent Day Seventeen

Advent Day Seventeen, Q. Cassetti, 2011, pen and inkFirst things first! SNOW!

Our Community Chorus did themselves proud regaling us with song, Christmas carols and solos—all beautiful and energized by the passionate singers who presented the concert. We all loved it. And dead center was our singing boy who loved being smack in the middle and surrounded by good singers who want to work as hard as he does to make music. He told me this morning that if he goes to Landmark, he intends on joining the Brattleboro community chorus to keep doing this with others. This is a gift to me…though it is not about me, but having my boy sing, be part of a community and be motivated to engage this way delights me to no end. And all of this not pushed or shoved by his parents, but all on his own. Terrific.

I am thrilled with having a portrait of the artist Erwin Eisch to create for the Corning Museum of Glass’ ongoing shows about the masters of studio glass. I had a first blush with him yesterday (about two hours in) with many more hours to build this thing. I used to work directly from a non-tweaked file…and I find that coming back to the original image and editing with my own eyes and hands is working so much better. The technique of pushing the reference prior to doing the editing takes too much out…and I would rather be the one to do it. I will post as I go on (and then I will show you the vectors to better explain the work). I forget how fun these things are. I should do a few of writers/people of note as Ithaca College used my Poe illustration to promote their summer studies program (I also designed the brochure) and I need more scrap for them to pick from….Reason enough, right?

More on illustration: I plan on a small body of work after Christmas derived from the amazing book Chime by Franny Billingsley. It is a tremendous book—and much of it matches with this pen and ink approach. There is a pair of twins, a wicked stepmother, a lion boy, and many otherworldly characters. And then, what next? Maybe illustrative logotypes for my young farmer friends. That sounds right.

I smell like celeriac. I just peeled a pile of them and am going to steam them and freeze them for a puree (with potato) for Christmas. I am stunned by this celery root as it has never entered my life until now…and its soft celery taste, not the full bore of celery stalks, can hide in all kinds of things…dimensionalizing the food). It makes a great add to soup and my guess stuffing (chopped fine and sauted). New CSA veggie to explore will be fennel. That is a bit more tough, but I am up to it.

Alex requested the seven fishes for Christmas (though the italians do it on Christmas eve). As I am not italian, it may be the three and a half fishes for Christmas with a broiled salmon (with a parsley herbal chop), a crabmeat casserole, something shrimp and a half of something else (half might mean appetizer). I am loving the CSA spinach…so some of that…and a salad. Who knows. I think a chocolate dessert and a lemon dessert. Need to get cracking.

Jacob is here! Must go and see what sort of things that are going on in the back room. I hope no trouble!

 

Advent Day Fifteen, 2011

Advent Day fifteen, Q. Cassetti, 2011, pen and ink.Holiday party. Done! It was a lovely event with Robbie telling lots of funny tales and kind people. It was a crazy dark drive with rain combined with an NPR story on the costs of college… enough to make me drive off the side of the road. Tonight is a concert at the school. Tomorrow is a community concert.

More projects keep coming. Just when I thought I had caught up, it continues. On and on…

I am often struck with how things happen. Either it is fate, or divinely orchestrated—but sometimes the alignment of events are just so neatly planned even before they happen that I often scratch my head and take a minute to think and wonder.

One door closes and another one opens. The great step onto another plane—is at once confounding, scary and wonderful. I am inspired by Steve Job’s last words of “Oh, wow!” or a friend who left us after battling AIDS, who sat up in his bed with his face radiant and brilliant welcoming the next chapter. The second birth.

It is this time of hope to welcome God as man…the advent of this time when God was born as a tiny baby that these passings of men seem more poignant, more poetic, more hopeful of the promise this tiny baby represents. Forget the manmade frivolity and focus on this amazing symbol of hope, of energy, of life, and of the renewal of all of these things. This is the gift we are presented with every day to own and embrace.

Advent Day Thirteen, 2011

Advent Day Thirteen, 2011, Q. Cassetti, 2011, pen and inkWriting lists as fast as I can. There is the “go to the postoffice” list. There is the “get at the grocery store” list. There is the “help Alex” list. There is the “plan for the 25th” list. There is the “people/ places/ timing” list. There is the “work” list. And as always, there is the “PAY” list. I used to keep these on little crummy pieces of paper, but now I keep a running tab of lists in a little bound book…so I can keep them current and not as little nasty things that are easily lost. I love my lists. They are my working memory on paper…and though there is slippage, it isn’t as bad as if I had to remember it all. Thank goodness. And, thank goodness for a big fat fuscia sharpie which strikes the done things off the list.

Alex and I are teaming up to get his applications done. Chipping away everyday for a little bit, and we are getting this finalized. I didn’t realize I needed to intervene, but I do. He is significantly happier and has been treading water, waiting for someone to throw him a life preserver. I think this is his way of coping…and we just haven’t seen it. Bad me. But, now that I am more sensitive to him, maybe he can feel we are in his corner for him. As a parent, this whole college process and the computer forms can be highly frustrating as they are not well thought out, intuitive or even clear. They are a close second to the tax form (at least for Alex). We will get this done, done, done before the 25th. Peace on earth, or at least on Camp Street, 2011.

It was great to go to Shur Save and have a chat with my deerhunting friend. I have a friend there that I gab with about deerhunting (bow and gun), fishing and his family. We have talked about his cancer. We have talked about his troublesome children. This friend, after a heart operation and being told he couldn’t hunt, would’t let that keep him down. He padded around his house in pyjamas and bathrobe….and saw out the kitchen window a lovely deer that represented sport and food. He just so happened to have a loaded gun right there. So, he opened up the back door and got his deer never leaving the kitchen. Picked up some milk and a hunk of something to go into the slow cooker for dinner tonight as I have the whole team here with no after school/ or work plans. Tomorrow is the Mrs. Cassetti holiday dinner (I have to be the missus and behave). Thursday is the HS chorus concert. Friday is the Community Chorus concert. Sunday is the Musicians Christmas Party (an amazing line up at Felicias)….so we are scheduled out.

Today begins a brand new sketchbook. I have gone from the normal big Moleskine to the big watercolor Moleskine to now the super jumbo deluxe watercolor Moleskine. Watercolor paper and ink really rock…just a bit toothy for fineness…but worth it for the blackness for me now. I know I will vascillate on the paper as I go…but today its big big black ink….that wins. I have birds and angels on my brain…inspired by the clutch of crows at the bottom of our lot this morning actively shelling kernels of pinecones and chowing down on those savory bits. These crows were not frightened nor deterred from their tasty treats. Patient and focused. Made me think about how these birds are associated with Bran in Norse Mythology and with St. Benedict in Catholic Mythology…whispering in his ear. Early cell phones, right?

Gotta go. Land line is ringing.