Weight Rooms and Mosh Pits: Tales of a Punk Rock Jock
My punk friends thought it was weird that I played sports, and my jock friends couldn’t understand why I had such stupid haircuts.
Creativity
Each of us spins our webs of creativity in unique ways. In these posts, artists share insights into their creative process, tales of bringing new work into being, and approaches to the genesis of art.
Why I Love This Monthly Conceptual Art Class at the Art Students League of New York
For the first time in 150 years, art students don’t have to take their physical bodies to 57th Street in Manhattan — they can learn via Zoom.
Hello Internet: Meet the Creator Who Turned His Furry Friends into a Yuletide Hit
Hello Internet, My friend Hudson recently asked me to sing the lyrics to his new song Kitty Cat Christmas over some music. It’s not unusual he’d write a song about…
Hello Internet: Painting the Renewable Energy Renaissance
Hello Internet, Did you know the American South is a leader in renewable energy? This blows my mind. Besides haunted stuff and racism, what do you see when you look…
Hello Internet: Hang Out With Me on Zoom So You Can Be a Famous Artist
Hello Internet, I began preparing this column to invite you to my upcoming virtual artist hangout, but it morphed into exploring reminders of how to write an essay. Prosaic investigation….
Dear Submittable, My Sweetness
Submittable, you remind me of bones bleached against the gypsum sands of New Mexico, where time and wind mark the passing of the hours, days, weeks, months since I submitted my creative nonfiction personal essay to The Gettysburg Review.
Thanks, Self, for Taking Me to SUNY Purchase
How heavy I felt when one of my professors noted that I hadn’t applied anywhere else. Why had I only applied to SUNY Purchase? Didn’t I aspire to be an actor? And the truth is, no. I aspired to keep existing.
No More Excuses
Being an artist means putting yourself out there. The deeper and more real your expressions are, the more you set yourself up for criticism. Sometimes it’s tough to sift through which criticism to ignore, and which to pay attention to.
Background Art: ‘Penrose Substitution’ by Jared Tarbell
Our current background image is “Penrose Substitution” by Jared Tarbell. Tarbell is a generative artist who explores the life-like emergent qualities of generative systems.
Connecting Between Two Coasts with Iska Dhaaf
Nate and Ben of Iska Dhaaf chat with Sam Miller about their latest album: “I think writing about dark things is healthy. Our first album had themes about drone warfare and disconnection. The new EP is more about communication and wanting to be close to others, even though we often fall short.”
Knowing the World Through Art: Inspired by Iranian Illustrators
For the last few years, I kept checking for accessible foreign editions of some of these books. I reached out directly to Reza Dalvand, the illustrator of Ace, who put me in touch with his publisher in Iran.
Javier Romero Intends to Give a Damn
Strange Magic’s Javier Romero shares his solo project’s evolution, how his new album holds up to pandemic realities, and how he keeps track of hundreds of “mumble jams” to feed his songwriting.
Building a Wellness Business that’s More than Skin Deep
Ayanna D.N. Freeman explains how she went from having no idea her destiny was in skincare to launching and nurturing her own successful brand.
Reflecting Me: Movement for Mercy and Where Change Begins
Movement for Mercy is a live dance performance which honors the intersections of experiences and shared history throughout our community.
Background Art: ‘Lover Skulls’ by Jesse Littlebird
Our latest background image is a painting by artist, photographer and filmmaker Jesse Littlebird. Check out his visual art on Instagram.
Five Fantastic Songs With No Lyrics
Singing the words to our favorite song is a way to interact with the art we love, a way to feel like we are part of it… But some songs are so good that we love them even if they have no lyrics. Some songs are able to communicate a full range of human emotion without a single word. Here are five of those songs, and what makes them so iconic.