Stella

Stella Got Her Groove Back!

Random thoughts and the Beastie Boys tragedy

Hola! I just got home from a night in Waynesburg, PA. I met so many great people, and was treated with such wonderful hospitality. Fantastic people in that town! I also had fun hanging out with friends Nicole and Melissa (glad you're over the whole Jambo thing!). Nicole had a great one liner that I was going to post here...... if only I could remember it. She will have to add it as a comment now.

Other random thoughts before I go to bed this morning..... I was supposed to go see the Beastie Boys this summer. They have dates in cities that are so easy to get to: D.C., Atlantic City, New York, Chicago, Baltimore, etc. and I have a schedule conflict with every freaking date. I'm so bummed. Maybe I can catch up with them in the fall. Grrrr.

Another note- I watched a great movie this past week called El Cantante, which stars Marc Anthony as salsa legend Hector Lavoe. I need to get a copy of the soundtrack- the music is killer. If you like music of any genre, you'll love the film. And as a music film, I would call it a cross between LaBamba and the Doors. If that description doesn't make you want to see it- nothing will!!!

Ok kids- gotta run! I have a few cities in Ohio in the next few days and then I'm off to Maryland.

Ciao!

East Liberty, Public Art and a great little French Restaurant

Today I made a trip into East Liberty and had a very nice time. I haven't been there since winter and was very happy to see the continued development. I used to make regular trips to that neighborhood just to shop at WholeFoods. Now there are so many reasons to visit, that I had a difficult time choosing - there just wasn't enough time. For example, I went to a very cool little restaurant called Paris 66 for a late lunch. It's fantastic- an authentic French restaurant with a nice atmosphere and excellent food. As soon as you walk through the door you will notice that the staff all speaks French, and they are so warm and inviting. It was all very charming and reminded me so much of Paris. I will certainly be back, but next time for dinner.

After that I went to Trader Joe's and bought a bunch of things I really didn't need, but felt that I couldn't live without. If fine cheeses weren't among my purchases, I would have stopped at the bookstore and Starbucks as well..... next time.

While traveling today, I noticed a number of pieces by graffiti artists. I, like many artists went through a graffiti stage where I learned the style, emulated the type designs and incorporated it into canvases. I have seen some fantastic graffiti artists over the years, especially in New York City and the surrounding boroughs. Unfortunately, most of the graffiti I see here in Pittsburgh is nothing more than vandalism. Any clown with spray paint can make a mess.

That's not to say that there isn't any decent graffiti/mural work here. One that comes to mind is the underpass in Oakland at 5th Avenue. I don't know who did it, but it's a very nice composition, great use of color, nice imagery and it improves the environment. That's art.

The fools scribbling on walls, buildings and bridges need to just stop it- you're making an ugly mess. Look to the New York and L.A. scenes and learn from them. Practice on a canvas, on cardboard, on wood. Develop your skills and plan your designs. Consider stencils- look up Banksy online for inspiration. If you are going to take your art out into the community, at least present them with art, not vandalism. If you improve the environment, people will embrace it.

Here's another suggestion: make it legitimate. Make compositional sketches, make a final draft of your design. Present it to your community leaders or to the owner of the building you have your eye on. GET PERMISSION to create a public work of art. Then you will probably have your materials donated, you can work in the daylight and create the work of art you intended. Take it one step further- look up the good folks at the Sprout Fund and become a part of what they do- putting artists out in the community, creating public works of art. It's good for the community, good for the artist and good for art.

Good luck! Now get crackin!

Pittsburgh Restaurants

To continue the last post ..... here are my restaurant recommendations for Pittsburgh:

If visiting Station Square, Pittsburgh Rare is outstanding. Great view and excellent food. Tell Chef Craig I said hello.

Take the incline up to Mt. Washington, you have more than one excellent choice. My favorite in that neighborhood is Monterrey Bay. Chef Travis can do amazing things, and they have the best crab cakes in Pittsburgh.

Other favorites: South Hills has both Franco's and the Sesame Inn. In the South Side, a little place called the 1889. Great food. Demo, the owner is there almost daily. The Coq Au Vin is no longer on the menu, but you can still order it... and you should, it's incredible.

In Shadyside, I like Girasole and Enrico's.

There are so many great restaurants in Pittsburgh, these just happen to be my favorites.

Now I'm hungry...... Buon Appetito.

Fashion and Business tips

I'm back in town again. The Laurel Mountains were great. I was there for ninjutsu training with Shidoshi Fetterman followed by training with Brian-San. Good stuff.

Yesterday I took a long walk through the Strip District. What a great place to be - so many specialty shops. Next time you need a place to get lost, take a drive to the Strip. My only disappointment was when I found all the Italian stores were sold out of my favorite bottled coffee. Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, the disappointment continued into the evening- I went to Atria's for dinner. The food was excellent- outstanding. The service was horrible though. It was so bad, that after basically being ignored by the waitress, I even had to locate my own car, the valet was no where to be found. I did notice all the guys with khakis and penny loafers were getting pretty good service though. I guess I needed to be wearing a golf outfit to be taken seriously.

Here's my fashion tip for the day: Khakis don't look good on anyone. My business tip for the day: treat every customer equally.

I might go to the Carnegie Museum today... that's the beginning of a perfect day. Starbucks is a must.

Peace!

Time for a quick hello

I've been in Ohio for a few days for the Jamboree in the Hills. Craziness- pure craziness. The fans were awesome, the staff, the venue, the celebs... it was just a great few days. I also spent some time with broadway singer Somer Lee Graham. She is a rather amazing person- look her up, a great talent and drop dead gorgeous.

Tomorrow I head to the Laurel Mountains, so I may take another day off from the blog, but I will be back.

Thanks for the emails in regards to the Model post. I am responding to each.

Peace!

Fresh Faces

I hope everyone is having a nice summer. Mine has been fantastic- soo relaxing. Almost too relaxing. I'm not getting to the gym very often, (something I have to fix) and I am not producing the quantity of art that I hoped to accomplish. I know - quality is better than quantity, but I have to make a better effort to increase production in the coming weeks.

One thing though, I need more models for the works in progress. That's always a tough one. No matter what style of art, it's best to have a model. The model doesn't have to stand still for hours either, they could stay still for moments while the artist snaps a few photos in the needed poses. Acquiring models is difficult. I might see someone who would be perfect... how does one approach another and ask them to pose without sounding like a stalker, creeper, psycho, etc?? If you ask people you know, you risk weirding them out as well.

Aspiring model? Email me.

New Art Book!

A new book is on the shelves called "Stencil Nation: Community, Graffiti and Art". The book is a collection of artists from 28 countries, compiled by Russell Howze, published by Manic D Press. An experimental artwork I did a few years ago for a gallery in San Francisco is pictured.

Publishers Weekly wrote A " vibrant exploration of a sub-sub genre...., this volume crosses the globe for a swift tour of the world's best artists, making it a handsome and insightful introduction to the form".

It's exciting to be included and an honor to be in the group (especially after hearing that description!).

That's my news for today. I'm going to make it another late night. I have so much drawing to do for this new series and am just too anxious to wait. Talk to you all soon!

Bittersweet Harvest

4:30am.... I'm not ready to sleep yet, so I am surfing the internet. When I do that, I am usually looking at art, artists, galleries, etc. to see what's new, what everyone is doing and what is being exhibited..... I'm an art junkie, even when I'm not doing art! It's in my DNA.

So.... I stumbled across this great blog that covers the Pittsburgh art community in a very thorough manner. There was so much content that it was like reading an online magazine. I was quite surprised to find that a post was made last month on my art: http://bittersweetharvest.blogspot.com/2009/06/james-wodareks-vectors.html.

Go check it out! Add this blog to your favorites so you can make frequent visits to stay updated on the Pittsburgh art scene. Thanks again to the mysterious owner of this blog- identity unknown.

Happy 4th of July

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. 4th of July is always a nice holiday. It's a good feeling holiday. The kind that makes you feel warm and fuzzy! Plus-what beats grilled hot dogs?? Yes, I know there's gross stuff inside... but who can resist??? And then there's the fireworks. The fireworks display in Pittsburgh was fantastic. I usually could care less about fireworks. They bore me to death... unless it's the 4th of July. Then they are significant. Significant and meaningful. What an amazing story and what an amazing group of visionaries the Founding Fathers were.

Who is your favorite founding father? I know that's a nerdy question to ask, but I have always loved American history!! Thomas Jefferson was always a favorite of mine. Architect, inventor, philospher, archeologist, author of the Declaration of Independence, founder of the University of Virginia and so much more. Although, my pick for most bad ass founding father is George Washington.

Always in the front line of a battle, he was the driving force behind the most improbable victory in history. The man was fearless. In a letter to his brother, he described what it was like to be in the front line under attack in this way: "I heard the bullets whistle and, believe me, there is something charming to the sound of bullets." Need I say more? Looking for a good read this summer? Pick up any of the biographies based on Washington's life and then you will join me in saying George Washington is the most bad ass American in history.

Happy 4th to you!

Pseudo-Camping

I have been in the Laurel Mountains for the last few days. How relaxing. Now, I know what you're thinking- what was I doing in the mountains?? There's no way in the world I'm sleeping in a tent! If you know me, you know I'm a city boy. I stayed in a log cabin equipped with air conditioning, full bath, cable television and kitchen, so there was no camping involved. I didn't 'rough it'. I did build a fire, but there was a fire pit- so it was pretty easy!

It was a very peaceful couple days with nothing to do but relax, go hiking, eat and drink... but now I'm back. Lot's to do. I have two galleries waiting to see my next series of artworks, which means I have a lot to do. Maybe I will stay up all night doing artwork. I haven't done that in awhile.

It's rainy out, but I like the rain. Enjoy it. Ciao!