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inkskinned · 8 months

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the thing about art is that it was always supposed to be about us, about the human-ness of us, the impossible and beautiful reality that we (for centuries) have stood still, transfixed by music. that we can close our eyes and cry about the same book passage; the events of which aren't real and never happened. theatre in shakespeare's time was as real as it is now; we all laugh at the same cue (pursued by bear), separated hundreds of years apart.

three years ago my housemates were jamming outdoors, just messing around with their instruments, mostly just making noise. our neighbors - shy, cautious, a little sheepish - sat down and started playing. i don't really know how it happened; i was somehow in charge of dancing, barefoot and laughing - but i looked up, and our yard was full of people. kids stacked on the shoulders of parents. old couples holding hands. someone had brought sidewalk chalk; our front walk became a riot of color. someone ran in with a flute and played the most astounding solo i've ever heard in my life, upright and wiggling, skipping as she did so. she only paused because the violin player was kicking his heels up and she was laughing too hard to continue.

two weeks ago my friend and i met in the basement of her apartment complex so she could work out a piece of choreography. we have a language barrier - i'm not as good at ASL as i'd like to be (i'm still learning!) so we communicate mostly through the notes app and this strange secret language of dancers - we have the same movement vocabulary. the two of us cracking jokes at each other, giggling. there were kids in the basement too, who had been playing soccer until we took up the far corner of the room. one by one they made their slow way over like feral cats - they laid down, belly-flat against the floor, just watching. my friend and i were not in tutus - we were in slouchy shirts and leggings and socks. nothing fancy. but when i asked the kids would you like to dance too? they were immediately on their feet and spinning. i love when people dance with abandon, the wild and leggy fervor of childhood. i think it is gorgeous.

their adults showed up eventually, and a few of them said hey, let's not bother the nice ladies. but they weren't bothering us, they were just having fun - so. a few of the adults started dancing awkwardly along, and then most of the adults. someone brought down a better sound system. someone opened a watermelon and started handing out slices. it was 8 PM on a tuesday and nothing about that day was particularly special; we might as well party.

one time i hosted a free "paint along party" and about 20 adults worked quietly while i taught them how to paint nessie. one time i taught community dance classes and so many people showed up we had to move the whole thing outside. we used chairs and coatracks to balance. one time i showed up to a random band playing in a random location, and the whole thing got packed so quickly we had to open every door and window in the place.

i don't think i can tell you how much people want to be making art and engaging with art. they want to, desperately. so many people would be stunning artists, but they are lied to and told from a very young age that art only matters if it is planned, purposeful, beautiful. that if you have an idea, you need to be able to express it perfectly. this is not true. you don't get only 1 chance to communicate. you can spend a lifetime trying to display exactly 1 thing you can never quite language. you can just express the "!!??!!!"-ing-ness of being alive; that is something none of us really have a full grasp on creating. and even when we can't make what we want - god, it feels fucking good to try. and even just enjoying other artists - art inherently rewards the act of participating.

i wasn't raised wealthy. whenever i make a post about art, someone inevitably says something along the lines of well some of us aren't that lucky. i am not lucky; i am dedicated. i have a chronic condition, my hands are constantly in pain. i am not neurotypical, nor was i raised safe. i worked 5-7 jobs while some of these memories happened. i chose art because it mattered to me more than anything on this fucking planet - i would work 80 hours a week just so i could afford to write in 3 of them.

and i am still telling you - if you are called to make art, you are called to the part of you that is human. you do not have to be good at it. you do not have to have enormous amounts of privilege. you can just... give yourself permission. you can just say i'm going to make something now and then - go out and make it. raquel it won't be good though that is okay, i don't make good things every time either. besides. who decides what good even is?

you weren't called to make something because you wanted it to be good, you were called to make something because it is a basic instinct. you were taught to judge its worth and over-value perfection. you are doing something impossible. a god's ability: from nothing springs creation.

a few months ago i found a piece of sidewalk chalk and started drawing. within an hour i had somehow collected a small classroom of young children. their adults often brought their own chalk. i looked up and about fifteen families had joined me from around the block. we drew scrangly unicorns and messed up flowers and one girl asked me to draw charizard. i am not good at drawing. i basically drew an orb with wings. you would have thought i drew her the mona lisa. she dragged her mother over and pointed and said look! look what she drew for me and, in the moment, i admit i flinched (sorry, i don't -). but the mother just grinned at me. he's beautiful. and then she sat down and started drawing.

someone took a picture of it. it was in the local newspaper. the summary underneath said joyful and spontaneous artwork from local artists springs up in public gallery. in the picture, a little girl covered in chalk dust has her head thrown back, delighted. laughing.

#writeblr #warm up #this is longer than i wanted i really considered removing that part about myself and what i went thru #but i think it really fucking bothers me that EVERY time i talk about being an artist #ppl assume i just like. had the skill and ability to drop everything and pay for grad school.#like sir i grew up poor. my house wasn't a safe space. i gave up a FREE RIDE TO LAW SCHOOL. for THIS. bc i chose it.#was it fucking hard? was i choosing the hard thing?? yes.#but we need to stop seeing artists as lazy layabouts that can ''afford'' to just ''sit around and create''#when MANY - if not MOST - of us are NOT like that. we have to work our fucking ASSES off. hard work. long and hard work #part of valuing artists is recognizing the amount we sacrifice to make our art. bc it doesn't just #like HAPPEN to us. also btw it rarely has anything to do with true talent.#speaking as someone with a chronic condition i hate when ppl are like u have it easy. like actively as i'm writing this my hands r #ACTIVELY hurting me. i haven't been posting bc my left hand was curled in a claw for the last week #this isn't fucking luck. after a certain point it's not even TALENT. it's dedication & sacrifice.#''u get to flounce around and do nothing with ur life'' is a narrative that is a direct result of capitalism #imagine if we said that about literally any other profession.#''oh so u give up 10 yrs of ur life to be a doctor? u sacrifice having a social life and u get SUPER in debt?#u need to work countless hours and it will often be thankless? well i wish i was that lucky''#we should be applying that logic to landlords ONLY #''oh ur mom and dad gave u the money to buy a house? and all u did was paint it white and rent it? huh.''

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cherrytraveller · 1 year

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can’t have SHIT in this family

Twitter || Ko-fi || Instagram

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bensolo-s · 1 year

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Viserys’ children (minus Daeron)

#my art #sierra’s art #house targaryen #house of the dragon #hotd #rhaenyra targaryen #aegon targaryen #aegon ii #aemond targaryen #helaena targaryen #digital painting #procreate #game of thrones #don’t repost #please #I worked so hard on these

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dapperenby13 · 6 months

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Losing My Religion

Other version

#I’ve been going back and forth in if it looks finished or not so I decided to just go ahead and post it #tw religious themes #my art #fanart #toh #the owl house #Toh season 2 #hunter toh #the golden guard #hunter whittebane #for now at least #toh belos #emporer belos #digital art #digital painting #artists on tumblr #owl house knife fight #just a reference in there #i worked so hard on this

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charliecharmeleon · 1 month

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ive been very inactive here (and everywhere) lately and one of the (many) reasons why is bc i was busy making this little calico critter house/kitchen for my friend katie's birthday! it took many weeks and a lot of work and i learned a lot of new things in the process lol but im pretty pleased w how it turned out!

i bought some things secondhand (the bunnies (obviously), the bigger furniture (fridge, sink, oven, table+chairs, big shelf), and the food/drinks/kitchenware), but a lot of it is made by hand! a number of things here are made of modeling clay which is something ive been working with more and more and i think im starting to get the hang of

some detail shots:

and also this foil dispenser and this oven mitt i made!

and here is the cake i made for her too ft her dog! ive been a busy little bee

#making things that are small is SO hard lmfao. every time i work w clay i try to go smaller and it is always harder #but like! im proud of that little ducky! even if its lopsided! and i made that trash can too including the trash inside it!#i made those hooks on the walls! i made that tablecloth and those curtains! i painted that ivy!#i made this whole stupid house out of a box of dog food! in the corner of my room on a tiny little prop-up tray table! wow!#idk it feels nice to make something and not entirely hate it and also the person you made it for liked it too #also the one bunny does not have clothes bc im still waiting for them to arrive in the mail LOL. Shipping Delays.#also once again i am wishing my art tag was not 'doodles' bc like. not a doodle but w/e i guess #doodles

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i-am-the-balancing-point · 1 month

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you are not gonna be able to guess what lucky circumstances I managed to accidentally get myself into this time lmao I secured myself a spot at a nude drawing class without even knowing it was a nude drawing class. it’s absolutely fantastic tho! the class is usually super popular and spots are hard to get so I was really lucky

#I’m just gonna pop by every few weeks spam reblog a bunch of posts and then yell about my personal life #without responding to any messages or anything else #and that’s gonna be my blog for a while ig #sorry!#but yeah it was rly funny when we entered the room and my friend and I set up our supplies and just chit chatted with them #and some other students #and I suddenly was like #wait so this is completely a nude drawing class?#and everyone was like #classic Gigi move #in my defence:#I assumed it was a general drawing class #cause the course description had mentioned it being a basic class #'from nude drawings based on models to portraits’#so I was aware it would be a part of it but not the entire class #so yeah #I’m facing my demons this semester #in a really mild way #cuz I actually do not enjoy drawing and painting that much #it’s why I rly struggled in all of my drawing classes #so when I picked classes for this semester I was like well #the description explicitly said everyone even absolute beginners were welcome #and it was about personal skill development rather than already having skills and being graded on them #which is why I thought hm I should do this and stick to it #if I stick to it I will definitely build my skills and if I don’t do that at uni I certainly wont do that at home #sorry for thw long ramblings #I am trying to be healthy and also responsible this semester and stick to actually going to classes #and not chickening out in them and staying home because I have weird compulsive thoughts that keep me from leaving the house ✨#and I also want to be diligent and hard working this semester #gigi babbles

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areyoudoingthis · 6 months

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what's that post about how maybe things won't be okay but you have people who love you and you'll get through it. that's how i feel right now

#just texted my friend that macri and milei have the same number of syllables so all our old march songs should work just fine #i have so many good memories of those four years even tho they were hard af #most of them involve being in the streets with thousands of people singing at the top of my lungs #or in someone's house planning our next intervention or painting signs #i took some time off to recover from the pandemic and process my transition #but it's time to go back #this is how we'll make it through #alex txt

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spectrology · 3 months

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mnaybe i should have become a mechanic

#i love building and fixing shit w my hands #fixing my stand mixer so so so fun #and it was so easy...#and all the work on my house is so fun......#plumbing & electrical work is fun as fuck #i dont rly enjoy cosmetic work like painting #and decorating is. hard for me #but daaaamn #maybe i will try 2 fix my cars heating myself ?

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e77y · 2 months

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Procrastinating so hard even though this is a fun topic about my embarrassing old interest... It's literally an excuse to infodump WHY am I procrastinating 😭

#🤓posting #I need to seriously start though bc this is due tomorrow and I have to make a physical zine (for the first time ever)#because I decided to commit to that for some reason 😭#procrstinated so hard that I painted THREE layers of nail polish (I am usually very lazy with it. so)#and waited for it to dry all the way and everything LMAO #sorry for all the school posting lately I have had a very stressful week lolol #I will be done with projects after Monday and then on spring break the next week so yay #and my transient school is on spring break rn #but I'm moving soon (not out of town yet; my mom is moving houses down the street actually haha) so I'll be busy with that #also why do I keep getting ed tumblr (idk if it has a specific community name or whatever) tags recommended when I type in tags 😭#every time I start a tag with 'I want' or 'I need' I get these tags recommended..... I don't want to have to block all of them UGH #I actually don't think I have any filtered tags rn #anyway sorry for the ramble I'm gonna go work.... not now but soon lol. byeeee

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fitzrove · 8 months

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Ahdhgjjf I do like this youtuber I'm vagueposting about so nobody Go For Him but...

it's kinda funny that he said that Tolkien "based [his elves, in part] on ancient Finnish culture"... and the youtuber showed this painting from 1893 as an illustration to accompany the statement (you know, here is some "Ancient Finnish Culture"):

like bestie that is just what my and so many other ppl's great great grandparents were doing in the 1890s. The painting itself is based on events and people that the artist witnessed in the summer of 1893 and is a commentary on the famine of 1892-1893. The guy painted it in open air while witnessing it happen lmao. It's not exactly ancient - Tolkien himself was born the year before it was painted ahhdhd

#also for context: they're working hard agriculturally - its not that the house burned down or smth ahahdhfh #it's a local type of farming that used to be common in savonia #history #so interesting to think actually that at the same time in europe we had imperial luxury (russia & england & austria etc) and then this #but yeah my great-great-grandfather was born in 1875 which would make him 18 at the time of this painting #he was from the other side of the country tho #edited to add: omg while in the course of looking him up in Family Notes i realised that ppl (even men) on that side of the family have #tended to live to be well over 80 ever since the 18th century #fingers crossed

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francesderwent · 1 year

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we’re coming up on that cursedly difficult time, February and Valentines Day, and I am here to tell you that if you need to visit my inbox and absolutely lose your shit in an uncool, ungraceful way about how miserable it is to be lonely, I’m here for you. I’m appointing myself the Patron Mutual of Singleness. whatever your gripe is, I am happy to respond “I know, right?? it sucks” because I do know and it does suck. I have an endless supply of virtual discount valentines candy and it’s got your name on it, babes

#it’s not even valentines day as such that’s usually hard because that’s Funny Puns On MS Paint Valentine’s Day #it’s just…the dead of winter. you come home from work and there’s no one to make you a cup of tea while you read a book under a blanket.#it’s below freezing out and you’re sleeping alone.#you don’t want to do things outside the house because it’s icy but you don’t have a sexy roommate who loves you.#it’s Lent and there’s no one to keep you honest about your sacrifices and devotions.#it’s bad!! it’s a bad time!!!!!!#in which cate tells stories

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new-bird-song · 3 months

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One thing ive been thinking about lately is that like

Its okay to only ever make bad art. Its okay to only paint "boring" things or only draw the same thing a million times or only be "okay" at sewing or crochet. Sometimes i think theres this idea that its okay to make bad art because its part of the process of making good art, but i think its fine to make art that is bad or just okay and not keep looking at it thinking about ways it is flawed or ways to make it better. If you want to improve and grow, thats great and you will through the process of just doing something over and over or looking for advice or other ways of learning.

But its also totally okay to only ever want to make bad art

#art #delete later #idk ive been thinking a lot about how like #for the last few years the vast majority of my art has been drawing d&d characters largely by tracing over refs #and just drawing the same things over and over #because it makes me happy!#and sometimes i just see this come off as like. a way to moralize taste/lack of satisfaction with how your work turned out #because that peice doesnt matter its just one step on the way to making better ones #but if you only ever make lumpy pottery thats fine! you made a lumpy pottery!#like my great aunts house is covered in paintings shes made #and theyre not to my taste they feel kinda generic and bland to me #but she is showing more of her art in her house than i am in mine and im like. which of us is happier as an artist #value your art where it is #especially if its a fucking hobby! jesus christ!#if its a hobby do you want to spend so much time and energy hating it you dont enjoy it anymore? fuck!#like i just finished a sweater and now a part of me wants to break fom knitting/crochet for a bit bc ive been working hard at it for a whil #and it turned out fine but with some fit issues i know to fix in future projects #but idk #i need to allow myself the freedom to let bad art be completed art #anyway this got weirdly sentimental #i should go paint some weird fish now #also from my own experience. it helps me appreciate other artists more #because it helps me stop going oh i could do that/could never do that #and i can just go. wow look at the cool art and technical skill on display

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shortfeather · 19 days

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draft of chapter DONE and it's a regular length one of just under 2k... if i can get it out this week i'll genuinely be so happy

#remember when i thought i was busy with woodworking? lol. lmao even #about the author #DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO KEEP A FARMHOUSE CLEAN WHEN YOU ARE ALSO CLEANING THE FARM ITSELF. AND ALSO PAINTING THE HOUSE.#genuinely that's my entire job these days and it's been keeping me too busy to write XD #and/or too tired. so much arm work and i have bad shoulders #BUT HESPERIDES CONTINUES ALWAYS

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glassphinix · 2 years

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[ID: the “touching grass is not enough” meme of text over a flowery field that has been edited to read “touching grass is not enough, i need an update about the edge of sleep tv series.” end ID]

#the edge of sleep #teos #literally ive only listened to the first three episodes bc i struggle to find an excuse to listen to an audio drama #i dont really listen to podcasts. i turned on distractible while i was cleaning my aunts house cause it was good to have as background noise #but teos is a work of fiction it's a thriller/mystery/horror story that i want to give my undivided attention #and thats hard to do because my brain Refuses to stay on track if listening is all i'm doing #when i was into bmc i had to be reading the script while i listened to the audio bootleg or i wouldnt fucken stay concentrated #i only listened to it initially during a shift w a disability support worker bc we were driving and we had fuckall else to do #but 1. i dont always have the same worker and it feels rude to keep listening to a story halfway through with no context for them #and 2. from my understanding shit gets decidedly fucked up from ep 4 onward so its probably super not appropriate to listen to #in somebody elses fucking car #but i wanna finish it SO BAD i wanna be able to pour through the teos tag and talk about it with other people without getting spoiled #ive gotten spoiled on a Lotta shit just from reading the tvtropes page #auauufah im so torn between figuring out how to listen to it as a podcast or waiting for more info on the tv show #fellow autistic people do you ever do that thing where ur special interest is always some form of media but its prone to changing #so like every few months youre defined by a new fucking show or game or film or whatever #but Every So Often when ur between big interests u have a very short-lived (hours/days/week or two) but INTENSE obsession w something niche #yeah its like that #my brain is that little ms paint creature thing on all fours with pointy teeth and red eyes biting something in its mouth savagely #and the something is teos #internal monologue

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how-the-feathers-have-fallen · 10 months

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I’m covered in paint varnish for head to toe, sweaty as fuck, slightly dehydrated and just ate mozzarella and tomatoes drizzled with olive oil whole, straight from the fridge; but on the whole I move to replace “go out side and touch grass” with “go outside and do some form of taxing physical labour until your brain shuts the fuck up, your worried don’t seem so big anymore and what ever problems are on your mind fade away till you can finally collapse and rest”

#icarus' random screaming #icarus’ burning life stories #just spend a good hour and a half outside lifting and painting wooden planks plus a bunch of support beams for a garage we’re getting down #at first I was scared my brain was gonna wander off somewhere I really didn’t want it to go (Ty college the future) so I stuck in earphones #but they died and I just threw myself into work and it was the same as house maintenance but #but better. I can let my body go on auto pilot just enough that I don’t think too hard but work enough my #brain doesn’t fall on its own sword

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crowcryptid · 1 year

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I miss going to the gym it removed my horrors debuff for about 2 hours

Not fair. I miss it.

AAAGHH

#and yeah I tried going after work. too crowded. weekends were ok but I couldn’t justify the cost to only go 2 times a week #I can’t go because uhh fuckifn uhhh 6 AM to 6 PM is deleted everyday #I HATE THIS SCHEDULE. SUCKS!!! 12 hours a day!!! GONE!!!!!!#I used to go before work but now that I have to take public transport I have to leave the house so early #I do what I can at home but it’s not the same :/#also I have people below me so I can’t do anything that makes noise :)#plesss 2 hours of no horrors no thoughts no void no static plss ahah pslss #if only my idiot brain was normal and didn’t react to socializing with every negative emotion all at once #‘talk to people it will make you feel better.’ factually incorrect it makes me want to start peeling the paint off the wall with my teeth #lifting a piece of metal 30 times does make me feel better tho thansk #trying really really hard to not peel the paint and not peel people either #work has me in the evil spiral again sorry

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