Friday, October 10, 2008

This cat agrees

Today I had my first peer crit at CCA with my Dialogues and Practices class-- which means that I nervously fussed around on my feet and chattered on and on and on. But it went well and I got some good feedback, mostly things that supported what I've already been processing. For example, that the trophy drawing, the maps and the combs are not so much I want to be doing right now, and that some of my other projects are much more interesting.
Alice and I geeked out about artmaking being an inherently fetishistic and exhibitionist preoccupation: artists produce objects because they're obsessed with ideas and the possibility that other people might be too. Kaif expressed concern that I'm wrongly appropriating other people's things-- I disagreed. I think there's a distinction between, with the photos for example, me drawing up fantasies about the lives behind them and me wondering/identifying/relating to them. I also think about objects in a very sacred way, which is why I make drawings of them instead of changing them directly. But I think the fact that I'm still feeling a little bit defensive means that I'm not totally sure-- so I'll have to think that one out for awhile.
Ericka liked the textile drawings and I like her textiles, so that was nice. Tonight, I went to the opening at Triple Base and was understimulated, so Maggie and Ericka and I went to St. Francis and I got overstimulated by a chocolate milkshake. Tomorrow is going to be an exciting day for me-- a field trip to Colma, the necropolis just south of the city with a population of 1,200 above ground and 1.5 million below. It's going to be a slap in the face to my fear of death, but could be a high-five with my understanding of magic and mortality.
I've been waiting and waiting for a perfect day to post this picture, but I doubted that it would happen, so here it is.

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