Music Monday - She & Him

Yes, I know it's Tuesday. But it just felt right to wait. Today's artist is She & Him, and their much-anticipated second album, Volume Two, was released today. See? It just made sense. She & Him is the collaboration of the utterly adorably Zooey Deschanel and the immensely talented M. Ward. I was already a fan of M. Ward's, so I was naturally drawn to Volume One. I was, however, a little skeptical about Zooey Deschanel. It was the whole artist-turned-musician thing. It very rarely works. Except for this time, when it is perfection. I, admittedly, haven't really listened to much of the new album. I am just that confident that it will be great. Here's a little taste to, hopefully, prove my point:

She & Him - In The Sun from Merge Records on Vimeo.

And, just for fun, some concert posters as well:

She & Him (Insound 20) - two color silkscreen

Sold Out - via The Small Stakes

She & Him Concert Poster

Also by The Small Stakes

It's sold out on their website, but it is available (for $75) at Poster Cabaret

Enjoy!

For the Birds

First of all, let me apologize for the very poor photographs that are included in this post, especially the last one. My days have been a little packed, with very little time for re-shoots. Secondly, I know that I talked a lot about this on the old blog, but I haven't really mentioned it here. My sister and brother-in-law are adopting a little girl from Ethiopia. (Sophia Mekdes. And she's pretty much perfect). This has been an incredibly long process, so the idea that they are leaving in mere days to meet her, and hold her, and then bring her home -- it's a little overwhelming and surreal. This adoption is the whole reason that I first started pursuing visual art. I started Project 8256 to help their family grow, and in return found my passion. We are in a season of abundance and immense gratitude, and we all feel that it was very much worth the wait.

So, understandably, I've been very excited about preparing for Sophia's arrival. And, while my personal taste leans more towards clean lines and my own wardrobe is about 1% pink, I keep finding myself saying things like, "Why wouldn't a tulle skirt be a good idea for a baby?" and "Pom-pom trim would be the perfect addition for those curtains" and "More pink!"..."More ruffles!"...you get the idea. The nursery has been such a fun collaboration -- grey walls, deer, white accents, birch trees...my favorite things. We decided that the trees needed birdhouses, so I've been locked away over the last few weekends creating what I originally thought would be such an easy project. It wasn't really, but that has much more to do with my apparent desire for extremely tedious projects. But, I'm please with the result, and I hope that Sophia will love them as well.











I promise to share pictures of the finished nursery...and of the little girl who gets to live there as well.

Music Monday - The Avett Brothers

My friend Zak and I share very similar tastes in music. We've lived in different cities for the last six years, but whenever we get together we always seem to share our latest music interests. So, when he was in town a couple of weeks ago and suggested I check out The Avett Brothers, I knew I could download two of their albums with confidence. He definitely didn't disappoint. As it says on their website, their style "defies pigeonholing but might be described as a rootsy amalgam of folk, country, bluegrass, rock and pop – even a jab of punk-style dynamics here and there." Their songs vary from gleefully upbeat to extraordinarily melancholy.

Zak recommends: "Die Die Die"
I recommend: "The Perfect Space" and "I and Love and You" (below)




Enjoy! Happy Monday!

Be Still My Heart

I've been looking for some new pieces for my kitchen and my work-in-progress guest room.  I keep finding myself drawn to these anatomy-inspired pieces -- particularly those involving the heart.  I'm not interested in all of the prints together -- I think it could feel a little creepy, and I'm not at all into themed rooms.  But, I think one or two could be nice.  Thoughts?

Clockwise from top right:
1. Anatomy of Love from Rifle Paper Co. (I could seriously purchase every item from this shop).
2. Andrew Bird Concert Poster from Poster Cabaret -- a fantastic resource for concert posters.
3. The Decemberists concert poster via Flora Fauna.
4. Gotta Have Heart Print from Ork Posters.

Poolga

I've had my iPhone for a little over two years now. And for it's entire life it has had the same polka-dot patterned wallpaper that came pre-loaded on the phone. Not terrible, but I've never loved it. And I've definitely grown tired of looking at it. So, I was particularly excited to come across Poolga today, via design is mine.



Poolga showcases wallpaper for the iPhone and iPad Touch created by a wide selection of designers and illustrators from around the world. There is such variety...and it's all FREE!

Lovely, right?  Now...just which one to choose...

Music Monday - Sufjan Stevens

Sufjan Stevens is one of my absolute favorites. His lyrics, his whispered vocals, his intricately layered arrangements...seriously amazing.   In a review of his latest album The BQE, Ryan Hamm from Relevant Magazine compared it to those of his "50 States" project, saying "This isn't one of Sufjan Stevens' painstakingly assembled, 'This is kind of about this state but really about God' albums with lots of clever wordplay and deep lyrics that take a while to unpack."  Yeah, that pretty much sums him up.  

This song is from my favorite of his albums, "Seven Swans".

Hope you have a great week!

xo,

Amy

Busy Weekend

Such a busy weekend.  Momentum went really well. There was such an amazing collection of work created by young and emerging artists. As excited as I was to be included in the exhibit, I have to say it was a really humbling experience as well. There is some incredible talent here in Oklahoma. I, of course, did not take any pictures. But, luckily other people did. Here are some girls looking at two of my pieces...

Photo by Rex Barrett

I had one other piece that was included in the exhibit. "Hide & Seek"...





So, between the show, an interview for the show, my sister's baby shower and working on a poster design for an upcoming event...Monday's just right around the corner. Hope you had a lovely weekend as well.

xo,
Amy

Art Wall Interview

Brittany from Art Wall recently asked me a few questions about my work. The answers are available here. Talking about my artwork, creative process, me, etc., is definitely not one of my favorite things. But it is a necessary part of the process.  Thanks, Brittany!



Also, if you are in the Oklahoma City area, you should definitely plan on attending Momentum this Friday and/or Saturday. All the details can be found here.



Momentum is a juried art exhibition featuring artists ages 30 and younger. Three of my pieces will be included in the show. There will be live music, performance art, interactive exhibits -- tons of fun. Also, the Momentum Market includes items created by participating artists priced at $30 or less. So, there should be something for everyone. Hope to see you there!

Music...um, Monday?

So, I had a perfect plan which involved sharing my new-found love of The Civil Wars with you. And, I planned to do this on Monday, so it could be the beautiful beginning of Music Monday. But, alas, it's Wednesday. Thankfully, though, this one is worth the wait. I think I've listed to this song about 230 times over the last few days...



You can download their album "Live at Eddie's Attic" for FREE on their myspace page by clicking here. The album begins with John Paul White greeting the audience with, "If you're not sad now, you're gonna be." Ha. Love it.