Beginning to march.












headed toward Pike Place Market...











back up Pike (after a sit-in in the middle of 1st and Pike)...

Some more photos from Occupy Seattle - Occupy World, 10.15.11

As I was walking down to the protest site yesterday I stopped to watch a few people attach the sign to the I-5 overpass.





Some moments from before the march.





















there was a sign making station...with cardboard, paint and markers.

Five hours and 500 photos later, I'm home after spending the full afternoon downtown at the Occupy Seattle rally/protest/march. It was a pretty powerful afternoon. Reports say between 3000-5000 people marched. Upon return to Westlake, we'd blocked 4th Avenue in front of Chase for an hour before folks began setting up tents for the Night of 500 Tents to continue night time occupation of Westlake. By the time I finally left protestors had a good start on the sheer volume of tents.

Many more photos forthcoming.

Sitting at Grim's last night and noticed the sunset.

yesterday...

This week we have a few days of full on staff retreat days. We are meeting in the woods, all seventeen of us, at a camp east of Seattle.

I've been sleeping really hard for the last week...as if catching up on sleep from many years of restless sleep. So when I woke again this morning, super groggy...even though I had jumped in the shower to wake up, I left my cell phone and my tooth at home. That is, my temporary denture that I'm still wearing until January. It didn't really matter because we were fairly isolated, away from the public. But not having the tooth, even though I don't always wear it with my coworkers...was...a little unsettling.

Tonight I'm exhausted. It was a day of emotional processing. And now, a little tv and off to bed early so we can do it all over again tomorrow.

Photo taken while in the jeep on the way to the camp.

Here is one more photo I took from the Seattle Sounders game on Saturday evening...

Slowly made more headway last night in creating more room so I can have a workspace in my little apartment.

A little diversion.

I've been oohing and aahing this dress all day. My coworker and his partner each told me separately the name of the designer. Thank you. Her name is Lulu Yang, a fashion designer based in Seattle. I began reading a little about this dress...and am even more captivated because of its origin.

A Monarch Butterfly silk taffeta corset and ball skirt, trimmed with ostrich feathers and Swarovski crystals; $25,000.

From this article in the Seattle Times:

"It is the trademark dress by Seattle designer Luly Yang, and it's also the first dress she designed — a symbol of a career metamorphosis, 10 years ago. Then, she was a graphic designer working with the architectural firm Callison, teaching aerobics in her spare time...

Thinking back a decade, Yang remembered that the butterfly dress was born as a contest entry. It was a fashion-design contest aimed at graphic designers and sponsored by a paper company, so entries had to be made from paper. "I thought, oh, I always loved butterflies," said Yang, who is soft-spoken yet resolute. "I like what it represents, I like that it morphs from one thing to another, evolution and change. I decided to make a monarch butterfly."

Working from a picture 2 inches square, Yang manipulated the image on her computer, "cleaned it up, blew it up, got huge posters printed, and made a dress out of it. It took me many, many hours, in my condo — paper everywhere." And from that process came a change of direction. "I decided to switch my medium; not change my career as a designer but switch my medium, fashion instead of graphics. So that's how it started." A cocoon opened; a designer was born."

Metamorphosis indeed!




The photo came from Tety Loves Tumblr site.

Yesterday was a day of rest combined with cleaning, packing and an attempt to organize my little house. Almost a dozen extra boxes of studio stuff makes for a very congested living space. I spent the week trying to figure out the best way to arrange things and decide what I can live without for the next six months. I moved out the shelving piece that held my cds, dvds and some books and put it in our apartment hallway where it was promptly claimed by someone else. I sorted out cookbooks and also gave about half of them away. And I packed and taped up three boxes of cds.

Tonight, I need to go through some of the studio boxes and see how I can condense them into something more manageable. There is a small dresser in my little entry way that I also need to go through and clean because that will become the new storage for my drawing supplies. It's difficult living in such clutter but I do see light at the end of this cramped tunnel.

Photo I took on Saturday evening at the Seattle Sounders game…

Photo taken at Westlake Park...Seattle.

An interesting article on U.S. media coverage of Occupy Wall Street versus the coverage from media around the world.

Yesterday afternoon down at Westlake, for an albeit too brief support of Occupy Seattle. It was incredibly moving to see the determination and the park..with makeshift food area, first aid, media area...and even signs reminding people to assist the homeless with food and money. There was also a table set up so folks could create their own signage. People of all ages, from very young to the elderly.

From there, we (C & I) headed to a work event...a Seattle Sounders game where ticket sales were benefitting our organization. It was surreal. The contrast of Occupy Seattle with the game created a discomfort. I've never before been to a sports event in Seattle and am not a sports person, but will say the game was fun and that fun...while the images still in my head from Westlake, made for an evening of complex and strong emotions.

Although thankful to the Sounders for their generosity, if I hadn't already committed myself to the game, I would have remained downtown with the protesters.

Occidental Park last night at First Thursday art walk.

Lynn Schirmer's art on the side of the 619 Western former Arts bldg.

Tonight is First Thursday. And tonight will be the first First Thursday in over four years that I will not be at the 619. But, I will be able to enjoy other openings...and so will be visiting the work of friends, checking out Alan's video towers at the Travers Gallery, Barry's open studio at the TK Building, Lynn's work at Trabant and Stephen Rock & Joseph Keppler at Rock/DeMent.

Slowly returning to a manageable routine. Tomorrow I'm picking up 10 paintings that were in a show in Ballard and will be hanging them around the office until I can pack them for moving in February.

Making plans with a coworker to do a Halloween Costume crawl which sounds like fun.

In spite of everything...all the current upheaval in all parts of my life, I've been surrounded by a surprising sea of calm in the last 24 hours. It's pretty and I'm enjoying it for however long it lasts.

On jumping back into the fray...


While I was away, my WA State relocation specialist had called me to tell me my moving reimbursement check was ready. Yesterday, I met him near the studio to sign for the check. And...I took this photo of our 619 Western building. They began boarding it up on Oct 1.

It's a little heart wrenching.

When I was on the bus to Springfield, I was happily drawing in a little sketchbook I've sporadically carried for a few years. Thing is, I've been faithful about working in it since the beginning of summer. It was full of new ideas in small ink drawings. In addition it held thoughts from museum and gallery visits.

On Wednesday morning I was thinking that I needed to photograph some of the work in the book because of the direction the drawings were taking. And I didn't. And...I lost the book. Last time I had it was on the bus and must have left it on the seat. I called the terminal the next day but no one had turned it in.

Yeah...it hurts a wee bit.

I know I've only been home for a couple days and the week before vacation was spent moving the studio and the time before that was preparing for the move...but I'm now beginning to feel the pressure to engage in my practice.

This has been the longest time in five years that I haven't painted in an almost daily routine and I'm feeling it.

Yesterday, I could feel the anxiety, the fear and the resistance surrounding my attempt to even think about working. For me, when I get out of the habit, it's terrifying to jump back in. Creating art rips me open even further. I can't hide from myself when I draw or paint. With all the loss this year, having this break from painting (albeit necessary due to life stuff) I am afraid to feel what may come up.

I need to set a new little workspace in my apartment and it doesn't need to be elaborate because that attempt would be procrastination.

So...last night I took a breath and made a list which offers direction in manageable bites.

1. pull out the b&w photos that I've been working on
2. grab sketchbook
3. choose one image
4. and just fucking draw.

Nothing fancy. I don't need to lay out all my tools and drawing board. I don't even need to figure out a larger space. I know that once I begin to draw and return to my ritual, the path will joyfully unfold.

But boy oh boy, that first step is a doozy.

Yesterday morning at Logan airport in Boston. I was headed to the restroom before boarding my plane and saw the sky so I had to stop to photograph it.

An extraordinary moment caught while performing an ordinary act.

Some of the final vacation photos. These are from western Mass.

My parents took me on a tour of the areas affected by the tornado in June. This was my high school...closed because of the damage.



Autumn in New England.



And a shot from Northampton MA.

On Wednesday afternoon I grabbed a bus at Port Authority and headed to Western Mass to spend the remainder of my vacation with family.

Photos taken while in the cab...

Wednesday morning at MoMA...

Wednesday morning while walking toward the MoMA to catch the De Kooning retrospective.

After hitting the cathedral I headed down to Union Square. It was warm, quite humid, and so decided to crash at a sidewalk table for people watching and a drink. It was a good way to wind down a super busy but very fun day before meeting my niece for dinner.