3/09/2014

HOW DO ARTISTS SPARK THEIR CREATIVITY?....

...... this question has been raised a million times...

and one of the answers that rings a bell is.....
INSPIRATION....

sometimes it comes from nowhere ....
meaning it comes from somewhere....

a certain source that kicks the artist's power to imagine
or conceive what ordinary mortals don't normally do
or claim are devoid of....

to a painter .....
it can mean a simple glance from a woman ...
Catherine Spaak


Suzanne Pleshette
a pose that creates a sultry look
Eleanor Parker
...a hand gesture...
Kathleen Quinlan
Ingrid Bergman
Claudia Cardinale
something that fascinates.... even just the voice
often described as "sweet" or womanly...
a certain smile 
Gloria Romero
.... or a caring word ....
or a mysterious look...
etc.... 
can make lightning to strike again...

only artists with sagacity can sense it ....
not everyone is born with it ....unfortunately...
even a psychologist may have difficulty 
but to an artist it's easy picking...

that's all folks !

it's almost midnight...

i'll catch up with the latest on Ukraine
and the missing Malaysian plane...

we might all be wearing gas masks....
hope not...

jt




WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN YOU FALL IN LOVE....

.....this song was composed by Burt Bacharach....

....i usually start my day listening to a string of bouncy and lively tunes like "what do you get....,
Up, up and away , the Age of Aquarius, Downtown"  and then segue to romantic and mellow
ones like Two for the Road,  The Seekers music, then to the instrumentals of the
101 strings and Mantovani to classical.....

Somehow when i do this ....my creativity is revved up....
and off i can tackle my work with plenty of focus...

i get inspired in doing portraits particularly those with
mystical personalities.....
"the lady with a mysterious look"
This charcoal portraiture is still in progress...
drew it while listening to "If You Go Away"
the French version by Mireille Mathieu ...Ne Me quitte pas ...
on KALW/KCSM 91.1 FM

i just love it when i have these kind of sitters....
it's my antidote for the  "artist block"...
i can do greater works if i'm surrounded by
a woman like her...

... i can play Bacharach's ..."what do you get when you fall in love"...
a thousand times and not get persuaded by its cynical message ...
and follow it up with Spanky and Our Gang's
"Cause I'd like to get to know you"...

there are two romantic songs i know apropo to portraiture....
i hope you will youtube these songs to see what i mean...

"Portrait of my Love" sung by Matt Monro, and "IF" by the Bread 
or Frank Sinatra's version...

and if i were to think of poetry partner to these songs...
 ...i would not hesitate to mention
Ben Johnson's "Song to Celia" 
the first line is a killer....
                  "drink to me with thine eyes...
                  ......and I will pledge with mine"

                   .....ay yay yay !!!!!

let me know if you folks have your
own version of mystery partner...

it's Sunday folks !!!

it's a day to relax...
i'll see you in the cafe nearby...

jt



3/06/2014

CROSS COUNTRY

..... sometime in the future after my Philippine project

is finished i'd embark on a cross country trip and make stop overs
to scenic places ....

to do plein air paintings....

I'd probably play the music of....
 Eumir Deodato
 while on the road....
particularly his version of "Sprach Zaratustra"....

it's one that's lively and will keep me alert while driving...
this piece of music used the "moog" machine for sound effects...

i will line up additional music of Bacharach, Sergio Mendes, the 5th
dimension along with Astor Piazolla, J Rodrigo's Concerto de Aranjuez,
and some Mediteranean sounds....

I'll organize the SF PEBS to join the trip so that it will be a lot of fun...

we can start from Yosemite.....
giant sequoia trees
campers and bikers at the park


 to Yellowstone Park...
Thomas Moran painted this scenery
a herd of bisons on the prairie
and in between check out scenic spots of Oregon



this trip i'm sure will be very art productive....

anyway....it's just a thought for the meantime....
but it's an intention that will be acted upon...

hope you folks have a similar project...

that's it for now...


catch you later...

jt





3/05/2014

LONG LONG TIME

.....went to Trader Joe's....
ladies chatting over a moped

and somehow i forgot to grab my supply of
purified water...

so on the way home...
i dropped by Lucky's supermarket.....
to pick up a gallon of water....
on aisle 11 ...
when i heard the 
music of Linda Ronstadt...
"long, long time"

this is one great music which i think a lot of women
had at one point or another in their romantic moments
have done and therefore can relate to...

"Long Long Time"


Love will abide, take things in stride
Sounds like good advice but there's no one at my side
And time washes clean love's wounds unseen
That's what someone told me but I don't know what it means.

Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think I'm gonna love you for a long long time

Caught in my fears
Blinking back the tears
I can't say you hurt me when you never let me near
And I never drew one response from you
All the while you fell all over girls you never knew
Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think it's gonna hurt me for a long long time

Wait for the day
You'll go away
Knowing that you warned me of the price I'd have to pay
And life's full of flaws
Who knows the cause?
Living in the memory of a love that never was
Cause I've done everything I know to try and change your mind
and I think I'm gonna miss you for a long long time
Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think I'm gonna love you for a long long time.

check the music out on youtube


that's all for now folks!

jt

3/03/2014

TWO MUSICIANS WENT BY...

....two world renowned musicians ...

will be missed by those whom they've touched
and will touch with their music and thankfully
their passion for it....

Pete Seeger....
The black and white years 
Pete Seeger gave us many decades of his music through his live concerts

folk singer and composer of those nice calm and soothing
melodies i.e. Turn, turn, turn ....check out
 Judy Collins version....
and Paco de Lucia...
heralding the tradition of flamenco music....

He had a profound influence to a friend of mine ...
Grisha
Photo I took for Grisha's cd cover produced by VGO
These musicians brought meaning to our lives....
"...totally!!!" as the valley lingo goes...

check their music on youtube when you have time....

that's all for now, folks.....

gotta get my dinner and watch late news...
Hope Putin listens to these musicians
music to calm him down...he's a bit
hyper these days...


jt

3/02/2014

READERS....

.... it might interest you to know that i have....

limited readership this week and that they're spread almost in Europe
and a little bit in Asia...
United States
173
Germany
7
United Kingdom
5
Philippines
5
Poland
3
Canada
1
Czech Republic
1
France
1
Morocco
1
Netherlands


....and i'm thankful because i know i'm able to share life and culture
to the different peoples of the world... and it's fun that way...
you might wanna know that this time i'm listening to 
Claudine Longet's
rendition of "Both Sides Now"....

She appeared in the comedy ...
"The Party"....
with Peter Sellers....
If you have not seen this movie....
you're missing something...

another great comedies are ...
"I LOVE YOU, ALICE B. TOKLAS...
WHAT'S UP DOC?...
THE UGLY DACHSHUND..."

or if you want inspiration in college life...
try ...
"PAPER CHASE"...

and drama....
"THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS"....
"TWELVE ANGRY MEN"...

just movie tips that i hope you could
use on this Oscar Night...

enjoy the movies folks!!!

jt




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