Influences and Inspiration Pt. 6

Travel has been a huge influence to me. I wish I could do more. In the past three years I have gone to Cleveland, Chicago (twice), boating at the Lake of the Ozarks with the family, and various day-trips in Missouri and Illinois. My boyfriends and I are hoping to go to Memphis, TN this spring. I have never been there and he wants to go again.

Probably the two best places I have been have been that spark my creativity (sometimes overwhelm me too) are New York City and the whole trip to the United Kingdom I made in the summer of 2004.

When I went to the UK, I spent most of my time in London and in Scotland. I took a ton of pictures, filled some sketchbooks, collected maps, books, newpapers and magazines, and did some rubbings. Oh, plus I studied art and art history. I got credit for this trip through the Study Abroad Program at Ohio University. So, I went to the great art galleries, museums and cultural landmarks that London is home too. Some of the places I went outside of London was Stonehenge, Edinborough, Glasgow, and Inverves, Scotland. Awesome trip that will always be with me and I would love to go again. I was there for a month and I still wasn’t able to see everything.

The first pic I am going to show was from late afternoon/early evening in Edinborough. We had a pretty long walk from our hotel to the center of the city. It was a dark, foggy, rainy day. Actually, it rained the whole time we were in southern Scotland (Glasgow and Edinborough). I think I took this picture as we crossed a bridge. I know we got a little lost. There is really no grid to follow and we got a little disoriented sometimes This was the case in all of the places we visited. US and European cities are not the same in that aspect. 

Edinborough

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New York City has been a place I visited on an almost annual basis while I was in school. For a person who is an artist, NYC has been the center. I would go mainly to visit the galleries and museums. Really my favorite thing to do was just walk around and explore the city. It is the perfect city to get lost in and find something interesting to make it all worth it. There is no other city in the the US like it. 

The two pictures I am going to include were just incidental. The first one is of Times Square. I suppose you could call it the shrine of advertisements. It is quite sickening but visually arresting. Honestly, there isn’t anything too substantial there. It is clean and has become a tourist trap of sorts and family friendly. It is not the scummy Times Square of the past.

Times Square

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This next picture was taken from a gallery in Chelsea.I don’t remember which one but I guess I wasn’t interested in the work. I was distracted by the view. I really love the reflections I get when I take pictures through windows. I like the angular reflections in this one. I think I am look toward downtown.

View From Gallery in Chelsea

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, Merry Christmas to everyone. I opened some presents last night. I always get some art related things. I got the DVD, The Power of Art. It is the series hosted by Simon Schama on the BBC. I got a small book called, Creative Sparks, by Jim Krause. Some other noted gifts, a bookshelf (I seriously need a new one. I have books stacked on the floor because I don’t have enough room in the bookcases I have), a USB hub, and a laptop cooling pad. For fun, I got a St. Otto, The Patron Saint of Parking air freshener, a hot dog stress reliever (you squeeze it). I got a couple South Park DVDs, candy, a gift card to Best buy, some nice gloves and socks, earrings and some other small stocking stuffers. Also it is fun spending time with my boyfriend’s family. I like them a lot. They are a hoot to be with.