W.O.R.K.I.N.G yeah!

It's been a while since I last posted something but not because I didn't want to but because I haven't had the time to do it since there's been a few developments:

A hare, gift from Liebre Lunar.

1. I'm officially employed!! I'm happy to announce that I'm part of Liebre Lunar; Arts, Culture, and Artistic Education Research and Production Group. Liebre Lunar translates something like Lunar Hare or The Lunar Hare and it's an inspiring place with inspiring people.
We are incredibly busy trying to stick to a schedule in order to officially launch our website by the end of april so I'll be busy but keeping updates about it.

A Coptic binding book I made as a sample for my classes (and gift for Diana)

2. I've just finish giving bookbinding classes at my old uni to students from 2nd and 3rd year. A nerve wracking but great experience I hope to repeat someday soon. Great class too!

Detail of 2009 Some Books Are To Be Tasted catalogue published by The Expanded Page Research Cluster, UCA Maidstone

3. I have also started to work as an assitant for my BA tutor Diana Castellanos and her bookarts exhibition Some Books Are To Be Tasted... made in partnership with the UCA at Maidstone, UK and the Academy of Fine Arts at Katowice, Poland. The exhibition will be opening on the 27th of april at The Warehouse Art Gallery in Bogotá, Colombia. Lots of work to do but an exciting and amazing experience I'm looking forward to be working on.

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In the meantime I'm worried about my own projects. I've created a CURRENT board of projects where I'm supposed to keep all the process and developments of books and personal works that are waiting to get done!

CURRENT PROJECTS board

Now, you can see a big frame of NOTHING IN PARTICULAR apart from the beautiful hare I was given by the "Lunar Team". I will be updating this poor frame soon and my projects will make come true, that's a promise to myself.

Happy Bday to me!

Oh my..I'm sorry to be so narcissistic but I must post on this very important day: I'm turning 28 today!!! I have to celebrate since I feel like a new season has already started and today is official.
I feel grateful that this year its been quiet good so far. I sure have some glasses of wine in my head on this Friday afternoon, but in general, sober and all, I feel happy everyday about the good changes and positive vibes of 2011. A lot of good things are yet to come I'm pretty sure, and hopefully in the near future this blog will be full of not my silly little life but of loads and loads of art.
PS Thanks to everyone for Bday Wishes!!

Happy 6 months in Bogota

Again an illustration to commemorate this time in my hometown.
Here some things I find relevant to say on this day:
CHALLENGES!
1. Live in this city. After two years of living abroad I find Bogota utterly chaotic, dirty and insecure. Two years it's actually not that much but it sure feels like we have gone back 10 years in time.
2. Keep an open mind within a culture where people refuses to change and accept other ways of thinking. It becomes hard to be true to one self and specially to be proud of who you are.
3. Not to judge others if they think different from you. But again, that's part of keeping an open mind.
4. Always be focus on what really matters to you.
5. Work hard everyday
6. Always have a good time
7. Try not to miss friends who live abroad
8. Try not to miss London
9. Be independent (It won't happen until I leave my parents house!)

Bah! Rubbish. Back to work. Happy 6 months to me!

Brainless activities

We were given this ceramic piggy banks at the restaurant where we spent New Year's eve last December. I've been meaning to paint them and exhibit them somewhere in my studio and finally i got round to it. Not much behind them, keep me busy while I figure out how to solve some other important stuff.

Somethink Collective and the Collective Atlas

Somethink Collective Logo. Made by me!

Somethink Collective is an initiative of my friends and me, in an aim to collaborate with creative projects between us and others. Created during our MA at Camberwell, we produced some great work and participated in book fairs and exhibitions where we showed books individually and as a group. A lot of it can be seen on our blog and you can even participate in projects featured at http://somethinkcollective.blogspot.com/

Currently Collective Atlas, an initiative from Sarah, one of Somethink Collective's members, is an ongoing project showing interesting book works from all over the world. As Sarah puts it:

"The idea is to create a representation of the world through people who know the places.

Think of a village/town/city that you have spent time in. The task is to try and represent it the best you can in one simple book."

If you want to know more about it and participate, click on the logo bellow:

Collective Atlas Logo. Made by me!

Very late Christmas presents

Last but not least, I want to show the Christmas presents I made for Sarah and Welmoet, some of my good friends in Scotland and the UK. I made them nearly two months ago but I waited to publish them until they got them so I wouldn't spoiled the surprise.
These Exlibris are inspired in drawings of places where they both live and that in some sort of way remind me of them. The stamps were finished by a stamp-making-business (how on earth should I call that!!??) and printed on white tissue paper using silkscreen ink.

Sarah's ExLibris

Sarah on the top of Stirling Castle! Stirling, Scotland

Welmoet's Exlibris

Welmoet dancing in Brockwell Park! London, UK

They both loved them so that's all that matters.

P.S. I really recommend the work of both of them, they're wonderful artists. You can see some of Sarah Clark's work in here and Welmoet Wartena's in here.

The Slow Life

It will be almost six months since I've been in Colombia and I'm still settling down. I'm not sure what my current status is job wise. I mean, I'm an artist and sometimes a freelance graphic designer but, let's say...money isn't coming easy. So, I work everyday in my studio, at home, wondering what meaning has anything I do, how valuable is a process of making something if it has no particular purpose, if it's not necessarily commissioned or paid. I think, or at least I try to let myself believe, I work for me, to keep track of my systems of working, to grow as an artist, maybe as a person. The positive thing is, every single thing I make seems lately like a big progress in this little world of my studio. But main goals and dreams still look so far away. Life seems to go really really slow even though is already end of January. London meant grabbing, working and searching. Bogota means waiting, observing and making the most of everyday life. Maybe that's what is all about after all, so I made a short story about it:

Click on image for detail