John Park

Venice based John Park has been all around town these past few years… Known for his urban aesthetic in a new contemporary art movement. He has  been seen doing live paintings at bars, clubs, galleries. Most recently his latest series was presented at the C.A.V.E Gallery on Abbott Kinney, and will also be seen at Lightning in a Bottle festival on Memorial weekend.

 I was hanging out at Space Monkey’s Creative Agency in Ojai last week and noticed a few John Park Paintings… reminding me how much I love his work of art!

 

http://spacemonkeycreative.wordpress.com/blog-2/

http://www.cavegallery.net/

Happy Housewife day

Happy Housewife day is something I made up yesterday on a hike with a couple girlfriends . My work projects were finished for the week, and it was a beautiful day, and so on days like this… It will be my Happy Housewife day.

I suppose I’m probably far from a “typical” housewife. Most days I am working on my craft, being a business woman, a writer. I am definitely blessed on having this time in my life and moments when I can decompress in nature.

I went on a hike, spent a few hours at the Korean Spa, and saw a movie with a friend.. The hike was splendid, the Olympic spa my favorite, and the movie Wanderlust is just silly fun….. they used the tag line–” Lightning in a Bottle”, and used words like Ayahuasca, which seems to be trending. indeed grateful for all the activities and great conversation.

What’s on the table for YOUR weekend??!! Our plans are made and certainly it will be another feel good weekend!!!  Happy Weekend everyone!!

Drive by Herakut

Herakut

So my hubbie and I are experimenting with public transit, bikes and walking as a form of transpo? Our car lease was up and we just couldn’t decide what type of car to get.

When it came down to it, we opt not having a car because he and I do so little driving. I sold my car last year because it collected dust, if it wasn’t being rented out.  Now now, I am sure you’re thinking… those sage’s are crazy???! but it’s just an experiment and what I like to call… the art of detachment. We are so fortunate to live in an area where there is an abundance of food, art, fashion, music… Just steps away from our door.

Nonetheless it will be adventurous. We decided on six months car- free, with the intention that if it was of too painful and or inconvenient we’d get just  buy another car… yea, it’s that simple.

On that note,  I was able to borrow my girl Jess’ ride ( thanks lady!), while on a writing research mission….

… I spotted Herakut and a few other street artist in Culver City on Washington near Adams. I’ve driven by a few times, but finally stopped in to take a closer look, shoot some photos , and admire the art work, Very impressive.  Gotta love the DoLab for always finding the right element of art to add to their ever growing portfolio of fabulousness !

Have you seen Herakut?? Or perhaps driven by?? Stop by and check it out next time.  On a side note. I hear Herakut will be at this years Lightning in a Bottle, and most recently performed with the Lucent Dossier troupe!

The art work by Herakut is just wicked!!

my “lightning in a bottle” experiment video

My blog write ups are usually about happenings around town of what I like and want to share. So this post is a bit more personal. I created a little video of my weekend at the Lightning in a Bottle Festival a few weeks back.

Usually, I am all about shooting photographs, but decided for this event I would test out my video camera on my Iphone 4. Without any sort of idea I spontaneously started shooting short clips ranging from 15 sec to 2mins long. There were so many wonderful moments between our camp, the festivities, and the whole ambience the Do lab created, that I could not capture those special moments, because those moments were about being “present”.  The other thing was my battery kept dying, there was so many amazing moments I missed shooting; like Pumpkin’s awesome DJ set, the funny Potty Dismount (you had to be there- a camp thing) Lucent Dossier, etc. So what I ended up with was a bunch of clips, and mostly of me walking behind my husband and our friends.  Day Vision LIB part 1 ( edited on final cut pro) 

Sorting out the clips was a task because there wasn’t a story or direction I was going for in the first place. I just thought of it as a fun piece and good practice to shoot some footage. when all said and done… there I was sorting through clips and needing to organize and create some sort of backstory.  I rendered the files into i-movie but I also wanted to cut to music and so I decided that final cut pro would work better for what I wanted to accomplish. my husband helped with all the technical questions, and i got through most of it, but this certainly wasn’t the project to learn this type of program. I have never used finalcut pro let alone did any sort of editing. Also, my first instinct would be to shoot vertical, the way I would normally hold my phone. I had no idea that shooting vertical and horizontal would make a huge difference editing and look wise, I certainly didn’t even think about that aspect at the time. I was also became concerned about the length, most people lack the attention span, and knowing this was my very first edit and on a professional levels program. I decided to split the sequence because it wound up to be 12 mins long. to me shooting 4 days worth of footage and compiling it to 12 mins, seemed like nothing. but listening to my husband’s advice, realistically could be too long for other people.

 Into the Night LIB part 2 (edited on iMovie)

This is a personal video for me and my camp friends. so hopefully i am not judged too hard on the look? my inner circle of friends are artist and creative people, everyone is so ridiculously talented, and whether we like it or not we all have strong opinions on what something looks like. for me that’s totally ok, I’m used to opinions and welcome it. Regardless of what anyone thinks, this was a super fun experiment and my interpretation of the festival. bare in mind I did not shoot this on a fancy camera nor do I have any prior editing skillz. since it’s shot on my iphone there were a few shaky moments because I was walking and shooting, but it’s as decent as I could make it given the footage that I shot… making something out of nothing is not easy. and toward the end I decided to cut down the footage and split it in two parts, basically day and night. The opening shot is of us driving in (part 1),  and the last shot of us driving out ( part 2), this is because it was originally all one clip.  

Thx for taking the time to read my long explanation…, It’s how my mind works!

Music Credits:

DAY PART 1 – Pretty Lights was one of my favorite sets. His track Finally Moving/ James Brown Remix gave it a good feel.

NIGHT PART 2 - Marty Party’s  Adele w/ Deathstar remix.   I love Adele’s song Rolling in the Deep, so this was a fun mix for the night shots.

This video is dedicated to Big Cheese, Phlapjack, Vince, Jenna and the Spicy Bacon crew!! Great friendships were forged and memories will always be remembered. Special Thanks to my love Chris Sage for the quick tutorial, advice and for your patience. I am so thankful to have a husband who I can talk creatively with.

Love you all!! SAGElove

Adventure time @ Lightning in a Bottle festival

Did we survive the weekend or what?! Well, I sincerely hope you enjoyed some cool happenings around town, despite all the rapture end of the world ramblings. While I couldn’t quite make every outing I had intended ( so bummed to have missed the fire spinning housewarming, and the dope style idea of a birthday party at the gun range, as well the opening to a friends art show), I was happily content my weekend turned into an uplifting, heart pumping romp in the sun.  I experienced a truly emotional sunset wedding ceremony, that was inspired by family devotion and delighted by strong, long-lasting friendships. My weekend was not about endings but about beginnings.

Sadly, those same people will continue to waste their time scheming, plotting and making calculations on yet another “date” on when the world will end… and I suppose my life (as usual) will be about LIVING in the now and getting inspired…

So I must continue on that righteous path by heading to another highly anticipated weekend at the Lightning in a Bottle Festival. www.lightninginabottle.org/

Having been raised in Los Angeles going to music festivals is expected at an early age. I’ve been going to them for 22 years, and I will say that these days The DO Lab family has it going on- they put on a fantastic festival.While their DJ line up sets the tone for the festivities, people head to LIB for many other reasons. While some will go to check out the art installations, some will go to learn about sustainability and the environment, and others will go for their yoga and spiritual fix, everybody will enjoying the good vibes in the outdoors. From what I have experienced, no other festival has as much character and soul as LIB. Though it’s not as extreme, profound or enlightening as Burning Man, it conveys a powerful community experience. It’s not as commercialized and over exposed as Coachella, so it has maintained its broad perspective and continues to promote a wide variety of artist and performers, all of which I am down for.  

So in light of my fantastic weekend to come. Here’s a taste of what i’ll be doing…

Engaging in the Lucent Dossier Experience 

Time and time again I am astounded by the Lucent Dossier Experience. It’s one of those mesmerizing shows that I can’t stop talking about. A Lucent show is like no other filled with acrobatic and dance performances in a moulin rouge-esque setting that will completely wrap you up in their world. http://www.lucentdossier.com/

Vibing w/ RANDOM RAB

Last years LIB is when I first heard the sounds of Random Rab while laying on the grass as the sun was setting. Nothing more magical than hearing his feel good music come to life and setting the tone for a fantastic evening.  http://randomrab.net/

Chiling w/ Joplin MacColl

Gotta love grooving to little down tempo by Joplin MacColl. her funky fresh style is sure to make you get your groove on while setting the mood just right for a dusky sundown. 

                                                                                      www.waxdj.com/djs/1429 

Bass Jumping for KRADDY

No doubt I am going to have to put my bass face on for Venice local KRADDY one of the founding members of the Glitch Mob. Kraddy hailed as the anthem of the decidedly maverick “glitch hop” movement with speaker-shuddering bass drops and melodic overtones.

Getting Gyspy with Beats Antique!

If you are seeking something provocative yet spiritual then the unique and masterful sounds of Beats Antique and the sultry performance of Zoe Jakes is where you want to look. Zoe’s belly dancing moves combined with Beats live instrumental mixes of old school jazz, hip hop, string quartets and dubstep all rolled up into one… puts them in a class on their own. definitely hot stuff!

 http://beatsantique.com/

Look forward to being part of the SEA OF PRETTY LIGHTS

While there is a long list of music favorites I can go on about, I am truly EXCITED to see headliners PRETTY LIGHTS!!! Here’s a little taste of what you’ll be experiencing or what you’ll be missing!!!  HELLO PRETTY LIGHTS!!

http://www.prettylightsmusic.com

And while i’ve only posted music…  I’ll also be checking out some other cool stuff!!

                                                                                  

Revolutionary Remix Upcycled Fashion & Costuming by Sara Rodriguez

Meditation With Rigzin by Rigzin Tromge

Micro-farming: Growing Plants in Small Urban Spaces On a Budget by Peter Mestaz

Priya Mohan: Buddhist Yoga, Mediation, and Sound Healing

SuzE Q: Kundalini with Live Drumming

The Yoga of Bass by Claire Thompson and FreQ Nasty

Revolutionary Remix Upcycled Fashion & Costuming by Sara Rodriguez

A Return to Love by Marianne Williamson

Basic Herbology and Nutrition for Common Health Issues by Christi Mendonza

Healing our Vessels through Nutrition and Essential Oils by Veronica Johnson

Playing Now: The New Paradigm Integrated Business That Supports the Life You Love to Live by Alexis Nelly

Waking Up Together: The Intertwining of Buddhism and Ayahuasca by David Coyote

Living Medicine by Lily Ross

Grace of Venus by Dream Rockwell

Doesn’t that sound amazing???. One more day and I am off for a long weekend of adventure!! So if you want to join.. you’ll know where I’ll be or at least what I’m listening to.  Whatever your hearts content is this memorial day weekend- make it a great one!