Nerve Purge (Ermahgerd! Purblrrshrr Murtings!)

Today has been a long time coming. In several hours I will be meeting with the Senior Editor of (insert huge book publisher here). No biggie. This will be the first of meetings with several different publishers sprinkled between now and next Monday in New York.

I flew in last night and crashed at my friend Allison’s place. She had a new air mattress waiting for me that is right out of the Princess and the Pea. Seriously, it’s like 2 feet tall.  Technically I am running on West Coast time, and yet I woke up at 5 in the morning, and continued to stare at the ceiling until about 6:30, when I decided to get up and procure a bagel. (Let’s pause to celebrate real bagels. Yay!)

Now it’s 8:19. I have two hours before I have to leave the apartment. Yes, I have plenty of work that I could be doing. And yet, I can’t. All I can do is iron my shirt, take a shower, and purge some of my nerves via this post. Well…I guess Allison also has cable. I’m sure I can find some tragic reality TV show rerun that will give me the self confidence I need to head into this meeting.

Or maybe I’ll just eat more food I can’t get in Seattle…

Coo-Coo for Cocuzza

One of my favorite people in the world is visiting me in Seattle at the moment. Julia Cocuzza is one of my college besties, and has remained so throughout the years. We spent a lot of time talking about art, critiquing each other’s work, and partaking in all forms of tomfoolery. One of our favorite pastimes was pointing at something and challenging the other to come up with the proper color palette in order to paint it. Did someone say “nerd alert?”

Julia lives and works in Brooklyn, and was born and raised in Reading, PA. Her work is mostly acrylic, oil, and/or spray paint on canvas, but she has also branched out into installation. She has experience in the illustration and fine art worlds, as well as overseeing urban mural projects. She also co-founded Griot Apparel, a t-shirt design company committed to “keep[ing] people’s history alive through talking about it.” Check out her Etsy store where you can purchase prints. Here are a few of my favorite pieces of Julia’s…

Williamsburg Bridge, Brooklyn Side
oil on canvas / 12×24″ / 2007

Under Manhattan Bridge, Brooklyn Side
oil on canvas / 17×25″ / 2007

Manhattan Cityscape (Springtime)
oil on canvas / 9×50″ / 2006

This Project Is a Real DRAG

The Seattle drag scene is home to some real talent and creativity. As a fun side project for the past two nights, I created some portraits of some queens who hold court at a monthly performance called Bacon Strip (every first Saturday at ReBar). Of course, these portraits mean much more to those who have had the honor of witnessing their performances, but I’m really happy with how their personalities have come through. Do yourself a favor and watch some videos on the Bacon Strip YouTube channel!

Sylvia O’Stayformore, Bacon Strip’s Effervescent Hostess

Maxine Delacunt

Ade