ILLUSTRATION FRIDAYS.

I found this fun little site called Illustration Fridays. Basically they welcome all artists and inspired minds to create something every week. Every Friday a new one word topic gets posted to your inbox and you get to interpret it any way you want and create something with any medium you choose. It can be realistic or a cartoon, in colour or black and white, detailed or simple, the options are endless. Once done you send it to them and they post your art on their site. It is so much fun, what a great idea. And is so fantastic because it is a fun way to force you to be creative more often. To find the time to draw and make something beautiful. Its also really interesting to see how others interpret the topic.

So last Friday's topic was "Caged" and this is my interpretation. I quiet like the idea of it and think I will write a poem on this one. G :)

Inception And M.C Escher.

So I saw the movie Inception the other day. Wow. I was completely blown away. What an amazing movie. It has so many levels and breath taking scenes, you are literally glued physically and mentally to the story the second it starts (and are left thinking about it long after it ends). It really makes the mind work and forces the imagination into overdrive, by questioning the way we look at and shape our reality. It involves concepts like, been inside someone else's dream - taking their secrets and leaving ideas behind in their minds, dreams within dreams, within dreams, perception and the power of the mind. It is such a cleverly thought out movie, it is complex, crafty and visually amazing. I wish there was a book.

Inception reminded me a great deal of the work of M.C Escher. You can see his "Ascending and Descending" in the creation of staircases in dreams in this movie. And the concept that things work on a never ending cycle. The idea behind his "Drawing Hands" can also be seen in Inception. Escher's art seems to play tricks on peoples perception and often can be viewed in a few ways, instead of just one. He challenges us to expand our boundaries and understanding of reality. Very much like the concepts behind Inception. He was a very talented man, his imagination was boundless. Here are a few of his art works and some of his more famous quotes.

I really recommend you go and watch Inception, it will get your creative mind salivating. And why not do a bit of research and take a look at Escher's works and life, he was a pretty interesting man. Enjoy, G :)

"Are you really sure that a floor can't also be a ceiling?" Escher

"He who wonders discovers that this in itself is wonder" Escher

"Only those who attempt the absurd will achieve the impossible. I think it's in my basement... let me go upstairs and check" Escher

"Originality is merely an illusion" Escher

http://www.mcescher.com/

Women's Day.

So yesterday it was Woman's day in South Africa. And what a wonderful time it is to be a woman. I consider myself incredibly lucky to be born in the century I was born in and in the country I was born in. I have a job, I can vote, I wear what I please, love who I want, live how I want, I have my own money, which I can spend anyhow I please, I can control every aspect of my life and I am free to be any version of me I choose to be. At a darker time and even still in dark places around the world, woman were and are not so lucky. For them, to be a woman is and was a curse. For these women my heart aches. Many died without knowing the freedom and strength they held within their souls, many still live without the taste of independence on their lips, caged in a flawed, antiquated world. But I am lucky enough to feel treasured and am so proud to be a spirited, free woman. As a woman I stand with pride for independence, love, passion, respect, equality, nurturing and kindness. And I give thanks to those women who gave us, the women of their future the power to live a life on equal terms, with love and respect. So yesterday I didn't celebrate my Woman's day by burning my bra or chaining myself naked to a government building, like our strong, beautiful, revolutionary ancestors, because of them I was able to go out and have a quiet, special day with my mother. We went to movies and then lunch and it was lovely. I am very grateful to be able to do this. I am grateful to be a woman. And I am very proud of the woman I am. So here is to all the remarkable woman of our present and our past. Make every day Woman's day, and walk with pride and respect, we owe it to those who got us here. G :)

Thought Of The Day.

Every little thing you do in this exact moment, will echo and verberate into your future and mould you into the you are soon going to be.

G ©

Jodi Picoult, Book Signing.

Last night I went to a book signing of the very talented, Jodi Picoult. For those of you who don't already know who she is, she is a brilliant, best-selling, American author, who has an outstanding skill with words. She brings all her books to life, with well researched, controversial themes and vivid characters. Jodi has written many well known books, the most commonly known, "My Sisters' Keeper" was recently made into a movie. I was so excited to meet such a passionate, accomplished author and she most definitely didn't disappoint. Her energy and intense love she has for writing is tangible. And because she researches her books so thoroughly before she starts writing them, she is a very intelligent,compassionate lady. To hear her speak about her writing made me ache and long to be in her shoes, to create something so beautiful, eloquent and deep. To bring something to life using only words - no sound or colour or touch, only the imagination. Wow. It was very inspiring and soul shaking. She was my age when she wrote her first book and has been writing ever since. She has only ever written one book that was not published. If that doesn't make you want to pick up a pen or one of her books, I don't know what would. I can't wait to get stuck into a few of her new books I brought and had signed. Her latest one called "House Rules" sounds amazing. So if anyone is looking for something rich and vibrant to stick their nose into, I recommend you give her a try. You will not be disappointed. G :)

http://www.jodipicoult.com/

I Miss You.

The world is different in your absence.

The space next to me trembles and throbs at its' loss.

My shaky hands feel wrong without yours' entwined in them.

My skin doesn't feel like my own.

My empty eyes are leaking.

The tap won't switch off.

The light won't switch on.

It's dark and lonely.

It hurts everyday.

Every single part of my body mourns.

It is like each limb on a string, is a puppet to my mangled heart.

The pain cuts through me.

Deep and ragged, raging red.

I hold my breath and grit my teeth.

Waiting for it to fade into a gentle ache.

In the middle of the night I wake up with tears streaming down my face, clutching my chest as it bleeds.

Everything is wrong.

Without you living feels false, like my glassy smile.

Every step I take I turn to look for you.

Each second I am waiting for your pleading call.

I fall asleep with your name on my lips and your tears in my eyes.

And wake up every morning wishing you were lying next to me.

But you have gone

And this day is erroneous.

This week. This month. I am simply functioning, no longer alive.

Just waiting for the next day, the next week, year.

Waiting for the pain to leave or for you to show up.

The world feels faulty.

I feel defective.

Hollow, numb, useless.

It's so easy to forget our grey

when the world without you is so deadly black and cold.

It's so easy to ignore the scar when

this open wound clots and the pain surges within my very core.

The bare space where my heart was throbs incessantly.

I am so lost without you.

I miss the chaos that was us.

I miss your smile, as well as my own.

I don't want to live without you.

But what other choice do i have.

G ©

Better In Black & White

Ah... there is simply nothing better than black and white photographs. (Everything looks better in black and white) They conjure up feelings of romance and an older time when things were less complicated and more beautiful :) These images make my heart sing. G :)

Crazed

I hear you.

In the back of my mind.

Whispering, whimpering.

I know you are all alone in there,

Confused and afraid.

I feel like I am going insane.

I guess if keep talking to myself, I am.

No one else is here except the walls

and their hollow echo.

No one seems to know my struggle.

Is anybody out there?

Do they even hear you?

I hear you crying out.

What else can I do?

I talk to you, comfort you.

Maybe that means I am going crazy.

Maybe that means I should be locked away.

But I hear you.

How can I ignore you,

Shivering in the corner.

Alone in the dark.

Damaged beyond repair.

Your wings broken.

Your heart numbed and deadened.

Your dreams limp next to you, perished.

You are to pathetic to ignore.

So I sit next to my friend.

I comfort you.

My tearful eyes looking back at me.

I will never leave you.

Maybe this means I am going insane.

Maybe this is the first sign of madness.

I don't care.

You are pretty good company.

Alone in the dark with myself.

G©