Cinnamon Canary

Nutty Detail

2009-11-07T19:14:08Z

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Flower Detail

2009-10-28T20:10:52Z

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Insects & Flowers

2009-10-22T18:53:12Z

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JouJou #4

2009-10-13T22:56:04Z

LARGE VIEW HERE

I want to overload it with detail so much more than when I started her in Sweden. I want to push myself to where I surpass what 'I think I can' do. Also, their is more to the image than what I shot here. Sorry about that I was pressed for time. You guys will see her in her entirety when she's finished anyway ;)

~ Also some good news, my writing will be published in a book this winter! I will have details later for anyone who is interested ~

=^.^=

Love

2009-10-06T07:00:56Z

Storm-less Storm
0930.2009

To look at you
A sorrow breathes beneath my breasts
Where the arms of my ribs meet and cradle
My heart that bleeds like red leaves
Ruptured from their wood fountains.
Down my life leaks in its autumn
Landing with barely a whisper or splash
Upon the old cheek it almost warms,
Then leaves weaving strings lead to the cold earth
Where my almost dead feet must walk -
Their ash skins warmed in sorrows threads.

My existence is this way
Each day the same beginning
Each day the same pain
Breaking from its branch
To drift downward, to seek your hands:
For in your hands, my safety.
You, the earth I curve to
The land I cradle myself in
The bell from which I sing.
You, with your skin of white milk
And eyes like a sad storm lost in its life.

Heavenly body fallen from its sky, still proud:
My king, though nobody sees your crown
Or the red carpet you must step upon
As you go from sunrise to sunset
Proud, bold, noble -
Yet I see what you hide from artless eyes

And this bleeds me most:

That in the third season of my life
As I watch you greet the day that kisses
Your mouth of good words for everyone -
I love you while unable to say that I love you,
I love you unable to look I love you in the eye
And though I don’t know how or why
I love you, usually when I think I don’t
So that when I feel unsure you love me,
I love you the most.

My earth, life, king,
My pain, storm-less storm
The eye of my love
The love of my eye.

I love you.

Marni©
.................

Been working, work work work, more work -
it's what I understand, it's what I love. A female
flowers, trees, life, art, my own breath.

This poem inked itself late in the night after playing in my
thoughts throughout my steady hand's work day.

Voice Post

2009-09-12T18:51:50Z

So Alike

2009-09-10T06:24:56Z

Rock
0903.2009

So alike you and I

One
Hard
Grey

Of many strewn

Traced years putrefy me
Immeasurably minute me

Gravity draws down
Steep
Sloping
Burying

Winded

Missing in clouded wilderness
Gone in miles of barren wasteland

Won’t step ahead
Won’t step backward
Wedged

Insects crawl over me
Animals piss on my head

The human disturbance
The earthquake activity

Pitched
Thrown

At the whim of debris
Lost in creeping
Rhizome
Water

Life

Marni©

The Details

2009-09-09T22:51:58Z

A few background details for JouJou.

Larger View HERE

R. Crumb

2009-09-08T05:01:20Z

I genuinely love Crumb's work and character. He's one of the greatest satirist
and comic illustrators this world has known.

I hope everyone is having a pleasant week.

cinnamoncanary @ 2009-08-31T23:22:00

2009-09-01T03:44:18Z

It Is
0831.2009

Under the dark trailing crickets sing
Without my understanding one word
Even with my ear to the ground
Bug melody gets lost among tire noise
In lanes where hours ago a living thing
Forwent innocence and survival
I like to say it not so
But it is
It is

I wrote you once to counsel on numbered days
“The dead like you to lay your head near theirs,
It is gloom settling the score with joy,” I said

The world is hard Magritte
You do not go far carrying a cherry under your skirt
Or braiding razors in your hair although
You may be delayed finding stains in your bed
Even worse tying your truth to something less in demand
Will put to death your purpose
I like to say it is not so
But it is
It is

How superb the wine is bitter
The roses push daisies
At 2:27am the crickets are still wordless vocalist in my head

Marni©

The Nature Of Human

I put this flower here this weed there. They are bound by slender whitened paper to your eye by my hand. How sweet to invent forests to lose me in, to forget us through, to fashion a woman from natural beauty. Outside ether folds while inside animus shapes. It is so still my bones have become statuettes in the night. It is so still I crack. - Marni

Easy Morning

2009-08-25T12:17:59Z

This morning is calm and it looks like it will be a beautiful day. Christopher and I woke early to sit on the porch and watch the sun rise over a cup of hot coffee.

I decided to write a few nights ago since not having done so for a while. When I wrote about death in the past it was always from a rather morbid point of view, as though 'I' wanted to die. But with the happiness I'm feeling with regard to loved ones and my life, I wanted to see the old character in a new light.

Death

0824.2009

On a hilltop without dawn

Death encounters us

he beckons breath to him

upon high ridge horizons

makes it easy for us to go

like god though not god

Death severs the vein

from the heart of being

to make empty bastions

leaves empty porticos

where irises could display

themselves in spring

As summer sleeps

Death stuffs the ground

with a natural Holocaust

no matter Jew or Arab

Death feeds a fat round earth

on mortal virtue and sin

Neither right nor wrong

undo the Death decree

neither cabinet nor ministry

disobey the quiet exodus

Death quenches lips

gasping for the notes

of one last aria unsung

Extended and unproud

hand offered to the lonely

solemn delay of mankind

human relief for years of unrest

surprising exit of adulations

do you beseech the solace

for your ancient impetus

Death is an architect impending

is master of truth designing

his life campaign to distract

our own willingness

from his lasting artistry

Marni©

Work

2009-07-30T17:54:44Z

Finally going back to it after weeks off. I was intimidated but feel okay once again. So, this is part of the layout. I say part because there will be many more items to be laid out. Birds, insects, leaves, flowers, and bones, - each object will be drawn out first and then placed in the image in varying positions on top detailed leaves. I think this work will take me about four months, if I am honest. In between I may do some small projects or I'll go insane.

Last but not least, I introduce to you Daffny,
the bird killing dog.

My Mother in 1966

2009-07-11T13:59:57Z

Mother in 1966

I just love this image of her (in the front), it's my favorite although a tad insulting. I placed it under a cut for those who don't like profanity. This is her in 1966.

Things I Love

2009-06-18T20:04:24Z

This morning I woke up to sit at the art desk and get to work and look what was waiting for me. Christopher is a sneaky pete! He left me a gift of tea and a beautiful version my favorite book. It was a nice surprise and set the tone to be a good day.

Of all the artists who have been influential in my eyes, Sarkis Katchadourian's illustrations of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khuyyam have made the biggest impression. When I was a little girl I would stare at the lovers in the book in awe of his pastel colors and soft curves. The figures were almost genderless.

The images are hard to find, but I found them. These images are in the other version of my Rubaiyat, which is in California hiding closet, in another version of this book with a black cover. I managed to find those images that moved me as a little girl and still possess a sense of mystery and awe.

Bunny Luv

2009-06-13T02:30:12Z

I had a visitor this evening, which brings me to a complaint: why do people get so damn excited to mow their stupid lawns. Why not let it grow natural? Christopher mowed this evening and missed this innocent baby by just a few inches.

His mother was nowhere in site, so I brought the baby in and snapped some images
before holding him and calming him down.

Note his tiny frown. He was pretty scared and probably just wanted to go home
to his mother.

Just before kissing him goodbye and sending him on his way.

This is bunny before he dashed under a tool shed where his mother is normally spotted.
We could tell he was familiar with the area (which is near where he was found) because
as soon as he noticed the small opening he ran into it. I feel awful that he was almost plowed
over and relieved that Christopher brought him to me and that I could calm him down.

He was good, sitting on the couch and chilling out while I made dinner. I held him
a long time too, just to make sure he was warm and safe.
I hope he is okay now.

Target

2009-06-11T00:05:18Z

"Target"

19"X 16"

Tea
Ink
Watercolor
Pastel
~

(Large view here)

Almost

2009-06-10T07:27:09Z

The beginning.

Almost finished.

...

(May I add that my neighbor is a dick.)

It's three something and he's in his garage jerking off. Dogs are barking
people are trying to sleep and he lights firecrackers.

It's official, I hate the burbs.

Starting The New Piece

2009-06-07T21:01:37Z

New toys.

The pencils prepared for their staring rolls.

General's pencil extender is a wonderful find since it always seems as
though I'm wasting my pencils by not using them within an inch of their lives :P
Imagine my surprise when I found it, I never knew this tool existed ~ !

The background was laid down today using both Raspberry tea and watercolor,
so I had a chance to use the new paintbrush (and love it!) and try something new.

In the process I discovered that Christopher's books are useful after all :D
(This set is flattening the near wet board.)

West of Eden

2009-06-03T15:40:27Z

I finally finished the work on 'progress' which was given the new title 'West of Eden', it seemed to fit much better.

Pencil on board.
19"X16"

Larger view here.

It Happened Again: Return of The Flying Mouse

2009-05-28T05:03:51Z

This evening while working, it happened again; another night visitor, and we thought the chance of it happening again was zero.

This bat also flew up the stairs, but then it came back down for a short while before going back up, allowing pictures in different rooms. It also spent most its time in the spare bedroom and seemed less afraid, nearly landing on me several times. We had to patiently wait for it to fly out the open window, which it eventually did. The bat spent a longer time in our company as well.

I just have one question, where in the world are they coming from?

Here are this evenings pictures (yes I edited the pictures, Mr. Myopic Madcap deserved to be immortalized forever in photography.)

Bat: The Strange Tiding From Outside

2009-05-27T08:20:31Z

I had a visitor this evening. Or shall I say a mysterious harbinger of untold intrique?

His presence in our company was a strange event for many reasons. While watching youtube, I decided to type in Fright Night II since I'm a fan of the dance scene. At the very moment I typed the title "Fright Night II", I noticed something flying in the art studio. At first it seemed to be a bird, which was shocking enough, but then looking closer it became evident it was a bat!

This would be the second encounter with a bat since camping seven years ago in Pennsylvania when two bats camped in my tent. The day we took the tent down they flew out, with one finally landing on the back of my dress. The little brown bat climbed up my back, finally perching on my shoulder before opening his mouth to let out a high pitched skreech, which was inaudible to my ears. At the time it was a little scary, honestly, but soon it was obvious just how shy and gentle the small creature was.

The bat this evening flew in circles guided only by his radar, and was much bigger. I asked Chistopher to shut off the ceiling fan because he is tall and can reach it. I didn't want the little guy to get hurt. One moment the bat was there in our studio, kitchen, livingroom, and then it was gone. We looked around and finally found him upstairs in our bedroom flying in circles. I grabbed the camera in excitement and began snapping images. They are not good, but here are the pictures my late night visitor.

We finally opened the screen and he found his way out, hopefully back to his friends and family.

The animal symbolism of the bat speaks of:

Illusion
Rebirth
Dreams
Intuition
Initiation
Journeying
Inner Depth
Communication

Installation Art Explained

2009-05-26T06:54:25Z

lol.

Work and Japon

2009-05-23T06:29:18Z

Less than ¼ of my drawing surface is blank. (YES!) My neck, finger, and wrist throb with pain as if to scream “Why do you torture us so, have we not been good to you?!” Usually I’ll take an Alka-Seltzer, believe it or not they help. I don’t like drugs or take any pain relievers; personally I’m not into chiseling my brain away with medicine, so when it’s really bad like tonight, fizzy water’s about all the pain relief I get.

Also, and amazingly enough, my granny is now 90. My god, she made it! Women in my family are notorious for their longevity and I probably won’t be any exception.

I found this amazing website of classic Japanese advertising art.

I’ve been attracted to Japanese and Asian culture ever since I was a child. My mother worked with several Japanese women during her years in the aerospace industry, which led to my being watched by a few of them when mother had dates or appointments to keep. When I was around seven years old one of her Japanese friends offered to watch me for the night. Talk about hospitality. I ate ramen made from scratch, the real deal with sesame seed oil and hot peppers. My sitter and her sisters also showed me vintage dolls from their country, which were stunning. Last but certainly not least, they dressed me in a traditional kimono, it was heavy with several layers and extremely comfortable (not to mention I enjoyed being fussed and fawned over). I was allowed to sleep in the kimono and spent the night in a bed that looked hard as a rock but surprisingly enough was very comfortable. The next morning my Japanese sitters bathed me, spending an hour gently massaging my scalp with a fine comb and then brush.

It is one of my best childhood memories.

They were soft spoken and beautiful women with a delicate way about themselves. Every since then I feel a bit envious regarding Asian women, and notice a beauty in the culture that I find absent in many others.

(I just had to add the oriental cat picture because they are so pretty.
The cinnamon colored looks as if to say "Love me, am I not lovely?")

Short Update On Work

2009-05-21T18:13:23Z

Working goes well, the tree is fantastic in 'Progress'. I have given it a Japanese twist, imagine that! I'm loving the contrast between industry and nature. It feels great to express a personal view in this medium.

Aside from that, it's an absolutely gorgeous day, perfect for Barb-B-Qing sausages and it looks like that's what's the haps tonight ~ You know me, I love sausage, big time.

(Hmmm, the sausage is a bit smallish though.
I like my brats kind of on the big side.)

Cradles

2009-05-21T05:19:23Z

I love trees. Sometimes I think they may feel or remember things, if they had mouths they would speak.
I love this tree's character, it seems rich. The small bird bath is hand made, a gift from my grandmother.