#art

Falling asleep in my chair…

I was just talking to a friend, like 2 minutes ago about falling asleep in our chairs in front of the computer. His excuse is he has a son who as he puts it “adds a whole new layer of exhaustion to -why- you are falling asleep in the chair (and more than not you can’t take a nap because they’ll burn the house down.)” So ok, I will give him that. My excuse? Well, this is what I have going on; I am social media manager for the Brewery Artwalk Association I am helping put toge

Playing with video…

I can’t stop and sit still for anything. Even when I try to relax, I always find something else to do. So today, when I was supposed to be working on my to do list, I updated my website and played with video in second life (machinima). Here is a sample of what I did… #machinima #virtualworld #art #youtube #bodyimage #newmedia #LEA #88arebetterthanone #secondlife #contemporary #metaverse #cyberspace #plussize #virtual #modern #artists #artist #video #arts #lindenlabs #popart #

“88 are better than one”… or “Have no fear?”

Last night I was thinking about what it means to be brave. Or rather what it means to be afraid. I have received quite a few comments from people calling me brave for the art I do. Brave for how I put myself out there to the world. Brave for letting go and opening up. In reality, I am pretty afraid. I am afraid of being forgotten. I am afraid of being left out. I am afraid of death. I am afraid of rejection and abandonment. I am afraid no one likes me. I am afraid I am stuck.

Being impulsive: A story of life and hope.

Well I cheated. I guess it depends on what your definition of cheating is. And if It really is cheating since it is my project in the first place. Isn’t there a quote that says something like “I am an artist, so I don’t have to follow the rules?” I am pretty sure there is. Well, I had to break the rules. If there were even rules. I had this urge, this impulse, this nagging need to go ahead and delete, a week early, the entire 15000 prims that I had rezzed 2 weeks ago. I reall

#firstworldproblems

“I have a confession: I’m a wannabe minimalist. And I use the term wannabe loosely because this minimalism thing? It’s a work in progress. I’m not a minimalist. But I deeply strive to live with less. I know. It sounds crazy. Less stuff? What type of person on earth wants less stuff? The natural tendency is to accumulate. It’s weird and unconventional to not want more. We’re taught to always strive for more. Buy the bigger home, acquire more friends and followers, log more hou

Little Abstracts, Big Personalities

While I was painting the Avatars, I noticed the drop cloth was forming a really wonderful abstract painting. They measure approx. 4×7 inches and look really great framed. All ready to hang: $40 each Ask for pricing on multiples. Plus shipping national and international All signed and titled either “Excess” or “Residuum” and numbered. All original, one-of-a-kind paintings. Drop me an email if you would like to purchase the Little Abstracts. kristineschomaker

What does it mean to be one-of-a-kind in the digital world?

One of the interesting conversations started from my project “Binge and Purge” is that of the unique, one-of-a-kind work of art in Second Life. You can read a couple blog posts and the comments on Ziki Questi’s blog here and my own blog here and here. Thinking about my own inventory, I don’t believe I have anything that is totally one-of-a-kind. I have a Japanese Tea House a friend gave me, but he still has a copy and I am sure gave other people copies. I have bought limited

The fragility of life

When I set out to create a work of art, whether a performance or installation, a painting or collage, I normally don’t have any plans. I might have some thoughts and ideas written out but I do this particular project because it is something I have to express – an idea I have to communicate, some dialogue I have to start, a notion that I have to challenge. The last few projects/performances I have done have been dramatic and extreme: I shaved my head; I did a photography proje

“Binge and Purge” an installation by Kristine Schomaker (Gracie Kendal)

I have a new project. Did I tell you??? I recently received a virtual land grant, equal to $1500 USD for 5 months, in the 3D online virtual world of Second Life. In this space, I am going to create a huge conceptual installation called “Binge and Purge” by emptying out and deleting EVERYTHING from my inventory (virtual closet/life). I have been a resident of Second Life for almost 7 years, so there are a lot of memories. Since the virtual space is limited with how much I can

Virtual conceptualism? How do you explain art created in virtual worlds?

I just found out I was awarded a Linden Endowment for the Arts Land Grant for the second time. How cool is that??? The first time I received this amazing grant, I created my huge immersive installation Ce n’est pas une peinture which was a huge success and had many many visitors who would come and spend hours floating around. Well, this is a bit different. This is a more conceptual departure. I wanted to challenge myself and do something that was more meaningful and thought p

NEW WORK!!!

So It has been a crazy busy time for me. I just moved to a new loft… _____________________________ I am reconnecting with good friends… I picked up the Avatars from the Beverly Hills Gallery. So glad to have the girls safe at home…LOL _____________________________ I am also working on some new pieces. Right now I have to put any new Avatars on hold until I can get enough money to have them made. In the meantime I had to work on something else. I decided to play around with th

OFFICE/STUDIO/CREATIVE SPACE AT THE BREWERY ART COMMUNITY!! WITH A/C!!

Looking for clean, responsible, friendly artists/creatives/writers/directors/producers/screenwriters etc. to rent WORK ONLY studio/office space(s). These are perfect spaces for writers/creatives/fashion designers who are looking for a quiet, inspirational place to work. 2 upstairs spaces are 15×13 feet and the downstairs space is 15×15 6 month contract with security deposit of $400 AVAILABLE NOW! Includes full kitchen and bathroom access, air conditioning and beautiful gar

My life as performance art

A year ago, almost to the day, I had my shoulder length blond hair shaved off. It was one of the most freeing experiences I have ever had. I didn’t know what I would look like with a bald head (Or actually buzzed, as my friend used a #2 razor) but I didn’t care. I had to do it. I was so tired of seeing women in the media (and elsewhere) objectified for their appearance. “Portia Di Rossi cut off her ‘signature’ locks,” “Charlize Theron shaved off her gorgeous blond hair.” Why

The Gracie Kendal Project

For as far back as my memory allows, I had never found myself in a place I felt comfortable. My world has been in a constant state of change since I graduated High School, actually since my parents divorced when I was 12. I have moved in and out of my mom and stepdad’s house, had several roommates, had over 16 cars in 20 years of driving, changed my hair more times than I care to say, fluctuated my weight with the rising and setting of the sun and the list goes on… Needless t

“Self Portrait as an Avatar”

So it’s 1245am…and I couldn’t sleep. I had been laying in bed for almost an hour, listening to my clock radio playing Abba “Dancing Queen” (couldn’t keep my feet from tapping with the time) and just couldn’t fall asleep. I have been so overwelmed this last 2-3 weeks with so much on my mind, that I decided I had to just spill. I have been trying to work on my artist statement, or at least some type of statement as to what I want to do for my thesis project. After many pages of

My so called second Life…

The title of this post is taken from a Times article from Dec of 2006, and also a panel discussion that was held at the College Art Association conference in Feb of this year. I think its a great way to start my new art endeavor. As most of you know, I am a Grad student at California State University in Northridge. I was originally an Art History Grad student finishing all of my course work and working on my thesis, when I made the huge decision to change objectives to Studio

A crisis of Confidence…

So yesterday I was struggling with the idea of identity. In Second Life I am known as Gracie Kendal. Face Book, Gracie Kendal- Twitter, Gracie Kendal- Myspace, Gracie Kendal- LinkedIn, Gracie Kendal…. Where do you draw the line between RL representation and SL representation? As an artist in RL, I upload my works to Second Life and sell digital virtual copies of my work. I use SL to help get my work out there to a worldwide audience. No one can deny that SL is wonderful for t

Second Life: A Global Art Community….

Hi my friends. Wanted to Say Happy New Years!!! Wanted to run something by you and see if I can get some helpful advice. I am going to be writing my Masters Thesis in Art History, on Art in Second Life. I would love some feedback. Here is a brief explanation of what I am thinking…. This study examines the global online art community of Second Life and discusses the diverse artists and artwork as a motivating force in todays postmodern artworld. This art community shares many

A few snapshots with the friends :D

Just a few snapshots from Second Life. Enjoy!!!! #Alterego #art #jordanmorgenrote #secondlife

It’s only 830pm SLT

And yes…I am logging off SL. Can you believe how early it is??? Yea… It’s better that way. I can actually do something productive in RL, like read for my thesis, or wait, even write it. Wow…what a concept. Another day almost gone, and not much accomplished. Ok….well..depends on who you ask. My boys at Cedars got a lesson in Art History. Yep.. I showed them images by DaVinci, Caravaggio and their friend Mapplethorpe. we even analyzed the punched hole in the Monet. Yep, you he