adobe illustrator - new paintings!

i have made it my mission to learn adobe illustrator this summer, along with some help from my friends rob antonucci and jillian erhardt.
its a massive, fun, and at times challenging program, but yields amazing results.
here is what i have created thus far:

spotify!

have you heard about spotify??? if not, and if you love music, you should check it out.
for $5 (premium), or $10 (unlimited) you basically get an itunes-like interface, but all the songs stream at full quality... pretty much any song ever recorded.
if you are on, or sign up, find me! its really easy and fun to share music - personal playlists, artist, or albums.

end of the year art spectacular!

please join us on friday, june 17th for our annual webster thomas high school art studio night. this is one of the highlights of our school year, and a great way to celebrate all the amazing artwork that is created all year long by our young artists.

we hope that you can join us for great artwork and great free food from 5-7pm!

summer wisdom

friday wisdom... with video!

scribbler!

basically, you should just go try this now.

[thanks to a.j. gere for the heads up.]

friday wisdom.

jordan tiberio - H&M shirt design

hi friends.

if you have a second (or 5 to be exact), head on over to H&M's website and vote 5 stars on my student jordan tiberio's tshirt design.

they are having a competition to design a shirt, and there is also a $2000 cash award that goes along with it.

super easy!

studio in art! color theory! quiz!

a quiz in art?!?

check THIS out:

'it gets better' project

see, there is some worth in watching commercials!

i typically thank god for dvr, because it keeps me from feeling like i am being force fed whatever garbage america is selling. BUT, while in the hospital last night holding my sleeping 2-day old baby, a commercial came on during the office for the 'it gets better' project. this is a user-generated, cyber-community started to give voice and hope to people (aimed at youth, but i would guess that they're not the only ones who struggle) who are gay but afraid to 'come out'.
i was struck by the awesomeness of this campaign, and felt immediately like it needed to be shared.

so... if you are struggling... feeling alone... just type your way over to www.itgetsbetter.org (or click the previous link) and become immersed in others (people you recognize and people you dont) who want to help hold you up and honor who you are.

artpeace shakedown scholarship winners!

thomas ap art students rachel king and lyuda didovets were each awarded $1000 scholarships through artpeace shakedown, an annual county-wide high school arts exhibition.

rachel and lyuda were selected from over 65 other applicants, based on their submission of an art piece and an essay on the importance of the arts. these two young ladies will be awarded the scholarships at the shakedown opening tonight (friday, may 13^th) at 6:30pm at village gate.

YOU SHOULD GO! its a wonderful event full of delicious food and naturally great artwork from students from around the area.

aviary.com :: online adobe creative suite! for free!!!

thanks to tech guru max kelley, i found out about a great alternative to the adobe creative suite for those of you who don't have the money or don't want to do any illegal downloading.
the program is called aviary (www.aviary.com) and has many very similar attributes to the adobe creative suite. the photoshop program ("image editor") looks and runs basically the same.
the best part is, its web-based, so you do not need to download anything to your computer!
enjoy.

friday wisdom :: print it & pass it on!

print it out, write your note in the speech bubble and send it/give it to someone whom you appreciate.
its about time we all pass on some love, right?

fancy friday!

thanks to the black keys for the use of their song.

friday wisdom :: spring break edition

the texting lane gets some press!

thanks to mrs. rosenberry for her observations.

friday wisdom

friday wisdom

scholastic art awards 2011!

Congrats to all of the students who had their work submitted to the Scholastic Art Awards for the 2010-11 school year. Once again, both Webster High Schools faired well in this competition - receiving 15 regional Gold Key awards and 1 national Gold Key.
The winners are as follows:

REGIONAL
Thomas High School:
Courtney Brown Drawing
Brianna Cahill Ceramics & Glass
Austin Frank Drawing
Austin Frank Painting
Amanda Gere Photography Portfolio
Dominic Montante Drawing
Jessi Putnam Mixed Media
Jordan Tiberio Photography
Jordan Tiberio Photography
Jordan Tiberio Photography
Nicole Zoyhofski Ceramics & Glass

Schroeder High School:
Lauren Cronk Painting
Samantha Gibney Mixed Media
Victor Piacentini Sculpture
Lori Posato Painting

NATIONAL
Thomas High School:
Jordan Tiberio Photography ("7 Days With You"):

artist of the week :: kris lewis

kris lewis says, "as i begin a painting the subject physically, emotionally and spiritually reveals itself to me. each brushstroke speaks to the subsequent stroke, carrying out a dialogue, linking my subject and me as if we were meeting for the first time. i find this uncertainty exciting and embrace the indecisive nature of my work."

his work although contemporary in theme is classical in composition and style. this interaction and dialog with the history of art is inspiring, and reminds us that we dont live in an artistic bubble. lewis' latvian heritage is evident in the works, as is the influence of artists like albrecht durer, hieronymus bosch, gustav klimt, and hans holbein. they also have a strong motion picture/hollywood quality to them in my opinion - again showing that what we digest informs what we create.

find out more at his website.

new painting :: dan auerbach "everlasting light"

i'm thinking about doing some sort of alphabet series with musician portraits. if i do go ahead with it - this will be the first piece... "B for The Black Keys". this is their singer/guitarist dan auerbach.

it is small, allowing me to play with the scale of the stencil openings and marks made by pencils and paintbrushes.

new painting :: john coltrane "blue meditations"

i completed this piece to be hung with my students at our current show at the owl house.
i have been looking at a great deal of collage artists lately. as always, i am continuing to look for ways to create an art work that is part painting and part artifact... almost like it has been pulled out of the ground... once being part of a wall or some larger structure.

artist of the week :: ian ingram

thanks as always to mr. stephens who suggested i check out this contemporary portrait artist.

i am enamoured with his dream-like pastel pieces, including amazing grayscale detailing and small flourishes of color.

you can find out more about each of his pieces (and zoom in really close) on his website.

healing wisdom.

healing wisdom.

healing wisdom :: we'll miss you dan.

friday wisdom.

AP ART SHOW 2011

i'd love it if you all were able to join us for this night of great artwork and delicious food!

friday wisdom :: rest in peace, mr. nowak

i was lucky enough to have been given a wonderful mentor, guide, and teacher in high school by the name of jim nowak.

he taught me so many things... the importance of our words, our deeds, our outlook on the world. how money is worth far less than relationships and self-worth, and that different is good... "there is no weird."

mr. nowak died in a car crash in kenya last week while in the midst of his organization's work building schools and medical facilities (find out more at the building futures website).

he inspired me and just about every person he met. and he will be greatly missed.

google art project - unbelievable!

i can not wait to use this in class.
you should all go check it out NOW!