"Creativity is a consequence of action, not its motivation. Do what needs to be done and then ask whether it was possible. Orthodoxy is the enemy of invention, despair an insult to the imagination."
– Wade Davis
I hope that this first blog update of 2016 finds you well! I just turned 32, and looking back at this newsletter that I started at age 24, I'm rekindled with enthusiasm to make this year's offerings my best yet. This year feels like the year to dream and create as big as possible – and I'm glad to tell you that two of my most overdue, ambitious projects are now underway!
Specifically: My friend Evan "Skytree" Snyder and I just started recording episodes of our new podcast, Future Fossils (join our Facebook group for some great conversations) and Evan has also volunteered to produce my next studio album (my first legitimate musical release since before I started painting!). Expect more news on both of those endeavors here soon.
In the meantime, this year's off to a great start. Enjoy, stay in touch, and have a beautiful day!
MG on Lucid Planet Radio with Dr. Kelly:
"The Psychedelic Imagination and the Future of Humanity"
Nothing like kicking off your birthday week with a live radio appearance. How we managed to have such a deep and far-ranging conversation while getting interrupted every fifteen minutes for commercials, I will never know – but we did!
Kelly and I talked about anxiety management and the wisdom of insecurity; asked if it's really possible to put a price on art (or happiness); gave our practical suggestions for how to be creative; and discussed my crazy thought that psychedelics might offer us the best metaphor for understanding how the Internet is changing humankind. Read her show notes and stream/download our chat here.
Yay! I finally received the sample of these new gorgeous jacquard loom visionary art blankets – scientifically designed to trap heat and attract synchronous encounters.
Yay! I finally received the sample of these new gorgeous jacquard loom visionary art blankets – scientifically designed to trap heat and attract synchronous encounters.
This is the same company that manufactures blankets for some of my favorite artists, including Alex Grey – and they don't mess around. These are big ol' throws for full-on hiding: 77" long by 51" wide. (Observe the difficulty I endure to hold it fully open!) Super soft 100% cotten grown and woven in the USA (with 60% recycled material, because Nature).
Turnaround is just over a month right now, so the sooner you can put in your order the better! I want to make sure you've got plenty of cold weather left this year in which to benefit from this. :)
Talk about some New Moon manifestation! I finished this painting on a Saturday night, deciding it looks like a space salad and naming it "Share What You Have." None of this was especially intentional. Then on Sunday, the next morning, I went to sing at the Hope Farmer's Market here in Austin, slinking back into my singer-songwriter chops and unwittingly putting the painting's title into practice. I got paid in vegetables from Johnson Backyard Garden: fennel, bok choy, kale, collard greens, cabbage, cilantro, beets, sweet potato, dill, salad greens, and carrots! How is that for painting your own future? I do not believe that time is linear.
Just a small commission for a friend based on the Norse myth of twin wolves, Skoll and Hati. The sons of monster wolf Fenrir (who it is foretold will kill Odin at the end of time), Skoll is the black wolf who chases the sun, and Hati is the white wolf who chases the moon. At Ragnarok (Norse Judgment Day), they will both succeed, hastening the end of the world. Daaaaaaamn! This piece is irreverently titled "Dogfight" and was made with oil and acrylic paint pens on a 12" square canvas.
Turnaround is just over a month right now, so the sooner you can put in your order the better! I want to make sure you've got plenty of cold weather left this year in which to benefit from this. :)
Painted live with oil & acrylic markers and aerosol paint on masonite (32"x24") at:
• 2016-01-06 – Vulcan Gas Company for Solstice Live Presents:
CAPYAC, Henry + The Invisibles, Food Group, Blanc, Pyrograph
• 2016-01-09 – Fair Market for Utopiafest & Black Fret Present:
Holiday Mountain, Shinyribs, The Midnight Stroll, Calliope Musicals, Mobley
Talk about some New Moon manifestation! I finished this painting on a Saturday night, deciding it looks like a space salad and naming it "Share What You Have." None of this was especially intentional. Then on Sunday, the next morning, I went to sing at the Hope Farmer's Market here in Austin, slinking back into my singer-songwriter chops and unwittingly putting the painting's title into practice. I got paid in vegetables from Johnson Backyard Garden: fennel, bok choy, kale, collard greens, cabbage, cilantro, beets, sweet potato, dill, salad greens, and carrots! How is that for painting your own future? I do not believe that time is linear.
New Studio Painting: "Dogfight"
Painted at home with oil and acrylic paint markers (12"x12")
Loopers' Night celebrates its first birthday (thirteen straight months!) at Strange Brew Lounge in Austin this February 4th. Come if you can! We have an absurd lineup of amazing musical guests, which you can read more about by clicking the banner above.
(And if you'd like to learn more about live looping music, join our Loopers' Night Facebook group!)
My first Gem & Jam Festival was in 2009, and MY how it has grown! Since Firefly Gathering is taking this year off, this may be my only festival in Arizona for the year. I'm bringing lots of art on this trip – if you are going to be there and see anything in my gallery of available originals that you would like, please let me know and I'll make sure to bring it.
A totally beautiful homegrown event in Central Texas, dedicated to the beauty of this planet and its natural elements. I will be playing two sets and live painting and enjoying gorgeous open skies and worldclass rock art talent at this free event. So fun! More details if you click the banner.
...And A Last Word From Your Under-Ornamented Life
Until I have my Patreon campaign online, there are a precious few ways you can show the world that you believe in what I'm doing (or that you just like to decorate yourself intelligently). Here are some options from my Hall of Magical Things over at Society6:
"The most important things that we know fifty years from now will be things we have no idea about right now.”
– Lawrence Krauss
