15 Questions for Scott

Name: Scott Donald
Born: June 9th, 1977

1. Where are your family roots from? My family isn't really from somewhere in particular. My mother's family was in the military so they lived everywhere. My dad was from Greenville, South Carolina but he lived in a lot of places. I was born in Orlando but grew up in East Tennessee and Northern Virginia near Washington DC.

2. How have your parents/guardian influenced you? That's a big question. My mom and grandfather probably had the most influence. My grandfather was a very pragmatic and intelligent man who I looked up to greatly all my life. My mother home schooled me until high school so I learned most of what I know from her. My father was a mess and taught me more about what not to do with my life. Although, looking at him fairly, he did have his moments where he inspired me as a child to be proud of my art. He was a hard worker too — I think I get my work ethic from him.

3. Can you remember your earliest childhood memory of happiness and that of fear? I remember being a baby and having dogs that I played with and loved, that's my happy memory. However, when I was three or four my parents were building their own house. The upstairs was unfinished and I thought it was haunted. I recollect being asked to go up there for some reason and having this paralyzing fear of it. My folks probably thought I was nuts but just the idea of it made my shit run cold. 

4. Is there something in your life that you feel very passionate about? I'm passionate about my wife and kids. I love learning about health, food and cooking. Also, the David Lynch version of Dune. I'm a whaling history buff too. 

5. If you could be any animal, what animal would that be? plant? and insect? why? For an animal I would be a kickass amazing horse. They are strong, noble and elegant vegetarians. My favorite plant is a birch tree. I also like ferns. I can't say that I'd like to be either one cause being a plant seems dull. For an insect though, I'd be a Polyphemus Moth. I used to collect insects and the Polyphemus kicked off that interest. 

6. What is it about being an Artist/graphic designer that keeps you satisfied for it to be your career? I learn a bunch every day. I'm my happiest when I'm thinking and exploring ideas.

Unpatterning

7. What is your process? medium? and heroes? My design process is fairly normal, sketches, comps and so forth. For my artwork it is usually searching for ideas, then drawing them a bunch of ways and getting irritated and quitting. I put the idea on the shelf for a while and then it usually comes back stronger. My medium is typically acrylic on wood or paper. I like ink and scratchboard too. My art heroes are David Hockney, Barry McGee, Souther Salazar, Maya Hayuk, Daniel Clowes, Gary Panter and way more than I could easily list.

Jacob and Esau // Pink Deer

8. Can you tell us something that you just learned that intrigued you? There's this siberian mummy that was found several years ago. They think her remains are about 2,500 years old but she was in the cold so her skin is intact and very well preserved. She was buried with 6 horses and two men — possibly escorts for the afterlife. All of that is cool, but the most fascinating thing is that she was covered in incredible tattoos. You can look them up, she's called the "Ukok princess".

                     The Hunters  //  Within a shadow of a doubt

9. What is your perception of how people see you? Still working on how I see myself. Other people are a mystery to me.

10. What are you listening to these days? I listen to Bonnie "Prince" Billy all the time for the past few weeks, but also Waxahatchee, Iceage, The Shirks, Retox and Bleached

11. What's the best and worst decision you ever made? I don't feel like there has been major good decision points for anything in my life. It's not like I "decided" to marry my wife or have kids or learn graphic design. Things feel right and I follow this gradual path of discovery and learning how to be fulfilled. The worst decisions come from being forced away from what feels right. Either time or money or some demanding person pushes me to do something. I think my worst decisions are too personal and gut wrenching to talk about here.

Animals, we are strange  //  Spaced Out

12. Can you narrate to me your proudest moment? When you have a gang of children like I do you end of with lots of little proud moments that collectively add up to create a feeling of pride and joy when you think about them. Smalls moments of my daughter singing solo for her school chorus, my oldest son standing up to kids making racist comments in his class or my youngest telling a brilliant joke at just the right moment. It's stuff like that. Those moments blow away those big expectation points in my life like graduations or winning some award. Dad stuff.

13. What do you find most ridiculous about life? It's unrelenting. I feel like I pay dearly for any downtime I have.

14. Can you share a topic that causes your blood to boil? Ugh, entitled and self-righteous people.

15. If you could take a peek in your future (say 10 years from now), what would it look like? I don't know. I guess it would be similar to how it looks now but less kids in my house. I like my life, I just want to get better at art, business and being a good husband and father.


Please check out his websites for more information on Scott Donald 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottdonald/
http://phantomlimbs.goodsie.com/
http://phantomlimbsart.com/


Thanks Scott!!

15 Questions for Brandon

Name: Brandon Thomas McLean

Birthday: May 17th, 1981

1. Where are your family roots from?
I'm a native Floridian. I grew up in the West Palm Beach area, and spent a lot of time in the Florida Keys also.

2. How have your parents/guardian influenced you?
My parent's were always supportive of my interests growing up from sports, to art. They both always just instilled in me to work hard and to try my best. My Dad has passed on now, but I still find myself listening to his advice, and trying to recollect things he taught me. I wish I remembered more.

3. Can you remember your earliest childhood memory of happiness and that of fear?
I think the earliest childhood memory from happiness was when my sister was born. I had just turned four, and I remember my dad taking my brother and I to Pizza Hut, and then the hospital to see her. The earliest memory from fear was when I thought I saw someone peeping through my window in the middle of the night, and I proceeded to sleep on my parents floor everynight after that for months.

4. Is there something in your life that you feel very passionate about?
Not one particular something. I think I have passion in a lot of the different things I do or get into. But, I also like breaks from them. So it may be an intense period of interest for a short time, but then I need to get away from it too.

5. If you could be any animal, what animal would that be? plant? and insect? why?
House Cat. They seem like they have it pretty good. For plants I'm going to go with a fern. Just being quiet, and mellow, hanging out in the shade. As far as an insect goes, I'd be a love bug. Have sex all day then get squashed by a Buick.

6. What is it about being an Artist that keeps you satisfied for it to be your career?
I think the process of making art is what satisfies me the most. I care about the finished product, but most of the time for me it's the time spent alone making something, and the discoveries of right directions for things in that moment. I'll come to dislike it later on more than likely, but for a minute there I felt so right and confident in a decision to add blue, or put a mark there. That moment when you feel completly right.

7. What is your process? medium? and heroes? I'm rather haphazard and sporadic in my process. I'm influenced by all kinds of things, and I'm generally pretty disorgainzed, so I find myself getting into working in all kinds of ways. From outside influences, inner ideas, or just the need to get in there and put the work in. I mainly work with mixed media, especially collage & photo copy transfers. I have no heroes. But I admire and respect people who go their own way, and break molds.

8. Can you tell us something that you just learned that intrigued you?
Just read a book on the Escape From Alcatraz, "Riddle of The Rock." I love that there is no conclusion. We'll never know for sure what happened to those guys. I like real life mystery.

9. What is your perception of how people see you?
Most people probably say I'm quiet.

10. What are you listening to these days?
The Black Angels. Literally for weeks now. Also Allah Las.

11. What's the best and worst decision you ever made?
Hannah & Hannah.

12. Can you narrate to me your proudest moment?
Summer League Basketball. The eighth grade. Team Allied Exterminating down by two, final seconds. Pass down low to me. I go up. Get fouled, and make it just as the buzzer sounds. Head out to the free-throw line. The court's cleared. Only me. Sunk it!. Win by one.

13. What do you find most ridiculous about life?
Politics and Religion. 

14. Can you share a topic that causes your blood to boil?
How generally bad people are to one another.

15. If you could take a peek in your future (say 10 years from now), what would it look like?
I hope to find myself in the woods sitting on the porch of a modest home having morning coffee with my beautiful wife.


Thanks Brandon!

Check out his website:  http://www.brandontmclean.com

Geminis - Mary Cassatt

May 22, 1844

"Under the Horse Chestnut Tree" by Mary Cassatt, drypoint and aquatint print, 1898

Mary Cassatt (May 22, 1844 – June 14, 1926) was an American painter and printmaker.

Sun Gemini / Moon Leo / Asc Aquarius

Geminis - Christo and Jeanne-Claude / The Ultimate Gemini Duo

June 13, 1935

Christo and Jeanne-Claude were born on the same date — 13 June 1935

Christo - Birth Time: 10pm / Sun in Gemini / Moon in Scorpio / Rising in Capricorn

Jeanne-Claude - Birth Time: 6pm / Sun in Gemini / Moon in Scorpio / Rising in Sagittarius 

Some of there work together:

Jeanne-Claude said she became an artist out of love for Christo (if he'd been a dentist, she said she'd have become a dentist).

Geminis - Prince!

June 7, 1958

Prince Rogers Nelson June 7, 1958

Birth time:  6:17 pm Sun Sign:  Gemini Moon Sign:  Pisces Ascendant Sign:  Scorpio

Vinyl Daze

Here's what I listened to this week on Vinyl. 

Top: The B-52's /Wild Planet, The Beach Boys/Smile, John Lennon/Double Fantasy

Bottom: Harry Nilsson/Knnillssonn, Daryl Hall and John Oates/War Babies, Jay Reatard/Watch Me Fall

Check out this documentary on Harry Nilsson. I didn't know much about him before the movie and now I just love him! The same goes for Jay Reatard. I started listening to him about 6 months before his death. It was a big blow because I got so pumped when I found him and really got into his music. He's so awesome! His music rocks my soul and definitely my teenage defiant side. Yeah, stick it to the world! I remember those days in high school when authority was the enemy like teachers, parents, police and OLD people. ha-ha. Now I can only get that feeling again through music. It's great to feel that again. I hope Olivia and I can rock out to this album when she's feeling angst. I really want to check out this documentary Better Than Something on Jay Reatard.