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Futurama’s Impact on Creativity

10/22/2010

I became addicted to Futurama series on Netflex in the last few days. Is it bad? Well, I definitely felt guilty for watching seven episodes in a row yesterday instead of going to bed early as I initially intended. But what about good impact of this TV show on my life? First of all, I believe laughter is a remedy against any sores and troubles. It cheers you up and lifts your spirit. Second of all, I created a few painting influenced by futuristic landscapes. It would be nice to think of a third reason, but I will come up with it later.
Let’s see what else came out of my latest addiction.

I always have a hard time explaining my work. It is purely the work of my right brain and subconscious mind. When I paint, I gain access to my subconscious mind directly and channel images from there.

Some of you may be surprised, but this could be considered a painting of a Jesus Christ in Futurama world. Look, he is in the belly. Two bushes are the breasts of Virgin Mary. He has to confront evil – the scary plant with the mouth. Three tall eye-balls are the Magi. There was a star in original story, but I can create my own world on campus, right? Therefore, I give them the Sun and the Moon. Also, there is a male volcano on the left (by the Sun) and a female volcano on the right (by the Moon). It could be Adam and Eve. It all comes together, see?

I placed these paintings in Myths and Fairytales section.

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Fun memories from a photo session with Luis Ortiz

10/12/2010

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I met Luis Ortiz this summer. Both of us worked at the Richards Group, the biggest advertising agency in Texas, famous for its iconic Chick-Fil-A cows and many other great ads. Ironically, I met the most creative photographers under the least creative circumstances. Thus, we met with Bill Reeves, an award-winning photographer when both of us struggled with the theories in Advanced Research Methods doctorate-level class at UT. Similar story with Luis: both of us worked in brand planning, studying and analyzing consumers to help building a strategy for effective communications campaigns. Our creative colleagues were bragging about cool shoots with the sport stars and celebrities while we, as planners, were crunching numbers from syndicated databases and screening the footage from customers’ interviews and focus-groups. Yet, fairly soon we discovered that Luis likes to take pictures, and I love to model and create my own artistic look.

It was a very fun photo session. We agreed to shoot in early morning to catch the sunrise light. I intended to radiate the mystery of the East, wearing oriental outfits, jewelry, and makeup.

In the best traditions of a Murphy law I woke up at 4 am with a gigantic mosquito bite on my face. Thus, one of my eyelids was swollen causing an overt asymmetry across my face. I tried to apply some ice and to disguise it with a ton of makeup, and I was somewhat successful in restoring my face.

We decided that Luis will pick me up at 5:15 am, expecting that we will arrive to the location and start shooting around 5:30. Both of us assumed that since it is early September in Texas, the sun raises before 6 am. When we arrived to the destination as planned at 5:30, we discovered that it was dark as in a coal mine with no sign of daybreak. We googled the weather channel, and discovered that we should expect the crack of dawn no earlier than 7 am… We tried to take some shots at night, and apparently stepped into somebody’s poop, genuinely left on the grass either by a homeless person or a dog. At any rate, we realized that we have higher chance s to run across some homeless dudes or wild animals or their doo-doos than to see a ray of light in the next hour or so. Thus, we had plenty of time to grab a breakfast before the sunrise. We began to drive around Dallas trying to find a place that served breakfast so early. After a fairly long drive, we eventually found Denny’s restaurant that was open 24/7. I graciously entered the front door in my eccentric attire. By the looks I received from Denny’s customers and staff, I felt like an alien landed on Earth. However, we began to chat about the social psychology – another topic that both of us are very interested in - and quickly forgot about being under the scrutiny at the restaurant. In fact, while we chatted, we missed the sunrise.

We rushed to the location again, and started shooting. It was a lot of fun. It was very easy and comfortable to work with Luis. I believe, he has a good eye and will continue taking a lot of great pictures in the future.

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Tribute to John Lennon at "Ditch The Fest!” Fest

10/11/2010

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Thousands of people came to the Live Music Capital of the World this weekend to enjoy Austin City Limits festival. Hotels were full and overpriced. My Austin friends split into two camps: ACL lovers and ACL haters. Some wanted to escape from live music, crowds and hippies while the rest couldn’t wait to see their favorite bands live!

For those who didn’t get the tickets to ACL, Lucy the Puddle productions and Cheer Up Charlie’s hosted an alternative music festival featuring more than 40 live music bands on four stages at the East 6th street. “Ditch The Fest” Fest was absolutely free and rocked from noon till 2 am on Saturday, October 9th.

Shortly before the festival, I was asked to make an artwork for “Ditch The Fest” Fest. Since it was also John Lennon’s birthday, I painted his symbolic portrait on the banner.

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Ekaterina's Blog

Futurama’s Impact on Creativity

Fun memories from a photo session with Luis Ortiz

Tribute to John Lennon at "Ditch The Fest!” Fest

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