I just finished a weekend in Detroit with the Oddities and Curiosities Expo. this is my second to last show with them for the year. I’m sad that it’s almost over because I enjoy the community and they do such a wonderful job communicating and helping their vendors. I really enjoyed staying in Detroit as well- the last time I was there was way back in 2006-2007 when I was playing bass guitar in a post-punk band. It was cold and I didn’t really get to see much of the city since I was only there to play a show at someone’s house. When I was touring we would just drive straight to the venue or to the hosts house that organized the show and wait around until the gig happened, so not much sightseeing. This time around while the majority of it was me working the convention my partner and I took time to see a few places and indulge in some really good Middle Eastern cuisine. I found Detroit to have all around very welcoming and friendly people.
Now that I’m home and starting to see my vending calendar shorten I have been going through the things I sell and making decisions on what I am going to archive and what I’m going to keep as an open edition. I’m slowly transitioning towards more printmaking art and I’m hoping to have several new pieces for next year. I just produced a linoprint that I am very excited about, the first one that I’ve been truly happy with its results. I’ve learned that sometimes it just takes finding the right materials to find that happiness and to get the quality I’ve been searching for. For me it is cutting on thick mounted linoleum blocks and using tan toned linoleum over the more common grey. I’ve also learned that I need to slow down and just enjoy the process in the moment. I tend to get caught up in what the end will be so I get anxious and rush when I have no reason to be in a hurry.
That’s the thing about vending as well - feeling pressured to produce something new and impressive. It’s like a little monster, the same monster that runs around in my mind to get something posted on social media or else I’m a failure. I had the same feeling when the band Ghost put out their new persona and album a couple months ago. I was like- “Oh I gotta make something NOW because I’m one of the many artists that makes Ghost stuff!” I set aside other projects and made what ended up being three different variations of an idea guided by the person that does all the artwork handling for the band. I tried but in the end what I made and what I was asked to do was not syncing up and then communication got strained. I could see it wasn’t going to work out and I wanted to be done and walk away from it. That experience made me take a step back and reflect on what I’m doing in this art world. I was letting pressure to please the masses guide me instead of the love of creating art.
So, now I’m putting love on a pedestal and love says slow down-you’ve done enough- enjoy this moment and the rest will fall into place as it’s meant to.
I’m going to do less conventions next year so that I can have more time to work on my printmaking. I’d like to try some new cities and I’ve decided other than perhaps doing one hometown show I’m strictly only booking with Oddities and Curiosities Expo. This year I booked 10 shows, 5 with O&CE and it’s been ALOT for me. It’s been great and I’ve enjoyed this adventure but I am feeling that this may have been too much especially since vending is not the only thing I do. Tattooing also comes with a huge amount of work a preparation and is also extremely important to me and I do not want to deter from it. Next year my plan is to only sign up for 5 shows.
Posted picture of my test print of the new linocut I made called Apparitions.
-love and light
