Researching other artists at Local Bookstores

Going into local bookstores and boutiques has got to be like falling into a Rabbit Hole, but it's one of my favorite things to do.  Why?  Because you run into all of these marvellous items, like books and art, and I love getting lost in them. 

To be honest, it's hard not to get intimidated by all the talent that sits on these shelves, but I try not to think about that.  Each of these books, records, illustrations are completely different from one another, and in a sense that's what makes them so precious. 

My rabbit holes for this week were:

Needles and Pens

Dog Eared Books

Mission Comics and Art

Vulnerable and Fearless

A jacket goes over my cardigan that goes over my shirt that goes over my tang top, and every now and then, a bra hugs my breasts.  “I wear layers to keep me warm.” At least, that’s what I say.  Really, though… I use these layers to protect me from your eyes.  I try to thicken my skin with them.  How many times must I shed before you see me? 

Reserved.  I hide.  As strong as I pretend to be, I am still reclaiming my body.  Though I judged my grandma for wearing shawls to Church, I - too - shield myself from desire - theirs or mine, who knows!  But it shouldn’t be this hard to believe that my body is mine.  I didn’t steal it.  Why should I hide it?  But when I look in the mirror and I notice my breasts, my waist, my hips, my thighs, I think of the catcalls I’ll get as I walk down the street and I get angry.  Do I want to look cute or avoid attention?  I over think everything a million times over.  I treat my body like I treat my words; I censor my thoughts before I even understand them.

I read zines because they’re naked.  Words get spilled through pages to become satires and confessions.  Words like “secret,” “mute,” “shame,” “rape,” might stand out, but phrases such as “Change is necessary, good and inevitable,” and “Let the monsters out of the closet,” and “I should treat myself better,” ring even louder.  

I shed my layers by writing.  I show off my voice and illustrate my dreams.  I'm the smart ass who flirts with a smile and a wink.

  

Alice Bag is my Punk Rock Hero

Growing up with nothing but brothers is not easy.  Often, you crave the attention of a sister.  In my case, I always wanted an older sister.  Since I didn't have one, I would adopt them.  Sometimes they would be women I knew, like the women who dated my brothers and their friends, but I also adopted celebrities.  For the most part, they were musicians, writers, and cartoonist.  This is my homage to one of my "older sisters," Alice Bag.

Alicia Armendariz, or better known as Alice Bag, was one of the first women to enter the Punk Rock scene in East LA.  She defined herself for who she wanted to be. And after her Punk rock days were over, she dedicated herself to working in bilingual education.  And is constantly reinventing herself and is an example of someone who defies all limits.

SF Zine Fest 2011

As always, Zine Fest is the place to meet the most coolest creative people, and the place for inspiration.  I always forget how overwhelming it is - but I mean this in a good way.  Walking through those aisles, it's impressive to see how many people put the effort into creating their own comics, maganizes, and crafts.  I came across a few new people whose work I really enjoyed.  One was Roman Muradov (http://www.bluebed.net/) and the other was Jaime Crespo (www.jaimecrespo.com).  Also, Papercutter has some ravishing work (http://tugboatpress.com/).  

This was my first time doing Zine Fest, or selling at my own table.  I got to be next to my friends Monkey & Seal (www.monkeyandseal.com), which made the whole experience even better!  It's been a lot of work, and say this feeling really happy about the effort I put into my Zines as well as the experience of representing my work for the first time.  I've been dreaming about having my own table since the first time I came to this event.  Seeing other people working on their artwork so passionately, made me realize that I could do the same.  And I DID!  Therefore, this was a pretty big deal to me.  

I wasn't able to sleep for days.  I've been writing, editing, drawing, inking, cutting, pasting, coping, and stapling nonstop.  There have been many times when I've felt exhausted, but my brain just wants to keep creating.  I stopped feeling sleepy after awhile.  I also stopped feeling hunger, so I just kept going.  The thing that surprises me is that even though I've been lacking food and sleep, I've been extremely happy.  The creative momentum is carrying me through.  On top of that, I was thrilled to have a table where I could sell my work.  I enjoy putting these books together, from start to finish.  It's fun to design a cover and think about all of it's pages are going to look like - what story, poem, drawing will follow.  It's like putting a soundtrack together.  When I was a kid, making mixes was always my favorite thing to do, so this makes sense.  

Anyway, it has been an awesome weekend!  It felt like a debut.  I am happy to have gained this experience and I to have the opportunity to share my work with you.  It gives me the drive to creat more and to improve.  Hopefully, I get to do this again for APE.  

Much <3,

Liz 

P.S.  THANK YOU for passing by and being supportive!

on haitus

It's been a while since I posted anything on this webpage.  The past two months have been eventful in the best of ways.  My family and I traveled for a little bit.  My mom and I took a vacation on our own, but afterwards we visited our family in Mexico. 

Anyway, I've been writing and drawing in my journal every day, but it's been old school - like with a pen and paper.  Technology hasn't always been within reach. In some ways that's good.  But that's the reason why I've been missing for two months. 

Now it's time to get back into the routine of things, but my pace changed really quickly.  Zine Fest is this weekend and I've been working really hard to create something good.  I've only been back for 2 weeks, so it's been hard to finish all of the projects that I had in mind.  Either way, I posted a picture of the Zine I just finished.  It turns out that Italy gave me a lot to think about.  Both Zines are based on stories that I thought of while I visited Italy.  I think it's fascinating the many types of people that you come across in a place as powerful as Rome. 

 I also have a lot of material on Mexico.  But since these stories and comicx, or what comes with it, is a lot more personal, I need to take more time on it.  You'll be seeing postings soon enough, though.  

Cheers!