I would like my own peacock blue, synthetic material, suit please. oh, and throw in some back-up dancers too. thanks.

It's called a Mortarboard

A Chic Songstress

I want this album! Leslie Feist could be singing about anything and I think I would still enjoy it. Her effortless voice is a must-have in any music collection.

I'm Graduating!

In two weeks! May 26th is the commencement ceremony. Four years, one BFA, sleepless nights, substantial relationships, and a semester abroad later....and I am done!

This is the new addition to my life. My poor little G4 just bit the dust. My hardrive experienced a "fatal error" that no techie could fix. FORTUNATELY I did have the foresight to back up my portfolio and some essential folders right before I left for New York. UNFORTUNATELY I have lost all of my pictures, even the ones dating back to High School...all of those pictures now gone almost brings the tears. I have also lost my music. Gone. I lost my lessons for a correspondence class as well, and now have the unhappy task of recreating all of those lessons and face the danger of not completing in time now.

I have had my time of mourning, but the Lord has blessed me monetarily and I have been able to replace my loss.
Its not that my MacBook could ever really replace PowerBook. I love them both, just in different ways. I will miss the PowerBook for the sentimental aspects. While it was a flawed machine, its LCD screen blaring a magenta color after sleep mode then slowly color correcting itself, or its scratches and pathetic battery life, it brought me through 3.8 years of college; sleepless nights slaving over Illustrator of Photoshop. However, I cannot deny the appeal of the sleek, chic silver design of MacBook Pro. The quiet purr of the computer, the informative and enjoyable widgets, the added vanity of a built in camera, and a new processor equals an attractive toy.

and just for fun, I will now post pictures that any self-respecting artist would not show, purely because it requires the admittance of the pleasure of "cheap" effects.

Four months ago I was headed toward a senior show and what I thought would be my defining moment as an artist. Four months ago I could never have imagined myself on the other side of the stress and pressure I was enduring. Now, after this milestone has been completed, like a check mark on "Lauren's Life Goals," I find myself staring ahead to a future that remains a thick fog...it is only speculation and conjecture from here on out. But I'm ok with speculation. I will admit, there are days when I begin to doubt my abilities to function in post-college-adult-world. A perpetual voice whispers, "you don't have enough experience" or "you don't know enough about computer and print terminology." But when can you ever be fully prepared? Who will give me a chance to prove myself. I am a fast learner, and will do my job well.

The plan as of now: Finish school. I am able to walk this May, but will graduate deficient. I have to take summer school courses in order to finish. Not too shabby considering I did take time off for New York. Once done with summer school, I will be moving home temporarily. In the fall I hope to take a trip to NY, and then come back down to California. But who knows, plans are not written in stone.

I realize it has been awhile since I last wrote. Blogging is the last thing on my mind these days. I am now down to three weeks until my show on March 19. I have a hard time sleeping at nights for all of the thoughts that run through my head, I am always tired, I am drained emotionally, mentally, physically and all those "ally"s and I am just looking forward to the day when the show is over and I can have a social life again. I realize that this makes me sound ungrateful for the opportunity to be showing at the University Gallery, and I do not mean it to, because I understand that this is a great thing. But when you are in your studio day in and day out...a studio with practically zero natural light and all flourescent...and you are drawing minute and obsessive little drawings, your eyes start to burn and you forget to eat and all you can think of is how many more drawings you need to do. You become so focused that sometimes you forget to enjoy the process and get lost in your work.

I am trying to write a philosophy paper...clearly its not going well or I would not be spending 10 minutes writing all of this down. But I needed to update my public on my life. I will be sending out showcards at the end of this week, so if you would like one, please send me your mailing address: lauren.k.mcconnaughey@biola.edu

I still get a kick at this. One of those things that only I think is clever... This is a silkscreen print I created last year for a class. I found it in my files yesterday as I was clearing out the ol' hard drive.

My computer is 4 years old. That is old in a computer's life. I am starting to notice odd quirks. For instance, I have already had the screen replaced after is snapped off last winter (from no abuse of mine). However the new screen turns pink after the computer has been asleep. Slowly it recovers back to its normal state. Its slow to load when I turn it on, really slooooow. The battery life is down to one hour before it needs a charge up, and my applications continually shut down. I need to save up for a new one, and in the meantime, I'm in the process of backing everything up...my whole portfolio is on this machine.

Who has free time? There's too much to do

I really enjoy spying in the studios. I am always curious to see what other students are up to. Usually a competitive feeling comes over me, and I feel that I must begin to make work. Sometimes this results in a feverish pursuit of ideas upon ideas upon ideas. I have great ideas. I do. I keep them written down in a notebook for use in the future. I don't like talking about my ideas too soon, because I would not want anyone to steal them. The problem arises when I do not have enough time to pursue these all. I learned a valuable lesson in NY...just work on one project at a time. Seems like common sense, right? I am still working on this lesson. Last night I was not able to sleep for an hour, because of all of the new ideas rushing through my head in regards to my senior show. The visions of the completed projects are stunning, really fantastic. I wish I could just show you what runs through my head. I hoard ideas.

Speaking of hoarding, I was involved in a very pulchritudinous conversation with my friend Adam about books (like that word I slipped in? Used as an adjective it essentially means lovely, beautiful, splendid, etc.). That is, we talked about our deep fondness for them and the impulse to constantly buy, buy buy! I was informed by said friend, that the word Bibliophile is a person who loves and collects books, but a Bibliomanica is an exaggerated preoccupation with the acquisition and ownership of books. I might be bordering on the maniac. We'll need to keep an eye on that. It could be a social hazard.

I am currently reading "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safron Foer. Very bittersweet.


Do you remember the show Reading Rainbow? Well guess what kids, its still on the air! http://pbskids.org/readingrainbow/
I couldn't ever remember LeVar Burton's name, all I knew was that Reading Rainbow was on Star Trek and wore a headband over his eyes. I remember one episode specifically. RR got into the trunk of a limo that was in fact, a spa. Oh that RR, always having adventures.

Good Ol' La Mirada, Home of the Biolans

Back at Biola. I am taking a class on the book of Job during interterm, which is proving to be far more interesting than I originally thought it would be. I have started moving stuff into my studio, but its still a bare, sad studio. This weekend i have plans for you little studio, oh yes...spending quality time figuring out my senior show tactics. I need to get rid of this ulcer and start sleeping at nights.

I am already making my strategy for a return to New York. Alright, so maybe not a definite strategy, not a spokenoutloud plan, but they are there. CNN.com reported that over the weekend a pungent odor permeated Manhattan, from Midtown down to Battery Park city. A few buildings were evacuated and though this didnt stop the subway lines, my guess is that most opted to walk that day. Odor and toxicology tests revealed that this was an non-threatening odor. But I'm going to be honest here, I wanted so bad to be there...a bit jealous of the hubub and all that is New York. And I would take it too, odor and all.

I am going to be updating this here blog, it doesn't stop with New York. So don't worry your little heads, you will be able to read these tasty nuggets I leave you from now and forever on...

I have efficiently wasted 2 hours perusing the internet. My new apartment is lacking in wireless these days, which has proven a good parameter in keeping me to task with the Job class homework. More to come...

I have left New York and was not able to meet with Tim Tomkinson. My hopes took a hard crash, but I don't think they are permanently damaged. In our correspondence, though brief, he did allude to the fact that he was very busy.....
"up to my eyeballs" I think was the exact term. I was busy myself. Margo came and spent about 5 days with me in the big apple, and it was splendid. Every day was full, and I have viewed so much art this last week that my visual art quota is more than filled, actually overflowing, for the present time. The weather was nice for her visit, not nearly as cold as I initially anticipated, which made all of the walking we did enjoyable.

I am not able to sleep right now, jet lag is kicking in, and I was just awoken with a dream about NYCAMS and professor Romaine telling me that my final paper, which I thought somewhat brillant, deserved a C, because I had not provided a thesis statement and had midway through the paper stopped writing about de Kooning and started writing about how Joseph Bueys was crazy (which is true).

Now I am in my room at my parent's house. I had forgotten how fantastic my bed is, but unfortunately it is almost too soft...I have been sleeping on a brick this whole semester. It is good to be home, but I may have left a part of my heart in New York.

NYCAMS, Fall 06

A group photo right before our Index Show opening. More pictures to come...

Dia: Beacon

Last Friday our class took a trip to the Dia center in Beacon, NY. The space is amazing. It was once a Nabisco factory that was renovated and now has a large art collection. It was a beautiful train ride as well, and we even passed the ruins of a castle on this island on the Hudson. The weather was warm and humid, but it was such a gray and misty day. The clouds rolled low over the water, and the bare, brown trees crowded around the banks. It was a day that was taken straight out of Wuthering Heights. I'm fairly confident that Bronte could have written her best stuff on a day like that. You half expect some tragic or romantic event to take place. Upstate New York was everything I had hoped it would be and more...and that was just the scenery. Inside the center, I saw Sol Lewitt drawings that would make you cry, Richard Serra's torqued elipses, and Joseph Bueys felt stacks, just to name a few.

And it Breaks my Heart...

My face is about to freeze off.

Rachel and I are debating what is better, winter hair, or summer hair. I make the argument for winter hair. In the winter, your cheeks get rosy and your hair may be tossed about, but it still retains some volume. Rachel hates winter hair. She gets static. She likes summer "because its not as frizzy and dry."

This is a completely nonsensical post.

I'm Such a Stalker...

For the past two years, I have more or less idolized the work of illustrator Tim Tomkinson (www.timtomkinson.com). He is a phenomenal draftsman, and I really like his aesthetic. About two weeks ago I discovered that he lives in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, which is a neighbor to Brooklyn Heights, where I live. I sent him an e-mail and for the most part said, "Tim, I love your work, big fan here. Wanna meet up, you know, discuss art and grad school recommendations?" and after a week of anxiously waiting, I get a reply saying, "Hey Lauren, thanks for the interest, really flattered. Let's meet up, I'm really busy lately, but seeing as you are such a big fan, and are probably a really fantastic person, I'll invite you to my studio." And though this really happened, the dialogue was slightly more professional.
So I am of course, ecstatic right now, and i have already been making a list of quesions, you bet. But for those of you who are thinking, "woa, lauren, don't seem too excited, and don't ask too many questions..just play it cool," you have no need to worry, because if I have learned anything this past year, its to always act casual when meeting really fantastic people.

These are a few images from Tim's website. Check it out!

The artist is a philosopher who attempts to create imagery/environment that speaks of the human condition.

Musing on Rothko and Richard Serra.....

I felt the need to post these drawings. Not that they are amazing, but mainly because I worked on many for fashion week and most of them were never seen. I haven't been able to post any Thanksgiving pictures yet, but I will soon.

It is now down to the last week and a half, and among final projects I have 4 papers to write, I need to pack, and it is time to start shipping art and all of my supplies back down to California.

Senior Photo

The woman Silas is interning with was so kind to take our portraits for the Biola yearbook.

I am finished up with my internship hours, and I am looking forward to the extra time on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I have to write 4 papers within the next three weeks. THREE WEEKS! that is all the time I have left here in NY.

The cold weather is back, and it looks like its finally here to stay. We had a couple of weeks that stayed between 40-low 60's. But with the cold weather has come the Christmas decorations. Macy's just revealed their windows, and the city is bedecked in reds and greens. I walked by the ice rink at Bryant Park today...I think that maybe this weekend I will make my way over there. It is a bigger rink than the one at Rockefeller, and there are not as many spectators to see you fall either.

Rachel's family is in town for Thanksgiving, and they were so kind as to invite me out to dinner with them the other night. We ate at the Carnegie Deli, a used-to-be popular hotspot where performers would hang out after their shows at Carnegie Hall. The decor is so...quirky. There are framed and signed photographs of all the stars that have eaten at the deli, and they line the walls from floor to ceiling.

Sorry I haven't been posting enough photographs until now. My camera's battery has been dead for weeks and I continually forget to charge it.
Soon to come...photos of our Thanksgiving Feast and the Macy's parade...

An assortment of photos..some are from a splendid day in Central Park.