All We Ever Wanted...

Dear Friends,

I am taking a break from my blog. A blog-cation if you will.

Why, you ask?

Because even though I love it, I am momentarily burnt to a crisp. There, I'll admit it.

Coming up with quality content each week is pretty intense. I also find that I am becoming almost addicted to your love, your attention, your needs, your blog comments, as well as your MySpace and Facebook messages. Thank you for all of this, your support is amazing and cherished.

I have talked about working as an artist as being a solitary profession, and I have talked about my complete joy at finding a sense of community: locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. I love both aspects, but things have gotten a bit out of whack for me.

Finding balance between the alone time in the studio creating and time on the Internet in the world of promotion, networking, and blogging is no easy task.

So with that said, I am letting myself off the hook for the rest of August. I will return Friday September 5th.

And I will return with a BANG- I promise! I hope you all will still be here and that I won't lose any of you, because my readers mean so much to me. So take a holiday, you don't need to read this blog for the next 3 weeks. What will we all accomplish in that time? It is kind of exciting...

Meet me back here on September 5th okay? Have a great 3 weeks and take care of yourselves.

Keep painting and keep fighting!

I love you all. I really do, and somehow I think you know that.
xx- Megan

PS. I miss you already.

Pictured above:

Toward the Inside
Megan Chapman
Mixed Media on Canvas
30x24" $725
www.ddpgallery.com

P.P.S I will be in Little Rock, Arkansas tonight for 2nd Friday Art Walk at the River Market ArtSpace from 5-8pm. If you live in Little Rock, hope to see you there. There are pieces of the Evidence of the Disappearance on display at the gallery as well as my older work.

Just a little something...

What My Mind Needs

Dear Readers,

Today I am going free form. You know I love art, spreading information, and sharing my thoughts from my composition books with you about art and life. But, the weeks are rolling by so fast and I need to catch my breath! So, I feel it is time for another inspiration grab bag. I want to share with you what is moving and influencing me at the moment.
Stay cool...
Yours,
Megan

First I will start off with some films I have seen recently.


Be With Me by Eric Khoo. This film is so lovely in every way. I highly recommend it.



3 Iron by Kim Ki-duk. I just watched this. Things are not always as they seem. Another lovely film.



Days of Wine and Roses. This was originally shown to me by my 11th grade psychology teacher as a grim portrait of alcoholism. This film is perfect in many ways, and Jack Lemmon was truly one of the best. Don't just go by the trailer, if you haven't seen this before it is a classic not to be missed.



I wish I could have found a clip or trailer for this 1962 film David and Lisa directed by Frank Perry. I fell in love with both David and Lisa and the stark setting of their story. This is another must see!



A friend sent this video to me, featuring the dance scene from Jean-Luc Godard's film Bande a part ( band of outsiders) set to the music ( not original to the film) of Nouvelle Vague. After I saw it, I had to buy the song, and I am currently watching Bande a part. The film makes me long for a rainy fall and winter, sweaters and pea coats. A lovely black and white world.

Books:


















In the last two or three weeks I have read After the Quake, After Dark, and Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami.

I was recommended his work by a fellow painter, and when I visited the author's website I knew right away I would be a fan. His books are amazing worlds filled with magic, wise words and dreams. These books and characters will stay with me for a long time, and I plan to seek out all of Murakami's other books as well. I highly recommend them. I just finished reading/listening to Kafka on the Shore, in a new format called a "playaway." A preloaded Mp3 player that I checked out from my local library, it was amazing in itself. Just supply your own headphones and a AAA battery and you are good to go. Light weight and easy. The reading of this book was superb, the characters really came to life.



Another friend of mine sent this clip out as a myspace bulletin the other night and I was really taken with it. The guy in the clip is Tim "Speed" Levitch, a tour guide for Manhattan's Gray Line double-decker buses (thanks Sarah and imdb for the additional information). Tim is a real character and perhaps some sort of genius.

Just to infuse a little "I don't take myself that seriously" pop goodness into the mix, I will leave you with MIA's song Paper Planes.. Very catchy.. of course I love it because of the riff from The Clash's song Straight to Hell.



These artists, these film makers, musicians and writers, they make me sing and soar outside of myself and I am grateful and inspired.

Thanks for the vacation. I hope you enjoyed it too.
Next week back to the serious world of ART!