How do you stay motivated when learning an instrument? Did you just start a learning an instrument? Are you having trouble staying motivated? Are you frustrated with your slow progress? Ask TVK!Read More
Want to be a Children’s Book Illustrator? Part I
Meet Award-Winning Children’s Book Illustrator LeUyen Pham.
PART I
tales of education and her early career“One of the nicest things about the field that I’m in is that it allows me to constantly grow
and change and develop and learn.”
Although she never took an art class until college, children’s book illustrator LeUyen (la-win) Pham has illustrated over 80 published books in a variety of styles and genres over the past fifteen years (and has even written a few as well.) A unique combination of talent, humility, intelligence, passion, and an infectious laugh have helped propel her career in the competitive world of illustration. She strongly encourages you to follow your own compass, and to always draw in ink.
SHE WASN’T SUPPOSED TO BE AN ARTIST
You know, I think I have always loved kids books. Probably because I was an immigrant kid, my parents didn’t read to me and I didn’t have a lot of books, so I was just one of those “library-obsessed” kids, like the nerdy kid who was best friends with their English teachers who were always referring me to books. But I didn’t think I was gonna do it for a living simply because my parents never thought that an artist could make it, and they never encouraged it as a pursuit to have.
In my family I’ve got three brothers and a sister, and all of us were encouraged to take professions that were money-oriented. So my sister became a doctor, my brother became a banker, my other brother became an engineer—it’s like they were each slated for a role, and I was supposed to be the lawyer. And I actually did go to UCLA and I was a poli-sci (political science) major there for two years.
I took a drawing class for fun—a humanities requirement of some sort– and I will never forget it. The art teacher there was a Fine Artist, and he had us bring in what we thought was a great drawing (of ours). And I didn’t know what a “great drawing” meant. I didn’t know that people used models or anything. But I went home and I thought, “I’m really gonna impress these people,” and I sat down and I made up these two figures dancing. I didn’t draw it from life so, recalling it in my head, I’m sure it was a horrible drawing, but at the time I was really proud of it. I put it up in class, and my art teacher went up, and he looked at it and he was like, “OK, so this is a nice drawing. Where did you copy it from?” And I’m really proud of myself and I say, “Oh, I didn’t copy it. I made it up.” And then he laughed and he said, “No. Where did you copy it from?” And he wouldn’t believe me, and I felt this small in the class and I was really upset.
So after class I took the drawing down, and I went to the head of the Art Department and I was explaining to him what had happened. The head of the Art Department was like, “You’re going to have to show me other drawings that you’ve done,” and I was thinking, “Wow—this guy doesn’t believe me either!” So I go home and I start digging through all of my high school drawings and sketches, and I literally just dumped the pile of drawings on his secretary’s desk and I said, “He asked for these. Let me know what he thinks.” And then a week later he gave me a call and he said, “I’ve made an appointment for you to meet with someone at the Art Center college in Pasadena. I want you to go. You’re in the wrong school—you don’t belong here.” It was amazing! And I was shocked, and I went to see the school, and they looked at my stuff and they said, “Yeah, you need to come to art school. Submit this as your portfolio and you’re done.” And that was it. I never looked back after that.
“I felt so right for the first time in my life”
Livin’ the Dream – Drummer, Dave Beyer
From the stage of Woodstock ’94, Dave Beyer soaked up the view of some 300,000 fans moving to his backbeat and thought, “I’m living the dream.” Drumming for Melissa Etheridge at this epic concert made Beyer realize he’d come a long way from the kid who set up his drums at the end of the driveway, singing and pounding out Beatles songs for all the ‘hood to hear.Read More
CSSSA People – Sydney Brey
Last summer Sydney Brey traveled over 3,000 miles across the country from New Hampshire to attend the California State Summer School for the Arts (CSSSA). Located on the CalArts campus in Valencia, CA, she studied animation at one of the best programs in the country with teachers who actually work in the field of animation.
“I fell in love with animation in 8th grade.”
Why Study Music Instead of Business? Ask TVK
The age old question of “Why music? Why not study business and get paid?” is answered by the one and only Drew Alexander F
orde. Drew is ThatViolaKid, aka, TVK. Drew and Artzray are collaborating to try and answer a bunch of questions that he and other young artists get asked all the time. That’s how this series “Ask TVK” was born.Read More
Arts Internships – Artist Profile with Seven Bowles
Get a Life in the Arts with Internships
Seven Bowles is a digital artist and high school senior from Ohio who currently attends the Linworth Alternative Program. Seven has taken part in numerous art internships hosted by the Linworth Alternative High school such as Independent Costume Design, Primary Art Education, and currently with the Armory Center of the Arts. She has been accepted into the School of Art Institute of Chicago to earn her degree in Studio Arts with an emphasis in Art Education. As the co-creator of the Linworth Community Garden, Seven has donated over 35 pounds of organic whole produce to the Worthington Food Pantry. She is an advocate for many social and political causes in her local community.
This article is part of a monthly series called “Get a Life in the Arts” by the Armory Center for the Arts.
Seven Bowles at the Armory.
Ask TVK – That Viola Kid
Drew Alexander Forde is ThatViolaKid, also known as TVK. He is a violist and graduate student at the acclaimed Juilliard School in New York. Ask TVK is a new Artzray collaboration with Drew. ThatViolaKid shares his positive and passionate message to educate, share and immerse audiences in classical music! Drew does this through interactive performance and social media. Got a question about music? Want to know how to handle an audition? Feeling discouraged about next steps in your musical career? This is a great place to start to get on track! Ask TVK!Read More
FROM “BAD” TO “BETTER”: Television writer Peter Gould
Peter Gould with his “mini me” Saul doll.
Peter Gould exclaims, “I was a bad speller. I had terrible handwriting. Doing papers in school was agonizing for me.” And yet today Peter Gould is an Emmy-award winning writer and co-creator with Vince Gilligan of AMC’s “Better Call Saul”, the highly lauded and hugely entertaining spin-off series of “Breaking Bad”. When asked to talk about his career path in the arts, Peter was charming and forthright about his experiences.
London for Artists on 5 Pounds a Day
The Lonely Londoner’s Arts & Culture Guide – London for Artists – Part 3
Let’s face it, for every artist living it up in London or in any big city, there is always the dilemma of bright lights versus small budget. How do you satisfy your artistic appetite when confronted with a limited budget? For playwrights, you want live theatrical performances. For painters, your muses might be hanging on the walls of the portrait gallery. For musicians, your catalyst might be the pianist’s notes echoing throughout the music hall. And for the aspiring novelist, your guiding light might be on the steps to their favorite author’s house.
However, all of these experiences around the city come with a price tag, and while London for Artists is one of the greatest culture capitals in the world, it is also notoriously expensive.
By: Images Money
Don’t worry; I’m not trying to be overly dramatic.