ten things i learned making paper airplanes

photo: jetheriot

1. There is a sensuousness to razoring paper.

2. Expensive Japanese glue is not superior to Elmer's.

short silent film of a muslim man praying

photo: public domain

A black-and-white man stands with his hands behind his ears. His thumbs are placed behind his earlobes, and his fingers are splayed open like collecting horns receiving an invisible broadcast. His mouth moves as he speaks, but only the sound of a projector clacking can be heard.

theriot family reunion -- aunt sis

shed project -- the video

spinning judy

an icon is a soul utensil

photo: jetheriot

icon: Bulgarian origin, artist unknown

An icon is a small slab of wood onto which is painted the image of a heavenly face. It orients a viewer by virtue of its flatness. There are, technically speaking six sides – front, back and four finger-thick edges – but functionally speaking, an icon has only one side: the front side. The other sides serve only a supporting role. When a viewer experiences an icon, he faces its painted side. In this way, an icon is like a looking glass. For it to work, a viewer must be directly in front of it, facing it like a mirror from another realm.

shed project

Ever since seeing a movie a couple of months ago about street artists and graffiti artists who use stencils to paint their works on buildings, I have been wanting to do a large-scale art project. When I saw the old tractor shed looking sad and abandoned with some lazy and ugly graffiti on the doors, I knew it was the perfect spot for something. Cleaning out and fixing up the old house on the property had been rewarding, so  I thought it was time to give the shed a new look. But what to paint?