My How Time Flies

My postcards that I collected while living and traveling in California

I cannot believe that it has been an ENTIRE YEAR since I moved from California to New York.

While I truly miss Los Angeles, I am happy to be in New York. It’s a balancing act, of course. I miss my friends that I made in LA, but I’ve made some great friends here in Buffalo. I am bummed to have to deal with snow again (especially with the winter we had last year and with this year’s Snowvember) but I am SO happy that I can DRIVE to see my family. I miss my scooter, but I am glad to have my car with the rough roads we have in WNY. I miss “summer year-round” but I truly love the changing seasons. etc.

This is not an all-inclusive list, but here are a few lists of things I miss about LA:

Things I miss the most (other than the people, of course) in no particular order:

1.  The mountains.

2. Griffith Park. We would ride our bikes to the Autry Museum and spend the day in their courtyard sketching or lounging in the grass.

3. Comic book stores, especially House of Secrets which I could walk to!

4. Game Dude. There is no better video game store than Game Dude. A walk down memory lane to be sure.

5. Lucha Vavoom

6. Art Museums, especially the Getty Museum: one of my favorite places in the city.

7. Tony’s Darts Away. I have yet to find a better restaurant with good drinks and good vegan food.

8. Olvera Street.

9. The sheer volume of artistic get-togethers, especially for figure drawing.

10. Little Tokyo. I found out about this gem much too late in my time living in LA.

Things I am most surprised that I miss:

1. KCRW. I miss this radio station SO much, especially since my commute is actually further in WNY than it was in LA.

2. The two GOATS who lived in our back yard in Burbank. They belonged to our landlady and they were so, so funny.

3. Not that I drink much, but grocery stores that sell wine or liquor (it’s illegal to sell groceries and wine or spirits in NY!). That additional stop has really kept me from buying much wine or spirits.

4. The studios. While it was an inconvenience when I had to get to work and our street was closed for “filming”, it was neat being in the middle of so much creativity.

5. 24-hour restaurants (Hello, Coral Cafe and Bob’s Big Boy!). I’m not much of a night-owl, but I’m having trouble finding places near my place that are open past 10 PM during the week.

And now for the things that I don’t miss much: Seemingly endless traffic, especially whenever there was an event in Hollywood and we were trying to make our way through it; Smog and droughts; Cost of renting a reasonably-sized apartment. And, of course, being so very far from family.

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Giving Thanks

We couldn’t have asked for a better day!

This Thanksgiving my boyfriend and I spent the morning hiking to the Wisdom Tree on the Cahuenga Peak/ Mount Lee trails. I’ve seen the “Wisdom Tree” watch over the valley for years now and I figured it was high time we go and pay it a visit. You can see the tree perfectly on my daily route, and I’ve heard from several people that “when the time is right” you will go and visit the tree. The weather has been pretty toasty lately, but Thursday morning was nice and cool…a cold front was making its way through the area. I had the day off work, so we left pretty early on in the day.

Look how steep that hike is! I believe that is the Hollywood Basin down below.

According to legend, it’s the only tree that survived the devastating Hollywood Hills Fire in 2007. It’s over 1,000 feet in elevation, and most of that ascent is within a very short distance. I’m in decent shape and I got pretty winded on the way up!

You can see downtown off in the distance. Beautiful.

The hike gives you an incredible view of the city. I really wish that I had taken this hike earlier…perhaps a right when I moved to the city? It’s an absolutely breathtaking view. I love, love, love Griffith Park, but this was one of my favorite outdoor adventures in LA. The main area of Griffith Park is perhaps a little more versatile and a little easier (you can drive or ride your bike many places within the park and it is right by my apartment!), but you can’t beat this view.

The ridge and a tiny peek at the Hollywood Sign in the distance.

You can even see a little corner of the Hollywood Sign in this picture (right in front of the radio tower). Sadly, this is the closest I was able to get to the Hollywood Sign in the years I lived in LA. I’ll have to go back and visit so that I can see the sign up-close!

After the hike we, of course, had some delicious foods that I prepared for my boyfriend and some of our friends. Nothing fancy (Chicken, rice, potatoes, tofu and, of course, pie.) But we were quite hungry after our workout, so a big Thanksgiving Dinner really hit the spot.

Retro Happy Birthday Card

Nothing says summer like a trip to the  fair or, if you’re near the beach, visiting the pier. I especially like taking a ride on the Ferris Wheel. Living in Los Angeles, I like visiting Santa Monica to see the pier; taking a shot at the arcades, riding the roller coaster, then taking a spin on the Ferris Wheel, looking out onto the beach. As fun as the other rides  are, the Ferris Wheel is my favorite; you get a great view of the ocean and the city.

The photograph on this card was taken on a recent visit to the pier, and I think it makes a splendid card. The colors are fantastic.

Art On Display

Here is a view of my work on display at the gallery in Burbank!

Power Blue and Pendants? Yes PLEASE!

Each piece shown here was handmade, drawn, painted, or screen-printed by me. Everything was/is made with love and care, and an extreme attention to detail. This space measures about 10 by 10 feet, although this photograph cuts off a bit of the right-hand side.

I think that everything looks really great! The blue paint for the wall was perfect (I mixed it myself)! One of my friends even said “Page, whenever I see that color blue, I think of you!”

Stay tuned for more pictures soon!

Coming Soon! New Art Show in Burbank

I will be participating in the “Piece Riot” art show in Burbank on October 14, 15, 16. This show should be pretty cool! There is an ecclectic mix of artists participating who work in MANY different mediums.

I will be showing some of my paintings, screen prints, original drawings, and small sculptures. If you’re in Burbank this weekend, you really ought to stop by.

The event is located at 1551 W. Olive Blvd. Burbank CA.

Show starts at 7 PM each night and lasts until 12 AM Midnight.

Become a fan on facebook to get updates on the show!

I will be sure to post pictures of my artwork that I am creating for the show. All of my works will be available for purchase, so stop by and see if there is something you’d like to bring home with you.

If you aren’t able to make it to the show and would like to make a purchase, please visit my online shop to view some of the pieces.

Mural Project Update

I’ve fallen a bit behind in the polls for the 1881 Project’s Mural Contest but I won’t let that get me down…

I’d like to share some  more pictures of my work for the project, both during the process and the final piece. I’m very pleased with my work, and I think it’s a great piece. I think that they needed someone to participate whose work is a little bit on the “lighter” side, and I’m glad they picked me! I’m also pleased that I got to represent lady artists for the competition as well.

Whether I win the competition or not, I’m happy I participated. Please enjoy these photographs taken by me and my Dear Boyfriend, who was kind enough to take a break from his busy weekend and hang out with me throughout most of the competition.

If you haven’t already voted for my piece, please visit the VOTING PAGE for the 1881 Project. I would greatly appreciate your vote!

**Voting has now ended. Thank you all for your support!

VOTE FOR ME!

Please VOTE FOR ME!

If you haven’t heard, I recently painted a mural for a Live-Art Competition in Los Angeles over the weekend of September 23 and 24. I created a lovely little well not-so-little, painting that depicts Hollywood Boulevard on Parade. It is a fun and playful piece that captures both my personal style, and what I always imagined Hollywood to be like. If you’ve never been to Hollywood, it’s a little different than what I imagined, but it does always feel like a parade has just ended. There is always music playing, food cooking, and there is always someone wearing a costume or handing out balloons. I think that my piece captures the idea of Hollywood very well, just without any of the copyrighted characters that seem to spend their time there.

Here’s how to vote:

More information is available on the 1881 Project website, but this is a competition for the community of Los Angeles AND the WORLD to participate in the outcome of this competition. I was picked along with 8 artists to paint an individual mural inspired by one of “Los Angeles’ Famous Boulevards”, and we each chose very different subject matter, mediums, and boulevards. If you like my piece, I would really appreciate your vote! You can vote with your email address OR through Facebook. If artistic democracy wasn’t reason enough to vote, each voter is entered to win an ipad 2.

Many Thanks,

Page

paste this address into your web browser, if the above links do not work:

http://1881project.com/2011/09/26/blvd-arts-project-voting-has-begun/  Voting has ended and a winner has been chosen. I did not win, but I surely had a lovely time in the competition. Thank you for your support!

Mural Project

I recently submitted a design idea to the BLVD Hotel and Spa for a mural design competition they are holding. It is a competition for artists in the Los Angeles area wherein the  artists of the top 8 mural projects compete in front of a live audience from September 24 thru September 25. Each artist is allowed an 8 by 6 foot “canvas” on which to paint their design. After Sunday the 25th, the pieces are uploaded to the hotel’s website, and the public votes on the “top” piece.

I was one of the 8 artists picked!

The competition starts at 12 PM Saturday, but I will be arriving late since I was unable to get a sub for work until then, and goes until 6PM Sunday. My piece depicts Hollywood Boulevard. Each artist was asked to design a piece inspired by or featuring one of 8 “famous boulevards of Los Angeles.”

I will be sure to post pictures of the process as it happens. It should be a lot of fun, but it will also be very hard.  I’m pretty darn excited! I have a feeling that I will be pretty pooped Sunday night, so please be patient if I do not post anything until Monday.