December 2009
“What we really want to do is what we are really meant to do. When we do what we...”
– Julia Cameron (via bridgettelizabeth)
Where’s my money?! Ah well, 3 our of 4 ain’t too bad.
“Even more important than just breaking down the barriers between high and low...”
– themarriageofadeadblogsing, via discusson on David Byrne, Art Funding or Arts Funding?
I get what you mean about schooling. The entirety of the Malaysian school system is pretty much as you describe - overemphasis on science, absolute disdain of the arts and humanities. I opted to do Malay...
The Clown Conservatory, San Francisco →
The Clown Conservatory offers a First Year Program (September - June) with instruction in classic clowning, circus skills, acrobatics, mime, dance, character development, business, the creation of original clown material and more. Students also explore the history and current practice of clowning and its relationship and responsibility to society. We also offer an Advanced Program, giving...
The "Times (Art) Square" idea has been done...
Mainly by The 59th Minute:
Creative Time, an early advocate of video art in public spaces, has presented video art since the early 1980s with projections in the Brooklyn Bridge Anchorage, on a Columbus Circle façade, and on the ceiling of Grand Central Station. The 59th Minute airs the last minute of every hour of the Astrovision programming day (6 am–1 am) with the exception of two daily...
Street Performing Link Goodies (thanks...
I’ve just joined performers.net, a forum for street performers and buskers internationally, and they have TONS of great resources and tips for anyone into street performing. So inspiring!
Here are some choice links I found from trawling around the forums:
Booking Festivals and Public Events - step-by-step tips on getting that festival gig
10 Things Every Variety Performer MUST Know To...
“Art is an act of the soul, not the intellect. When we are dealing with people’s...”
– Julia Cameron (via bridgettelizabeth)
bridgettelizabeth:
If this thing’s successful, I have every intention of taking it on the road. First with an Australian tour, because I figure learning the ropes of touring in a country where I speak the language, have a lot of contacts and am legally allowed to work will be a lot less of a headache, and will see me more prepared to head overseas. From there, I’m open to taking it anywhere and...
Times Square > Art Square →
Times Square to Art Square is a very complex project with a simple goal: to turn all advertising on Times Square into art.
Gorgeous! I’m already in, having added a couple of my videos to their Vimeo pool. If you have still art or photos and want to join in, check out the Flickr pool too. At a later date they’ll need donors to help pay for the art and support the artists, so get in...
“Initiate instead of responding. Move the ball forward. Somehow, do something to...”
– Chris Guillebeau, The Art of Non-Conformity: Feeling Stuck? Try This
The Dance Nomad - Marketing & Consulting for... →
As a dancer you aren’t supposed to be a starving artist. Trust me on this, starving artist is overdone and not worth its meager weight. You need proven and effective social media marketing and business strategies.
I’m here to help you, whether you are an individual dancer, a community member or a studio owner. I work to help people like you create profitable and sustainable communities of...
Packing my bags
annaoverseas:
themerchgirlnet:
“I think maybe it’s time to stop, or more reasonably, curtail somewhat, state investment in the past — in a bunch of dead guys (and they are mostly guys, and mostly dead, when we look at opera halls) — and invest in our future. Take that money, that $14 million from the city, for example, let some of those palaces, ring cycles and temples close — forgo some of...
“I think maybe it’s time to stop, or more reasonably, curtail somewhat, state...”
– David Byrne, Art Funding or Arts Funding?
Totally agree with this. Enable people to create art, get rid of the stupid classist ideas of “high-brow” and “low-brow”, and appreciate all forms of art instead of arguing about whether something is art or not. Get the creativity...
“I’ve gone on record that if I had to have a stripper name, it would be Equality.”
– Leslie Knope | Parks and Recreation - Tom’s Divorce (via fuckyeahparksandrecreation)
leslie, we love you.
(via feminism4fun) (via sexismandthecity) (via kittenbear)
That is actually a very good stripper/burlesque name. Someone go for it already.
The entirely of isabelthespy's awesome...
I posted a snippet of this earlier, but the whole post was made of so much awesome that I had to share it in its entirety. This is what I was talking about in my earlier Lady Gaga post: would her subversiveness be more effective if done by someone from a cultural, ethnic, aesthetic minority?
isabelthespy:
“The great thing about Gaga is she always want to push for the most extreme option,” Card...
Why can't people be as critically thoughtful as... →
(via jhameia)
aww thank you :) It’s pretty much the result of having to face situations like these continually and daily since age 10, so I’m not sure if that’s much of a bonus.
How to encourage big ideas: A new study suggests... →
Scientists are much more likely to produce innovative research when using long-term grants that allow them exceptional freedom in the lab, according to a new study co-written by MIT economists. The work shows that biologists whose funding encourages them to take risks and tolerates initial research failures wind up producing about twice as many highly influential papers as some peers whose...
“20 Rules for choreography
Many years ago Sharon Mansur and I came up with 20...”
– Boris Willis Moves: 20 Rules for choreography (via bridgettelizabeth)
Stuff like these makes me wonder if we should have a group blog/Tumblr/etc for stage/street performance folk. There’s a sheer lack of blogs from people like myself or Bridgett who document the creative process from a...
eHow: How to Start an Artist Collective →
For my reference - been thinking about starting one to put my multitudes of ideas into form, but it’s another one of those too!
“or to put it another way: white skinny bodies are allowed to be art. you see...”
– isabelthespy’s response to an LA Times article about Lady Gaga’s “grotesqueness”.
Very, very good read.
(via kittenbear)
There are a bunch of tumblrs that have quirky/pensive/melancholic women in various poses (and sometimes clever/sappy caption) and the vast majority of them are white, thin...
more Lady Gaga discussion...
themarriageofadeadblogsing:
themerchgirlnet:
Hello from the original poster! Just on a note: I’m of Bangladeshi heritage, but I was born & raised in Malaysia and live in Australia now. But the note about being more acutely aware of racial issues is true. I didn’t mean “just make traditional music” - I meant more the idea that if she was, say, a South Asian who involved the smallest bit of...
The Problem With Feminism
themarriageofadeadblogsing:
I’m always worried about writing about politics, for this exact reason. I’m not a very good writer for a start, so I begin with the best of intentions but what I’m trying to say somehow ends up getting lost at some point.
But I wasn’t looking to be entertained, I was looking to be educated. I think I’ve adequately demonstrated here that any idiot can start a blog and...
“If you believe you have the multitude of skills necessary to be a dancer or a...”
– The Mission Paradox Blog
“Dave Chappelle said he left his show on Comedy Central because he could no...”
– Raving Black Lunatic: The Anatomy of a Joke
White folk can complain about not being able to make the same jokes when it’s their lives that are threatened by them…
(via amandaw)
(via katoleary)
(via missworld) (via letstalkequality)
More Etsy stewardess/Merch Girl costume finds
This is going to get pretty long, so I’m going to put it behind a “More Inside” cut!
ahemvintage: 50s-60s Handmade Striped Cotton Candy Pink 2-Piece Sz SM - I was hoping to avoid two-pieces, though one-piece dresses are very hard to fit unless tailored specifically for you. This is a good style though.
ahemvintage: 60s DEADSTOCK/NOS/NWOT Clingy White Cotton Textured Dress...
Esty: oldage - some great Merch Girl styles →
I’ve been looking around Etsy for 60s air hostess and stewardess-type outfits, possibly to transform into costumes/uniforms for The Merch Girl. The oldage shop on Etsy has some AWESOME finds - the only problem is that they’re all a bit too small for me! If I could give the picture and some fabric colour choices to someone so they can make the same pattern but my size, that’d be...
Dear Tumblr
jhameia:
thecurvature:
meloukhia:
There needs to be a button which is like “like,” but not “like.” So that when I see things that make me sad or angry I can make some sort of gesture of agreement which is not “I like this,” because, you know, usually I don’t like things that make me sad or angry, but I want to express solidarity.
I could reblog them, I guess, but I want a button. You know?
...
10 questions through A Smart Bear's Startup...
A Smart Bear’s approach does seem a lot more suited for my purposes than formal business planning, so I’ll give it a go (even if briefly). I’m answering this from the production-assistance side of The Merch Girl.
In one sentence, what does your product do and who buys it?
I help indie, fringe, and other smal-scale creative producers out with their productions, events, and...
“I’ve been an unsuccessful musician for 30 years.
The issue that I think...”
– lupus_yonderboy, Metafilter: Pundits - Keep Up!
I’ve wondered about that licensing thing myself. I know with Island Vibe we had to fill up a list with the titles & artists of every track we used, but how much of the licensing money actually goes towards the original artist, especially if...
“The conclusion: I don’t actually need to write, not like Anais Nin did, or...”
– Danielle LaPorte, White Hot Truth: with every cell of my being, thank you, thank you very much
This is much like me and how I view my writing (or my general creative process, though I was such a headstrong Lifelong Writer Always ever since I was a kid). It’s not the writing per se, it’s...
Advertising and sponsored posts
I’m going to be taking in advertising via sponsored posts on this blog for 2010, mainly via IZEA but I’m also open to suggestions. It’s not likely to be very regular or frequent, and I’ll mark out any posts that are sponsored ones (and put a “more” tag too). I’ll also only take on offers that I feel suit this blog and my ethics.
My Twitter account has...
girlsbooksfoodartlove: loveandzombies:peacenikseekspeacenik: nakedpeople:
i just saw another picture of some cute chunky young white woman’s belly with “to every girl with insecurities… you’re beautiful” written on it in black marker.
i don’t like to be a downer, but those pictures really bother me. i mean, i know in middle and high school my worst insecurities were never “oh, no, i’m a cute...
“*sigh*
No matter where I go, I can’t escape automatic knee-jerk...”
– cleojones, the only person in this mess of an LJ post who doesn’t dive into knee-jerk “OMG PRIVILEGE POKING!!”.
“I’ve had one too many people ask me if I belly dance when they hear about my...”
– Fatemeh, Muslimah Media Watch: The Belly of the Beast: Belly Dancing as a new form of Orientalism (h/t bridgettelizabeth)
YES YES A MILLION TIMES YES.
“There is no barrier to being a producer. You just have to organize a show and...”
– Stay calm in the crisis: Tips for producers:artsHub.com.au | The Australian Arts Portal (via bridgettelizabeth)
That’s what I want to be - a producer of the interesting, fun, exciting, strange.
Also, my ArtsHub membership needs renewing, but I have no money.
The Problem With Feminism
themarriageofadeadblogsing:
About 18 months ago I got into an argument with a friend. To cut a long story short, we were discussing Riot Grrl. One of our main sticking points was that I failed to see the difference between Britney Spears and Courtney Love. I asked her to show me something to make me understand, to tutor me in the ways of feminism as it were. I was promptly directed to...
more Lady Gaga discussion...
thesefewpresidents:
themarriageofadeadblogsing:
thesefewpresidents:
See, I was with her when she said ‘imagine Lady GaGa looked different’, but when she also effectively said ‘imagine she didn’t make pop music’, she lost me. Of course Lady GaGa wouldn’t be as popular if she worked in another, less accessible/established/trendy genre of music; that’s an entirely separate issue to that of...
1 tag
formspring.me
What do you do to relax, or how do you spoil yourself?
(yay a question!)
I tend to relax by spending hours online, which probably isn’t the healthiest thing to do but it helps shut me off! I’m so bad at relaxing. I’ve starting to be a little bit of a spa nut and take up any opportunity to have a pro massage or other spa treatment. I spoil myself with BOOKS....
Conundrum
definatalie:
I get so torn between being a size activist and a feminist, and admiring fashion editorials that only use tiny white women. I want to see smart, pretty and artful photoshoots that employ a diverse selection of human beings but it’s difficult: a lot of the time fat women are represented as strictly sexual objects in photoshoots; women of colour are exoticised or assimilated; and...
2 tags
The Merch Girl's Christmas List
Technically I don’t celebrate Christmas (not coming from a Christian background) and Tumblr’s Xmas thing is meant more for photos than for text. But why not - I could use some cheering up and idle wishing anyway.
If you’d like to provide any of these, I’m not stopping you ;)
A regular source of income that allows me to live and be creative fully for at least a year...
“As for why girls—some girls—get so obsessed with makeup, even...”
– Cleolinda Jones, My thoughts on makeup, let me show you them
Essentially Marketing 101: What you’re selling isn’t a product, it’s an experience. Which many people of the “but it’s just COLOURED POWDER” persuasion may seem as baffling, but that’s human...
“We encourage you to decide, as early in life as possible, that your dominant...”
– Abraham, Money and the Law of Attraction (via happy moon moon) (h/t Goddess Leonie)
Seeking the Muse →
Yum moodboards! I love mood boards, vision boards (one of my notebooks is filled with vision collage pages), inspiration boards…all great ways to visually collect inspiration and see what pops up.
I found the Tealiciously Plummy board above very striking - orange isn’t really a colour I’m fond of, but her board makes it both mysterious and luscious. I’m looking forward...
Art Business: Investing in Artists →
Enter Darius Anderson—the founder and president of Platinum Advisors, in Sacramento, California, the managing member of Kenwood Investments, in San Francisco, and a longtime friend of Wicks—who posed a thought-provoking question to the artist: “If you could paint anything you wanted, what would it be?” The two discussed Wicks’ thoughts on the matter and conceived a plan that would allow him to...
How successful would Lady Gaga have been had she not been an Anglo-looking American pop star?
Imagine if Lady Gaga had looked more like me for example - curvy, very obviously South Asian, wavy hair, kinda stocky. If she had dealt with experimental or traditional music instead of the pop/dance scene. She may still be talking about the same things - fame, celebrity, peer pressure - but would she...
“[snip!]
4. It doesn’t cost as much as you’d think to travel. You don’t need to...”
– 8 Things I Wish I Knew When I Was 22 | AlmostFearless.com (via bridgettelizabeth)
Heh, I was 22 2 years ago. Lots of weird chaos that year!
The people who are all “man, travelling is awesome! you should drop your life and travel!” likely haven’t tried travelling on a green...
1 tag
formspring.me
What’s the nicest thing someone’s ever done for you?
My best friend bought me flight tickets to Brisbane for a week so that I could compete in Cabaret Burlesque even though it was in the middle of my Malaysian holiday. Many years ago when she worked in music TV she got to interview Darren Hayes and got me autographed stuff and a video question!! <3
Ask me...
1 tag
formspring.me
Entertain me and you - ask me anything! http://formspring.me/tiaramerchgirl