PICK A CARD

HELLO.....KIDDIES...


bEEN here in Portland....(when I ain't in Seattle pickin up shifts at my old job at the Paramount Theater...)...jUst tryin to find some steady work....and working on my art projects....

Lately....ths means looking around on craigslist for CALLS FOR ARTISTS and seeing if there is anything worth going for....just trying to build up the portfolio, learning to make deadlines, etc. etc...gives me something to focus on.....

I have already been in two lil tiny shows here...

...including a piece for the PORTLAND'S AUDUBON SOCIETY ....the 6X6 PROJECT ...you pick up a 6x6 canvas free at Art Media and create anything on the theme of BIRDS....me and friend TER-TER...went to check it out today....was way better than I thought...and good exposure.....I also went because in my haste to meet the deadline, I had no time to document it....was hoping to snap a few pix...UNFORTUNATELY...it was one of those things where you buy it and leave with the piece right away....AND MINE HAD ALREADY been adopted...(or fortunately I guess..)...am currently in the process of huntng it down....

...the other cool thang is that I got into THE PORTLAND PROJECT!!!

(CHECK IT OUT HERE)

they get a bunch of local Portland artists (that's me! barely...) to represent each of the cards in a deck of cards and do their own thang...it's gonna get produced and sold around town....and the proceeds go to artist non-profits....so a big hand to the folks who are making this happen.

I AM DOING THE KING OF CLUBS!!!

...so I went on the wikipedia to get my brain going on ideas...I mean, what do I really KNOW about the origin of playing cards anyhow??

Here are a few interesting facts (or as verifiable as THE WIKI can be...):

- the suits as we know them, went thru alot of changes.... IN GERMANY: the suits LEAVES(spades), ACORNS(for clubs), BELLS, AND HEARTS....The modern decks deriving their suits from MEDIEVAL FRANCE....!!!

- ...later....in the 1800 Parisian decks, the royalty were represented by well-known Historical and mythic persons....MY CARD was represented by ALEXANDER THE GREAT...another big fag....

- One possible reason why the ace (a term meaning the lowest..) changed to become the highest card,and the deuce moved into the lowest position, is because of the FRENCH REVOLUTION, in which the lowest class rose up against the royalty...usurping power....neat....

- there is a small history as to how and why the reversible face cards came about...

- and JACK as a term for the KNAVE was consider a peasant term, due to the lower class game it derives from, and therefore crude....

- ...there are an unbelieveable number of card games you have probably never heard of....

GO HERE TO FIND OUT MORE.....

aNYWAYS...It's good to be back....I'll keep you posted on this cool project...which shows the promise of some really good exposure....you know how i likes gettin naked....