I’ve been having a mild crisis regarding my career and creativity recently, which I may elaborate upon at a later date, that had put a halt to any real desire to write or make images. And I’ve also come to the slow conclusion that the things I want to write about encompass much more than just design and illustration, though they certainly do connect on a broader level. I have a deep personal interest in certain topics (semiotics of fashion & beauty, body, gender/sexuality, femininity, especially within a sociological context) which fuels, in many ways, what my personal artwork is about. I’m still debating the how appropriate it would be for me to write about other topics on a portfolio site, considering many of my opinions are not popular ones. I may separate the two sometime soon. Watch this space for news, and keep an eye out for some new layout improvements (the header is a start.)

And because this post is worthless without pictures:
Yesterday night, a friend of mine held the first of the “Truck You! Sessions”, where a ton of crazy talented artists (primarily graffiti artists) are painting on license plates and other found materials for inclusion in a gallery show. It was really nice to just hang out in a low-key environment and paint for fun, which is something I direly needed. Making art feels like a chore nowadays, rather than a outlet. It was a good reminder, to connect with other artists who do it for the love and not for a job, to not take things too seriously. I was a little nervous because I’m not much of a graffiti writer myself, but I definitely held my own, and everyone was into what I was doing. Very cool.

Also, holler at me if you’re interested in coming and I’ll give you the info. Painting sessions will be every upcoming Sunday, in Brooklyn.

Lenora Jayne, Illustrator & Graphic Artist

Lenora Jayne is a Brooklyn-based and Neptune-bound pink-haired space cadet. A recent dropout from Parsons School of Design, she has since expanded her exploration of the universe to new creative disciplines including illustration, design, fashion, photography, painting and modeling.

Lenora’s mixed-media hyper-pop artwork uses bright, multi-layered and often luminous surfaces to create a visual depth that is both appealing to our sensibilities and intricate to the eye. Her materials include traditional media such as spray paint, gouache, collage and colored pencil seamlessly mixed with digital imagery and Photoshop. As a technophile, her interests include futurology, space exploration, and the effects of technology on human interaction. Her artwork also often explores themes of femininity and identity within the context of personal narrative and storytelling. Lenora work has been described as a “grown-up Lisa Frank on acid.”

This is my statement, which made me pretty happy to write. It’s a nice summation of what I’m obsessed with right now. And it’s really good to finally feel like I’m understanding exactly what my voice is, as an artist, and what that means. For a very, very long time I felt like I didn’t have any direction as an artist and just drew cute, fashion-y girls. Really, I think I’ve just learned how to re-contextualize it and understand why I do what I do.

I’m starting to conceptualize my pieces for the show now. I want to make a series of imaginary digital love-letters, things never sent or said. I’m tentatively planning on working with typography and digital prints, paper-cutouts, spraypaint and colored pencil, and including some of my old writings, as well. (Yeah, it’s my dirty secret: I used to write poetry.) We’ll see, sometimes I get overly ambitious.

Anyway, I’ve never written one of these statements before.
What do you think? Anything I left out? Grossly exaggerated?
Not enough florid, pseudo-intellectual terminology?

I believe in brilliance.

In the limitless capacity that you and I and all of us have for creating and being beauty. And not just in the boring magazine-slick plastic-surgery sort of way, but the beauty of the individual and the crowd. The beauty of authenticity, of fully and wholly owning every part of yourself, without apology. Of the endless permutations that define us in degrees and decades are what make the universe electric.

I believe also, in losing the barriers between self and surroundings. The magic that throttles through our veins when a connection is made, when syllables and neurons and heartbeats become no longer lonely, but shared. These shared moments become stories, shared stories that can be set upon the world for others to reach out to.

I believe in the art of connecting with one another, the instances of light and brightness when synapses fire in the same sequences. When a look, a nod, a smile, a touch, a sound is made and shared and there is an understanding that goes beyond any need for language.

I believe in the construction of community; that our social architecture is more incredible and more important than our individual lives alone. I believe our combined efforts and energies become an alloy that is indescribable and indestructible.

I believe in the sheer bliss of experience, of turning my life into a constant living work of art. I believe in the beauty of single, sparking instances where a connection is made. Of sharing, spreading, speaking up to burst open your world a little further.

I believe in constant evolution, every second is a chance for revelation. Every second our bodies have changed from the last, so there is no reason why our minds should stay static. I believe in personal dynamism, of constantly breaking down and rebuilding yourself in order to create a more perfect state of being. I believe, as well, in always learning and always keeping an open mind, for we are infinite in our ability to appreciate and understand.

I believe in chaos, in the reliability of instability. I believe that there is a beauty in never staying the same.

I believe in self-expression and the importance of sharing our stories, struggles and secrets. Creativity is our vehicle for these expressions, for entertaining our dreams and dreaming up our futures. I believe that self-expression is the key to connection and change, a cipher in order to unlock our differences.

I believe that art and music are transformative; that the motion and exploration of the body and mind within beauty and ugliness can create a new understanding of the universe and of one another.

I believe in light, color, brightness, because they are the purest manifestations of the sun.

I believe in love and hate and despair and envy. I believe the sanctity of emotion, and experiencing each in all of its infinite hues, because it is what makes us human.

I believe it’s important to remain in a constant state of wonder.

I believe in our combined brilliance.