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The birds of Hawaii, in their multitude of colors and forms, strut and alternate their strides with their heads held high. Bipeds that are confident. Secure. Fearless. Their flight plan involves plopping right down in your personal space, breathing your air and eyeing your food, waiting for you to leave so they can partake, but they always patiently wait their turn by eating the crumbs fallen at your feet. For days, I’ve been watching these birds and I can attest that they are completely undaunted by your presence here in their Hawaii. For you are a mere human, mortal–and you certainly cannot fly. The birds here are showy, pluming and preening their feathers in front of you, as if they are courting you with their Aloha Spirit. Californian birds, or the birds from my home state, are much more enigmatic, evasive, skittish and untouchable, sometimes like the people who live there–some of whom would snatch your bag of Doritos right out of your hands if you’d let them.

Robert Solomon was the Quincy Lee Professor of Business and Philosophy and Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. He was the author of over 40 books, including The Little Philosophy Handbook which provides a concise look at perennial philosophical questions.  Questions everyone asks like “Who are we?” and “Why are we here?”.  In the excerpt below Solomon looks at the concept of consciousness.

For many people, the beginning of philosophical curiosity might be summarized in the French exclamation Voilà!—“Here it is!”— a sudden sense of wonder at just being alive and being here. What this means, however, is not easy to spell out. What is, is you, your being here in the world. But in coming to appreciate your being here in the world, something else, even more amazing, has happened. You have become self-conscious, not just in the sense in which you look in the mirror and become aware of the toothpaste on your chin or that you look really good in that green dress but in more of a global sense, that you come to understand and be thankful for the very fact that you are alive here and now. (more…)

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Good Morning:

Another lovely day here at "The House of Wlassak". I'll be off for a busy day of running around. I must go to the post office and then to the grocery store.

Here's my newest aceo collage print in My Etsy Shop.

Guardian Of The Circus Diver




I've been thinking lately about the fact that so much of my art seems to be influenced, accidentally I might add, by circuses and carnivals. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't mean circuses such as Ringling Bros. or any such nonsense as the stereotypical "clown". I actually loathe clowns! But more about the colors and the almost lost and vagrant feel. Maybe it's the fact that I work with vagabond and orphaned photos. My work always seems to have a sense of homelessness. The characters feel somewhat like misfits.

My dolls are mostly from "The Circus Series". They have included a trapeze artist, a "fat" lady, a Jester and a Jesterette, a circus tiger and, one of my favorites: "Pid and Pod, the raw outsider multi-sex Siamese Twins".

Pid and Pod the multi-sex siamese twins:


Let me show you what started me to thinking about my circus influence this morning:

Siamese twin Cosmos:



Yes....that's right. A flower. A siamese twin Cosmos growing in my front garden. Beautiful even in it's differences. A misfit of a sort.

Looking back over the course of my "life in art", I have always been influenced by the lowly and bizarre. Hoping to bring out a beauty in it's differences. I can take a picture of a perfect Cosmos any day, but to capture the image of the misfit is what I long to do.

That being said: Here is a fascinating and fabulous book about a circus family called Geek Love.


I won't even begin to go into detail. Let me just say that it is chock full of intriguing and sometimes sadly grotesque "performers". BUT...and this is a huge issue of importance for me, it is NOT depressing. There's a fine line between interestingly freakish and depressing. I don't like depressing circus stuff!!

So, today's post comes to you courtesy of a quiet double-headed Cosmos growing in my front garden.

Until Tomorrow:
Kim
Garden Painter Art
gnarly-dolls