...And the Art of Following Through.

Before I get into the second half a previous post I did, I just have to promote the Pancakes and Booze Art Show I will be participating in this Friday and Saturday in downtown Los Angeles. 

I will be showing four pieces including a brand new 4-panel piece inspired by the movie The Royal Tenenbaums that I am very proud of.  It's $5 at the door!  Come down if you're in the area!

Okay, for a while I have been mentioning a custom wedding gift I was making for a man named Lou I met at The Chocolate & Art Show back in July.  Before I started making it I told him I had never done a custom piece before and had never made one the size he was asking me to make it (18"x24"), so it would be a learning experience.

And a learning experience it was!!

First, he told me what the couple liked, their interests, and things he would like included in the piece.  They had two pitbulls, they were both actors, she loves her pale pink VW bug, and he loves the Dodgers.  Here is the first mock-up design I came up with:

He told me to lose the "Husband and wife" quote because that wasn't their style and then he came up with the idea to have a camera projecting the other images onto a screen since they are in the entertainment industry.  I am grateful for that suggestion because we then landed on this design, which is fantastic.

With the design now locked in place I went out and got the frame.  I mostly get my smaller frames from Michaels and Ikea, but for the larger frames like the one I needed for this, I found Aaron Brothers had the best deals.

I brought the frame home and took the glass out and when I tried to put it back in, one corner was stuck on one of the prongs that would not pull back any more and it immediately broke.

A couple days later, I went to Aaron Brothers to see if they sell just the glass for frames and the clerk informed me for a piece that size it would be around $50 (more than the frame cost!), so he suggested I buy a frame that was on sale and replace it with that.

Since I had broken the first sheet of glass within the first 5 minutes of handling it I was very nervous about breaking it again, especially if I put all the time and effort into drawing it out on the glass and painting it.  I would have been heartbroken if it broke after all of that as I'm putting it back in the frame.

But despite my fears I persisted and it worked!

(Phew!  It's in the frame and in one piece!)

Getting it back in the frame was the most stressful part.  After that, the painting was just fun :)

(Isn't it beautiful??)

Lou was unable to pick it up right away, so I was storing it on my coffee table for the time being.  I live in a studio apartment with two cats, so the places I can keep a large piece like this where the cats won't jump on it or knock it over is limited.  I even placed a blanket over the top of it to keep it extra padded.  

But the one person I forgot to protect it from was...ME :(

A few nights after finishing the piece I had placed the picture on my bed with the blanket still over it to protect the glass.  I even remember looking at it and thinking I should move it back to the coffee table to be on the safe side.  Regretfully, I ignored it.  Later that night as I was brushing my teeth and going to sit on my bed as I normally do, I heard an awful CRACK!

I was devastated.  I could not believe I had done such a boneheaded thing as to sit on my own picture and break it.  It was one of the only instances I truly wished a time machine existed so I could go back just ten seconds earlier and NOT SIT on my bed that night.

But time machines don't exist and so I was left to deal with the aftermath.  

At that point I really felt defeated.  The glass had broken twice already and I couldn't bare the thought of it breaking a third time after all the work I had already put into it.  A part of me hoped that Lou would say to forget about it because that is what I felt like doing.  

That is when I called my sister.  And like a good sister she encouraged me to keep going and even mailed me the money to replace the glass for the frame I had broken.  She assured me "Third time's a charm!" and that she knew I could do it.  Lou was also understanding about the mishap and was willing to wait for me to finish the project as well.

And my sister was right!  The third time was the charm!  And I even got to make some minor changes I had thought about doing after the first one was done and I think it looks even better than the first.

I want to thank Lou for being the first client to ask me to make a custom piece and for presenting me with a challenge that I was able to complete.  I definitely learned some things to apply in the future.  And I especially want to thank my big sis for being the cheerleader I needed when I just felt like giving up.  We all need those people in our lives and I'm lucky to have a ton of them.  

~LH

The Blessed Life.

I was going to post the second half of the last post I did, but the wedding that the custom piece I made is happening this weekend, so I don't want to post anything about it in case there is anything to add before then, so stay tuned for that

Instead, I will post about an amazing experience I had last night instead :)

Let me preface this by saying that music is my life.  Now, I know people say this and they love music, but I really feel my love and attachment to music goes beyond what most people think and feel about it.  It literally gets me through my day.

I can remember being 8 years old, listening to Mariah Carey on my parents' stereo system and, singing from the top of my lungs in their living room.  That is ALL I wanted to do and I did it for hours at a time.  The first favourite song I remember having is "The Piano Man" by Billy Joel because of the story it told.  My mom also says I one of my first favourite songs was "Please Mr. Postman" by the Marvelettes.

Most teens go through a phase when they get into music and go to concerts and then grow out of it.  I'm still waiting to grow out of it.  Back when I could still afford it, I averaged about 12-15 concerts per year and have gone to Coachella 3 times.  I've even interned for The Dresden Dolls!!

I recently made the decision to start a band called The Yellow Birds (I'm looking for members, so let me know if you want to join!), and among my  vast list of musical influences I would have to say Conor Oberst and Jenny Lewis are at the top of that list without a doubt.  For some reason, both of their lyrics, compositions, and voices seem to speak directly to my soul.

I was fortunate enough to scrounge up the money to see Conor play at The Greek Theatre last Sunday with folk legend John Prine.  I had never heard John, but after that night I definitely will be downloading some of his songs, STAT.  It was a beautiful show, but since Conor was not the headliner I left the show feeling like it was somehow unfinished.

Then comes Tuesday...I wake up and the first thing I see on Facebook is a chance to win tickets to a special evening with Conor Oberst that KCRW is putting together and it's invite-only.  I immediately leave a comment with a plea to pick me and hope and pray luck is on my side.

Then, later that day my friend Mara leaves a post on my Facebook wall with a link to another chance to win tickets.  It said:  "Tell us about a moment you were moved by Conor Oberst (or Bright Eyes)" and this is what I wrote...

"I can't tell you about just one moment when I was moved by Conor Oberst (with or without The Mystic Valley Band), Bright Eyes, or Monsters of Folk because there are honestly too many to count. To me, Conor is the definition of what the perfect singer/songwriter is. His lyrics, composition, and the feeling in his voice never fail to transport me to another time, whether it be back into some part of my past or into my hopeful future. When I am watching him sing live, nothing else matters.

The most recent moment I was moved by Conor Oberst was this past Sunday at The Greek Theatre when he played "We Are Nowhere and It's Now", which is my all-time favourite Bright Eyes song. It brought tears to my eyes because I have had a lot of challenges as of late and knowing I was going to see Conor in concert soon was what kept going when I absolutely wanted to give up.

To be able to go to this event would mean so much to me and if I could bring my friend Jessica who is just as much a fan of his as I am, we would be forever grateful. Thank you so much for this opportunity."

Later that day I got this email letting me know I HAD WON!!!

Aaaaahhhhh!!!  I was over the moon and the only person I could think to take was my beloved friend Jessica whom I met when we were extras in the Bright Eyes video for "Four Winds" back in 2007.  She is the reason I was able to see Bright Eyes for the first time live because she had an extra ticket to see their show that year, which had sold out online in minutes.  And it was after that show that I got this autograph!

I'm getting sidetracked, but here is where my Little Hibachi art line comes in.  As soon as I knew I was going to be seeing this intimate show and possibly being able to meet Conor for a third time I immediately started trying to think of something I could make for him as a thank you for everything he has done for me and millions of others with his music.

At first I was thinking of making him something with his newest album cover art or something for he and his wife, but I figured he probably gets tons of fan art and making something for just he and his wife might be too much of an intrusion on his personal life.  That's when I decided to give him a couple of my own original pieces with a personal Thank You note.

The show was incredible.  It was at Apogee in Santa Monica.  It was a little bigger than I was expecting it to be, but there couldn't have been more than 100 people there.

 Jessica and I were two people from the stage and as soon as Conor came out and started singing I burst into tears.  

It was such a wave of emotions from everything I've been through this last year to absolute gratitude for being able to stand there and witness pure magic.  In the middle of the show they stopped playing and a lovely woman from KCRW came up on stage to interview Conor.  I learned he has a great sense of humour and I think it will be impossible not to hear my trademark laughter when the recording of this evening is aired on KCRW's "Morning Becomes Eclectic" later this month.

As the show was ending and Conor was thanking the crowd, I gathered all of my courage and pushed forward to hand him the present I had brought.  He didn't see it at first, but then he reached out and took it saying, "Thank you."

I don't know if he'll open it or even keep it.  All I know is that as of right now in my life I have gotten to share an ice cream sundae with Amanda Palmer (lead singer of The Dresden Dolls, an amazing solo singer/songwriter, and another of my personal heroes), given my business card to David Fincher (director of my favourite movie "Fight Club"), and now I've given a personal note and gift to Conor Oberst.

I came to Hollywood with a dream of being surrounded by people in the entertainment industry.  I didn't have any connections when I got here, but I have to say I think I'm doing pretty well for myself.  I am truly living the blessed life.

~LH 

The Showing of Art...

I was going to do one long post, but I decided to split them in two.  This first post will be about my showing at 2nd Street Cigars in downtown Los Angeles on Firday, September 26th.  The pieces are still on display and will be there until  at least Wednesday October 8th.  Go see them and purchase one if you like :)

(I love when my pieces are displayed all together!)

 The night was wonderful and I have to say a huge thank you to Kendra for asking Little Hibachi to be a part of the opening.  I had a great time and there were so many wonderful works of art that I was so happy to be surrounded by.

While I was there at the reception, I met someone who really liked my piece that says, "Look Up and Carry On", which is inspired by the tattoo I have on my left forearm, which simply says, "Look up."  He said he is a photographer of street art and that that phrase has meant a lot to him. He also told me that when he saw my piece he instantly connected to it.  He said my pieces are simple and easy to relate to and he likes that.  I value compliments and feedback such as this immensely.  This is why I make art, to connect with people, and I am so grateful to have met this individual.

Overall, a great night with great people.  I am blessed.

~LH