Would you buy me a cup of coffee?

In a couple weeks I will be finally starting the very first Changing Woman portrait. It has been such a ride, and it has not even started. There is still so much to do, so much to understand. I have the sweetest plans and enough ADD to get my life significantly messy sometimes, so it has also been an intense exercise on organization and creating structure. It is scary and it is exciting and it has occupied a lot of my head lately.

I have defined a date to start the de facto work, and this date is August 1st. The thing is that I decided to turn this moment into a celebration, and you are invited. I will take that day to do nothing else but draw and paint - excepting, of course, sleeping and taking care of some other basic needs. I will turn on my webcam at noon PT of that day and let people watch my working process whenever I am working. There will be moments of pure “domestic bliss”, a blonde little elf peaking at the camera, possible sounds of crows and seagulls (the seagulls are specially crazy at this time of the year), underground music, eventual city sounds (like noisy trucks that sometimes stop by the alley, exactly under my window), but try not to be distracted by these little sweet details because there will be an artist in full exercise of her sacred labor. I will be tweeting and I will be posting pictures to Instagram for all the 24 hours that the event lasts.

Simultaneously (and this is a VERY important part of this virtual event), consider donating $2 dollars (that's right, TWO. DOLLARS.) to contribute to the current Changing Woman fundraising campaign. This is a regular cup of coffee at Starbucks. With 2,000 fans and counting on Facebook, I thought that, if each one of them donated me a “cup of coffee”, I would easily surpass my goal! How cool that would be?

And this is why I am calling this event “Coffee for art”. It would be like buying me a cup of coffee. Except that that money will go into keeping my project going for the next months, so I can make enough art to lift the spirits of a lot of women that have been battered, exploited, neglected, discriminated. And give more hope to others that depend on a shelter to rebuild their lives.

The broadcasting will happen via justin.tv, on my (under construction) channel http://justin.tv/patriciaariel but I believe I can embed the video on other places. My plan is to create a page specific for this special fundraising so my followers from outside the US can donate. This page will be powered by PayPal. US sponsors that wish to have their much deserved tax deductions can donate right at the USA Projects page (http://usaprojects.org/projects/changing-woman). But this system can also change, and if it does, I will let you know.

Of course you always can consider donating more than a cup of coffee (because, hey, there are some cool prizes to win!), and you don't need to wait the August 1st for that, but even if you cannot donate the coffee or the bigger bucks, you are welcome to peek into what my life is about most of the time and enjoy my art making process, and even chat in real time, ask questions, etc.

See you there!

Spread the Love. Receive ART.

The Changing Woman project fundraising at USA Projects needs to reach a minimum goal of $2,500 USD so we can receive all the collected funds. We need to reach out to a maximum number of people in order to spread the word and collect donations.

With this purpose, I am giving away an Art Package containing an original piece of mixed media art ("Natura #3”) and a 4,6" x 6,5" hardcover journal featuring my work “Duality". The contest will run until August 13th at 7:00pm PT. On the 14th, prior to the end of the campaign, the winner will be announced.

To enter to win this beautiful prize just follow these rules:

1. Like and share the Changing Woman campaign athttp://www.usaprojects.org/project/changing_woman

2. Share this banner

3. Leave a simple comment below the giveaway banner, on the Changing Woman Facebook page’s timeline to be assigned a number

4. To have more chances to win, just share the campaign outside Facebook. You can share it in your blog, in your social networks like Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, or any other. Then leave another comment with a link to the page where you shared the campaign. Another number will be assigned to you. The more you share, the more chances to win.

Thank you for all that you do! And GOOD LUCK!

Changing Woman on USA Projects

A couple days ago the Changing Woman Project launched the second phase of its fundraising on USA Projects, a non-profit grantmaking organization created to help artists succeed in their art projects. USA Projects is totally committed with the advancement of the arts, and every artist/project goes through a screening before being accepted. I myself had to tweak the project text and video about three times before it was finally ready to meet their guidelines, but it was all worth it. Now the project is live and open to accept donations, which are totally tax deductible. All donors receive a tax receipt immediately after they make their donation online.

USA Projects also works in an “all or nothing" system, which means that funds are received only if final goal is reached. I decided to keep the goal in its minimum this time since having the whole budget met is not really a priority right now. Funds must come gradually to meet the project’s ongoing needs though, and I will start as many campaigns as necessary until the goal is met.

Like in the first campaign, exclusive perks are available for all donors, from postcards and posters to limited edition art zines, prints, and hard-copy books. $4,000 USD donations will take home one of the project’s original artworks. All sponsors will win a digital version of the Changing Woman art book. Here is the campaign page: http://www.usaprojects.org/project/changing_woman

And here's the new video (I continue having camera fright):


 

Art auction today!

http://facebook.com/PatriciaAriel.art

It's alive!

so today, our Mother Earth Day, the project Changing Woman finally came alive. i worked on it for weeks, and this last week i kept myself busy polishing it and finishing the last details and replanning the budget. it is a weird, but at the same time exciting feeling of jumping into unknown territory. i had experiences with fundraising before, out of the internet and for much smaller philanthropic projects, but nothing with that level of involvement and commitment.

it is simple as that: i am now tied up to this project from head to toe for at least the next 18 months of my life. of course i will be doing non-CW works along the way - personal projects and commissions - but most of my production will be dedicated to the women that will courageously and generously giving me a bit of their lives and feelings so that others can feel less lonely and think that, hey, they can be that kind of heroines too.

i am happy with the possibility of tapping into these women's lives. i have already received a few stories and i   am being careful not to let them grow too much inside for now. when my fascination with the human being meets art making i see a whole world of symbolic meanings unfolding that are at one time overwhelming and strangely addictive. i have so much to learn from these women and so much to absorb from their tears and their hopes.

with this project i am also hoping to tap into a work of helping healing the Divine Feminine on our Earth. i truly believe that artists are shamans and that we have the power to send out whatever we are putting our energies and efforts into at the moment of the art making. so i am already delighted with the perspective of dedicating myself to this work that is the very purpose of my Earth journey.

so, i have 45 days of fundraising ahead of me and i will need all help i can get to spread the word around. so if you have a few minutes to spare, consider taking a look at my Indie Gogo page here. i think the perks are pretty sweet because they will be produced exclusively for the campaign funders, so i will do my best to create really beautiful and neat stuff. the project's webpage is also up and running with more info, art, and the project's updates. and we also have the Zazzle store, a second alternative for fundraising.

this is my fundraising video. of course i am not a film maker, and have no notion of lighting or movie edition or any of these valuable things to know in times like these, so that's what i could get, and with all my camera fright, accent, and self-consciousness, i actually think it is not that bad. i think it is getting the message across at least, and the folks on Facebook have been immensely kind and supportive.

so, that's it... it is alive. please help spread the word. i am very thankful.

the "Changing Woman" project

about 2 years ago i started to brainstorm a project. if you are one of my old followers, and are with me on Facebook, you may remember. it was one of the many ideas i have everyday, but it sounded more "real", and more in touch with my life plans to use art as a tool for transformation. it was called Changing Woman thanks to a valuable suggestion from one of my dearest collectors and friends, and it would be about women empowerment and awareness about women's issues. the most important: i wanted it to be an absolutely positive project, and, although it would deal with sad stories, it would not show victims, but warriors. women who had to deal with a lot of stuff just for the fact of being women, and fought, and won, and are here today to be examples that we can change things only by believing in ourselves and not being what the system wants us to be.

so, the seed of the "Changing Woman" project was planted.

after a period of a huge transition in my personal/artistic life (2 years, to be more exact), and now that i feel strong enough and see all the things i was longing for more and more palpable, i think that it is finally time to push the start button. so in the last months i have been slowly putting on paper everything that i want the project to be, and the project matured, and i thought that i would need a bit of money to make things the best i can. so at this moment i am preparing a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the project so it can be as beautiful as all the women that will be represented and helped by the project deserve. :)

i want to draw 21 portraits of women. women that, against all odds, never showed conformity with being victimized or lower their heads and obey to a system not exactly designed with them in mind. women that suffered rape, abuse, domestic violence, self-esteem problems, discrimination, neglect, and all kinds of things that we have to constantly battle against just for being women.

and i want the portraits to reflect their experiences, and make them look like real role models to be looked at.  because we need these examples. we need them to keep going and fighting for a better world. we need them not only to show us that a different life is possible, but also to raise awareness about what it is like to be a woman in our world. believe me, there's still a lot of people out there thinking that we have achieved everything we needed in matters of equality and justice. but there is still a lot to be done.

all the artworks will be displayed in an art show, and limited edition prints will be produced from each one. a book will be designed and published, featuring each one of the portraits and their respective stories. i also plan a "behind the scenes" video that will feature all the models testimonies, as well as my creative process. simultaneously, i also want to keep a Tumblr site featuring artworks by artists from all over the world on the theme on women empowerment + women's rights.

all the proceeds from the sale of prints and books will be donated to an organization that works for the protection of women.

you could be one of my "Changing Women", or maybe you know somebody that could. i want to hear/read your story and see your face. you could be of any age, color, country, race, body shape, beliefs, background. you just have to have a story to tell: how being a woman has been impacted your life, for good or for worse. your struggles as a woman in the nowadays society. a story of neglect, abuse, injustice, and how you have overcame it. you should be willing to provide me with high resolution reference photos of yourself (later), and to record a testimony of your experience in video. i will choose 21 models/stories to become beautiful and inspiring art portraits and be featured in the project. send me a photo of yourself and your story please.

if you are an artist and would like to collaborate with the "Changing Woman" Tumblr, just send me your artwork, a brief bio, and a link to your portfolio so people can know more about yourself and you work. i want to feature one artist a day.

all to the address pattyariel.art[at]gmail.com  with the words "Changing Woman" on the subject line.

here's the project logo. after a lot of studies i finally decided for the butterfly. i tried to overcome my thing with butterflies but there was no escape. sounds the most appropriated for a project involving women. i then created a butterfly with a Native American flair since the project's name was inspired in the Navajo myth of the Changing Woman.

i hope you get involved. it is going to be beautiful. things will really heat up as soon as i launch the Kickstarter campaign, but even if i do not achieve my goal i will find a way to get things going. maybe in a more challenging way, but alive. as our spirit of transformation.

i think it has started. :))

slowly but surely

the last weeks have found me very prolific, although i have been doing things in a very chaotic manner. i have been dedicating good part of my time to my art direction work for the lingerie company, which is bringing me great satisfaction and excitement. it is bothering me that i am not really seeing a lot of my independent production finished, and my online presence is being sort of neglected lately. i really apologize for all the unanswered emails, messages and comments. the day is just too short, the energy runs out sooner that desired and my time on the computer really has to be limited to what really matters (my migraines have killed me). as soon as i can afford it i need to hire an assistant. my slow rhythm and inability to get organized is not really being compatible with all the stuff i need to accomplish and to the very rhythm of my own muses.

so lately i have been doing these...



The Travelers, acrylics and pencil on masonite board. this work is going very, very slowly. i am experimenting, savoring the work, living every second of it since there is a lot of emotional involvement. not sure if it is going for sale either. my heart is in it.



Sunny, pencil on bristol board. more experimentation on new languages of illustration.



Changing Woman, illustration for the project of the same name. this is the second version, and i am happier; probably going to stick with it. this is a project i have been growing inside me for a while and giving birth slowly. going to tell more about it soon!