Carnivora: Ring
A short time ago I posted an article showing off a mold for a ring I had designed… clearly the actual ring has arrived, and I could not be happier. Cast in platinum silver with inlaid antique ebony (over 100 years old.)
Click the thumbnails below for another view, and an image of the mold from which the ring sprang.
Sights and Sounds
A glimpse, or a taste…
9:45pm, Brooklyn, NY, deep in Sunset Park.
I could still hear the sound of the dancing above and the clinking of Corona bottles.
As I crept along the dark passageway I remember thinking, “the tacos were REALLY good!” I was looking for the bathroom to the small, pleasantly authentic Mexican restaurant just above. Somehow, however, I had managed to stumble upon what felt like a set from Saw XXIV, right down to the eerily dripping pipes and odd scurrying sounds originating just out of sight. Common sense dictated I go no further…
Mere moments later, with great release I was directed to the bathroom IN the restaurant. After, as I washed my hands, I realized I must have found my way into the neighbor’s basement. Who knows what horrors may have waited… and si senora, another Negro Modelo Especial, por favor!
Odd Foods: Dragonfruit
As mentioned before, New York City is a veritable paradise for those who seek the weird in the world of food (and many other worlds… should you choose to stumble down those alleys.)
On numerous occasions I’ve discovered something new simply by walking the streets and stalls of Chinatown. Many of the most prominent stalls along the Eastern end of Canal St. offer a variety of oddly shaped, festively colored, and reasonably priced fruits. One that has often caught my eye is the (seasonally) short lived Dragonfruit, commonly known as a Pitaya.
A pitaya is the fruit of several cactus species, and sensibly occupies an important place in many culinary cultures: they are found across the globe from Asia to the Americas.
The skin of the fruit is somewhat leathery, featuring leafy offshoots. It sits comfortably in the hand, but can weigh anywhere from .25 lb to 1.3 lbs. Wikipedia notes that fruit up to 2.2 lbs has been recorded.
The flesh, a bright white speckled with small black seeds, is similar to that of the kiwi with somewhat more of a physical snap (in texture, not taste.) The red (in this case, though there are other varietals) skin is not consumed and has been known to be fouled by pesticides with farm grown fruits. The flavor is mild and acts as an excellent palate cleanser between courses of more strongly flavored foods. Since it is low in calories you can consume quite a bit of it without worry.
The Dragonfruit is relatively expensive when compared to more common fruits, but it’s flashy appearance and abundant flesh make it an excellent addition to many meals, and has never failed to illicit a raised eyebrow from visiting dinner guests.
Carnivora: a drawing + a mold = a ring
The other day I lurched into the local coffee shop and began to peel off my layers as I stood before the jeweler I had come to meet.
She had asked that I come to take a last look at the wax mold for the ring I had designed.
One of the many things I’ve learned in working with jewelers on the pieces to be showcased in my upcoming show, Carnivora, is that just because one can draw it on paper, does not mean that it will translate literally. I’ve come to live the expression “I make it pretty and you make it practical.” And so it was when I looked upon the small purple sculpture that sat in the hand extended towards me.
The ring, as imagined, will be cast from Palladium with onyx set into the “eyes” and is intended to be worn either with the point towards the wearer or away.
On the hand it just feels right.
Click the thumbnails below to enlarge…
VIDEO: Carnivora: A Production Diary
As one might expect, with time, Carnivora comes more clearly into focus.
Below you’ll find a detailed explanation and short video production diary of the process.
I hope you enjoy, and to find out more about this project please visit jasoncovert.com
CARNIVORA is a multimedia installation inspired and informed by the purported discovery of what are now being referred to as The Sacred Texts of Carnivora, in Greenland. If proven authentic, these simply marked stone tablets unearthed in 2004 would predate the earliest known cuneiform writings by nearly 5,000 years. The implications are history altering, and with that in mind during this time of uncertainty and economic strife, when our systems and structures have been called into question, CARNIVORA will invite viewers to consider how fragile and arbitrary our world can be and what can happen when our assumptions are asked to change.
CARNIVORA is massive: it incorporates elements of still photography, large format illustration, sculpture, painted works, ceremonial masks and robes, custom designed jewelry, poetry and literature, as well as an original musical composition, all designed to transport the viewer into the world suggested by The Sacred Texts of Carnivora.
VIDEO: Happy Holidays in 2009!
Some folks send out cards, and some folks send out lumps of coal… this year I’m sending out a video: how the other half (of the world) spends the holiday season.
Though perhaps cold where you are, rest assured that it is very, very warm somewhere else. May the sound of the waves and the colors in the sky bring you relaxation and happiness as the new year approaches.
Goodbye 2009. Hello 2010!
(filmed 12/12/2009 on the beach at Carate, Costa Rica, near Corcovado National Park)
Lost and Found: A Mouthful…
For a moment I really had a hard time believing what I’d found… could someone really have lost this?!?
It seemed somehow perversely personal, which, to be brutally honest, is part of the reason I enjoy posting these things so much.
I literally looked around as though someone might come running down the block, shouting for me to give them back, but there it was… a thick manilla folder containing, not one, but two x-rays of a man’s head.
And what a head, indeed: full of metal and the most ghastly methods of anchoring I’d ever seen, but they were ripe for re-imagining… and all the proof one might need to dissuade one from becoming a professional mixed martial artist.
Sure, Heydar was living his dream: fighting in front of audiences of 30-40, sometimes 100 people! That was practically more than the whole population of his village back in Iran. His mother would cry, yes, but his father would be proud – he was living up to his namesake – the Lion! His body ached, however, and when he looked in the mirror he wondered how one so young (he was 28) could feel so old (he felt like 60).
8 ibuprofen, a large cup of coffee, a few hours in the gym and he would almost forget the agony he suffered climbing out of bed each morning. He was certain, after all, that he would secure a contract with one of the big American fighting outfits, and then from there it was only a matter of time until the belt was his (the women, the money, the cars… but he didn’t speak of those things to his family).
(click the thumbnails below to enlarge…)
Belize: Have Artist, Will Travel
click to view video
It’s rarely lost on me that I’m fortunate enough to have a job that allows for the types of travel that it does.
Traveling to warm and/or tropical climes in pursuit of bugs and critters to photograph would still technically qualify as a hobby for me, but I’m working on making it more.
My friends and family often ask “what was it like?” or “how did you do it?”, and more often than not I find it difficult to summarize in a satisfying way – there are just a lot of details (and planning) involved in a long trip to a far away locale.
Back at the start 2009, my partner and I traveled to Belize – the above video was an attempt to summarize some of the steps involved. Sadly I didn’t capture any of the process of actually getting to the marine reserve which was by small skiff (one of the best parts), but this should give a small idea of the journey.
To see images captured while on location and more, head to Photogrovert, my photography website.
A New Studio Cometh… Together Slowly
click image to embiggen
After spending the month of August on a small farm in upstate New York as an Artist in Residence with Chashama, a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to helping artists find the space they need, Chashama has awarded me with a Visual Arts Studio Award: stated simply, this means I’ve been given access to a new subsidized studio in the Brooklyn Army Terminal.
Above you’ll find a photograph of the space with freshly painted floors (ah, satisfying… you know that appealed to my barely restrained OCD) and a few odds and ends.
One of the things I’ve immediately noticed about having a larger space is that it begins to let your thoughts and ideas grow larger, which is both exciting and potentially expensive.
I expect their to be much movement on the creation front; part of the obligation to keeping the studio lay in spending no less than 50 hours a month in the space.
A Career in the Arts? Really? – Part IV
What drives someone to desire a career as an artist?
What makes them say, I’m going to make “art” for a living?
Every single artist I’ve met along the way has a different story to tell and, seemingly, a different impetus behind what drives them to create their art.
There are those who create art because they enjoy it, but feel uncomfortable making the jump to working on it full time, and there are those driven by an all-powerful need to create that allows for nothing else, and so, create they will, all else be damned. There are then those who simply enjoy the creative aspect of the work as a hobby and nothing more: something to pass the time and calm the spirit. And there are those who work at other tasks for the majority of their lives, turning only to art when so many other hurdles have been vaulted. The list goes on…
For myself, I realized that creating was what made me the most happy, and at an early age I discovered that I was a slave to making sure I was happy if nothing else. I’ve been called selfish, single-minded, stubborn, foolish, courageous, and a litany of other words because of this, but in the end it’s the pursuit of happiness that is the most important part of being alive for me. There have been a slew of words published on this very subject, illuminating the modern origins of this philosophy, but at the end of the day I can’t help but think that this is what one’s forebears had hoped and strove for: the dream that is “a better life”.
And so, shamelessly, I turned to the arts in one form or another to satisfy my desire to be happy.
To that effect, when I was asked recently what I would do should my current plan to establish myself in the art world fail, I paused, thought, and answered: “I’ll do something else in the arts.”
You see, I don’t have another realistic choice if my first priority is to be happy. Happy is different than rich. Happy is different than successful. Happy is not, however, so different than fulfilled.
In an earlier post in this series I mentioned that my father was not around a lot while I was growing up, but fortunately I had a supportive mother. I was, however, also very lucky that my mother, though divorced, was dating a young man who was equally supportive of my interests. That man later became my stepfather, whom I think of as my dad, and provided me with much of the support that a growing child needs in order to see one’s creative interests as viable in the context of a world at large.
For whatever specific reasons I chose the arts as the path which I walk down, it was without question made easier by the support I received, and still receive today by those I choose to surround myself with.
At the end of the day, were I to offer advice to a person seeking to become an artist, it would be this: surround yourself with support.
In fact, I think that good advice no matter your pursuit.
And, oh yeah, honestly ask yourself, “am I happy?”
my dad: a supportive environment is important for the developing artist
To catch up on the previous parts of this meandering series click here: Part I, Part II, Part III