Janice M. Chau

Congratulations Ted and Eunice! May you continually grow and be deeply rooted in your new home. Before 10 August 2013 Photography:   Caroline Yoon Photography Home Sweet Home

Sometimes we get creatively stuck, kind of like writers block.  It's always good to take a blank canvas, an opportunity, and friends get away from the work/studio environment and just do something therapeutic. I was given the opportunity this past May to be a featured artist for the Urban Ocean Festival at the Aquarium of the Pacific down in Long Beach.  I had just the right amount of time to plan and do something well thought out and prepared.  BUT...life happens on the in between and several family emergencies occurred.  I took one day in May just to process it all, I had no plan, and I had no ideas.  I just wanted to face a blank canvas and see where my imagination, a different world would take me.  With the community surrounding, kids painting, other artist indulging, and aquarium volunteers/staff helping.  It was a good run.  That place of tranquility was found in an array of colors, and the thought of snorkeling/diving by the pier. ...

These are a few centerpieces that I've done in the past.  I am always approached about creating centerpieces with a very limited variations of use of flowers to keep cost down.  So the methods that I have used are in mixed medium.  I tend to gravitate towards the mixture of  nature and ornaments made from scratch. I personally feel like centerpieces at any special event tells a story, sets the ambiance, and sets the style of the event, yet you don't have to spend an arm and a leg to get a very imaginative, creative, and charming sculpture.  I love bringing in enchantment and whimsy into the room. I truly do appreciate the sustainability, upcycling, and the similarities in mediums, and useful resources.  (e.g.paper was once a branch).  Here is what I've done in the past. Oikos 20th Year Anniversary Januarty 2009 Adult Reception Table Pieces Children's Reception Table Pieces Photography:  Regina ...

First Art Class at Elephant Sanctuary Art House. Students and Coaches! On another adventure. A friend of a friend of mine invited me to come and create with the little tikes that were going to attend the first ever art class at Elephant Sanctuary Art House. (ESAH).  This was one of the funnest Saturday mornings I've had in a while.  It's because kids say the darnest things. It's funny how their imaginations run wild.  AND it is so awesome to see how their imagination comes to life in 2D or 3D form when they are given the opportunity to.  Here are my students being silly, focused, energetic and creative. Robert seriously was very mechanical about his elephant.  He built his piece by piece focusing on shape and proportions.   I could tell by the statements and the way he laid out the shapes before gluing it all down.   He used scissors a lot for the limbs, but tore the body. Christian had a lot of fun with the tissue paper....

My third of Visual Arts! Spring 2013 with The 24 Foundation zoomed before my eyes.  Just as all of us were really getting to know each other, life took one of its biggest pitches at me.  In a way I was very glad to have shared that moment with the girls I work with.  All of us have dealt with some type of loss, had to come to acceptance, learn to adapt, and face our fears of separation.  Before home week, some shared that they didn't even want to go home to deal with what they desire to separate from:  their old self, or even old ways of family life. I didn't know that this would actually become a way for our small group to bond.  So, week 2, before home week, one of the girls could not help but come to visual arts group with a very long face.  She shared with us that her dog is gone. Every so often the cadets get to call home.  The last thing she thought would happen while she was trying to make this transformation and change in her life ...

I am so grateful that the front window shutters swung wide open.  So grateful that by divine powers, the time frame opened perfectly down to the calendar dates.  Like most mentoring programs a 100% commitment is required.  I debated reapplying as a mentor due to the fact that I would be traveling for out of town in the middle of April.  As I read the application, my eyebrows raised with gladness that "Home Visitation Week" is the same week that a whole grip of us mentors need to go out of town.  (hahaha I"m not the only one).  It so awesome seeing how the inner workings of life merge through divine powers over how much control we all think we have.  Another example was that a week before beginning this spring sesh, 24 still needed 15 mentors.  Some how it all worked out and this is the 1st session EVER  that 24 has a 1 to 5 ratio of mentor mentee relationship.  All of us couldn't help but have grateful hearts giving thank...

GIG ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!! not only because I LOVE MUSIC, but because she's that awesome LIVE!! Jackie Brubaker @ Room 5 143 North La Brea Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA 90036 Live with the full band! 10 pm - 11 pm Front Cover: Home, Jackie Brubaker, March 2013 (photography for front cover: James Meierotto)  Meet the ever so lovely and sweet Jackie Brubaker.  She is an LA based singer/songwriter. I met Jackie at a gig that was in a cutting edge music lovin' broken in rock modern salon.   There I was just introduced to her as an amazing illustratro/desginer, and she was introduced to me as an amazing singer/songwriter.  Put those two together and you've got two creatives smashed into a energetic duo.  The entire production process of designing together was a cruise, just as the tracklist of this album plays: smooth for a coastal cruise.   Jackie's got that pop country folk twang and the soft sweet duo op reminisce...

This Saturday, I was able go and help renovate more of the church I attend.  From a previous post you may see that we did decorative birch trees with yellow in the nursery ( Kaleo Nursery Phase 1 ).  Yesterday, we went into the foyer, our small little transitional room to the sanctuary.  Our thoughts were matching the large stage wall to the foyer.  This time around the foyer was the guinea pig experiment for the large stage wall. The small team that I am working with have been set on using a merlot wine color for these areas.  But, honestly, its daunting to use such a dark color when our entire church is painted white. EVERYTHING  (walls) are all WHITE from the previous leasers of this building.  We have office blue carpet and office blue chairs.  So its very sophisticated feeling, simple, and lacking Kaleo style and personality.  Today's goals included painting this mini foyer, sanding and staining the hard wood shelf, and lastl...