Past Odd Random and Just Plain Bad Jobs

If you are looking for reasons you shouldn't be an art student of study humanities, this is not the post for you. Most of these jobs were either for fun or before I even graduated high school. I guess if anything the "bad ones" would be reasons to finish high school.

I recently took a personality test for a Bible study I'm in. It was the online free version of Myers-Briggs. If you don't know already, I'm an INFP/ENFP. 

Great Organization and Program

What this all means is that I'm crazy, love people, love excitement, and most everything in life is beautiful to me...I'm also fiercely independent and a free spirit.

There's an online ENFPs group I just joined and we are talking about our jobs. And since we all tend to be free spirits, its an interesting topic.

I thought that in addition to my resume post it would be fun to have an odd jobs post about all the odd (and even bad jobs) I've had as they all shape who I am.

Odd Random and just plain bad jobs
*In no particular order*

14. US-Brazil Connect - I taught English in Brazil for a month this pas summer.

13. Hotel Maid at a hotel where hourlys and weeklies were more common than vacationers and travelers - cleaned up a Crank lab and and hid under the pool during drug deals. I'm not sure that this one should be on line but I learned a lot about people and poverty. This was my first job and a real eye opener. They only get better from here.

Beautiful texture and color photo from Brazil.

12. Pool Girl - loved it

11. Alternative Bible and Book Store - I always got in trouble for reading the books.

10. Camp counselor - no running water or electricity and 40 miles of hiking a week. Church camp songs and fires. Home cooked food and sleeping im a teepee. Yes, please!

9. Day hab teacher at The Cooper Center for Creative Arts for adults with disabilities - 2 years

8. Residential Treatment facility Youth Worker in a deaf house - 1 year

7. AmeriCorps - I used the Education award for traveling.

6. Logo designer for The Wyoming Women's Business Center

5. Works of Wyoming Art Gallery - not really that random

4. Social Media trainer - trained artists on Facebook and blogging

3. Resident Assistant. Need I say more?

2. Corn on the Cob Butter Dipper/Carnie I  actually made bank with this one $17 an hour in high school. Not bad.

1. McDonald’s - 4 and a half years total and I really enjoyed it. Many of my coworkers were good friends

I hope you enjoyed...I'm sure I'll find or remember a number 15 and will be sure to add it.

What Makes Me Happy

Henna Design
Sold
Ink+Watercolor on Paper

As a part of my fellowship, I was asked to create a list of 10 things that make me happy…Here is my list of the first thirteen things that I thought of.

Having good conversations with people
Playing Legendary with my husband
Making art that I am happy with
Dancing
Playing cricket (or softball)
Snowboarding
Studying a language
Riding my bike
Hugs
Learning about a new culture
Teaching others
My grandma
Baby animals

This is a great journal prompt. What are the first thirteen things you can think of that make you happy?

Instalation Inspiraiton

Felicia Follum Upcycled Instalation Art India

In a precious post I talked about the first two exhibitons that included my artwork inspired by India.

I am currently planning a third solo exhibition that I which will include work from both previous shows and several more pieces. I really want to play with creative hanging and installation techniques

Felicia Follum Upcycled Instalation Art India Inspired Art

Below are some instalation pieces that serve as my personal inspiration for what this work could morph into.

Installation art conveying an overwhelming atmosphere.

John Dahlsen Environmental Art

Govinda Prasad Sah Aza

Kate MccGwire

A Sun of Thread: 84 Miles of String Suspended at MIA by HOT TEA

The Dreamlike Installation Art Of Rune Guneriussen
Read more at http://all-that-is-interesting.com/dreamlike-installation-art-rune-guneriussen#jR4WFwQQJ2hFzvoH.99

The Dreamlike Installation Art Of Rune Guneriussen
Read more at http://all-that-is-interesting.com/dreamlike-installation-art-rune-guneriussen#jR4WFwQQJ2hFzvoH.99

The Dreamlike Installation Art Of Rune Guneriussen
Read more at http://all-that-is-interesting.com/dreamlike-installation-art-rune-guneriussen#jR4WFwQQJ2hFzvoH.99

The Dreamlike Installation Art Of Rune Guneriussen 

Climate Change Artistic Campaign: Tiny Melting Ice Men Sculptures by Nele Azevedo

Typography: English vs Devanagari

As a graphic designer whose strength lies in typography and a love of type and words, I am stoked to get better at both Hindi/Devanagari and Urdu scripts.

by Folography.
Explore more infographics like this one on the web's largest information design community - Visually.

This is great! I absolutely love that I have a book at home that goes through these same terms with the English alphabet. There are of course some slight differences. Such as English doesn’t have a link but rather ligatures (mostly used in old English) and we have serifs rather than noses, cusps and hooks.

Caps and lowercase letters are also common in English making the x-height useful in a different way making the ascenders and descenders a bit more dramatic in Hindi. This is graphically the one aspect of Hindi/Devanagari script that I am not excited to work with.

I still have a long ways to go before I can start practicing with Urdu script and really using the Hindi alphabet.

Te read more about Hindi/Urdu/Devanagari be sure to check out HindiForChristmas.blogspot.com, my blog about how I am learning the Hindi language.  To see more of my India inspired art and more script check out my India Inspired Art section of this Blog.

Art + India + Trash

My artwork inspired by India has taken on many new forms and new media. A major goal and motivation behind going to India was to learn how to transform an incredible travel experience into a body of artwork. I am proud to say that this goal has already been accomplished. Upon return we were required to have at least two pieces, one for each of two exhibitions.

The first exhibition was a bit more mainstream and located at The Honey Bee Gallery in downtown Laramie, WY. I had a painting in this show. The second group exhibition was titled "An Even Dozen" because 12 students went on the trip. This exhibition was in the Visual Arts Building on the University of Wyoming campus which allowed for a bit more freedom. I included an upcycled trash piece as well as a tryptic playing with the mixing of religion and culture. Though these shows were required, I continued to create artwork on my own.

I am currently preparing for a solo exhibition that will include work from both previous shows and several more pieces.

100 Henna Designs

Create a series of 100 images!

Pre-India Dandia Night Henna

I found this idea in a book called 37 Assignments. The assignment is to create 100 images on a specific topic. The images can be photographs, drawings, digital. 

My Challenge:

As I continue to work on my India inspired art I will create 100 Henna inspired drawings (and as always I do plan to be creative with the definition of drawing). I plan on participating in the Thursday 13, I'm excited to get back into that (you can click the label/link below the post to see my other Thursday 13 posts). I'm sure I will share on some other online venues as well...any suggestions? Let me know below.

You can find my henna images on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtag #FFHenna100

Deadline:

I will have this series completed by my India inspired art exhibition, East Meets West, in March. Some of these designs may even be included in the exhibition.

Why not join me?

Complete this challenge for yourself.

Just a bit of Henna for me. Dandia Night 2013

What could you create 100 of? If you are an artist working on a specific field or topic like me, create 100 sketches on that topic. If you are a stay at home mom, try 100 new recipes this year? Writers, write 100 pages in a given amount of time. What ever it is that you want to do, set some goals, make a time line, and do it.

Let me know in the comments below what you would create if you took on this project or what you plan to create when you take on this project.

Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.

India Inspired Art

Be sure to check out my Indian Inspired Artwork in my Facebook gallery. I will be adding more to this album as time goes on and as more work is displayed in public. If you are interested in purchasing work please message me on Facebook or email me at FeliciaFollum (at) gmail (dot) com.

Some of the topics that my Indian Inspired Artwork addresses include Women in India, Trash, and the Mixing of Religion and Culture. 

Keep an eye out for my Artist Statement about my India Inspired Artwork to learn more and see how the body of work develops.
 

Tattoos, Tattoos, + More Tattoos

As I am sure you know, I have been working on my tattoo sleeve for a while now. Though it is composed and inspired by mostly my artwork and photography a huge part of the process has included researching hundreds of tattoo photos.

I have been sharing some of these fun tattoo images on my personal Facebook page and people just seemed to love them so I figured I would share them on my blog as well. I hope you all enjoy this uniquely beautiful and fascinating art form.

Just Some Plain, Rad Tattoo Art

Super amazing 3D tattoos. 

12 of the most adorable Disney-inspired tattoos

Here are some more of the craziest and coolest 3D tattoos 

You'll probably recognize a few of these Celebrity Tattoos! 

These hyper-realistic tattoos will shock you!

Some more Great Tattoo Ideas

Check out the Cutest Girl Tattoos! 

Celebrity Tattoos

The NFL is full of inked-up players! 

It's no secret that tattoos are huge in the NBA, but who has the best ink? 

               Source: likes.com via Felicia Follum Art+ on Pinterest

Ok, So I am not a 1D fan but have ya seen Harry's MASSIVE butterfly tattoo?  

Check out the Coolest Celeb Ink! 

Miscelaneous 

Every piece of ink has a story to tell and that's just the case with these absolutely insane gang tattoos! 

Here are 15 of the nerdiest tattoos you can find on the Internet! 

The only thing worse than a painful tattoo, is a painfully mis-spelled tattoo! 

And Some Crazy Piercings 

Why would you put a hole there?

You can also find me on YouTube.com

Links found via mylikes.com.

Art In Haiti

Me sharing a a Paper Bead Lesson

Here is a post from my religion blog. I talk about my experience teaching art in Haiti leading art lessons. I will edit the post a bit. To see the original and more about the religions of Haiti and my spiritual experience check out my SckRlgn Blog.

As many of you know I was fortunate to be able to take a trip to Haiti last summer (2011). The goal of our group was to build a chicken coupe in a small village community while spreading the Good News.

One of the cultural differences led to the Haitian males taking away most of the American women’s jobs while working on the chicken house (polaye in Creole). Though frustrating for some of the ladies in our group, this was a good thing for two reasons. First, I strongly believe that it was our job to equip people rather than do for them. And second (third, fourth and fifth), this dynamic led to me being surrounded by tons of kids, and the opportunities to lead art lessons, learn some Creole, and having the chance to spend quality time with one of the older girls. One-on-one time with a role model of some sort is a major need for many young women in Haiti. In fact if I go again I plan to take nail polish to share with the young women (probably women of all ages).

The photo above is me teaching some of the order girls and young boys how to make paper beads. You can read more about the Upcycled paper beads in my tutorial. I also took around 60 friendship bracelet kits (just cut string ready to be braided or knotted) Using art to connect with people was a unique and beautiful experience. I went in with no Creole and some of the older kids knew how to count to 5 in English and say Miami. The art lessons allowed me to make friends with one of the families as well as some other kids and leaders in the community. Using art allowed us to teach each other basic language skills but also forces us to use sign language (actually having sign language experience was more beneficial than my Spanish) and other forms of communication such as body language and sounds.

I would love the opportunity to go back to the small village again, to show the kids that it was not a one-time event, but rather a sincere investment in their lives. I also have a small amount of money to take back from selling my art in response to the first trip.

230 Nooses for Black History Month

I hope everyone has a fantastic Black History Month!!! I wanted to share some artwork with you from my last exhibition titled "Make it Plain."

This video shows a piece names 1982 and talks about why I chose to create 230 nooses. The song playing in the background, Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday, was also written out in one of my books. As you will see he goal of my noose artwork was to help people understand a bit more about African American history and the racism that existed and to some extent still does exist. You can see images of the finished piece at the end of the video.


To see more of my art check out my YouTube channel.

This Aint your Grandmother's Christmas Music Countdown

I absolutely love music and some of my favorite bands have some excellent Christmas songs...I hope you enjoy...Though I grew up in a Lutheran church (and still consider myself a "Church Camp Lutheran" not all of these songs are your grandma's hymns (or Sphen and Olie's hymns for that matter) from the LBW (yes, that is Lutheran humor for you. If you understood those references please let me know in the comments).

16. August Burns Red's "Carol of the Bells"

Holiday Countdown/Advent Calendar: Food Ideas

All images can be found on my Pinterest page

There is something beautiful about the time of year. Baked goods, junk food, and some of my favorite flavors are a few examples. This next set of 5 days in the advent calendar is the promised food post. Turn on the oven, sit back, and let your mouth start watering....

16. What are the holidays without great food? Well they are still pretty great but there is no better way to a woman's heart than some great flavors.  Peppermint is one of my favorite flavors and scents.  Check out some peppermint holiday recipes I found for this holiday season. Which is your favorite?

Holiday Countdown?Advent Calendar: Part 3

For the third part of my Holiday Countdown I am sharing some of my favorite Pinterest posts including inspiration, photography, crafts, projects, gift ideas and more.

My advent calendar will consist of 25 links, songs, tutorials, home decorating ideas, photography and artworks that inspire me. Since I started late I will share the first five today.

11. No snow for Christmas???

Source: dontcallmebetty.tumblr.com via Felicia Follum Art+ on Pinterest

No problem, just head to the beach and make this gorgeous sand tree.

12. Cute gift idea for your bestie.

Holiday Countdown: 60 Days of Christmas

Here are some sets, 5 to be exact, of my 12 day countdowns for Christmas.  That's 60 days of Christmas. Can't beat that.  Keep reading for date nights, music, craft ideas and more fun winter ideas.

6. These ideas will be great for the next 5 months of winter here in Laarmaie.  12 Dates of Christmas is such a fun idea.

Source: abeautifulmess.typepad.com via Felicia Follum Art+ on Pinterest

 12 Dates of Christmas

Holiday Countdown/Advent Calendar: Part 1

I absolutely love Advent and Advent calendars. There is something beautiful about the time of year. The coming of a savior for those who share my personal Christmas beliefs as well as a time for family, sweaters, hot chocolate, scarves and winter sports for the rest of us. The season is full of joy for many.

My advent calendar will consist of 25 links, songs, tutorials, home decorating ideas, photography and artworks that inspire me. Since I started late I will share the first five today.  The fist set of five are a bit random but be sure to check back in a few days for music, gift ideas, food, and more.

1. The best way to start my 25 days of Christmas Countdown is with this super cute photo from my Pinterst page,

Source: allthebeautifulchristmas.blogspot.com via Felicia Follum Art+ on Pinterest

Obama's Logo: A Change We Can See

Regardless of ones political beliefs Obama's logo and campaign were both revolutionary in the fields of Art history and graphic design.

I remember sitting in my Art History class and my professor getting excited because she knew some of the art historians working on the campaign.  We discussed the Orator's pose and the new concept for logo design.  In my Conceptual Graphic Design and Typography classes we talked about the versatility of the logo design, and the use of image as type, and type as image.

Not only is this the first time I can remember seeing a strong campaign logo, but it is also the first time where an actual street and graffiti artist played a major role in a political campaign with the iconic Shepard Fairey posters (pictured below).  It was, and still is, clear that there was something different.  Obama is about change, at least to much of the art world and counter cultures (but we wont get into that now).

Source: via Felicia on Pinterest

I am a fan of logos that can function as a recognizable image without text (such as Target and Nike).  Obama's logo accomplishes this and I cannot think of another presidential campaign with the same accomplishment (even the 2012 campaign). The Obama flag is a another example of the diversity his logo embraces.  Change was present in the visual rhetoric whether we believe we have seen it in Obama's time served in office or not.

I love this logo more than most anything dealing with the presidential campaigns.  It is a breath of fresh air in the 3 1/2 year long election season.  

What are your thoughts on the design?  Are there other election campaigns that have a srong visual language?

Keep reading for some blogs insights and posts offering deeper insight from the logo designers and more.

Yellowstone Summer Inspiration

My Facebook profile says it all.  I had a blast in Yellowstone!!! Yellowstone National Park is one of the mot awe inspiring places I have ever been.  Though scientifically I have a basic understanding of how the colors and thermal features work, in reality I have no idea how the incredible place exists on this planet. 

In honor of the park I thought I would share a few posts of my photography from the trip (but you may need to wait a while).  Even though it is not extremely political or social justice-y it certainly applies to my art in a couple ways.

1. Protecting the environment and knowing how to treat the earth with respect when hiking or camping important.
2. The incredible beauty of creation plays a huge role in my spirituality.  I have always been a Christian and activities like camping, hiking, and snowboard really help me to connect with God.
3. My images from Yellowstone would work well for the background of a meme or handbill.  I have a variety of inspirational quotes I plan to illustrate.
4. There is always the possibility of using one of these photos in a graphic design or other project.
5. I took several Lily pad photographs while on the trip and as well all know (or if you don't know read my blog posts about water lilies a human trafficking) they relate to sex trafficking and human slavery in a variety of ways. 
6. And I am writing a proposal to possibly do some sort of project at Yellowstone in the future.  The project would likely involve educating people about the outdoors and creating plein air paintings on site.  We will see if anything comes of it.  Either way, I plan to return to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons and will of course be inspired by the beauty once again.

How do the outdoors inspire you? 

Presidential Election 2012 Shoes

We have all heard of wearing our heart on our sleeve...how about wearing you politics on your feet?  I found these great Obama shoes on Pinterest and thought I would share.  Regardless of who you are voting for this election, why not share you views with the world in a unique way.
What are some other creative and respectful ways to support your candidate? 

Source: printeresting.org via Felicia on Pinterest

Creatress

Creatress

Cre`a´tress

n. 1. She who creates.

2. A person or thing that creates

3. Originator

Steal Like an Artist+ Creativity

Source: fashioncopious.typepad.com via Charles on Pinterest

Here is some great advice for creativity. I love these tips from StealLikeAnArtist.com.  For more creative inspiration check out and follow my Pinterest board, Creative Inspiration.  If you would like an invite, post your email in a comment or message me on Facebook.com.