So Singing to Shnix

Shnix? Shnix?? Funny story actually.

Nicole is a school friend of mine. And we are weird together. Like we put on different accents when we speak to each other, unintentionally. From the German worm in A Bug's Life ("beautiful butterfly" ) to the British accents of Sophie and Olivia from The Holiday ("you look like my Barbie") to these arb high pitched sing song voices from goodness knows where. 

There's no sense in it.

So obviously I called Nicole, Shnicole, and Nix changed to Shnix, almost automatically.

This is her playlist.

T​he Middle - Jimmy Eat World.

​-Quick background info...Nicole and I were studying veterinary this past year. Both being "arty" we found that we were not accommodating our creative juices. She left half way through the year, I plodded on for the sake of my parents (so that they could say that I passed? Perhaps..). But anyway, we like animals. Keep that in mind..-

T​he Middle.

H​umans.

U​s.

T​he great collective man.

We are so busy being great that we have only recently noticed our effects on the world. Man-the centre of the world? Sure, why not? But with this title comes a manner of things...it means that we, too, are the centre of pollution. The centre of oil spills, of poaching, or plastic bags and fishing gut, of global warming and over-exploiting, or deforestation and soil erosion. Of extinction and cruelty and fear. 

B​ut.

B​eing in The Middle also means Greenpeace and World Wildlife Fund, Reuse Reduce Recycle, Earth Hour meets the UN. And these efforts are helping. As it goes, one little man offering to help clean up birds and turning off his lights and recycling to reduce his Carbon Footprint joins another man doing the same thing. Make enough people feel guilty and soon you have an army of guilty consciences making a difference. These armys form Facebook groups and Twitter pages and art works and meet Banksy and add some street art into the mixture, they protest, they throw things. 

They make a scene.

Here's to my 8 pages of scene-making...

Oil Spills.

T​hey suck. BP-you suck. The African Penguins along the coast of South Africa are often spewed with oil from such spills. Donations of wetsuits and towels and gloves and time and hands results in these penguins being given another chance. Man causes the problem...and (kinder) man does his best to solve some of it.

This is where background I-wanted-to-be-a-vet story comes in...My mum grew up in Kenya and my sister and I went on holiday there a couple of years back. It's the most beautiful place..

We went to the Nairobi National Park and in the park is what is known as The Orphanage. It is a sanctuary for elephant calves whose mothers (or them themselves) have been harmed from poaching. The carers look after the elephants, feed them, walk around with them in the park and when they have been raised, release them back into the wild. I fell in love with the idea and desperately wanted to make an effort to help combat poaching. This picture is a cut-out of poachers carrying tusks. As they were cut out of the elephants, so were the people cut out from the paper, with the sharp lines showing violence. That the paper is black with a white background is no coincidence. Poaching is black and white. There is no grey area.

It should not be done, and should be controlled, for the innocence of these most majestic animals is in jeopardy. 

On the other hand, most poachers are uneducated, unemployed and desperate for money for their families. What about them? What else can they do?

One of man's greatest issues is his lack of knowledge.

The final installation to this playlist concerns global warming, in regard to Africa.

Because of global warming, rainfall is said to decrease by 10%-20%. As Africa doesn't have many high mountains (sorry Kilimanjaro, no offense) we can't get much water from them, and as a result we rely on rain. Less rain equals less water in rivers, in dams, in watering holes. In dry mid-African continents. 

This is why I used the Singin' In The Rain cover, but replaced their umbrellas with acacias.

(Side note. Singin' in the Rain is probably the greatest musical ever... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFxWkUkUsQA ) 

Choice Notes

Paul loves music. He's one of those people who watches an ad on tv, and only sees music. Then finds that music. Then plays you that music. And it's then (and only then) that you think (click) that sounds familiar. (click). tv. (click) ad. (click). what cool music for an ad. (click) add to playlist of the day.

So he called his playlist "Choice Notes", a song by Alex Winston.

(Three guesses who his relation is with an earlier playlist. Why yes. This is Kate's brother).

Paul's one of those people who I immediately got on (click) with. And I see myself in him. So this playlist was hard to make because it was sort of a backwards reflection of myself and my preferences too. (You may be thinking, idiot, this is your sketchbook, your art. If there wasn't a reflection of you in there then something's the matter...and you have your own playlist Jessie...) 

This art seems to be more a reflection of me than my playlist was. More personal.

Okay, so I chose "Otherside"-Red Hot Chili Peppers.

A thing Paul and I share is a love for nature. From this love I decided to depict some sort of natural theme for this playlist. I also like things that make you think, and so for the "otherside" I wanted to show two concepts, both beautiful, both desirable and leave people thinking.

It's good to think.

The above tree was drawn with the Real Yellowwood in mind (South Africa's national tree). Next to it is a very beautiful hand crafted wooden chair.

The tree is stunning; the chair is stunning.

The next page shows an Atlantic Salmon (Atlantic Salmon which is from Europe which is where Paul went on a gap year from which I have heard many stories..) and the page accompanying it:

Salmon maki rolls with chopsticks.

Both divine.

A nguni cow, native to our country, and next to it, a leather boot (for the part of Paul that loves fashion).

Both necessary.

So now that brains have been racked and thoughts pondered....one last diptych showing his love for photography...a camera. And what else is on the other side of a camera than smiling idiots, with one thing in mind (three two one) cheese. 

Makes one think, doesn't it?

Out of habit,

xxx

Kirsty's forever changing ultimate top 6 songs!

Kirst holds the record as the person who's been friends with me longest. We had our first sleepover together, ran away together, explored the properties next door and played archeologist archeologist with the cow skeletons we found there together.


So Kirst's playlist was extra super challenging...I mean, how do you try and express someone through art who you've known for 19 years? You need to combine the population of personalities through which they have travelled on a select number of pages and end up with a summary of that person's life through your eyes?

Not quite the easy task. (I seem to have left all the complicated people until last....)


So Kirst, if I didn't quite show you as you, I'm sorry. But this is how I think I see you. :)

 - The writing that doesn't fit on the screen:
 Bohemian Rhapsody (GREATEST song of all time!!)
Glee cast version - Don't Stop Believing >> just makes me :)
Boats and Birds = matric valedictory song :,( - 

I chose Firework.

By splitting the word "firework" you can make an entirely different concept (with work being the noun). I then decided to portray objects that had been made with the use of fire. 

The reading glasses (glass is melted) represent our detective work, as well as the cigarette. I decided to make a beard of flames to try and shed some light on the whole fired objects situation.


The creme brulee is cleverer. The ramequin (china is glazed), spoon (silver is melted) and pudding (the sugar on the top is heated with fire). This page is a mockery really. When Kirst was little she ate nothing except fish fingers at other peoples's houses. None of us will ever let her forget it!