London Walls 2009
Kategori: Synesthesia
A Paste-up I did on glass a while back, a version of it was up on a couple of walls in West London. It feels like a lifetime ago! Great times.
Bon Nielsen (c) 2009
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LIVE THE MILKY WAY
Kategori: Synesthesia
As an ode to an old favourite song of mine by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, 'Walking On The Milky Way', I made this for my kitchen, nothing like that first coffee in the morning and a reminder of a song that tells me to be on my way to Venus.
Bon Nielsen (c) 2012
Defacing Vogues
Kategori: Cubed Tuesdays
Another cubed beautiful lady. More on Defacing Vogues in a previous entry.
Bon Nielsen (c) 2013
FEAR THE POET - 5 AM
Kategori: Poetic Sundays
Poem from 'Fear the Poet'. BB Nielsen (c) 2012
DEFACING VOGUES
Kategori: Cubed Tuesdays
A couple more samples as of why my mom called me 'Damian - Demon child', explained in more detail in a previous entry.
FEAR THE POET - Starry Walls
Kategori: Poetic Sundays
I woke up this morning with glide in my eyes
and bones portruding from my temples
looking like a defaced Monroe
the moon seemed to whisper in my hair
'the rockets are ready for the launch
and the sandwiches we made were left on the counter
forgotten'
I can hear empty triangles
and the ink glittens in the dark
lighting up the ceiling
you are sweating next to me
breathing slowly sound sleep
I am watching you with one eye
the smoke coming out of your nostrils
almost visible
and with a kiss I steal from you
I go back to my pillows
sinking into the dark side of a starry wall
so full of secrets
Poem from 'Fear the Poet'. BB Nielsen (c) 2012
Ellen Lane
Kategori: Figured Saturdays
I would like to introduce my friend Ellen Lane's works today. Every one of them has a beautiful story from a particular time and space, a nudge to life and a lesson in all the emotions of the rainbow. Ellen is one of those powerful artists that are able to share through layers and hues. Seen from afar make one walk closer. Once there, face to face with the story, one finds more layers of coded little stitches that walk you deeper into a forest of quiet conversations.
I was not able to pick a few favourites, so I am sharing all I could get photographed. Even more on her website.
A lot can be learned from my friend. I admire Ellen not just for her sense of colour and her ability to share secrets under layers of paint, but her sense of adventure, determination, outlook in the many lives she has travelled and above all, her full smile to whatever may come her way.
Yeah Darlin' go make it happen
Take the world in a love embrace
Fire all of your guns at once
And explode into space.
Take the world in a love embrace
Fire all of your guns at once
And explode into space.
Much love,
Bon x
David Shillinglaw
Kategori: Synesthesia
Enter Sandman:
I was tattooing a love heart to some girl, but she couldn't remember the guy's name. I had 8 left eyes, and she was telling me about this nameless guy. She wanted her love-heart to burn his name inside of it once tattooed. At this point we entered a very weird state of mind, the realm turned penciled (b&w) illustration, as if we were inside a comic strip, and we couldn't find any doors. I arranged a few lines to form a pencil and then a door, but the door only took me to a room with no depth, full of illustrated stuff, but no depth. And just like that, one hand (David's drawing-style of hand) animated itself and crossed the 'vignette' and pointed the dimensions of the space. It carried on around the rest of the dreamspace grabbing some things and knocking others over, found the girl and mimed: 'Leave him in the Highway'.
I woke up laughing at myself and grabbed pen and book and illustrated whilst it was fresh.
I was tattooing a love heart to some girl, but she couldn't remember the guy's name. I had 8 left eyes, and she was telling me about this nameless guy. She wanted her love-heart to burn his name inside of it once tattooed. At this point we entered a very weird state of mind, the realm turned penciled (b&w) illustration, as if we were inside a comic strip, and we couldn't find any doors. I arranged a few lines to form a pencil and then a door, but the door only took me to a room with no depth, full of illustrated stuff, but no depth. And just like that, one hand (David's drawing-style of hand) animated itself and crossed the 'vignette' and pointed the dimensions of the space. It carried on around the rest of the dreamspace grabbing some things and knocking others over, found the girl and mimed: 'Leave him in the Highway'.
I woke up laughing at myself and grabbed pen and book and illustrated whilst it was fresh.
Here is to one of my favourite people in the world, I leave you with a tiny sample of David's extensive body of work, some of his travels Diary Entries. There are some from Gambia, Paris, Osaka and Berlin and it is taking me all day to decide which ones to show you as I am fascinated by every single one. I am not even looking at his paintings or his murals.
Dods is constantly doing, traveling, thinking, singing, making coffee, screaming inside books, writing, on walls, on ceilings, on pavements, on your forehead, colouring cities, loving, skipping and a -jumpin'.
Try to keep up with him if you can catch him!
Discover more of Neverending Dodoland.
Message in a Bottle
Kategori: Synesthesia
This one happened without meaning to. There I was, a few years younger, writing a poem away with the fairies and I got a phone call that involved arguing ending in a spectacular shouting match. Not ideal, but I guess one taps into moments without realising. I was at my table, there was ink, there was paint, there was anger, a feeling like any other. There is nothing wrong with facing any feeling, in my experience, it helps one more than to not face them at all. In fact, anger has got me out of some pretty sticky situations in the past.
BB Nielsen (c) 2007
The two shades of white are both people involved, my voice has a hint of blue, tallking over each other, black ink fuzz works well for referencing loud spots. And underneath it all, the broken poem.
It reminds me that you live... And you (try to) learn!
Loving L.A. and XOXO
Kategori: Cubed Tuesdays
My usual suspects. Favourite style of illustration since I can remember.
Cubed and in motion.
Trek to the Oasis
Kategori: Bondays Curiosities
On Bondays we celebrate not having 9-5 jobs by doing all the things we dreamt about doing while we had 9-5 jobs. Now that we live out in the (low) Mojave desert, we are spoiled for choice. A few weeks ago we drove up the road to the Coachella Valley Preserve Oasis.
I knew Oasis existed, but I was not prepared for how they make you feel once you step under 60ft tall lush palm trees. The world turns all sorts of green and aquamarines, the Californian glow turns the air pink and there is water, in the middle of absolute desert. Lots of water. So much water that these gigantic palm trees are over a hundred years old. All these pictures were taken with an iphone within an early afternoon, and somehow, the sky looks so different from one to the next. You look behind you, and as far as you can see there are only arid dirt roads, boulders, cacti, rocks, mountains... And ahead of you, this! They should change the name to 'Jurassic Park'.
The last picture is of a mini oasis nearby. Bring a hammock.
Fear the poet - Underwater
Kategori: Poetic Sundays
UNDERWATER
laying there
submerged
staring at the waves above
stars coming into the water
strikes of light piercing my toes
nailing me to the reefs
where the breathing is easy
and the mountains purple
where I can be and no apologise
for wanting you, for us
tangled hair floating towards
other kingdoms growing faster
faster, faster
faster
electric skin that you cannot touch
there is no flesh
no bones for you to lick anymore
and with a knife
you get my kiss
(c) BB Nielsen 2012 - from Fear The Poet
Radiohead
Kategori: Figured Saturdays
These two girls came up whilst listening to Radiohead. I did not paint them via synesthesia, I find that most of Radiohead's music is very white, almost as if Thom Yorke's voice was mixed as an additional instrument, and it takes over because he tends to sing throughout the entirety of their songs. I am a huge fan of their music. Hail to their sound engineer, painting any of their songs with patterns and textures will be a challenge like no other, the layering seems to twirl into the infinite and I would forever be trying to deconstruct the songs just to find out where to begin the painting from. Maybe one day, the first time I listened to 'The King of Limbs' I sat there not listening to the lyrics, just crying out of soundscapes. Although it is nowhere near (real) noise/experimental music, and I would love for them to push further that way, it incapacitated me to do anything for the rest of the day. This from someone who finds Merzbow perfect for centering. I laid on the floor, crying happily and let them beam me way outterspace. So far only some of Zeppelin, Coltrane, Betty Davis, Pink Floyd, Hendrix and Cpt. Beefheart had driven that ship.
The lady on the left was inspired by Kid A's 'How to disappear completely', in particular by the line 'I walk through walls', the little girl on the white dress belongs to OK Computer's 'Paranoid Android', line being 'When I am king, you will be the first against a wall', in this case, when 'she' is 'queen'. The originals are bright coloured, their skins an electric blue, the background of the 'Queenie' is a very sharp edged red.
Branchlers
Kategori: Fridays Decor
Branchlers (a combination of Branches and Antlers) are nothing new these days, but I had a drawing I made age 11 that I was never able to bring to a wall. In comes my (sound) engineer partner-in-all-crimes.
He takes a look at my cockeyed drawing, blinks a few times. Tilts head. Swallows snickering - I am watching like a hawk, his dinner depends on it - then he slowly tells me he knows how to mount antlers. I know where to find branches (dead oleanders where art thou?!) so we divided and try to conquer.
Joined effort, as in, I made a terrible drawing, trimmed a couple of dead oleanders from the side of the house, and gave both to him.
He later told me he thought it was a stupid idea (he had originally referred to it as a 'very European thing to do') but after wrestling with the branches, the windspan, the weight, the hold-ups and whatever aerodynamics engineering (almost dangerous!!) situations he encountered, he gained some respect for the project.
He eventually admitted he wants one in his studio. Can I get a 'yeehaaww' then.
Golden
Kategori: Synesthesia
A couple of Yules back I painted this 'Smallest Things are Golden' (70x58in). As we were celebrating away from home, I had to improvise a studio in the patio. One has not lived until painting at 1C/34F in high winds. It now hangs in one of my sister's hall.
I used household paints, tempera, acrylics, twigs, golden dust, and anything that flew in from the nearby flower bed. If you can't beat them, paint over them.
There are 4 generations involved in the making of this painting. The tempera, dust and acrylics came from nana's mom, it is nana's garden that attached itself to it, my sister in law owns it and my niece inspired the pink tones.
Based on Psalm 19:10 'More to be desired are they than gold, yes, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb' what kept on ringing in my ears as I twigged away was:
''And as we wind on down the road, our shadows taller than our soul, there walks a lady we all know, who shines white light and wants to show how everything still turns to gold. And if you listen very hard, the tune will come to you at last when all is one and one is all, to be a rock and not to roll.''
The solo guitar dripping from the top is Robert Plant all by himself. The acoustic, the recorders, his voice and the folk tint remained on the lower whiter part. The crescendo crosses over a little frozen branch that fell in. It may not be my favourite Led Zeppelin song (and I have painted a few of them) but it means a lot to me that it stayed in the family.
DEFACING VOGUES
Kategori: Cubed Tuesdays
I am told I was a lovely kid for the first few years, quiet and industrious, seen but never heard type of 'thing', always in some well lit corner reading and surrounded with pens and crayons and ink.
Plain white paper did not do it for me, I needed already-there backgrounds. It started with money notes, which my dad had no problem with but my mom was horrified and kept wallets in high shelves. Then I stepped into newspapers but the ink destroys my fingers, so... I moved into her VOGUE magazines. Talk about 'horrifying mom', she called me 'Damian' (devil child) for years.
This is to this day (it has been decades) how I doodle whilst my mind tidies up itself. It's a constant, and probably subconscious study of Light.
We are all engineered the same. Just a bunch of angles hit by the sun. The fascination for what's beautiful has always amazed me. I pick up more on people's colours and tones than on actual facial features, so I don't see the fuss about Handsomeness. I guess that as a kid I attacked fashion magazines to deconstruct beauty. To understand the ratio or the harmony behind what's a 'beautiful face'. I had a broken face and live scars for a while, maybe because I was too young to care (9) it didn't bother me, but there was talk of plastic reconstruction around me. Luckily it healed by itself, sort of, but at that point I started analysing bone structures (on photographs) as there are no voice distractions to them.
I am still none the wiser, I love angles, but there are angles in all of us. The trick is to find the right angle that would highlight one's features and then play with shadows until it fits. And voila! (Unless they have a nasal, whiny, yappy voice) - Everybody is quite beautiful!
I am constantly on the look out for further collaborations with fashion/editorial photographers that would allow me to cube or paint their images, of course I would credit their work and if put up for sale, share the potential profits. (Or just simply let me enjoy being inspired by their work.) If anybody knows someone of interest or interested, please leave me a comment clicking on 'Kommentarer'' below. Thank you very much!
MOOSECHASER
Kategori: Bondays Curiosities
Another week, another Bonday, currently enjoying these guys music. 'Tears of the Moosechaser' are an americana/noise band straight out of the Mojave via LA.
Sounds of sand, whiskey, wood and rusty metal.
Enjoy.
I lack the music knowledge to review their style, however if you would like to know more about them and their album, Mr. Alder Bloom from American Pancake is more than capable to do the honours. I like their music because it has so many layers of strings and an impecable orquestration, because they are not background music and because the lyrics are true poems to an era that we still have much to learn from.
I am watching them live at 'Red Handed Festival' in Topanga, CA - Aug 4th, all day all-timey music and variety show from 2pm - 8pm, free entry (donation based) and you get free barbeque. I mean, seriously.
Fear The Poet - Somehow Daytime
Kategori: Poetic Sundays
SOMEHOW DAYTIME
thick snow falls this spring
from here I can see the thieves
gambling your wishes away
amongst sparkling golden lamps
incandescent
inside your left hand
trying to scratch it out
you live nowhere
you need nothing
and they are angry they cannot touch you
why do you still feel you have to be on the run?
they can not touch you
don't need to pay for living
can't afford to survive
and in every corner
the youth falling apart
shaking their heads
staring at the cards they got
the house always takes it all
and I stare into the neighbourhoods of my night
and the city lights trap me in
if I was any better at lying
I would tell you
that I can't fall in love with you
(c) BB Nielsen 2013 - Fear The Poet
SHADOW XXVII
Kategori: Figured Saturdays
A while back whilst in London I had the pleasure of coming across Shadow XXVII's photography. Here are a couple of my paintings inspired by his fantastic work. His ability to turn the mundane into magic never fails to make my mind get lost. The paintings shown here stroke a cord because of the negative spaces and the combination of colours. I simply regurgitated them into a synesthete plane.
Pirates of the Galaxy
Kategori: Synesthesia
Here are some of my girls that got pasted around London a few years ago. The series are called 'Pirates of the Galaxy' - A fleet of alien girls from the future.
