June 28, 2013

Material Leisure

Yes, the title of my new Tumblr site is a play on leisure material. I'll be updating it regularly with illustrations and other design-related projects, from posters and prints to random doodles.

Perhaps an odd title, but now that I'm working full-time it seemed appropriate. Given that I'm doing most of my work by hand, without relying too much on design software, I thought it would also be important to highlight my process. And, of course, there's the fact that the labour involved in producing my work has a material foundation. I thought it might be helpful to post an explanation, originally written during my first attempts to put the site together a couple of weeks ago. I realize it's a bit precious, so I decided not to bother with it. However it still articulates what I was thinking with regard to the title.
Material Leisure showcases my ongoing work without the pretence cohesion or, for that matter, coherence. 
Material Leisure addresses the concrete relation between material conditions (i.e., the working day) and the leisure activities that assist in their reproduction. Leisure, in this sense, is a material phenomenon that emerges from the social and economic limitations we confront on a daily basis. Our habitual escape from labour’s routine is aided by various cultural forms, modes of entertainment, and therapies. Such commodities manifest the labour process and are, in this way, no less material than tools and activities used to create them. 
Material Leisure is the vehicle that assembles the products of my leisure time for the leisure time of another.

June 27, 2013

I wrote an article about my experience at Calgary's short-lived Sled Island music festival for the Spectator Tribune. It features some of my photography. For more photos from the festival, you can head over to CJSR's tumblr page.

June 25, 2013

I have a radio show and you can listen to it

I've been hosting a college radio show called Dyck's Pycks off and on for over a year now and last week I finally got around to making a website for it. The show is an eclectic mix of (mostly) new independent music with a strong nod to the nineties (no surprise there). I also try to showcase local artists from Edmonton, Winnipeg, and sometimes even from the rest of Canada. I'll be posting a Souncloud file as well as a playlist every week, so if you've ever got a hankering for indie rock, you're in luck. Anyway, here's a link to the site.

I should also mention that I designed the gnarly spaghetti and meatballs themed logo. Not really sure why, but at least it works with the colour scheme. I'm hoping to have another blog up soon to showcase some the art/design stuff that I've been working at over the past year. And so begins the great process of compartmentalization! Soon I'll have three avenues for self-promotion.

June 1, 2013

A sober take on the National

One of the better music critics around, Carl Wilson, is still struggling with crescendos and populism (now a common pairing that was, arguably, ruined by U2). And, as usual, it makes for great writing.