Gingersnap

Mailing these babies out today! :D

In designing my holiday card, I decided along something different and special this year. Fun, funky and personal, we have an afro chick gal with a pick at her shoulder, and her cute orange cat beside her, holiday lights and ornaments in her hair, including a ball with a rubber duck center. Colorful and stylized, I happily pressed those Prismacolor pencils down for their intensity! How could I have lived without their brilliance? They sooooo rock! I can't wait to print these and send them out! I hope my friends will get a real kick out of taking this card out of their mailboxes! :D

"Chocolate, Will You Marry Me?" Matte shades of velvety brown Makes head spin round and round Rich, erotic, warm, and sweet, Stealing thunderous heartbeat Bitter dark, sugared milk, or velvety white Any enticing flavor seems so right Valentines, Christmas, any day, my dear For I want you at every passing hour of the year So soft against finger tips Ready to be in between opened lips Buds of tongue await, eager and wet Anticipation desperately hungry to be met Mystified by pleasurably stirred love bites Delicious desire is taken to great soaring heights Tastes like arousing, poignant sin Little death arriving faster than being with men Center filled with caramels, fruits, and nuts But purely naked is where it cuts Addicted to sweetened drug craved all of the time I would move heaven and earth to forever make you mine

http://www.etsy.com/shop/Sugarygingersnap Yay! I'm officially opened for artistic business! So far there are some prints, drawings, and paintings, but I will be also selling one of a kind cards, shrink art, and other works. I am very super excited about this and hope to build lots of networking opportunities on etsy. It's a rather exciting venture!

I feel so overjoyed by the day having received almost 200 happy birthday wishes from my family, friends, and my fellow FL'ers, even Days of Our Lives treats- a "happy birthday" tweet from Alison Sweeney (Samantha Brady) and a "happy birthday" FB wall post from Mark Hapka (Nathan Horton). The weather was just phenomenal for celebration! This afternoon I was greeted by the yellow green eyes of frightened grey kitty cat. So pleased I was to give chase, wanting nothing more to give it a loving home, but unfortunately it disappeared in the light of day. I pray that Meano did not get to it. It was too small and innocent to be given such a torturous death from a dog. :( I had lunch with my friend, Erica who I hadn't seen since first grade ended. There was a chance meeting with my artist friend, Scott Gibbs at the library where I was greeted with a "happy birthday" hug and peck. Oh, that man, I just adore! I truly do! As I walked back home my bus driver fr...

Twas the day before her birthday, all through her apartment, No gifts could be seen, not even a hint. Early Facebook messages, emails, and tweets she had received, But a new age was drawing near, that had her aggrieved She refused to remove herself from her warm, comfortable bed, For visions of chocolaty goodness twirled in her head She forever in a bandanna and a Buffy tee, Wanted to settle in for a long autumn time z. She awakened to a rude kind of noise, Hoots, hollers, and whistles from the neighborhood boys. Groaning aloud, she went to shut them up as to continue her sleep, But in the lot, she was surprised to see her name upon a pretty purple jeep. The sun light reflected on the automobile made for her, Sudden tears shone in her brown eyes, making it all a blur. Staring with wonder on how such a thing could appear, Though she had no license, she was filled with great cheer. "Come now Birthday Eve Girl, tomorrow is your day, But now is the time to celebrate, the candles are o...

My birthday is in t-minus thirty minutes. Though technically I did not escape the womb until 11:35 A.M. I'm reflecting on the good things about 26. It was a rather good age for I graduated from college, received some wheels as a gift (though I still have no driver's license, lol), spent a beautiful summer in Denver house and cat sitting for a friend..... But the hardest thing for me still is finding a great job and sticking with it. There is nothing beneficial about staying in a small town that seems to be losing thousands of employment opportunities a month, but I am determined. It's also high time to make some brilliant work! Well, not brilliant persay, can we just say of the excellent equation. I'm writing more stories, including some shorts for I am entering a handful of writing contests. Art needs to be made for the grad school brochures are arriving and I need to be well prepared before sending off applications to my chosen destinations. Anyways, I must say 26 was...

I had a huge itch to scratch during my writing session today. I've started thinking about drawing the covers of my novels in litho crayon for sketch purposes. I need to find some eager models desperately. Though they do have nude model sessions at some art galleries, it is almost always rare to have an ethnic one coming in. I guess I shall take my chances! We'll see how it works out, but in the mean time here's some inspirartional images for me to look at. I wish I knew who the artist was. Perhaps Beverly Jenkins knows?

I'm not really making any art work right now. Perhaps not until I go to Denver for my two month house sitting gig! In the meantime, I am simultaneously working on a three romance novel trilogy set in the 19th Century period. These are a combination of a love for Beverly Jenkins (a writer who specializes in African American historical fiction) and Virginia Henley (who uses such concrete description in her Caucasian centered ones, plus my penchant for British history (due to art pf course!), and the long Shakespearean tradition of forbidden opposites attracted by each other. That is whenever I'm not disturbed and plus, it's very, very hot at Tien's house. I try not to be bothered by the constant sweat on my forehead. I keep telling myself it's the result of hard, brain operated labor! :) Book 1 Captain Branson Gray is a free slave and notorious pirate of the sea. A womanizing rake and cheroot smoking man with an unforgivable past, he travels with his partner and ally,...

Her skin is dark as charcoal dust Her skin also soft like silken red rose petals Her face is the shape of man’s true heart Her brows are arched graces of intelligence Her eyes are liquid pools of cacao beans Her nose is broad and flat as desert Her full lips are ripe and plump strawberries Her kiss is sweet, honey drenched wine Her body’s curves are from the Nile Her voice is rich, husky like an exotic Her walk is agile and graceful, so panther like And her name was Chocolate Beauty

Well, I am soon to have a BFA degree in drawing, but I still don't have a job- like a real job. I haven't worked in 3 years. It really sucks because everything has just been awful since then. I've had five interviews, a non-flexible schedule, and many long hours in the studio that got in the way of paycheck opportunity. Now I think there's a possibility for change! I'm going to throw myself out there harder (even though that rejection from Polaris Undergraduate Journal hurt a big deal!). It's time to live out my dreams and not let things pass me by in the dust! I realize I just can't just sit here growing a beard and pot belly like a man! I'm a female gosh darn it! It's time to giddy up on the horse and put this meager talent to work! Otherwise I am going to have the worse life ever. And no creative person wants that!

Finally! It's all over! The show is up and finished!!!! Whew!!!!! *wipes blood, sweat, and tears from face*

Memory , 2006 Photoshop 30" x 40" I'm becoming a huge fan of creating Photoshop images, especially with the upcoming Mise-en-Scènic Show which is opening on Friday night. It features the three 26"x36" Soap Opera Digest covers. It;s so strange that my instructor tells me that that is the best work that he has ever seen me done. I'm still a painter at heart, even though this upcoming show and my senior thesis exhibit have no paintings on view at all. :( Memory was one of the first from my freshman year at art school. It was fun combining a range of different pictures from family to friends to celebrities to art work. This is more of a biography of growth than anything else and of course how pop culture has influenced my life. In the left segment features things like cartoons, a McDonald's Happymeal (a rare, but happily accepted treat), an old family picture, and me in this horrid 4th grade ensemble (thanks Mom). The center is how art was inspiring me i...

New art related site coming soon.....

These three drawings serve as a break from the Chocolate Self Portrait Series. They will be in the same room, but on a separate wall. Still on the romantic inspiration trail, these are appropriations of beautifully lavished Marie Antoinette oil paintings. These are colored pencil drawings on blue Bugra paper. I have replaced Marie in these compositions with the idea of creating a false, rich ancestor that is African American decorated as an object of desire. There is no male presence of course, but she is constantly looking off the canvas, perhaps seeing and meeting a special someone in secret...... This was the first drawing. I'm almost finished, though I do wish I didn't make the arms so long. That is hard to fix and erase, Bugra is too thin a paper to keep layering and attempting to erase. Plus, I press hard on the colored pencils. I just need to add the ears, fix the hands, and darken other areas. This drawing is my favorite because of the red dress. It is provocative as we...

I found this goodie today! For two years I've tried to open up the email my friend Jerri sent me from Pamela Dillion, a Dayton Daily Newspaper writer. All of this time, I could have opened it up at school on the Mac instead of struggling to open it on the PC. Hmmmmmmm....... Artist Profile By Pamela Dillon Contributing Writer Who Janyce Glasper Contact (937) 838-1999 Current News The 24-year-old artist will be teaching a workshop at K12 Gallery for Young People this summer. In Self Portraits and Hollywood Collages, students will paint a bust-sized self portrait in acrylic paints and oil pastels. Participants will also create a collage of their favorite Hollywood actor. Hours are 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on July 7-11 at 510 E. Third Street. Bring a lunch. Cost is $160 for members of K12, and $225 for non-members. Call the gallery at (937) 461-5149 to register. Arts Education At 15, Glasper started art classes at K12 during an after-school program while attending Colonel White High S...

I was making litho crayon drawings from two different Days of Our Lives centered covers a few weeks ago from the Soap Opera Digest lot that I bought from eBay last month. It was quite fun and I was actually laughing a lot as I created these. Someone even said that my rendering style is very interesting, that these could easily transform into comic books based on fictional Salem. I inserted myself as this character, Harlottamen who starts trouble between couples and it's funny that I pick the ones who are currently not together (but should be!). She is a feisty, very cutesy cupid, so to speak. She is at the right of the couple, not in the middle because she is not trying to get in between them. She just wants to help. EJ (James Scott) and Samantha (Alison Sweeney) are my favorite non-couple that should be a couple on the show!!!! Then Harlottamen is off to the side smiling with excitement. Actually all three of them are looking pretty happy! This is actually going to be a Litho pri...

This is the prologue for a novel I'm writing called, "Nobody." Ma got upset sometimes. A lot actually. I just told myself that she didn’t realize what she was saying to me, that her words could be so nasty. Maybe she just didn't know. That's a possibility, right? And her usual pretty hazel eyes transformed into a sickly green when she spewed her toxic acid. I would myself she had been in an evil catatonic state, brainwashed by someone who hated me very much. One particular school morning lays deep in my memory. “You’re so ugly,” she had viciously spat at me as I passed her bedroom door. "Why did I wind up with a daughter that looks like you?" That was the door no one ever wanted to pass if she was in vile mood. If the door was opened, she could see and scream the first insult her dark soul could muster. This only happened a few times out of each month; so my young heart tried not to take any of these things seriously. But the stubborn tears would streak ...

I have finally decided what I would love to do for this show. It took a while, but I'm there. I wish I could say the same for my group members, but I'm sure we'll all come together eventually! On display, in the Chidlaw Gallery, will be six oil pastel on Bugra paper self-portraits with chocolate syrup strategically placed on them. In a corner a cluster of 1,200 empty chocolate wrappers will be ornately stacked. I'm pondering whether or not that rubber ducks should be included. There's only one yellow duck in each drawing. Would it make sense to have several in person? Probably not. I also purchased a chocolate scented fragrance on eBay. I'm using it to lightly scent the gallery with it as often as I can to retain the sweet essence. Chocolates also happen to be on the reception menu as well. Take it Like a Champion is about engaging in the act of reading the romance novel, placing myself under the quintessential spell of the writer's sophisticated use of lan...

These works are more about placing an African-American identity in the soap opera and putting myself out there as a big Days of Our Lives fan. It was fun to pose and act. Maybe there will be a video installation to go along with these! I am debating on whether to glue these covers onto the actual magazines themselves and/or going father by inserting myself into the pages.

For seven hours, I was in the studio jamming to my new fave artist Melanie Fiona as well as some Bob Marley, Tegan and Sarah, Tool, Bic Runga, and some other artists!!! LOL, I hope there were no students about, listening to some girl in the studio strongly singing off key! Still, it was fun to actually get some work done. I brightened the face, highlighted the teddy bear, added shadows underneath the box and duck. Then, finally, I inserted the chocolates (oil pastels with chocolate syrup layered and drizzled over top) and drew in the TV remote control. I added a smudge of chocolate syrup to the lips, making it look like my alter ego was having a messy, sweet time! I've inserted an image of an African landscape into the background in Photoshop. I'm still trying to figure out how I want this to be shown. It would cost a lot to print out a high resolution images just so I could adhere the drawings onto them. Hmmmmm........ Well, no time for thinking! I have two self-portraits to f...

It is the end of January. I'm twelve weeks away from the untitled senior show and was ill-advised to stop with the self-portraits and chocolate syrup paintings on paper. Since my thesis paper is solely on appropriations of romance novels and soap opera obsession, I am going to continue my drawings (maybe some paintings)of those and creating a 45th Anniversary Commemorative Magazine for Days of Our Lives - it will contain stories, drawings, pictures from the fan event, and an essay. So it's back to the drawing board peoples!!!! :D

First was the watching television self-portrait and now here is the in-progress reading one. I am planning on making strawberry syrup paintings to coincide with the television portrait because those chocolate syrup drawings are supposed to be with this reading one. The chocolate syrup is about making fictional characters brown in the historical romance context and the strawberry syrup (they don't sell vanilla syrup, lol!) is about capturing the TV actors who though play a role, they are real people. There are only three African Americans on Days of Our Lives and so there will not be any use for chocolate syrup. Plus, they aren't front burner stories either. I just have to figure out what this all means in the long run!!!!

I have been doing a lot of work for the upcoming senior thesis show. It happens to be the week of April 19th-23rd. That's just 13 weeks away!!!! I've retained my interest in romantic themes and appropriating romance novel covers. My idea is that there will be small litho crayon drawings of woman (no longer will there be portrayed female/male relationships) on a digital background of different African landscapes. The idea is that there is a lure about my unrequited love about traveling to Africa and making art that centers on that fixation. These pieces are about my own wanting to go into the unknown, explore an innocent, untested passion and not listening to the terrifying fears of my brain, but the longing in my heart. Africa is the male and I am the pure, unadulterated woman. Plus I will be working on a two large scale self-portrait drawings installation about the engaging in the act of enjoying the genre- one is watching television and the other is reading a novel. These sel...