dance daydreamer
I’ve been quiet for too long. In addition to drawing and wearing lovely stuffs, I’m obsessed with dance. Now that the annual season of SYTYCD is in full swing, I can let my freak flag wave and admit that if I had one wish at all, I might wish that I could be a professional dancer. There’s not a legit reason why I can’t since you can do anything you really set your heart on, but my heart seems set on so many things that dance usually falls by the wayside. Thankfully in college I got the chance to grow as a dancer and performer through a student organization – shout out to Dancin’ Gators – but unfortunately ever since I graduated it just hasn’t been a priority of mine.
Since I only have time to daydream about choreography, I’ll just go ahead and do the next best thing and share the choreography of others. And there’s nowhere I’d rather start than with my favorite hip hop choreographer duo, Keone and Mari Madrid. When they were revealed as a new choreo pair on SYTYCD, my heart jumped right out of my chest and stayed glued to the tube. I spent many a night in college watching and re-watching and re-watching their YouTube videos for inspiration. To see them get globally recognized with their moves on national TV was so… uplifting.
[youtube=http://youtu.be/lZw_n_-tyk4]
I just can’t get over the way their unique understanding of movement and musicality. They fluidly mix dance genres (jazz, hip hop, contemporary, locking) and create formations that are so visually striking. I really can’t stop gushing over it. Their routines just embody everything I love about dance – fun, spirit, musicality, and diversity. These are all things I aspire to have in my own moves, if I ever get around to making some new ones. Let this be documentation that I promise I will choreograph new routines and remind my body of all the different and beautiful ways it can move. Until then, here are a list of my favorite routines from Keone and Mari.
[youtube=http://youtu.be/-_aF3GmCc94]
pattern play
Thanks to the flourishing film industry in Atlanta, I’ve gotten the chance to make a few bucks on the side by doing extra work on tv shows and films. It’s not as exciting as it sounds, but all the sitting around gives me a chance to play with some pen and paper. Perhaps someday soon I’ll get to see these come to life! Do you like this pattern? What would you like to see it on?
iman
Iman works at the art gallery where I first began my journey here in Atlanta. She wasn’t hired immediately after we interviewed her, but she was always lingering in the back of our heads. She exudes a quiet and graceful beauty that sneaks up on you and stays. I try to visit the gallery for every opening night and at the last one, Iman looked completely stunning (in that subtle way she has). Her pairing of white jeans with this sheer shirt-dress is just the best.
Completely elegant casual. It’s no surprise that she not only dresses beautifully, but creates beautifully as well. Her sculptures and drawings are as delicate and earthly as her fashion style reflects. These are some of my favorite pieces of hers:
mini hiatus
To those of you who have been following my blog/facebook/tumblr/etc, thank you SO much for your support. It’s been great to receive all the words of encouragement and to connect with others going through similar life experiences.
As much as I love sharing my adventures in Atlanta, I’m going to cool it on the posts for about two weeks and see what happens when I just focus on drawing and living life. I really do enjoy blogging and all the social media that comes with it, but there are times when I feel like I’ve become too disconnected to actually experiencing what is going on around me. I’ve been spending too many minutes thinking about hashtags, content, followers, and the like.
I’ve been taking it slow with the whole art thing, but it deserves my full attention, even if only for a short period of time. The plan is to allow myself to get sort of lost in the process and see what happens. Hopefully, I’ll end up with a new little collection to share with you!
Thanks again for checking in and stay tuned to see what unfolds next…