A few editorial images I created for three essays on "Good Neighbors" for Real Simple's March 2021 issue written by: Rory Evans, Lisa Artbetter and Ladee Hubbard. Loved working on these as I always love drawing and painting people, and I enjoyed being able to depict outdoor spaces with abstracted plants, creating an almost pattern-like look which is something I realized years ago that I intuitively gravitate towards in my work. It was also a fun challenge to make sure the imagery read well in a small space, as each illustration was above its respective essay.
Old/New ways of communicating online, random art and helpful CSS code for Squarespace
For years, I have thought about blogging, but a fear of sounding trite and boring has kept me from posting. I can find very unusual reasons for not doing something, and in the case of posting here, using the Avenue template from Squarespace, I could not figure out how to remove underlines from a blog/news title while keeping it a hyperlink, but keep the underlines for links in the body section of the website. It turns out it’s some really simple CSS code, and I used CSS regularly when I used to hand code websites using BB Edit and Dreamweaver eons ago, so I’m not sure why it didn’t occur to me to search for the CSS on this template and modify the blog/news design issue I was having. Anyway, for those of you who have encountered a similar issue on SS, here is the code that worked for me:
}
#page a {text-decoration: underline;
}
h1 a, {
text-decoration: none !important;
}
Make sure to only have one “}” between each command/line of code. SS will conveniently post a little error message in red if you have an extra “}” or any other code error. The first line of code:
}
#page a {text-decoration: underline;
already existed in the CSS window, so I left it there and added the second line of code with “} h1 a…” The original line of that code had: ”h1 a, h2 a, h3 a, h4 a, p a” included, and I determined “h1” was the identifier for the title/heading text used in the news/blog space, so I was able to remove the other heading styles. This may be obvious, but just in case: the “a” as in “h1 a” is syntax for a link/hyperlink. This Squarespace forum is where I found the code.
For now, my goal with this blog/news section is to post about topics of interest to me and hopefully to other people as well like most blogs from 1997. :) I am hoping to try new ways of communicating online that don’t elicit anxiety and a space where I can express my thoughts with sincerity.
So the next random thing for this post will be to share some art I did recently as promotional work. It does speak to collective emotions around the pandemic and personal growth in a more general sense. For years, I have doodled landscapes in the negative space between limbs, I like filling negative space in that manner.
Reframing How I Share Work Online and Social Media
A lot has been written about this subject, and I don’t have any revelatory insights to provide here, but I can share some resources that I have found to be helpful in clarifying my viewpoint on the use of social media in general and as a marketing tool. Clearly, social media is an indispensable tool for many. I’m trying to figure out if longer format social media is a way to continue sharing my work online with less image/information overload and some of the other personal and professional hurdles I find challenging.
An interview with Jaron Lanier
This in depth article by Joshunda Sanders which includes a gorgeous illustration by Loveis Wise
One of Julia Bausenhardt’s posts about this topic
Cal Newport has been talking about this for years and there are more recent interviews with him on this topic, but here’s a more concise glimpse into his insights
The artist Holly Exely shares her personal perspective on the complexities of using social media for self promotion.
I will continue to add links here over the next week or so.
