PIN-UP

The Side Bars will be dispersing thumb tacks, push pins, and scotch tape for this week’s Pin-Up theme!  Enjoy perusing through loads of glamorous photos and posters.  These pin-ups are not only sexually exciting but normally have an alluring cutesy quality as well.  They are not only models, but actresses and performers too.  According to the great folks at Wikipedia, Burlesque dancers often used their pin-up to promote themselves on business cards.

Don’t worry ladies, as the year’s progressed our studly male counterparts came into the picture, or shall we say pin-up.  However, the demand was just not the same…

A pin-up can also be any piece of artwork that is simply pinned up for display.  This is typically from comic books or fan magazines, they are easily detached and ready to aesthetically enhance any teenage wall.

Surround yourself in pin-ups for this week’s Pin-Up theme!

BALLOONS

Balloons are sure to delight even the most cynical of party poopers.  These stretchy, colorful bags can be inflated with good ole’ fashion air or pumped up with helium for all sorts of celebrations.  You can even purchase bio-degradable balloons to safely release into the environment.  Watch them drift upward until they are but a speck and vanish into the abyss.  If its hot, there is nothing like a cooler filled with water balloons.  Lock in on your target and unleash the good times!

Of course, there are other kinds of balloons.  Like the ones we use in meteorology, military purposes, or the ones that actually save lives in medical procedures.  Personally, I like the hot air balloons. A couple year’s ago we went to a hot air balloon festival. Hundreds of ginormous hot air balloons took part filling the blue sky and leaving the spectators in awe.

Enjoy creating balloons for this week’s theme!

 

SHAKA

Most of us have used Shaka as a hand gesture known as “hang loose” associated with Hawaii and surf culture.  One must extend the thumb and pinkie finger while holding the three middle fingers curled like you were making a fist, now rotate your hand back and forth.

Hawaiians use the shaka gesture to convey their “Aloha Spirit”.  Moni, our lovely Hawaiian monkey has shared shaka with us and explains that this basic gesture is quick, easy, and also sincere.  “I have countless photos of family flashing the shaka sign.  So, it’s kind of more than the sign.  It’s peace, love, aloha, how are you, I get you, I see you… a simple but true show of affection.” ~ Moni

Let us embody the shaka spirit in our creations for this week’s theme.  Aloha monkeys!

 

KNURLY

A knurl is a knot or knob, and can be portrayed in the literal and abstract sense beautifully. This growth ranges in size and can add tremendous character to objects and people alike. Who doesn’t like a little character?

I absolutely adore those trees that are twisted and knurled, having withstood countless lashings from mother nature.  Knurly wood fashions with their signature burls are now quiet popular furniture pieces and home decor.

When I think of knurly, I also think of my father’s hands.  He has always been a man’s man, hardworking and ornery.  Those hands are not only knurled, but callased, cracked, and liver spotted. If his hands could talk they would tell outlandish stories of adventures and horrible mistreatment.

Explore knurls, relish in their beautiful imperfections for this week’s theme!

EXPRESSION

Expression, a lovely conveyor of emotion.  Strong emotions are easily read through grief stricken or elated expressions.  A snarling dog or a sleepy monkey are also universally clear expressions.  Some expressions are little harder to read, but just as crucial as we navigate our own Side Bars.

Imagine a world without expression…  We base so much of our interactions on expressions.  They are social cues that help guide us through life.  They test the water, so to speak, giving our brains a chance to decide how we are going to engage with the person or animal in our midst.

Many of us engage in Line Chat, Face Book, texting, maybe even sexting, and loads of other means of communication that are not face to face.  How many times have you wrote something that you intended to be funny, then questioned whether it would be received as funny, then choose the goofy, smiley icon or sticker to ensure your message would be delivered properly?  For me, this is a constant, because I am rarely serious and I depend on the expression of those icons!

So many expressions, what will you choose to convey for our Monkey Game?

Karma

You’ll get what’s coming to you!
What goes around, comes around!

Golden rule in Christianity – Do on to others as you would have them do on to you!

I do believe the above statements were made thinking of the laws of causality – Karma

Karma can refer to the principle of causality where intent and actions of an individual influence the future of that individual. Good intent and good deed contribute to good karma and future happiness, while bad intent and bad deed contribute to bad karma and future suffering.

The theory of Karma is a fundamental doctrine in Buddhism. This belief was prevalent in India before the advent of the Buddha. Nevertheless, it was the Buddha who explained and formulated this doctrine in the complete form in which we have it today.

I am not of any faith but, I most certainly believe in Karma. Sometimes karma isn’t as swift and punctual as we would like but eventually it does catch up with those who its chasing. It is almost as if it is the psychological equivalent to Newtons cradle. Every action has an opposite or equal reaction. You treat someone bad, expect someone to treat you bad. If you treat someone with respect, respect you will be shown.

There are many in the world Karma is still chasing but sooner or later it will catch up to them. Like Revenge being a dish best served cold, sometimes Karma likes to wait for the most appropriate time to strike.  I believe there are certain ISIS crowds Karma is searching for and its only a matter of time before it gets its chance.

Yay for Karma! Without it, I would have probably been arrested for trying to make amends when it was taking too long to catch up to those I believe needed some justice.

So, are there any Karma inspired artworks that come to mind for you monkeys? Can’t wait to find out.

EVANESCENT

Evanescent will linger around the Side Bars for the briefest of moments for this week’s theme.  Much like a solar phenomena we owe it to our fellow monkeys to create scenes of evanescent quality.  Evanescent is things that will only be with us for short period of time, like vapor or rainbows.  Things with transient abilities, like age or some would say beauty… some, not me of course.

~Beautiful But Deadly~ (Silver)

You speak words that sting my heart,  Lyrics that should be an art, Touches deeply into my soul, A mix of piano, rock and roll.

Her voice chills you to the bone, Makes you feel so cold and alone, The lyrics and tune sweep you away, Into a world of depression and grey.

It’s beautifully tragic, Then rhythm and beat, Gives you a taste of a bitter sweet.  Evanescence you are perfect; sweet yet sour, A beautiful yet deadly flower.

~Written by Lauren-L-~

 

LOKAHI

This week’s theme is Lokahi from our very own monkey, Moni.  She explained Lokahi as harmony, unity, balance, agreement and peace.  This Hawaiian word is pronounced loh-kah-hee.  Now close your eyes and say it out loud… inner conflict resolved!  Here are some lovely examples by our dear friend –

The bringing together of your entire body; mind, body and spirit! That’s Lōkahi.

The bringing together of different people from different cultures, that’s Lōkahi.

The bringing together of different ideas, that’s lōkahi.

Great things arise when monkeys set aside their differences and explore each other’s uniqueness.  We can remain true to ourselves and appreciate our fellow chimp.  How will you depict Lokahi?  Aloha my monkey friends!

 

FLUFFY

 

“It’s so Fluffy I’m Gonna DIE!!! – Agnes proclaims in Despicable Me.

If that doesn’t grab you, you may have seen Gabriel Iglesias’s The Fluffy Movie 2014.  This stand up comedian is just as cute, although he is now a little less fluffy.  There was also that vicious, three headed dog in the Harry Potter series that answered Fluffy. Fortunately, music made that fluffy beast drift off to sleep.

We use fluffy so many different ways, with context being the key to the intended definition.  Fluffy may refer to things that are light or airy.  Intellectually speaking, fluffy could represent things that are frivolous or insignificant.  Fluffy may simply be used as a description of the outer covering of an object.  However, we also use fluffy as an insult when describing a person or their behavior. Fluffy in this sense, could insinuate someone being overweight or unmanly.

To be or not to be Fluffy, for Sunday, April 12th!

CLOUD

We are collectively entitled this week to have our heads in the clouds.  Everything is better in this dream like state of consciousness.  And this is also a vast improvement over that cloudy, muddled feeling when your head is actually ‘fogged in’.

According to Wikipedia, “a cloud is a visible mass of liquid droplets of frozen crystals made of water or various chemicals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of a planetary body”.  They are also referred to as aerosols and there is a whole branch of science that studies cloud physics.

I love watching the skies and studying clouds, they are both mesmerizing and captivating.  How many times have you seen a familiar shape up there looking down at you, delicately drifting across the horizon?  My personal favorite is the tormentous storm clouds and the wrath they hold.

Allow yourself to drift into the clouds for this week’s theme, Wednesday, April 8th!