The Asian Welder

http://www.tucsonopenstudios.com/index.html

Tucson….11 – 5 pm saturday/sunday…it is now 5:30p…doors are closed! i’d like to thank the 6 people who came out to see me, you made it ALL worth while!!

“If you do not practice compassion toward your enemy then toward whom can you practice it? ”  through my own daily practice i have found this to be truth and more importantly that compassion is not something that comes easily and/or naturally.  compassion is something we need to cultivate, simply put the story of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” is a perfect analogy for everyone to understand! any human being, Buddhist and non religious or spiritual practitioners can grasp this story! when one’s mind becomes open at the same time our heart let’s go of wrong views, attachments, hate and ignorance…this is when we see and feel the truth of compassion arise within us. this is the perfect time to experience joy and love..in this season…this IS the resaon for “tis the season”.

dedicated to the SoAZ Girl Scouts….saturday, dec. 12th ~ noonish.

i was to teach or give a talk on Land Art(think andy goldsworthy), some 20 young girls would participate on the U of A campus and then they could receive their “patch” on visual arts….apparently the tour thru the campus and digital studio kept them waylaid?  yes, i waited there diligently for an hour and a half!  it was beautiful out and i decided while waiting i’d give them something tangible to understand and view up close/personal.  the citrus tree sits approx. 20 yards to the northeast of this old olive. when it became obvious they were not coming i took my photos and left…a treat for myself, the birds, joggers, students…and the mission olive tree in which it resides till earth and nature consume them.

2009, stainless, chandelier

As I sit recovering from my Fall Show I find myself restlessly tired and reflecting on the weekend’s events and the path that lead me there.  It is difficult for me to evaluate the “success” of the show by traditional means but I am as proud of my work as I have ever been and I have learned some important lessons from the journey.  I guess in that respect the weekend was an incredibly successful experience!

I began this season caught-up in the social media buzz and excited to jump headlong onto the train.  I would do whatever it took to become familiar with the social media venues and use them to expose, examine and market my new work to the world!

So it began……

“Social Media” can be said to have three components;

Concept (art, information, or meme).

Media (physical, electronic, or verbal).

Social Interface (intimate direct, community engagement, social viral, electronic broadcast or syndication, or other physical media such as print).

“Marketing” is an integrated communications-based process through which individuals and communities are informed or persuaded that existing and newly identified needs and wants may be satisfied by the products and services of others.

Marketing is used to create the customer, to keep the customer and to satisfy the customer. With the customer as the focus of its activities, it can be concluded that Marketing is one of the premier components of Business Management – the other being Operations (or Production).

Lois, me, Diane

After reading this, I believed wholeheartedly that the two work together in a successful, bliss like partnership!  As in any partnership I went in knowing there would be compromises and lessons to be learned. “Social Marketing” is what I would call it! With Twitter, Facebook, MySpace & Linked, it seemed as though any verbally creative individual could start a mass following.

I gravitated almost immediately to Twitter.  Twitter is like a giant “chat room” for adults, all vying for recognition, attention or validation of some kind.  The successful can capture the attention of the masses in 140 characters or less.  I quickly learned it can also be a venue for tweet abuse or “tweet-arrhea” as I call it.

I have a Myspace account, which I do not utilize because it takes to much time and energy. Facebook just seems like more of the same but with a wider audience of adults looking for long lost mates! Linked is a “professional” Facebook – Myspace site, again one I did not utilize because it requires so much daily attention. There are many people who successfully utilize all of the above and even some I do not know about!

I do wonder how individuals so active in “social media” find time for balance and simultaneously focus on “operations/production” which is the driving force behind the marketing, unless of course you are an internet designed business!

Decision made, I would start with and continue with Twitter!  After all, there are thousands of artists who utilize twitter seemingly successfully!  And so I did, for exactly ten months.  I now have to ask myself what I learned and accomplished in those 10 months of 1-2 hours + on the computer faithfully communicating with my new audience in 140 characters or less.

I learned that no matter how much I posted or engaged with others the results were almost always the same. To get a blog reviewed one must post it multiple times each day to get the desired result, be it…..accolades, comments, controversy, laughs or just validation.  In the end I could never post it more than once.  Did that character defect doom me to failure?  I really dislike redundancy and if someone did not see the post then it was not in his or her karma for them to read it.  For those truly interested in what I had to say they could just click on my site and read it there!  Ahh….but that is not how it works!  Twitter is designed to be quick and fast paced. You must grab the attention of the Twitter masses with your first tweet so that the gospel according to theasianwelder will spread like a “RT” (return post) virus!  RT’s = validation.

I will be the first to admit, there are a lot of non-celebrity people who make it work for them and they do get results, fantastic results!  Sadly, I am not one of them.  I can say I did make some connections that would never have occurred except for my “Twitter experience”.  There are some amazing people doing some incredible things in their lives.  I wish I had the time in a day to follow and validate their accomplishments, but I can’t.  I have to work, provide support a large extended family, and grow my spiritual practice all of which leaves very precious and limited time.

ACEO metal

My goal for 2009 was to “learn how to do” social media and marketing. I even went so far as to hire two PR people I met through Twitter to help me succeed in this game! So how did I fare after my 10 month social marketing blitz via Twitter?  Like my opening, sometimes success is defined by how one measures it.  If I had hoped to connect theasianwelder with the masses via social media then I am disappointed.  I would emphasize that my goal has never been to be “popular” or “rich” but to get a wider audience of what I do to promote my works, to engage with others with like minds and to establish a network of working artists in my medium.  I did learn that of the thousands of artists out there utilizing social media, the 3D artists are sorely lacking!  The 2D painters and photographers have a medium much more compatible with the internet!  There are even individuals who label themselves art critique who proceed to proselytize one artist and then seemingly randomly berate another.  It seemed far too easy to be critical when it is non-personal.

I also learned there are many Buddhist’s on Twitter as well. Most are kind, compassionate and on a mission to save humanity.  To all those out there simply wanting to share their experience with Dharma and help others to find some sense of happiness, I commend you; it is a worthy cause indeed!  I would love to read ALL the blogs out there on the Dharma and personal stories behind them but again, my time is limited, so I have to choose my own teacher as my source to enlightenment!

Overall, I would have to say my Twitter experience was good although I failed to accomplish my “goals”, the path was enlightening and I am better for the experience.

close-up “Flowers in My Yard” recycled metals, film, cactus, flowers

Saturday, October the tenth was my latest art reception “The Age of Aquarius”.  Many locals posted it repeatedly via Twitter and Facebook.  Ironically, no-one from my community of local Twitter followers showed up for the event!  Neither did either member of my PR team.  Who did attend?  Friends, family, long time patrons, people I personally met with, sent notes to, my Sangha community and some who found our flyers placed at businesses around Tucson by me and my daughter.

Perhaps that was my most profound lesson.   It all comes back to that personal connection.  It is to easy to be a cheerleader, critique, supporter and friend on Twitter but not come through when it takes more than 140 characters!  Human connection has proven to be my true source of social media!  All the hours I spent promoting the event through the Internet did not result in a single individual interested or caring enough to come to the event except the ones whose karma found us on their own or thru my own personal connection.

When I took a hammer to my cell phone it was my most liberating experience to date.  Deleting my account with Twitter….a close second!

just when i thought i had something to say….i go and look “it” up…

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=blog

these two tied for first and will be screen printed onto T shirts for the fall show!

second, third and fourth place photo’s will be used as flyers for the event as well as invites.

thank you all for participating and helping me with your guidance…one never see’s them”self” in the same light as others.  i do hope i have everybody’s email that chose the winners! if not please contact me so i can send you your T!

is change our cherishing to others.    Ven Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

for two weeks i received many teachings in Dharma, and many sessions in retreat..to find it is possible to change my ordinary view but also to understand how much training it will take to achieve this mindfulness on a continual and consistent basis. as a human being i am grateful for this opportunity of growth and spiritual path and am even more grateful to have had the karma to attend my guru’s last public teachings and empowerments.

one of the many teachings he and other teachers brought up were the distractions we place within our daily life to “feel” busy…but what exactly are we busy with?

it is not a question of working to make a living to support ourselves and family but what of the other distractions in our lives? are we mindfully asking ourself what or why we engage in these “busy” things? is it to help others or is it merely self cherishing? before the advent of the computer and email we checked our mail once…daily. now many check their mail several times in an hour! as technology advances and consumers consume or buy into these devices we become less connected not only to ourselves but in essence to other beings. we validate it by saying we are at a fingers touch to reach accross the world to tap into anyone and everyone whom will listen, but seriously, what are we saying to them? when we spend time with family, friends or our own children how do we choose to spend it? in a movie, playing games, watching television…all false connections to stay busy so our minds do not have to share our thoughts or feelings. i am as guilty as most. my form of distraction is my computer, validating it that it is my means of marketing and staying in touch. however, if i mindfully engage now, i do so with time limitations and checking in to see if what i am spending time on is truly beneficial, not just for myself but more importantly to others.

there are many choices in this precious life…i have chosen a path to question my “business” or daily distractions in this world. this human life is more precious than we can ever imagine, and yet we value success by means of material wealth and not inner wealth. if what we ALL want is happiness and peace, and i am talking about permanent, not the temporary kind you find shopping for a new skirt but true inner peace, than one MUST consider questioning his or her mind to determine how i can achieve inner peace and happiness within this lifetime?

world peace always begins within.

Manjushri Centre Temple, England

Well, actually it is a t-shirt contest but it STARTS with a photo contest!

So here it is…….

I am creating a t-shirt for sale to help brand my website-blog and october art reception and fall show!

The t-shirt will have a phrase on the front, enough so that it will make those who see it want to check out the back. On the back will be the winning pic and of course this link to the asian welder!

That’s where you guys come in! I want your input. So please go to the flickr link http://tinyurl.com/l88u9d titleded “photo contest”. Check out the 12 pics and select your fave! Leave a comment on your favorite picture or the one you feel would be most appropriate for my t-shirt, if you don’t have a flickr account or yahoo account return your vote here under comments or DM me on twitter! Include your name and e-mail address so I can contact you if you win. The winner will be selected at random from everyone who chose that picture. We’ll deal with the size, mailing address, etc. later.

Remember, here is what I am looking for!

• I want a super cool t-shirt that people WILL wear!
• A t-shirt that will appeal to ALL genders
• People will ask where to get one!

Domo arigato

Your humble Asian Welder

To the many places and people i have met on this journey in this life…blessings and thank you for the opportunities presented.

missoula,montana.  david/pamela’s backyard.

my father is a man of almost 80 years in this life. he influenced my direction into the world of art. he has always collected original art ever since i can recall. he used to buy paintings when i was very young and tell me one day they would be mine…problem is his taste in art does not reflect mine!  nevertheless he still taught me the principles of recognizing true quality and passion in any medium, whether it moved me or not emotionally was something i learned on my own as i grew. i suppose this is how it works for most people…to learn and understand the process’s and history of art and narrow it to the medium and style that moves your soul.

today i brought my father home from the hospital with a knee replacement. first off the surgery was a success and he was only in the hospital two nights! impressive for a man his age and with diabetes. when i visited him after his surgery he was in obvious medication oblivion, so i left in the afternoon taking mom home. mom went back in the the late afternoon and all was well, dad had gotten up to take a few steps with his new knee!  the following day i was back in the shop working and mom spent most of her day with dad, again things seemed fine however i could tell by just looking at mom that she was exhausted…and she seemed worried.

this morning we went together and were just turning the corner into his ward when i saw him two feet in front of me walking like a crazed man from a mob after him!  imagine…the visual of an old man skin and bones, six feet tall in a hospital gown, white hair with an expression of anger, bewilderment and excitement to see faces he recognized!  the first words out of his mouth upon seeing me were “get me the fuck out of here” and running behind him was a physical therapist trying to keep up with him! oh yes, and he was moving at such a fast speed with his walker too. i have to give him props for learning and mastering the use of a walker within twenty-four hours! we sat down in the hallway because he did not want to go back to his room and i asked him what had gotten him so upset. “these people are playing tricks on me. last night i walked forty flights of steps (mind you, this is a one story hospital) and when i reached the bottom they were clapping because i was doing so good with my walker. then they made me go into this room where there were three bottles of urine and i asked them what it was..so this guy tells me to drink it cause it’s only water. that’s when i knew this was a dirty trick…i don’t want to be here another night i can’t take another night here with these zombies. when i awoke sometime in the night someone had changed my clothes! god damn it, they have no right to do that..you can’t leave here. i am not staying here!”  that is when i decided i had better have a talk with the charge nurse and find out what the hell he is talking about.  the charge nurse is a robust woman in her mid fifty’s i’d say, obviously overworked and under staffed, as i waited to speak to her two nurses came up with emergency situations and fluster arose! when i finally did speak she was incredibly patient and attentive, astonishing with the chaotic environment. this is how the conversation went: “hello, my father in room 981, with the last name of C O L D I T Z ,he’s telling me some stories of which i am not sure what he is talking about. do you know, were there any issues that the staff had with him last night? hmm, well let me look up his records…oh, uhuh, yes, hmm, well, it seems your father awoke sometime in the night around 10:50pm and tried to leave the ward, he used his walker as a weapon and then when staff tried to calm him he started throwing urine at them, that is when we called security. we finally got him back to his room and bed and administered insulin and monitored him till he fell asleep. really i said? ya know he was talking about zombies..oh yes honey, i have aging parents myself and we are used to this here. it is sometimes a normal response for seniors to become disoriented and psychosis can happen. i’m sure the zombies he was refering to were the staff!”  well, for some reason i did not feel better with this knowledge. i had never seen my father so incoherent even at his worst! i could tell mom was equally as upset with this news. everytime i tried to tell him what truly happened like “dad, you were basically sleep walking last night. that is why you don’t remember having had your clothes changed and….no, they are lieing hazel, that is not what happened but i can’t win this one.”  

winning for dad was and is something he actually prides. i on the other hand had long ago given up the need or desire to win at anything, thanks be to having a Buddha nature in my mom she balanced things out! funny thing i can still remember dad taking me to ALL my swim meets and practices and how competitive i was back then. to make matters worse i was inherently good at sports and am the middle child between brothers, so ya i can be a bad ass!  

as i type these words dad is resting inside his home with mom by his side, afraid to leave him. she said to me as i was leaving…”i’m not sure what to do…laugh or cry”.

as tears well up for me i can easily cry and still laugh. he is such an amazing man. he role modeled strength, not the physical strength but mental. emotionally…what can i say, he’s half german and mom is full japanesey! oh lord the two powerful forces of repression, tho that is another tale……

i love you dad.