How a bunch of beautiful skeletons solved one of my biggest problems. (Day of the Dead Art)
We are our identity, a collection of experiences and choices. As a person, that picture of me is quite vividly painted: I am passionate, mischievous, amusing, helpful, forward, adventurous, and always learning new stuff. If you meet me, you'll feel like you know me well, within 5 minutes (oh yeah- and I'm a story teller, so... you'll spend the next 5 hours hearing tales of adventure, and bad jokes).
A business also has an identity (look at the difference between Microsoft and Apple), as does a product (Humvee Hummer vs Ferrari 488 Pista vs a Kia Soul), so what about my art? What is its identity? What am I saying with it?
I had been (and still am) creating a new work of art every single day for more than 2,500 days, and that question had been bugging me many times. The solution, like so many things in this modern world, came from a social media post.
A local bar was looking for an artist to do a mural, and a friend tagged me. I was giddy, as I've wanted to do a mural in a place that gets many visitors for quite a while. I applied, and got called back. My smile was large.
Now, I'm going to ruin the surprise ending: I did not get to paint the mural, as I had a trip planned, and would not be able to do the mural before the bar opened for business. However, the application process changed my life.
When I met the lady in charge, she told me that the theme was day of the dead (Dia De Los Muertos). I was excited because I am practically an expert on this Mexican holiday. That's right, I have seen both Book Of Life AND Coco! Ok... that was the extent of my knowledge... but creating art gives me a reason to learn about things.
The Day of The Dead is about family and celebration. You honor your ancestors, you remember them, you give tribute to them. There is a lot of food and music involved. Entire families go to the cemetery and leave food out for the spirits of their ancestors to enjoy. You even see many families bring Mariachi bands to the graveyard.
I began creating Dia De Los Muertos art. The result is the images that you saw at the start of this post. But the results you don't see are what happened next. People on Facebook were losing their shit over these images. I tried to figure out what it was about them, and I figured it out (hence the title for this post).
Normally I'll just paint something, because I need to create a new work of art before I permit myself to sleep. But if I have a theme to create for, I am forced to think on what my art will be. The thinking process is what makes a good work of art be a great work of art. I hadn't realized that in the thousands of days of creating art leading up to that point, but it proved true . I got to test the theory out again just a few weeks later when I began my Wizard of Oz themed series.
The other thing that I was reminded of, which having a theme is iteration. Just like my posts on here, I'll write it, read it, and try to improve. With a theme, I have a goal to keep improving towards. When I started the Day of The Dead stuff, I was focusing on dance and skeletons, but through iteration, I got to dive deeper into the theme, and improve upon it- adding the facet of family- like in this one of a parent raising their child in the air.
I think Steemit will be good for my art career as there are many contests on here, which are just great reasons for me to apply my talents towards a theme.
Those are awesome pieces of art, and this is a nice post.
Posted using Partiko iOS
Thanks so much! I've posted many more since - but you can always see the entire collection here:
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year8
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year7
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year6
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year5
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year4
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year3
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year2
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year1
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It is Coco for sure and a bit Tim Burton's Corpse bride as well
I'm a huge Tim Burton fan... I should definitely do more Tim Burton'esque stuff.
Me too. I am sure you will be great in that. Hope to see more 💕
Posted using Partiko Android
Awesome work! Welcome to the community (maybe a bit late, but this is the first one of your posts I come across, lol)
I see you've been quite busy here on SteemIt, so I'd like to give you a little support, so you have a little more breathing space here.
As you probably know by now, SteemIt has set some very unfair rules for newcomers, which limit you in the number of posts and comments that you can make.
I checked your wallet, and noticed you only had 25 Steem Power + a delegation of 15SP. The amount of Steem Power you have, determines how many Resource credits you have. (You use resource credits every time you post, comment or like something.) When you don't have a lot of Steem Power, you run out of Resource credits quite quickly, and then you can't post or comment, or even upvote a post - but I assume you already found out about that - until they have recharged.
You can keep an eye on your Resource Credits here:
https://steemd.com/@theartofori
When I visited the page, I saw this at the top:
Click to enlarge
The blue bar is your Voting power - it decreases every time you upvote a post and recharges over time. It is recommended to keep your Voting Power above 80%, so it will recharge in 1 day.
The green bar shows your Resource Credits. With every transaction you make (vote, comment, post), your Resource Credits will decrease. They will recharge, but that takes time.
If you scroll down a bit, you can see exactly what you can do with the Resource Credits you have left. At the time I visited, you could only make 3 more comments before you would run out of RC.
You'd have to wait until it would have recharged before you would be able to make another comment.
I don't think it is fair to limit new users like that. After all, you're new, and there is such a whole lot to discover, of which the most important thing is the awesome community we have here.
But to become a part of that community, to get to know people, you should be able to comment on other people's posts and engage with people.
So I'm always on the lookout for promising newcomers that could use a little help.
I delegated some of my Steem Power to you, to give you a chance to start your SteemIt adventure a little more freely - without having to run out of Resource Credits all the time.
Basically that means you will have a little more Steem Power, and as a result more Resource credits. This will allow you to be more active on the platform.
(You can find out more about Steem Power HERE)
If you check your Steemd page (https://steemd.com/@theartofori) now, you'll notice it says at the top you have 65 SP instead of only 40 SP, which means you can comment, reply, upvote and post a little more often.
Be sure to still keep an eye on that Resource Credits bar - it will still decrease, but you'll be able to do more before it reaches zero and you're locked out.
I hope this will help you to find your way on SteemIt, and to get to know all the awesome people that are hanging out here.
SteemIt has quite a steep learning curve in the beginning, but if you take it one step at a time, you'll be okay.
IMPORTANT: I will leave the delegation in place as long as you're active on SteemIt (i.e. publish original content regularly and engage with other people by commenting on their posts and replying to their comments) or gather enough Steem Power to get around on your own.
There's one other requirement: I'm looking for people who are showing that they plan to be on SteemIt long-term. So I'm asking you to power up your earnings (convert your liquid Steem and SBD into Steem Power) or use them to grow your account and not withdraw them.
It will also be a good idea to create a free Discord account (Discord is a chat app we Steemians use to communicate 'behind-the-scenes' of the platform. Many different communities have a server where you can chat and meet people without being limited by Resource Credits.)
You can create your Discord account here: https://discordapp.com
One of the communities there is called Steem Terminal. Steem Terminal is set up to help newcomers find their way around here. If you have any questions, they will be able to help you out too.
Once you've created your free Discord account, click the following invitation link: https://discord.gg/XZGPGpz
You will be redirected to a page that says 'thekittygirl invited you to join Steem-terminal'. Click the 'Accept Invite button' to get access to the server.
Once you have clicked that button, you have access to the server and can get an answer to your questions. The people that run the server will help you to find your way around and to get started.
I also have a post with useful tips for newcomers on my blog. Read New On SteemIt? Here’s What You Need To Know!. It contains links to sites and posts that will give you more information about how the Steem blockchain and SteemIt in particular works.
I have a page with more info, but it is still a work in progress. Still, there's already some information to be found: SteemIt Tips For Newcomers – An Overview.
You can join contests to get a bigger delegation:
Keep an eye on the posts by @akomoajong and @thedarkhorse. Usually, they run a contest every week. Be sure to apply.
Like I said, SteemIt might have a steep learning curve in the beginning, it is definitely worth it to push through and get to know the amazing community.
I realize this is a lot of information to process, but there is no rush. Take your time to go through it. One step at a time, that's what SteemIt is all about. If you bite off more than you can chew, you'll get overwhelmed quickly. If you have any questions, feel fee to ask.
Wow! Thank you so much! For the Steem Power, the kind words, and the information. I had to learn a lot of that quickly, due to frustration as to why I can't post/comment/etc... Well... everything you just explained :) - Going to bookmark this comment - that's really useful stuff. And.. quite an honor to be chosen for this.
I don't think you have to worry about retracting that delegation. I plan on posting at least once a day- and now that you've given me extra power, I can post even more (I was mortified the other day-- wrote a huge post, well laid out, good story... spent a few hours writing it... And it wouldn't let me post! - Thankfully, since it's HTML, I was able to copy my post, and repost it the next day (after I figured out that RCs charge).
You're lucky you could back up the post. I can't even count the hours I wasted writing a post straight in the SteemIt editor, only to lose it because of a system error. But after a couple of times, I learned my lesson. Now, I write from my Wordpress blog and use the Steempress plugin to cross post to SteemIt, or I use Steempeak.com (= a different interface for SteemIt, which allows you to save drafts while you're writing.)
You're welcome, btw 😉
I'm not really into art, but I was really impressed by your skeletons.
And by the fact that you seemed determined - not many people get further than their introduction post.
I wish I could do more, but there are so many newcomers who are struggling with their RC ... and I want to help as many as I can to get through those first couple of weeks.
However, if you keep publishing posts like this, and gdt your name out there by engaging with others, you probably won't need that delegation anymore pretty soon.
Make sure to go out there and leave genuine comments on posts that interest you, because the most important factor to grow your account here - next to publishing good content, of course - is to build a network. The more people you get to know, the more people will visit your posts.
I try to drop by my delegatees at least once a week to see how they're doing, leave some upvotes and comments. But feel free to ask if you have a question. Tag me in a post or comment, or leave a comment on one of my posts. I will see it, although it can take a couple of days. I'm so all over the place that I'm often way behind on checking my replies and mentions. (The quicker way is probably going to the Steem Terminal Discord server, which I mentioned in my initial comment - but I'll keep an eye out.)
I would not ask you to do more... You gave me a surprise gift of knowledge and delegation.... That helped me to post more (Already posted 2 powerful posts today), and yet again enforced why I love Steemit so much... The people here are just amazing. So, thanks again.
You mentioned WP and Cross-posting. That was a question that I had -- is there penalty for duplicate content? Right now, all of my content here is original. Yeah, I've posted my art elsewhere, but the writing here has been from the heart, as Steemit's community has inspired me to write... but.. I was thinking that it would actually be of benefit to copy the stuff to my own blog, and while Steemit is my first block-chain social media.... I see that there are others, where people would enjoy the same content. But, I Certainly don't want to violate any rules, as I like it here (no, I have not read all the FAQs).
Determination? Well.. after 2,634 days of daily art, I've got that down :) -- though, this is a long-term game for me. How did I hear about Steemit? My buddy is the founder of the EOS blockchain, and he told me about it... He said he sees me making $100/post just for posting my art. My jaw dropped because I've been doing it for free for 7.4 years, so... $100 /day would be quite epic. But... I quickly enjoyed writing with all my posts... on FB I just write "Got a title for my latest post" - here, I pour my heart out.
As far as writing genuine comments--- it's the only kind that I write! I'm not trying to game any systems. I'm not looking for shortcuts. I'm not the guy that will tell you that you wrote a great post if I don't like your post, just to get some credits.
And... you might not be into art, but... I think you'll enjoy my stuff. It's art for people who are not into art :) - It's whimsical, and fun, and vibrant, and all over the place (kind of like me :D )
These open up in FB albums (at the time of this writing -- that may change)
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year8
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year7
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year6
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year5
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year4
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year3
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year2
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year1
These are brilliant! I really enjoy skeleton art as well and think the work you've posted here is absolutely fantastic. Thanks for sharing! I hope to be able to see more.
Thanks for the kind words! Glad you like 'em. I definitely plan on posting more here.... So, you should definitely follow. I create a new work of art every single day for over 2,630 days - so... there's plenty of art to explore.
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year8
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year7
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year6
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year5
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year4
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year3
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year2
http://TheArtOfOri.com/year1
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