Distractions Turning Into Inspiration.

When working on projects I get distracted at times, I think its because its loss of inspirational steam. It happens, but I usually get back on track or not, depends on the day. I usually listen to music to keep my steam going and tonight wasn't any different.

I was working on drawings for a project tonight and I got distracted into drawing something for myself for fun. Then I had a distraction from my distraction.

This video.





It is fortunate that my distraction from my distraction, inspired me on another aspect of the project I was previously working on tonight that I was distracted from. Interesting. Full Circle.

I think my current obsession with Oh Land, paid off tonight in more ways than good music.

Things That Make Me Happy...

Here are just a few things in my life that are making me quite happy lately.

*Mad Men Season Six starting April 7! Oh yeah!!!  I'm hoping this new season has more Betty Draper.

Last season they stopped in 1967 and the costumes were very interesting. I can't wait to see what Costume Designer, Janie Bryant has in store.

* Essie Nail Color in "Play Date". I'm trying it out. I'm longing for Spring weather and this color makes me think of Spring.

* Zero Dark Thirty...the movie, directed by Kathryn Bigelow. This film is currently nominated for Best Picture for the Academy Awards. No, it literally doesn't make me happy, because it isn't a happy movie per se. However, I was just in awe of the body of work this film is and what Kathryn Bigelow did with the piece. I can't explain it in words what it is that moved me so much, but it was just a feeling or a stirring inside me that said, I wish more people would see this, it's important.

I think its an amazing and thought provoking film.

The River starts flowing...

Yesterday around 11a.m. I was driving to my job and listening to my Spotify playlist with "Soul Rebel" by Bob Marley & The Wailers ending and "Hurt So Good" by Susan Cadogan beginning (shameless song drop), when BAM an idea hit me. Ideas for costume designs for characters in the new play I'm working on. My ideas often happen like that, either in the shower getting ready for the day or when I'm driving somewhere listening to music. I revel in those idea moments hitting me like running into a brick wall, they put a huge smile on my face and I want to jump, but circumstances prevent me. (I can't jump in the shower or I'll hurt myself and in the car I'm strapped down by a seat belt.)

Anyway, the research and idea process are probably my favorite parts of the design process. For the past month I've read and re-read THE RIVER by Richard Montoya (several times), which is the new play I'm designing for Campo Santo with Intersection For The Arts, directed by Sean San Jose, that opens in April (78 days to be exact).

I've let the characters and their conversations speak to me and imagined this new world. I usually start to get images in my head and for this one it was a lot of color. The picture below is one of the many pictures I am using in my research and a smidgen of taste of what the show might be like. However, you will have to come see it for yourself.

I always seem to get a photo, a painting or some sort of art piece that becomes my starting point, where then I can springboard off and dive into creating the world of the play and the characters. This is when I start researching different types of clothing and people according to what I'm reading and who the characters are, what they do, how they behave, their personality. I think that's what I love best about designing costumes, figuring out a characters personality because each one is different and exciting.

So, this past Monday, we had our first production meeting and it was delightful, helpful and exciting talking about this world that Richard Montoya has made for us in his writing to put forth in real life. It's awesome hearing all the designers ideas of what they imagine for sets, lights and sound combined with my costume designs coming together in this pot to make this delicious dish of a play. This is one of the reasons I love working in theatre...

And of course, this meeting helped me to get ideas for a few characters that I had not fully fleshed out, which was my idea spark at the beginning of this post. A beautiful thing production meetings are.  

So...what next? Now comes another fun part...sketching these costumes out.  

Sketchbook Complete!

January 15, 2013 was a bit momentous for me. I finished my sketchbook for The Sketchbook Project 2013 with Art House Co-op. January 15 was the due date or when the sketchbook had to be postmarked and I was able to finish and send it in that day. So now this year, my little Sketchbook will go on a national tour along with a few thousand other books and then eventually make its home in the Brooklyn Art Library.

It was my first time doing The Sketchbook Project. I've been wanting to do this project for about a year.
I've had the sketchbook since May, but it took me till finally November to finally start getting ideas and putting some sketches in it.

I've noticed that a lot of the sketchbooks from the past on the website have themes that tie the pages in the books. I have to say, I didn't have one and that's OK. I'm fine with it.  I also had a hard time deciding what to put in the book as well. I've never had a project like this as an artist, where I could do anything I want; it was a little daunting, but also a bit liberating.  So I followed that bit of advice for writers, "Write what you know" and substituted it with sketch what you know. I know how to draw costumes and characters...so that's what I did. I drew ideas for characters that came in my head, nothing spectacular, every day people is what I ended up drawing.

I enjoyed the project so much that I would like to do it next year, maybe next time with a theme.

I'm proud and glad I did it. I did this whole project to challenge me as an artist in order to see what do I like to draw for fun. Good question.  Apparently Art House Co-Op had that question along with some other ones like, What moves me? What type of emotion are you conveying with your book? What do you usually specialize in with your art? What's your artist statement? They even ask some of these questions when you're filling out your online profile to describe what type of sketchbook your book is.  Is it a journal? A sketchbook? A memoir? A comic, etc? I still haven't figured all of this out and I'm working on filling out that portion on my profile on the site...expect to see something in the next few days or weeks. *Crosses Fingers*
These are all very good questions that I've started questioning within myself with in the past year as an artist and a costume designer.  I guess its good to take a stand for your art and be concrete with what you do. I see theatre's with mission statements, even director's, I think its time for me to have one.

All in all, it dusted off the cobwebs and made me stretch my artistic muscles and I am forever grateful for this project and for making myself do it.  I guess I have some things to think over and figure out and I'm happy to do it.

*If you want to check out my sketchbook, pictures I took of my sketches and the digitizing of my sketches will be filtering in over the next few weeks. Enjoy! Courtney's Sketchbook Project Page

I'll do it tomorrow...

It's going to stop...really.  Tech is over, time to return to normal habits and normal life. Let me go make my list.

Buzzing.

Another season working wardrobe at California Shakespeare Theatre came to a close last month. I'm glad to be back and starting tech, working wardrobe for The White Snake at Berkeley Rep tomorrow.  The White Snake looks to be an exciting and beautiful show.

Apart from wardrobe work, I am back in the design pool and it seems my world is abuzz with exciting projects for the new year. I will be designing costumes for two new plays, but I will hold off on the details for a wee little bit longer, just so that I can soak it in and enjoy the moment. :) 

Along, with all this theater buzz, this election is making me nervous and anxious.  Here we go again. I will be voting bright and early, before tech tomorrow. I bet it's going to be a restless day.  I'm hoping you go and vote too!

Cover Girl...

A few weeks ago I finally finished the cover of my sketch book for The Sketchbook Project 2013. It's so exciting!!! The journey begins.

I decided to cover both the outside and inside of the cover.  I used a few different medias: Gouache, Sharpie and even some Prisma Color markers. Here is to a good start! Cheers.

Outside Cover: Front and Back

Inside Cover: Front and Back

Changes

Well after 8 long and wonderful years, I parted ways with my Dell Inspirion laptop last week. Well, actually it was more like January, but, its all good.

After much hemming and hawing, I decided to bite the bullet and embrace the Apple world. I mean, I might as well since I have an iPhone and an iPad. So I went and bought myself a MacBook Pro. Although, its easy to use, its still taking some time to get use to it.  I am hoping I can get back to being my MORE productive self again. I'm also hoping to blog more...which I'm always hoping to do.

I'm wondering if I should name my little laptop? Or is that going too far? After all, she is going to be my little sidekick and yes, it is a she.

The Cure for inspiration.

So for the past few weeks my sketch book has been sitting on my Drafting table waiting patiently for me to draw in it.
Well today was the day I finally put pencil to book.  It's a start, but I started designing the cover of my book and the inside back cover. I also had a little musical inspiration from The Cure: Greatest Hits.

I had a little Art Nouveau inspiration.  More to come!

So it begins...

This week a sweet little package arrived in the mail from the people at Art House Co-Op.  My Sketchbook arrived and is ready to be filled in!

First on the agenda:  pick a theme for my sketchbook. I think I have one. You will have to stay tuned for the answer to that one.

Back On Track

After a quite long hiatus, this new year has led to getting myself back on track. I have been working mostly doing wardrobe work at local theaters and have enjoyed it immensely. I have met a ton of new people, worked with some old colleagues and just enjoyed myself. I have also seen some wonderful shows in between.

In between the working, I have had two major projects I am currently working on, prepping for another season of summer wardrobe work and I am also planning a trip for Fall 2012.

This past week, I added another small project which I am super excited to be working on! As of this week I am now participating in "The Sketchbook Project 2013". I will be receiving a sketch book that I will be filling up with my wonderful art work. My sketch book along with hundreds of others will be part of nationwide tour and eventually be part of a permanent collection at the Brooklyn Art Library, in Brooklyn, New York. I have till January of 2013 to complete my sketch book and I am super excited as well as nervous. I have no idea what I will draw, which makes it that more thrilling.

This project will be a wonderful experience that I will share with a ton of creative people from all over the world. It is also so thrilling, that my work will be out in the world and part of permanent collection for the public to see.

Here is also a video on the project from the creators of The Sketchbook Project, Art House Co-Op.
 

In the months to come, feel free to watch my page(Courtney's Page), since I will be uploading pics of my progress. It would also be great if you went through and looked at all the other great and amazing people contributing to the project with their art work as well.

If you feel like joining the project yourself, since anyone can join, you have until October 31, 2012 to sign up since the sketch books are due January 15, 2013. Here's the link: The Sketchbook Project 2013 Have Fun!!!

This is going to be great!!!

Summer 2011

Wow! I can't believe it's been about 6 months since my last post! It has been one crazy year and summer for me.
I haven't posted in several months due to my new position that will end in October. Currently I am working as Wardrobe Lead at California Shakespeare Theater(aka:Cal Shakes) in Orinda, CA. That's right folks, an outdoor theater. I originally interned at this theater in 2009 as a Costume Design intern, so it is great to be back amongst people I know in a working capacity, where this time I get paid for my skills.

My work schedule consists of working 6 nights a week with the traditional Monday, Dark Day. My social life is on hold till October, but I'm gaining a theater social life in return with all the amazing casts and crews that I've been working with for each show.

As of now, we have had a pretty great season. Our season consisted of TITUS ANDRONICUS, THE VERONA PROJECT, and now we are smack in the middle of George Bernanrd Shaw's, CANDIDA. We have a week off after CANDIDA finishes and then right back to our last show, TAMING OF THE SHREW.

I have to say that its been a great experience to see the different nuances and "vibes" of the personalities of each cast. I have to say, each cast is different.

I've also had a great hands on experience of working with the different nuances of costume needs for each show.

For TITUS ANDRONICUS, my main issue was blood, cleaning it up and washing bloody laundry. It was a big cast, so lots of maintenance on costumes.

THE VERONA PROJECT, was a easy show. Just two small loads of laundry every night, but we did have the cold factor, so thermals and body suits to keep everyone warm.

CANDIDA, has been lots of starch!!! Working with liquid starch is interesting and fun. Also dressing the actresses in some beautiful period style dresses with corsets has been fun as well. Don't forget the wigs too! It has been a high maintenance show with having everyone look perfect!!

Still waiting on what will be the main focus wardrobe wise with TAMING OF THE SHREW. We will definitely see!!

In other news, I'm quickly moving up in the world of technology with a new iPad to help with my design career, its also helped with wardrobe too!
I've founds some great apps such as Evernote, which is great for collecting research, Dropbox, for storing my documents and a great task list for my to do lists, called Complete HD. I also have a great Project Management app, called MyProjects which helps with all my shows.

Alas my BlackBerry Storm 2 went out on me, so I now have a new iPhone 4. All these MAC products are starting to make me want a MAC computer. We will see about that one.

So all in all, a very productive, exciting and fast paced summer, I can't believe it's almost over!

It's getting busy!!!

It has been a crazy past two months for me filled with new and exciting jobs!
Since OUROBOROS has ended, I was offered and took on the job as assistant to the Costume Designer for the Magic Theater's production of WHAT WE'RE UP AGAINST that ran and closed last Sunday in San Francisco. It was a great job where I worked with amazing and talented people. The Magic is such a great theater!

Currently, I am working wardrobe crew for the production of RUINED at Berkeley Rep Theater, in Berkeley. It's an intense and powerful show, with a ton of costumes that me and my fellow wardrobe crew take care of. The cast is an amazing bunch of actors and the backstage crew is wonderful as well.

So much is going on and I'm gearing up for summer working on wardrobe crew for Cal Shakes in Orinda.

I'm already having to plan my work for 2012 if you can believe that. I have some proposals for some shows to design that are in the works.
I can say that 2011 is a great year so far career wise! Meeting so many wonderful, nice, kind, amazing, talented people and getting the chance to work at some amazing theaters. I am truly blessed this year!!!

Onward and upward!

OUROBOROS @ Renegade Theatre Experiment

Now that tech week is over, another costume design baby has left the womb! My costume work on OUROBOROS is complete.

From January 15 till February 5th, every Thursday through Sunday, the play OURBOROS by Tom Jacobson and directed by Virginia Drake is playing at the Historic Hoover Theatre in San Jose, California.

Tickets are available here. OUROBOROS Tickets.

Feel free to come and watch the show! Opening Night was a full house!

"Two American couples vacationing in Italy. Not that unusual. One couple is married and the other are friends. Again, not that unusual. One couple travels forward in time, while the other travels backward in time. Still, not that...wait, what? From the mind of renowned LA playwright, Tom Jacobson, comes the amazing palindrome play, OUROBOROS.

The forces of nature get all twisted around when Margaret and Tor meet Philip and Catherine. One couple is beginning their journey and the other in ending their's, all because of a cosmic connection and a ring, or rather rings. Is there one ring or two? Honestly, it all gets so confusing! One night the play will end as a comedy (The Nun's Story) and the next night it ends as a tragedy (The Minister's Story). Come experience this true experiment in storytelling! Love, lust, loyalty, betrayal, and faith are all wrapped up together to make the Regional Premiere of OUROBOROS by Tom Jacobson. " -Renegade Theatre Experiment

The Beginnings of Forum.

Before my two week break for the Holidays, I was able to have a week of free time to start building for our new show at Cal State East Bay. Currently we are building costumes for the production of "A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum" by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart, with music by Stephen Sondheim. The production is directed by Marc Jacobs, one of the faculty directing instructors in the Theatre Dept. If you would like to check out more information about "Forum", the show opens in March and click on "Forum" to direct you.

"Forum" as we like to call the show in shop, is having its costumes designed by a wonderful undergraduate student who loves Costume Design, Chalia La Tour.
I'm in charge of building one of the characters, Tintinablula. Of course I'm documenting my work because its fun and also a good way for me to see how I am improving with my build skills and also a great way to show people one of the many jobs that I do for a living.

So without further ado, here are some 1st draft patterns in muslin of the Tintinabula costume for "Forum."

We are now waiting to do a fitting on the actress playing TinTinabula and in the next week or so, I will be cutting out the patterns in fabric.

Things are looking up!

Wonderful things happening right now!

Many friends and family have shown interest in helping me get to the Prague Quadrennial so now I now officially have my donation/fund raising website for the Prague Quadrennial. If you would like to help me travel to Prague for an on site installation I will be taking part of, feel free to contribute. So far I have raised $75.00, help me raise $6,000! Courtney's Prague Trip Donations.

I have also applied for a travel grant to help with my trip, hopefully this will come through. Stay Positive!

In other news, a production I was a part of in Fall of 2010 was named as one of the Best of Bay Area Theater in 2010!! Awesome.

Now back to work tomorrow for a new year!!!

Elvis has left the building.

Whoa! I've been off the posting train for a minute, but time to get back on.

December has been a very busy month for me. I'm working on designing a show, I was building a new costume at my regular job and working on all my other jobs.

I finally finished the Elvis jumpsuit that was for the ghost of Christmas past for Scroogie. Here are some pics to look at the progress the costume and I made from start to finish.
Enjoy!

A great invitation.

Awesome news I discovered on Monday. I have been invited to be a participant in the Prague Quadrennial 2011. http://www.pq.cz/en

What is the Prague Quadrennial? What does this mean to be a participant? I will explain.

The Prague Quadrennial

"The Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space is the largest scenography event in the world - presenting contemporary work in a variety of performance design disciplines and genres - costume, stage, lighting, sound design, and theatre architecture for dance, opera, drama, site specific, multi-media performances, and performance art, etc.

Every four years, since it’s establishing in 1967, the Prague Quadrennial has presented work from more then 70 countries, from five continents, in individual countries and regions' expositions in three competitive sections – the section of countries and regions, section of theatre architecture and student section.

This large exhibition is accompanied by a wide spectrum of live events – workshops, lectures, performances, discussions and presentations, and provides an in-depth exploration of contemporary theatre and performance design, creating space for meetings and exchange among thousands of performance and theatre professionals, students and spectators, who always attended the event."
-PQ website

My Participation

"Participants will be paired with another American student designer,
and will be given a short piece of text, 90 minutes, and will be given a stock of
art supplies. In that time, the two will discuss the text, and then collaboratively
the pair will create a piece of design art (a sketch, a collage, a sculpture, etc)
and that piece will immediately, upon it’s creation, become part of the exhibit
for the remainder of the PQ. In so doing, the overall exhibit will evolve and
change over the course of the days of the PQ, encouraging viewers to come back
to see the new additions." -Tom Burch

It's a really exciting opportunity and I can't wait to be a part of it!! I do have to find my own money and provide my own transportation to the exhibit in Prague. I am now in the process of locating travel grants, scholarships and any fund raising ventures that would allow me to pull money together.

This has made for an awesome start to the week!!! Hooray!!

Work and Inspiration.

It's been about a week since I last posted. I've been meaning to make my mark here on my page, but work slows me down.
Just so you get the sense of what I do, I'm currently doing a lot at the moment.

1) I just closed a show I designed costumes for on Sunday night. The show was HABIBI by Sharif Abu-Hamdeh, a new work that premiered at Intersection for the Arts in San Francisco.

2) I'm designing costumes for a production that opens in January. The show is, OUROBOROS, by Tom Jacobson and its with Renegade Theatre Experiment in San Jose.

3) During this whole year of 2010, I have been slowly but surely completing my thesis for my Masters of Fine Arts in Technical Theatre, with an emphasis in Costume Design. It's taking me longer than anticipated, but its coming along.

4) I am in the process of starting to sew Liturgical dance costumes for a church in Oakland.

5) Last but not least, my day job of working at a costume shop for a local Bay Area University. At the current moment, I am constructing a 60's Elvis jumpsuit, which will be the ghost of the past in a children's production of A Christmas Carol, named, SCROOGIE.

All in all, I'm very busy. That's all a part of being a freelance designer. Learning time management and learning your limitations.


A new lesson I am learning, is how to be inspired amidst all this busy work. At times, I lose momentum or inspiration. I look for ways to spark up the lost momentum and get back on the train.
So far I have a few things that help me, that I will share:

1) An online journaling website.
I have used a journal off and on through the years and I started back up. The basis of the site is off the idea of Julia Cameron's, The Artist's Way, which is a great book if you are suffering an artistic block. She advises some tips to help break the block, which all work. One main exercise, is journaling 3 pages a day or 750 words.
Trust me it works. I start having vivid dreams and it gives me ideas.

2) Reading. It gets my mind off of what I'm doing for a bit and into something new. Its proven that if you take breaks when you are problem solving or figuring what your next move is, stepping away from the task and doing another task not related to the original helps. The action of "getting your mind off of the idea" and onto something else, has your brain functioning in other ways behind the scenes, to help you figure out a problem later on.
Right now I'm reading, The Autobiography of Malcolm X as told by Alex Haley.
A wonderful book that everyone must read and I have a hard time putting down.

Those are a couple of my ideas for sparking inspiration. What are your exercises for sparking inspiration? Care to share?

It's like a Grand Opening...Again.

Welcome to my blog, again.
My name is Courtney and I am a Costume Designer. I previously had a blog in this same site, however, I decided to revamp it and give it a go again. As I repeat again, welcome!

On this site I'm hoping to educate and possibly give some insight to the day to day workings of a working freelance Costume Designer. I have perused many websites and I find that there is not too many Costume Designers out there speaking on what they do, adding their insight to the world and basically, not putting their voice out there. I'm hoping to add to the little puddle of designers in the hopes of expanding the puddle to possibly a stream or maybe something bigger.

As I stated previously, my name is Courtney, I'm a Freelance Costume Designer, I mainly work in thatre, which is so very rewarding and hopefully in the near future I would like to work in film more. With that being said, what a reader will find on my blog is information and insight on projects I'm working on, words and pictures of what inspires me, other things that serve as inspiration or are related to the costume world. On any given day, you will find a variety of different information.
I'm hoping that you as a reader will come along for the ride, see what it is I do for a living and be inspired.

Hugs,

Courtney :)