evilstrawberry chronicles

new years resolutions

2011-12-27T20:36:00.001+01:00

2011 was an interesting year. oh well, since 1978 every year has been pretty interesting :) how can i complain.
lately i have been very much into crafts thanks to my friend Aliya. lately i was busy making little gifts for my family. such as this one:

was a lot of fun, had almost zen moments when i was making them.

i guess it is usual to make new year's resolutions but this year i will not make any. instead, i will say good bye to the old year properly.
thank you 2011!
for all the problems and hassle you gave me cause they made me strong!
thanks for all the wonderful people i got to meet and new friends i made!
thanks for all my old friends, although i cannot keep in contact with many, i know they are there when i need them and i know they think of me too
thanks for the wonderful students i had, for they made me realize how much i love teaching art
thank you for my kitty for i love him very very very
thank you for my wonderful family and my Bas :)

and bad stuff have happened too but hey
it could always be worse :)
so thanks 2011, id ask you to stay but 2012 is on its way
byeeeeeeeeeeeee !

keep working

2011-08-06T01:23:00.000+02:00

It is the 50th year of Amnesty International and they are holding an auction of artworks donated by artists to AI. The auction will take place on October 23, at the Museum Dr.Guislain in Gent. All the money will be donated to Amnesty International.

I am working on a big scale painting that i will be donating for this auction. In this painting I am translating all my frustration, thoughts and emotions about the current political situation in my homeland, Turkey. It will be my tribute to all the innocent journalists and military personnel who have been in prison for several years already, still not knowing what they are being accused of. A statement will accompany the painting and you will be able to read it when the painting is finished and is ready for the auction.

sketch thursdays

2011-08-02T23:57:00.001+02:00

why didn't i hear about this before?
check this out:
www.sketchthursdays.blogspot.com
crazy isn't it? i cannot wait until the next gathering. a great opportunity to meet local artists and work together.
wish they were gathering more often

Hear ye hear ye!

2011-08-01T23:52:00.001+02:00

scheherazade

HEAR YE HEAR YE!
I has an exhibition
well, a small display let's say, of some of the paintings i have made since i arrived in belgium
a tribute to my initial lonely days and struggle (it was nonetheless very valuable and i learned much from it)
songs from the underground
want to see my works? you can see them at the city hall in wommelgem ;
details: http://www.wommelgem.be/activiteitendetail.aspx?id=289
or on my website :)
http://www.evilstrawberry.com
more works coming soon... to my blog and to my website
stay tuned my dearies :)

Niko Pirosmanashvili

2011-03-24T21:11:00.000+01:00

i found a great book on de slegte (a dutch bookstore that sells some really cool stuf for really low prices) about naive art. well for those o you who do not know it, i am a big naive art fan. in the book there was an article about niko pirosmanashvili. now i can tell you all about him but perhaps you are better off reading about him yourselves on wikipedia or on other websites such as this one and this one.

well i hope you will enjoy it as much as i did.

it just re-awakened my forever longing for georgia.

march 22

2011-03-22T23:13:00.000+01:00

lazy day
was about to go to sleep and i made this, now i can go to sleep... *yawn*

observatiestage

2011-03-21T21:51:00.000+01:00

today after work, i had an hour to kill at a sandwich bar before i took off for my training. i had to observe some lessons at a local school here in Antwerpen.

i got pretty nervous when i was waiting. tried to sketch a bit but i couldnt keep my mind off my the observation.

finally the time came and i went to the school. i observed two classes. they were very different in terms of, well, subject for one... and teaching styles for two... i must say it was a great opportunity. i have listened to several teachers (as a student) but observing a class as a "future teacher" if i may say :), was something else. being the empathy monster i am, i always used to try and think from a student's point of view when it came to teaching. but today my thoughts have changed a bit... i wonder... is this what growing up like? i always thought it would be boring :P
oh well. i am a bit tired and sleepy and tomorrow is yet another tough day-except for the evening when i will me meeting my gals to have some fun downtown :) it is hard to describe my thoughts now, but all i can say is today was the day when i realized:
that i really really really want to be an art teacher
that i will do it very very very very very happily here in belgium
that i really feel my thoughts and ideas evolving through my education and trainings
and that i like it a lot :)

meh...

2011-03-20T23:30:00.000+01:00

started another journal to tell about my depression. it will be a loooonggg one though... we will see :P i know it is painful to try and read my handwriting, but i am too tired to type it all over :P i made these in the bed by the way. heh!

then one day i was bored at school... like, super bored...

then one day, i had to go to ekeren, and thats pretty far away from here, and it was on a sunday so the buses were not going that often. i had to wait an hour for my bus, and another hour on the way back. each time i was freezing and tried to sketch to keep myself busy but it didnt work out very well. still, it was a nice try, drawing while you freeze :P

then one day i went to the library and realized how much i missed it. i saw down and looked at some journals and catalogues of childrens book illustration biennals and such and noted down some names, sketched a rackham and a greenaway i like. the library permeke in antwerpen was like my second home when i got here. by then i did not speak the language very well and did not know anyone in this city, so i would spend hours at the library, reading, studying dutch and browsing books. they have a pretty darn good selection of books by the way. i should go there more often-although i am not a member anymore. i am protesting their new regulations. heh. as if they care :P

well, that's all folks! back to life. back to reality. back to my day job and school. back to homeworks and assignments... *sigh*

sick

2011-03-07T22:38:00.000+01:00

soo, it seems i am not the only one who keeps making excuses for not blogging regularly http://sorry.coryarcangel.com/

i am exhausted. tired. sick. and cannot get much done these days but i am trying, bas is helping me, puck is being the sweetest and craziest cat ever, and i am happy.
will be back after the commercials...

puck

2011-03-01T16:46:00.000+01:00

i love your kisses!! :) <3

more chibis

2011-02-28T07:41:00.000+01:00

after life kicked me in the groin and i fell and hit my head to a big stone at rock bottom, i passed out. when i woke up i was full with renewed energy
i cleaned up my chibi
now its time to create more for my workshop
weeheee

i love adobe illustrator btw, i missed working with it and the cs package is pretty cool acshully

bleh

2011-02-25T23:57:00.002+01:00

sometimes, i just look around and all i see is fools, hypocrites, judgemental and hateful faces, dried and lifeless bodies and i cannot remember how i did it before. how i kept on living. how do you live? its just so hard sometimes to keep going to force yourself forward, and find a reason for it.
stupid to get so apologetic at this time of the night so i wont do it
this world makes me sick!

If my coming were up to me, I’d never be born
And if my going were on my accord, I’d go with scorn
Isn’t it better that in this world, so old and worn
Never to be born, neither stay, nor be away torn?
-Khayyam

busy bee

2011-02-16T00:05:00.000+01:00

busy busy busy
i am very busy
so sorry to all for not uploading anything new for a loooooooong time
here is one of the things i am busy with ;p
these are two sketches i made, as a proposal to a possible school project :P (i am following a course of pedagogical formation in dutch here in antwerpen)
well let's hope my classmates will like the idea and i will be busy with my wittle chibis for the coming weeks!! ^.^

quick post regarding Verdi

2011-02-01T22:43:00.002+01:00

Vlaams Symfonisch Orkest will be performing Verdi's Requiem in Antwerpen, Geel and Rosendaal(Holland). I can arrange tickets for those who wish to come to the Antwerp concert, but for the other two, the ticket sales are done online.

Here is the link : http://www.requiemverdi.be/

Meantime I am happy to announce my career change: I have decided to become a lead guitarist in a heavy metal band. i am determined, nothing can stop me, not even the fact that I do not own an electric guitar (or that i do not know how to play one-yet). I will go practice some chords now on Bas's acoustic guitar, and start saving for an electric one. all i need to do after that is to shine like a real rockstar :)

oh the sweet taste of midlife crisis!

anniversary

2011-01-31T22:17:00.005+01:00

It was our 6th wedding anniversary last saturday :)
i met bas in 2003 and fell in love with him immediately
he is my best friend and the best thing that happened to me
i love you bas dielemans
and here is the song he charmed me with :)

here is the lyrics with english translation ;p but its really best in dutch :)

Nu hoef je nooit je jas meer aan te trekken / now you dont have to put your coat on
en te hopen dat je licht het doet. / and hope that your bikes lights are working
laat buiten de stormwind nu maar razen in het donker / let the storm and wind blow in the dark
want binnen is het warm en licht en goed / inside it is warm, light and good

hand in hand naar buiten kijkend waar de regen valt / hand in hand looking outside where the rain falls
ik zie het vuur van hoop en twijfel in je ogen / i see the fire of hope and doubt in your eyes
en ik ken je diepste angst / and i know your deepest fear

Want je kunt niets zeker weten en alles gaat voorbij / because you cannot know anything for sure, and everything comes to pass
Maar ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof in jou en mij / but i believe, i believe, in you and me

En als je 's morgens opstaat ben ik bij je / and when you are up in the morning i am with you
en misschien heb ik al thee gezet / and maybe i have already set the tea

En als de zon schijnt buiten gaan we lopen door de duinen / and if the weather is nice, we go take a walk in the dunes
en als het regent gaan we t'rug in bed / and if it rains then we go back to bed

Uren langzaam wakker worden, zwevend door de tijd / for hours slowly waking up, floating through time
Ik zie het licht door de gordijnen / i see the light through the curtains
en ik weet, t'verleden geeft geen zekerheid / and i know that the past does not give certainty

Want je kunt niets zeker weten en alles gaat voorbij / because you cannot know anything for sure, and everything comes to pass
Maar ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof in jou en mij / but i believe, i believe, in you and me
ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof in jou en mij / but i believe, i believe, in you and me

Ik doe de lichten uit en de kamer wordt nu donker, / i turn the lights off and the room becomes dark
een straatlantaarn buiten geeft wat licht, / and the streetlights give some light

En de dingen in de kamer worden vrienden die gaan slapen, / and the things in the room are like friends going to sleep
de stoelen staan te wachten op 't ontbijt / the chairs are waiting till breakfast

En morgen wordt ik wakker met de geur van brood en honing. / and in the morning i will wake up with the smell of bread and honey
De glans van gouden zonlicht in je haar / the shine of golden sunlight in your hair

En de dingen in de kamer, ik zeg ze welterusten / and to the things in the room, i say goodnight
vanavond gaan we slapen en morgen zien we wel / tonight we will go to sleep and in the morning we will see what happens

Maar de dingen in de kamer zouden levenloze dingen zijn, zonder jou / but the things in the room would be lifeless things, without you

En je kunt niets zeker weten en alles gaat voorbij / and you cannot know anything for sure, and everything comes to pass
Maar ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof in jou en mij / but i believe, i believe, in you and me
ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof in jou en mij / i believe, i believe, in you and me
En je kunt niets zeker weten want alles gaat voorbij / and you cannot know anything for sure, and everything comes to pass
Maar ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof in jou en mij / but i believe, i believe, in you and me
ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof, ik geloof in jou en mij / i believe, i believe, in you and me

tiny art

2011-01-27T23:31:00.003+01:00

am i neglecting my blog? noooo-hoooo!! please bear with me. Bas had his exams this week. but thank Wotan, it is OVER! phew! what a stressful week was it. I managed to draw daily in my diary tho and i had a bit of catching up to do on mail art :x i love making and sharing mailart, however lately i have been slacking. hopefully my mailart friends will forgive me!
and meantime i have just finished mailart for a tiny mailart exchange! :) it was FUUNN!! you had to make tiny artworks for this exchange, 1 inch squares or cubes :) well here is a peek to what i did ;p i illustrated some famous turkish women artists. here is one for you, at the end of the blog. cahide sonku, a turkish actress and first female film director in turkey.

p.s: meantime, anyone for mailart? :) mail me your snailmail address then! :)

thanks!

2011-01-20T12:28:00.000+01:00

well here is something i drew when i was younger :P *sigh* by then i was (and still am actually) very much into fantasy and science fiction, and i used to draw imaginary characters, worlds, maps etc. this was one of them. i used to have a thick notebook made of very cheap paper, and a ballpen. i used to take them everywhere. drawing in that notebook made me happy, it was my secret :) noone knew about it for i shared them with none (except a very special person) years later when i moved to the states to study arts i did not take that notebook with me and it got lost :( luckily i have scans of a few of those sketches.

i wish to thank everyone, friends and fellas from EDM group, who has been encouraging me with their comments :) love and hugs to you all and this drawing comes for you :P i didnt know how else to thank :)

EDM 304 Something you can tie

2011-01-16T22:23:00.001+01:00

Well, I have joined the EDM group and here is my sumission for the theme: "something you can tie".

Mehmet Aksoy's Buddhas

2011-01-16T00:27:00.002+01:00

i won't post my entire journal page here to save you the pains of deciphering my wonderful handwriting. Instead i will post some excerpts and type the story. I was so upset when writing this entry that I had to stop sooner than I wanted to. It is a nasty subject, and very emotional for me. Here we go:

This guy's name is Mehmet Aksoy. He is an internationally acclaimed Turkish sculptor. You can see his works and monuments all over the world.

In 1999, I was in high school when he made a sculpture for a park in Ankara. It was called "in fairyland". Everything was fine, until that one fine day, when the mayor of Ankara appeared on public TV standing next to the sculpture and literally "SPAT" on the work, declaring it obscene. The work was immediately removed from the park and was not even returned to the artist.

When this happened, several people saw this as the footsteps of an upcoming islamic threat in the government. I was one of them. Noone took it seriously. Some even went as far to claim that the sculpture indeed was obscene!

Today Turkey is being ruled by AKP, the same party the mayor of Ankara belongs to. Most people in Europe see AKP as an innocent moderate islamic party, just like the Christian Democrats. I just laugh at that...

Now, Mehmet Aksoy has made a new monument. It is a gigantic thing, at the border with Armenia, a monument dedicated to peace and reconciliation. Our prime minister saw the monument couple days ago, and declared it a "monstrosity". Because his words are orders, the monument has been ordered to be removed from the site immediately.

Moderate Islam eh? wait till they take the monument down. It is a huge thing, with steel construction. Just like the artist himself pointed out, the only way to take it down is by using explosives. Like Taliban did.

Good luck AKP! Way to go!

It arrived!

2011-01-04T21:59:00.002+01:00

My book arrived! Yay! Unfortunately this is only the second part of the diaries (of Alya Rachmanova), the part about her marriage in Russia, ending with her exile. Anyways, i am looking forward to reading this interesting diary I came across in such an adventurous way :) It is a lovely book as far as the binding goes as well. Old school leather binding. The book was probably in some library once and was at some point discharged.
It is classified under "romance" but i am hoping to find more than romance in these diary pages ;p and something in me says i won't be disappointed. we will see...
This was my dream you see... When I was a kid, due to some local dynamics I was in, I had so much trouble finding the books and albums I wanted. And by then I used to dream of heaven as a place where all information was accessible to everyone. In times like this I feel like I am in heaven :) Yaaay I found a rare book! or so it feels...
By the way, to all my friends bugging me with comments and emails, my sketches are coming soon ;)

Alja Rachmanowa

2011-01-03T17:21:00.003+01:00

In the last edition of flow there was an article about Alja Rachmanowa (or Alia Rachmanova, spelling changes). Born as a Russian noble, she was first sent to Siberia along with her family where she met her future husband, an Austrian. Later on they were exiled and she had to move to Austria where she opened a milkshop. She kept a diary apparently, all through these years in turmoil and later on published them. Since I read the article I have been after her books which are really HARD to find for they are not in publishing anymore! I found one copy in a second hand bookshop in London and some other second hand copies in Dutch closerby, here in Antwerp. I ordered the Dutch translations since I guess the translation then would be closer to the original language (German), and hopefully i will receive it in a couple days. I cannot wait :) Meantime any information about this mysterious lady is appreciated :)
P.S.: Her real name was Galina Djuragin, Alia was her psedonym

soundtracks of my life :P

2010-12-24T23:03:00.000+01:00

mignon

2010-12-20T22:22:00.001+01:00

today i am feeling a bit homesick. i had a nice chat with An before the class started. It was freaking cold, but standing in the fresh air with a friend and sharing our thoughts about the future was nice. I thought how similar we are, humans, in our problems...

i don't have time to translate this, but let's hope the french is understandable...
mignon was my favorite character since my childhood years. i associated myself with her, and believed that it waited for me too, le pay ou fleurit l'orager....

Connais-tu le pays où fleurit l'oranger?
Le pays des fruits d'or et des roses merveilles,
Où la brise est plus douce et l'oiseau plus léger,
Où dans toute saison butinent les abeilles,
Où rayonne et sourit, comme un bienfait de Dieu,
Un éternel printemps sous un ciel toujours bleu!
Hélas! Que ne puis-je te suivre
Vers ce rivage heureux d'où le sort m'exila!
C'est là! C'est là que je voudrais vivre,
Aimer, aimer et mourir!
C'est là que je voudrais vivre, c'est là,
oui, c'est là!

Connais-tu la maison où l'on m'attend là-bas?
La salle aux lambris d'or, où des hommes de marbre
M'appellent dans la nuit en me tendant les bras?
Et la cour où l'on danse à l'ombre d'un grand arbre?
Et le lac transparent où glissent sur les eaux
Mille bateaux légers pareils à des oiseaux?
Hélas! Que ne puis-je te suivre
Vers ce pays lointain d'où le sort m'exila!
C'est là! C'est là que je voudrais vivre,
Aimer, aimer et mourir!
C'est là que je voudrais vivre, c'est là,
oui, c'est là!

And now for something completely different...

2010-12-19T00:31:00.000+01:00

wow, two blog entries in one day, a personal record!

maar het is de moeite waard voor my dearies in Flemishland :)

Here is your chance to see and hear a wonderful spectacle! Verdi's Requiem, brought to you by, Vlaams Symfonisch Orkest! (where i am ruining the harmony with my violin)

Here is some information about what this work is all about

and here is the ticket information...

and here is a loud piece from the Requiem, enjoy and be there for more ;p

snowangel

2010-12-08T15:39:00.000+01:00

my snowangel!

got terribly cold afterwards but was well worth it :)

we are freezing over here in belgium!