I rushed off to music room 130 at Humboldt State University for the 3 p.m. workshop ...where I got to listen to a tired, charming Rez give personal and generous advice to the young music students. I made a painting of him on my iPad, including some of his words. Note, everyone who makes it up to Humboldt County is tired and a hero! The drive is much longer than it should be. Later, at 8 the evening performance started.
I loved it. Read about the music in the LA Times article by Chris Barton. I painted another iPad painting. ( I can't really include all the musicians...have to edit or the piece and I would be overwhelmed - sorry! And I am not using a photo image as some seem to think, it would constrain my creativity) When I met Rez at the after party he happily autographed the paintings, and wanted me to send him a print. The ensuing email exchange got to be amusing so I thought I'd post it here, along with the paintings.
Hi Rez, this is a good day for Jazz, not just because Unesco is celebrating it, and Jason Moran was interviewed on NPR, but because I can spend this moody, foggy, monday morning listening to your Suno Suno recording. When I saw you last it was midnight in Arcata, and you had to catch a flight to LA from Oakland the next morning ...I hope you made it to the Blue Whale.
Next time you make it up here, stay a day and go for a walk in the Redwood Forest. I'll be your guide!
Many thanks to you and your Invocation group for coming up here. We are very far from everything, but we do appreciate jazz and have a thriving local jazz scene thanks to the Redwood Jazz Alliance and also Center Arts at Humboldt State University. I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to do my live jazz painting here.
Thank you also for liking the iPadJAZZart I made of you. It was sweet to have you by yourself at the workshop, sharing so freely with the music students of Humboldt State University. It gave me a sense of what is important to you and prepared me for painting at the evening concert. As I might have mentioned to you, this improvised synchronous painting I do, puts me in hyper sensitive zone that actually enhanced my musical experience.
I would be very happy to send you a print (the attached images are low resolution and will not make good prints) of each one in trade for two of your CDs (my husband got the Suno Suno, signed by you!). If you would like more of them, I sell them for $45 each. I make limited series fine art prints of my iPadJAZZart.
I am very happy to have you in my collection, and I would appreciate if you posted them on your Facebook page.
Bright Moments, Iris
Yea, these are sooo cool, don't know how you do this!! I'll send you two CDs that I really think you'll enjoy...
Just in case I ever can use the solo pic of me, is there a way to remove some of the printing, to make it less
busy...I think you showed me one that was leads busy but it's your work and up to you.
I'll send those soon.
Great to meet such a fine sprit as yourself!
Rez, thank you for thinking the iPadJAZZart is cool! As to the one I did during the workshop, on which I scribbled down some of your words, I can unclutter it easily since I have the text on a separate layer. I'll send it to you in my next email - Rez Abbasi - no text, and with just one arm, but with two heads. If you think you might want to use this one a CD cover or in some PR piece let me know and we can work something out. I can also work from photos...Would be a lot of fun!
all the best, Iris
PS: The next phase of my iPadJAZZart is to paint on the iPad and project it on a big screen simultaneously with a musical performance. If you find yourself in a location that has a screen, and would be open to such an ekphrastic show, let me know!
