I thought it worth mentioning this week the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum is hosting a series ofexciting events associated with the United States Air Force from August 24th through August 29th.

The mission of the event is to bring together the Air Force and the general public and illustrate the incredible mix of services the people of the Air Force do.

It’s always a treat whenever I go to the Intrepid. The energy and movement available to draw is incredible. The planes are beautiful..the river is beautiful, so simple and complicated at the same time.

Air Force Weeks were established in 2006 by the Chief of Staff of the Air Force. Hope you too will take advantage of it.

..I once read that Pythagoras is credited with having discovered the physical relationship between mass and sound, (otherwise known as music), and that this relationship (expressible as ratios) is essentially what led to Galileo’s revolutionary discoveries in physics. Reading this intrigued me …could the relationship between mass and sound be the same as the relationship between mass and line? uhhhmmm…(otherwise known as drawing)

Hymn of the Republic

What I mean is the same physical relationship occurs in a drawing when you choose more of this and less of that. It’s simply music on paper.

With this thought and an arsenal of ideas I decided to research a little into Plato’s theory on Music of the Seven Spheres at the American Museum of Natural History .

In the beginning I found that Pythagoras’ theory correlated the music of the spheres with cosmic harmony, and while at the museum that Plato actually related it to 7 planets. So I knew it was important to frame my thoughts with an essence of say, global or “universal familiarity”, and decided angels were the logical symbol to design the idea around.

Angels are a symbol of higher power that cross pretty much all culture,borders and language.

So maybe it could work?

Maybe it really could…

It’s the journey of discovery that’s the most exciting part for me (and admittedly the reason I continue to hunt for more).

Who really knows where a drawing can lead, this mixture of mass and line?  Maybe it is only the angels.

All images are property of Michele Bedigian©2010 Please inquire for permission to use, or to learn more on this series, by emailing michele@studio1482.com

Last Saturday I had the privilege to attend the commissioning ceremony of the USS NEW YORK (LPD 21). Traditionally the commissioning of a naval vessel is a time of celebration, the welcoming of a new shipand its crew to the fleet. It’s a symbol of our national pride and steadfast resolve. Yet on that day, I have to share, it meant even more. It’s been eight years since our country was attacked.

What makes the USS NEW YORK so special is what it’s built from. There’s 7.5 tons of sacred steel recovered from the World Trade Center site that’s been forged into its bow with the intent to Never Forget.

Above is a page from my sketchbook that afternoon. It was done the moment they were setting the orders in place to bring the ship to life.

This drawing of a NYC firefighter was done while listening to one of the Commanders speaking. The Commander was sharing an “official” letter given to him by a an FDNY Captain dated September 15th, 2001 –  just three days after the collapse. The letter said that at that time (9/15/01) he was unable to relieve 343 of his men from duty – for they were missing and still considered “active”.

As expected, there were several dignitaries in attendance. Among them stood our Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton. I think one of the most moving and memorable things she said was “By commissioning this ship today, we’re noting the best and the worst of humanity… and sometimes we are stronger in the broken parts.” I couldn’t agree more.

Being present to see the order to man the ship and bring her to life was a gift me, my Dad and those affected by 9/11 will forever hold in our hearts.

To all the crew and commanders of the USS NEW YORK,  I pray your journey be true and may you always return home safely. Welcome and thank you – Michele

all drawings are copyright material by mbedigian©2009 ]]> http://www.michelebedigian.com/2009/11/12/bringing-her-to-life/feed/ 0 http://www.michelebedigian.com/2009/08/24/parading-about-town/ http://www.michelebedigian.com/2009/08/24/parading-about-town/#comments Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:42:42 +0000 Michele http://www.michelebedigian.com/?p=247

happy   happy   happy

go the animals

as they parade through the African village in Animal Kingdom

happy   happy   happy   am I  to be drawing them

Drawing this parade was really an adventure. There was no room to stall, no room to judge. I had to be quick and trust my instinct! When I looked a little harder and studied what was coming down the street, the experience was amazing. It was global, it was evolutionary, even historical. I guess the message was clear … that we all need to look a little closer at the world and appreciate it’s gifts -  Michele

Here are a few thumbnails done 10 minutes before my colorful friends arrived.

Ah, the days of summer are in full swing here in the city and it couldn’t be sweeter. Last Saturday I met a few friends in Bryant Park for a breakfast picnic. The weather was ideal to sit and people watch for a bit so I drew some, ate some, talked some and loved every minute of it. Here’s a few drawings of our neighbors on the lawn. 

Can’t wait to get back and enjoy more bagels … and drawing.

Michele

                    Studio 1482 was built on the premise of drawing, the base for all that we eight do professionally. So, (as Dom put it so eloquently), “in the spirit of drawing” I’m thrilled to share the news, 1482 has launched a new website. No crazy turns, just a division of the studio’s ventures.

                     The website is called One Drawing A Day , where each day you’ll find a new drawing featured by a different member of the studio.

                                 Go ahead, take a look … and while you’re there, check out the archive of past drawings. (You might want to even bookmark the site and enjoy the visit daily – talk to you later,  Michele ]]> http://www.michelebedigian.com/2009/06/10/a-new-studio-project-on-the-horizon/feed/ 0 http://www.michelebedigian.com/2009/05/29/a-season-in-time/ http://www.michelebedigian.com/2009/05/29/a-season-in-time/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 20:55:40 +0000 Michele http://www.michelebedigian.com/?p=62

My last official ‘published post’ was in January … a season past, and if you’ve been wondering if I’ve actually followed up with those ‘good intentions’ I must confess proudly, yes. Although I haven’t been posting day to day on the happenings, there’s exciting news to share. 

The past few months I’ve not only had the privilege to work on some awesome projects, but found myself designing a group promotion that I’m really, really proud of.

It was the first of much to come for 1482. Inspired by the great masters of seasons past, such as Picasso, Bakst, Passalaqua, and Brangwyn, we (Despina Georgiadis,  myself , Greg Betza, and  Dominick Santise) decided to create, design and produce a contemporary piece with an artists eye on the popular debates we hear so often regarding environmentalism.

Artists are interesting people, (and if you know one personally), you know they are full of opinion, direction, and most often very passionate about their vision. This is why I can’t express how much the process of working with these particular three meant to me. 

We met often, either in the museum’s Petrie sculpture garden or someone’s home studio always ready to engage in new possibilities aiming high for that ultimate goal; a successful product, and still be Ok to discard what felt wrong through the journey.

I guess the most magical part was through meeting after meeting, (although we clearly knew the direction), we never saw each others images. We worked on faith. “What a glorious compilation of talent and interest. We don’t think alike, we don’t work alike, but somewhere we knew instinctively it would work in the end.”

It wasn’t until the last day, over at Greg and Despina’s that we brought the images together and unveiled the gold. Christmas couldn’t compare. Dominick said, “it was like when all the relatives get together for the first time”.                   

… and in the end, it truly was a symphony of images speaking aloud, each with an opinion, a direction and for sure great passion.

I wonder if we’ll look back on this collective one day, in another season, maybe wiser, certainly older and see it’s richness through life’s unpredictable filter, time.

   But something always seems to happen within the first thirty days that makes it get a little fuzzy around the edges, and predictably six weeks later I’m back exactly where I was two days before Thanksgiving, (the calendar year before), negotiating with my big plan A and tweaking the edges (that is if I can even find the list at all in the pile on my drafting table). So what makes this year any different? 

 Approach … so simple a concept, why didn’t I think of it before?

(I guess too easy, LOL)   …and so it begins in 2009, one nibble at a time.  

* Be sure to check out some new book jacket samples I just uploaded on the studio site. 

But I couldn’t let it go without sharing the good news …. Our annual calendar promotions have arrived and there are a limited number still available. This year’s features are pretty hot! If you’d like one, just send me an email with your name and address and I’ll get one out to you asap, (while supplies last of course!).

can you guess what month I’m featured in?

clue no.1 :

“It is the month of ____?                                                                                        The month of leaves and roses,                                                                                  When pleasant sights salute the eyes,                                                                        And pleasant scents the noses.”

                                                    - Nathaniel Parker Willis

highlights from the Buck’s County Chocolate Show in New Hope, Pennsylvania

… and oh what a show it was!

The word Chocolate alone draws in a crowd. So I wasn’t surprised how the line wrapped around the building as early as 10am. But what did surprise me was how many people, (all hunting for the best chocolate they can find), found such a genuine interested in the exhibit. They asked all sorts of questions; Did I make everything by hand? Was the packaging real? and most curiously, how was I able to design a poster from all these individual handmade parts?  

The beauty of it was that I met people for whom the concept of constructing an original piece of art digitally from handmade elements was a bit foreign. (Quickly making it clear that this was a gifted opportunity to share some insight on how the computer can be used just as simply as a paintbrush to achieve an artist’s vision.)

 The exchange was exhilarating. What I walked away with was a better understanding of the unique moment in time the art world is moving. 

Looking forward to see what happens next year!

-Michele 

p.s.  The question is often debated what constitutes an original piece of art. In my mind’s eye an original is a piece that is created directly from thought to craft and there is no other combination of elements put together that precede it’s existence in an identical fashion.