Well, well, well…look who’s come crawling back to their old website!
It’s been an inexcusably long time since I gave this place the TLC it deserves. Perhaps every time I thought of returning to update my site, life (i.e. working full-time) punched me in the gut. Perhaps I wasn’t sure I wanted to continue with a blog-style site anymore. Regardless of reason – flying in the face of it after so long, really – I am back to tell you a short version of what I’ve been up to all these years.
Not long after my last blog post, I changed jobs. Some of the half-finished works I showed off then have since been finished, a couple abandoned (as is customary). Of course, 2-ish short years later began The Bad Times. A year after that, I began working for a dream employer of mine. COVID restrictions eased, and some went back to their old lifestyles. My partner & I found it difficult to readjust to how things were before, but eventually we started going places and hanging out with people again. It doesn’t really feel the same, though.
Time passed quickly. Before I knew it, I had quit social media, stayed with dream employer for 5 years, and it’d been 6 (!!!) since my last group show! So I figured it might be fun to start my return with that.
After missing out last year, I got into this year’s Art Design XChange Annual Skate Deck Show. ADX is an amazing makerspace here in Portland that offers studio/practice space, classes, and even a woodshop. I was excited to paint a skate deck to be displayed alongside tons of local artists. The subject matter comes loosely from my partner’s lyrics surrounding a mysterious and powerful sword from outer space…pretty decent sci-fi inspo!
After sanding the bottom of the board, acrylic paint took fairly well with a few layers. I switched from brushes to Posca acrylic paint markers once I got to the details. The opening of the show in early June was BONKERS. It may have been the most well-attended gallery opening I’ve ever been to. Shout-out to the local acts who provided tunes, especially my faves High Glow!
To keep it brief, I’m happy to have somewhat gotten back in the saddle and put myself out there artistically again. I hope to get into another group show within the next year, with an end goal of having enough work for a solo show in the not-too-distant future. We didn’t catch all the beats of what I’ve been working on lately with this post, but don’t worry – we’ll get there.
Thanks again for reading! I’ve noticed the formatting on all my old blog posts is borked now. Not sure if I will go back and fix those, move to a new site platform, or what. But I’m back for now and I hope you’re all well & drinking plenty of water!
– JT
Julia Trimboli 