Assemble on Great.ly!

 Great.ly, the brain-child of our dear friend, Sarah Bryden-Brown (formerly of Go Mighty) is a place where "tastemakers" and "makers" come together. (Which one are you??) And, if you had the pleasure of reading Danielle Krysa's interview, you already know this wonderful, little gem's creative director!

Great.ly collects some of your favorite tastemakers like Uppercase, Oh Happy Day and Design Milk in one online space, and displays brand new lovingly-curated online shops, utilizing handmade goods and designs by independent makers. We are so proud to be makers in this fabulous creative marketplace! Make sure to pop over to Great.ly and check out all of the great shops, and freshen up for summer!

Photos courtesy of Great.ly

Favorite Friend: Danielle Krysa aka The Jealous Curator

We have to admit that Danielle Krysa (aka The Jealous Curator) is not just one of our favorite friends--but one of our favorite people. We have gabbed about her in the past, both for her Girl Crush event that we helped host and her first art show in our gallery, alleglory. However, now she's throwing even more awesomeness our way, as her first book, Creative Block has hit shelves and she's packed her suitcase and headed for Seattle and Portland this week!

This coming Saturday, May 24th, Danielle will be speaking, fielding questions and having a book signing for Creative Block at Elliott Bay Book Company from 7-9pm. We'll be there--will you??

PLUS--If you're a Portland reader, your event is a bit earlier--with Danielle hitting Powell's Books on May 21st (that's tomorrow!) at 7pm. You won't want to miss her!

We were so excited to host Girl Crush: Seattle with you a while back--how did the series change you? Did you have a favorite moment throughout all of the events--other than hanging out with us, obviously!?

HA! Well, yes, clearly that was the best part! It really was an amazing experience. I met so many exceptional women who I can now happily call my friends. And yes, it did change me. I didn't realize how emotional those workshops would be. Amazing to find out that so many of us share so many experiences... self doubt being a really big one!

We're big fans of your series, "Real Art for a Fictitious World," on SF Girl By Bay --are there any lesser known characters that are special to you that you'd like to curate for that probably won't end up on the blog?  

Oh thanks! I absolutely love writing that series. I really want to hit all my teenage faves (Sixteen Candles, Dirty Dancing, Footloose) but I'm afraid it will date me, and also make me look like I don't have fancy taste in "films" ... because I don't!

When we first met, you were only just starting to delve deeper into your own art career--what have you learned about yourself as an artist?  

So much. Writing my blog, and then the book, was like art therapy for me! I actually allow myself to experiment now, and if something sucks, that's ok. I've realized that's just part of the process. I used to let that stop me, but now I just keep on going. I've also just had a major revelation... I was told a few weeks before I graduated with my BFA, by a horrible prof, that I should "never paint again." I was a painting major. And thinking about it, I literally have not painted since then (that was in 1995!!!). I do collage now (which I love), but I kinda wonder if I've been hiding out in collage so that I don't have to paint. So I'm buying new paint, and I'm going to do a bunch of the painting "unblocking projects" from the book and see how it goes...wish me luck!

When and where is the most inspiring time/place for you to create?  

I love my studio. It's in my house, for the first time in my life. It's messy and creative and lovely. I'm not very creative until about 4pm, but then I could go until about 4am!

Your book, Creative Block, has come out and is a smashing success! How did you feel when you received your first published copy? 

 I cried. And felt a tiny bit sick. It was insane to hold it, considering that for the past two years it was just a word doc and whole bunch of spreadsheets. Seeing "KRYSA" down the spine was a totally surreal moment that I will never have again.

What was your mission when writing Creative Block?  

I had a really hard time after my BFA (see previous answer re: jerky prof who kinda broke me), and then felt blocked and insecure for about 15 years. 15 YEARS?! What a huge waste of time. Anyway, I just thought if I could help one person not go through that, then the book would be a success. I had no idea how ridiculously open and honest all of the artists would be in their interviews. They truly made this book special by sharing their doubts, insecurities, and then amazingly helpful advice. I am totally grateful to all 50 of them.

Any inspiring or fun stories that have happened along the writing, publishing and touring path?  

Well this was kinda weird. One of the artists, Kristi Malakoff, is a paper artist based in Russia. I knew she was Canadian, but that was about it. Anyway, we went back and forth with the interview, getting her images etc.--probably about a 6 month process. Just before the book came out I sent an email to the artists to give them a status update and mentioned the name of my friend that took my bio photo for the inside cover... she knew him too. Long story short we ended up figuring out that we had grown up one town away from each other, and that we had actually been in a dance routine together when we were 12. She had the photo with her in Russia and was looking at us, in matching pink spandex, as she emailed me. Um, hello insanely small world!

If you were stranded on a magical, monotonous desert island and could have only one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Do potato chips count as a meal? If I add dill pickle dip, then I'm pretty sure that counts.

If you could choose any celebrity to proudly display one of your art pieces in their home, who would it be?  

Oh boy. Hm. Probably Kristen Wiig or Tina Fey. I love both of them so much, and since my collages are kinda weird/funny, maybe they'd like 'em!

What is your favorite color? ...Why?
I love rosey/coral pink. It's adds joy to any piece you make. 

Images courtesy Danielle Krysa. 

Artwork by Danielle Krysa aka the Jealous Curator

Art work by Danielle Krysa [The Jealous Curator] is now available in our online shop to browse and purchase. It's lovely stuff, and the titles just make our day. If you have questions let us know!


“Annie Nakagawa threw up on the passenger door.” by Danielle Krysa

Special Guest Post: Danielle Krysa aka The Jealous Curator on her Brand New Show, This Friday at Assemble

Before we hand it over to Danielle for her lovely guest post, we just wanted to say how happy and honored we are to have her art work at Assemble for her first art show. The work is fantastic, funny and honest, just like her. We were lucky enough to get to know her a bit at her Girl Crush Seattle Tea Party that we co-hosted. Be sure to mark your calendars for this Friday, from 6-9pm. Show up, Skype with the artist on our Mac at 7pm, or if you can't make it (or just feel like having fun and chatting with the artist) come to the Tweet Party: hashtag -- #JealousofAssemble! Tweet Party from 6-9pm. See you there!! ALSO, please look for a special Artist Spotlight section in our shop on Monday, November 12th to purchase Danielle's work.


. . . . . . .
Hello! This is Danielle from The Jealous Curator popping in to do a little guest post! Ok, so I usually write about other artists' work, but today Andie & Emily have asked me to write about my own...gulp. That's a lot harder! Oh well, here we go:

This new series will be seen for the very first time at Assemble on Friday, November 9th {thanks for having me, girls!} The show is titled, "alleglory," a mixture of allegory & glory. Definition: "stories from my glory days." Yep, my mind has always been filled with snippets, almost little snapshots, of memories. From my sunny childhood, to my self-induced/drama-filled teen years -- they are a quick visual flash, that my brain insists on tagging with a one or two sentence story. Prom dates, old cars, and burning couches that boys jumped over at bush parties {seriously}. So, now you know how my brain works, but wait, there's more! I can't just have these images floating around in my head randomly -- that's right -- they're color coded! Here's a little peek:

Grey for my teen years:


And yellow for my childhood years:


There you have it! These tidbits of memories will be with me forever, and now they're on the wall at Assemble! The show opens on Friday November 9th, from 6-9pm. I hope you can come... I'll be there via Skype!

{p.s everything in this show is a combination of gouache, latex, image transfers from my personal photos, and embroidery thread on watercolor paper.}

. . . . . . .
We had a few fun questions to ask Danielle while we had her attention here on the blog. Enjoy!

Assemble: How did you come to be "The Jealous Curator?"
Danielle: I started The Jealous Curator for myself almost four years ago. Being an artist myself I found that I was getting so overwhelmed by all of the amazing artwork I was finding online. I truly was jealous {the bad kind}, and it was eating me alive. Someone told me that jealousy that is kept inside becomes toxic, but when you say it out loud, it can become admiration... and so that's why I started the blog. I decided to shout my jealousy {the good kind} from the rooftops, and turn something terribly negative, into something wonderfully positive. And it worked!

Who are you most 'jealous' of?
I would say I'm most jealous of anyone who can go to their studio every day, and just work... artist block or not!

Who are your favorite artists or designers?
Oh boy, that's a very long list. I've written over 1000 posts, about artists I love, on The Jealous Curator - all of them are on my list!

We loved hosting Girl Crush with you in May, do you have any fun events coming up?
I loved it too! xo! Ok, well, let's see - I'll be speaking at Alt Summit in January {Salt Lake City}, and then in February I'm curating a show in Chattanooga, TN. I've been asked to speak the University the night before the opening, and I'm beyond excited! Speaking of excited, GIRL CRUSH Austin with Alyson Fox is on April 20th, and there a few spots left - who wants to come!?

After your artistic process creating this show, if you could give any advice to artists or designers (even bloggers) what would it be?
Just make stuff. At the beginning of the process, I got so caught up with making 16 new, "perfect pieces". It was paralyzing. I decided to prep 50 sheets of watercolor paper, and then just go for it! Whichever 16 I liked best would go into the show. The others, well, they will never see the light of day! {insert evil laugh here}

What do you like to do in your off-time?
What do you mean "off-time"? ;) I have a 6 year old son, so if I'm not designing, jealously curating, or making my own art you will most likely find me playing some kind of dinosaur game with him!

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
I don't know if I can commit to any one place, so I'd say Paris for a year, New York for a year, Bali for a year, back home for a year...and repeat!

If you could have one zany and unique talent, what would it be?
Hm. Well, I've always been in awe of people who can tie cherry stems with their tongues.

If you could have one famous person purchase a piece from your show, who would it be?
Kristen Wiig. I love her very, very much.

What's your dream job, besides what you are doing now?
I do absolutely love what I'm doing now, but if I could do a life-do-over, I'd be an actor. Or an interior designer. Or an actor who also does interior design.

Thank you, Danielle!!

Artist Spotlight: Joana Stillwell

Since we won't be doing any more art shows after our highly anticipated show with Danielle Krysa of The Jealous Curator (opening on November 9th, 6-9pm), we thought we would continue releasing our love of show-worthy artists to our followers, but now in the nether-regions cyberspace! Each month, we will showcase a new favorite artist that we deem Assemble-esque. Here's a preview! Enjoy!


Screenshot via Joana Stillwell
We discovered Joana Stillwell not along ago when she sent us an email inquiry. We loved her work and thought it was completely inspired and innovative. From video work to photography, Stillwell manages to give life to every day objects that are commonplace in our lives. My favorite of her work is the Unremarkable Photo Series in which seemingly normal objects "demand to be taken seriously." The fact that they are shot juxtaposed in front of curtains and carpeting makes them even more special in a sea of the conventional.


Screenshot via Joana Stillwell
Definitely take the time to check out her work when you are feeling the need to zone into a world that beautifies the every day.