Susan Lee: Artist, Filmmaker, All-Around Awesome

Susan Lee is a busy, creative person wears a lot of hats. (That's probably why we get along.) As a playwright, a filmmaker, a screenwriter, a teacher, and a painter, Susan has made her mark in many different fields. I know she's made her mark on me as a director and as a friend.

I recently interviewed her at length about her new graphic novel and webseries - both based on Mastermind by Michael Patrick Sullivan - as well as other projects she has lined up.

I thought readergirlz would like what she had to say about strong characters:

"What motivates me is when a piece speaks to me. As a director, it's always the language first. If something isn't well-written, I won't do it. [...] So I always want something that's smart and intelligent. Something that has characters who are complicated and rich. Characters you want to spend not just two hours with but want to take them home and make them dinner and dig even deeper into them. It has to make me want to explore why the characters are the way they are."

- and why she finds being a teacher so delightful:

"What I love about working with kids is how open and vulnerable they are. They're not afraid to tell you what they think. And when they grab on to something, they hold on for dear life. My favorite part is when they have a breakthrough and they achieve something they never thought they could. And to have them step back from their drawing or their painting and have them gasp in wonder at what they've created, there is not enough money in the world to compete with that. They astound me with their ability to create and with their openness and access to their emotions. They make very single day at work a pleasure and so very worthwhile."

Read our full-length interview at Bildungsroman! Share the link and help get the word about Susan's works so she can get an awesome publishing deal for the Mastermind graphic novel!

Important links...

Life On Its Side Productions: Website | Facebook | Twitter

Mastermind: Website | Webseries on YouTube | Facebook | Twitter

Susan's Blog: Diary of a Mid-Life Crisis

Realm Lovejoy Reminder

Click here for larger view.

Last month, author and artist Realm Lovejoy created this very special Art Saves piece inspired by Colby Curtin. Shortly after she started working on this painting, Realm's grandmother was diagnosed with cancer. Realm then decided to make this piece available to others, but instead of asking for payment, she's sending out signed prints in exchange for floral donations for her grandmother, who is missing gardening.

Realm is accepting requests and donations through Monday, August 10th. To learn more, visit Realm's blog or view my earlier post about it, or email her directly: rtlovejoy (at) yahoo (dot) com

Art Saves Gallery

All of the Art Saves contributions have been added to the July 2009 issue of readergirlz.

For additional text and commentary, please check out the individual Art Saves posts at the readergirlz blog or here at Bildungsroman.

Many thanks to all of the participants!

Art Saves: Cecil Castellucci

There's no better way to wrap up our Art Saves project for July than with a contribution from that month's featured author, Cecil Castellucci. She says:

I like it when I see street art on my walks. It makes my heart sing.

These are two things that I saw on my journey recently.


Click the thumbnail to see the full-sized image.

Art Saves: Little Willow

Now it's my turn...


Click the thumbnail to see the full-sized image.

I am an actress, a singer, and a dancer.
I am a writer, a director, and a playwright.
I am a passionate supporter of the performing arts.

I chose to spell out "Art Saves" using pictures from some of my performances. :)

- Little Willow

Art Saves: Melissa Walker

Melissa Walker, readergirlz diva, snapped these pictures of chalk drawings made by kids in Brooklyn:


Click the thumbnail to see the full-sized image.

Art Saves: MaryAnn

My aunt is a fantastic artist, and I'm so happy that she submitted this original piece:


Click the thumbnail to see the full-sized image.

Art Saves: Janine aka Jeanie

Click the thumbnail to see the full-sized image.

I've always found that the act of creating art is not only a way to express oneself, but a way to maintain a certain degree of sanity.

Sometimes the only way to filter through the "white noise" of everyday life is by sitting down with a sketchbook and a pen or pencil and just doodling.

Some of my favorite drawings have started with a random squiggly line and grown from there.

It's not so much the end product, but the act of creating said picture, painting, paper lantern, sculpture, story, song, dance... or other work of art that saves us.

...Well, it does for me, at any rate.

~ Janine Sebastian
aka: Jeanie Tortoisefly

Art Saves: Lauren

One of our adorable readergirlz-in-training, Lauren:


Click the thumbnail to see the full-sized image.

Art Saves: Kiba Rika

Today's Art Saves creation and guest blog comes from my creative and crafty friend Kimberly Hirsh, aka Kiba Rika:


Click the thumbnail to view the full-sized image.

Here's a picture of a hat I crocheted. I wanted to take a moment to encourage people to participate in fiber art. It saves in many ways:

- It makes a statement in the form of guerilla yarn art
http://crochetme.com/blog/spied-guerrilla-yarn-art-nyc

- It makes people feel better when they're sick
http://www.headhuggers.org/

- It makes people aware of their consumption habits
http://www.counterfeitcrochet.org/

- It makes people think about the amazing environment in which we live
http://www.theiff.org/reef/index.html

I think The Plain Janes would be on board, especially with the guerilla yarn art.

Check out your local craft store or do a search online for "crochet" or "knitting" to learn one of these excellent arts!

- Kimberly Hirsh

Art Saves: Sarah Stevenson

Sarah Stevenson, aka aquafortis, created this to save us:


Click the thumbnail to view the full-sized image.

Art Saves: Tanita S. Davis

Click the thumbnail to view the full-sized image.

This maybe isn't art... Maybe it's a Craft Saves Sampler. Or something. But then, who gets to decide what's art? This is just a random sampling of some of my artsy junk. A painted pillowcase (it got a stain, so the pair got a makeover), a gourd I grew and made into a birdhouse (the gourd tried to take over the yard. And REEKED. It was definitely a learning experience...that I would do again. Further from any plants I don't want strangled), some recycled jars that became gifts, some earrings I made out of shells I scavenged, some clay Kokopellis I sculpted, then painted and framed.

I didn't include my knitting, because...it's way too far from "art." As is most of my doodling/collaging/drawing. But these are the things that save my sanity, let my hands work and my mind go free to think up...other things. Thanks for asking me to play.

- Tanita S. Davis

Art Saves: Holly Cupala

Click the thumbnail to view the full-sized image.

Before I could write, I made stories with pictures. There have been times in my life when words were just not enough – through joy, sadness, and love – and my art has been there to convey what speaking could not. I made this painting years ago during a difficult period and kept it to remind me that there is a window of hope even through the darkest despair. We are beings meant to create, meant to express. Art is a gift to humankind.

~ rgz diva Holly Cupala

Art Saves: Shelf Elf

Shelf Elf, one of our postergirlz, sent in these beautiful photographs:


Click the thumbnail to view the full-sized image.

Art Saves, every day, in a million different ways. Download the template, decorate it with your photographs or artwork, and post a comment below with a scan or a picture of your creation!

Art Saves: Liz Gallagher

Liz Gallagher, our Seattle rgz host and author of The Opposite of Invisible, one of this month's recommended reads, sent in this picture and personal story:


Click the image above to see the full version.

I am not a visual artist. I don't even consider myself a visual person; I think more spatially than visually. During an elementary school writing lesson, I was asked to close my eyes and see a tree, then to describe the tree in words. I couldn't. While classmates raised their hands to talk about knot holes and birds' nests, I wondered why all I saw was black. When I read, I don't see scenes and characters; for me, I take in a mood more than anything else. Movies are about atmosphere. The same is true when I write.

Still, art is very important to me. I love color and texture. I'm inspired by the work of certain artists: Picasso, Matisse, van Gogh, Degas. I know the difference between Monet and Manet. I'm interested in the mind of Marcel Duchamp.

Art is a part of my life even though I'm not an artist. The most obvious way it's with me is in my tattoo.

This is a Picasso drawing. It's on my lower back (well, a version translated by a tattoo artist in Scranton, PA, is on my body). I had it done when I was twenty-two, and I'd recommend waiting at least until your twenties if you plan on getting a tattoo. For me, choosing something that had already stood the test of time—as an image I liked and as one that the world at large regards as art—was the right choice.

I plan on getting a new tattoo. Next Friday! This one won't be an image from a fine artist. It'll be a rose in deep pink, which stands for gratitude. I'm getting it with and for my mom, whose middle name is Rose. She's getting one, too.

Both tattoos will remind me of certain times in my life. Both represent visuals that I'm drawn to. And both are a way for me to make sure I don't forget to stop and see the beauty around me, and to remind myself that I am beautiful, too.

- Liz Gallagher

Art Saves: Beth Kephart

Beth Kephart sent in this photograph, along with the special story behind it:


Click the image to see the full size.

Want to help save the world with your art and your words? Know that you can. YOU CAN.

Learn more about Art Saves and The Plain Janes in this month's issue of readergirlz!

Art Saves: Piper

You're never too young to create and appreciate art! Piper's proud mama sent this in:


Click the picture above to see Piper's full-sized art.

If you're a kid or a teen and you have younger siblings or baby-sitting clients, or if you're an adult and you have children or work with kids, you should download the Art Saves template, print out copies (use recycled paper or scratch paper), and encourage the kids to sketch, paste, or stamp something on their sheets. Let them have fun with this project - and feel free to post links to pictures of their completed artwork in the comments below!

Art Saves: Ellen

Here's a contribution sent in by Ellen:


Click the thumbnail above to see Ellen's artwork in real size.

Why and how do you think Art Saves? Download the Art Saves template from this month's issue of readergirlz and decorate it to your heart's content!

Art Saves: Lorie Ann Grover

Lorie Ann Grover created this beautiful image for Art Saves!


Click the image to see the full size.

Download the Art Saves template, decorate it, and post it in the comments below.
Learn more about Art Saves and The Plain Janes in this month's issue of readergirlz!

Art Saves: Siobhan Vivian

Today's Art Saves contribution and guest blog comes from Siobhan Vivian, author of Same Difference, one of this month's recommended reads.


Click image above to view full size in a new window.

For my book, Same Difference, I researched a ton of artists. I knew I wanted to include some of the more famous ones by name, but I was also hoping to be inspired with ideas for how my characters could both experience and make art.

It was during that research when I first became aware of Andy Goldsworthy, who then became a huge influence on my book. There's a really cool documentary on his work called his work called RIVERS AND TIDES. If you are AT ALL interested in art, watch it. You will be captivated!

The best way I can explain Andy Goldsworthy's work is to call him a Nature Graffiti Artist. He painstakingly collects found objects and uses them to make sculptures in their natural surroundings. I'm talking rocks, flowers, twigs, leaves, icicles. Crazy.

And here's the absolute coolest thing -- many of his pieces are temporary. He gives his work back over to nature, to the environment, like a sacrifice. The flowers die, the sticks break, the leaves blow away. And then, it's over. This gives his work a real immediacy, a specialness. If you see it, great. If you miss it...too bad. It's gone. I was really amazed by that kind of artistic process. To invest the time and care it takes to create something and then to not know low long you have with it before it disappears.

It's kind of a nice way to live life. You make something beautiful and accept that it might not be appreciated, it might not last. But that's not what matters. What matters is that you keep making beautiful things.

- Siobhan Vivian

Visit Siobhan's website and journal.
Read Little Willow's interview with Siobhan.