I made this collage as an ode to my baby sister and her friend/roommate, Ellen. 16 x 20” collage framed. 2018.
"Anger rising" background
This is a background I made for a page in my newsbook. It’s a collection of triangles I cut out of my new origami paper. It will run as the background for a page about President Trump’s rising anger towards the Special Counsel’s investigation.
9/11/2001
9/11/2001 is the first day I started writing in a diary almost daily and did so for the next 17ish years. I remember feeling so overwhelmed with emotion, crumpled up on my bed watching event coverage on my big-ass box TV, that all I could think of to do for some temporary relief was to write. I was in 5th grade and was lucky to have had an angelic GT teacher Mrs. Peña that got our whole little crew together so we could watch the events unfold live together.
These diary entries are sacred to me. They're trying so desperately to grasp such a grown concept from a place of pure empathy, although it seems my regard for factuality was a bit skewed (first of all 20,000 people did not die and I also had not visited NYC at this point in my life so I wasn't very authentic in my emphasis on location). I respect my extravagant patriotism and also my signature deco, both of which I will be incorporating in all future professional endeavors.
Painting Dr. Watkins' bench
I had a very good day today. I walked around downtown for a few hours because I've needed some time with myself and the city. I had my painting supplies but was not really anticipating to paint. I sat on this bench and a very animated man named Jim walked by and said I chose a great bench to sit on (all the benches are memorialized to different individuals) because that was the bench honoring his doctor of many years and this being the doctor that helped him stop taking prescription pills "because he said he was not going to prescribe them anymore." Jim said he walked into AA that day and has been sober for 40 years since. It's a great story that I might normally discount as a bit cliché, but I had seriously just been sitting there thinking about how little I regarded all the gaudy, glinting bench plaques because I assumed they were by way of rich people donating money. I figured my subject had landed in my lap so I painted Dr. Watkins' bench because Jim seemed like he's wonderful company to keep and I wish I could mail him my painting. It really changed my perception of memorialized benches.
Dr. Watkins’ bench on the South Lamar pedestrian bridge
My sketch and the bench
Texas coast trip
Brandon and I flocked to the coast this weekend in an attempt to escape the insufferable heat. Although the air temp was hardly less miserable and we both got sea lice (which gifted us with some odd side effects), it was a blast! We skated the Port Aransas skatepark (a forever favorite), had a stimulating visit with our engineer friend Ryan, and spent hours watching burly trucks get stuck in the sand. Listen: the lighter and fluffier the sand, the heavier the predicament you're going to find yourself in when the sun goes down. Always park on dark, compacted sand to ensure an easy exit. And NEVER set up your tent at the beach without an understanding of tides. Lastly, pack it in, pack it out! Spend some time collecting trash next time you visit a state or national park and let us love thy facilities and love thy planet.
Goonsquad, reporting live and ready to shred!
A stack with a view
The trash we collected within 1/4 mile on the national seashore. Chip bags, cigarette butts, grocery bags, juice straws, tent paraphernalia, water bottles, etc. Please be a conscious camper. These things get sucked into the ocean and end up in corners of the planet that you would never expect.
A note I found while picking up trash. Eres el mejor papá del mundo! I hope this was an accidental loss instead of a careless tossing.
2018–19 Newsbook
I've always documented news stories in my sketchbook, mostly just news about the environment. But as I've worked in newspaper design the past few years I've become ardent about my documentation. I love the news. I love understanding political timelines, contexts, and spotting hypocrisies. It's become a creative obsession for me, so this year I started a news book wholly dedicated to my interpretation of the political, environmental, and social happenings of 2018 and 2019. I cut up newspapers I get from all over the country, TIME, magazines, and any other relevant publication that I feel is necessary to nail the context. I still trip out that newsrooms literally publish entire books every single day of the year, jam packed with all sorts of perfectly edited content.
Maybe the craziness of 2018 isn't unique in it's anxiety — maybe every year from now until humans self-destruct will be disorientingly divided. I've been watching the Handmaid's Tale lately and my psyche is unnerved and disturbed: I see the show everywhere, in every crevice of modern society. This book helps me make sense of the discomfort and answer my screaming WHY?!?s.
Title page to my news sketchbook
Trumpy tweety
Gatefold cover to a climate change section
Unfolded climate change section
Detail shot of 2 additional flaps for climate change
Inside pages
My pile of newspapers and publications that I still need to read through (left) and my stack of stories clipped together, organized by topic (right). I've never appreciated paperclips as much as I do with this project.
My holy workspace as I lay out the Parkland shooting spread
NY to DC
Christina and I flew into New York and eventually MegaBus'ed our way to DC. It was a very special trip because I got to have some of my favorite friends meet for the first time. It was also Christina's first time to both places. We took our skates, along with a confused wardrobe of bathing suits and sweaters because how do you really transition from Texas to New York during a transitionary season? It was a great trip. She's my favorite travel partner because we don't ever make tight plans and we're both open to anything that floats our way.
We skated to Chelsea Piers skatepark, then skated all around Manhattan.
DC was a good time, but not as thrilling as NY.; the energy in Brooklyn feels addictive when I get it in doses. I discovered a few of my new favorite artists in the Washington museums, though, and we had a good visit with our friends Lisa and Rusty.
Documentation of my trip in my sketchbook.
The blue blind contour car drawings are when our Megabus was driving in the far right lane and the red drawings are when we were driving in the left lane; plus a few drawings and brochure cutouts from the botanical garden in DC.
Card for Amanda's birthday
This is a pop-up card I made for my sweet friend, Amanda. I collaged the cover with models from a 1976 JC Penny catalog. I had no idea floating pensive hand gestures had such a MOMENT in fashion history! This was fun to make and Amanda's gratitude was the cherry on top of the project.
The pop-up functions when the card is opened.
Legends skate
This weekend was one for the books! We hung out with OG skaters Brad Bowman, Doug 'Pineapple' Saladino, Olson, and Wally Inouye at the North Houston/Spring skatepark. I got to hear so many stories about the origins of skateboarding that will most likely be lost in time. These guys made the 'sport' into what it is and the energy was stellar! Thank you to everyone that made this event happen.
Picture from @nhoustonsk8park
"Gettin Paper & Hittin Blunts: Reimagined"
I've been hyped on noseblunts and tailblunts lately and the way the skateboard trucks align perfectly with the coping. This project was a gratifying way to fit edges and corners together perfectly and also a means to practice painting straight lines.
Collage on gouache background. Collage is mounted on layered cardstock to give it dimension. 12 x 18"
Gettin Paper & Hittin Blunts: Reimagined by Whitney McCaskill
detail 1
detail 2
detail 3
Valentine book (pt. 5): flipping tab
Need: I have two similar but opposite photos that I want to flip back and forth at the pull of a tab.
Mechanism used: pull-strip with flap that lifts up in opposite direction of the pull.
Why it works: the slot in the page acts as a fulcrum for the two little tabs to move behind the page.
That's all for my Valentine's Day book! I'm stoked for how it's turning out so far but also equally as stoked that I'm getting better with time management to fully finish my personal projects.
Valentine book (pt. 4): 3D pop-up
Need: a cutout to pop up in 3-D in front of a crowd of people.
Final mechanism used: twisting mechanism.
1st attempt: photo glued flat on top of a floating plane.
Why it doesn't work: I want my image to have more dimension other than simply being glued on top of a raised plane. I've cut out the photo of my boyfriend so I want him to appear standing upright.
2nd attempt: unfolding mechanism that twists as the page opens.
Why it works: this mechanism is the most impressive to me. I still don't fully understand its workings, but I do know that the complicated folds allow it to perfectly fold up when closed and out when opened. It is such a smooth action! I played around with the length of the center strip of paper to perfect the angle of my image.
Valentine book (pt. 3): circular motion (manual)
Need: An arm to move in a natural rotation at the shoulder. I have a photo of him playing the guitar that I want to move as though he is actually strumming the guitar.
Final mechanism used: rotating hub with pull-strip.
1st attempt: rotating hub with manual pull-strip.
Why it works: It rotates an image (or in my case, part of an image) around an axis point and allows the rest of the image to stay stationary. I like this mechanism because there is magic in the fact that your manual action (pulling the tab out straight) results in a different type of movement (a circle rotation).
Valentine book (pt. 2): sliding pull-strip
Need: A photo of my boyfriend skateboarding should move so it looks like he's skate-surfing on a wave. I want this to have to be done manually so the action can be repeated at all speeds without having to open and close the page.
Final mechanism used: basic slot-guided pull-strip.
1st attempt: slot-guided manual pull-strip
Why it works: this is the easiest method to move something from point A to point B, in my opinion. I can add a stopper tab to make my image stop wherever I want (see below). I don't necessarily need the guiding sleeves as used below, since the slot determines to range of movement.
Meows did not approve of my research.
Valentine book (pt.1): circular motion (automatic)
I've begun an elaborate Valentine's Day present for my sweets: a book with 5 things I admire about him and each thing will have a different paper engineered mechanism that makes it interactive. This first item has proven to be a real brain-bender for me because while I can usually follow my pop-up guru Duncan Birmingham's videos and make subtle modifications for my need, this one demands more freestyle engineering than any past projects.
Need: An arm to rotate at the shoulder when the page is opened without having to manually operate the mechanism (other than opening the page).
Final mechanism used: cross-page pull strip with hub and rotating pivot.
1st attempt: using a moving arm on an elevated plane.
Why it won't work: I can't have the image on an elevated plane. I need it to be level with the background I'm using. This is a pretty remarkable technique, though.
2nd attempt: using a pull tab with hub and rotating pivot.
Why it won't work: This is the basic idea of what I ended up using, but the trick is getting it to function on its own (insofar as the opening page controlling the movement) without having to be pulled manually.
3rd attempt: using a pull tab with hub and rotating pivot starting on the opposite page.
Why it works: The tension from the strip being glued down on the left page pulls the strip taut, which slides the hub and thus, rotates the pivot point.
Cons: The strip has to be exposed at the crease to enable the strip to be loosened before being tightened, so it loses some of the magic in the motion. I'm also struggling with the strip creasing at the wrong spots when the page closes, so it doesn't work smoothly. I'm going to experiment with some less fibrous papers.
Stay tuned for the next page!
Frontside grinds are difficult.
I had such a great skate today! 4 hours solo skate + pizza later and I was fried.
Mami got new bearings! My old ones came out gooey and shredded, a condition for which I had no justification. Anyway, baby rips now!
Visualizing my frontside grind, but avoiding the coping when it comes down to it
Playing with patterns
I've been playing around with designing some patterns in Illustrator to use as my landing page. Here are some of my early ones:
Vicarious skate sesh
I've been painting some skaters from the latest mags because we've all been locked indoors too much this winter. Gouache on watercolor paper
Merry Christmas! 2017 card
'Nothing real can be threatened'
I started this piece the day after Beyoncé dropped Lemonade ("My grandma said, 'Nothing real can be threatened'")—inspired by true love and genuine friendship. And although this still feels very unfinished (art would never be shared if we all waited until it felt "done"), I'm sharing it now as I'm inspired by the inevitability of progress, equality, and righteousness for all.
As the polls close for the controversial Senate seat in Alabama, and with the strong likelihood that it'll go to a(nother) man that I believe to be scary, gross, and 3 steps backwards in time [*EDIT: Roy Moore lost to Doug Jones by 20,000 votes!]...we have to sustain faith in the universe and in the people. It's said that a wildfire acts as a phenomenally progressive force in nature because it creates a rich bed for new growth; it feels like we're consumed by wildfire (metaphorically with politics and also IRL) but bullshit is always self-destructive! ✊🏻✊🏼✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿
10x14" collage with hand-lettering and scalloped edges. I found the floral corners from the 1940s at the Austin Photo, Book, & Paper Festival for 50¢
