Southwest Gothic - Sacred Machine and the art of Daniel Martin Diaz

Yes, yes, yes I know it's been too long since I wrote on this d@mn blog.

Oh well.

Life gets in the way.

Anywho, I was in Downtown, Tucson last night for the 2nd Saturdays street fair, firstly to see how bad the construction for the street car was going to affect a young event with a lot of potential.  Unfortunately, I don't see how 2nd Saturdays is going to survive very well if we have 4-9 months of construction ahead.  The stalls and stages seemed more scattered and isolated, the only vendors were selling cheap rosaries and miniature guitars from Mexico, there were only a couple food stalls and the sidewalks, which are already crowded, were worse for being half blocked off by wire fences.  It felt subdued.

Interior of Sacred Machine Museum and Curiosity Shop.  Image courtesy of SacredMachine.com

I went down there primarily to hear a musician-acquaintance who was playing the piano in one of the art galleries on Congress.  The Sacred Machine Museum and Curiosity Shop is a small gallery featuring primarily the art of Daniel Martin Diaz but also other artists with a similar southwest/dia de los muertos/Gothic feel.  It is one of the few galleries I've been in that I can point to and honestly say "only in Tucson".  And it is gorgeous!  If you haven't been I highly recommend it and to get your visual palette teased and primed, here are a few examples of the delights that await you:

Ghost in the Shell by Brian Despain.  Oil on wood panel.  Image courtesy of SacredMachine.com.

Santa Muerte by Scott Holloway.  Oil, leaf and ink on panel.  Image courtesy of SacredMachine.com.

Santa Muerte by Daniel Martin Diaz.  Carbon powder print on antique paper.  Image courtesy of SacredMachine.com.

Sacratus by Daniel Martin Diaz.  Screen print.  Image courtesy of Serieproject.org.

Memento Mori by Daniel Martin Diaz.  Oil on wood panel (?).  Image courtesy of Art is Everywhere.

Chris, my musician-friend, was absolutely fabulous.  I managed to claim a little corner of the gallery to just stand and listen to his playing.  He had a lush, dark playing style which suited the atmosphere and art to perfection!  At times he just let the baby grand piano's natural resonance just fill the gallery with a rolling, menacing cloud of sound, at others he suggested early nickelodeon-style movies, giving it a very steampunk/Bram Stoker's "Dracula" feel.  Delicious!  I'm going to hit him up for his professional contact info so I can post links to his work on this blog.  Stay tuned!

Recent pics!

It has occurred to me that it has been an awfully long time since the last time I blogged, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone and clear out the images on my cell phone.  So here goes!

My retro-rific lunch at Johnny Rocket's (University and Euclid) this weekend.  Classic cheesburger, fries and a vanilla malt, all served in nostalgic surroundings with Elvis playing over the speakers.  Ordinarily I like local diners best, but this was closest and I was hungry.  Yum!

My weekend breakfast: a pear-apple, brie and honey crepe at Cafe Marcel on 4th Ave.  I don't know how I held off eating until I snapped this perfect pic because it was utterly scrumptious!  I am having a hot lavender mint tea with my crepe.  Beautiful cafe with a lovely outdoor seating area and the menu is just incredible!  You can also find them on Facebook here.

Meet my new ride!  It's a 1957 Challenger 500, a beach cruiser lovingly restored to life by the great folks at Bicas!  Along with recycling great bikes and giving them a second life, the folks at Bicas will offer their tools and expertise for $4/hour and offer classes to teach you how to take apart and maintain your bike.  I spotted this beauty among the bikes for sale and fell in love.  She is so much fun to ride and I now have my basket on the front so she is my primary commuting bike now!

Recent pic.  With the recent hair cuts, I'm pretty much back to my natural hair color.  I really did love going red but I love being a blonde again.  Less hassle and it lends itself to the classic bombshell look!

Hiking pictures

Some more hiking pictures I had on my phone's memory chip.  Some are taken on Josephine's saddle in the Santa Rita mountains south of Tucson, the others come from the Douglas Springs Trail on the east end of town near Saguaro National Park East.

Sprung Spring

Will at the waterfall, Douglas Springs Trail.

My feet in icy cold water.  Felt really good!

Yours truly, intrepid hiker! <3

Ukulele debut!

"Why Don't You Do Right" by Peggy Lee, performed on the ukulele by yours truly!

How much fun can one girl have? Seriously!

Hawaiian print time!

A series of shots from Monday.  I love this Hawaiian print shirt!  I love Hawaiian print in general but for some reason only the boys get the really cool patterns and the girl shirts I've seen are always insipid or ugly.  This one is the exception!  Martini glasses, cherries and tropical blossoms on a pretty pink background.  I love wearing my cherry earrings with this top.  I snagged the earrings from Hydra, a shop for leather, gothic and alternative wear in downtown Tucson; it's a fun store and definitely worth a visit!

I'm still mastering the self-portrait that shows my whole outfit!  As soon as I get that down you'll get the whole enchilada! :)

Playin' with the hairdo!

Gratuitous hair shots!

Beautiful Laguna vintage necklace; a Christmas present from Midji! <3

Red rose hair clip, "bulls eye" button earrings, pearl necklace, western top!

The Marilyn Monroe haircut

I went in to get my hair cut about a week ago.  I went to see Julieta at the El Rio Barber Shop (you can find directions here.)  Here is the picture I showed her:

Image originally seen at GreatHairStyleTips.com

I really like how it came out!  I was a little worried that it would be too short but now I'm thinking that the next time I go in I'm going to ask for another inch or so off.  It's a snap to style too!  I spend no more than maybe five to ten minutes with a big barreled curling iron and a quick spritz of hairspray and I'm good to go!  I'm tempted to lighten my hair just a tad since my roots are coming out lighter than the rest of my hair, but I'm really satisfied with this style!

I can't talk my hairdresser up enough!  Julieta did an amazing job and was such a pleasant stylist to work with!  Don't let the shops title of barber shop confuse you: they typically have at least two women stylists on staff who are more than happy to work on the ladies!  The prices are really reasonable, actually cheap when you consider the high quality of the work these ladies do.  And there are at least three barbers on staff at all times for the gents.  Will has gone in for a cut many times and swears by them.  So if you are in the west end of Tucson, stop in and get a cut!  You'll be glad you did!