these texts are an archive of my life in the San Francisco Bay Area from march 2007 - march 2015. it stands as a record of close to a decade of my life, charting the struggles i faced as an artist, daughter, and lover. messy and chaotic at times, eloquent and poetic at others, these texts are an index i am proud of. it was here in this electric box that i learned how to be honest about my experiences and the person i needed to become. it was here that i first learned the truism that words make the world and how to trust such a beautiful, rife, hard fact.

thank you for meeting me here in such tall grass.


my artist website is here.

Jul 4, 2012

dying portraits

i celebrated my independence by wearing red lipstick and having my passport photo taken.  i can hear the boom of fireworks in the distance.  i ran outside when they began but i can't see the show from where i live.  it is enough this year just to hear the drumming of the blasts, that spectacular clap of faux thunder. 


i spent the day making a small drawing and a series of photographic self-portraits.  i have no clue what i'm trying to accomplish with photography, with these images, this form of image making.  all i know is that i am drawn to it.  it is so unlike painting.  the intention behind a piece can be absolutely lost and replaced by mechanical or digital surprises.  chance is in full operation regardless of how staged a photo may be.  i embrace my amateur status and see these first exercises as a joyful event.  i am turned on by the potential of photography and don't mind being bad at it for awhile.




the shirt i'm wearing is a plain Hanes t-shirt that i scribbled across with a sharpie.  the stuffed bear in the background is one of the few remaining artifacts of my childhood.  i really like that both the bear and the text in these works is clear but the characteristics of my face are not. 

who cares. no apologies for art.



















dying portrait 1, 3, and 5
digital photograph
angela simione, 2012



4 comments:

Elisabeth said...

It's been so long since I've been here, Angela. How lovely to see this post pop up on my screen. Because there are so many p[people i like to visit and so little time, I rely on serendipity to make my trips outwards. It's good to see you're still experimenting with new forms, media and ideas.

angela simione said...

elisabeth! it's been quite a long time since i've been here too! so good to see you!!! i too am a big fan of serendipity. thank you for the encouragement. experimentation can sometimes be a hard thing- we want to be great at everything we do. but maybe serendipity requires trust and enough bravery to risk failure. and photography is such a fast medium compared to everything else i do (seemingly) that i am captivated by the magic of it. what makes a good photograph? no one knows. the same thing that makes a good painting, i suppose. a totally indefinable, nebulous thing.

Radish King said...

These are amazing as always as always I am so inspired by your art and look at how gorgeous you are in the arctic white of your youth and talent.
love,
Rebecca

angela simione said...

rebecca, love! thank you! i adore all white rooms! they are a pain to keep that way but i think worth the trouble. it's like living in an art gallery. i'm glad you like the photos. i've been totally captivated by photography lately and can't help but to try my hand at it.

xoxoxox