Blame Sally Awards

I thought I'd share this post by my Husband Hugh from his blog!

The poster design that my wife Mati McDonough and I did last year for our friends in the band Blame Sally just keeps getting awards. Earlier in the year the poster was featured in the Society of Illustrators 52 show and annual. Now it's garnered another honor: it is in the 3x3 Professional Show for 2010!


(If you've never seen 3x3 magazine, you should check it out. When it comes in the mail we rush to open it, fight over who gets to read it first, and linger over every page. It really is a beautifully designed, loving homage to contemporary illustration that is a must for any artist or designer.)

The t-shirt version — printed on gorgeous Alternative Apparel shirts — won best swag from the Independent Music Awards in 2009:



You can get your own copy of the silkscreen poster from us here, and you can pick up the shirt from Blame Sally here.

Mati and I don't put our artistic heads together that often, but when we do we get an awesome product. (I guess that's one reason the marriage works, right?)

*hugh*

it feels overkill to say this, as it seems so obvious, but i am really really extremely proud and inspired on a daily basis by my husband hugh and his artistic vision. yes, i get annoyed with him for all the typical domestic things like.... leaving every cupboard door open for example and not ever taking out the trash. but today let's put all that aside and celebrate hugh not just for being my sweet husband, but for being an awesome artist!

here's a recent photo i snapped with my i-phone of hugh's art in our neighborhood! and here's his recent blog post about some great projects he's been working on. i really love seeing his process/sketches, don't you?
xxx
mati

grateful friday

there are truly a million things i feel grateful about today, but one that i'm celebrating this week is our *2nd* wedding anniversary!

i haven't shared many photos here of our wedding because it feels intimate, but i love this one for how clearly adoring i am of my husband hugh. we've come along way over the 7 years of being together and building our dreams H and it feels good.

kudos to michael rauner our awesome photographer.

xxxx
m

feeling in love and grateful

i'm feeling so much gratitude for my dear husband hugh and how he not only supports me as a partner, but also in my journey as an artist. sometimes it's challenging to be in an artist couple. as my mom said yesterday, "it takes little to make you 2 happy". it's true. we have our imaginations and sketch books and are not materialistic, well, except for our growing art collection on our walls and need for art supplies;)

this photo i always thought really goofy in our pjs, hats and morning faces. our talented friend tom took it one morning to use up the last of a roll. we were living above him and his also talented partner monica, actually hugh and i were squished together with all of our worldly possessions in one room in our friend nigel's flat after a couple months back in maine and in oaxaca, mexico almost 6 years ago!

we have a beautiful apartment and studio space now, yet even if we were squished in one little room again with just a couple trinkets, i think we'd be just fine.

this song spoke to me this morning on this topic of no money, honey.



ps- hugh's caption for this photo is: back from mexico, no $, lots of trinkets.

a full table

lately i've been feeling a bit overwrought from the fullness of life. too much birthday. it's something not to complain about, i know. i am grateful, it's just important to make space (especially for slightly introverted artists to unwind and be still). note to self.

i'm waiting for my laundry to dry & processing my weekend brimming of fullness. it started off with excitement on friday by going to the much anticipated frida exhibit with dear artist friends christine, visiting from LA & hometown girl kelly. it was packed! it brought me to the place which good art shows do of new ideas. oh yeah, i could paint like this... more 3 dimensional, incorporate more of my own symbolism, bigger, in oils and the list goes on of making mental notes. an important reminder of art and it's limitlessness.

then on saturday i took in more art with my lovely art school friend christina and our friend nat (hugh's art school friend from the same school we went to 20 years earlier!) at the "bay area now" opening. again, so packed! and overwhelming in a different way of trying to take in the "nowness" of what is happening in the art scene. i definitely recommend both shows-- frida & BAN and they are right next to each other, how convenient!



sunday morning i met up over brunch with about 15 ahhhhhmazing women. bloggers whom are all doing incredible things at every turn... almost everyone mentioned the book they were working on or had published! or the human rights work they were part of in foreign countries! such an honor to be in the company of so many fabulous ladies. thank you alex for organizing!



then immediately after we went to the stern grove festival where hugh illustrated the art for this year... which includes the website, bus shelters, program, stickers, name badges, tee shirts... he was everywhere! and i was so, so proud. we had a catered table with his entire family, where they poured wine for us at every turn while watching alonzo king's lines ballet among the eucalyptus trees. simply beautiful.

so basically on sunday night i was a puddle. and while i've solidified i also am gearing up for a sure to be incredible weekend in seattle with my friends to celebrate their wedding. i feel really lucky right now to live in a city where i have access to so much art, friends, free concerts and to be in the mix of so much goodness, but i need to ask myself how do i make time to unwind and return to solid and back to my core. any hints? baths are nice although our bathtub is janky and impossible to truly clean (my big dream is of a clean claw foot bathtub). meditation is something i try, but am not very consistent. lately morning walks have been my trick. and writing, which i'd like to get back in the practice of here.

well, until monday sweet readers! in the meantime check out my BIG shop update in progress today with necklaces, tees, baby tees, bags, magnets and originals!

big love to you all,
mati

hugh's in my favorite magazine!

one of the few magazines i love & subscribe too is Domino, so i was swooning when my husband hugh was included in holly's round-up of the men of etsy:) yay!

xoxo
mati

my husband xoxo

nothing makes me prouder than to brag about hugh! he has been working crazy hard lately on some amazing illustrations that will soon be plastered about town. actually, one is on the cover and middle of the guardian's valentine issue out now:)

he just joined the posse and opened up an etsy shop! horray! here are a few of my faves of his silhouette style available for you:

the ferry building for valentine's day~


the sf bike coalition's winterfest~


lucinda williams... at the fillmore~


i love this poster and this singer so (and of course the artist of the poster!). this was the first illustration done in his silhouette style inspired by when we lived in oaxaca, mexico and inspired by the papel picado/cut paper there. i have a long love affair with lucinda. she played loudly on our car stereo as my friend jessie and i drove cross-country out to SF from Boston (7 years ago!) and we even named our car in tribute to one of her songs..."drunken angel" (the actual car's name was "Bobby Cee" who was a gay texan two-stepping friend we made and he was a sweet drunken angel). So then when i met hugh we traded lucinda bootleg cds... and THEN hugh did this for the fillmore and we got to see her together at the show (a definate perk of doing these posters), then she wanted to use it on her cd! later hugh got to hang out backstage with her when she came through town again. anyway, i'm a die hard fan of her achy voice and poetic lyrics and admire her strength as an artist, plus how her music has been intertwined in my life!

i feel really grateful that hugh has done rock posters for other musicians i admire and i got to tag along at the shows including Ryan Adams, Calexico, Jonathan Richman and especially the Pixie's reunion show a couple years back.

can i tell you... i am loving life lately! i have been super busy with creative projects and upcoming excitement! which i'll of course share with you when i can:)

besos,
m