Archive for the 'Update' Category

I’m an Old Spice Gal!

Oh. My. God. I sent a tweet into the Old Spice Guy (real name Isaiah Mustafa) in the hopes of possibly getting a personalized response in what has to be the most successful commercial viral marketing campaign I have ever seen. Annnnd I got a response!

As much as I wish I could say that this has turned me onto Old Spice, I do have to admit that I was already an Old Spice girl far before the new Old Spice adverts (and these incredibly awesome personalized responses) came out. My husband wore Old Spice back when I met him, and I won’t actually let him change his scent. I love it to bits. He now claims that the Old Spice Guy is based on him! I’m not sure I’m fully convinced. Are you, Old Spice Guy?

Back on subject though, I’ll state again that this has to be one of the best examples ever (that I have seen) of commercial viral marketing gone right. The short video responses are not only packed with humor making you want to watch each and every one of them, but they really promote sharing. Just like Professor Farnsworth, you can just hear his voice in your head when you see the line of text he is likely going to read in the response. With such a brilliant and iconic character, it is no surprise that Old Spice is onto a winner. You can see more of these great response videos (and the original commercials) at Old Spice’s Youtube Channel.

Thank you Old Spice Guy. You have made my day.

Monocle Smile!

Sketch and Update: A tiny companion.

Kat Johnston Art: A tiny rat companion sits inside a keyhole within the chest of a most delicate dame.

Ahhhh, more of the same… can you tell that I am enjoying this? They’re beautiful, delicate, distinguished and ever so intriguing, don’t you think?

So anyhow… I’ve finally gotten around to sorting out my things on Flickr so that all of my blog drawings (if not all of the blog photos, for certain reasons) are up. I’ve sorted them out, and there’s even a special category for the creative commons licensed photos so that you can just click on that to get them all at once, rather than having to find them one at a time scattered across the different sets.

All thrown in together, it all seems rather random: sketches here, cooking there, some pictures of dandelions and other such things. Hopefully the collections and sets will help it seem a touch more structured!

So yes… check out my Flickr page and explore the sets to see what you can see!

Update: If you are reading this…

Then you may well be the employer I just sent an application to, regarding a social media content writer position. If you’re not, then hello again, my lovely readers!

I’ve been absent from updating this site, and for that matter, many of the areas of my online presence for some weeks. Lets just say that amid moving lounge-rooms, having a scanner that isn’t currently hooked into my computer, and just finishing up work at the most exciting and engaging literature festival in Queensland has been taking quite a toll on my time. This is going to be a text only post, since my scanner is, alas, still out of commission.

As it has been a while since I mused specifically about this site, I think it may be time to take stock of its purpose and reason… to sit back for a moment and think about what it has achieved since I took the step from ‘once in a while’ updates on a default WordPress blog to full on social media saturation; which has since tapered back into a more reserved (and I must admit, less time consuming) past-time.

I started this blog with one purpose in mind: to encourage the ongoing production of artistic creation, whether it be the tiniest sketch or the most detailed artwork. I was in a slump – a bit of a prod really couldn’t hurt. What was created on a whim blossomed into so much more. I took control of my online presence, propelling it forward and connecting across a variety of social media – interacting on other blogs, on Facebook and Twitter, Flickr and other sites. Although the focus of this blog has always been, and will always have the primary purpose of helping me continue producing a little bit of creativity every day, it also gives insight into the quirky, sometimes wordy, quite whimsical personality that is Kat Johnston. My blog, my status updates, even my Second Life presence… it all tells a story, and it is one I am happy to tell. As to what this blog and my presence across other social media platforms has achieved: I have been approached for commissioned artwork, connected with professionals in my fields of interest, and even delved into post-graduate study of social media as the basis of marketing and branding strategies. It’s been quite a leap on what was originally intended, on that little blog so long ago… and I wouldn’t change a thing.

To the potential employers: I encourage you to read through this blog, and have a look through my other social media profiles. Although the content produced is primarily for a personal, reflective purpose, I understand full well the importance it has on my professional presence also. I do hope that you find the perfect person for the position, but I have to admit – I also hope it’s me!

Busy times, busy times.

So, there isn’t a picture with this post. Uhhh, sorry about that! You see, I’m down in Sydney at the moment, because a gorgeous friend of mine just happened to have booked her ticket here for the wrong day. Thus, I stole it (not literally, she did offer), and flew on down to attend another friend’s birthday party that I would have otherwise missed. Fortune smiles on me.

Just in case you were wondering, there is a reason why I haven’t posted in the past couple of days. I just started doing a little work as a Development Coordinator, so I was doing that on Tuesday and Wednesday. When I got home after those days, I just collapsed into bed and fell asleep, after grabbing whatever I could out of the fridge for a quick and probably unhealthy meal. It is a great office to work in, but still tiring!

So I did intend to throw up a picture yesterday. However that is when I got the call from my friend, to say, “Hey Kat! Uhhh… did you want to go to Sydney in four hours?” How can I say no to that? So for now, I am in Sydney, and there is a scanner close-by, though I’m not sure that it is plugged in… in either case, I’m not sure that I will be posting something of actual significance until Monday, which is when I get back to my wonderful hometown… where the drive from the airport to my final destination will thankfully not be over 2 hours long as it has been here in Sydney.

Anyhow… that’s all for now. Much fun, debauchery and awesomeness shall be had this weekend, and I will update you all when I can!

A few of my favourites… but certainly not all.

So it just so happens that I had an interview today, and because I was rushing out the door, I didn’t have the chance to grab any images of some of my more decent drawings or paintings. As a result, I gave a link to this site. Sooo, to make it easier to navigate through the loads and loads of pictures here (because I haven’t got the gallery section up and running again), I’m going to put just a few of my favourite images up in this post, ranging from a few paintings to some of my sketches. So… here we go!

Kat Johnston Art: A little further progressed... and still untitled.

My most recent completed painting, this one just blows me away… I love it to utter bits. Originally, it was meant to be completed in colour, however when the black and white was mostly completed, I realized that it was just not destined for that. This painting was completed in gouache on canvas, and finished with a semi-gloss varnish. The piece is called ‘Escape of the Nubian Contessa’.

'Rat King' 3

A painting still in progress, this one is ‘The Rat King’, though it is quite possible that the name will change by the time it is actually completed. Again, gouache on canvas, as yet unfinished. My apologies for the quality of this image – I should really retake this photo.

'Miniatures'

Some miniatures, measuring no more than a couple of inches by a couple of inches. Surprisingly enough, despite the tiny size of these, they remain something that I utterly adore to this day.

Ok, now onto a few drawings…

Kat Johnston art - looking at a blank page is hard. Its so full of potential, and -you- have the potential to screw it up. But as the saying goes: nothing ventured, nothing gained.

This one has a bit of a story. It is entitled “Atelodemiourgiopapyrophobia” which is a word a friend and I coined meaning ‘the fear of imperfect creative activity on paper’… in other words, staring at a blank, beautiful, fresh sketchbook and going ‘oh god, I really, really don’t want to ruin it’. Not so surprisingly, I suppose, it is drawn inside a sketchbook… and a nice one at that. Completed in plain, ole-fashioned biro.

Kat Johnston Art - A book unwritten remains unread. It takes a pen to paper and a risk of failure to make those words take wing. How's that for a bit of philosophical mumbo-jumbo for you? The unwise owl gets a little sense, perhaps?

Another from the same sketchbook, even. This is an image of ‘The Unwise Owl’, which means a fair amount to me, but perhaps not to others. Suffice to say, the Unwise Owl believes he is wise, yet does not realize until it is too late that this may not be so. He was the basis of a little childrens’ story I wrote.

Kat Johnston Sketch - this is maggie... I was testing out a new pen.

“Maggie’ is the name of this lovely lady. ThisĀ  picture was just drawn quickly, to test out a new and wonderful ink pen, however the results went above and beyond what I could have wished for. Working with different mediums is just so incredibly fulfilling – I can take a break from one, switch to another, and when I come back to the first I have a whole new take on how I can work with it, too.

Ok… that should do! At least for now. Unfortunately, posting a picture of every favourite image I have here would take a long time, and just be silly. Clicking on the tag ‘favourite’ for this post, however, will bring up a wider list of the sketches posted here that I love the most. Hopefully I’ll get the job (cross fingers, everybody), and if I have to resort to offering bribery with baked goods, I’m willing to do it. Everyone likes cake, don’t they?

Regular programming resumes tomorrow… in the meantime, I’m going to try and dig out some of the pictures of jewellery I’ve made, which are buried somewhere on this computer… if I can find them, I’ll throw up a few pictures of those as well.