The Importance of Having A Reason!

Hello my lovelies, and welcome back to another kjartz blog post. Today, in the midst of everything that's going on around me, I would really like to focus and speak on something that is very important to me. I absolutely love being an artist. It's who I am. I live and breathe art. It's such a huge part of my life. A lot of people don't understand me at times. I tend to frustrate people often because of the way I think or see the world.

I see art in everything. I try to find the beauty in everything around me. So I feel like I have a purpose. Like, I was put on this Earth for a specific reason and it circles around art a great deal. So my art has purpose, my art has meaning and I have a reason for creating. I'm not looking for fame. Not looking for fortune either. The most gratifying thing I get out of what I do, is when someone tells me how my art touched them on a personal level. Or if my artwork moved someone to tears. Or even spark a conversation.

Case in point, a while ago, I uploaded a blog about one of my drawings, "Don't Shoot"...

Long story short,  uploaded the drawing to my art page on Facebook. Shared it here as well. Pretty much anywhere I thought I could get it seen. The reaction was so overwhelming. It landed me the cover of my local art magazine (Shout out to Triple Cities Carousel in Binghamton,NY). It also was a hot topic and discussion piece at Mural Fest here in our area. The most BEAUTIFUL thing about Mural Fest, was the togetherness that this piece invoked. A collective group of college students, joined together, and painted MY DRAWING of "Don't Shoot".

Black, White, Asian, Christian, Muslim, Male, Female.... All came together under the unity of a message. Under the unity of my painting. You can't put any price... no amount of fame, or money could touch THAT MOMENT for me. It got press coverage and has since been used in many marches. That is my reason. That is my driving force. The change... the conversation...the actions that took place behind it. People's reaction to such a powerful image. It's the reason why I love what I do and will never stop.

I was given this talent for a reason. It's taking me some time to truly tap into it but I PROMISE YOU I AM WORKNG ON IT. Please continue to support. Please continue to share my work. Please continue to talk about the art. Please continue to SUPPORT THE ARTS. My purpose is to change this world. One piece at a time.

Until next time,
 Love Peace and Tacos

The Importance of a Vision Board

Welcome back to another KJARTZ Blog post!


    Thanks for the return. I really appreciate it. Just to keep things on track so I can stay consistent, I'd like to be able to post a new entry every Monday and Friday of the week. I've even went as far as setting reminders for myself so I don't forget.

     So just expect to see a lot more posts in the future. Okay, so with this blog entry, I want to not only discuss the importance of a vision board, but to also do a step by step tutorial on how to successfully create one that you can look to . Like the one that I have in my studio.

Supplies you'll need include, but not limited to:

1.) Foam Board
2.) Poster Board (color)
3.) Sharpie Markers
4.) Glue
5.) Scissors
6.) Magazines
7.) Photos
8.) Post-it Notes (optional)

STEP ONE:

 Step one of my vision board was to take my colored poster board, and glue it to my foam board. The purpose of the foam board is to keep the regular poster board from rolling or bending. It keeps it nice and flat. Also it works great for hanging up on your wall or cork boards, whether it be with push pins, Velcro Strips or nails.

STEP TWO:

 Step two is to break your board into 4 different columns with categories for each. To keep my columns even, I spaced them 4.5 inches apart, with a 2 inch section for my category titles.
My categories include Family, Health, Career, and Compassion. You can choose anything you want to focus on with your individual boards. Some other examples include Romance, Fame, Education, Spirituality, etc. So feel free to set it up however you want.

STEP THREE:

 In step three, I took some images from magazines and some personal photos and cut them up so they can fit accordingly within each category. The goal is to stay on topic in each section but don't overcrowd it. It can cause confusion and also make you feel overwhelmed when looking at it.

STEP FOUR:

 Step four is optional because you don't necessarily need to add post-it notes. Totally optional. Since I didn't overcrowd my board, it's easier for me to add post-its as side notes for all of my cutouts.

STEP FIVE:

 Step five is the easiest step. Hang your board up someplace where you can look at it everyday. I'm always in my studio. So I chose to hang my board up near the side of my drafting/drawing table. Since my work station faces a window. Gotta have that natural light sometimes \(^.^)/


 The point of a vision board is to put your dreams, hopes, goals and aspirations into some type of physical form. Visualization is a very strong tool within the human brain. If you can see it in your mind, you can hold it in your hands. Look at your boards everyday. See yourselves as already having these things in your possession. Then, work towards obtaining them. Below are a few examples of some vision board templates. You can find these everywhere. I usually lean more towards Bing.com or Google.com:










 What you put out into the universe gets returned back to you. So have fun working on your boards. Leave your comments below and let me know how it turned out for you. Until next time...


Keep Creating,
Karii J.

Character Development

Okay folks: 
So do you remember when I posted the Twin Pic and asked "Who is #KiyoshiYuuko?" 

Well for the ones who were paying attention, you might recall me saying that I had something big coming up. I've been working on my comic for a while now, and I've finally decided to release some background info on some of the main characters. All of this is copyright #KareemahJohnsonArt so I'm not worried about people trying to steal my ideas; lest they want to take the chance of having a lawsuit on their hands.

Anyways... Here it is. Please check it out, let me know what you all think. COMMENTS ARE VERY IMPORTANT WITH THIS SO PLEASE HELP ME OUT 

Kiyoshi Yuuko©

An Original Story Created by Kareemah Johnson

Character development:

1.Kiyoshi Yuuko:


Daughter to Takashi and maka yuuko, kiyoshi was the second and last born to her parents. she grew up leading a very privileged life. her father being a general in the army and a very prominent leader in her village, and her mother being a well-known and sought after geisha. Though she was raised to be a geisha, like her mother, she was also taught the way of the warrior. Trained by her father as well as some of the greatest soldiers in his army, including her brother, lu. Kiyoshi witnesses the death of her parents at the age of 9 and grows up vowing to seek revenge. her entire life becomes consumed with the obsession of finding and killing yuji kizaki, her father's once trusted friend and close advisor. she also is seeking her lost brother, lu yuuko.

2. Takashi Yuuko:


Father to kiyoshi and lu, husband to maka, takashi was the general of one of the greatest and most powerful armies in all of northern japan. a feared man, yet greatly respected by the people in his land. takashi also acted as the mayor of his village. under the threat of another army coming from the east, takashi sets up troops to guard the village, only to fall to his death at the hands of his once trusted friend, yuji kizaki.

3. Maka Yuuko:


A very beautiful woman in her mid forties, maka was one of the most well known geishas in all of northern japan. with the voice of an angel and talent beyond belief, maka had a great reputation and was highly admired in her village. she was a loving mother and a devoted wife. she raised her daughter to be very delicate and often took kiyoshi to the geisha house where she was being trained along with her best friend Tsubaki. maka was tragically slain alongside her husband during the battle against yuji kizaki and his army.

4. Lu Yuuko:


Eldest and only son to takashi and maka, lu was a very stern and strong young man. he began training at the early age of 5. his father put him through daily rigorous exercises and mental training. he is a master swordsman and honorable soldier. at the age of 17, lu was the highest ranked soldier in his father's army. during the battle against yuji kizaki, lu is kidnapped and held prisoner in yuji kizaki's camp where he is beaten and tortured repeatedly.
5.Tsubaki:


Love interest to lu, tsubaki is kiyoshi's best friend. they grew up together in kiyoshi's palace, where tsubaki was the daughter to one of the family's loyal servants and gardener. tsubaki was taken under the wing of maka, and trained to be a geisha along with kiyoshi, who is six years her junior. a very timid child, tsubaki has an internal strength that is the glue which helps to hold kiyoshi's sanity together even through the worst of times.
6. Yuji kizaki:


Former best friend and sworn enemy to takashi yuuko, yuji kizaki is the most feared army general in the east. once serving in the same army as takashi when they were younger, yuji's jealousy began when takashi was promoted to general and given a mayoral position in the village. takashi was given, fortune, fame, high levels of respect, and most of all... fear from other armies. everything that yuji wanted. vowing to never again live in the shadows of his best friend, yuji fled to the east, where he made a name for himself as an evil viscious man with an incredible mean streak. after killing takashi and maka... and kidnapping their only son, holding him prisoner, yuji becomes the new mayor of the village and general of a bigger army (taking over takashi's men). starting his tyranical reign for the next 7 years, yuji has no idea that his time is about to come to an end...