some more
the one i did today is the best so far, but i dont have a pic of it :\
life drawing
life drawing
life drawing
life drawing
life drawing
life drawing
life drawing
life drawing (hella wrong forshortening)
1.5 weeks of class left!!
with photography
for the past few months, i havent been able to capture anything significant or worthwhile
its always been like this for me, there will be a few weeks or months of pure energy, passion, and dedication
and then it dries up
like a rasin in the sun
i dont have any desire to take photos
and i lose it..or most of it anyways
ive always been a firm follower of technique and high-techniques
this goes for everything, im obsessive with being structurally adaquet and foundationally secure
i guess there are certain fears that restrain me from not worrying about it
but ive never minded that
until i felt like i had not much more to go
NOW! this is not a sign of ignorance or extreme confidence (cockiness)
it is a sign of worry..worry of plateuing
or even worse, a declination of skill
that fucking bothers me (some times to depression..i know, hella sad.)
but it happens
i forget how to draw or take photographs
not necessarily forget, but will undermine what ive learned
when i believe that my subconscious will be able to deal with the rest if my hands are unconsciously moving
and part of that is true for most of art making when youre “in the mode”
and this is where the best products usually comes from
a spontaneity in the course of your work
but there is also a level of awareness you must have in order to continue your pursuit
as artists, you must be aware..photographers especially
and an open receptivity to your surroundings that essentially “free” us from our binding presets
not aiming for a certain response or ambiguity
neither blocking or absorbing our environment, but simply responding to it
this is my personal cure to artists-block
(or photographers-block..i dont consider myself an artist yet..read the title, ARTIST IN TRANSITION ^_^)
i take my camera outside, without any preset, pre-imagined, pre-anything photograph in mind
simply outside interacting and responding to the environment through the viewfinder
and ive been getting some great photographs doing this
regretfully, when i do have a preset image, i rarely am able to capture it
unless all conditions are in my favor (light, texture, figure, emotion, camera model*, lens, etc)
that wont be happening anytime soon 
here are some images from today that i took with an open and clear mind
(i realize there is no solidified way in actually achieving an open mind or any of this, we are all individuals who prefer different methods)
but this works best for me
there is no real conceptual connection between these images (yet? (;)
contextually, they are all black and white and geographically identical in locale
final project 1
final project 2
final project 3
final project 4
final project 5
final project 6
final project 7
***these photographs will be used in my foundations class freshman final project at cornish along with others, finished product will be done in 4 weeks along with artist statement***
**also, i never undermine actual technique, so as much as i like to say i have to be aware and receptive to spontaneity…i am also hoping for constant control of my technical skills**
life drawing homework (5 minute sketch)
life drawing (pre spring break)
life drawing (pre spring break)
life drawing pre spring break
life drawing pre spring break
life drawing (one of the firsts)
i feel like ive done way more, but i cant find them at the moment…
im a 19 (running on 20) year old virgin
im not going to say that im proud or ashamed of it
im not going to criticize myself or anybody else
and it is definitely not a statement on my views and morals
i wish i could say i was saving myself (i hear that gets me brownie points)
i wish i could say that i had high morals for myself (i hear that gets me browie points)
i wish i could say i was catholic (definitely brownie points)
but im not.
its just how things worked out to become what they are now
now with that out there..i am going to further elaborate on why i think i’ve been single for so long (5 running on 6 years)
thats crazy right? not in a good or bad way, its just crazy! sure there were one or two flings in the middle, but in the end, i haven’t really experienced what 99% of my generation is obsessed about..hooking up, love, and having sex (i just graduated from high school)
okay, that may be a really broad view so im going to say it was a “joke” (read the previous post)
anybody who knows me knows that i think alot, often too much in certain situations
and its become rather unhealthy..but im okay with that
but whenever i talk to people about it, obviously they just dont understand what its like
i mean really though, should i expect them too?
this is what i hate hearing:
1) dont worry, youll find her soon enough
2) dont worry, youre time will come (wtf does that mean jared?)
3) dont worry, shes out there
4) dont worry
5) dont worry
6) dont worry
so i dont worry, i just think, think, think
but thinking too much leads to worry
so i try not to think about it
here’s what i do to not think about it
1) go into hermit mode
2) play video games
3) watch anime
and it seems whenever im out with my friends, im reminded of how much of a stiff i am
i know that ive become a good person, i dont know how much of it is due to the fact that ive been single for 5 years and a virgin
(my guess would be high..really high)
its one of those things where you count up the situations that couldve happened and how it couldve changed your life and you thank the world you didnt because of how you became to be who you are now
*4% of adults are virgins
im not saying were better and cooler or un-better and un-cooler, just that if you put us up against the 96% of adults that are in a dodgeball game, we would definitely lose…real bad
lets look at this chart
virginal college majors
from: http://www.earthfrisk.com/blog/?p=18
just a quick reminder, im an art major..seems like i should switch to math
so here is where it gets really interesting
this is my thesis on why the hell am i a 19-year old virgin majoring in art:
I’m an artist, its a work, a trade, a passion, a sub-culture, a life-style; but any of those require some amount of dedication just like anything else. But what is the importance of an artist in society? We aren’t mechanics, or doctors, or lawyers. We (those that lack the exposure to sell platinum records or million dollar paintings) do not make life that much easier for others, not significantly at least. And if we do, it isnt enough to be able to support ourselves. For an artist to be self-sustainable, to operate and function within the middle class (at least), the amount of dedication and work put in, i wholesomely believe, is immensely greater than it is with being a self-sustainable doctor. Of course right? Now im not going to say its harder or more rigorous, im opposed to criticizing the difficulty of one’s life and choices. We all go through it, thats my excuse for not wanting to hear your life story. But to put simply, to be an artist that can live off his/her work is rare (about 75% of artists in the nation have to have two jobs to sustain living expenses in this country).
With that said, i’m going for my bachelors in fine arts, knowing well that success is as slim as making the NBA and that attending an art college has merely transformed into a transition of becoming “a starving artist.” I’m paing $26,000 a year to eventually starve after I graduate (if they do not prepare me enough for the real world, not an artist community). I’m not going to starve literally, or possibly maybe..if worst comes to worst, but i’ll be starving: needing more, not having enough, malnourished, underfed, dying. So i have faith, i have to, i have alot of it, enough to pay pack a hell of a debt.
So i try to dedicate myself to a higher degree of learning and understanding myself and my art because they are both reflections of one another. But recently, the amount of photographers in the area has skyrocketed, i shoudnt even say photographers, more so picture takers. As Stephanie Slycooley has said, they are re-hobbyists. Now, im not against you carrying around your new nikon or canon DSLR (or sony and pentax if you really have to) but due to it, the interpretation of what photography beyond an art community and into real society has become vague, lost, and cheap. Because those people that carry their nice cameras label themselves a photographer by attaching their full name as a watermark on their picture, i am not being taken serious in my work. They have nice cameras, they take nice pictures, but they continue to struggle to find beauty within the photographs..simply because it doesnt exist.
All of this and many, many, many more reasons have led me to believe that to become successful n a world measured by dollars as an artist, i have to become better than my current self and offer more than what others can. But really? How can you do that in art? You can choose to hire the best doctor or knee specialist in the world to examine your fractured bone and you can have a japanese specialty mechanic do maintenance on your honda..you have those options of choosing the best. There is no “best” in art, only the most influential. It’s really all preference, and the goal is to be preferred by almost everyone
So as of right now, this very moment, i am in a state of permanent confusion. Always confused, thats the job of an artist. What the hell does that painting mean? That sculpture? This song? I know that the understanding of art is life long and longer, and its almost the same reason why many pieces of art is appreciated more after death.
So what does this have to do with girls? Well understanding yourself is key to understand others right? Girls cant convince themselves to take part of a serious relationship with an artist simply because he is a nice guy. Of course! It’s so damn true! He does’nt have and can’t promise any stability in life! Now i’m not saying all girls arent willing to, but at this age, within this culture, and how the views of most of our generation has been molded to conform to the popular belief of what beauty is, yes, yes i do think so.
Ahh.its really because i dont have any faith that a girl in her right mind ever would
date a guy like me.
now before you respond
things i dont like hearing
1) as long as youre doing what you love…
2) its okay (im not asking for help, im asking you to respond)
3) dont worry
ps
of course this whole thing is written for the girl i want in mind for a long term relationship, if i wanted an artsy girl, this would be a whole other story 
(joke)
I dont remember shit from 93, but ive always heard about 93 in seattle
and with the recession in full effect (or not…yet) alot of shit has been going down in south and central seattle
well thats what i hear anways..you know i keep my ears open for these things, i gotta stay hip to it!! haha
with the recent shooting in southcenter and the many more (which you dont hear about) in south seattle/skyway
unless you hear the gunshots and see the skid marks for yourself, thankfully i dont
the recession is hitting hard, people are stealing from friends, friends stealing from people..its getting outta hand..and i cant convince myself to pay $5 for a roll of sushi anymore.
just tellin you all to be safe out there! and if there are any dead dogs and white people dead on the road, i know who did it! BRRRRRRRAT!!
on another note, lets talk about music…lets talk about hip hop
linked up with nam and khingz yesterday night after my last class had ended, still trying to get the taste of carrot juice out of my mouth, but not being able to convince myself that i had to buy water. ive never been down with buying water! so i hit up khelil right after i got out of the tunnel, asked him if he wanted to meet up and take some photos in chinatown (i miss this place) since he lives like 5 minutes from it via bus tunnel. Headed straight for the waji (uwajimaya) and for some damn reason i spent 10 minutes looking at the sushi!!!! the price goes down after 6, because then its not fresh anymore..it gets below the $5 point, which i can do..not because im budgeting (probably it) but because i can now excuse myself as being a victim of the recession, i cant eat fresh sushi nomo, the current economy got me eating discount sushi (wtf!!)
and why did it take 10 minutes for khelil to get there when he lives 5 minutes away? i dont know..its probably because he was trying to look hella fresh for the photos, rockin that handmade wool jacket made by JILLTHY (his girlfriend)
damn jills, what do i gotta do to get one of those? pleeaaaaaasse!!!!!!
we then started conversing in a thug like manner, peepin what’s currently in and out in japanese culture, checking out the free shit they give away with their magazines (although theyre $10+ magazine, were basically payin for it), then talking about how fresh this iz and that iz, then trying to imitate it with US brands because we dont get filthy shit like they do in japan..
20 minutes later, nam arrives
and we get this shoot crackin!!!!
nam
khingz
khingz
khingz
daichi
daichi
daichi, khingz, nam
daichi
nam
nam
nam
met daichi in front of gossip, a dj from japan, who’s actually leaving to do a show in shibuya in a few weeks…fucking jealous.
the seattle music scene is exciting right now, with all this material theyre being spoonfed from the recession, we can all pursue a more authentic gangster rap hustler persona hahaha
OHHH YEAH! AND ALWAYS CHECK OUT ANY OF THE ARTISTS MUSIC I POST ON HERE! BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT ONLY AMAZING AND TALENTED LOCALS, BUT BECAUSE I SHOW THEM LOVE AND THEY SHOW ME LOVE!! WHAT GETS THEM EXPOSURE GETS ME EXPOSURE!
KHINGZ: www.myspace.com/khingz
Book 
Book
Book
Design
my first book (;
hahahaha sike!!! this was an assignment for my foundations class over viewing the strategy of lines, mapping, collecting, and producing a “container of information”..its an actual book with actual stuff to look at and read inside so i was only lying about it being published..for now
i dare you to look inside..i double dog dare you
pretty good huh?
I just finished my intro to digital imaging class last week
which took up my tuesdays, my wonderful tuesdays
but now i have them back!
its now thursday, my other day off from being an art student..a day off from being a critical, self absorbed, non-matching, unappreciative, little jerk
god i hate being a freshmen all over again..but there is nothing like being an art student
sometimes i may be a little harsh on myself and others around me, like why the fuck am i here? and sometimes ill ask myself what the fuck are you doing here?
so lets try to answer that right now
im at an art school to pursue art, something i love..thats what were suppose to do in life..but another thing were supposed to do in life is make money..dont bullshit yourself, IT IS WHAT WERE SUPPOSED TO DO!
pursue art + making money = as likely as making it to the nba
its not impossible, but its not likely either
okay, so im probably being a little harsh on myself right now, but i have to be..because this damn school hasnt proved to be worth it yet and the only thing that is keeping afloat is that whisper in my head
“..its worth it..its worth it..“
but that whisper, is the same whisper that tells me i can make it, you know that whisper..its called faith
what scares me the most is, im not the “starving artist” yet, this is only a transition. a 4 to 6 year transition into becoming a full-fledged starving artist and this transition into the real world is going to be the actual cause of my inevitable starvation. loans, loans, loans..
would it have been better to just not go to school and make art in my bedroom?
nah, as much as id like to convince myself about how i am “wayyyy passed” what is being taught to me, i cant..ive learned alot of things, conceptual thinking, newer ways of working, a fresh thought process into art making..but is that worth $26k a year?
can that whisper in my head hold me up after college is done? or even til spring registration?
god i certainly hope so
finally with sound
fast foward to 1:10 hahaha
Okay, so im finally going to commit myself to this! my personal blog..so personal that i’m sharing it via world wide web :S
i’m just documenting my commute, art, thoughts, struggles, accomplishments, ups, downs, life and times through a lens..a canon L lens (;
i’m also going to try to be 100% honest with myself and you all..starting here, step one:
My name is Canh Nguyen, not Canh Solo…I’ve always had mixed feelings about my last name, i mean really..half of the vietnamese community has the same last name…or tran..and i wont tell you how to REALLY pronounce it, because even i cant (nuwin..?)
I jacked canh solo, yes..from han solo..the epic hero of star wars (surprising how many people dont know who he is)
but my friend khelil crisis (thats already a dope name, dont waste it!!!) aka khingz (okay, so you want another dope name) aka blacc han solo (greedy arent you?) had the name before me, just putting that out there..are you happy now? i bet he wont be until i find a new name..canh crisis?
im 19, and i dont feel that much different from 17, just waiting for 21..i dont know why though? i mean i dont drink (i dont drink enough) to be super excited about it..
lets see what ive done on my big 18 list
1) go to a strip club (not)
2) smoke (not)
3) buy lotto (not)
…and i dont remember what other wack ass privelage came with the big 18..some would say i havent lived enough..tin’s said that to me actually, after she told me she hated me..and now look at us! were like..the best chums
but im not a square (i swear to you!)
im the coolest 19 year old vietnamese from seattle, washington that was born on march 1st, 1989 that has an older brother, a younger sister, and the hardest working dad in the world
i go to art school..art college is what i like to call it, because it makes it seem like its harder than it is
BUT IT IS HARDER THAN YOU THINK! THAN I THINK! THAN WE ALL THINK!
damnit!
so even if you LOVE what you do, there are still struggles..inner struggles, questions, no answers, and the search for eternal balance..nirvana, yip yap..the mayo between the bread..duh
doesnt mean its going to be easy, nope..i threw myself out there by declaring my career straight out of high school with the preconceived notions (just as you thought) of that which has to do with art making (it being easy breezy beautiful cover girl)
its hard people!
god..im glad i got that off my chest
i need to turn my mic on..
thats cameron’s hand..and thats victorias face..shes crazy..seriously..
what a nut
last class!!!
pretty chill…until we had to write for like 40 minutes
good stuff though
got out of class at 6..got off the bus at 7..went to borders to study with LILLY!
but i didnt study, i just looked at photog magazines and then convinced her to not study and go buy stuff..
finally remembered to turn my mic on FTW!!!
videos are fun..expect more of them
 | s-j on Dragonball Z Special 2008 … |
 | Anonymous on Dragonball Z Special 2008 … |
 | Zachary Vega on Dragonball Z Special 2008 … |
| a broke artist - CAN… on Gray Sheeps | |
 | mary brewer on hello april! how you doing? wh… |
