6/12/2026

What is up y’all, it is Friday yet again. Made it through another week and I hope it was a good one. I felt a lot more centered this week, I made sure to keep a schedule and do what I needed to do for my mental health and that has helped my mood tremendously. I have a nine-ball tournament with my pool team this weekend which is going to be super fun, and Ellen and I started the weekend off right with a beach day which was so amazing. 

This week I wanted to talk about the work of Billy Armstrong and specifically focus on his collections of projects using collage and blur. The first thing that struck me about these images was the intensity of color. In his SVA lecture, Armstrong talks at length about the importance of color in his work and how the vibrancy of color darkroom printing is really what brings out the brilliance of the final images. Eventually digital cameras became viable after printing from digital files was able to smooth out gradations, but these collages thrive on the immense variety of colors within their borders. This is furthered by the title of one of these projects, “Infinity.” Not only were these collages made to evoke infinite emotions and create infinite mind scenarios, but the title references the relatively infinite amount of colors present when blurring a border that the colors otherwise would not cross. 

I also love the natural evolution Armstrong's work has had throughout the years. From my notes: The project titled “Accidental Portraiture” was influenced by his work “Torn Posters” however in the process he noticed some posters damaged or blurred with time → starts blurring photos of street posters to focus on color and forms → needs to be more available so he starts taking photos of magazine covers → needs to have more control over the images so he decides to just create them using collage. When I was listening to him talk it seemed so simple, because I noticed this or wanted to do this, I then took this step. But for many photographers and artists including myself, evolution of process or exploration of a new medium or topic can be anxiety inducing. Throughout the lecture Armstrong alluded to the fact that being an artist is hard, with him finding the bulk of his success later on in Europe. Or having to work commercial gigs while also creating the creative work he was passionate about. All in all he echoed my own thoughts about success or lack thereof, and solidified in my mind the fact that I may not ever have my work seen far and wide but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t do the work. 

Anyways, to keep it brief, get your steps in, drink your water, protect your friends, protect your family, protect your neighbors. I love y’all

Butterfly Room at Peggy Notebaert Museum