Spreading the dA Love: Vol. 5

Aug 31, 201131 min read

Deviation Actions

Quolia

Published: Aug 31, 2011

2.7K Views

Welcome to the 5th volume of Spreading the DA Love

As the title suggests, this news article series aim to promote wonderful aspects of the deviantART community, from showcasing beautiful works of art, to informing you of great groups, and to interviewing inspirational deviants. I feel so happy being part of such a wonderful community and I hope to make it better, even if it's only a little bit, by making these articles. My goal is to bring to light everything that impassions me and, hopefully, inspire you!

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Showcasing Gorgeous Artwork

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Here I will showcase art that has simply left me speechless from all genres, from digital/traditional, artisan, emoticons, fractals, etc.

:thumb254144040:

Hizaki The Rose of Versailles by PamEvangeline

:thumb255295180: :thumb254674844:

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Showcasing Wonderful Photography

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Here I will showcase photographs that have left me in awe from all genres, from nature, macro, fashion, conceptual, abstract, etc.

Mature Content

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Showcasing Lovely Literature

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Here I will showcase literature that has motivated & moved me from all genres, from prose, poetry, flash fiction, short stores, etc.

Gallery SpectersThe saddest thing on the internet
is a vast gallery of potential
untapped,
now a silent museum
with the occasional visitor
wandering by to marvel
before casually sending a llama
to an artist that isn't there.
The second saddest
is the comment section
of a profile page
whose top comment is a time capsule
to the year 2008,
left unanswered. DionysusI see how you are shaken
by a mad fever, Dionysus.
You tremble in the moonlight's
gleaming nectar as does a new,
loose-limbed fawn, heady
with a foreign ecstasy that runs heavily
through your veins.
Your dance is a bright and glowing
beast that rattles the world to its bones.
I can feel it: the stirring storm; the spark
scuttling just beneath the earth; the violent wind
that scrapes soil from its gaping mouth.
Oh! How the night
is a-quiver with wanting
when you sing. In the distance
a cricket scrapes together its wings; strikes a low hum
in its paper-thin breast as it wrings rivers
from the clustered bodies of grapes. The stars
turn violet-flamed in such dust: they are vineyards
obscured by the pale, illuminated clouds
that crawl along the horizon.
As a sickle moon sinks
I see you framed
against dawn's rising light:
your body made
into an altar;
your every fingertip
tasting of frenzied song and
water-scented wine.

Travel to a World AnewTravel with me.
See what I see.
Feel what I feel.
I was thrown down here...
into the arms of darkness that hold me tight.
The hands of those whom I know--
I see them up above.
They're reaching for me,
but the distances between us are too great.
My breath shortens as I start to panic.
I know that I am trapped.
Unable to move.
Unable to see what is ahead.
No help can be provided to me.
I'm all on my own.
I start to cry.
The drops of despair-
It burns my skin.
I can feel them.
They quickly trickle down my face.
I am drowning myself in a bottomless lake of my very own tears.
It hurts me to feel like this.
And I can feel it surrounding me.
The waves of death-
They move me.
I blink.
A flash of white light - - and suddenly there's a world of color.
I'm lost again.
Memories of my past flow through my mind and I scan the new surrounding.
A world I remember as a child was before me.
A world where smiles could be seen and l Grantedyoung yellow lines down this, her street
streaked. smudged, maybe.
split. splayed, yet
neon under quivering stars
no el
imination
[a journey, a war, a sickness
a pizza, a joke, a kiss]
hardly shelter
like wishing for longer sleeves
against the bite of the chill
of s p a c e Not A PlantI must move
forward
for if I
stop
I will be
planted.

Devoted to youI decided to end this friendship, 'cause it's no good for me.
It hurts so much, but you don't know.
Can't you see the smile I show only to you?
Can't you hear my heartbeat when I'm near you?
It's hard to look into your eyes and tell you lies,
That there is no one I like, no, there is not.
Yes, I lie.
I want to hug you endlessly.
I want to kiss you flawlessly.
I want to tell you my feelings.
.. But I can't.
You don't see me that way,
I know that for sure.
Everytime I get the same,
"I see you only as a friend".

Writer's Blockmy mind
         is as  b   l   a   n   k  as this page
unmotivated—
                                 —uninspired
i talk to the walls
[but they never talk to me]thoughts scattered, words wasted
my mind
      sits |isolated| in my room
it cannot see through this horrible disease
i am
shipwrecked—drowning in the sea of doubt
stranded amongst a forest of ideas—lost within direction
{I ask for directions, but each turn leads to the end of the lonely road}
words do not come out of my pen…
ink b•l•o•t•c•h•e•s do
only to smear on my hands
what unproductive, wasted paint
every plot, Right Where You Left Ityou spend your summer evenings
chasing after happiness
running into sunsets
looking for shooting stars
and dragonfly wings
eyes too focused on the clouds
to realize happiness
is right beneath your feet
and you spend cold winter nights
searching for adventure
precariously perched on white window sills
waiting to jump into burning down buildings
and flee from the criminals of old comic book stories
too occupied with night time daydreams
to realize if you opened your eyes
there would be adventure everywhere you looked
and you spend all year long
looking for love
combing through romantic city street corner restaurants
batting long lashes and giving out spots of skin like free candy
too busy to realize love is right where you left it
sitting right behind you in old city block schools
bright hazel eyes hidden behind long blond locks
staring at the back of your head while you slip sultry smiles
into the pockets of back-water heart boys

small talkhe doesn't do small talk; never has done in the seven-or-so years i've known him. he's a cut-to-the-chase kind of guy i met in a down-town pub. i'd been drinking – he hadn't – and he lent me an arm for the three miles home.
"irresponsible… alone… could have been hurt…” - the only snatches of his tirade i remember now.
we met again, a week later, in that same down-town pub. i bought him a drink - a thank you (soft, of course) - and basked in his approval at my own orange and lemonade. i once swore i’d never change for any man.
we got talking, there in the bar. the hum of the underage youths larking around by the pool table and the sound of whatever song was favourite that day faded away. we talked on our island, our utopia, until my ten o'clock curfew brought it down around our feet.
he walked me home again, and on my doorstep i pulled away from
& :thumb237436714:

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Showcasing Fun Groups

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Here I will inform you of cool groups I have come across or have been recommended to that I feel need some more exposure.

Founded by imnotsana, this group has just kicked off! Here is some info on the group:

“This is a group dedicated to those that love Thinking Outside the Box. We accept all forms of media. The only things we look for are creativity, originality and well-executed concepts. We also provide feedback through Comments for each deviation submitted.”

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Suggested DDs

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Here I will showcase a selection of DDs I have suggested this month and any that have been accepted.

:thumb200664884:

Hands together for imagination by EmbrisionArts

Awarded DD on: 8-11-2011

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Interview: CaptainChibi

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Here I will interview an inspirational deviant I have picked or one suggested to me.

• Name/Nickname? •

Melissa but I like to be called Mel. Also known as Smel and Short ass...

• The story behind your username? •

When I joined dA a close friend of mine at the time used to call me Chibi, I looked up what it meant and found: 'Small and cute.. with a big head.' I just always found it amusing so I used it. Not sure where the Captain came from, just a spur of the moment thing.

If I could change it though I probably would.

• Tell us about yourself: •

Well I am 23.. 23 going on 14!! I really don't ever want to grow up! I am currently working in a game store in the UK and I enjoy it very much. I'm not a huge gamer but I do like to get on my xbox from time to time and bust out the PS2 with some Final Fantasy! Yeah!
I am into Photography as a hobby but here on dA I respect all forms of art. I'm often jealous of peoples awesome drawing, writing, photoshop skills etc. I wish I was as awesome as you guys

• How did you discover deviantART? •

I used to depend on dA for wallpapers and then when I started an art course in college a friend of mine mentioned he had an account so I joined so that I could comment on his work. I then remembered about my account when I started to get into photography and started to upload. People were so supportive and friendly that I stuck around and am still here today

• Specializes In: •

I enjoy photography more than anything. I have also started to make stamps too. I stick with making film clip stamps because I suck when it comes to trying to make emotes

• Your Personal Favorite(s) From Your Gallery: •

I have always liked this one mainly because of the lovely feedback I received on it. I was also given some awesome critique from the super ClefairyKid and it was requested in groups too. It was the first time I felt like 'people actually like my photo!' Its a nice feeling when people like your work. Thank you again everyone for the comments and !

Also..

Mature Content

Not many people liked this one and I admit its not perfect.. but this was the first time I actually approached people and asked them if I could take a picture. I am a very shy person and I have always wanted to work with models but I don't really have the confidence to go out and ask people. I am scared they will think I am strange. If anyone has any advice for me its more than welcome and I would really appreciate it.

• Favorite Inspirational Deviant: •

Within the community I say BitterBeanJuicer, 3wyl, Endorell-Taelos, bradleysays, jvsef, PatrickRuegheimer, Quolia, litecrush, ClefairyKid, AshleyxBrooke, namenotrequired, RotoDisk and imnotsana. There’s so many others!! They are really awesome and they really motivate me when I want to try and make a difference and help out within the dA community. They have achieved so much and they make it look so easy!! Lots of love to you all!

Photography wise I really love the work from JaimeIbarra, photoport, Whimsical-Dreams, RaBBiTKa, EliseEnchanted and jjuuhhaa. They are all super inspiring, and I really enjoy having a browse through their galleries from time to time. They should be so proud of themselves, they all have such a great gift

• What are your favorite aspects of deviantART? •

The community!

I love the fact that everyone can suggest art for a Daily Deviation, random acts of kindness like this really make me happy and it’s awesome to see that there are so many deviants out there that really want to do well within dA, especially those that try their best to get artists the right attention and that work hard to make dA a better place. I've always been a fan of the chat system too. Chats like iPhotograph and Thumbsshare are my favourite. I have developed some awesome friendships in the chats. (': I love the groups! I really enjoy looking through the galleries and I like to feature groups every week in news features.

..and of course I LOVE the art.

• Where do you draw your inspiration from? •

Usually from my boyfriend, he likes to wonder around and he'll see a certain place on his travels and then take me to see it. There’s a place called Goyt Valley he took me to, its beautiful there and now we go all the time to take pictures or have BBQ's Mainly though just getting outdoors and looking around inspires me and the people and artists I mentioned before.

• How do you strive to further improve your work? •

I'd like to get a lot more feedback on my photography so I know my good and bad points.I'd also like to work really hard on focusing on what I am good at and push myself harder. I'd like to travel too, there are so many beautiful places out there that I am missing out on. I'd also like to try and get some models to work with too. Scary!! I am always looking for feedback, positive or negative!!

• Do you have any advice to fellow aspiring artists? •

dA is the perfect place to get the advice you need to improve so don't see negative feedback as a bad thing. What I've learned with feedback is that people usually spot the things that you don't, there have been plenty of times when someone has pointed something out and I'm like… “I didn't even realize that!!”

Take bad criticism and learn from it. I've heard many times that people don't see the point because their art isn't receiving the attention they want, you have to stick with it! Ask yourself why you think it’s not getting attention. Could you have done something differently? Maybe you could add it to some groups? Ask your watchers what they think, I am sure you'll get some results. Getting involved with groups and the community is a great way to make friends and show other deviants your art.

Don't forget to be yourself, be original!

All the best!
=CaptainChibi

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Thank you for taking the time to read this article!

Please make sure to the article to help spread the DA love

_{If you have any art/groups you would like me to showcase or a deviant you would like to be interviewed, please note me. Thank you!}