nesting and fossil gazing
BOOKS OPEN & flash sneak peak enclosed!
Writing to you from my new home in Brooklyn – wtf? And having a hard time processing it’s been a year since I sent out my first newsletter… ???
It’s been thrilling to adjust to a new city. We have so many new neighbors, including three very plump pigeons that live above our window and won’t stop shitting right outside our front door… It’s not like moving to Brooklyn or interacting with pigeons are unique happenings, and yet somehow I feel so special these birds chose our ledge to call home. Apparently pigeons make wonderful pets since they were once our very close companions, and I’ll admit I’ve done a concerning amount of research on what keeping one would look like… But for now these three fat pigeons on our ledge are as close as I’ll get to that fantasy.
I’ve noticed it’s more intuitive to conceptualize my flash when it feels like I’m drawing in my sketchbook… So for this new flash sheet I’ve decided to step away from pointillism and engage more with my natural drawing style.
Here is a sneak preview at my first flash sheet in a looong time – leaning into textures and gradients that inspire me, pet pigeon fantasies (drawing based on a vintage postcard), trinkets I’ve rediscovered while unpacking, an angel fish and a ceramic rabbit (cuz why not), and Devonian fossils (obviously). I hope the things that continue to fascinate and delight me do something similar for you <3
Also excited to say that I’m taking booking requests for September and October! Haven’t had my books open all summer and I’m feeling very antsy to start tattooing again :)
Bookings are open for September and October, in both NYC and Ithaca.
A heads up, I have very limited availability for Ithaca, so if you’re interested submit a request asap!
~~~~~~ an end of summer reflection in semi story form ~~~~~~
The summer feels like it was swallowed by the task of sorting, purging, moving, saying goodbyes. I haven’t drawn flash since April, in fact I’ve barely drawn at all this summer! I promised myself I’d go to swim at flat rock every day and I think I went three times. It’s so hard to watch summer and promises to myself slip away.
Six days after moving to Brooklyn I drove back to Ithaca for the weekend to play in a roller derby game. On my last day, after hours of errands and some mahjongg, my mom and I went for a walk at the Mulholland wildflower preserve. The sky glowed pink and yellow. Within a few minutes we were off the trail and down on rocky waterfront, scouring for evidence of fossilized life. I’ve never been fossil hunting with my mom before and it was a joy like no other.
At first we focused on the little rocks, spending long moments turning over almost every pebble in the small areas we stood in. I was worried she’d get bored or that her knees would begin to ache from bending down so much. She collected all the stones that were purple and set them on a bigger rock. I kept asking if she wanted to continue on our walk, but she was just as excited to marvel over each ancient little stone as I was :’)
The larger rocks we had first overlooked ended up being the most exciting. I am filled with awe over and over again when I look at the rocks in Ithaca. There is something so inexplicably amazing about uncovering these remnants of the past. They lay themselves bare just waiting for us to notice, to touch. Holding so many secrets. Allowing us to pour over their tiniest of imprints millions of years later, to wonder about their origins and feel small in their presence. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of them.
“it’s almost like the surface of the moon…”
“do you think this was some sort of plant?”
“this one looks like little angel wings.”
I feel like I haven’t had a moment to slow down and absorb like I’ve been craving, so this day felt so magical. I think I really needed this time amongst the rocks and the water and my mom.
I don’t know why it’s such a struggle to carve time for myself to observe and indulge in what I already know I love. Something as simple as looking at rocks, sinking my hand into cool water, going on a walk with my mom. I’m worried now that I’m in Brooklyn that time to slow down will be even harder to find. And I doubt there are many fossils to hunt for in the pavement… But I couldn’t be more excited to see all that the city holds, so too laid bare, waiting to be noticed by a new set of peepers.
Maybe the privilege of living so close to natural wonder is something you can only truly appreciate when you move away from it. And yet it lays waiting for you. Waiting, waiting.
As always, thank you so much for reading and staying tuned with my little corner of the internet :)
Till next time,
Matéa
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i felt this so strongly when i went back to ithaca to visit after spending time in new york (and before that, buenos aires!) with all its hustle and bustle. it felt like i could connect more profoundly with my surroundings — and by extension, with myself. and ofc it was so nice to see u <3