Celebrate the African-American community with these cultural symbols. Learn how to select plants, books and gifts for Kwanzaa in this free holiday history video.
Expert: Masequa Myers
Bio: Masequa Myers is the founder and CEO of Masequa Myers & Associates, a full service production and consultation company specializing in the arts and multimedia.
Filmmaker: Pemon Rami
Duration : 0:2:13
I am going to be using illustration markers, color pencils and oil paint. Just drop me a line if you have any questions
In step 1 I scanned and reprinted my original drawing- I do this for 2 reasons- 1.) If I mess up, I could just reprint it and 2.) marker and color pencil coexist better with printer ink than with graphite from a pencil.
Next I add a layer of the illustration markers. These markers are totally transparent and they enable me to add a layer of color and still be able to see the lines from my pencil drawing. These markers give the artist a similar effect to watercolor paint, but without the messy setup and clean up.. I am still following the Polaroid picture development analogy from the first video- in that I am adding color to all areas at an even pace and slowly building up the darker tones on the sides and bottom of the glass.
The color pencil is great at this point of the drawing, because it adds a translucent layer of color above the marker. In addition to that, color pencils are mixed with wax. The wax will be very handy in the next step when I add oil paint on top of the marker and color pencil. Working with color pencil also allows me to be very precise with my marks on the page. It can be very challenging to be as accurate with a paint brush. This step allows me to make my drawing more accurate and these clarifications will eventually be absorbed by the oil paint.
Now you are going to see me add three layers of oil paint to finish my drawing. I am using oil paint because I want to edit the colors of this composition and it is much easier to mix and match color with oil paint than it is with color pencil. It is also easier to apply large areas of color with a paintbrush rather than the tiny tip of a pencil. I did all of my editing in the last step and now I am just applying color, trying to notice the nuances of the edges of each shape on my reference. If I need to soften an edge I use a dry, soft brush and I pull the paint with that. The color pencil from the layer below is blending nicely with the paint.
Duration : 0:4:27
This chant is one of the most popular activities for Kwanzaa. Learn about the traditions of Kwanzaa in this free holiday celebration video from an authority on African-American culture.
Expert: Masequa Myers
Bio: Masequa Myers is the founder and CEO of Masequa Myers & Associates, a full service production and consultation company specializing in the arts and multimedia.
Filmmaker: Pemon Rami
Duration : 0:1:15
The Kwanzaa principle of umoja focuses on unity of community, nation and race. Learn about the principles of Kwanzaa in this free holiday celebration video from an authority on African-American culture.
Expert: Masequa Myers
Bio: Masequa Myers is the founder and CEO of Masequa Myers & Associates, a full service production and consultation company specializing in the arts and multimedia.
Filmmaker: Pemon Rami
Duration : 0:1:33
Choose positive and upbeat music for Kwanzaa. Learn about the principles of Kwanzaa in this free holiday celebration video from an authority on African-American culture.
Expert: Masequa Myers
Bio: Masequa Myers is the founder and CEO of Masequa Myers & Associates, a full service production and consultation company specializing in the arts and multimedia.
Filmmaker: Pemon Rami
Duration : 0:2:36
Our local outdoor ice rink had only 6 good days of skating all year last winter. Ive never made a skating rink before and our backyard is on a small hill, but i figured it would be good for my kids to be able to skate every day, and they could have friends over. So in late november, i decided to try to find out how to make a rink the easiest and cheapest way i could. I asked a canadian friend who told me how his dad just stomped down snow and watered it with the hose, building up layers of thin ice. I combined that with my observation of how long a big block of ice seemed to last (when you dump out a frozen bucket, etc), especially in the shade. Ive seen people build strong wooden frames and use water-tight liners, but some winters here things dont seem to freeze up like youd expect.
Heres the project: im trying to find out the easiest and best way to make a thick block of ice for this climate: one that is flat and strong, and lasts a long time. I made it using boards as guides to build up the ice a little at a time (not to support 10 inches of water all at once). Its working really well and it hasnt been any trouble: weve just had a whole week (feb 21-28) of 30s and 40s, but the kids are still skating (except when its raining). The melting water just runs off the sides. I know some people with liners say they cant skate when its warm ( because of pooling water). Maybe next year i can find a way to combine both: use a liner to make 12 inches of ice easily, but then get rid of the downhill side to let excess melting water run off? And whats the best way for people in PA or NJ? If they use a liner, it will be a pool half the winter (but if they just build it on the grass, it might melt completely several times). I think the warmer places will do well building up the ice intensively when it IS cold (nights, cold fronts) as thick as they can, then trying to keep it thick during warm spells by building up ice with the sprinkler at night . But maybe theyre better off just leaving a liner-pool sit out and freeze when it may (and just skate then) I guess it depends on how badly you want to have skating time in the backyard. You have to find what will work best for your climate (obviously, having a big pond in Minnesota would be a good starting point…)
Heres what I did:
1)Location: is there a part of your yard that stays frozen the longest? That keeps snow till well into spring? Thats your spot! The yard can be sloped or flat.
2) while the ground is soft, buy a bundle of grade stakes, and some wood 1X6s or 1X8s for flat terrain, but maybe 1X10s if you have a big slope, or if you want bigger boards for hockey (21 1X6s cost only $51!). get a roll of thick white plastic 2 or 3 feet wide (also pretty cheap!) the plastic is just to seal the seams, not to make a water-proof pool: just to hold a half-inch or so at a time: this is a variation of the time-honored tradition of dads stomping down snow, then hosing it every two hours till its thick enough to skate on.
3) attach the boards to your ground stakes with screws (1 ¼ in., 1 ½ in., etc.) remember, you dont need a tight seal anywhere. Also, remember, if you have a sloped yard, you have to build the downhill side much higher (try to make it level now, its much harder when its 10 degrees and snowing)
4) put your white plastic liner over the boards to seal the spaces between boards, and attach it with a few staples (if you want to hold it down with rocks, etc, you may not even need any staples!)
Thats it for the construction. Now, a real Dad’s job: Water the Ice Rink!!! Yahoo!!
5) you dont have to wait till it is below freezing all day to start making ice: if the weather is hovering around 35 during the days and is in the 20s at night, you can start to build up a nice ice bed: just sneak down to the rink at nights and water with a nozzle or with your sprinkler until you see puddles. (I bring the hose in now in a big bucket every night)
6) Another key Dad-job! The Zamboni crew! A nice fellow has a great site called myfamilylovesit.com, and he has good instructions for making a Zamboni-rink rake with a few pieces of PVC pipe http://www.myfamilylovesit.com/blog/i…
i use a big push-shovel (my friend has a Wovel (a wheeled-shovel) that is a lot of fun to use) then pull the zamboni slowly over the ice (I use hot water when the ice is rough or its too cold out)
Next year i think ill make the ice thicker (at least 12 inches) and maybe experiment with a liner I can break down after it freezes… ill take pictures every few weeks this winter and show them after the last day of skating (sigh) hope the groundhog knows his stuff.
Have fun!!!
Duration : 0:8:38