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Lisa Majors |
Art by Lisa
Las Americas Series
"A Celebration of Arts & Culture"
"A Personal Journey"
"A Look on the Wild Side!"
"God's Creatures"
"Buyer's Bargains"
Race Horse Series
"A Tribute to the Big Race! "
"Art in another Dimension"
"Art into Marketing"
Lisa Majors
Art is what I do for enjoyment, to make a statement, to remember a moment in time, to decorate walls, to sustain a living, and to leave something of value behind.
Video is the medium I use to share an idea, a message, a particular place, an interesting person, an event,
or a glimpse of human nature.These are my two passions in life.
The Artist Painter
I knew that I loved art as early as the first grade. My mother was a photographer and we did many craft projects together. We also spent many hours going ceramic classes when I was young. My grandmother always had crayons and color books for my brothers and me to help pass the summertime blahs. My aunt Margie encouraged me to do art projects and bought me supplies. My other grandmother always had a handy chalkboard and colored chalk and allowed me artistic freedom.
In the 1980’s I created some artwork but really never had an interest in showing or selling them. It was just a hobby. I have kept most of my art since then which includes mostly wildlife, flowers, some palette knife paintings, and color pencil drawings. Last year I decided to start selling my art after my divorce and a change in my financial status. It forced me to become a serious painter and really explore the possibilities of selling my art during a challenging time of economic upheaval. Newly remarried, I feel as though I have started a new phase in my life and have begun to create works of art that I can be proud of and most important for others to enjoy.
Graphic Artist
In high school I took as many art classes as possible. In college I took some art classes but found more interest in digital media when my art teacher told me to stick to one style of art. I refused and found myself learning graphic design and desktop publishing and a new way to make art. Miami-Dade Community College had just added a new desktop publishing class and new software that would revolutionize graphic design from traditional linotype and hand cutting and pasting to an electronic publishing system. I became a student of the first electronic publishing class-Photoshop 101-and with my love for art I was able to adapt quickly.
I was a mother of four boys at the time and not willing to jump into the work force so I freelanced for many years working with small businesses creating ad campaigns, logos, flyers, t-shirts, CD covers, brochures and everything in-between. Eventually I began taking on larger clients that included Parrot Jungle and Gardens, the yearly Haitian Festival, and some Latin-American Airlines.
Video Artist
While living in Miami and doing freelance graphics, my boys and I became very interested in acting and modeling. We ran to auditions almost daily and had great success doing commercials and international print jobs for five years. After a while, we wanted more of a challenge and had Hollywood on the radar. We moved across the country.
Los Angeles is the giant in film industry but fiercely competitive and cut-throat. It was not the place for newcomers. The boys were competing with veteran kid actors and not faring too well. The actor’s strike and ‘run-away productions’ made it virtually impossible to get any good acting jobs in Los Angeles so I worked as a background actor or extra just to see how big movies were made. It was an eye-opening experience. Hollywood movie-making was like a smooth-sailing ship and everyone exercised their duty with precision.
My graphic skills landed me a job with Stevie Wonder’s finance at that time but that was short lived when they broke up. I turned my interests toward learning video production. I was able to use knowledge of the film industry from the East and West Coast, my love for art, merge my graphic skills, and music appreciation into one package. It became my new art form. California became too expensive and the crime was bad so we moved back to my home state, Arkansas.
Asi Asi TV
Arkansas was my home but I felt it needed a lot maturing when it came to understanding the Latin culture. After all, I married a Latino, lived in Miami which is predominately Cuban, Central and South American, and I learned a wealth of knowledge being so closely connected to the culture and the people. My children were of both cultures and never felt discriminated against until moving back to Arkansas. I felt like I could do something to bridge the gap. That’s when I summoned my longtime friend, Rocio Schult, a native Costa Rican who agreed to help me launch a bilingual television series called “Asi Asi Just Like That”. She and I hosted, produced, gathered talent, did fundraising and took on the pain-staking cultural project with haste and fervor. She also helped with a children’s language and travel video called “Emilio’s Adventures” which features my youngest son, Emilio. Each video teaches kids basic Spanish words while traveling to a new destination.
Other documentaries I have produced include a study of the Arkansas motorcycle culture called “Biker Stories’. It won a Silver Ten Award in the International Sport Film Festival in Mumbai, India and Honorable Mention in Milan, Italy in 2007. My first documentary featured a talented, award-winning local artist, Gail Stoops and has been shown in several film festivals across the U.S.
NWAtalent.com Founder
Upon moving back to Arkansas, I was amazed to see so many talented musicians, artists, designers, and dancers. I started NWAtalent.com, a non-profit creative talent website because it was important to me to bring attention to creative individuals like myself in the Northwest Arkansas area. NWAtalent.com was designed to stimulate economic development through a collective talent display, social and business networking, and opens the doors to opportunities to utilize local creative talent. It is a free listing for residents of Northwest Arkansas.
NWAtalent.com has helped many residents in the Arkansas area get jobs, network, and expose their talents online. It is still operating after seven years. Many talent-based companies have come and gone over the years but we have managed to keep it going on a shoestring budget. We hope to get some sort of support from area businesses this year to help cover our costs of operation. It has been a great service for the community to be able to search for talent and find everything from actors, singers, dancers, musicians, artists, production crew, writers, and more on NWAtalent.com!
Near Future, New Projects
In 2009 I decided to sell my artwork locally and working towards expanding to other states. I hope to create a permanent space for my most significant artwork here in my home state in the near future. It is my dream to convert a chicken house to an art gallery featuring my art along with others who wish to do the same. To my knowledge, I don’t believe it has been done before.
My newest video project, “Crazy Green”, features my husband, Paul Majors and I building one of the greenest homes in America called an “Earthbag Dome Home”. Paul is a mechanical contractor servicing many commercial restaurants in our area. His engineering knowledge and my artistic touch make a good team for building this alternative living space.So far we have five online videos informing others how to create this house for less than $5000. I am submitting it to several film festivals as a work-in-progress to generate interest in our green project and how to save money building an earth-conscious home. Already my house design is being used by others with similar interest. Paul and I will also be showing people green energy methods, recycled material uses, and many other earth saving projects.
Comments
"I'm from Little Rock originally, but was visiting Bentonville when my sister ran the Bentonville Half Marathon on Saturday. I stopped in B' LaRue and saw your artwork, all on canvases about 12" square, flowers. I LOVED THEM. They're exactly what I wanted for a hallway in my apartment. I bought two, and think they're wonderful. Much better than the mass-produced art at Bed Bath and Beyond. Just wanted to give you my compliments on your work. I'm glad I supported a local artist."
-Ben Lieblong
www.AsiAsi.tv
