December Tarotscopes

This post continues our monthly tarotscope series with Solaris the Hii Priestess, one of our regular exhibiting artists and routine collaborators. Each month, Solaris draws cards for each astrological sign and interprets your forecast.

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Capricorn - Page of Wands 

You have been gifted by the universe a new creative vision or idea! The page is giving you the spirit of adventure and the enthusiasm to try something new. This is a time for you to freely express yourself in a new way (art, travel, work) without worrying. Challenge yourself to think outside of the box and let the divine universe use you as a vessel. 

Aquarius - The Star  

Aquarius, you are associated with Star card in tarot; what a lucky time! This month will be about rebirth and rejuvenation. The universe is giving you hope to believe again after a hard time. The Star is associated with the number 8, which is related to the completion of cycles and strength. You have completed a new cycle in your life; it’s time to bring in the new. What perfect timing for a new year to begin. It’s your time to shine.

Pisces - Death  

Cycles begin and cycles end. This is a time for radical transformation Pisces. It’s not going to be an easy transition and there will be some resistance when you feel uncertain, but trust the process and convince yourself that surrendering will be better for you in the long run. Forgive yourself for past mistakes and move forward. It was an experience. Embrace a new beginning and grow. 

Aries - The Moon  

Our instincts are buried in our subconscious; are you paying attention to your shadow self Aries ? The Moon card comes up to challenge your judgement and intuition. Are you being honest with yourself? Are you checking your intentions and everyone that you have around? 

Taurus - 10 of Swords 

Sometimes we have no control over our circumstances, but how do you plan on dealing with it when it affects you negatively Taurus? Do you act as a victim or do you understand that the spirit realm gives you challenges to help you advance in the long run? This month look at challenges as a test that you can pass. 

Gemini - Queen of Pentacles 

This is a time of putting your talents to use Gemini, for it could bring you new opportunities to expand your coins! Queens love to live in luxury with the comfort of what money can bring. Create the vision of the life you want to live. It’s time to clean house and prioritize what is important to nurture and grow .

Cancer - Page of Cups 

A wonderful surprise could be in store for you Cancer! Perhaps there is something you have been contemplating or trying to reconnect with that will show up. Your energy is a powerful thing and the universe always says yes to the vibrations that you put out. Make sure that you are expressing gratitude for what’s to come! 

Leo - 9 of Pentacles 

The number 9 deals with choice and fate. Your choices now will affect your fate. Pentacles deals with the element of Earth and money. All of your hard work and sacrifices are paying off. Ease up on yourself a little; it’s okay to congratulate yourself on your progress no matter how small or big it is Leo. Stay disciplined and your needs will always be met. 

Virgo - King of Swords  

Naturally, Virgo, you are a quick thinker with sharp intellect. Swords deals with the mind and a King deals with fire and passion, calling you to be the ruler of your mind. Cut through any deception by using your logic. Kings have the responsibility of running their kingdom and making rational decisions. Your happiness depends on you inspecting your life and cutting off what no longer serves you. 

Libra - 6 of Swords  

The number 6 is giving you an opportunity to learn something new and to improve your imperfections. Swords is dealing with your mind, indicating that there is a journey that is ahead of you caused by sorrow from past actions. Take this time move to forward and heal Libra. 

Scorpio- The Emperor  

The Emperor is associated with the number 4 which deals with balance and symmetry. This is a father-like energy that exudes authority. Look for wisdom from within or from an elder in your life. Your focus should be on building structure and stability. Remove distractions to achieve a solid foundation. 

Sagittarius- 3 of Wands 

Wands deals with the element of fire  and creativity; the number 3 in tarot deals with complexity or cooperation. You have a lot of different ideas which could lead you to be scatterbrained. You can pursue all things but focus on one at time. Create a checklist and set goals; don’t allow your fire to fizzle out from being overwhelmed. Lean on supportive people who will help you stick with completing your task .

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A note from Solaris: Allow me Solaris The Hii Priestess, to give you a spiritual forecast for this upcoming week. My goal is to give you insight and awareness from the cards that I pull. As a tarot reader, my job is to make you aware and present of your current energy and to explore what is in your subconscious. I want to help you find closure and put you at ease if you are facing a tough decision. I am not a psychic—I consider myself a holistic counselor. 

Meet URL Resident Artist Marianna Pasaret

“I want to share the way I view the world with other people.”

Below, artist Marianna Pasaret talks about her process, compares digital sketching to traditional drawing, and discusses her latest project, THE HEART. Look out for her work at our December 13 meet. 

How do you know you’re an artist (besides the obvious)?

As cheesy as this may sound, every moment is a movie for me. I sometimes doze off and stare into my surrounding environment envisioning people duplicating as they walk past me or their shadows turning colors and then forming a path behind them. I’m always making something in my head and I know that I want to share the way I view the world with other people. I know that I’m an artist because I find the way to translate these thoughts to something physical that others can see and touch. 

Tell us about your process, from conception to execution.

I have a small notebook I carry with me almost everywhere I go where I like to write down random thoughts and dreams. Usually when I’m out, I try and appreciate little things and write them down. I tend to draw most late at night so when I feel inspired, I go through my notebook and try and focus on a certain moment or feeling. Once I’ve found the idea that I want to focus on, I pick a song or an artist and I pretty much just listen to them on replay until I feel that a work is finished. 

What about the digital sketch format inspires you? What does this medium allow you to do that traditional sketching doesn’t? Vice versa?

Digital sketching allows me to go anywhere and use any medium I want. It allows me to try different looks to a piece; I can change colors/objects in it without any consequences. It’s also very quick to use, so when I don’t have a lot of time it’s rewarding to be able to create something in one hour or so. However, traditional sketching gives you a certain randomness that a computer can’t. Digital sketching can sometimes feel staged or static. 

With the digital sketches, you use a lot of layering of images and then of your sketch. Where are you sourcing those images? Do they have meaning to the work besides aesthetics? 

The layering in my digital sketches comes after I draw. After I finish my sketch, I go back on some of my favorite artist’s work and either try and replicate their brush work or use a part of their actual work in my drawing. Each of them have different meaning for the drawings. In my female portraits, I would study works from other artists and would try to pair them with the woman I was drawing or simply how I felt when I was working on her portrait. The meaning is more personal and describes either how I view the individual I drew or who I was when I drew them. 

What was the impetus for THE HEART? Most of your work is done in a digital sketch format; why the leap in medium?

The Heart has been a project I have wanted to make for over a year now but I never had the space or time to actually execute it. Sketching has always been my comfort zone; it’s fairly easy and enjoyable for me. However during the summer I began to question what I wanted to do as an artist in the future and I had identified the heart to be present in many of my works. I wanted to test myself as an artist and see if I could create a project of that size by myself. It was a challenge for me. 

Has creating THE HEART affected your use of the heart symbol, or the anatomical heart, in your work?

Absolutely, since the project was going to be focused on just a heart I needed to really dive in and understand what it stood for so by knowing more about it I could apply it in more ways. After working on it for several months, it's almost become a symbol of my growth too. 

How has your work evolved since you first began to the present? How do you foresee it evolving in the next few years? Are there any constant themes?

When I first began to draw I would refuse to work with anything but black and white. All my pieces were in ink. My first drawings were not realistic at all but it was because I didn’t think I was capable of making portraits. I’ve always wanted to challenge myself since I get bored pretty fast, so portraits became my first challenge. From ink i went to graphite, then to gouache, digital (still in black and white; it wasn’t until recently that I started adding color) and finally, sculpture in silicone. No matter how many times I switch the media, the woman has always been present in my works. I’ve always asked myself why; I used to go to Catholic school when I first started drawing and I enjoyed getting a reaction out of people when they saw my art so the naked female body would do that. Afterwards it became more of an appreciation of it and as I grew it was a form of empowerment for me as a woman. 

We Asked: What Is Your Resistance?

At our last meet, we asked 'What is your resistance?' You answered by telling of both who and what you resist and of how you practice resistance in daily life, referencing both politics and personal demons. We've collected a select few of your answers below. 

Be sure to check for our Topic Question booth at our next meet, happening December 13 at Empire Control Room. 

EAST Roundup: Studios & Events You Don't Want to Miss

The East Austin Studio Tour returns this weekend, and with it, the art of Austin's talented pool of women creators, including former Boss Babes ATX collaborators like Dawn Okoro. We'll be out and about this weekend and next soaking up the artistic expression of our painting, sculpting, and creating peers. Below, we've listed a few favorites that we'll be hitting up so that you won't miss them.

You can find the full catalog of participating artists here. 

Artists

Women's Empowerment ART Show, #275

Women in Transition: Chery Henderson, #47

In the morning, I am all I ever wanted to be, copper and acrylic on wood panel, 24x36 inches, Dawn Okoro

Deconstructed Vixens: Dawn Okoro, #343

Ella Nilsson, #35

Kristin Moore Nathan, #331

Virginia Brown, #77

Katy David, #53

The Liberation of Five Carnival Ponies on the Wings of Patsy Cline, Judith Smith

Los Nichos: Judith Smith, #58

Claire Bresette, #64

Jennifer Balkan, #76

Heidi Pitre, #6

Nikki Alexander Atkinson

Nikki Alexander Atkinson, #75

Events

Keep Austin Creating
November 19, 12 - 4 p.m.
Austin School of Film, 2200 Tillery Street

Entre Seres
November 11, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Nepantla, 1209 E. Cesar Chavez St.

Doc's List Austin Austin Dance Project
November 18, 11 a.m. - November 19, 6 p.m.
Soma Vida, 2324 E. Cesar Chavez Street

17th Melanated Market Place
November 11, 11 a.m.
Tony's Jamaican Food, 1200 E. 11th Street

The Moon Collective Presents: EAST 2017 (A Ceramics Show)
November 11 + 12, November 18 + 19
705 Gunter St.

EAST Community Breakfast
November 11, 9 - 11:30 a.m.
1300 E. 5th Street

Studio East at Friends & Neighbors
November 11 - 12, November 18 - 19, 11 a.m.
Friends & Neighbors, 2614 E. Cesar Chavez Street

Artist's Reception: EAST SciArtist Pop-Up
November 10, 6 - 9 p.m.
Art.Science.Gallery., 916 Springdale Road, Building 2, #102

A Letter From Our Founder: What is a Brave Space?

Image via @slvtcult

Last weekend, I was invited to participate in a photo series in Chicago for #TheBanshees, an anti-harassment photography project created by artists Kate Warren and Maggie Famiglietti (each involved in SLVT CULT), through the creative group, Cliche Collective. Under the downpour of the Midwest rain, we took to the back alley of an art studio in our stilettos, mesh tops and bustiers, each dressed in items we typically wouldn't wear for fear of unsolicited attention.

At first, it was awkward—we were giggly, huddled under umbrellas, unfamiliar with each other. Shy, we staged a couple of group portraits and attempted to loosen up. We chatted about times we felt unsafe in public or around those we trusted. But those stories were laced with grief. I began to wonder if any of us could perform anger on cue, since it was apparent that we had each been subject to sexual assault and abuse in ways that had left us hurting and sensitive.

I didn't wonder long. While we were figuring out our next pose, an onlooker began photographing us through his apartment window. Watching the flashes of each shot from the street, we collectively howled. Ollie, one of the event's co-organizers, thrust her umbrella up at his window, and he quickly shut his blinds. Experiencing that moment as a group, the ice was somewhat broken. And the reality of what we were performing set in.

Cold and wet, we were each pulled away for single portraits. We stormed at Kate, fixating on her lens like we would on an attacker, funneling our frustration into her camera, middle fingers flying. We screamed. We kicked. We cursed. And as we cycled through our individual sessions, we talked about #metoo. We talked about what we do when we're actually angry. We talked about our own problematic issues with violence and abuse. Then, with the rain coming down a little harder and the mood softened and reflective, we headed upstairs to chat about the concept of "safe space" and each answer the question: What is a brave space?

For some of us, a brave space looked like home. It looked like trust and love and friends. For the organizers, it looked like the photoshoot. For me, it looked like a community meet-up. We didn't really reach a consensus, because safety and comfortability are personal. We did agree that "brave spaces" are still dangerous and that safety was and hadn't been guaranteed, even in the spaces we feel safest.

So, are we ever safe? If not, what is a brave space? And if if those spaces are personal, how do we make one for larger groups? And if they still could be dangerous, why should we? Are we destined to be governed by fear?

I've been thinking on that for the last few weeks. I do believe in the power of free will, in the power of trial and error and iterating until you learn how to be better. I do think it's OK to call people out and, in turn, accept when you've also made a mess of things. I think it's good to be loud, despite the consequences. Yet as I explore these things I believe, I am confronted by my own dissenting voices. Voices that tell me it is safer to stay inside, to stay home and to stay out of things that might get me into trouble, that might disrupt.

So, how do I advocate for safety, without also opening myself up to danger? How do I create spaces that allow for diversity of opinion, without policing opinion out? And, in a very real sense, if safety is on me to create, am I responsible for the behavior of my former abusers? Should I have been the one to enforce boundaries? Have I ever been safe at all?

As existential and counterintuitive as those questions can seem, they're the kinds of things that keep me up at night. Our concepts of safety are embedded into our built and social environments, these written/unspoken agreements that guide how things work. They're created by people—created by us—and governed by a set of rules. Our daily interactions are part of larger systems (regulatory systems, social systems, economic systems, etc.) and they're put in place for our safety.

We make coalitions, follows rules, participate in politics, etc. to ensure our own financial, physical and mental protection. And, of course, they're not perfect. It should come as no surprise that these systems have been largely formed by the most powerful. Thus, it can also be assumed that these systems likely leave out the consideration of other voices, like anything largely dominated by one group, there will always be a margin of error... oversight. And moreover, it can also be assumed that any abuses of power will be magnified once this system is in place at scale. 

When we hear that violence against women, sexual assault, lack of inclusivity, transphobia, racism, etc. occurs within and through systems that have been created to keep us safe, we're shocked. "Society," "the industry," "the patriarchy" become targets, and we're pointing fingers. We oppose it. We create a distance. We claim we would never, have never and could never. Or we completely disengage from the topic in its entirety, feeling protected by our own social circles, our own little bubbles.

Yet we know this is how rape culture and violence survives. So, who is to blame, and how do we begin to repair?

After sitting on this for a while, I'm in the camp that thinks there's no right answer, but there are things to be done. These systems are our bubbles. They're actually our friends. It's me. It's my dad. It's my grandfather and my mother. It's my best friend from college. It's everyone we know, and it's everywhere we go, and it's on us to shape them into something better. That's not to say that everyone we know and love is evil. Or that victims and survivors are responsible for allowing abusers in. Or that some spaces are not safer than others. (I can definitively say that spaces governed by women, in my experience, have been more safe for women.)

Rather, I'm learning it's never binary or black and white—that safety is not a destination or a sticker or something we achieve by programming compassion and praying for goodness.

It's a gray area of daily bravery. It's a risk, and sometimes we suffer that risk. It's often doing something that actually combats the dominant narrative, speaking out of turn, standing up to those who are more powerful. It can be big, like exposing your abuser to the world, or it can be small, like reacting to anger with love. Which means that in the process of being brave, in the process of protecting ourselves and experiencing life, we might and do get burned. 

'bell hooks says it better than I can:

“I’m pretty critical of the notion of safety in my work, and what I want is people to feel comfortable in the circumstance of risk because I think if we wait for safety, the bell hooks that wasn’t sure if she could get on the stage with Janet Mock would never have gotten on that stage. The bell hooks that was afraid of ‘what if I use the wrong words, what if I say the wrong thing’ would have stopped myself. And so to me, I’m very interested in what it means for us to cultivate together a community that allows for risk, the risk of knowing someone outside your own boundaries, the risk that is love—there is no love that does not involve risk. I’m a little wary because white people love to evoke the ‘safe spaces’ and I have a tendency to be critical of that, but I do believe that learning takes place in the harmonious space, the space that you and I are embodying tonight.” at 49:00-50:05, bell hooks “A Public Dialogue Between bell hooks and Laverne Cox

I'm with bell hooks. Safety from judgment from harassment, from racism, from abuse, is a privilege—and with privilege comes responsibility. It's not a given, but the lack of it shouldn't hold us back.

We cut ourselves away from really important things, like love and excitement and curiosity and boldness, when we refuse to operate unless we're guaranteed a level of certainty.

So, what is a brave space?

To me, it's recognizing our blind spots. Using privilege to expose abuses of power and protect those who have been abused by it. It's confronting the problematic nature of our own identities, cultures and faults. It's setting boundaries and enforcing them. It's accepting that our friends, our lovers and ourselves may be abusive, and that we have to hold all accountable. It's taking a risk and hoping to be understood, respected and cared for. It's education, empowerment and sharing information.

It's wildly loving others, without knowing you'll receive the same love in return.

That answer's not new. But I'm hoping that my understanding of brave space (and general uncertainty about being human) might encourage you to reach your own answer. Because as someone dealing with trauma from two abusive relationships, it's not an answer I'm particularly satisfied with. It's just the only answer I've got.

So, be brave. And to my fellow survivors, be as brave as you can.

— Jane Hervey

This Foundation is Creating an App to Help Domestic Violence Survivors

When women in Texas leave violent homes for domestic violence shelters, more than one in three are turned away due to a lack of resources, according to the Texas Council on Family Violence. After being turned away, those women must call the shelters daily to check if a spot has opened up. And only three percent of those same women will ever actually move far enough up the waitlist to enter the shelter.

Many become homeless and others return to their abusers. Others still don’t leave at all, unsure of where they’ll go next.  

“It's one of the top reasons why [women] are not leaving,” says Courtney Santana, founder and CEO of the Survive 2 Thrive Foundation which aims to address the lack of resources for survivors. She says an uncertain housing situation is “a deterrent to actually ending violence in your life because you don't know where you're going to land and once you land, how are you financially going to take care of it, especially when there's children involved?” 

The Survive 2 Thrive Foundation helps with both the landing and the follow through — what comes after leaving a violent domestic situation.

The local organization provides stipends to domestic violence survivors who have been turned away from shelters in Travis, Bell, Williamson and Milam counties. The $75 amount is enough to house a family of four for one night at any of the foundation’s partner hotels, each of which are thoroughly vetted to ensure the safety of survivors.

But that’s just step one: getting women and children who have experienced domestic violence out of harmful environments and placing them in safe ones.  

Courtney Santana, founder and CEO of the Survive 2 Thrive Foundation.

“There's so many steps after [getting out of the home] that people need support with and it's the hardest part of it,” says Santana. “Any of those [steps] can cause someone to return to a violent home.”

The foundation addresses those next steps, focusing on rebuilding a life for domestic violence survivors — not just getting them out of immediate danger. Working with survivors, Santana and the foundation created a “survivor board” or a list of obstacles that might drive a woman back into an abusive home including lack of employment, transportation or permanent housing. Each survivor who contacts the foundation is assigned an advocate who helps them work through the obstacles, or steps.

The hope is that addressing those steps will ease the burden that shelters are facing. Because according to Santana, part of the crowding at domestic violence shelters stems from the spaces’ attempts to provide auxiliary resources to survivors rather than just housing. She compares the situation to an emergency room attempting to treat routine OBGYN appointments. The foundation’s work is meant to take care of those routine appointments so shelters can focus on triage and move women more quickly through their doors, hopefully mitigating the jammed line in the process.

This month, Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the foundation began beta-testing an app that will streamline that process further by allowing women to track their “survivor board” progress, to more easily contact their advocate, and to access resources, including legal information, through a mobile phone.

The foundation hopes to get feedback from survivors and shelters using the beta version of the Sanctuary app through the end of the year before launching the full-fledged version next spring. Eventually, Santana hopes to spread the app, and the foundation’s work, nationally.

In the meantime, you can aid the Survive 2 Thrive Foundation in a few ways:

Donate

As mentioned above, $75 helps house a family of four for one night. You can donate online at the foundation’s site here.

Follow the foundation

Follow the foundation on all social channels to keep up-to-date on the work they’re doing locally. 

Attend or support an event

The foundation hosts several events throughout the year to raise money and awareness for its mission.

Next month, Survive 2 Thrive will launch its Purple Bowtie Movement focused on raising awareness for men affected by domestic violence, not just as victims, but as the loved ones of women survivors. 

And in the spring of next year, the foundation will host both a golf tournament and a concert featuring local female artists. The Empower Her concert will be held in conjunction with the release of a CD featuring the show's performers. 

Frida Fridays x #BBATX: The Arts and Alternative Economies

#supportwomenartists.

It's our motto. It's our mission. And at #bbatx, we're after the answer to one question, in particular: How do we create cultures and creative communities that prioritize and advocate for the social and financial empowerment of women artists?

Over the years, we've found that question has many answers, most of which lie in coalition-building, advocacy, accountability and the development of new social and economic networks. That's why we do events, and that's why we focus on bringing women organizers, creatives and artists together. Resource-sharing is the sh*t, y'all.

As you may already know, we regularly donate portions of our operating budget to other organizations, specifically like-minded groups that speak to and uphold our five tenets (the arts, community infrastructure, activism, entrepreneurialism, personal and professional development) in different ways. This Fall, we became the series sponsor of Frida Friday ATX, a monthly pop-up marketplace, organized by TK Tunchez, to showcase women makers of color. Read on for a little more on the series:

Frida Friday ATX is the only monthly WOC-centered marketplace in Austin. As a market, FFATX aims to support and promote the work of WOC through the creation of an alternative economy and cultural space that honors and celebrate work by women of color. Each market attracts between 300 and 500 attendees per month and features a wide array of self-identified WOC artists and entrepreneurs, while simultaneously raising funds for local community organizations and projects.

As FFATX's fall sponsor, we've worked closely with Tunchez to develop a coalition that drives our communities forward. Over the last couple of months, Tunchez has spoken on two of our panels about community-driven entrepreneurship and market organizing, vended at craftHER Market Fall '17 under her artist name, Las Ofrendas, and participated in the production of Unity in Color: ATX. We're grateful to contribute to the growth of Frida Fridays, and we're excited to continue creating sustainable relationships of support and economic growth in the Austin community with women organizers, like TK. It takes a village!

You can attend the next Frida Fridays on Oct. 20 at Kebabalicious.

If you have any questions about this partnership, shoot an email to thebabes@bossbabes.org.

October Tarotscopes from Solaris the Hii Priestess

This post is part of our monthly tarotscope series with Solaris the Hii Priestess, one of our regular exhibiting artists and routine collaborators. Each month, Solaris will draw cards for each astrological sign, and we'll publish the results. Enjoy!

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Capricorn - VII Of Wands
Self-belief is very crucial at this time, Capricorn. Although you have worked hard to reach a level of accomplishment, prepare for challenges. This could be something in your professional or personal life. You may feel like the odds are against you, because the universe will test you. Don't allow this test to take your peace; you have worked hard at picking yourself up. Use your creativity to be innovative and allow it to help you when dealing with conflict. 

Aquarius - Temperance
This card suggests you should have patience and discipline in whatever you work toward. Temperance suggests using your higher self to find harmony and a middle ground when working with others or when facing opposition. When things seem chaotic, temperance is giving you peace and telling you to have a good self-care routine so that you can execute effectively.

Pisces - Justice
Before making a decision, weigh out the pros and cons, Pisces. This card represents divine judgment, letting you know that there are consequences to whatever path you choose. Whatever situation you are in, be ready to take accountability. Make sure your head is clear and you are balanced by intuition and logic. Make sure that you communicate effectively about what you want. 

Aries - 7 of Swords
Self-awareness is when you are mindful of everything that you do, Aries. Before being blunt, consider the delivery of your message. I know that it isn't easy when dealing with difficult people, but consider their feelings around this particular situation. The 7 of Swords is asking you to be the bigger person. Allow self-awareness to give you power.

Taurus - 4 of Pentacles
It is time to be mindful of your finances , if you have been spending a little more than usual it is time to have some discipline. strength comes from knowing that you have the control of your actions.It is okay to invest in yourself but make sure that the money that you are spending matches what money is coming in. The universe is putting you in a position to attract money and do the right thing with for future plans. Think of the bigger picture !

Gemini - The World
The world symbolizes completion and that a goal has been reached. This cards carries the message of maturity, wisdom and a cycle ending. You understand yourself better and now is the time to appreciate your trials and journey. You can give back with the knowledge that you have attained. Celebrate your victory, Gemini, because you have accomplished a goal that you set out to conquer (and selflessness is good act of kindness).

Cancer - The Magician
Self-awareness is the key to  fulfillment cancer make sure that your desires are in alignment with your vision. The magician is the creator and the alchemist of the deck ,he reminds you that You are the creator of your own life , and you are capable of getting what you want . It's time to get out into the world and make it happen for yourself. Have confidence in yourself and allow your light to shine through .

Leo - 9 of Swords
It's okay to be wrong, Leo. The 9 of Swords suggest that you are extremely disappointed by something/someone that you trusted. You had to experience this in order to become wiser, and you may have even felt anxiety or lost sleep over it. Once this has been viewed as a lesson, and not a loss, the sooner you will be able to take action and move forward. 

Virgo - Queen of Pentacles
It's your time, Virgo! The Queen symbolizes a generous and nurturing woman who is secure  and aware. She has gained wisdom and intuition but she is still exploring her motives. This card is telling you to do research, before you jump in head-first on a big project or commitment. Be resourceful and practical, Queen! 

Libra - The Moon  
When this card appears, this is a sign that important cycles are going to end and begin. We are all heavily influenced by the moon, just like the ocean's tides. Stay present during this time, as things could be revealed during this cycle. This card is not good or bad but just a confirmation to be mindful of what you are avoiding. Listen to your intuition and stop running away from your fear. 

Scorpio - King of Wands
This card is telling you to be a leader. Perhaps you have not embraced this side of yourself but it is in you. The Wands deals with passion and creativity. You need to take charge of your creativity, Scorpio, and be proactive about your vision. Challenge yourself to take control of what you do with your time. 

Sagittarius - Strength
This card represents power and self-discipline. Instead of resisting change or hardship, try to understand why this challenge has been thrown your way. This card is telling you to conquer the beast within, which includes negative thoughts, addictive behaviors and procrastination. 

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A note from Solaris: Allow me Solaris The Hii Priestess, to give you a spiritual forecast for this upcoming week. My goal is to give you insight and awareness from the cards that I pull. As a tarot reader, my job is to make you aware and present of your current energy and to explore what is in your subconscious. I want to help you find closure and put you at ease if you are facing a tough decision. I am not a psychic—I consider myself a holistic counselor. 

Filigree Theatre Is Austin's Newest Women-Led Company

Elizabeth V. Newman hails from New York — born and raised, with a detour in Los Angeles on the life path between there and here. Stephanie Moore is an Austin native whose roots go deep in the local scene. The pair likes to joke that they are two halves of the same brain.

The close collaborators are in fact the two halves of Austin’s newest theater group, Filigree Theatre, which hopes to connect the local theater community with the greater national community in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.

The company takes its ethos and its mission from its name. “Filigree” is derived from Latin words meaning both thread (“filum”) and seed (“granum”).

Though Austin is known for its music and its independent film scene, Newman points out, the theater community here — talented as it may be — continues to fly under the national radar, due in part to shrinking performance space.

The “thread” is meant to be a corrective to that circumstance, while Newman and Moore hope the “seed” part of the equation germinates the creative energy and talent that exists here already. Filigree also hopes to weave theatric experiences by incorporating creatives from other fields, including film and choreography into its thread-connected company.

Community, of course, is important to any group creative effort, but in theater, the need for shared space is immediate; it’s the whole point.

“The ephemerality of it is that it's there. It has to take place in that site with live bodies on stage and live bodies in the audience. . . hearing the breath, feeling the blood of the people on stage and the people around you is a community experience,” says Newman.

Filigree Theater kicked off the first production of its inaugural season last Thursday with “Betrayal,” a play about the deception inherent in a love triangle, that runs through Sunday, October 8, at the Santa Cruz Theatre.

The season will continue with two more plays, both written by women: one to celebrate theatre’s present (A Delicate Ship by Anna Ziegler) and one to celebrate its future (Trio by Sheila Cowley).

Filigree Theatre will also co-produce Stage One, a workshop series that stages readings by professional actors of new works by rising screenwriters and playwrights — seeds, if you will.

The series is just another example of the company’s obviously passionate adherence to its purpose to “celebrate the rich history of theater but also give voice to new artists and emerging writers.”

To learn more about Filigree Theatre's 2017-2018 season, visit filigreetheatre.com.

Meet #bossbabesATX's Fall URL Resident Artist DJ Mahealani

The first mermaids were a strike of inspiration — the culmination of influences DJ Mahealani had waded through along her way in life including La Sirene, Voudou, musical artists and the pervasive water metaphors that entered her dreams while living in Maui.  

The DJ started rendering her favorite musicians and artists as sirens in July and has now created more than 80 of the magical creatures she hopes will function as more diverse, more creatively inclined Disney princesses for young girls, like those she works with part time. Though mixing and layering music helps pay the bills, collage is a more personal form of expression for Mahealani who makes her art just because she “want[s] to look at it and feel something.”

Below, the artist discusses how the mermaids — the whole pod of them — came to be.

How do you know you’re an artist (besides the obvious)?

I was raised with a small town/old school country tradition of leatherwork (my dad) and sewing/ quilt making (my mom) — but out of necessity of saving money, not to make any money. If you wanted something [growing up], it was necessary to be creative and figure out how to make it yourself, but none of that was considered or called art in my house. Also, my older sister (by 9 years) was always really talented at drawing and my parents actually got her art supplies when they could, so she was called an artist in my family. I could never draw or paint like her, although I did try! Because of that I never called myself an artist until I was grown and out of my parents’ house, even though I stayed creative, sewing thrift store finds, making collages, making cassette mixes and jewelry — all kinds of things growing up. I was basically using what I had on hand to create my world because I didn’t feel like I fit into the world as it was in front of me. I never took art classes. I was an honors kid that dressed weird in middle and high school.

After college, my sister and I were super close. I moved in with her in Maui where she lives as a professional artist to help take care of her daughter, my niece. I was/am really into reading; Toni Morrison is one of my favorites and I really wanted my sister to read her because of parts of our family history. My sister shared with me that she never considered herself a book reader; she knew how to read just fine, but never really considered herself “smart.” That blew me away because I always thought of her as smart. And, at the same time, I shared with her that I never considered myself an artist. That blew her away. So that day, we gave ourselves permission to be both. That’s when I started thinking of myself as and calling myself an artist. (And she fell in love with Toni Morrison too.)

When did mermaids become a part of your imagery? What was the impetus?

When I started [creating the mermaid collages] this summer, I had no idea I’d make 100 of them in a span of a couple of months. The first one I made, I happened to come across that picture from the 1999 VMAs of Diana Ross and Lil' Kim (where Diana Ross is tapping Lil Kim’s boob) and it just hit me in some kind of way and I wanted to make it into digital art somehow for me to enjoy. In the picture, their legs were cut off behind the podium so I just decided to give them mermaid tails.

After I made that first one, every time an artist would float through my mind, I’d see them with a mermaid tail. Next thing you know, I made a Dolly Parton [mermaid], followed by Aaliyah and Selena [mermaids] and they just made me so happy to look at. After I'd made the first five or so, I was reflecting on the first two I'd made (Diana/Lil' Kim and Dolly) and it hit me that Diana was in black — a new moon elder — and Dolly was in silver and gold — a full moon elder. Both [were] older than Lil' Kim in the middle. Mahealani means the fullest blossoming of the moon and was given to me in a dream in Hawaii, so when moon ideas show up, I pay attention. So I got curious and realized I really appreciated the support between those two different aged women in that moment. And then I laughed because Lil' Kim has her boob out and Dolly — well, she is about those boobs! So there was this epiphany about women’s bodies and how women navigate their pride and womanness and all that without becoming prey. Both of those things were connecting to very personal things in my own life, so at this point these mermaids were getting deep for me. And I couldn’t stop making them — up to three or four a day sometimes.

I appreciated how each artist I chose dealt with their emotions differently in their art and music. And I reflected on how I wanted to appreciate that more within myself. I knew how so many times women are called overly sensitive, many times by men with their own anger and insecurity issues. I also knew I carried shame about feeling overly sensitive, but at the same time a good radar, antennae and many other things are very sensitive and that’s a good thing. So I needed to redefine that for myself. Seeing these mermaids I was creating was doing that for me. There was no shame or judgement from me when I’d feel the emotion of their art and they were helping me grow that for myself. It hit me that symbolically our mermaid tails are how and why we feel so much in the waters around us: a symbol of our sensitivity and also the muscle we need to swim through and navigate all of that emotion.

Why mermaids? What inspires you about that form?

Moving to Maui after college graduation deepened my mermaid connection in all kinds of ways beyond the obvious ocean. I found that my journal entries for those three years I lived there were all about feeling like I was underwater — metaphors about drowning/swimming/floating/sinking/ seeing things as if they were underwater all over the place. My collages at the time tended to have a fish in the sky somewhere or a mermaid, as if my whole world was the ocean itself. During and after college, I took Afro-Haitian dance, where I learned the ocean connection in Voudou and about La Sirene, a Lwa that lives under the sea and rules music. And somewhere between Maui and dancing in that class, this kind of mermaid metaphor was born that keeps swimming back around every few years with something for me to learn.  

Why have you rendered musicians and artists in particular as mermaids? How do you choose who to feature?

I didn't set out with a specific idea of who I would make into mermaids. Frida Kahlo was my sixth [mermaid] I think, and soon after I made one of Octavia Butler and I wondered if I'd be compelled to make Toni Morrison, for example, but at this point I haven't [been]. All the rest have been people in music. And as I saw that, my deejay brain began making mind mixes of the musicians I chose and just kept thinking of women in music that have inspired me in some way over the years. So many — and so many total badasses I believe are overlooked and under appreciated compared to male counterparts many times.  

Somewhere in all this, it hit me that I want to make a DJ divination deck out of them so that folks can consult the mermaids, pull from the deck and make a healing playlist. And then reflecting back on the Frida and Octavia mermaids, I suddenly saw them as representing quiet in the midst of all that sound — a break time for no music — which is really important to me too. Go look at art. Go read a book — that kind of silence helps the listening brain too in my opinion. So for right now, I am feeling they will be my only non-musicians. I was remembering La Sirene and the fact that I am a deejay and so making music mermaids felt like it was for her too — in her honor, being a ruler of music and all.

And I get to work and play with kids part time and so I see little brown girls of all shades with too many white princess backpacks and I was listening to mamas talk about how hard it is to find black and brown mermaids for their black and brown daughters and I began fantasizing about little girls seeing these mermaids instead. And how music helped me as a kid and how way before there was the Disney Little Mermaid, there was La Sirene and Yemoya and Oshun and Mami Wata and it all kind of began swirling together into this thing I dove into.   

What does the collage medium give you that music/deejaying can’t and vice versa?

One of my favorite things is the alchemy of juxtaposition and collage and deejaying are both that. Whether it’s a mermaid tail on Bjork or a Grace Jones record mixed with Outkast wax, worlds are born and it’s fun to see what happens. That’s my jam! I think that’s why I figured out how to teach myself both.

So far the biggest difference for me is that compared to my visual art, with deejaying I have learned to hustle and pay bills from it. I see how the more I’ve been able to make money deejaying, the less room I may have to play as creatively and personally as I used to. I can’t get fully lost telling a story with my records on a Saturday night downtown when folks just want to dance. (To hear that find me at Mixcloud.com.) There are some songs I can get tired of playing, but when they make folks happy I just do it for the people anyways. Little choices like that are made all the time with my deejaying. I also have to have booking and money conversations that my sensitive artist heart has had to learn to distance from in a lot of ways.   

My collage I only do because i want to look at it and feel something in particular. It’s way more personal and I don’t go out of my way to make money from it. It’s also super compulsive. It hits me, I honor it with the work of creation and it flows through. I very recently opened a Redbubble account so folks can buy some of my art on stickers and T-shirts online — but only after the suggestion of another artist after many folks kept telling me they wanted a poster or a shirt or whatever with my art. I don’t make much money from it, but I also don’t have to spend any money upfront either. It’s very manageable for me right now.  

Will you give us five life recommendations?

Paradise by Toni Morrison.

Native plants and the birds, bees and butterflies that love them.

A frozen tank top or bra: Keep in a backpack to change into after riding a bike or loading in equipment in the summer.  

All of the Missy Elliott music videos.

Mistakes. I never learned to stand up surf until I wasn’t afraid to fall. I never got better at deejaying until I wasn’t scared of sounding bad. The smartest women I know make mistakes and learn from them.

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You can catch DJ Mahealani at our Oct. 24 meet, spinning vinyl and slinging a few of her Siren prints. The 11x17 prints are available for $25 and all proceeds benefit Hurricane Harvey and Puerto Rico relief efforts.