The Dude Abides

Once in awhile, if you're ever so aware with new eyes, you're given opportunities to catch a glimpse at how completely messy and yet profoundly beautiful being human really is. It's qualities seem to contrast and intertwine all at once. Fragility and constancy. Peace and war. Nurturing and using. Creativity and stagnation. Hope and disappointment. Joy and sorrow. Pain and love. Life and death. 

As created beings (both physical and spiritual) we are able to look past the outer more tangible sights and deeper into the more inner metaphysical concepts. Being human is the journey. And the journey is being human. And all of it...the good, the bad, the beautiful, the ugly, the joy, the sorrow, and especially the never ending questions...it's all relevant to the eternal questions: Who Am I? Why Am I Here? 

For each of us (those who have come before, those who are, and those who are yet to arrive) the way we (humans) answer those questions (the way we choose to live) reflects (shines) on the faces of those we encounter along the way. The good, the bad...etc. Our stories are written on each other. And our stories are read by one another. And if we are ever so aware with new eyes, we will catch glimpses of each other on each other's faces, in each other's hearts, upon each other's lives; even after our life spirit has departed from our physical body.

 I have a friend who has done this kind of "painting on people's lives". He recently departed our physical presence...but he still abides in each of us who were touched by him. And we are experiencing that contrasting relevance...together. In community and collaboration, we are reflecting and shining. 

Esau "Mark" Kessler 
artist, writer, graphic designer, musician, businessman, entrepreneur, radio and online persona, art minister, father, lover, son, friend. ...and personal fan to so many!

Esau "Mark" Kessler

The "New Eyes" exhibit: The art of Esau "Mark" Kessler

   

Some examples of Esau "Mark" Kessler's art.

*Mark, your 48 years has highly impacted all those who encountered you. The world is a better place for knowing you. Thank you for living your life to the fullest, for loving yourself as you did, and in turn being able to love us as you did. We have all been encouraged by who you are, to be who we are. We are better people for knowing you. You helped us have new eyes to reflect and shine. Thank you for your friendship. I love you and miss you.* -me

Mark's memorial service was held between the Christmas and New Year holidays. An incredible amount of people from all over and all walks of life gathered together to honor and reflect the dude we so lovingly miss. He positively touched so many lives (young and old, from all backgrounds and walks of life). 

I was blessed to collaborate with my artist friend Lukas Evergreen to paint live during the service as a tribute to Mark. Mark was a huge supporter of local artists and musicians. He helped to promote Lukas and my work (individually, and jointly as the performance art company "Marten Evergreen"). Performing live at his memorial was a great honor. 

We painted to the One Republic song "I Lived" (you can play the song below).
Photos taken by Birgit Phelps and Sarah Goetter.

"I Lived"  3ftx3ft mixed media on canvas. Performed live on 12-30-14 by Marten Evergreen for Esau "Mark" Kessler

As we enter a new year, many of us (myself included), are grieving, maneuvering through pain, holding onto hope and love, and learning the oh so fragile and constant steps of the dance of joy and sorrow. May our life song be one of breathing in deeply, never giving up, reaching out, creating, making sweet memories, and loving much and loving well. May the legacy we leave behind be like the one my dear friend Mark has left...a legacy that reflects and shines with new eyes. And may it be said of us, that throughout all the beautiful mess of life..."I Lived". 

Much Aloha, my friends.


Mark has a fiance and 4 kids (with one grandchild on the way). Here is a link if you'd like to contribute to a fund helping the family out with finances in memory of Mark: 
Esau "Mark" Kessler Memorial Fund

ART IN THE BAR XI

That's right...

Sunday December 7th from Noon to 7pm at The Knitting Factory Concert House in Downtown Boise. 
Sponsored by Dead Bird Local Art & Framing.

It's the 11th installment of ART IN THE BAR!

This show is one of the best local artist shows in Boise featuring 40 local artists of the Treasure Valley displaying and selling artwork (just in time for the holidays!)

And yes...
Myself and Lukas Evergreen will be sharing a booth and we'll have new artwork for sale! We'd love to have you stop by and see us! 

STUDIO DAY!

one of my favorite things in life is when i get to create in collaboration with other creatives. i love the challenge of working side by side to create something together. the inspiration of varying skills, the compilation of differing experiences, and the cross-pollination of stimulating ideas can help cultivate and grow each others' imagination and art making. 

today was a STUDIO DAY with artist, Lukas Evergreen. Lukas and i have partnered on many creative projects together. people mostly associate us with our public performances as the performance art company, Marten Evergreen. we combine choreographed dance, music, painting, and drama and partner with other artists to create unique avant-garde performances for art events. but we've also spent a lot of time collaboratively painting together in both of our art studios. some of those paintings we've had on display but some have only been seen by us. 

we spent the day in my studio today after not having seen each other for several weeks. we decided to work on a large painting together as a way of reconnecting. we chose a rather large piece of corrugated cardboard to paint on. we used charcoals, soft pastels, acrylic paints, and latex paints as our mediums. if you were to ask us to explain our creative process...well...we had iTunes music playing, we grabbed some supplies from what he had brought and from what i had, and we just sort of went for it. i mean well you see, we've worked with each other so much and are so comfortable together that we were easily able to play off of each others' creativity. it's like we were creatively conversing. i mean we did talk, of course, but the art making became a subconscious way of being able to communicate with each other on a deeper level. it just flowed.

here's some photos and video of our time together today in studio.

Lisa drawing on cardboard with soft pastels

Lukas drawing on cardboard with soft pastels

 Lisa drawing

 Lukas applying latex paint on top of soft pastels

Lisa applying latex paint on top of soft pastels

Lukas painting 

so after about a 6-7 hour time together, here's a sneak peek of what we came up with today. it's not finished. we'll come back to it on another Studio Day to continue working on it. it sure was fun to create in collaboration this way! i can't wait till we can get together again and continue! 

Marten Evergreen performs at private party

Marten Evergreen has performed at concert venues and bars, in urban alleys and parks, and now in a backyard! Friday night the artists of Marten Evergreen got to be a part of a special event. We got to perform live at a private birthday party! It was my friend Heidi Tucker's 40th birthday and we held her a 70's hippie/summer beach party in my backyard. Along with normal birthday fanfare, we had a night packed with live entertainment. The birthday celebration was filled with live music, art, and dance. The evening started with live music performed by local musicians Gabe Miller, Kona Estes, and Molly Ellis. It progressed to the live art performance by Marten Evergreen, followed by dance party music by Sarah Goetter. The night ended with a drumming circle around the firepit. 

This was our performance area set up at the end of the backyard in a suburban housing development. 

Here are two videos, taken by one of the party-goers.

Performance: Breathe: YHWH

Performers: Lukas Evergreen, Lisa Marten, Jessie Nilo

Music: Fallen by Volbeat

part one

part two

Here is a photo of Heidi standing with the finished 2D paintings that were created during our live performance. We had stretched primed canvas onto chip board. We prepped the primed canvas by pre-painting Hebrew lettering (the Hebrew name of God: YHWH: Yahweh) and then we hid it underneath a separate piece of canvas that we stapled on top. During the performance, paint was splattered and sprayed onto the canvas and danced upon. Once the performance was over we removed the top canvas to reveal the lettering underneath. 

Marten Evergreen would like to offer the option of hiring us to perform for private parties. To learn more about us click on the Marten Evergreen tab on this blog, check out our Marten Evergreen page on Facebook. If you're interested in hiring Marten Evergreen email me at: revelatorart@yahoo.com or Lukas Evergreen at: lukasevergreen@gmail.com . If you are interested viewing and purchasing any of the 2D paintings that have been created during Marten Evergreen performances, contact us. They are on display at Nebula Shift in the Bistro Building downtown Boise. 

Marten Evergreen performs "Love Much Love Well"

 

 

Here is video of the full Marten Evergreen performance of "Love Much Love Well" performed live at The Meridian Summer Arts Festival on June 29, 2013.

 

Performers: Lukas Evergreen, Lisa Marten, Krysta Nebeker, Caid Jones, Travis Nelson

Music: violin interludes-Caid Jones, first movement-"Tomorrow, in a year" a Darwin electro opera, second movement-"Alive" Adrian Lux.
Poem: original piece written & performed by Travis Nelson
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Intro: Lukas Evergreen & Lisa Marten creating our backdrop representing Marten Evergreen

Violin Interlude: Caid Jones

First Movement: Lisa Marten, Krysta Nebeker, Lukas Evergreen, Caid Jones
this depicts when we experience disconnection & hurt & pain in relationships

Transition: Poem by Travis Nelson storytelling about 2 people's journey to find love

Second Movement: Krysta Nebeker, Lukas Evergreen, Lisa Marten
this depicts when we experience connection & unity, favoring each other in relationships

Artist Statement: (this isn't the full statement, just a summary)
Journey with us into the obstacles of relational battles as we explore the ruts and roots of love found and love lost. Pop culture and spiritual leaders today are doing a very good job of telling us to love...but are you loving well? Are you investing love with your soul? Do you truly give "shirt of the back" kind of love? Are you dancing in front of the people in your life? ...or behind them? ...or along with them? For those who have been victims of the abuse of love, are you able to reach out to yourself or others with grace to forgive? This performance is not an answer to how to love well, but it is meant to be a launching point for discussion and conversation (individually and communally) about the need for all of us to learn to not only love much but love well.

 

 

 

Art in the Bar 8

 

Dead Bird Local Art & Framing presents

Art in the Bar 8

Sunday, February 17, 2013

The Knitting Factory Concert House

416 S. 9th St.

Boise, ID

Noon-9pm

Free to the public

All ages are welcome

Full Bar with ID

 

This show will feature the local artists of Green Chutes Artists Co-op and many more (including myself and Lukas Evergreen).
 

I regret to announce that Marten Evergreen (the performance art company I co-founded with Lukas Evergreen) will not be performing at this Art in the Bar afterall...but we are in the process of planning some upcoming performances and do plan on performing at the next Art in the Bar. So stay tuned for future announcements and come on out to see us when you can. We love performing for you Boise!

 



RAWards Boise Semi-Finals 2012 : Marten Evergreen performs live

 Marten Evergreen (the performing arts company that I've co-founded with Lukas Evergreen) was nominated for Performer of the Year for RAW Artists www.rawartists.org We had the honor of competing at the RAWards Boise Semi-Finals 2012 in hopes of representing Boise in the National Finals for RAW. 

 Marten Evergreen is: 

Krysta Nebeker, Lukas Evergreen, Caid Jones, (and me) Lisa Marten

 November 15, 2012

The Revolution Concert House in Boise

We competed against 4 other performing art groups to represent Boise in the National Finals.

RAW: Natural Born Artists 

www.rawartists.org 

underground indie artists in 65 US cities competing for National awards

for visual art, fashion, music, film, performing art, photography, hair, makeup

we performed an original piece live to a packed house of art supporters. 

members of the local media gathered to cover the event. 

50% of the vote was from attendees and 50% of the vote was from 3 professional arts judges.

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MARTEN EVERGREEN

"TURMOIL OF THE EGO"

artist statement

'the normal man is not only far more immoral than he believes but also far more moral than he knows.'

-Sigmund Freud

Choices - we're faced with them every day. There's a constant struggle within us, between the extremes of the id and the superego - to satisfy ourselves, or to satisfy others, it's an internal-external, and spiritual battle that rages within. But, no matter what we do, we must choose. 

FROM ASCENDANCY TO LIBERATION

a little take on the Beatles Abbey Road...the individual ego (played by Lukas in white) is tethered by the id or spiritual influence (played by me with the red hair) and the superego or external influence (played by Krysta) and led by the conscious or internal influence (played by Caid). 

the battle of making decisions (a tug of war with ropes)...who has power and control over the individual?

within the bubble of the decision making process...the ego is bombarded by thoughts and ideas and options and choices (represented by the paint being squirted from above by the id and superego and the lighting being flashed from all around by the conscious).

another tug of war with ropes...the battle of ascendancy.

glitter thrown at the moment of liberation when a choice, a decision is finally reached by the individual. 

coming together in unity for the individual

a beautiful work of art has been created together in collaboration.

 "We are Marten Evergreen. We perform the emotions and the stories of the individual - these lead them to the need and the expression of art. The art we share is beyond the dance, beyond the paint, beyond ourselves. It is that moment, that climatic mental state, just before, that art is."

***i'm hoping to post video of the performance soon, so stay tuned***

we didn't take home the gold...but we had so much fun and had a blast performing for Boise at RAWards Semi-Finals 2012. we're appreciative of our fans and all the other artists represented. it's an honor to perform for Boise and we are so grateful for the chance to continue

 to connect and be a voice through this crazy thing called art. Keep looking for upcoming shows that we'll be performing at...cuz we're not goin away.

we are MARTEN EVERGREEN

and we are RAW Artists!

MARTEN EVERGREEN is performing for RAWards Boise Semi-Finals on November 15, 2012

That's right! Thank you to everyone who voted for us from the RAW Boise: Ensemble performance on September 20th. You helped us advance to the Semi-Finals being held at REVOLUTION CONCERT HOUSE in Boise on THURSDAY NOVEMBER 15, 2012

 

Here is the promotional video they created for us from the Ensemble performance held at The PowerHouse Event Center in Boise on September 20th.

 

We are excited for the opportunity to perform for RAW once again, with the chance to move forward to the finals being held in Los Angeles in January.

 

Regardless of the results...Marten Evergreen is all about having fun and peforming avant-garde productions with multi-mediums of art in ways that bring us to the public in hopes of connecting with our community through creativity and love.

 

If you're in the Boise area on November 15...we hope to see you at RAWards!

for more information on tickets, venue, time, and the featured artists go to:

RAWards Boise 2012 Semi-Finals 

MARTEN EVERGREEN is listed under "Lukas Evergreen"

Marten Evergreen...we are RAW Artists!

Lisa Marten, Lukas Evergreen, Krysta Nebeker

and recently joining us, Caid Jones

 

we are RAW artists!

 

we had the honor of performing live at
RAW:ensemble in Boise on September 20, 2012

www.rawartists.org/boise/ensemble  

 

"Time Spins and Love Wins"

a performance piece on time and love

 

a wise man named Paul talked about love, and how it effects community through time...and great things came of it. this piece, combining choreographed dance and painting to music, is a representation of how we effect each other (past, present, future) and if we allow Love to be our motivating force we can be a positive influence within community.

 

the audience was instructed to turn towards the back of the venue to view the large video screen hanging from the ceiling. we began our piece with a short film we created introducing Marten Evergreen and what we're about. then the audience was instructed to turn back around towards the stage to view our live performance. here are some video clips (just snippets) from our avant-garde performance taken by a member of the audience.

 





Marten Evergreen is RAW introduction film

 



Marten Evergreen RAW performance CLIP #1

 



Marten Evergreen RAW performance CLIP #2

RAW: Sept 20: ENSEMBLE

HOLD ON TO YOUR SEATS!!!

MARTEN/EVERGREEN & COMPANY

WILL BE PERFORMING LIVE ON

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 20TH, 2012

AT THE POWERHOUSE BUILDING DOWNTOWN BOISE, IDAHO

TICKETS: $10 ON-LINE, $15 AT THE DOOR

WHAT IS RAW?

www.rawartists.org

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RAW:natural born artists is an independent arts organization, for artists, by artists.

We're a community made up of creative individuals across the nation.

Our mission is to provide independent artists within the first 10 years of their career with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity.

We welcome all genres of art including independent film, fashion, music, visual art, performing art, hairstylists, makeup artists and more.

We encourage the creative success of the many visionaries and storytellers of our generation.

RAW currently operates in 54 cities across the United States & Australia and counting ...

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HOW DOES RAW WORK?

Our RAW Directors hand-pick and spotlight local artistic talent in film, fashion, music, visual art, hair & makeup artistry, and performance art. With artists from all genres in each showcase, RAW events come together to form an amazing one-night circus of creativity. These showcases occur once a month in each city location (54 showcases a month). Our RAW season runs from February-October and comes to an extravagant end with our indie arts awards show RAWards in Hollywood (Read more on RAWards below).

What can you expect when attending a RAW Showcase? You'll experience an independent film (usually a short, webisode or music video), a fashion show from an up-and-coming local designer, a musical performance, an art gallery featuring several independent visual artists and photographers, and performance art (comedy/dance/fire dancers, you name it...). You'll get a little taste of everything. Combine all this creativity with drinks, fun, and good company! To partake in the experience, RSVP ($10/ticket) to any of our 54 monthly, city showcases by clicking on the city tab at the top of the homepage!

ONLINE COMMUNITY

www.RAWartists.org is designed to showcase our RAW artists online. RAWartists.org hosts a plethora of online profiles -- exclusive to our hand-picked RAW artists. RAWartists.org is open to the public to view, however, the site profiles and perks are reserved for only selected RAW artists. RAW artists can connect with other RAW artists, post videos and music, promote upcoming projects, and track their success. We also host what we call our RAWk Wall, where art gets down to business. This portion of the site consists of exclusive art-to-business opportunities for our RAW artists to partake in.

RAWards

RAW's Annual Indie Awards Show

At the end of season (October), we host our annual RAWards Show. During a two month-process, we ask the community, a panel of judges and the nation-at-large to vote for their top five favorite artists of the year in film, fashion, music, art, photography, performing art, accessories, hair and makeup. RAW takes that popular vote and narrows down nominees in each city location. We then ask the community to place a live vote (complete with a ballot) at a special City Semi-Final nominee showcase in November. One winner from every city, in every category is chosen by the community (e.g. RAW:Denver, Fashion Designer of the Year). One winner from every city in every category goes on to be judged by the RAW panel of industry professionals in each field. The scores are based on criteria in skill, creativty, wow factor and professionalism. The winners are announced online in December, and honored with their awards at our annual RAWards Show in Hollywood, CA (mid-January). The winners receive big career-boosting prizes like distribution, store placement, studio time, gallery placement and consultations with industry executives and professionals. It's truly an awesome event with performances and highlights from the RAW season.

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THE HISTORY

In 2003, a small-town girl graduated high school and moved to the big city of Los Angeles, CA. Her only wish was to pursue her life-long dream of becoming a fashion designer. Not wasting any time, she started her own clothing line. She soon realized that she was just one small fish in a very big pond. She sold her pieces at swapmeets on the weekends while going to school full-time, working part-time and interning in the fashion district.
After a while she thought ... "there's got to be a better way to get my work out there."
Surrounded by new friends and talented people in art, music, performance and film that were facing the same plight -- she decided to take matters into her own hands.
In 2005, Heidi Luerra threw her first multi-faceted showcase in Los Angeles. After much interest from the over 750 attendees that came to the event, she found her calling -- to create a platform for the many people who are talented, yet go unnoticed.
In 2009, equipped with a mission of bringing tools and resources to artists who were fighting the good fight on their own, RAW was born. After the first RAW event, a local web developer, Matthew Klahorst approached Heidi about combining these art events with an online showcase for artists. From this collaboration came the next evolution of RAW -- promoting artists both online and offline.
In 2011, they decided to take the concept beyond Southern California. RAW now hosts monthly showcases that spotlight indie talent in film, fashion, music, art, hair & makeup artistry, performing art and photography in 54 cities across the U.S and counting. By July 2012, RAW will be in 54 U.S. cities and Australia. RAW will launch in China and Europe in 2013.

click on this link below to purchase tickets to see Marten/Evergreen & Company at RAW on Sept. 20

http://www.rawartists.org/lukasevergreen

we are currently rehearsing for this event and have created the an all new avant-garde choreographed dance, painting, & music live performance that will top all our other performances! don't miss out on this rare chance to see us perform along side some of the most talented artists, musicians, fashion & hair designers, film makers, and performing artists in the Treasure Valley. this event is HUGE!

Sex Dreams Erased By Water: a Marten/Evergreen & Company Production

se libre: BE FREE!

Sex Dreams Erased By Water

a live avant-garde performance at The Knitting Factory for Art in the Bar VI in Boise, Idaho

By: Marten/Evergreen and Company

Lisa Marten

Lukas Evergreen

Gonzalo Valdez

Krysta Nebeker

 

sex dreams...exploitations, addictions, those things that trap us in our minds and in our past...fears, rejections, those parts of us that keep us in isolation and bondage...lies, trappings, seductions, those triggers that hinder us from receiving Truth, Love, Beauty, and Life...those things that keep us from being who we really were meant to be...from being Free.

____________________________________________________________________________________

  “One day, in retrospect, the years of struggle will strike you as the most beautiful.”-Sigmund Freud

about the performance:  This piece is the vulnerable exorcism of a man trapped in his mind. As the world goes on by, his world is being rocked by inspiration, desire and of course, lust. The man must break through the chains of his underdeveloped psychosocial self and find truth. Thankfully truth is Divinely guided by love and he must choose to live or die.

____________________________________________________________________________________

hiding within...yet always covered by Divinity

dreaming and waking up

wrestling with the process

relinquishing to the process

embracing the process of cleansing

clinging to God, receiving Love

allowing the self to let go and receive Truth





experiencing something new to come forth from within that is beautiful

releasing by embracing Life and Love

cleansing Love pouring forth like a waterfall bringing freedom

experiencing freedom in heart, mind, body, and soul

The struggle through the process to receive True Freedom is worth it!

BE FREE!

____________________________________________________________________________

about Marten/Evergreen & Company: As a performing arts company, we have the desire, as most artists of any medium do, to connect with viewers on a given level of reality and/or fantasy. Progression plays a large factor and obstacle in this goal in being original, unique, and respected.

photography by Starry Night Media