Boys by Valerie Parente
The teacher turned to the schoolgirls, “And what do we say when boys break our hearts?”
The girls raised their hands, “They get rid of our writer’s block.”
– Valerie Parente (12-8-2019)
Tag: drawing
Emotional Depth
Emotional Depth by Valerie Parente
On the nights I can’t express myself
It’s because I feel underwhelmed.
The world of feelings is my fuel
and I’ll be damned if I don’t bruise.
If there is no emotional depth
then I am nothing but useless.
– Valerie Parente (11-24-2019)
This Is What It Means To Grow Up
This Is What It Means To Grow Up by Valerie Parente
I shouldn’t pick fights just because I feel lost
I shouldn’t place blame when no one is at fault
People might do you wrong but just smile on
No one cares who’s right in the big scheme of it all.
You may be frustrated but the petty things won’t last
At the same rate good times fade and I really hate that
What better reason to appreciate the things that you have
Because no pain equates to the concept of the past.
I always say I’m so sick of the games and the tears
But I’d rather have it rough than resent all those years
Because one of these days one of us isn’t going to be here
And all that will be left is how we made each other feel.
– Valerie Parente (10-27-2019)
Immaculate Introvert
Immaculate Introvert by Valerie Parente
I hate parties.
I always feel so out of place
like I don’t belong to the human race
because I can’t relate
to how other people operate
all the alcohol and games.
It’s not a problem with who I am,
it’s a problem with who I’m not
because that’s not what I want
when I think of the perfect job
I’d rather lose myself in thoughts
writing and drawings from my heart.
Creation feels better than partying,
creation is what I live to be
an artist on an emotional journey
making sense of the world consciously
that’s how I set my soul free
and be the best version of me.
– Valerie Parente (8-18-2019)
Games
Games by Valerie Parente
I’m not over you,
I’m over the games.
I’m over rolling the dice to see if today you’ll be nice, wondering if I’ll have to fight to bring out your good side.
I’m over the way you play me for a fool while I just play aloof, pretending I don’t see the truth but I know your every move.
I’m over showing all my cards like I’ve got the king of hearts but then you try to be smart and leave me at a loss.
I’m over not knowing what comes next because you’re shuffling the deck trying to create randomness before it’s my turn to guess.
I’m over calling all your bluffs and trying to earn your trust because you’re too scared to grow up and admit there could be an “us”.
Then you yell and you scream because you want to beat me but what you failed to see is we’ve been on the same team.
– Valerie Parente (7-10-2019)
Potential In Action
Potential In Action by Valerie Parente
To identify this catalyst felt right
I know that something special will happen
There is this lingering hope so well-timed
Like a tangible potential in action.
Magic hones the human existence
This sense diagnosed as divine intuition
We all can access its many promises
If we make the decision to listen.
Do not let your chance sweep by
When you are met by the extrasensory
That realm of “what could be” for mankind
stems from your instinct to detect destiny.
– Valerie Parente (3-19-2018)
The Power of Portraits
“Heather Baron-Gracie – Pale Waves” by Valerie Parente
“Lady Gaga – Pop Star” by Valerie Parente
“Maria Brink – I Am The Dirt You Created” by Valerie Parente
“Charlotte Wessels – I’ll Reach You”
“Maria Brink – Sex Metal Barbie” by Valerie Parente
“Lisa Origliasso” by Valerie Parente
“Kerli – Pop Girl” by Valerie Parente
“Skye Sweetnam – SEVER” by Valerie Parente
I love the art of the portrait. Through painting and sketching my favorite artists, typically in the music industry, I catch a glimpse of peace.
When I am feeling inspired I find that creating art through personal ideas is exciting and even euphoric, but when my mind is clouded and I cannot generate original images in my head I turn to portraits. I’ve found, having more than one mental disorder obstacle in my life, that there is usually a time and place to face the idiosyncratic demons that dwell in my psyche. Depression, for one, can catalyze breathtaking art when the moment is right, but confronting depression through art is inopportune when I do not have the energy or mental capacity to face the darkness within. Times like this are sublime for shifting my aesthetic towards portrait painting and drawing. The power of portraits, at least from my experience, comes from the fact that I do not have to do much thinking. It’s very instinctual and intuitive. For this reason I am able to feel a sort of harmony with the plane that my consciousness permeates.
Getting lost in the use of your hand as you mindlessly translate a photograph on a screen into a portrait on a canvas is the type of therapeutic my redundant brain craves. There is something deeply meditative about studying an image of another human being, whom you admire and connect with on an artistic level, and merging their meaningful archetype in your mind with your own language of brush strokes or pencil markings. Portrait-making sends me in a zone of consciousness so powerful that I genuinely do not feel the weight of time. My perception is blissfully numb to the minutes, hours, even days that pass by while I lose my ego in acrylic shapes. The pain of depression or the edge of anxiety is muted. It still inhabits my subconscious, but the radio that is my brain doesn’t transmit these signals. All I can perceive is this timeless unity of a beloved image and my instinctive hands replicating the image with my own signature touches.
“Taylor Momsen – Reckless” by Valerie Parente
“Kiiara – Way Too Many Feels” by Valerie Parente
“Lady Gaga – Born This Way” by Valerie Parente
“Amy Lee – Lithium” by Valerie Parente
“Alecia Mixi Demner – Vixen” by Valerie Parente
“Maria Brink – Rebel” by Valerie Parente
“Kerli – ILU” by Valerie Parente
“Jennifer Haben – The Dark” by Valerie Parente
For more portraits by Valerie Parente check out the Portrait Gallery !
– Valerie Parente (3-9-2018)
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