Rewrite Beautiful

Q: Beautiful is? A: ARTIVISM

What happens when a mommy named “Art” and a daddy named “Political Activism” have a baby?

They name her, “Artivism!” ( Witty eh? I'm cute and you know it!)

Jasmine is BEAUTIFUL!

Artivism is the expression of Political Activism through an artistic medium. My friend Jasmine is BEAUTIFUL because she uses Artivism to open young minds to the circumstances around the world. Jasmine and I work together as “People Sculptors” or in laymans terms “Teachers”. Something that I have always thought is BEAUTIFUL about Jasmine is that she cares deeply about getting to know the back story on ALL the people she works with. Whether or not it's the name of a 3 year old's dog or the details of what it's like building an igloo in Alaska. Jasmine treats everyone's story with value. I wonder if maybe it's because she has experienced a rather turbulent life so far herself?

Jasmine was born in Iran amidst the turbulences of the Islamic Revolution. Her childhood is full of memories from a war zone. Eventually her family escaped from Iran and sought political asylum in Germany. Growing up in Germany, she experienced racial discrimination and ostracism in many forms.

The beauty of this story is that Jasmine has taken her traumatic experience and used it in an artistic way. Through her art she has told the story about the reinforcement of Child Soldiers in Iran, the oppression of Iranian women under the Burqa and the affects of a war zone on a child. Jasmine is BEAUTIFUL because she is BRAVE enough to talk about her experience, CREATIVE enough to give her art relevance and CONFIDENT enough to say, “You may not like what I have to say, but I deserve to be heard.”

I believe we ALL have something BEAUTIFUL to say. But, first we have to believe we are BEAUTIFUL before we can say it. I encourage anyone who reads this to notice the girls around you today/tonight.... look for the BEAUTIFUL attributes in them and say, “Dudette! You're bravery makes you BEAUTIFUL!” “You're CONFIDENCE makes you BEAUTIFUL!” You will be doing her (and the world) a lot of good...trust me.

To see more of Jasmine's Artivism visit Jasmine Khademi Art on Facebook.

Jasmine Khademi Art

Posted: Jul 20, 2010

Category:

RWB Randomness

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Q: What is Beautiful? A: Dreaming...

Happy Monday BEAUTIFULS! We're "Back to work!" as my friend Milan from Furniture From Home would say; and continuing our blog series on "Question: What is BEAUTIFUL? Answer: Creativity." We have asked the question "If BEAUTIFUL can't be found in the size of your jeans where is it? One of our many answers is in your CREATIVITY" Creativity has many facets and we're exploring them here.

Rebecca is BEAUTIFUL!

Today is Day 5 and today our BEAUTIFUL Creativity is found in DREAMING. I saw Inception this weekend, it was mind blowing to say the least. It brought up so many questions, thoughts and inspiration. One being about the sub-conscious. Now, I'm a creative person and familiar with bursts of creativity that happen while taking bubble baths and waiting at a red light, but there is something about dreaming that provides more psychedelic visions than any workshop or Allison Wonderland mushroom could provide. I often have dreams about art that is so eclectic, intricate and far-out that I don't even know where to start to create it... so it stays locked in my dreams (and my dream journal) But, there are those people who have BEAUTIFUL artistic dreams and try their best to make them a REALITY. Those people are like my friend Rebecca from Sleepy Dreamer.

Sleepy Dreamer Creations

Rebecca is BEAUTIFUL because she is not only CREATIVE but she is a DREAMER. Now one might ask, where is the BEAUTY in dreaming? We all do that. Yes, but not all of us pursue our dreams the way Rebecca does. Rebecca hosts a blog called Sleepy Dreamer where she posts creative creations that are as random as her dreams. Wedding dresses, necklaces and photo shoots are some of them. But, what I think is the most BEAUTIFUL thing about Rebecca is her honesty about the frustration from being a dreamer. She is honest that she doesn't know where all of these dreams and creative endeavors are taking her, yet she still tries.

Sleepy Dreamer Creations

A very common theme for girls with Eating Disorders is, "If I can't win, I won't play." In other words, "If I can't be the best, than why even try." This perfectionism leaves a lot of girls simply in the dark. We celebrate Rebecca's BEAUTY because she takes risks, she doesn't claim to be perfect or to be the best, she simply states that she is a Dreamer, “ She loves to sleep. She lives to dream." Rebecca is what we consider BEAUTIFUL, honest, genuine, creative and a risk taker.

Posted: Jul 19, 2010

Category:

RWB Randomness

Tags:

Altruism in the OC, Anorexia, Art with a cause, Bulimia, CA artists, California, Compulsive Overeating, Depression, Eating Disorder Non Profit, Eating Disorders, Non profits, Non-Profit, Opportunites to volunteer in Orange County, Prevention Non Profits, Rewrite Beautiful, Self Esteem, Teens with Eating Disorders, Young Artists

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Q: What is BEAUTIFUL? A:Rockin' Choreography!

Day 4 of our series "Beautiful is Creativity". Today CREATIVITY is ROCKIN' CHOREOGRAPHY! I think of dancers alot like teachers, totally vital to the growth of the exploration of the world and deserving of a whole lot more cha-ching $$$. I mean dancers bring vibrant messages of peace, equality, pain, struggle, triumph and joy to life by quite literally giving it tangible arms, feet and heart.

Of course those messages would never come to life had a choreographer not scripted and pounded away the hours to get the arm's sharp and the plies right! Choreographers have the BEAUTIFUL job of not only giving a voice to the message behind the dancing, but they give the dancers an opportunity to use their creative BEAUTY in a collaborative and fulfilling ways.

Shawn is BEAUTIFUL!

One of my favorite choreographers is the BEAUTIFUL, Shawn Vitale. Shawn and I were cheerleaders together in high school. While she went back and forth with our coach busting out some seriously edgy dance moves, I preferred to hang out in "Gallery Irvina".... AKA, " in my head" sketching artsy and way too elaborate posters for football games.... meaning Shawn ended up with the job of re-teaching me all the dance moves I got in trouble for not paying attention to or memorizing. Low and behold, today I'm an Art Teacher and Shawn is a Professional Dancer and Choreographer. Shawn is actually in Detroit right now filming Harold and Kumar 3. She is a dancer in the movie. When she's not filming movies, Shawn is still helping teenage girls learn some killer moves and see themselves as BEAUTIFUL by discovering how BEAUTIFUL the traits of HARD WORK, PERSERVERANCE and COMMITMENT are.

Here is one of Shawn's BEAUTIFUL and AWESOME pieces of choreography called Freak Show that she taught to a group of her teenage students for a dance competition. I absolutely just LOVE this amazingly rockin' and BEAUTIFUL choreography! *Now I have to tell all you "Parental Units" out there that the word "Sexy" is in this video below (cue GASP!) Yes Sexy, Sexy, Sexy, Sexy! If you have a problem with seeing teenage girls dance to music with the word "Sexy" in it, I totally understand. I'm a Teacher and I'm way protective of my students and want to make sure they are learning things at an age appropriate time where they can process it. However, as a teacher I also know that today we live in a society where 12 year old girls want to be "Sexy". So instead of pointing blame at whose fault that is I ask that you take ownership of that fact and CHANGE how your daughter sees the word "Sexy". Is "Sexy" about wearing provocative clothes and flirting with boys? Or is "Sexy" about having confidence, sticking up for yourself and your friends, finding your own dress code and deciding what makes you BEAUTIFUL without asking for anyone's permission? Pretty deep thoughts for the opening of a dance performance eh? Think about it.. TALK about it and enjoy the show...

Posted: Jul 15, 2010

Category:

RWB Randomness, RWB Videos

Tags:

Anorexia, Art, BEAUTY, Bulimia, CA artists, California, Compulsive Overeating, dancing, Eating Disorder Non Profit, Eating Disorders, girls hip hop, girls hip hop dancing, hip hop choreography, Non Profits for eating disorders, Non-Profit, rad choreography for kids, Rewrite Beautiful, Street Art, Volunteering for Eating Disorder Non Profit

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Q: What is Beautiful? A: LAUGHTER!

BEAUTIFUL is LAUGHTER!

Day 3 of Beautiful is CREATIVITY! I'm so glad I get to pick these posts cause my favorite form of Beautiful CREATIVITY is LAUGHTER! Laughter as an art form isn't easy. Almost anyone can make someone laugh at the expense of someone elses feelings...that ain't the kinda creative laughter I'm talking about. The laughter I am referencing to is people who whole heartily just have joy to share, can laugh at themselves and their circumstances and end up making you laugh in the process.

Danielle is one of those people. Here we were having a very deep conversation about marriage. Cause you know that's what 20 Something's and 5 years old's tend to talk about when they hang out. Her response just made me laugh. Danielle is BEAUTIFUL because of her LAUGHTER!

Posted: Jul 15, 2010

Category:

RWB Randomness, RWB Videos

Tags:

Anorexia, Art, Art with a cause, Bulimia, Compulsive Overeating, Depression, Eating Disorder Non Profit, Eating Disorders, funny kids, inspiration, Laughter, Non Profits for eating disorders, Non-Profit, Opportunites to volunteer in Orange County, Rewrite Beautiful, Self Esteem, Street Art, Teens with Eating Disorders, Volunteering for Eating Disorder Non Profit

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Q: Beautiful is? A: Creativity

Sometimes I listen to live music that is so stinkin' BEAUTIFUL that it literally feels like my brain is getting a massage....

Sometimes I go to see my friends perform dance routines that are so BEAUTIFULLY choreographed that my neck gets stiff, from being so mesmerized by the performance.....

Sometimes my Art students have so much BEAUTIFUL humor, laughter and joy to share that my cheeks hurt from laughing so hard....

So I beg the question.... If beautiful can't be found in the size of your jeans where do you think it's found? Wanna hint? It starts with a "C". It's found in your creativity. The most BEAUTIFUL girls I know spread their beauty with creativity: dancing, singing, laughing, leading, designing, baking, cooking, writing, volunteering and many more things that end with "ing"....

This week I'm gonna show you a couple of BEAUTIFUL girls I love; I'll show you how they make the world a more BEAUTIFUL place with their creativity. The first is Nancy.Nancy is the daughter of Suresh Kumar, the Pastor and Founder of Harvest India. I met Nancy on a Mission trip to India last December. Though she is only 3 years old and could only speak a few words of English she left a lasting impression on my friends and I. Her BEAUTY is magnetic she constantly makes people laugh with her sass, humor and creative dancing. Check out some of her BEAUTIFUL and edgy moves here...

Posted: Jul 13, 2010

Category:

RWB Randomness, RWB Videos

Tags:

Altruism in the OC, Anorexia, Art, BEAUTY, Bulimia, CA artists, California, Compulsive Overeating, Eating Disorder Non Profit, Eating Disorders, Non profits, Non Profits for eating disorders, Orange County Non Profit, Rewrite Beautiful, Self Esteem, Street Art, Teens with Eating Disorders, Young Artists

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The truth about beauty...cause ya know... I'm the authority on the topic ;)

Artist: GraffRoots

Last week we did our first Rewrite Beautiful Street Art lesson with a group of girls ages, 6 to 10. I was rehashing the highlights of the lesson with some girl friends this weekend over a soy milk chai. I told my gal pals about the part where I tell the kiddo's, "I believe being beautiful has nothing to do with the way you look and has everything to do with the way you act. We're gonna make some art that says I'm beautiful and you're beautiful and then we're gonna put it outside as a statement saying, 'We dont' care how every body else measures beautiful. We're beautiful, we know it and don't need anyone to tell us so." My friends looked at me with wide eyes and asked, "And what did they say? Did they dig it?" I wanted to say, "Duh." but then I remembered this isn't 1994 and I'm not a jerk so I said, "Well heck yeah!" The kiddo's said, "Party - on! Let's go! Where's the spray paint?"

I was surprised at the shock of my friends to hear how open the girls were to this concept. I then realized as women in their mid to late 20's, we have it ingrained in us what beauty is, the same way we have it ingrained in us the color of blue jeans. I felt I needed to elaborate so I told them, "Ya know, I think the kiddo's get it because at their core, (at the core of us all really,) we all want to be loved for WHO WE ARE not WHAT WE LOOK LIKE. We all know it's wrong to judge people based on their looks. I think the kids grasp this because it's one of those inherent truths we're born with, kind of like the truth that murder and stealing are wrong."

The diet and beauty industry are a powerful multi-billion dollar force out there. Though they are a contributor to body dysmorphia and Eating Disorders, I dont' consider them the problem (You can read more about that on my other blog here) The problem isn't them... it's ALL OF US. We go against our inherent belief that WHO WE ARE is beautiful enough and find ourselves lost in a desert. Pursuing beauty isn't just some fad diet you go on for a summer, it's really a betrayal of the soul. It's turning your back on who you were created to be and thinking, "The body I've been given is wrong.I know better, I'm going that way. Peace Out." The sad thing is the other way never holds a beauty that is good enough. So girls just end up in that desert, starving chasing the mirage of beauty that they just can't find, because their looking in the wrong place for the wrong thing.

So, I don't find it too odd that 6 and 10 year olds are so amped to Rewrite Beautiful...because if we are truly honest with ourselves we all desperately want out of the desert and the freedom to Rewrite Beautiful too.

You're Beautiful!

Irvina

Posted: Jul 11, 2010

Category:

RWB Randomness

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San Francisco Street Art Scene

I was up in San Francisco a couple of weeks ago. Visiting by Beautiful little sister, Sessa and checkin' out the Street Art Scene for some Rewrite Beautiful inspiration....before I show some of the highlights I have a couple of sidenotes:

1.) To my conservative Irvine peeps - No, Rewrite Beautiful does not plan on "Tagging" the Orange County area. We always create "movable" pieces of Street Art. We would never think of messing with your beige color scheme, beauty is in the eye of the color swatch holder and you rock your beigeness all you want!

2.) To my liberal San Francisco peeps - Yes, if you want Rewrite Beautiful to do some galatically, cool Street Art that takes up an entire city block with neon colors we are down like China Town!

For the rest of ya'll.... kick it and enjoy the show!

Street Art: San Francisco, California

Street Art: The Mission, San Francisco California

Street Art: San Francisco, California - The Mission

Street Art: San Francisco, California- The Mission

Street Art: San Francisco, CA - The Mission

Street Art: San Francisco, California - The Mission

Theres so much more that I couldn't put up here. If you're up in the San Fran area I suggest you get a skateboard in order to see it all. It's the best way to cruise the streets and simultaneously check out the Street Art Scence. Pick one to your fancy: Rainbow Lovin, Musical Tunes or Hard as nails:

Art - San Francisco, California

On the way back to So Cal. my little Sis, Sessa and I stopped at Swanton Farms for some Strawberry pickin'! I've never been Berry Pickin' but I loved pretending I was Strawberry Shortcake in the process...

Skipping to Berry Land...

Checkin' out the merchandise...

Tasting the merchandise...

Wearing the merchandise...Such a versatile product!

Homeward bound! And back to the Rewrite Beautiful Headquarters!

Posted: Jul 5, 2010

Category:

RWB Grassroots, RWB Randomness

Tags:

Anorexia, Art, BEAUTY, Bulimia, Compulsive Overeating, Eating Disorder Non Profit, Eating Disorders, Katie Sokoler, Katie Sokoler Images, Orange County Non Profit, Prevention Non Profits, Rewrite Beautiful, Street Art, Teens with Eating Disorders, Young Artists

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Beautiful tracks.....

Wonder where those "Beautiful tracks" are leading to? You'll have to check back Wednesday to see where our REVOLUTION is taking us!

You're Beautiful!

Irvina

Posted: Jul 5, 2010

Category:

RWB Grassroots, RWB Street Art

Tags:

Altruism in the OC, Anorexia, Art, Art with a cause, BEAUTY, Bulimia, CA artists, Compulsive Overeating, Depression, Eating Disorder Non Profit, Eating Disorders, Non-Profit, Opportunites to volunteer in Orange County, Rewrite Beautiful, Street Art, Volunteering for Eating Disorder Non Profit, Young Artists

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Startling ammo for the week...

When you're starting a non-profit it's very much like starting a company. There are many round table discussions and darts thrown at the question, "Who are we?" "What's our brand?" "What's our product?" Who is our niche supporter?" Growing up in the non-profit world I understood that you could go two routes a.) The "look at the starving babies! Help them!" route or the b.) "Lets a build a house and hug it out!" I prefer to hug it out. I have spent a lot of time listening to non-profits talk about the dark side of man and I wanted REWRITE BEAUTIFUL to focus on the positive: Changing how girls see beauty in themselves, using Art as the vehicle to do so and building communities of girls who believe they have more to contribute to the world than what they look like.

The truth is there is a very real and dark side to the REWRITE BEAUTIFUL mission. We are established today because we saw a need in the 7 million girls in the USA alone who are currently in a great deal of pain, depression and suffering from an Eating Disorder. I was so blantantly reminded of that while I was doing some research on Google this evening. I was trying to google "How to be better non-profit" When all of the sudden I saw the defaults (What is Googled most often) with that phrase "How to be b.." You can see the phrases below.

I dont' know what this does to you, but my eyes watered and my heart sunk when I saw this. The fact that there are enough people out there Googling "How to be beautiful" and "How to be bulimic" that it defaults to this phrase just gives me a great deal of sadness and a heck of a lot of ammo for the week. I mean REWRITE BEAUTIFUL says that being "beautiful" consists of how you treat other people. Yet there are hurting people out there looking for "beautiful" in places they will never find it.

When it comes down to it, I'm not a branding guru. I don't know what's going to make any of you guys care about the 7 Million girls in the US with an Eating Disorder. I am just one person who can see a problem and do my best to make it better. I think we can all do that. I encourage you guys to notice when your eyes water and heart breaks this week and to do one little thing to make it better.

Posted: Jun 28, 2010

Category:

RWB Randomness, Uncategorized

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Alabama...aka...a sweet place to REWRITE BEAUTIFUL!

Street Artist: Jeannette of Montgomery, Alabama

One of our favorite REWRITE BEAUTIFUL supporters is living in the last call-namesake of all brewery's and pub's "Sweet Home Alabama". Our beautiful friend Jeannette made this REWRITE BEAUTIFUL Street Art piece for her beautiful mama, Anne who lives here in Newport Beach, California. I absolutely love everything about this piece...it's placement on a tree, (Yeah tree's!) the kiss between Anne and her hunka-hunka- burnin' love son Matt (that I have a MILD crush on) and simply just what Jeannette wrote about her BEAUTIFUL mama. It take's a beautiful woman to make a beautiful woman and I can not only see, but I can read the proof that Anne is just that: BEAUTIFUL. What about you? Have you Rewritten Beautiful today?