REAL Jobs for Acupuncturists and the Toaster Tour!

Excerpt from Lisa Rohleder's BLog:

According to the NCCAOM Job Task Analysis, 91% of acupuncturists are self-employed. Only 9% have jobs.

60% of acupuncturists work less than 30 hours a week, though a majority of those would prefer to work full time.

Of that 60%, ALMOST HALF earn less than $20K annually -- and that's gross, not net -- from their AOM activities.

At my alma mater, the average student debt for an acupuncture graduate is almost $90,000. THE AVERAGE. Many people are graduating with debt loads of over $150K.

With that much student debt, it's often impossible to borrow more money to finance your own business; banks simply won't loan to you, not in this economy. And yet 91% of acupuncturists are self-employed. This situation is insane and certain conclusions are simply unavoidable. However, we've said all that before, so I'd like to move on and focus on the issue of jobs. In honor of Independence Day for us American acupunks, let's talk about creating jobs, which this country desperately needs us to do. Jobs in general, and jobs for acupuncturists in particular.


To read more:
http://www.communityacupuncturenetwork.org/blog/jobs-post-3-toaster-tour



My contribution to the toaster tour was to make a cosy. Tea cosies, popular in 19th Century Britain, decorated and covered objects characteristic of the Victorian era.  Our institutions haven't quite caught onto the plight of acupuncturists in the 21st Century. As Lisa mentioned in her blog, it's better to laugh then to cry about it. My fellow punk, Gabe, had the brilliant idea that we pose in our jammies. Stay tuned for Toaster Tour updates!

Fired Clay Sculpture

Fired ceramic clay: 11" x 13" x 3", Untitled. I made this relief several months ago,but only got it out of the kiln today with the final firing. The work I am doing now looks alot different. I am finding glazing ceramics is an art form in and of itself. The glazed surface was inspired from sculptures of ancient Rome. And, this figure is wearing some form of head gear...

"Sun Standing"

On this Solstice Day...Definitely hat wearing weather, but I haven't figured out summer hat gear yet.

Crown for Crown - Kundalini Yoga Hat

Unfired Clay Sculptures; Works in progress

I like the idea of painting with clay; I remembered a favorite painter from art school while I was working today.

Philip Guston (June 27, 1913 – June 7, 1980) was a notable painter and printmaker in the New York School, which included many of the Abstract expressionists, such as Jackson Pollock and Willem De Kooning. In the late 1960s Guston helped to lead a transition from Abstract expressionism to Neo-expressionism in painting, abandoning the so-called "pure abstraction" of abstract expressionism in favor of more cartoonish renderings of various personal symbols and objects.

"Studio Ghosts: When you're in the studio painting, there are a lot of people in there with you - your teachers, friends, painters from history, critics... and one by one if you're really painting, they walk out. And if you're really painting YOU walk out." -Philip Guston 

I've been working on a series of realistic sculpture-relief portraits. Today was the first day that, as Philip Guston so eloquently said,  "I walked out." I am getting ready to show some of the new works to a gallery in Portland.

Planning on firing the new sculptures with a blue glaze.

Just a Tuque

My favorite kind of everyday cap; a Tuque (Toque) of French-Canadian usage. Also known as a beanie, watch cap or stocking cap.

The word Toque is Arabic "طوق" for "Round" and "طاقية" "Taqia" for "Hat" originally for something "Round" that has an opening. The word has been known in English since 1505. It came through the Medieval French toque (15th century), presumably by the way of the Spanish toca "woman's headdress", from Arabic *taqa'طاقة' 'Opening'. 

Punk hat

Our lovely punk pictured with the CAN map, USA
http://www.communityacupuncturenetwork.org/
Order your own PUNK hat today!