Edward Cheng

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

dealing with rejection

Dear Urban Artist Initiative Applicant,

We are sorry that we will not be able to award you a UAI/NYC fellowship this year. We received over 400 applications in the Visual and Media Arts.  Unfortunately, with the limited funds available, we are able award only 34 fellowships

The response from New York City artists to this new grants program has been strong, indicating a great need in the field that we must try to meet. However, it has made this grant program extremely competitive, especially with so many excellent submissions from so many highly-qualified artists...

i think i've gotten too accustomed to these emails.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

flashback: december 8, 2006

it was a friday afternoon and i embarked on a long flight to the other side of the world. i wouldn't reappear on anyway until sunday afternoon. i was on my way to sydney.

that year i just wanted out of the city. sydney and new zealand offered warm climates and good friends. over email k-livealittle and i booked up a packed schedule of stuff to do on the south island of nz. the north island would be spent with friends i would meet i sydney. in sydney i would just bum around more or less.

this past sunday morning i woke up thinking, "i am going to cambodia." i knew i wanted to travel for the holidays, but wasn't so determined. when i got a break i got onto kayak to discover airfare was 3200usd no matter which way i sliced it to see the temples of angkor.

i redirected my efforts to any airport that wouldn't screw me over in the world. i seem to go through this every year. i finally ended up with a one way flight to cancun for 150 usd as my base.

going in, the one way ticket home just after new years would be more than a round trip ticket during the rest of the year. the obvious options, belize city, guatemala city, and oaxaca (ss-lehman calls it my mexican hometown).

for only the reason of bus distance i ended up choosing tuxtla gutierrez. i'm actually not sure what is there. but it is near san cristobal de las casas, a town i've often heard as the amazing place in mexico. that is where i will likely spend the new year.

back in 2006/2007, i spent the new year on a beach in new zealand listening to crowded house music in a light warm drizzle.