new site

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I'm moving!

Dear mom (and the other 3 of you who still check this blog),

Thoughts From Mars is no more.

I have been trying to think of what to do with this blog and my other site for quite some time now. My neglect of this blog has been due to the fact that I, (along with the help of a great friend) have been creating a new webspace that is less specific.

Because my time here is coming to an end, my "thoughts from mars" are as well. It is hard to imagine that this blog was started only two years ago. What's even more amazing is the fact that in 5 short months my time at Mars Hill Graduate School will be over.

I have met some incredible people during this time (some of whom I've never even met in person) and am excited to see how those relationships will grow beyond the walls of MHGS. I hope that you will all join me in moving into whatever might be next.

All that being said, blainehogan.com will now be my new web-home. While there are still a few kinks to be worked out, I think it will be a better place for all of us. It is live as of this very moment.

Please alert your google readers and other such web 2.0 apps that there will be no more blogging done here. None. In the meantime, head over to blainehogan.com, subscribe to the new feed, and let me know what you think.

Love,
Blaine

never been published...until now

It has always been a dream of mine to write a book or have something published in a magazine. The realization of such a dream is subject, of course, to whether or not you have anything of interest to say.

Never in a million years did I think my first published article would be about art and faith. However, when I look back at the path of my life it makes sense. Still I am just a little shocked, but excited nonetheless.

The new magazine, COLLIDE, which is "devoted to exploring God's fingerprints in the media," recently asked if I would contribute an article on the topic of tension - the tension of creating art in and out of the church. The article was published in their most recent issue. I would encourage you all to sign up for a free trial if you haven't already. I believe this new magazine will prove to be a very interesting voice to artists who also happen to be Christian.

I feel very honored and blessed to have had the opportunity to share some of my thoughts in COLLIDE and hope to write more for them in the future.

Click here to read the article. (Click on the image when you open it to enlarge the print!)

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

she said yes + "what if..." + other things

Yet again...life, relationships, school, and various other projects have kept me away from this little webspace. Since I haven't written in awhile I thought I'd just give a few brief updates on some things that have been going on.

the biggest news
As of October 22nd, 2007, I became an engaged man! The very beautiful and creative, Ms. Margaret Ann Murray of Chicago, Illinois has agreed to take me as her husband. Please check out our site for the latest and greatest updates as we move closer to the big day, which we hope will be sometime in mid-August. Right now the site blaineandmargaret.com features an amazing photo of Margaret's ring taken by my roommate Joshua Longbrake.


"what if..."
A number of months ago, I was told that Mars Hill Graduate School was going to be the national sponsor of Brian McLaren's Everything Must Change Tour starting in February. As the national sponsor we were given 5 minutes to show a short film about MHGS. I was incredibly honored to be asked to produce the project as I really do love this amazing place. My friend from Difted, Sam Sanchez flew in from Chicago to shoot it with me and I have to say that I'm always impressed by his work. My deepest hope when I wrote and shot it was that it would reflect the beauty of MHGS by asking the question, "what if you truly believed the gospel could change the world." Have a look below...


"what if..." an mhgs short film from blainehogan on Vimeo.

collide article
Some of you have wandered onto this site because of my recent article in Collide Magazine, The Art of Tension, about the tension between creating art in the church because you have to and because you must. For those of you who aren't subscribers, I'll be posting the article later this week.

the faith + hope + love series

You may have assumed by the lack of blog posts in the last month and a half that things have been very busy. If that is your assumption, then you are correct sir!

School started, a number of projects finished, and a number of others began. These last few weeks have given me much to write about as I jump into my second and final year here at Mars Hill Graduate School. It is amazing to me that a year has already gone by. That said, be on the lookout for much more bloggy-goodness.

In the meantime, a project that has been near to my heart for sometime is finally being realized. We talk about the ideas of faith, hope, and love, a great deal here at school. In fact, the very first class I took last year was called Faith, Hope, and Love. Since that class, I have been working on icons for each word - some image that might get to the essence of what those words mean to me.

My bottle-chandelier was the first attempt at putting those icons to use. Now that I think I've settled on the designs for each icon, I thought how fun it might be to put them on t-shirts.

The shirts are on their way back from the printer at this very moment and I am terribly excited to see how they look. I've done a limited-edition, first-run of 75 shirts and they are now available for $15 at bigbstudio.bigcartel.com. (Big B Studio is the name I've married to the random design and art I've been making these days.)

I hand-drew the icons and then scanned them to create the final image. Also, they have been hand-screened, one at a time, on American Apparel shirts. I would love it if you would head over the store, check them out, maybe pick one up and wear it about town. (Bulk rates are available after the first editions are sold.)

I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

starving jesus film series = complete

After nearly a year, the Starving Jesus film series is complete! Four films in all. It has been an incredible journey and one that I could not have imagined I would find myself on a couple of years ago.

This project would not have been possible if not for the countless people who gave their time, money, prayers, and support. A project like this...where your name ends up on the cover can be misleading because it implies that that person acted as a one-man show. However, there is simply no way I could have created these films alone. Most especially, I could not have produced this without the help of my girl Margaret. As an editor, writer, producer, actor, and co-director, the thing should probably have her name on it as her fingerprints are everywhere. All this to say thank you to all of you who gave to this project!

Many of you know that I have been raising support this past year - for seminary and so that I might continue to have the freedom to create projects like this. This project has been an integral part of my income during this past year, mostly through online sales at places like Worship House Media and Sermonspice. In addition to selling them individually online, we have just released the entire four film series onto DVD which is now available for sale for $19.95 on Difted.com.

Have a look at the trailer below and then head over to the Difted store to pick one up.



Starving Jesus Teaser from blainehogan and Vimeo.