 Welcome to Out and About on the ThinkTech Livestreaming Network series. I'm your host, David Tosaka, and delighted you are joining us here today, where we explore a variety of topics, organizations, events, and the people who fuel them in our city, state, country, and world. As a disclaimer, any views or opinions expressed by me are strictly my own and not connected with any organization. Joining me in the studio today is Adriana Frank, business owner and artist. Welcome to the show today, Adriana. Thanks for having me on the show today, David. I'm so glad you're here today. You were such an interesting lady, and I thought we would start off with knowing a little bit about you. How did you happen to... Tumble into you? Well, how did you happen to come to Hawaii? Well, Hawaii was a long process from when I was a child. I've always wanted to live in Hawaii. We used to come here on vacations with my father. And one day, I said, I'll move to Hawaii. And then the day came in 2010, my husband... We were about to get married, and we had... He was my boyfriend from high school. He told me, why don't we move to Hawaii for a while? And I said, yes, right away. We left next Monday. It was a Saturday, and we left on a Monday. And we came. We got an apartment. And he went back home. Got us our car, got us our things, and off we were here in Hawaii. And the rest was history. Everything that's happened has just been an interesting journey. Wow, that's wonderful. Tell us a little bit about your background. I was born in Rome, and my family... My mom and my uncle had a hair salon by the Spanish steps, and I would go after school all the time to watch them. She would do nails. He would do hair. And after I would be done with homework, I would be doing, mixing all the formulas and learning all about color. And I didn't know that one day I would grow up, move to America, and end up being a hairstylist and an artist. And I became just that, working on films and commercials and owning two hair salons, not very big salons, but big enough where it got me a lot of film industry work, and I had a lot of interesting people come through my door. And I worked on a few shows that was fun to work on. And then one day I retired and moved here. And I became an artist just by chance. It was a chance. How did you happen to get into art when you say by chance? I was always practicing art at home on the side at night, just to zen myself out. And then one day I was walking out at the beach by the outrigger, and some girls called me and asked to come paint with them. They were giving free half-hour tutorials on how to paint a palm tree. And I hit it off really well with them. And then they asked me if I wanted to meet some other artists and get involved in taking classes. And I said, sure, so I met Mark Brown. And I had no idea who Mark Brown was or who anybody was. And I'd say five, six, seven years later, here I am doing art. And in the art business. Wow. So you've had an illustrious time here learning art and actually doing art. What kind of art do you do? Well, I like to do acrylics and watercolors and mixed media. I learned it to oil, so I had to give that up. But I love teaching, and I love exploring all different parts of the art scene. And I've had some very good teachers and mentors that it helped me accelerate fast. Wow. Yeah, it helped me accelerate fast because I could keep up with them. And they were so proud of me. And they kept me under their wing. And I owe it to them, to being the artist that I am today, between my travels and my knowledge and their knowledge and their mentoring. It's turning me into my own brand. Wow. What are some of your favorite art pieces that you've done? I think sometimes when you try too hard, it shows. And when you don't try that hard and you're just in the moment and catching the act and catching the energy, it works. And I think that's how I work. I work out of my spur of the moment feeling and how I see what's in front of me. I've taken this little art print that I did. This was at the airport. And she was a girl with this beautiful flower in her hair, tall. She was just wearing jeans and a t-shirt. And she had no idea I was even drawing her. Everybody was watching. She had no clue. And then while I was on the plane, I painted her. And then she became my biggest, like my big trademark, the Aloha Girl. She has no idea. Yeah, Aloha Girl. Yes, no idea. That's her back. I don't know where she went, what she did. And then it's helped me heal too. A lot of, it's good for healing. It's good for therapy. In 2013, I was attacked by a pit bull. And that sort of changed my world around. And I've had to slow down a lot. And so then I instead of doing plain air painting outdoors constantly, I couldn't take the weather anymore because my arms would hurt and the nerve endings and this and that. So I just started painting indoors. And indoors, you get very lonely. And I remember moving back to the mainland. And I remember when we had first moved there, there was Taimani garden as this little girl in a red dress. And the way she played the music at the Hilton, and she just made me just come alive. And I said, I have to paint her. I have to find her. I have to become friends with this young girl. And I started painting her. And I put so much passion into the painting and her whole scene. And I put her on Facebook. And then her father and her mom noticed it. And then we became friends. And we stayed friends. And I gave her all the artwork. And I think I do it more out of passion. Some people could just paint and just paint anything. I like to feel where I'm going. I like to incorporate the places I've been from Rome. I've traveled all over the world with my parents if my dad was in the travel business. So I have a lot of Middle Eastern background, French background, Italian background, Spanish background, American background, and a lot of Aloha spirits. And I think it fits in really well here. Here is a calming, soothing place to be able to paint and bring the inner child. Because I think Hawaii is still naive. The people, they're wonderful. They're trying to survive what's going on around society right now with all the changes. And I feel like I'm hanging on to the past. And I find it here. And it's a humbling to be. Or we're almost like the second to last generation before everything turns into the Jetsons like we used to watch on TV. And it's all for the new generations. And to be able to still paint by hand and learn the history that's going away is important. And I think through art, you preserve all that. I hear that you also do art classes for a group. I do. I honestly like to have a group of five to 10 people. And I think that's more personal. And it becomes more evolving. You get more out of people's stories while they're painting and while they're doing things. I also teach a few times a year in Santa Monica at a school, an art school for kids. And that's very rewarding. And I like to do a lot of events, a lot of corporate events and art events. I also do collage cards. And there's soul collage. But I do them my own way. I always put a twist on my own stuff. I learned and I put my own twist. And it turns out it's more progressive and less, you know, deep, you know? And these, they're like five by seven cards. And you take like 50 cards and you pick out of a magazine and newspapers and stuff, images. And those images end up being your story. You don't put words. You just pick images and you make about 50 cards and you shuffle your cards and then you put them on the table and you look at it and whatever answer or question you have, those are your cards. That's your life. That's your calling. You chose them. And now you could filter why. And you could then put those 50 cards and go on vacation and a month later you come back and you start up that same process over the 50 cards. And then you look back and you say, wow, my life has changed since those last 50 cards. I'm looking at things different, but what can I take from that past life? So I look through my cards and you take them and you put them in your next life. And that started working for me as far as healing with my arm that I got bit by a dog and stuff. And then I said, well, that is fun. And then I started incorporating it my own way with my own teachings and my own art and my own stuff and my own twist. So I try to take everything I learn and put it into a new twist, a lighter twist and get to the point where everybody suffered already and let them see some joy. How do you do a class if you were to have 10 people? Well, it depends what they want. Usually I would set up the easels and I would bring all the paints and the ones I've done the most are in acrylic because at the end of the three hours that we are together, the person can take their painting home and has learned so much about themselves or about the subject or about how to paint because as you follow along and as you're following along, you're learning a lot of techniques that would take lots of classes to learn but you're learning them all at one time. In a few hours. And those who find that they wanna move on and do more and then there's those who are too shy, they can't. But everybody can paint. If you can read and write, then you can paint. It's the same, life is made out of objects. They're either oval, square, triangle, curvy, and it's just like letters. And as an artist, you start seeing first in black and white which is more like shadows. And when I approach something that people go, oh, wow, that's so difficult. How do you do it? I go, well, I look at the shadows and I start with the shadows. So if her hair is black, I'm gonna start with what I see as a shape of a black shadow. And then I'll go from that. Then I'll work around the rest. Very interesting. Yeah. My goodness, you're filled with wonder and enthusiasm. I have so much that keeps coming out. I see they're telling you with the hands and gestures and everything. What a great story. Yeah. Well, I am learning all the time about you. I just met you a little while ago through a mutual friend. And I feel that you really brighten my world. And I really, really enjoy talking to you because you seem so enthusiastic about living. I don't have plans, I just move. Whatever moves me, people say, oh, you're trying to figure me out? Good luck, because I can't figure myself out. All I know is I always just go with my intuition and go to the right place with the right time with the right people and feel it and do it out of true nature, not to go from point eight to point B. Because when you go from point eight to point, or to point B right away, you're gonna be set back. You gotta take your steps and laugh at yourself because I laugh at myself now when I see when I first started with my art and how supportive. Facebook and relatives were? Okay, we're taking a short break. I'm David Tosaka. This is out and about on the Think Tech Livestreaming Network. We're talking with Adriana Frank, business owner, artist. We'll be back in a minute, so stay tuned for more of the story. Best, you can be the king conveyer, now your chest. You can be the world, you can be the war. You could talk to God, go baby. I'm David Tosaka, and this is out and about on the Think Tech Livestreaming Network series, talking with Adriana Frank, business owner, and artist. Adriana, tell us a little bit more about how possibly your work in hair helped you as an artist now. Well, I studied head shapes really well in color. So the head shapes come easy. I'd never done portraits, and I realized I can just go right into a portrait and understand it and learn it. And then the colors, I was always good with colors and mixing, and I think I'm well known for the colors, because I don't like boring colors. I go real monochromatic, and then everybody says, oh, looks great, and then, boom, I have to add some splash of something to put my personality in there. So that's how I guess I would have, how I approach it. I see you like flowers? I love flowers, I love nature, and I love the ocean. The ocean is where I get lost, and because the ocean is different every time you look at it. It's a different palette color, it's a different day, it's a different mood, it's a different energy, and the flowers are the same way. There's so much beauty in nature that you try to capture the colors, and it's like trying to put a puzzle together to learn all the right oranges to make that flower pop in shadow and in light, and I like to be always in a puzzle. Ha ha ha, it keeps me going, you know? I hear you worked in LA. Did you meet any celebrities while working there? Oh yeah, yes I did. There was a lot of them. Back then, there was Martha Davis with the motels, there was Ed Eisner, and there was, remember the show's Room 222 with Karen Valentine, old shows, and then I guess the latest one would have been Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman. I wasn't exactly hired per se, but I was always on the set learning and helping and getting around and being around, and it was always, I was always well known for being on the sidelines, always being there when somebody needed me in the film industry. I did a few, it did a documentary on the Beatles' Hard Days Night. I was in that, I had Mickey Dolan's from The Monkeys, that I did his makeup and hair at his house. I was so nervous, and I marked his white shirt with makeup, and I was dying. But he was really nice. I've had my share, I've walked into William Morris Agency looking for a part in the movie with a big hat on, and they would just look at me and get a kick out of it. The things I just did, they all came natural, and I was always going, going, going, going, and that's how everything unravels as far as the art role. Then it sort of stops, just like a writer stops and gets a block, and then you have to say to yourself, am I dead, or am I under construction for the next project? And so you start doubting yourself, but then that doesn't work. So you go, no, I'm ready for the next project. I'm just thinking out loud. And then more stuff comes out. What's some of the big lessons you've learned from life that have really helped you become the person you are today? I would say don't sell yourself short. Don't give yourself too freely, and have some respect for yourself and your work, and people will treat you likewise. If you're, it's one thing to give yourself and to give your work away for free, and it's one thing being taken advantage of. You have to know the difference, and you have to know your marks, when and how, and how to be polite and how to be to the point. I would say that's what's always gotten me through my doors and life, and always stand behind what you do. What is your passion now? My passion is being here in Hawaii, and exploring all the possibilities that I can paint on this island, that have some meaning. I like to know why that flower grew there. I like to know why those rocks were put there, and if it touches my soul, it will be on canvas. I could paint, anybody could paint, and I like to paint something that people can relate to. I say, oh, I remember that place. That place made me so happy. I had a friend that was in the hospital for kidney failure, and I posted one of my paintings of Waimanala Beach with a little hut, and he was in San Diego, and I made his day, you know? The art helped inspire him to stay alive and be happy and have a window to look at, and it's a self-expression of how we should all be at that peaceful state in your mind. If a person were thinking of becoming an artist, what are some of the things that you would suggest that they embrace? A good sketch pad and a Sharpie to start with. I started with a sketch pad and a Sharpie and a Will to just document everything in your daily life. You're just sitting at the market and in the car waiting and you see a lady or a child blowing a bubble or something. Bring the inner child and put it on paper, and another thing is sometimes you don't know what to paint, so I start up every morning with a little pad and I always have some acrylic paint or watercolor paint ready, and I always have a piece of paper or a canvas, and when I walk by, even if I'm in a bad mood, I will put something down, slap it down, slap it down. Eventually, at the end of the week, it might look like crap, but at the following week, then it starts taking a shape because then you can use negative painting. So you put all your negativity on that and then you use your positive painting to make a shape out of your artwork, and sometimes you come up with really silly fun stuff. I gave one to my therapist too. For weeks, she was with me and I kept painting on this canvas and I couldn't stand it. She goes, well, that's enough. Now, make yourself laugh. So I go, well, what do you like? She goes, I like octopuses. So I shaped it into an octopus, put yellow eyes, big eyelashes, big lips, and we both laughed, and this was a teleconference call. So she says, I want that painting and it's still in her office till this day. And it's made everybody laugh and that they only knew the depth of it. Well, I have a sense that you are a people person. Yes. And that you like helping people. Yes, I do. Do you think art can be used for therapy, for people who are being troubled or having difficult? Absolutely, absolutely. It's a way to express yourself when words can't, when you're hurting or in pain or you're shy or you're scared. Anything you put down on a piece of paper coming from an artist, you kind of get to know the person's personality. To me, it was like when I was cutting hair all the time, after 30 years of doing hair, 35 years, I would have to just touch the person's scalp and I knew what they were all about. Stubborn, not stubborn, giving, not giving, it all came from that shampoo at the scalp and it's the same thing with art therapy. Once first they start, they don't know what they're doing. Then a little line starts, a bigger line starts and all of a sudden they go, oh, I'll try the color. Then all of a sudden the person's painting, even if it's nothing, but the colors themselves speak of what they choose. And sometimes too much happy colors, there's a hidden agenda. And then sometimes, not enough, there's something that needs to come out. So there's a balance that it's, you go, the artist and the teacher usually goes with intuition tries to bring that out of the person. This is such a great insight that you have. That's how I approach it. You seem to be enjoying your life now, here in Hawaii, your favorite place. It's, yes, it's the best my life has ever been. I've always raised and worked hard and raised my kids and on my own and always cater to everybody. But there were life lessons and I enjoyed every minute and I'm enjoying this new journey. Now I'm more alone, the kids don't need me as much and so I have time to evolve in my work and I'm excited to see how far and where it'll take me, how far I will go with it. Well, Adriana, you are truly an inspiration. I predict that you will be known far and wide because your work shows your talent, but also your heart shows what a great person you are. You're caring, you're sharing, your aliveness transfers from your speech, from your art, from almost everything that you do. And I truly appreciate you coming in today because I feel that you've brightened all of the viewers' lives through your spirit, your enthusiasm, your fun. I think that as an artist, you're a high personality and that is really where art truly comes from. The great artists, as I see, paint with their hearts and you truly paint with your heart. I learned from some very good teachers that they brought that out of me and I am really painting out of my heart now. It was a journey and it's a great journey and I wish everybody has a journey that they can take through art, have an experience. Well, I am just thrilled to have you as a guest today and we look forward to more and bigger and better things to come from you. Oh yes, and please check out my website. It's AdrianaFrank.com or canvasandvino.com and there you can purchase any prints that you would like and any sizes that you want and your first one is always half off. Wow, a deal too. I get a deal. The Fugoguru cruise. Yeah, if you sign up, if you sign and jot me a note I will send you some free cards too. Some fun stuff and gifts. Wow, what a deal. You can't miss on that one. Adriana, it's been a delight to have you on the show. I so appreciate that I have you as a friend. First and foremost. Yes, that is for sure. And the fun that we've shared, you are a great cook, almost everything. It's so wonderful. Thank you. I'm happy that you enjoy my company. Well, the main thing you enjoy your own company. I want to enjoy my own company sometimes more than being out there, but it's all good. Well, I think we're wrapping up and we're almost out of time. I'm David Tosaka and this is all all that's left and about on the Think Tech Live Streaming Network series. I've been talking with Adriana Frank, business owner and artist. Thanks for tuning in and we welcome your feedback. Thanks to our broadcast engineer, Ian Davidson, our technical producer Ray Sangelang, our flow manager, Robert McLean, and to Jay Fidel, our executive producer who puts it all together. I'll see you here every other Monday at 3 p.m. more out and about on Think Tech. Aloha, everyone.