Sunday, December 12, 2010

It's Yours, Take It Free Art Project - New Orleans 2010

380IYTI NOLA 2010
Last month I donated some art pieces to the "It's Yours Take It" Free Art Project. As part of the New Orleans "It's Yours, Take It" free art project someone brings a brand new toy in a box to donate to children and they get to take a piece of art with them. The toys are then donated to the Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots program for their annual distribution.

Friday, November 19, 2010

New Orleans - NOLA Rising Art Event

380 IYTI NOLA Rising

My submissions for the next "It's Yours Take It" Free Art event held in New Orleans.

Media: Acrylic, spray paint, permapaques on cardboard.



For more information or to submit your own art, this is what Rex Dingler has written about the upcoming event:
NoLA Rising is making a call for art for It’s Yours, Take It (NoLA 4)

NoLA Rising has a long history of distributing artwork at no cost to the New Orleans area. After hurricane Katrina, it was a guiding mission of Rex to replace street signs and paint signs of hope for those who had returned to the city. One person made a movement of dozens of artists.

For the fourth installment of New Orleans’ It’s Yours, Take it, Rex would like to continue the practice of a holiday art swap. For the third year in a row, artwork has been created and sent in for a toy for art swap to raise toys for the Marine Corps Toys for Tots program. The premise is simple: Someone brings a brand new toy in a box to donate to children and they get to take a piece of art with them. The toys are then donated to the Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots program for their annual distribution.

Last year, we again had well over 120 toys donated for the cause and had a small garrison of Marines there to support the cause.
As always, I encourage free and open themes for the work to allow you the freedom to work as you wish.

This year, the work deadline will be Wednesday, December 8th, 2010. As of now, plans for where we’ll have the artwork are still not set. Trying to line up something in the next week. Worst-case scenario, I set up shop in the French Quarter and show people how we do it!

Anyone interested, pls add your name and email me at:
[ nolarising504 @ gmail.com ]

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Jack White Drawing - Creativity Constraints

380 Jack White 4

Jack White drawing - Purple Prismacolor® pencil on paper.

I've always strongly believed that limitations bring out the best in creativity. Thinking inside "the box" forces one to come up with clever and unique solutions to problems. To my surprise, Jack White shares the same views on creativity. Jack White is a guitarist and producer for the rock bands The White Stripes, The Raconteurs and drummer for the rock band The Dead Weather. Here's the link to his interview about the self-imposed creative constraints he uses in his live shows (very fascinating):
www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDl-if5Du70&feature=player_em...


When artists talk about the creative process and how important that feeling of "inspiration" is I tend to mentally roll my eyes. I know plenty artists who wait for that "special feeling" of inspiration before they begin a project. Consequently those artists tend to have very little to show. They're also the individuals who freeze when staring down a blank piece of paper of canvas. I've always believed discipline creates its own inspiration. So, again, I was surprised that Jack White shares very similar views on the creative process.

Here's Jack White's quote from the aforementioned video:
"I mean, not every day you’re going to wake up and the clouds are going to part and the rays from heaven are going to come down and you’re going to write a song from it. I mean, sometimes you just get in there and force yourself to work and maybe something good will come out of it. But that was one of the things, it was like whether we like it not, we’re going to write some songs and record. You know, force yourself into it. Book only four or five days in the studio and force yourself to record an album in that time. Deadlines and things make you creative. Opportunity and telling yourself “Oh, you have all the time in the world, you have all the money in the world, you have all the colors in the palette you want, anything you want,” I mean, that just kills creativity."

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Sturgis Dam - Casio EX-FH100 Camera Test


I've been messing around with the HD and high speed video settings on my new Casio camera. The Casio EX-FH100 is capable of shooting up to 1000 frames per second (super duper slow-mo). 1000fps for a consumer camera is very rare and that's what convinced me to get one. I haven't tried the 1000fps setting yet. Instead I chose to mess around with the 240fps setting at the Sturgis Dam (in Michigan).

I have to admit to being really impressed with the image quality. Unfortunately with the video compressions from iMovie and flickr some of the image quality has been lost.

Sunday, October 03, 2010

Free Art - Tehran, Iran

Iran Guerrilla Art Vert

My buddy A1one in Iran hosted an "It's Yours, Take It" Free art event this weekend in Tehran. These are the recipients of a couple of my art pieces.

Photo Credit: A1one
Studio: http://www.kolahstudio.com
Blog: http://tehranwalls.blogspot.com

Saturday, September 25, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Vicksburg, MI

Guerrilla Art-Vicksburg
I haven't placed any free art in my neighborhood for quite some time... so I placed a piece in one of my favorite alleys.

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Herbert Art Gallery, Coventry UK

380 Guerrilla Art UK
Recipients of my art for the "It's Yours, Take It" free art event held outside the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry in the UK.

Photo Credit:
www.flickr.com/photos/theherbert/

Sunday, September 05, 2010

My Dog Sighs Tribute Painting

380 MDS

Awhile back, while hanging with the NIBS YO! Crew we chose to do some tribute paintings. I chose the artist "My Dog Sighs".

About five years ago I stumbled upon a fellow artist by the name of My Dog Sighs. He lived in the U.K. and, Like myself, he was creating free works of art and leaving them in public spaces. Of course the two of us connected and have been admiring each others work ever since. So when the NIBS Yo! crew decided on creating tribute paintings My Dog Sighs was the easy choice for me.

My Dog Sighs is known for doing many different types of street art. Specifically his credit card flowers, rotten fruit faces and faux employment posters to name a few. But for me it's his jelly fish paintings (shown above-top painting) that I really like. So this was my quirky cat-like jelly fish painting done on cardboard and hung in an undisclosed location.

Be sure to check out My Dog Sighs extensive street art projects here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mydogsighs/

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Video Fishing - Snapping Turtle




This snapping turtle came out of the weeds so fast that I couldn't adjust the camera fast enough. Unfortunately, the video is shaky. However, I was ecstatic when it bit the camera and held on.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Germany, Iran and the UK

380 Art bound for Germany-Iran-UK
Guerrilla art bound for Germany, Iran and the UK.
(Acrylic, spray paint, Permapaque on cardboard)

Sunday, August 08, 2010

Printing Plate Art

380 Art On Printing Plates
A few months back I was given a discarded metal printing plate from work. Surprisingly It accepts spray paint and Permapaques really well. The only downsides to working with printing plates is cutting them to size and their very sharp edges.

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Bill Haverchuck Quick Sketch

Bill Haverchuck Sketch

I'm starting to watch "Freaks & Geeks" for a second time. This short lived tv series, with only 18 episodes, is one of my top three favorite tv shows. (The Wire and Northern Exposure are my other two).

Bill Haverchuck is one of the geeks, who throughout the series, had some of the best comedic moments.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Pencil Portait of Omar Little from HBO's "The Wire"

380 Omar Little Drawing

Fortunately it was raining this morning, giving me a decent block of time to draw another portrait of Omar Little from HBO's tv series "The Wire".

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wire

Media: Dark Purple Prismacolor Colored Pencil on marker paper with a digital background.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Peterborough, UK

380 Peterborough Guerrilla Art 2

Recipients of some of my guerrilla art placed around the Guildhall in Peterborough, UK. as part of the "It's Yours, Take it" free art project.

Media: Acrylic,spray paint, permapaque on cardboard

Photography Credit: Korp

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Mangled Mail

380 Mangled Mail
On nearly every occasion that I've put mail in my mailbox to be taken, it ends up being mangled by new mail. This happens despite me leaving a pink post-it note stating I have mail to be taken.

This is a pretty good example of what's wrong with the post office. The mailman who delivers the mail to my apartments is seemingly, mentally unbalanced. On many occasions I've found him talking to himself (and to the mail!) followed by loudly rattling off a string of profanities that echo through the hallways. There have been numerous complaints filed against him for his profanities and lack of mail delivery. He's even had "retraining" by other postal employees on how to deliver the mail. After talking with the local post master, I was informed there is very little they can do. He can't be fired and he can't be transferred unless it's his choice.

Anyway, I decided to photographically document what happens with my mail, then submit it to the post master. My thought is, they probably have a personnel file and having some photographic evidence may help to "move him along".

Saturday, July 03, 2010

Anthony Bourdain Signed Fan Art

Anthony Bourdain Fan Art

Almost 2 years ago I illustrated this Anthony Bourdain piece in the style of Shepard Fairey's Obama poster. (This was before that Obama online poster "generator" became popular). I managed to find the email address of Anthony Bourdain's assistant and subsequently emailed a jpeg of the image to her. I figured at minimum the illustration would get a good chuckle. Not surprisingly I never received a response. As time went on I began posting the illustration on Bourdain's fan pages on various online social networking sites. I also began emailing a hi-res, printable jpeg to anyone who asked. Consequently, one individual who requested the jpeg had his signed by Anthony Bourdain at a book signing. The individual said Anthony Bourdain chuckled when he saw it, saying he remembered seeing it a couple years ago. That individual was kind enough to send a photo of his signed art print.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Underwater Camera Set Up

Example
I finally got around to getting some pics of my underwater camera set-up. The telescopic pole and paint roller handle allow me to get smoother shots and a 360 degree view without the camera spinning uncontrollably.

NOT SHOWN:
In order to record video footage, there's a video out port from the LCD screen where I plug my video camera. I record the footage onto a mini-DV tape, edit in Final Cut Pro, then upload a quicktime movie file to flickr or youtube.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Southsea, Portsmouth - United Kingdom

Example

"My Dog Sighs" of Southsea, Portsmouth (U.K) has been busy putting up some of my guerrilla art pieces around his neighborhood. Thanks My Dog!

www.flickr.com/photos/mydogsighs/

Monday, May 31, 2010

Video Fishing - Dogfish and Largemouth Bass



I recently decided to tie a lure (with the hook removed) to the camera's video cable. It has made an incredible difference! Before using the lure I was always really careful not to spook the fish with sudden movements. With the lure it doesn't matter how wild the camera movements are... I can't keep the smaller fish away! They're like little zombies following the camera around. I've also noticed the lure is bringing in the larger fish and keeping them interested for longer periods of time which makes getting video of them much easier.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Video Fishing - 4 Species in Under 30 Seconds



I was really fortunate getting this video clip. I managed to capture video of 4 species of fish in the span of less than 30 seconds.

The fish in the opening shot is a red ear, he's followed by a blue gill (which looks at the camera) while a large mouth bass pauses and a dogfish swims by quickly.

Video taken on Sunset Lake, Vicksburg, Michigan, Kalamazoo County

Sunday, May 09, 2010

Video Fishing - Sunfish Bedding



I've been doing very little art as of late. Instead I've been spending my free time video fishing.

I believe the above fish is a male Sunfish. I was able to shoot video of him for nearly 15 minutes. He was swimming in circles and using his fins to clear an area (bed) in the sand. The bed will be where the female Sunfish lays her eggs.

Camera used: MarCum VS825c Color Underwater Viewing System connected to a Panasonic AG-EZ50 video camera via S-Video cable.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Underwater Video - Sunken Boat



On only the fourth outing with my underwater camera I was completely surprised to find a sunken boat! Unfortunately, I was drifting pretty quickly so it was really difficult to get a steady shot. I'm hoping to try and get some better footage soon.


Video shot using the Marcum VS825 underwater viewing system.
Location: Sunset Lake, Vicksburg, MI (Kalamazoo County)

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Video Fishing - Bass and Bluegill




Since I'm still learning how to shoot underwater, I'm really happy about these shots. Currently I've attached the camera to a 7' telescopic pole with velcro straps. It's made an incredible difference in image stability. What's crazy is, despite a huge pole cruising through the water, the fish don't seem afraid at all. They actually seem to be attracted to it. This is clearly evident by how close the bass got to the lens.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

The Art 2030 Project - Southsea, Portsmouth U.K.

Example

My wooden plaques were recently installed for the 'Art 2030' - Eastern Road bollard art project in Southsea, Portsmouth, U.K.

This guerrilla art project was conceptualized by "My Dog Sighs", who had this to say about the inspiration for the project: "So I drove home from work on this road ( the eastern road Portsmouth A2030) every day and it is always gnarled up. 10-15 mins everyday I sit stuck in traffic looking a a row of about 150 wooden bollards stood along the road. they must get tens of thousands of slow moving cars crawling past them everyday. the ultimate canvas!!!!"

If you'd like to submit art to the "Art 2030 Project" go here for more information:
www.flickr.com/groups/1220693@N25/pool/

Sunday, April 04, 2010

Video Fishing


This is a murky underwater video clip of Sunset Lake (vicksburg, MI). Although there aren't any fish shown I'm really happy with how this test video turned out. Hopefully, in the future I'll have clips of fish swimming around.

Underwater Camera: Marcum VS825c Color Underwater View System

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Deer Painting on Printing Blanket Material

Example
I was recently given some excess printing blanket material. (I equate printing blanket material to be somewhat like rubber fabric). Printing blanket material is an amazingly great surface to paint on. Unfortunately some brands are really smelly. This particular brand smells quite pleasant, sort of like a Band Aid®.

Surface: Printing Blanket
Size: appox 3' x 4'
Medium: Acrylic
Time to complete: 1 hour and 45 minutes

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Sunday Marker Drawing

Example
Just a quick Sunday afternoon line art drawing.

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Drawing Challenge - Mutant Largemouth Bass/Buck

Example
My co-worker and I are having a "drawing challenge". This week's challenge was to draw a hybrid/mutant largemouth bass and a buck.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Guerrilla Art Found - Vancouver, Canada

Example
Example

A couple recipients of my guerrilla art pieces found during the Vancouver "It's Yours Take It" Free Art Event.

Photo credit: jerm ix

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Seattle, Washington

Example
Example
Here a couple of my guerrilla art pieces found in Seattle, Washington.

materials:
Cardboard
acrylic
Permapaque
spray paint

Sunday, February 07, 2010

Line Art Drawing - Peapod Faces

Example
Media: Kodak Matchprint Proofing Paper, Permapaque and Sharpie Pens. Photoshop Gradient.

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Omar Little Art Marker Sketch

Example

This is a somewhat sloppy marker sketch of Omar Little from the HBO TV series "The Wire".

For anyone who hasn't seen "The Wire", the TV Show is widely considered (by critics and the public) to be the best and most realistic TV show ever created. It basically tells the story of Baltimore's illegal drug trade from the perspectives of law enforcement, drug dealers, educators, politicians and the media. I admit, As I watched the entire 6 seasons over the holidays I struggled to understand why it was considered the best TV show ever. The plots are intricate and the characters were so flawed that I couldn't find anyone to root for. Ironically, the only character I really identified with was Omar Little, whose occupation was robbing drug dealers. Hardly a good guy, but he seemed to be the only character with a code of "ethics". Anyway, I've had a full month to absorb the series (and its intricacies) and can honestly say not a day goes by that I don't think about that show and its message(s). It's definitely made an impact on me. I'm actually prepared to admit it really is the best TV show ever created. It's had a profound affect on how I view the world that I'm still trying to grasp.

Anyway, for anyone thinking about watching the series be prepared, it's gritty, violent, provocative and disturbing. It's also unlike any TV show or movie you've ever seen. It's actually so uniquely different that it will ruin other TV shows you may have liked previously. That's not just me talking... other reviewers have claimed the same thing.

More about the series here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wire

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Mixed Media Portrait

Example
This is a mixed media experiment on some scrap Epson Matchprint Proofing Paper. I have to admit I'm really loving the paper. It accepts acrylics, Prismacolor markers, Sharpies and Permapaque Pens extremely well.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Guerrila Art - Vancouver, Canada

Example
Here a few of my free art pieces bound for Vancouver, Canada.

materials:
Cardboard
acrylic
Permapaque
spray paint
drywall sandpaper

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Tehran, Iran

Example
Example

A couple of my recent art pieces made their way on to the streets of Tehran, Iran. These pieces were part of the Brainstorm #10 art project.


Participating Artists Include:
Corsel,Kozet,Ame72,The KRAH,Vera,Failure1,Mister176,Claudio Parentela,Susan Banafti,Omino71,MadOne,Dede confidential,Ghalamdar,Erik Burke,Ootsool,Chiba Love,UberKraaft,Nafir,Khamoosh,Omgh,Sammo, Fantomboy81,Caruana Salvatore,Rachel Greene,Stelle confused,Emud217,Jon Bollo,Regan Tamnui,Leckomio,John Koleszar,A1one,Bonus Saves,Markuza,Sins,Skam,Adriano Paulino,Kamelogana

Sunday, January 03, 2010

Guerrilla Art - Found!!

Example
Example

Back in April ('09) noitaN, Bonus Saves, Itzy and myself got together for a painting collaboration. As is customary our painted pieces are left in public places for people to find and take home. Typically, after the pieces are placed, we rarely know what becomes of them. Well, In this instance a bizarre photo recently emerged from someone's MySpace page depicting our piece hanging in someone's living room. We're still unsure of the story behind the photo but I think it's hilarious. Clearly that art piece found a good home.