Needles are the most hardcore brushes

In our latest expression of bad-assery, Dave and I spent the afternoon tattooing some oranges under the tutelage of Joshua Carlton.

The results were pretty awesome. We could totally be the resident bic pen and electric shaver tattoo artists in a federal prison. We've pretty much nailed the shaky line work and speckling.

Maybe next time we'll tattoo a tear for every person these oranges have murdered in the joint.

ARC

Don't forget the ARC Salon competition is around the corner. Lots of sweet loot to be won in 6 different categories. My only complaint is that they don't have a best swimsuit category like in Ms. America, which clearly I would win....unless of course, Jason De Graaf were to enter.

L.A. Fine Art Show

Adrian Gottlieb and Kate Sammons were nice enough to snap a shot of my work at the L.A. Fine Art Show, where we are all exhibiting at the S.R. Brennen Galleries booth. From what I can tell, its an amazing show, but its L.A. so make sure to wear the proper gang colors if you attend.

On a completely separate note, there are few times when I tip my cap to a modern artist, but move over Hirst, this may be the best contemporary sculpture ever created.

New Studio

We are fortunate enough to be studio guests with the great people at Crimson Torch tattoos, where our friend and fellow artist Joshua Carlton works. For those of you who don't know him, he is to tattooing what bacon is to donuts....important. We have the great opportunity to be learning this skill from him. Nothing is manlier than painting with needles. I don't have any tattoos yet, but when I get one, it will certainly involve something naked that dances when I flex. In addition, Joshua is a very accomplished painter (see below).

Ok, ok, I know some of you are asking for a painting update from me and I should have an update on "The Hunter" soon, but until then re-read our old stuff and pretend its new.


Like every annoying artist with a blog, I have to show pictures of how much fun I am having with my friends and remind you that you are not there. Wow, look at all the great places I get to travel to because I am an artist. Here's us at the shop.

And here's us in Paris, France. Ooo lah lah.And this is us when we set down on LV-426 when we lost communication with the colony.
Yeah, you thought my metaphor before didn't make sense. Well, bow down to this food group. And yes, I did actually eat this.

Painting Doppleganger

Repin's "Ivan the Terrible" looks like a scared lemur.

Hunter Update

I have started to lay in some color on the face and begin building up thicker paint layers, though it is no where near completion at this point. As you can see, it is still being kept in this patchy "first painted" stage to allow for correction. I find that when people blend too early in a painting, it is extremely difficult to adjust errors. Keeping things broken so to speak enables one to more easily adjust one area without affecting others. As the painting advances, the patches become smaller and smaller until the final layer is applied using medium. I know I have said some of these things before, but I simply am too lazy to re-read what I have said in past to see what is redundant. There is TV that needs watching.

On a side note, a lot of people have asked me where I have found the inspiration for my series on trappers and hunters. I know many artists will turn to nature and draw from its inherent beauty and majesty, while other artists will turn to classical music and literature. Me, I turn to something a lot less lame; Charles Bronson. Before creating this piece, I had watched "Death Hunt" with my main man Chucky B; a story about a lone trapper who is out to shoot the first man who crosses him. Drawing inspiration from things like classical music and nature are totally wussy, and when artists turn to these things for inspiration they end up with pictures like "nude woman with a venetian mask wandering the woods for no reason" or "little blonde girl in white dress smelling flower." If you really want to turn to the classics, start with Deathwish 2-4 and listen to Thrash Metal. I guarantee the manliness of your paintings will increase ten fold.

Also, I just found out my friend got a taxidermy bear. You know that's going into a painting.

Museum of Natural History

I had a chance to visit NYC recently and stop by the Museum of Natural History. I was amazed by how impressive the dioramas were, especially the background landscapes. I thought it was time to give these artists some props for their efforts. In total, there have been over 20 artists over the past 100 years who have worked on these displays. Many of these artists worked from studies and life to create these elaborate landscapes, which integrate seamlessly into the foreground elements. Chris E. Olsen even did underwater studies in preparation for his oceanic dioramas. Now that’s dedication. You can read more about the artists here.

James Gurney already beat me to an article on underwater painting, so I will have to be the first artist to do an article on painting in outer space. Not to go on a tangent here, but did you ever notice how everything ends up in outer space or the old west when people run out of ideas? Just look at the Muppets, James Bond, Leprechaun 4, Critters 4, Jason X , Hellraiser: Bloodline, and so on. I think the art world has exhausted itself for ideas, and its high time we take it to outer space. Just saying is all.

Public Service Announcement

Kate and I are blown away by the positive response our blog has generated and are very grateful to all our followers. Your encouraging comments and witty addendums have added another dimension to our enjoyment of this project. However, if you are in the habit of reading the comments section, you will see that there are some readers with very pressing concerns, some of which we will attempt to address here.

All artists and attendees of academies/ateliers are trust fund babies.

Absolutely true. I spent most of my 20’s working manual labor until I found out through an email that I was actually the heir to the throne of Zambia. After receiving this email, I immediately gave them all my banking information. I am still awaiting the deposit of my inheritance into my bank account, at which time I will roll it over into a trust fund so that I can finally be an artist. Anyone who says its possible to work and put yourself through school would cause me to drop my diamond-studded monocle into my brandy snifter in shock.

Classical realists choose to hide secrets.

Absolutely true. Like a select few artists across the globe, Kate and I have been inducted into a secret organization whose sole mandate is to preserve the secrets of Classical Realism. It’s like the Da Vinci Code times ten. The most cherished secrets, which are kept stashed in a pillowcase in our crawlspace, are the complete working methods of Bouguereau, Repin, and Bob Ross. I guess you will never know how black gesso is made.