Some New Stuff & About Kicking My Own Ass

So, here I am again attempting to be a responsible adult and maintaining a blog. Im going to make it stick this time.

I don't have much news that I can mention yet, I have plenty that I am eagerly waiting on, but for now here are a few things I've finished up this past week.



Quick Acrylic painting I did, Ive been doing tons of face studies lately and was in the mood to play with color. 8x10" on canvas. Its hanging up in the tattoo shop now.



This one is acrylic ink on HP watercolor paper. Was supposed to be for a handbill style ad for the shop, that's why the letters look funny. I had to add them way after the rest of the image was finished. The actual handbill is going to have some digital elements to it (in theory anyway, lets see if they print it ever).

So, about kicking my own ass...

Ive been working on a couple of paintings in between other projects, the problem with doing large, involved paintings in between other things is that it takes forever so by the time its this far along it looks wicked inconsistent. Im still working obsessively to better both my technical and storytelling abilities, so these two pieces are great examples of me condemning myself to devastating failure, by outrunning myself.

Both were started almost a year ago, and right now my abilities and technique are changing so rapidly, they look like some sort of frankenstein nightmare.






My plan to remedy this; stop doing this to myself.

I cant use either of these for anything, including my portfolio because neither are finished, or any longer relevant.

If I'm going to work on a large, detailed, portfolio piece in between other things, I'm going to treat it with the same process i use on real jobs. The theory here is that Ill actually finish these things in a timely manner, on an actual deadline. Im hoping this will enable me to be able to use them in my portfolio use them in my portfolio, instead of just contributing to the huge reject pile in my basement.

Changed My Name & New TrenchArt Blog

Here's and update for ya'. Yesterday at the courthouse in Portland I married Kevin Adams in witness of two of our close friends.



We do intend to have a ceremony in the year or two, possibly two, one in PDX and then a 'real wedding' back in Boston. We're still working out those plans.

In addition, Ive separated this blog from the Trench Art Studio Project Blog, the metal/punk collaboration I have been trying to start for the last two years.

Moving across the country and beginning a new life has drastically slowed its progress, but there is hope yet!

As of mid- February, TA will be operating as an illustration studio out of Blackwater Records in SE Portland!! Halsey Swain ( Halseycaust )and I have already begun construction on the new space up above the record shop.

Halsey and I are going to be working on illustration out of there for the summer, we're looking to get one other local artist in the space, its it too amazing not to share. Ill have photos once we've set up a bit more.

Later Ill let folks in on what were going to be working on together this summer!

-out

Awww jeeze...

I cant believe its taken me so long to get my shit together enough to write a new post. Ive been busy lately, finally got a job at a tattoo shop and Im working wicked hard on BoneFetish stuff and I'm hoping that all the things Ive been slaving over the last year finally begin to come together. It may be a little ambitious of me at the moment, but I'm hoping to start getting paid what I'm worth for some of the work Ive been doing. We'll see how that goes.... Perhaps Ill hold mu breath.

Anyway,Ive also been playing with some new styles of flash for the shop. These are a couple Ive finished this week. They're both acrylic and india ink on hot press watercolor paper.

Im still experimenting with color, this first one scanned darker then I expected which is weird. Ill go back and play with it a bit.



This one was just a doodle I worked on while the other one was drying. I can never stick to just one painting at a time.




Anyway, Ive been up to a whole lot actually. I'm going to try to get better at updating. I have all sorts of cool stuff. including my very first ever oil painting (unless I just scrap it) and some stuff on canvas... I know weird, right? Im really working very hard to push my limits and expand out of my comfort zone.

After the Fest

CLIT was actually pretty fun. I didn't get a chance to really see any of the bands cuz I was stuck at my table all night, but I had fun anyway. I also actually remembered at one point to take a couple pictures for TA. Mostly of folks wearing my shirts n stuff. I still get a little exited when I see that. I guess they sold a lot of them too.





The art show was alright, they didnt end up with as much space as they thought so I didnt get to hand what I wanted to. They still put up three of my things. They had two of Halsey's (Halseycaust) ink drawings too I think this was the first time we've been up together at the same show. There was also some really cool pieces from the girl who does the artwork for 'Cull' (PDX) that I had never seen before. I told them all Id be psyched if they wanted to do another, bigger show together.

C.L.I.T. Fest PDX 2010

So, CLIT Fest is using one of my drawings for the fest this year which is cool. Its going on the shirts, poster and some of the fliers. I still find it weird to see something I drew kicking around on a telephone pole all the way up in seattle (I was there this weekend for a different fest, which was pretty awesome).




They are having an art show with a bunch of other local punk artists during the fest too. I'm going to be hanging two brand new pieces (this is assuming I get my ass together and finish them) and something out of the pile. The new ones are the same two drawings Ive been working on for a while now. Im kind of using this as an excuse to force myself to finish them.





Those photos are from last week, Ive done a lot more to them since then. I probably wont get the chance to scan them between the time I finish them and hang em at the venue so I wont be able to post them online, but they will be hanging there for the rest of August.

I would also like to add, that this afternoon I successfully made palatable pork chops. This is a first and I am very pleased.

Stroking my ego

So I had a feature on the PRISMACOLOR home page the other day. Its really not a big thing at all, but it sure as hell made an otherwise wicked shitty week a little better for me.

prismacolor is the company that makes the markers and colored pencils I use.

They have a techniques forum you can submit ideas to and get feedback from other artists and every week they pick someone they like. Last week it was me. I thought that was pretty fucking cool.

Surviving the heat wave.

I guess Portland gets hot like, two weeks a year and this week is a record breaker. Its not as bad as Boston thats for damn sure, but its hotter here then its ever been while Ive been out here.

My intentions are to remain hidden in the basement drawing monsters until it cools off and starts to rain again.

Ive been drawing cthulu over and over again for some reason, I have like, seven versions of this drawing and I finally made the commitment to actually make a real effort.

Its far from even halfway done, but Im having fun with it.



Heres the study did for the mermaid that's going down on the bottom.



Im hoping to get a good chunk of it done this weekend before I have to focus on a bunch of the commission work Ive acquired. I'm doing two more murals now, so Ive really got my work cut out for me this month.