The Year Of The Horse...

Wow! What a swinging good year 2010 was for me and Napkin Art Studios. So many life changing events took place this year that made me better, stronger, faster, and wanting more in my personal and professional lives. The major event was quitting the day job to tackle painting full time, a major leap of faith on my part, but one that was incredibly worth it. Since July 1st I've been going full-throttle, barely stopping this train long enough to squeeze in food and rest. A work horse I feel I truly am. I can't really put into words how marvelous this years was for me, or quantify the amount of work that took me in new directions. I can say that I'm eternally grateful to each and everyone who has supported me this year. It is truly a blessing to be able to do what I do for a living, and look forward to wake up everyday and spend time in the studio.

As 2010 is about to come to a close I already have several irons in the fire for 2011. Graduate school is still on the table, the studio is starting to come together, I'm getting more and more comfortable in my own skin and my confidence level as a professional artist is at an all-time high. For most, I know 2010 was an especially tough economic time. I feel fortunate enough to not have been severely affected, but I can say that if I was able to stand my ground and keep my head high above water in a down economy, I can only imagine what things will be like when things turn around.

December was an especially tough and busy year for the studio. I've actually lost count of how many paintings were created, including Art-O-Mat works, but I put the estimates somewhere around 100 pieces. I intend to blog more about all of the recent work, but as I get ready to put 2010 to bed, and look forward to new things in 2011, I leave you with just a taste of what I created over the last few weeks. Again, thanks to EVERYONE (friends, family, fans, collectors old and new and general supporters) who made 2010 a smash year for me! Happy New Year to all, and please be safe whenever possible!

"Martin Scorsese" (Private Commission)

From the "Sundance Kids" Series

Acrylic & Silk Screen on Canvas

10" x 10"

(2010)

Forever Hank...

It's always a real treat when I'm able to commission other artists for work to be included in my own art collection. A nice perk about being an artist is the possibility to trade work with other artists, but sometimes it just seems so much more satisfying when you can pay an artist for the work you love.

I recently came across the work artist Stephanie Buscema, a freelance illustrator and cartoonist based in New York, who coincidentally is the grand daughter of the late comic artist icon, John Buscema, an artist who is has been high on my list of most influential artists for years. After a few Twitter and email exchanges, I commissioned Stephanie to paint a Hank Williams piece, something slightly out of the norm from her usual comic book themed commissions.

I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted the piece to look like, as I typically leave it up to the artist to 'do their thing'. At left is the sketch Stephanie had sent me, which alone blew me away. I didn't need to see any other preliminary sketches. I was left drooling, only beginning to wonder what the full color version might look like. I mentioned that I liked something in a monochromatic color scheme, maybe some yellows, grays, blacks and whites. When I was sent the image of the final piece, damn...

Words cannot truly describe how bad ass this painting is, not only in execution, but it goes far beyond what I had imagined, which is really special for any work of art that is commissioned for your own private collection. I love Hank Williams and his music with a fire and brimstone passion, and to have this painting adorning the walls of my home studio is truly an amazing feeling. It was also a pleasure to know just how excited Stephanie was to do this piece, as she herself is also a hardcore Hank fan.

Stephanie's whimsical Mid-century pop culture illustration style lends itself perfectly to the subject matter, which I might add was her first-ever music themed commission. I'm so unbelievably excited about this piece that I'm already planning a follow-up commission from her really soon, perhaps an accompanying Johnny Cash???

I'm now forever a collector of Stephanie's work, which only makes me even more excited to work and sell my own paintings, just so I can acquire more work of the artists I love and admire. She has been extremely wonderful to work with, and in case you are wondering, her work is quite affordable!

Everyone needs to do themselves a favor and swing on by Stephanie's website, to learn about and see more of her brilliant illustrations and cartoons. This gal is going places!

Stephanie, I cannot thank you enough for the fantastic job you did. This will be a cherished piece of art in my home for decades to come, not to mention all of the other art of yours I will have!

Photography Book Coming Spring/Summer 2011

I planned to have some killer painting previews to share with everyone today, but at the moment, those paintings are currently en route to their final destinations, and since they are surprises for those people, I must wait until the surprises are over before I can share. None-the-less, I do have some art news I can dish out in the meantime.

Between painting and design projects slated for early 2011, I'll also be compiling photographs for my first-ever self-published book, entitled "Snapshot", which will be a collection of my iPhone and Polaroid photography. I think the marriage of both analog and digital photographs, all in the style of classic 'snapshots' will make for an interesting mini art book, and sort of put my feelings of 'digital' vs. 'analog' photography to rest. I feel, through familiar subject matter and the nostalgia for Polaroid film and snapshot-like quality photographs, this will be an interesting exercise for me, as well as a means of digging deeper into my love for art photography.

I haven't decided how many photographs I want to include just yet, nor a page count, either. I suppose it'll depend on how many photographs I take over the course of the next few months, and what ends up being the best of the best. (Above is a preview of the intended cover, but that could change the closer its gets to the publication date.)

Speaking of books, I did mention a while back about producing a book/catalogue for my upcoming art exhibit in March at The Cameron Gallery. That idea is still very much alive, but probably won't start coming together until after the Christmas holiday. If it ends up being a success, it'll definitely pave the way for more publications in the near future.

Well, the marathon painting continues. Fifteen paintings in three days?!? Must be a personal record, I'm sure...

Last Art-O-Mats For 2010

As an artist it's always a good day when I find my creative stride. Lately, as I've been completely overwhelmed with commissions, projects, design jobs and what-nots, I still managed to find some time to crank out one more batch of Art-O-Mat  art this week, again producing some of my best pieces for this ongoing series of work.

This new collection of Art-O-Mat pieces continues in a fun style incorporating the silk screen printing technique I use quite heavily in my main canvases. I'll typically use whatever silk screens I happen to have around at the time to make these little masterpieces, creating unique and one of a kind mono prints on each block of wood.

Images for these pieces range from pages out of vintage comic books, pinup girls, magazine advertisements and whatever would make for cool looking graphics sandwiched on top of other graphics. The printing process is quite fun, as I print all of the blocks at once, rearrange them in various other groupings, and continue to print and reprint the graphics, until I can look at each individual block and know it is complete.

What I also like is that through the Art-O-Mat machine, my work is more readily available to the masses, especially for those looking to collect my work that may not be able to afford my larger paintings. I sincerely believe that all art should be available to the masses, despite cost and quality. Art belongs to the people and money should never be a reason for its denied access.

Look for these new and other Art-O-Mat pieces in an Art-O-Mat machine near you soon!

Hope everyone is having a great holiday season so far. As a quick side note, please support your local artists, crafstmen/women and independent retailers this season. I know I can speak for everyone when I say we sincerely appreciate your continued support and patronage. Here are a few of my favorite artists to support: Hero Design Studio, StrawberryLuna, Methane Studios, Aesthetic Apparatus, Good Records and Boomstick Comics!

At the left, here is a quick peek at the entire set of these latest little masterpieces!