Screen Prints – The “new” art form

There has been such a great upsurge in art created from re-envisioning movie posters as screen prints, that it makes it difficult for someone like myself, a lover of cool art and great movies, to keep any cash in my already thin wallet.

It is then a small blessing for me, that these prints have become so popular that it is becoming increasingly difficult to get the chance to spend my money on them. There was a time when they were somewhat underground, but with the success of art powerhouses like Mondo, Spoke Art, and ACME Archives through their print site Dark Ink this art form has become very popular – and not only because the art is amazing, but it is affordable at the same time – most prints generally going for $50 to $100. No need to seek out original movie posters from the 50′s, or buy cheap reprints to decorate your apartment. These prints are so cool, the are instant classics in their own right, and the limited numbers make them even more unique.

I am a very late entrant into this arena, and it since that the bar has been set so high already, it will be very interesting (if not a bit unnerving) to see where I’ve gotten, let’s say…five years from now. My first entry was a print for the 20th anniversary screening of The Rocketeer at the El Capitan theater in Hollywood.

More recently I was asked by ACME to create a screen print of the 1935 Mickey Mouse short The Band Concert. This was a perfect choice for me as the short is one of my all-time favorites, though I have to say, watching it over and over for graphic clues really made me see it very differently. Suffice it to say, not that a year has passed, I am finally comfortable watching it again.

I am currently working on a few new ideas, and hopefully I’ll be able to execute them before too long. In the meantime, check out some of these wonderful examples from Mondo, Spoke Art, and ACME Archives.

There are really so many truly amazingly beautiful posters, that this is just a random collection of my favorites… Once you’re done reading this, go buy a cool poster!

Lego Fun – not just for kids!

A nice bit of fun courtesy of Gizmodo and Lego.

http://m.gizmodo.com/5980384/these-55-lego-riddles-will-push-your-brain-to-the-limit?utm_campaign=socialflow_gizmodo_facebook&utm_source=gizmodo_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

More stuff from my shelves

A few more snapshots of what’s crowding my Bongo office shelves. Just as before, when it definitely seemed that the rubber chicken was gonna’ spill on the after-hour happenings, Spider Pig seems to have have been interrupted mid-sentence. Perhaps Treebeard sushed him… Enjoy!

Always Welcomed

Time seems to dull the pain of losing a parent, and, after a while, memories fade, diminishing in the distance, drowned out by the constant noise of the life surrounding us, becoming more and more like a withering echo, leaving us unsure of our own recollections of those moments past. And then, something happens. An event, a location, a sensation, a song…and feelings rush back in, flooding your mind with images and emotions not only of the loss, but of moments spent with that missing parent, moments that at the time might have seemed simple, ordinary, even boring, but most of all, moments that now are priceless treasures suddenly rediscovered. They rush back in unrelenting, unstoppable, and often unkind…but always welcomed.

A busy couple of months leading into an adventure

Just saw Argo, and it’s a good thing too, because it’s going to be a busy couple of months…

As if the start of the Holiday Season (and all that implies) was not enough, the next couple of months, leading into the end of 2013, promise to offer many excellent ways to distract me from attempting anything productive.

In just a few days, on November 6th, we will get to participate in something that Americans only experience once every few years. Some argue that some of the energy is gone, that this is not as historical as the last time around, that because of past missteps this has the potential to disappoint… I disagree – I am energized, excited, and full of hope for this November 6th, and I will make sure my kids get to experience it! I am of course referring to the long-awaited release of Halo 4!

 

OK… We have only three days (hydrate, eat smart energy foods, and only sleep as necessary), and on November 9th we are presented with the release of Skyfall, the new James Bond movie. This should only be a short distraction from Halo 4, but a distraction nonetheless – although it may be a good opportunity to stock up on soda, popcorn and even candy (should your Halloween stash be diminishing) without going to the store. Yes, you’ll pay a premium, but you’ll save important time which can otherwise be spent in front of your Xbox. I am excited about Skyfall, and I’m very hopeful it will erase the memory of Daniel Craig’s second 007 movie, Quantum of Solace.

 

Then back to Halo 4. Yes there will be other diversions as well – like Thanksgiving and having to visit with family, but those will eventually pass, so that we may wrap up the campaign mode and devote ourselves entirely to the online Halo 4 experience, which should keep us quite busy through December.

Now, this will be a great time to revisit the extended versions of all three Lord of the Rings movies, because only ten days before Christmas, Peter Jackson will deliver the long-awaited release of The Hobbit! Very, VERY exciting, indeed…

 

And then,  December 19th, Sony pictures will release Zero Dark Thirty, from the director of Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow). This, for personal reasons, is the movie I look forward to the most this year. I really hope it lives up to the historical significance of the events it portrays.

 

Just like Argo, the next two months leading into 2013 will offer a lot for us to take in and it looks like we’ll be on the edge of our seats all the way through the end credits.

Some stuff off my shelf…

It’s weird to look around my room sometimes, and consider the meaning of some of the objects that crowd my shelves.

I was staring at a small section of one of the shelves in my Bongo office (really more through it seeking inspiration) – and I was suddenly struck at how representative this particular section was of the past 10- 15 years or so. There’s Homer, so that’s clearly representative of my involvement with the Simpsons. But really, it reminds me more of Futurama – because I remember exactly when I received it as a gift. It is, in fact, the ceramic case to a Simpsons watch which I still have, and I got it during the first run of Futurama – it is strange to consider how an object can take you right back to a location you haven’t thought about in so long. Then there are Hoops and Yoyo, a couple of  toys Titan offers with their Simpsons comics, and a Bat-mobile from Bill’s collection.

But the ones that stand out to me the most, are the My Little Pony figurine, given to me by my daughter, and the clay monster created by my son when he was much younger (perhaps 9 or 10). I wonder what they all do when the lights are off – the rubber chicken looks like it wants to tell.

I’m back baby!

So yes…it’s been a while. Work was as usual the culprit, but I also felt a bit uninspired. But watching The Daily Show with John Stewart the other day, I learned about the Stewart-O’Reilly Rumble in D.C. next month, and found myself wanting to create an appropriate image for this momentous event. After scouring the web for more information and images of the two pundits, I put together this poster – enjoy! Quick disclosure – I was unable to find information on who took the original head shots used to create my poster, so I apologize for not being able to properly credit the photographers in question.    

 

“The trick, William Potter, is not minding that it hurts.”

So this blog – as it says above, is not just about things I do, but also about things I like. And I like the movie Prometheus. A lot.

It is – I think – flawless in its appearance. CGI is integrated masterfully, and the design is stunning. It left me with a lot of questions, and while I have some complaints or at least lingering questions about the story itself, the visual experience is definitely worth the trip – so much so, that I would like to see again. And again. The IMAX 3D experience was breathtaking, and I would fully recommend it for this movie (I normally avoid it, so… I guess that says something, no?).

One of my favorite parts, is, and I hope I’m not spoiling anything here, the character of the android David, played flawlessly by Michael Fassbender.

Check out the official Weyland Industries DAVID 8 promo, or view it on YouTube bellow.

It’s been a while

And not because I’m lazy and doing nothing, but, on the contrary, because I’ve been very very busy. And I still am. No need to bore you talking about all my projects, but I will talk about the one I just finished, and which proved to be quite challenging.

I was recently invited to participate in the Rayguns and Robots show at Ltd. Gallery in Seattle. “Sure!” I exclaimed without thinking about it too much… And then it dawned on me that I haven’t painted in a really, really, really long time. I have become one with my Mac… It is an extension of me, and I can do anything I want on it. But this – this would be messy, and with little room for mistakes, and I had not done it for real in 20 years.

The deadline – that which keeps me from playing video games. And lately, it feels like it’s been one continuos deadline. No joy in finishing something when you can’t stop and look at it… But I was committed, so I headed to the art store. Paints – check. Canvas – check. More paints – check. All I needed now was an idea…

I came up with quite a few… Some – I though – really cool, and if I didn’t have to ship the final piece I might have just explored them. I could do a really cool print, mixed media, maybe neon… How retro… But in the end it had to be something I could do on time and also something that I would like to hang on my own wall. And so, slowly, and idea formed – now to the easy task of painting. Like I said, it’s been a really, really long time.

Anyway, the process was messy – mixing colors is harder than I remember, applying paint to canvas is harder than I remember, finding the right brush is harder than I remember… Actually EVERYTHING proved to be harder than I remember. What did I get myself into? But it felt great. And with every stroke of the brush, with every carefully aimed splatter of paint, and every new stain of color on any number of my t-shirts, this thing started to come together. And after almost a week of channeling my former self, a week of walking around the canvas, applying some paint, then walking away again and staring at it from a distance while leaning my head sideways, I got to a point where I finally said “it is done…”

I can now happily report that, with the paint (mostly) dry, the canvas has been shipped to the gallery. Maybe someone will even buy it, or maybe it will hang on my wall at home – but most importantly, I rediscovered the fun of making art way from my computer – and I think I really like it.

Los Angeles – June 8, 2012

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Despair

My friend took this beautiful picture for a Keane photo contest it deserves your vote!

http://community.hipstamatic.com/submissions/224886