Survey

This is Survey, a simple piece about complexity, space, and investigating color and shape. It's very much a sketch, as I wanted to simply see how something like this would look when finished, and I think it came out alright. It's nothing too fantastic so I don't think I'll be expanding this to a full size piece, but I am still interested to see how it would look in monotone ranges over a much larger surface.....

Let Us Toast To Our Animal Desires. The Why.

This piece, Let Us Toast To Our Animal Desires, is about, well, animal desires or a lack of humanity (in this instance, they are interchangeable). We like to believe we are a civilized people.We like to think we are fair, just, intelligent and righteous. If you ask any person you meet, I'd bet most often than not, they will tell you that they are a good person..and it may be true...but not totally. And I think that can be applied to all of us. And it's nothing to be ashamed of. 

As person, we are not infallible. We do make mistakes. We make bad choices. We do, like, watch, and endorse bad things...it's just part of being human. We run into trouble, though, when we lose touch with that side of us. If we ignore those aspects of our lives, we fail to control them. When we fail to control them, we see them escalate. And when we see them escalate, we start seeing a real lack of humanity...animal instincts powerful enough to challenge our status as an intelligent being. 

The point of this piece is to get these out in the open, to gaze upon them as if they are jewels or artifacts, and to accept them as a part of our history, a part of our lives. Let Us Toast To Our Animal Desires is a way of acknowledging your shortfalls, accepting them, and moving on with a progressive mind, realizing that your perpetually bound to these animal instincts, yet aware of your power and responsibility over them.

An unexpectedly stunning image with a simply grey on black...next piece perhaps?

Two Devils, A Cat, & A Slouch

Two Green Devils

A Yellow Cat in a Red Room

The Slouch

These three small drawings were not intended to go together, and are not describing a concept either together or individually, but I like how they ended up looking as a series. A few quick sketches just to get some compositional ideas down..

Two Paths To The End of a Career. T.O. or Double D.

In the last few days we saw life-long Packer Donald Driver ink a deal that makes him a "packer for life" in an offseason in which many expected to see the fan-favorite released or retire. In those same days we saw one of the most talented athletes and WRs ever to play the game get cut by the Allen Wranglers. and yes, the Allen Wranglers are a football team.

What these two opposite situations tell is a cautionary tale of what happens when ego comes before team, and how talent doesn't make up for being a good person and working hard. Where one had  ego, the other had a hard work ethic, and their legacy was written by those differences.
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/19205518/to-and-driver-done-and-how-its-done-right-in-todays-nfl

Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?

Does anybody really know what time it is? Does anybody really care? Well apparently, the answers are "no" and "yes" respectively. A small amount of people dedicate their careers to learning about our brain's perception of time and the research shows that our brain is one of the worst time-keepers out there, while also being one of the most complex...take a look.
http://io9.com/5914112/how-do-you-really-know-what-time-it-is

Water on the Moon?

It's been cheese, it's been a face, it's been bone dry, and now, it's wet. Mounting evidence, some new, some old, suggests that the moon is far from dry, indicating their may be water held within its rocks or even underground ice. Take a look...
http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27883/

Denying Rights to Same-Sex Couples Deemed Unconstitutional

An appeals court has ruled that the Defense of Marraige act, a law which bars a number of federal benefits from being given to same sex marraige partners, is unconstitutional. Take a look.
http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/31/11990019-appeals-court-denying-federal-benefits-to-same-sex-couples-is-unconstitutional?lite

Deafening Chatter. A Flock of SeaBirds

Box Awareness

What makes something sentient? Well, simply put, it's having sensory perception. But what is sensory perception? If a computer can tell you the temperature, can sense emotion, can answer questions, where does the line of actual perception stop and the illusion of perception begin? A computer may be able to read your face and determine you are mad. It may be able to look at the weather and tell you what you should wear...but neither of those signify a computer's ability to feel for itself...or even really know what it's saying

I wanted to address this in a simple and obvious way. To create a "self aware" box.

The box, if investigated closely calls out all of it's parts. It's right side, top, bottom, left, back, lid, and hinge. It has arrows directing you around, symbols depicting where you are on the box...it even has directions as to how to open, insert, and close. The idea is to create something that is "self aware" without being self aware at all. To show that displaying information is different than understanding information. To act human is different than to be human.

I guess the ultimate application is to the viewer themselves...Are they a representation going through the motions of life, or are you really doing what you want to?

Creating the Battery of the Future

The battery is a fairly simple contraption. It's made up of three basic parts, an anode, an electrolyte and a cathode, but that's where the simplicity stops. Each of these components can be made by thousands of compounds, and each of these compounds react differently to each other, creating better or worse batteries. With millions of compounds and even more combinations, see how one company is speeding up the process to create a more powerful, longer lasting, more efficient, battery of the future.
http://www.technologyreview.com/article/40248/

Donald Driver to be Packer for Life

Check it out! Not finalized but great to hear!
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/eye-on-football/19201716/donald-driver-set-to-sign-new-contract-says-hell-be-a-packer-for-life

Spring On Brady, June 2nd & Bayview Gallery Night

Celebrate the great weather and the beginning of summer with a day out on Brady Street this Saturday, June 2nd. With the first ever art walk, take a stroll and find 15 local artists (including me) creating and showing work throughout the afternoon in front of participating Brady Street locations, and take advantage of art deals and other specials from the shops around the area. You can even get a punchcard that, when completed, will be entered for some great raffle prizes. I'll be making a big piece live in front of Mari's Flower shop, and other artists will be strewn about the neighborhood from 12-4. Take a look at the above flyer, the official site, and then check out some of the links to see some time-lapse paintings by yours truly, a hint at what might happen during my 4 hours on the sidewalk.
http://bradystreet.org/documents/40-spring-on-brady

And also make sure to check out some of my work at the Hide House for Bayview Gallery Night this Friday in what will be a great mix of a wide variety of fantastic art. Swing by Sweet Water or just take a stroll around the area, but make sure to stop in at The Hide House for all the art you can handle.
http://www.facebook.com/events/365130080211351/?notif_t=plan_edited

John Frusciante To Release EP, LP Within Two Months

Being new to the John Frusciante bandwagon, I was ecstatic to see a "new release" email when I opened my inbox this morning. There's something great about your first purchase with a new band or musician, and it's even better if it's a new release and not simply bulk buying the discography. And it's even better when it's an LP and an EP, released within two months of each other. Take a look at the press release and read, from John's own words, what he thinks of the new work...and make sure to order or keep an eye out for the release!
http://johnfrusciante.com/

Rolling Stone Review.
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/john-frusciante-preps-two-new-releases-20120529

And, if you can't wait for these...check out Here, Air, released a few months ago and check out my painting inspired by it.

Tracy Emin at The Turner

Check out the Telegraph's review of Tracy Emin's exhibit at The Turner Contemporary, Margate, a show the critic says treads a fine line between poignancy and irritation.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/art-reviews/9290563/Tracey-Emin-She-Lay-Down-Deep-Beneath-The-Sea-Turner-Contemporary-Margate-review.html#disqus_thread

I guess my only thought is this...If you beat the same drum long enough, it all starts to sound the same to the listener. It's a similar problem I have whenever Damien Hirst releases something "new". You're interested, you see it, but there's nothing "new" about it. It's a strange sense of deja vu where you know what you're looking at is different, but the emotion you feel, the concept, the thought process and the atmosphere seem dull. It's like a remastered release of an old favorite record. You might buy it, gaze at the album art or the extras, but the main attraction doesn't lift you to a new level, it brings to back to something previously experienced. It might not be bad, but you're more likely to dwell in nostalgia rather than let the music change your life. You don't discover, you emerge into an already-visited memory.

If you beat the same drum long enough you begin to live to the rhythm and sound created. Changing drums begin to sound wrong instead of new, new areas seem uncomfortable instead of confident. For an artist who thrived on surprising and challenging the viewer, this exhibit doesn't demand, it politely asks. And when it does, I politely respond "I'm full, thanks."

The Posters of the London Olympics 2012

With the amateurism of the Olympics seemingly passed, the unity of nations having fallen behind the leading medal count, and the overall message of peace having been covered by a McDonalds' "Sports" Billboard, it would seem the spirit of the Olympics is gone, totally overtaken by our desire for success and victory. And from a sporting standpoint, It's probably true.

But, in terms of advertisements, it seems the London Olympics were looking for something a little less cookie-cutter. Following in the footsteps of previous Olympics, the city commissioned a number of top artists to create limited edition posters celebrating the games. Take a look and see what they came up with.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/8867296/London-2012-Olympics-and-Paralympics-posters-unveiled.html

Collapse Of Gigantic Ancient Civilization Explained

Everyone knows about Egypt and Mesopotamia. The Mayans and the Aztecs. We see the ruins, monuments, and megastructures almost any time we tune into National Geographic and are flooded with theories, studies, ideas and even conspiracy theories as to how these great civilizations were built, lived, and eventually, destroyed. Well one empire that you might not know is the Harappan, what actually once held the crown as the largest in all the world, containing 10% of the world's entire population. Take a look at new research on the ancient civilization which points to a very current problem for their ultimate destruction.
http://www.livescience.com/20614-collapse-mythical-river-civilization.html

Let Us Toast To Animal Pleasures

Let Us Toast To Animal Pleasures 

A vertical shot, for detail.

Four Pillars

This is the second of the mandala inspired images, the first being Everything's The Same Even If It's Different. Where the idea of the previous piece was to universally and generally symbolize life, our struggles, and the big picture of everything, Four Pillars is meant to be a bit more specific to each individual viewer. The four pillars are meant to be the four strengths, loves...whatever symbolic "4" you adopt. The viewer is then meant to investigate this image and apply those four pillars to their life. In that way, the piece becomes specific to that person, totally dependent on the reader and how they interpret those pillars after the initial concept. The piece moves from a general commentary on life and death to a specific symbol of the life of the viewer...


I like the idea of art meaning different things to different people...and so, if you're ever looking at my work and trying to find out what it's saying, go with your gut. Chances are that once you get past the initial idea, the first inspiration, that the basis of the piece is for the viewer to decipher it themselves, apply their own mindset to the imagery, and interpret the narrative depending on their own experience. My work usually says one more general statement which can apply to anyone who views, but I also want my work to have a more personal effect, an underlying application of that general statement to the personal and unique lives of each viewer. 


So, if you ever are confused by a piece of mine, take a look at the title, figure out what that means to you, and begin to work through the piece from there. It will create a more real experience than any artist statement I could write. 

About A Band Called About:

 

I was sent a preview of About:'s first release "Dukkha" and was really blown away. It's a rare thing for me to listen to four songs for a period of eight hours. And no, each song was not two hours long.

An interesting mix of folk, electronic, psychedelia, and ambient/ethereal tunes, each song takes you on a very different voyage through a rather unknown musical landscape. Though you can definitely hear hints of influences like Bjork, Pink floyd, and even some more classic rock sounding drums and guitar, About: seems to build it's songs through a process of discovery, allowing each to meander, build, fall and layer before you reach the conclusion. The listener follows along, sometimes frantically searching for imminent danger, sometimes pulled along by the gentle current, always effortlessly led by the changing tunes, beats and rhythms that intertwine throughout each track. Each song plays out a storyline of changing beats, shifting rhythms and ebbing moods to a level some entire albums don't reach, providing a very saturated and thorough investigation of the work presented.

Take a look and make sure to keep checking in for more updates and releases.
http://www.facebook.com/aboutband

Welcome To The Multiverse

Is science pointing toward a reality where our universe is one of billions? It's a little hard to wrap your head around, but take a look...
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/05/20/brian-greene-welcome-to-the-multiverse.html

Tired of Taking The Pill? Get Your Guy One

The discovery of a new gene which controls the final stages of sperm development has some scientists believing that we are closing in on a male contraceptive pill. Take a look...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/male-contraceptive-pill-is-a-step-closer-after-gene-discovery-7786270.html

Life, Death, and Everything Else. The Mandala

The inspiration is universal. The narrative is personal. Life triggers the revolutions and enlightenment expands understanding. It's all inclusive yet dependent on you. It's all encompassing and totally specific. It means what you make it, and is what you believe it to be. It's everything and nothing. Everything's The Same, Even If It's Different.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandala

Kentucky Makes Bass Fishing A High School Sport

If you're in high school in Kentucky and aren't into football, baseball, soccer, golf, basketball, swimming, hockey, cross country, track, or any other sport, you're in luck. Bass Fishing has become a sanctioned High School sport in the state of Kentucky, becoming the second state in the nation to do so. And before you go on a "Southerners are so stupid..." rant, guess what the first state was? Illinois.
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/highschool-prep-rally/kentucky-becomes-second-state-bass-fishing-high-school-185906709.html

All joking aside, I do think this is positive. Fishing, while it's maybe not as athletic an endeavor as cross-country, still challenges your body, requires you to know about nature (if you're going to be good), and is a reason for kids to be out in the environment rather than in the house. At the very least it's positive that these kids will learn about lake environments and how they work, maybe leading to increased action toward keeping those environments healthy. So...while they may not be exercising as much as they should, maybe we'll at least get a few more kids off the couch.

Everything's The Same Even If It's Different

A full post with explanation and thoughts coming...but lunch comes first. Take a peek at my newest piece from last night...Everything's The Same Even If It's Different

Woman Barred From American Airlines Flight Due To Offensive Shirt

This story is already blowing up and depending one where you read it, you'll get a very different message. Already, after only 2 minutes of searching I've found various headlines ranging from "Woman Kicked Off Of Flight For Supporting Women's Rights" to "Woman Asked To Change Offensive Shirt Misses Flight." Now...I'm not a rocket scientist, but those express fairly different messages conveying fairly different levels of intensity. And likewise, causing very different uproar. Here's a story from the Huffington Post which seems to outline what exactly happened pretty well...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/24/woman-kept-off-american-airlines-plane-for-allegedly-offensive-shirt_n_1541972.html

Like the airlines says, I don't think this had ANYTHING to do with the political message. If the shirt just had the word "FUCK" I'm sure she'd have gotten kicked off as well. Furthermore, if the message wasn't about abortion or women's rights, this wouldn't be as big a story. For instance if the shirt was pro-life, I'd imagine either no one would care, or all the people outraged at this injustice would instead be hurling insults at the shirt wearer.

Secondly, it's not a matter of free speech, and stop over-reacting. If barring people from displaying crude language in public really offends you, why haven't you flipped out over all the websites that block certain words or star them out. Even the Huffington Post site, featuring the story, bars swear words from being posted in the comments section. Why aren't we upset about that? Free speech doesn't cover private institutions. You can't wear a "fuck you" shirt to work, and that's not an affront to free speech. You can't wear a "fuck you" shirt to a grade school, and that's not worthy of an uprising. You wouldn't be allowed to wear a "fuck you" shirt to any official ceremony...and that's not causing high schoolers or college kids across the nation to campaign for free speech. The fact is that we are barred from doing tons of things  and it never bothers us, so stop acting like this is some gigantically unfair story which we need to stand up and defend our rights over...seriously, if people from other countries knew what we considered challenges to our "freedom" we'd be laughed off the world stage as the most obtuse people on the planet.

Why can't we just accept that maybe wearing a shirt with the word "FUCK" on it isn't the most appropriate thing to do in a largely public space. Maybe you don't think it's offensive...and that's OK, but some people do. And maybe you don't care if kids see it, maybe you think people should just look away...but some people also think acting like a decent person in public is worth more than saying "I'm gonna wear what I want. Deal with it and screw what you think."

It doesn't offend me. I don't care if you wear it. But I also realize that what i do affects the lives of the people around me. If I fart, the office smells. If I ridicule a co-worker, he has a bad day. If I screw someone over that I don't know, who knows what that leads to. If you wear a possibly offensive shirt, you may offend people. And if you don't care about offending other people, great....but I'd rather make the people around me more comfortable, maybe even help them have a better day, than offend someone and negatively affect their day so that I can feel comfortable knowing my right to wear the word "fuck" is safe.

And lastly, the woman wasn't kicked off the flight. She made one flight, was told she needed to talk to the captain, was told that she shouldn't have been allowed to board in the first place and that she'd need to change her shirt before boarding the next plane. She missed the next plane due to the delay, but was given a seat on the next flight out...after changing her shirt...

What Makes the Venus Transit So Rare?

While it happens to be one of the most gorgeous events in all of Earth observable celestial happenings, we can only see Venus pass between the Earth and the face of the Sun once every 105 years. But why? It has to do with a bit of simple geometry, easily explained by the video in the link. Take a look.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2012/05/25/3510139.htm

Solar Plane Takes Off For First Trans-Continental Flight

A solar plane dubbed "Solar Impulse", took off from it's home in Switzerland to start a transcontinental flight, the first of it's kind for the plane, which hopes to fly around the world with a newer design in a couple years. Take a look...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47550887#.T76XVM3ZiKp

It's cool...but the one thing I can't help but wonder is why this seems so technologically far behind? We've been flying for a century now and this solar plane looks like a throwback to the days where we were using heavy materials, needed giant wingspans, and couldn't carry anything while we barely could fly a mile. Is solar power simply not powerful enough for flying or has no one really tried this before?

Wisconsin Breast Cancer Showhouse Looking Better Than Ever

Take a look at this year's Wisconsin Breast Cancer Showhouse, a 100+ year old mansion redecorated and designed into a 21st century masterpiece, accented a top notch art collection. Don't miss this great opportunity to support a great cause and take in some of the greatest hidden treasures of Milwaukee.
http://www.mmagazinemilwaukee.com/index.php?src=gendocs&ref=ArtLivesHere&category=Dwellings#.T70_l-KaLG8.facebook

Placements.

I've kinda felt unsatisfied with my arting recently. I'm not sure what it is, but, while I've been happy with the pieces I've been doing, I haven't had any solid long-term sessions of really working a piece in a while. It leaves me with the constant yearning to make more, to do something spectacular. To make a piece that really stands out.

I think that's a good thing. While it's annoying and can really bring ya down on certain days, not feeling like you're really getting done what you'd hope from an artistic standpoint, It also ensures that you never stand still for too long.

So while these pieces don't really cover that yearning at all...the placements make the work seem a little more physical than some of the work that gets done and just goes up on my wall or in the pile in my living room. While I don't usually feel purged of my artistic wanting, I do feel that the work accomplishes something more than just "being made" or "making a statement". It is physically impacting people around the city...visually changing the landscape of your everyday and, hopefully, making everyone's day, at the very least, a little more colorful.

The Box

The Box, a wonderful tool, and sometimes a surface.

I think the box can be a very good surface to work on. You have six flat surfaces to do whatever you want. You have a 3D object which automatically demands interest in a given space. You have the wonder of what's inside or what it's for. You have the boldness of a cube, taking up space and physically affecting you and objects around it. You have the question of what it could be covering. You have commonalities with some very emotionally impactful objects; coffin, tomb, cell, treasure chest. And then, at the very least, it's usually usable, as long as you can still access it. Or maybe it's not...and that's another readily available tool. Basically, it's a simple object loaded with concept, emotion, and possible tangents. When canvases got you down, try using an object like a box to work on, you never know what will come out of it, and sometimes that's the best part of art.

Wife's Struggle Brings Strength Through Tutu's

A wife's struggle with cancer led her husband to start The TuTu Project, which has now raised over $60,000 and helped countless victims of breast cancer find humor and happiness in their time of struggle. Take a look.
http://todayhealth.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/24/11860236-laughing-in-the-face-of-wifes-cancer-he-poses-in-a-pink-tutu?lite

and here's a link to the site...
http://www.thetutuproject.com/

Did Trade Route Change Doom The Mayans?

Some believe that the Mayans were able to predict hundreds of years into the future, even so much as to name the last day of life on Earth as we know it. And while many people are willing to admit they were an amazing civilization, the abrupt collapse of their empire has puzzled modern man for years and put a skeptical damper on those supposed predictive abilities. From war, to climate change, to alien relocation, many theories have been put forth to explain the collapse, why it happened to such an advanced society at such a quick rate, and how such an advanced people couldn't have seen their end coming. New research now says that changing trade routes may have played a large role in the collapse of the Mayans, stretching the empire and restricting the goods so valuable to the Mayans. Take a look.
http://www.heritagedaily.com/2012/05/study-reveals-trade-patterns-for-crucial-substance-played-key-role-in-maya-collapse/

Plan Your Route

A throwback to my highschool days of painting skateboards....