Anyways, onto the stuff.

My latest digital art piece, “Mote”

As always, it is available in high-resolution in my digital art portfolio.

“Mote” was my first big local collaboration; myself, Melissa Thurber,Skye Sabrina Zimmerman, Lauren Nicole Brownlow, Dawn Newton and Rachel Healy collaborated together on this piece. They all shot the original model (Skye) and Melissa sent me 4 pictures to choose from to run with. It was an interesting idea; she gave me complete freedom on the project and I’m really happy with how it turned out. I hope we can all work together more in the future!

You can see a “Making Of” video of “Mote” here:

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

“Tragyk” Mask Series on display at the Northwest Florida Arts Association’s Art Lair

Here’s something I kept almost entirely off of the internet: the fact that I was making masks for an art exhibit. It’s very rare that I experiment outside of my normal digital art medium and I wanted it to be special.

A little bit of backstory… I actually came up with the idea for the exhibit the masks would display in: “Reveal Yourself.” When I say “I came up with it” I mean it in the most American form of the word; I saw it somewhere and wanted to do my own version. I was watching the George Romero movie Bruiser (one of my fav’s, the Misfits are in it, I mean come on) and I thought the “party” scene would be a fantastic idea for an art exhibit. I pitched it to Brandi Lee and she loved it and I think I pitched it to Angel Agagas as well, and then finally went to Holly with it and it was a go.

We had a lot of internal debates regarding the show: how to judge it, how to keep uniformity, ceramic or plastic masks, etc. A lot of people were afraid no one would enter because we were now asking people to pay for masks but this never concerned me and I never feared it. Artists are people that embrace challenge and $5 is easily worth an exciting artistic challenge; I’m glad to see I was proven right. The turn out was fantastic! Thank you to everyone who came out, it was a fantastic reception and I had a great time!

I wasn’t sure how my masks would turn out or what I would use to make them. The whole concept is foreign to me. Angel and I went to AC Moore and cleaned them out. I bought 4 and she bought 2; I also bought one little half mask because I wanted to test. Test what? Shit if I know… I’ll sort that out later!

Angel gave me a bag of random supplies she felt I could use; a few paint brushes, a few paint kits, a big tube of black paint, big tube of red paint, a pencil, and eraser, and glitter. Yep, glitter.

That night I went home and started doodling on the small mask, testing to see if a sharpie would write on the masks. The sharpie proved to be a success.

I was sitting there looking at it and I lit a stick of incense with a butane lighter I had and then I realized the masks were made of plastic… as a kid I used to love melting plastic toys (to the surprise of no one…) so I was quite practiced in the art of melting shit.

I decided to give it a shot so I went out on my balcony and tried burning it…

I LOVED this result. I texted it to a bunch of friends, in particular Charles. Then this conversation transpired…

Charles: Fire reveals character. Amazing work.
Brandon: I need a fucking blow torch.
Charles: I have a mini one
Brandon: may need to skip that and just invest in an Aliens style flame thrower, man.
Charles: You’re scaring me. If you want the small one, let me know.
Brandon: Dude for realsies? Sure. Im down lol
Charles: Ok…ill try to remember to give it to angel in the morning
Brandon: Oh shit yeah son.
Charles: I will fuel your fire
Brandon: Im the firestarter! Twisted firestarter!
Charles: Fear addicted danger illustrated
Brandon: That was a damn good album, man.
Brandon: I had a poster of that album cover on my wall. Real talk.
Charles: Agreed…we are a jilted generation.

Yeah okay maybe I could have cut that convo off but that shit made me laugh so I’m putting it here. Charles, you rock man. You rock.

Anyways.

So then I had a blowtorch. Awesome. Fucking awesome. A BLOWTORCH, MAN. YEAH.

I couldn’t wait to try it. I drew out a quick sketch of how I wanted it to be…

Then I broke out the blowtorch!

Let it cool down and painted it…

Then more blowtorch!

So one mask was definitely finished and I was very proud of it! I loved it! It gave me the confidence I needed to make 3 more.

The next mask was just sort of jumped into. I wanted to test what happened to the mask if I painted it before burning it…

I thought that was a really cool effect. On the next mask I wanted to try melting various things over the mask…

I melted caution tape, sharpies and jelly wrist bracelets over it. Then I poured glitter all over it because damnit, Angel gave it to me so I’m going to use it!

On a side note, black sharpies burn like CRAZY when you cut them open. The black metallic ones burn neon green and blue. Really beautiful, actually. I mean it sucks when you’re not expecting it and it’s fucking EVERYWHERE but in a controlled situation it’d be amazing to photograph.

The final mask I wanted to try and combine everything I had learned with the previous masks. I drew the design first…

Then I burned it with the blowtorch…

Then I painted it… this was the most elaborate painting I did on any of the masks…

Then I burned it again!

Finally at the show, I actually won 2nd Place!

So that is my Tragyk series. The masks are on display right now at the Northwest Florida Arts Association’s Art Lair in Downtown Fort Walton Beach, Florida. It is a part of the “Reveal Yourself” show that is on display until February 11, 2012. Stop by and check them out!

I may do more masks in the future. I really had a blast making these. Plus… Charles got me a blowtorch for Christmas!

Northwest Florida Arts Association Art Week Photoshop Class

My class at the NWFLAA’s Art Week went very well.Thank you to everyone that came out! The class was a lot of fun and I look forward to teaching more in the future.

“Warthog Shot Dead By Canon”

This part weekend I joined the NWFLAA Photography Group on their journey to the Gulf Breeze Zoo. I haven’t been to a zoo since I was a kid so I was excited to join my friends on this adventure. It was early as hell (had to get up at 6) but it was fun. On 2 hours of sleep, Charles and Angel picked me up from my apartment and we were off!

We got to the zoo right as it opened and met up with Holly, the Photography Group leader, and the other photographers. We purchased our tickets for the zoo and the train ride and went to check out the animals.

Honestly… zoos are WAY crazier than I remember as I kid. We saw a Warthog fall over, spasm and die in front of us. We were then asked to leave the area. It was interesting watching the reaction of the cougar in the next cage… the predatory nature never fully leaves us, no matter how calm we may seem on the outside. It was really fascinating to watch. No children were around for the Warthog incident and the staff responded immediately and took care of everything professionally. By no means was it a negative experience; the Gulf Breeze Zoo and their staff are great. It’s just… you know… the Circle of Life? Yep. Went Lion King on it. It happened.

The animals were so friendly and into people, though. The llamas, goats, monkeys, all of them really seem excited to be around people. Maybe it was because they just opened so they all thought we might have food but it was really cool.

Here are some random pictures I took with my cell phone. Yes, my cell phone. I took my Canon 50D and my camera bag and I think I took 10 pictures with it and never touched it again. I haven’t even looked at the pictures. I really don’t consider myself a photographer. However I had a great time with the group and the zoo kicked ass.

Thanks for reading. My goal for next month is to get a much nicer comment system working on this website so hopefully some discussion can start here.

The other day I was having a rather delightful conversation with a friend of mine about the concept of “shock.” Not in the extremely painful “put your bellend in Lord Rayden’s hand” way, either. We were discussing the ever annoying trend of how shocking people seems to be a goal these days.

It seems every few months some new internet video, movie, musician, artist, etc. tries to shock the world into paying attention to them. But why? What’s the goal? That’s where we are going to end up but first a little backstory.

I, like many people my age, are children of the internet. I am also a part of this sub-section of people that seem to enjoy being shocked. Telling me a horror film is the grossest film of all time is virtually begging me to watch it. You know my type; the person in the office who, when everyone else is freaking out over the latest 2girls1cup video is found sitting at their desk eye rolling that people are shocked by this shit (cwutididthar?). Quite simply: there exists a type of person now that is incredibly desensitized to horrific and disgusting things.

WE are the targets of these shock campaigns: not you. Allow me to explain.

The average person (let’s call them Poncey) isn’t exposed to websites like 4chan. Poncey has never heard of The Human Centipede or goatse. Poncey is easy to shock. There is no reason to one-up the fucked up shit of yesterday if you are targeting Poncey. Poncey is shocked by the average PG-13 horror film trailer.

People like Tom Six (the director of The Human Centipede) target people like me… they want to be Christ figures to a niche market. The most fucked up of the fucked up. They are attracted to the challenge of offending the most jaded, numb people alive.

For what purpose though? Is shocking people a good idea? Is there merit to it, or is it a simple flash in the pan? Is it just a quick 15 minutes of fame (or shame in some cases)? This is where the discussion get’s fun.

Shock for the sake of shock is pointless to me. Doing something disgusting to your body to shock me is easy but does nothing in the long run. If your goal is to simply make me think “man that guy was a fucking idiot” 3 years from the time I see your video (like 1 guy 1 jar) then by all means, shock me because that’s all your going to get from me in that regard. I will buy the ticket and take the ride but there will be no return.

However I do think shock can be used as a very, very intelligent tool if used properly. To a degree I think one of the most successful organizations in terms of productive shocking is PETA. Whether it’s disgusting, fucked up pictures of animals or naked women covering their bodies with their hands, they manage to produce a concise and clear message with their shock. They get your attention and then they slap you with some message. That is productive shock and exactly the way shock should be used. Whether I agree with PETA’s politics or not is irrelevant and by no means am I taking a stand as pro-PETA or anything; I’m simply saying I can appreciate an intelligently put together plan/message regardless of whether I agree with it’s message or not.

To an extent Mel Gibson accomplished a similar successful campaign with The Passion of the Christ. While I felt the movie was a bit of tripe, it did shock this country into having an almost renewal of faith. Of course now everyone knows he is (and has always been) a complete tosser and the anti-semitism of the movie was insane, it still accomplished what I believe his goal was: to shock people into believing. Where Gibson failed was the aftermath and this is where virtually all “shock” artists fail horribly.

Marilyn Manson is a perfect example to me of a fail shock artist. I know a lot of my friends are going to read that and shit bricks but hear me out… I love Marilyn Manson’s music, persona, everything about him except the shock. I truly think his most recent album, The High End of Low, is one of his best albums minus the 2 shock tracks. I mean come on, who didn’t read the song title “Arma-Goddamn-Motha-Fucking-Geddon” and eye roll? I’m surprised the record label even let that out. I woulda axe’d that shit from jump and told his ass “you’re not in high school anymore dude; stick with the substance.”

And that is where virtually all shock artists fail: substance.

Let’s stick with Manson for a minute. Marilyn Manson, without a doubt, had everyone’s attention in 1996. When he released Antichrist Superstar, he had the entire world in the palm of his hand. Everyone knew his name. I remember schools banned kids from wearing his shirts on campus; he was a fucking threat. Antichrist Superstar is a badass album as well; arguably one of the best and most important albums of the 1990′s. It effectively took the movement Nirvana started and crucified it.

So once the world was paying attention to him ready to hear whatever he had to say… what did he say? NOT A FUCKING THING. He was on every news station nightly and what did he do with this publicity? Nothing. Fuck all. He pissed it away. He wasted it all by trying to be a vague, ambiguous mystery person. My guess is he thought this would keep people interested in him; a constant search to find out who Marilyn Manson is or what he is about. It did the opposite. “Oh you’ve got nothing to say? Alright then. Ktxhbai.”

Nowadays he tries very hard to get back to that same level of importance; singing songs like “We’re From America” in hopes someone will be shocked and offended and pay attention to him but guess what? You had your chance, man. You could have changed things but you did nothing with the power you had. No one cares anymore; focus on your art, not trying to become a cultural icon again. We get it. You don’t dig Jesus. Right on. Got anything else to say? Then sit the fuck down. Oh and by art I mean music, not the watercolors. While I know a lot of people who are fans of his paintings but I simply see it all as “trying too hard.”

A more modern example is Lady GaGa. To me, she did the exact same thing Marilyn Manson has done but in a much less polarizing way. After The Fame Monster came out she was everywhere; she was #1 fucking everywhere. So then it comes time for her follow up album and I expected something with depth. Something with substance. I truly feel it did not deliver; it’s a good album don’t get me wrong (well, it’s okay, not as good as The Fame Monster) but she said nothing. Did nothing with this attention. GaGa fans can tell me all day how her songs are about a seemingly infinite amount of scenarios but listen… I’m an artist. I have heard artists bullshit the meanings behind something when asked. I get it. You can make anything about anything if you want to, especially when you’re talking to sycophants.

Very similar to Marilyn Manson she can go on any talk show in the world at any time and say whatever she wants and be heard so what does she do? Fuck all.

I know she is seen as some sort of LGBT icon and I think her shows and music are fantastic support for that cause; however I think she still tip toes the line of “saying what I want” and “saying what will sell.” She doesn’t draw any lines in the sand. She’s a diet version of Marilyn Manson; half the shock, but the same amount of substance. Yeah, I know Lady GaGa pulls her albums from chains that are notoriously anti-LGBT but is that really a big step in a world where downloads count for far more sales than actual pressed CD’s? I know it’s fun to see her as a rebel taking a stand but really think about how big of a difference that makes in the long run; especially considering Lady GaGa, not Target, went bankrupt. Just sayin’.

The problem is I don’t think these individuals had plans. The goal was to get attention; they never worried about what to do once they got it.

What is currently considered by most hardcore shock-fans as the most shocking and disturbing film ever made is A Serbian Film. I have written at great length about this film already on this website so I will skip over details; however I will say that the creators of the film claim it is about the following:

From Wikipedia:

In another interview Spasojević is quoted as saying “my shocking ‘A Serbian Film’ exposes the fascism of political correctness”. On the question of whether the violence depicted deals with Serbian soldiers and war crimes that they have committed, Spasojević answers: “‘Srpski Film’ does not touch upon war themes, but in a metaphorical way deals with the consequences of postwar society and a man that is exploited to the extreme in the name of securing the survival of his family”

To that… all I have to say is “yeah but… no.” While this may have been some sort of intended message from jump the film hardly conveys this message well. I don’t think the average viewer will walk away with any resemblance of that message in their mind. I do stand by it being the most shocking film I have ever seen, though. If you’re up for a wild ride I recommend it but it’s substance is actually more on how well the production is. The lighting and acting are incredible; but the message, the aftertaste you experience once the credits roll is not a feeling of message or substance. The film does end on this “society is a vicious cycle” message but sometimes I think the shock can steal the spotlight from the actual point and A Serbian Film is guilty of this.

In conclusion I truly believe shocking people can be a good thing. It’s a weapon and in the right hands it can bring about change but when used as simply a means to get attention without any sort of plan… it’s worthless.

If you want my attention I will give it to you but you better do something meaningful once you have it.

I think I have finally embraced the reason I create art and it is incredibly selfish. I make my art for me and me alone: typically to get some sort of emotion out that I can’t seem to any other way. I think this has always been the way I have done things involved my art but it’s not to finally embrace it and accept that it is okay.

George Lucas: Stop fucking with the Star Wars trilogy. Labor Day Weekend I was emo and it was pouring rain here from a tropical storm so I thought it would be fun to nostalgia out watching the Star Wars Blu Rays… the problem is, there is hardly any nostalgia left to be had! STOP FUCKING WITH SHIT. Thank you.

I’m absolutely in love with a few albums right now. The Naked and Famous’ “Passive Me, Aggressive You”, Foster the People’s “Torches,” Kid Cudi’s “A Man on the Moon,” and Destroyer’s “Kaputt.” These are all in pretty much constant play in my life and I highly recommend them all.

I recently saw the movie “Cherry” and absolutely loved it. You can read about it here. The premise is: “An Ivy League freshman gets an unexpected education when he falls for an older woman and her 14 year-old daughter develops a crush on him.” I really enjoyed it. It’s hilarious in the beginning (the scene about penis measuring techniques DESTROYED me) and honestly quite strong later on as well. It has a lot more drama than I expected and the acting is top notch. I’m now a huge fan of Britt Robertson and I want to see more of her work. She stole this fucking movie in a big bad way.

I’m in a weird mental state regarding my artworks future. For the first time in a long time, I feel like I am not working towards a goal and for the first time of my life I feel that is okay. Typically I go from goal to goal, achieving everything I set my mind on. Now I am kind of enjoying this relaxed “let it happen” state. Granted my website is getting less traffic because I’m not out there whoring myself nonstop but I’m not sure I know what my definition of success is anymore. I need to think about it. It used to be, to me, “real” artists were in galleries. However I am not sure this echos my current feelings anymore.

I’m really looking forward to Elder Scrolls Skyrim. It will be the first game in a long time that I buy on launch. Add me on XBL if you are getting it, my tag is TheBrandon666. On a similar note, I have started playing TF2 again. Feel free to add  me on Steam, my username is ihateartists.

The Northwest Florida Arts Association is doing fantastic and I’m very proud to see it growing the way it has. I can’t believe it’s reached the point it has. I remember sitting in ASAP Graphics talking to Holly Bain about the idea in general for the first time and our goals. I’m proud it has succeeded the way it has.

I’ve met a ton of wonderful people lately and grown very close to people I hope are around for a long time. They know who they are.

I’ve been getting a lot more attention art-wise on Facebook lately. I’d say once a week I get someone contacting me who has found my art somewhere and loves it. It’s incredibly flattering and I hope it continues to happen. While I do make my art for myself, it warms my heart and makes me smile anytime someone appreciates it or just takes the time to look at it. I love you all and I hope you feel something when you see my work.

I’m now sitting here waiting for Ben to reply to me on Steam. I think we’re about to go nub the pwns in TF2.

Yep. Here we go. Hit us up! Here we go bitches!

What music (if any) do you listen to when you create art? 

It depends on my mood at the time. The music doesn’t really effect the art directly; I have made some of my darkest work listening to techno or something light. I would say some consistant albums on my playlist while working on art are:

• Stars – The Five Ghosts
• Stars – Up in our Bedroom, After the War
• Stars – Heart
• Stars – Set Yourself on Fire
• Los Campesinos! – We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed
• Los Campesinos! – Romance is Boring
• Broken Bells – Broken Bells
• David Bowie – Low
• David Bowie – Heathen
• David Bowie – Reality
• David Bowie – Earthling
• David Bowie – Hours

What inspires you the most for your art? movies? books? advertisements? people?

I would say the majority of my inspiration comes from my life. I think a lot of my art is me expressing emotions that I need to get out; whether positive or negative.

However out of the above, I would say people/art as a combination. More specifically: music. I hardly ever look at art work; in fact, I intentionally try to avoid it. I want my ideas to be 100% my own without question so I try not to look at other art. I do enjoy a few artists though… Sagmeister, Ranum, etc.

Would you ever do an artwork focused around a dragon? that’d be awesome!

Probably not, honestly. The “fantasy” genre of artwork doesn’t interest me much. Dragons, faeries, vampires, etc. are incredibly one dimensional to me. I have made a few vampire pieces, usually as a request. The closest thing I will likely come to this type of art is the Alice in Wonderland pics I did.

However… who knows what the future holds…

How much planning goes into your work? Do you tend to fly by the seat of your pants, think everything through in detail, or something in between?

I try not to plan anything. Planning a piece always leads to disappointment for me. It’s never as good as I wanted it to be. I typically wake up, get some breakfast and coffee and then sit down and focus on a single emotion. This emotion could be powered by a recent event in my life and then once I have the emotion, I focus on how that makes me feel and I start working. When I am firing on all cylinders with a single emotion, things will talk to me. A certain picture will stand out to me. I could have seen it 500 times before and ignored it but this time, it’s the one. Emotion changes the human perception greatly so I let it fuel my art.

Do you answer the questions or just collect them?

What do you think?

When did you decide you wanted to be an artist?

I’m not sure I ever conciously decided to be an artist. I know at one point when I was around 17, I became much more interested in using photoshop as a tool for self expression. At some point I decided to make that my living, but I’m not sure I, at any point, decided to be an artist.

As a kid I wanted to be an animator at Disney. Perhaps it’s something that has always been with me. However as most people know, I think the term “artist” is bullshit and meaningless…

Where did you grow up at?

I grew up in Niceville, Florida. Bluewater Bay to be specific. Back then there was absolutely nothing in Bluewater Bay, so my friend Clayton and I would spend every day finding new ways to tear the world apart.

• First experimenting with incorporating vector art into the raster art.
• Making girls out of light
• Making floral shapes with weird textures (paper, concrete, etc)
• Making girls out of shapes

I typically learn the style, apply it to an extreme, and then subtly use it from then on. I do this constantly with my art.

So lately I have been adding a rather extreme new element to my art: realistic 3D liquids.

I have always loved the way liquid looked when it splashed and I decided to find a way to do that with my art. There were several ways to do it initially; one involving setting up a camera, glass, lights, etc. and taking real photos… but why do that if I can render them in high resolution, and even have them alpha masked?

I started doing research and remembered a program my boss, Kevin Almodovar had found called RealFlow. I took a look at it and decided it would work perfectly. So… I set out to learn it!…

…then promptly realized there are virtually no tutorials for it out there… LYNDA.COM! YOU HATH FAILED ME!…

…then I set out to try and learn it…

Below are the results of my experiments. I’m very happy with the results and I hope you enjoy seeing these things used in future art of mine.

It has come to my attention lately that there are 2 distinct types of people: the people that wake up Monday mornings feeling refreshed, looking forward to the week.

Then there are different people.

People that wake up and open the door and are immediatly repelled by the sunlight and amazed that the sun is even still there; that it even bothered to show up for work today. People that spend the weekends in the dark exploring the inner most regions of their mind with bottles in both hands while some esoteric music plays in the background… the soundtrack for the spiral is a loud one…

They’re not out drinking. They’re not out partying. They’re different.

They’re beasts.

Beasts that feed on the terror of the dark and dangerous human mind. Going there alone… is madness.

Q: How many tattoos do you have?

A: 6 in total. They are:

• The roman numerals MCCXV on my inner left wrist.
• A cross on my outer left calf.
• The word “imagine” on my inner right forearm.
• A heart with headphones on it with an “equalizer” heart beat down the center on my outer right forearm.
• The KMFDM “symbols” and the words “Stray Bullet” on my outer right bicep.
• A pill filled with hearts and skulls on my outer right bicep.

All of my tattoos were done by Maverick Fisher of Maverick’s Tattoos. He does all of my ink and I hope he always will. Go check out his shop in Miramar Beach. My art is on display in his shop, in fact. Tell him I sent ya!

Maverick Fisher and myself at his shop.

Q: In terms of overall creative influences, who has had a major effect on you?
A: So many people… I will try to mention them all and why.

• David Bowie: His style and musical ability, along with the way he has constantly evolved and challenged himself his entire career is motivational to me.
• Johnny Rotten (John Lydon): Rotten always knows exactly when to call someone a twat and when to maintain his composure. The best example of someone who is rebellious but also successful. He knows when to keep his mouth shut but also when to call someone a tosser. Plus he is the father of punk rock in my eyes. The true face of everything punk. He is also the reason I never lie. Well, other than my own personal feelings on the matter obviously. However I strive to match his level of honesty. If I have an “idol” for my outlook on things, Rotten is up there.
• Sascha Konietzko: Similar to Bowie, Konietzko has evolved over the last 25 years but anything he touches has a very distinct Konietzko feel to it. No matter how varied the KMFDM sound is over the last 25 years there are always constants that make it feel like the product of a single entity and that single entity is “Kap’n K” Sascha Konietzko. I hope one day people look at my work collectively and see it as a single entity the way the KMFDM library feels to me.
• Trent Reznor: Trent Reznor really opened my eyes to “goth” expression. There aren’t many gothic or dark musicians who express themselves consistantly for years without resorting to shock. While I love Marilyn Manson and similar acts, it is hard to completely respect them when they go to such absurd lengths to get attention.

You’ll notice I haven’t listed any traditional artists or even any digital artists and it’s because I truly am not inspired by them. I am probably the most disconnected artist alive. I don’t follow the art world; I have no art history education at all, nothing. I actively avoid art websites like DeviantArt and Abduzeedo these days because I want my ideas to be entirely mine and mine alone. It’s not that I fear stealing other peoples ideas; I would just rather do my own thing and not be tempted. I don’t want to see something and think “That’s cool! I want to do that!” I would much rather have people look at my work and think that.

Q: Do you only do art on the computer, or do you also paint, sculpt etc?
A: I only do art on the computer. While I may dabble in sculpture every now and then (my Strange Bird mask, the cross at my exhibit, etc.) I would never consider myself a sculptor. Sometimes though, I feel a message would be better conveyed in a 3d space and that is when I think of sculpting. I don’t paint or draw at all. I also don’t consider myself an artist with my photography (nor do I consider myself a photographer). I just own a nice camera and take some cool pictures every once in a while.

my Strange Bird mask

Q: what type of eyeliner do you use?
A: It’s actually taken me a long time to settle on a type/brand. Right now I use LA Colors baked eyeshadow on my eyelid and then I use Maybelline Ultra Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner around my eye itself. I have to apply it twice; on my lower eyelid I have a crease that runs along my eye and the eyeliner always fills the crease and runs so I have to clean it up and then re-apply it to get a solid line. If it’s a real special occasion I will use Q-tips and warm water to shape it even further or thin the line but 99% of the time I don’t do that.

Q: whats your favorite movie?
A: Oldboy. It’s a 2003 film directed by Chan-wook Park and starring Min-sik Choi. It’s a South Korean film and I absolutely love it. Roger Ebert said it is a “…powerful film not because of what it depicts, but because of the depths of the human heart which it strips bare” and I completely agree. If you go into knowing nothing, it will leave you speechless.

oldboy movie poster

Q: What kind of photo editing software do you use?
A: For my artwork I use Adobe Photoshop CS5 for 90% of the work. I will also utilize Adobe Illustrator CS5 for somethings (curvy lines especially). If need be, I will use a program like Apophysis to render a hi-res fractal but I typically only use these for backgrounds. The software I use isn’t anything advanced or intricate. It’s just knowing how to use Photoshop really well, I suppose.

Q:Do you prefer color or black and white pictures?
A: Color. I think even monochromatic photos using a sepia tone or something instead of white carry emotion better.

Q: What camera do you use to take your photos?
A: My complete camera gear list is below.
- Canon EOS 50D
- Canon EF 28-105mm 3.5-4.5 USM Zoom Lens
- Canon EF 50mm 1.8 Lens
- Opteka 0.20x Fisheye Lens
- Zeikos Filters

I don’t have a ton of gear. However I have a lot of things to keep the above items working for a long time. I have 5 batteries, 4 SD cards, etc. I can go on vacation and shoot easily 3-4000+ pictures without needing to charge the batteries or anything else.

Q: Do you remember your first ever real masterpiece?  What was it?
A: I don’t feel I have created a “masterpiece” honestly. However I can still try to answer that question.

When I first started taking my art work seriously I think I was around 16 or 17. All of my relatives would always tell me just to give them pictures for Christmas and such but I never wanted to because none of my work at the time was good enough to be given as a gift in my eyes. Then I made a piece that has no title (I wasn’t naming my pieces then). I’ve actually never posted it online… anywhere. So here it is for the first time ever:

That was given to a few relatives at the time. Then I got my big corporate gig and stopped working on personal art and when I got back into it I have to admit that “Silver Future” really changed the game for me. I had never made a piece that good so I was terrified to follow it. I put it off for like 3-4 weeks, just knowing I wouldn’t be able to top it but I actually rather like “Vogue” and it has seen a ton of press and attention as well so I guess everyone else is happy with it, too!

Then obviously “Invisible Light” is a big one because that was the first time my “new” style was ever attempted or seen.

Q: Why do you have so much “religion” in your artwork being agnostic/atheist?
A: I have always found the symbolism of religion to be beautiful. From the swank black and red robes some Catholics wear to the cross itself: I have always found the imagery to be beautiful and moving. I also prefer my art to be ambiguous. While my art always has a message in my eyes I find it preferrable to leave the interpretation up to the viewer. Because of this, I like to create images that can be either positive or negative to the viewers eyes depending on their perception and their reality.

Religion is something everyone who has seen my work has a stance on. Either they believe in a higher power or they don’t but everyone has been faced with the question. Since I consider myself agnostic, I find it a fun subject to discuss and experiment with. I think my exhibit, “… and all that could have been…” handled religion very well and maintained ambiguous the entire time. If you know me personally then you could likely see my real message behind it but to a stranger, I don’t think any message was forced. It was completely open to the viewer.

I also feel people struggle with religion. I think any Christian who says they don’t struggle is a liar. There is always struggle; even for me. I feel when I work with religious imagery it helps me explore my own feelings a bit more. I don’t have an answer for everything. For example I have first hand experience deja vu, where I have dreamed events that would happen in the future unmistakably. At one point I used to write my dreams down because it really terrified me; dreaming situations and exact conversations with people I hadn’t even met yet and had no way of knowing I would meet. I cannot explain that but I know what I have experienced.

So when I begin pondering things like that it sometimes manifests itself in my art. So… yeah. Multiple answers really but I think I covered it all.

2010 was an interesting year; both in my professional life and in my personal life.

Rather than try and recap it all I am just going to over fond memories and rant about things or tell stories. Whatever happens happens.

The most significant change I can think of in 2010 was me moving into my own apartment. I was planning to move out a few years ago but then we found out my father had pancreatic cancer. After he died, I stayed with my mom to support her through her loss. Once she met someone (Rick), we both realized it would be best if we got seperate places for several reasons. Her and I have always had tension like all families do so we started looking for our places. I immediatly found a place I liked in Navarre, Florida. It’s a 1 bedroom, 1 bath apartment that is actually very nice. Great complex, safe, etc. It seemed perfect for a first apartment. It’s probably a little out of my price range but hey, isn’t everything in life? She found a place in Navarre as well and lives about 10 minutes from me. I’m very happy living here although I am still adjusting to paying so many bills. It seems the more freedom we have in life, the less freedom we have. Freedom creates its own boundaries and restraints.

Another big significant event in 2010 for me was my first art exhibit, titled “…and all that could have been…”. However I have already written to great length about the exhibit so please click here to read more about it.

I made a ton of great friends in 2010. While I knew a lot of you before 2010, I feel we all grew much closer this past year. Jennifer, Charles, Angel, Benjamin, Doria, Chris, Arthur, Byron, everyone really.

I’m really glad I have dedicated myself to trivia night. It’s been a great time hanging out with the people I love. Ironically the first night I didn’t go to trivia night is the night I am writing this. I am sick as hell so I am using this time to kind of verbal diarheah on my website.

My love life in 2010 was a bit interesting. I won’t go into too many specifics but I will just say that a dream came true in 2010 and like most things in life it was too good to be true. However it has created an awesome story that my friends sure do love.

I bought a car in 2010. A black Mitsubishi Eclipse that is currently in the shop and in maintenance hell…

2010 was a good year for sure. For 2011, I am going to get my name more known in Pensacola and hopefully have another exhibit either in 2011 or scheduled. I am also going to focus a lot more on my online presence; get my online store open, for one.

Until next time…

Honorable Mentions:
Ozzy Osbourne – Scream
Caribou – Swim
Robyn – Body Talk
Sleigh Bells – Treats
Freezepop – Imaginary Friends

Top 10 Movies of 2010
1. The Social Network
2. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
3. Paranormal Activity 2
4. Kick-Ass
5. 22 Bullets
6. The Expendables
7. Saw 7
8. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
9. Alice In Wonderland
10. Inception