the rucchi show

If this is the future of design...

2011-07-14T12:58:00.009-04:00

I want no part of it. 3M just introduced a new product called Visual Attention Service. How does it work? You upload a design, the program analyzes it, and when it's finished you get feedback that's supposed to help you revise asset placement. Which in turn, is supposed to increase the visual impact of your design. They're having a free trial right now, so of course I did what any good designer would do. I took a screenshot of 3M's website and ran it through their own Visual Attention Service to see how well they designed their web page promoting said product (see attached images). Now, one would think someone at 3M would have thought to do this, but It looks like even their page could use some asset placement revisions in order to guarantee maximum exposure. They did however, do an excellent job of placing their logo as the main focal point of the page. I also like how it claims that 64% of people would rather give multiple viewings to a baby (with crap on his/her face) than the actual copy trying to sell their service. Also, 33% of people will most likely stare at the blank white space in the middle of the page? Really? I guess this means that I need to start loving negative space a little bit more than I currently do. I'm not really sure what to make of this whole thing (Hell, I'm not even sure that I properly understand it), but It seems to be an algorithm based on the rule of thirds and the fact that people would rather look at anything else but text. I wonder how long we have until clients start using this service to check a designers work? I am ancient.

Anyway, Here's the link to the service:

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/VisualAttentionService/WT.mc_id=GD_eNews_July

U of I MFA 2010 PUBLIC READING

2010-03-24T16:46:00.009-04:00

.
.
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The English Department at The University of Illinois was kind enough to hire me to design
posters for this semester's events. I must say that it's been a lot of fun, as deadlines often help my creative thinking.

For this poster I wanted a vintage paperback vibe, so I used a couple of old Penguin Publishing books as reference. Here it is:

Early Spring Literary Festival

2010-02-26T15:03:00.007-05:00

__________________________________________________________________

Designed for the University of Illinois Creative Writing Department

11.75" x 11.75"

(An homage to the wonderful Henry Mancini Cover)

Engaged.

2010-01-19T08:46:00.004-05:00

Saturday - January 16th, 2010 - 5:15 PM Central

Yes Yes Yes!

FREE LIMITED EDITION DEATH/ROUGH FRANCIS POSTER

2009-09-24T14:34:00.003-04:00

A limited number of these will be given out at the end of each show. Three color screenprinted with an Edition size of 200 signed and numbered on the back.

Death with Rough Francis

9/25/09 Magic Stick Detroit MI
9/26/09 The Empty Bottle Chicago IL
9/27/09 Beachland Ballroom Cleveland OH

Go see them.

DEATH!

2009-06-06T15:46:00.003-04:00

Why yes, that is the band Death playing my drum set in the studio next to my office. If you don't know the story of the band you should really read about it here.

Death - Keep On Knocking from Howlermano on Vimeo.

Count Me In, I'm Good To Go

2009-06-06T15:14:00.010-04:00

My First Days on Junk filmed a video for their single "Count Me In, I'm Good to Go" It's based on Godard's Breathless. It came out spectacular. Steve asked me to design the poster that is hanging above Michel's head around the :39 mark.

Here are some really low-rez photos of the posters (in color) as seen hanging on my office wall. They were printed on a large format inkjet. Some people would call them giclees...i would never. They're inkjet prints laminated onto board. They look great, but i really wish they had been screen printed. At some point I should probably try and take better pics of things, but I think you get the idea and you know, if you really want to see them in all their high-rez glory...i will sell you one...or two...etc...or you can just stop by my office and say hello.

2009-04-21T21:47:00.003-04:00

"tall buildings shake

voices escape singing sad sad songs

tuned to chords strung down your cheeks

bitter melodies turning your orbit around"

Death Vessel

2009-02-25T23:19:00.003-05:00

I've been incredibly busy lately with both professional and personal projects. Somehow I still found time to design back to back posters for this weekends shows at the Monkey House. Here's the newest one:

I feel this poster was a bit rushed as I was expecting a bit more help from someone else. That someone else is Isaac Wasuck. He runs this site. Sometimes he paints, but mostly not. He did give me the pattern for this and he also roughly sketched out the "death vessel." I added the sail, and made the death vessel fonts, but got lazy and used a free Hitchcock style font that one of my clients pointed me to earlier this week for the rest of it. Does stretching out a font make it my own? Doubt it.

Death Vessel is on Sub Pop and is simply amazing.

Go to the show.

Thank You.

ROUGH FRANCES = MY GENERATIONS DEATH(THE 70's PUNK BAND)

2009-02-21T23:53:00.002-05:00

I made this....even the longhorn.

go to the show.

thank you.

Harry Nilsson Without You RARE Piano Demo

2009-02-13T23:41:00.001-05:00

2009-02-12T13:53:00.003-05:00

2009-02-12T12:34:00.002-05:00

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart

2009-01-13T09:42:00.005-05:00

Hello.
This poster is for an upcoming Valentines Day show. I have been told that The Pains of Being Pure at Heart did a tour or two with The Wedding Present. If you know me, this is a big deal, as I'm a huge David Gedge fan.

2 color Screenprint on double ply Bristol.

11x17 inches...yep it will fit in a standard $6 frame. You're welcome.

Soft-Pedal

2008-12-31T11:59:00.006-05:00

At the beginning of December I was asked to come up with a design for Steven William's latest chapbook "Soft-Pedal"

This is what happened:

All of the panels were screen printed in edition of 100 signed and numbered:
cover is 3 colors
individual prints are 1 color each
(French 140 pound Muscletone)

The cover has a die-cut circle where the pedals from the individual prints can show through allowing you 3 different options for the cover. I guess you could make it 4 options if you chose to draw on the blank piece of blue paper underneath the prints. I would be really impressed if you did that. You should do it. Go now...do it.

Finished product:

I believe this is going to be $20.00 shipped and available from Steve's site very shortly.

I promise the lack of updates does not mean I haven't been working hard on things.

2008-12-22T11:11:00.002-05:00

Soon my friends, very soon.

I often wake up every hour on the hour...

2008-11-21T11:25:00.005-05:00

so last night I stopped fighting it. I got up at 3:30am and walked across the street to the studio space thinking I was going to do something productive. I wasn't able to concentrate on the few projects I have lined up, so for no reason at all I worked on this pattern. It would be much better were the insect hand drawn, but you know, it was more about the clipping masks and textures. The colors are wrong and not everything is lined up properly. Hopefully I can find some focus on the projects (some secret/some not) that need to get done asap.

2008-11-19T14:34:00.001-05:00

If it's not one thing it's another.

observation.

2008-11-03T09:31:00.004-05:00

How is it that Columbus Day is a national holiday, but election day is not?

It's one day every four years where we decide the direction of our country.

I wonder how many people will be saying this on Wednesday:

"Sorry, I couldn't get to the polls, I worked a 12 hour shift on Tuesday."

More of me getting stuff done.

2008-10-13T12:02:00.004-04:00

I screened these 3 color posters for The Darker Hues. My friends Morgan, Joe and Scott comprise this band. I like them. If you are in the Boston area you should check out this show. Joe likes to swear a ton. Good fun.

25 for the edition

and some extras without the info for future shows. Joe can add the text, as he can draw better than anyone else in the whole world. I am not joking.

I spent my weekend covered in ink.

2008-10-05T14:49:00.004-04:00

I did this last minute 3 color Screen Print for The New Year* show taking place at Club Metronome next Monday. Originally I wanted to print the flower petals and "The New Year" in orange, but the pigments in the ink weren't opaque enough to cover the stem trappings. So I switched it to lavender, which covered the trapping better. So, here it is...

the digital file:

the process:

*The New Year features former members of Bedhead. You might remember Bedhead as one of my very favorite bands in college.

See you at the show!

Songs for the Dearly Departed Vol. 1.

2008-09-21T16:07:00.005-04:00

For one reason or another I have been thinking a lot about death. How it can happen anytime, anywhere. How people deal with it. How people don't deal with it. How we seek solace in Funerals, Memorial services, and other similar gatherings.

So here it is, The exit song I would like played at my funeral were I to expire tomorrow.

The Flaming Lips - Do You Realize?

Simultaneously Depressing and Optimistic.

Simply Beautiful

Sometimes I like to speak for everyone.

2008-09-16T12:57:00.003-04:00

Alright, I have been up to a few things lately...

2008-08-05T15:29:00.008-04:00

The new My First Days on Junk CD will be released on August 18th.

I was lucky enough to play a lot of drums on this record. So of course, I am counting it towards (me) being creative in some sort of capacity.

The CD is being released by State Capital Records and should sell just under a million copies as it's a really well put together record. Everyone should go and buy it or at least listen to this song I played drums on:

Count Me In, I'm Good To Go <------ Download This

btw, That's the always pretty/never ever ugly Penelope Wall on the cover.

Sometimes all you really need is an afternoon.

2008-08-01T11:50:00.013-04:00

I have been feeling a bit exhausted and out-of-sorts lately. So, Wednesday I decided to skip work and head over to Shelburne Museum. They're currently featuring an exhibit by Joshua Longo titled LongoLand. The exhibit is in the Kalkin House. If you've never been, the Kalkin House is a forward thinking living establishment made entirely from used shipping containers. It's 75% recycled and I think It's gorgeous. Unfortunately, all of the original interior design has been gutted since it first opened in 2001. You can view more of Adam Kalkins designs here.

The woman watching over the Kalkin House filled me in on a bit of on-goings with the building Apparently, over the last couple of years, enough people had complained the building was an eyesore that at one point the museum contracted Recycle North to tear it down.

The good news is that the building was built so well structurally they weren't able to tear it down without accumulating major costs. So now it stands as the gallery for modern/current exhibits. I think it's perfect and if they really don't like the building, I'm fairly certain I would take it in a heartbeat. (Steve get your hammer and crowbar)

I think the curators did a great job on the 50's house as it really reminds me of my grandparents house when I was growing up. Wondering why that high chair picture is so large and prominant? Well it's because it used to be my friend Donna's when she was a baby and I promised I would take a picture of it for her.

I do love the printing shop on the museum grounds...inked brayers et al.

Of course, it wouldn't be Shelburne Farms without the Gardens and Monets.

Now I need to think of something to do next week.

the tiniest amount of effort has been applied.

2008-07-28T12:59:00.004-04:00

So...long time no update.

I haven't been feeling overly creative lately, but I have managed to appear on a couple of new/upcoming releases.

The first one is from Colin Clary and Dana Kaplan's (of the Smittens) side project, Let's Whisper.

It was released in the UK as a limited edition 3" CD on weepop records.

I played drums on a few of the tracks. Including this one:

Hey Sunshine <------- Download this

My favorite is "Dylan's Song" it sounds like a cross between Phil Spector and the Byrds.

If you were one of the lucky few that got to witness the CD release party in england a week or so ago, well then...I guess you were lucky.

Otherwise, go and buy it. Because you need to hear 'Dylan's Song'

coming soon:
My First Days on Junk song sample.
I was drummer boy on about half of this one as well.

I have to get up before 11am to leave.

2008-07-03T23:16:00.005-04:00

Rochelle's wedding got me drunk. she is a sweetheart.

I need to checkout by 11am

I love a redhead.

steve (www.fuckinrighthandman.com) is a wicked good friend

-rucchi

2008-06-20T16:48:00.000-04:00

2008-05-29T13:36:00.010-04:00

Dale at Tick Tick asked me to design a poster for the upcoming Tullycraft/Smittens show. I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to do, so I sat down on Saturday (after watching Pink Panther's Shot in the Dark) and came up with an idea.

It's done entirely in Illustrator. I created everything except the cooper black font. The "tullycraft" font is a placed font that I worked way too hard on, but I think it came out well. The bomb is an ode to Inspector Clouseau. It's simple and clean and I think it came out just fine.

On the edition prints, the orange/pink combo is going to be printed as a split fountain.

I am excited about it.

David from the Smittens also made a poster for the show and you can view it here. It has more information and you'll be happy to know that you can buy their split 7" for the first time ever at the beginning of, in the middle of, or at the end of the show. I want to drive that Delorean straight off the poster and into my garage.

If only I had a garage.

2008-05-16T17:08:00.002-04:00

2008-04-23T00:37:00.002-04:00

2008-04-12T12:56:00.007-04:00

see above.

Henry Mancini - Moon river (In live)

2008-03-30T10:14:00.001-04:00

sunday morning music

Theme from a Sunday Afternoon or Will it never ever be Moon River?

2008-03-29T17:49:00.012-04:00

I have a huge love for Henry Mancini. His output was astonishing and whether they're familiar with him or not, people everywhere have heard his work. Moon River, Peter Gunn, Pink Panther Theme, the list goes on and on and on.

A few years ago I was tinkering around on a keyboard and came up with this. It's called "Theme from a Sunday Afternoon" and it was originally released on a compilation CD called 'The Danger Sessions" under The Magogs moniker. Incidentally, this song was written and recorded on a Sunday Afternoon. Brilliant, I know.

Someday it'll be rerecorded with a new arrangement and actual instruments. Until then, all I have is this keyboard demo. Just think of it as a poor man's Mancini.

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for some reason (piracy perhaps?) blogger wont let you upload mp3's, so I made a slideshow in imovie for everyone in the world to enjoy.

Hold up, Is my blood sugar content high enough or Am I a sucker for Asian Treats?

2008-03-27T00:02:00.009-04:00

The international aisle at the grocery store is always full of interesting items. I happened upon this tonight:

It's called Yan Yan and judging by the package, it seems to be some sort of do-it-yourself Pocky. I'm going to wait and open it amongst friends. That way we can share in either the delight or the disgust.

What's The Story Morning Glory or Do You Know Who You Are?

2008-03-22T00:46:00.015-04:00

I am moving. This time it's approximately one mile down the road, a lot closer to downtown and a whole lot better. No longer will I be sharing walls, ceilings, walkways or anything else of the sort. I'm finally moving back into a house. The shitty carpet is finally giving way to hardwood floors. Hallelujah.

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If you watched the channel 3 six o'clock news tonight, you just might have caught the tiniest glimpse of a secret project. Everyone loves clues.

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One year ago today, I entered this quick drawing into a pattern contest for some kids company. I think this was supposed to be for sheets or bedding or something. I don't even remember the name of the company. It was supposed to be some sort of repeating monster sequence implying some sort of action. I have no idea what that action was supposed to be. Click the image to make it bigger.

They sent me a follow up email asking for another entry (out of context or not, I am taking that as a compliment). I tried to come up with something more "patterny" by using interlocked octopuses <------ I wiki'd that. After a bit of frustration with not being able to get the octopodes interlocked correctly, I ended up sending them this instead

I hate the colors and the boring subject, but i like how it's laid out. I wish i could remember the companies name. Maybe they ended up stealing the monster...bastards.

Why hello there or Did you miss me?

2008-03-09T12:40:00.004-04:00

Sunday's are cartoon watching, record listening, coffee drinking days.

-Rocky and Bullwinkle...again.
-Beach Boys Pet Sounds...again.
-VT Coffee Company that Steve left at my house...again?

I haven't been feeling like myself lately. It's like I'm hovering over someone that resembles myself, but a bit less happy, a bit less content and a whole lot more confused. My mind is swarming with all of the things that need to get done within the next couple of months...taxes, moving, projects and the like. I think getting back on a healthy exercise routine wouldn't necessarily be a cure-all, but at the very least, a good idea.

My powerbook is in such bad shape, that i finally decided to buy one of those new tiny laptops. The asus eeepc. It was $349 and so far it has been really handy and a lot of fun. I was hoping that the macbook air would have been a tiny laptop, but alas Steve Jobs is losing it and seems to be a bit out of touch with the mobile world. Thinner and more expensive isn't necessarily smaller buddy.

Go read Coop's blog
It's full of Toys, Hot Cars, Naked Chicks and his painting process.

bad rucchi.

2008-02-24T01:14:00.003-05:00

I am terrible at updating this blog. From now on I will try and do better by it. It's late and I am tired, so I will just say that I am typing this on a really tiny laptop.

I have been working on secret projects.

exciting and amusing.

Maybe I should post some drawings on this blog.

How is everyone doing?

Death Cab For Cutie - The New Year

2008-01-01T11:31:00.001-05:00

...and I really don't feel any different.

Paranoiattack Live In Omaha

2007-12-30T20:22:00.001-05:00

The Faint is one of the very few bands that make me want to dance. There isn't another band around that captures what I imagine the 1980's were like in Factory's Hacienda.

Tony Wilson is resting in peace knowing live performances like this still exist.

Haven't I seen you somewhere before? or The prettiest face in Burlington.

2007-12-30T17:00:00.001-05:00

Yet another weekend of endless work.

Trying to tie up some odds and ends and then gearing up for a semi-relaxed week that involves driving to the NEK and hanging out with my parents. I plan on doing a whole lot of nothing for the next couple of days.

Despite my minor crankiness and being all around out-of-it, I had a really great time on Friday night. Met some new faces, drank too much liquor and stayed up too late. I think Red Square is (very slowly) becoming a good place to hang out again. I'm not sure why, but I am okay with it as long as we get the back room.

I am finally excited to start working on some personal projects again.

Anyone know how to fabricate a custom die-cutter?

Let me know.

Thanks for the invite Kimberly or Pound for pound you drank more red wine than I did.

2007-12-23T21:49:00.000-05:00

Friday night saw me make a sober entrance to the JDK Christmas party. Saturday morning saw me make a drunken exit.

The party was lovely. As per my request, Marie Claire did a wonderful piano rendition of The Church's 'Under the Milky Way'. Schmoozed with the JDK folks and tried my damnedest to help Jay fix a broken bowling alley, but in the end neither of us thought it was worth losing a hand over. Caught a cab home. Dropped Kimberly off at her apartment. Then of course came the obligatory "I am super drunk" phone call to Steve explaining the benefits of him driving me fifteen feet to Denny's for fries.

After all was said and done, the night went without incident. Then came Saturday morning. I woke up with the worst headache I've had in years. It felt like someone was stabbing me in the head with a giant knife. Each thrust was piercing my skull. I quickly got up and headed for the bathroom. I felt my stomach grumble. One disgusting low gurgling burp and a deep swallow and I knew what was in store. I stared at the toilet, it stared back dirtier than I have ever seen it before. So, I held down what was surely fighting its way up just long enough to give the toilet a good cleaning before I gave it a good hugging.

Forty-Five minutes later I finally crawled back into bed only to get up a few hours later to meet a client. Yep.

Saturday night I went to a little get together at Taylor's house. We listened to some of our favorite Christmas albums* and munched on delicious treats Jessie had prepared. I ended up leaving a bit early as I was still feeling (and apparently looked) green. I walked home and crawled into bed.

Today I got breakfast and finished up shopping.

Just got back from 'Walk Hard'
John C. Reilly is entertaining. Best scene: The Beatles

Still working on scheming and secret projects. Lots of secret things in the works right now. Every one of them exciting and full of potential.

*Favorite Christmas Albums
-The Beach Boys Christmas
-A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector

It's cold and white outside or Holiday cheer comes easier with a mate.

2007-12-15T15:18:00.000-05:00

I still haven't been able to hunt down any usable holiday cheer. I tried going downtown to pick out a few things for my niece and nephew, but was easily discouraged as the crowds were thick and unkind. Why do people love this time of year? I think I am becoming, for lack of a better term, a scrooge. I need to reroute my holiday ideals, because right now it's only bringing out the unfortunate feelings of stress and obligation.

I visited Tewks and her family this morning. Nora is all smiles. She is also a gigantor.

The five(main) going-ons:
pop-overs
chocolate chip peanut butter cookies
food network
dessert wine
great conversation topics

one of the very best mornings in a long time.

notta thing...

2007-12-09T22:57:00.000-05:00

I worked 21 hours this weekend. I am beat, but at least my workload will be somewhat diminished for the Monday through Friday grind. This time of year is always killer.

I haven't the slightest holiday cheer.

All I really want right now is a slice of pizza and a good game of Chinese Checkers.

I am a terrible updaterer.

2007-11-16T17:04:00.000-05:00

Chicago was a blast. Why do I not live there?

Takashi Murakami wallpaper (hundreds of square feet) in the MCA restaurant.

Giant Gary Baseman Dunny in the gift shop window (Dont worry Isaac, you'll be there someday)

Best Nara drawing ever. I still think it would have fit in my pocket

Chinatown: "Ah yes, we have many cute hat in stock"

Rangoon and the largest Zombie ever.

Isaac's gallery opening was well attended. He even managed to sell some things. Including what I consider one of his worst paintings. I am sure it will look great in someone's house, just not mine.

"Bender with Bannister" -Thank You Allison.

This is where I let out a big sigh...

2007-11-07T00:11:00.000-05:00

Dearest Renee,
I didn't really need a new passenger side door or a front right quarter panel until I met you, but if you want to buy them for me, I guess I should at least say thank you.

p.s. you are so lucky that you didn't hurt me or I would probably be really really really mad.

p.p.s. this would have been a lot cheaper for you if I was driving a festiva, but I probably would have been killed...which might not be cheaper in the end...who knows.

There are no real life Amelie's...

2007-11-05T00:01:00.000-05:00

the best I can hope for is an Ana Pascal.

vacation = not happening.

Has it really been an entire year? Congratulations.

Fuck.

I need to think twice about the gifts I decide to give.

2007-10-30T10:07:00.001-04:00

I was up until 5am helping Isaac Wasuck pull these prints for his show in Chicago.

Art is serious business...not.

I am watching you.

2007-10-23T21:53:00.000-04:00

I just realized that I haven't bought any sort of artwork in over 3 months. Even though I have a closet full of unframed prints, I am about due for a new piece. It's going to come down to either another Jay Ryan print, a Tim Biskup print, or possibly a Dalek (I would be trusting Isaac on this one, as he says they look really great framed) So I'll do some research, narrow it down and hopefully find something I want to buy in November.

Earlier today:

I picked up Allison from IBM where we proceeded to Pizza Putt for some skeeball and beer. We got enough tickets to win 2 parachute guys and a gadget called "spy ear" or something like that. It basically amplifies everything so you can hear even the quietest things. It also makes voices sound really distorted and awesome. Does anyone remember the Whisper 2000?

Later today:

Colin's birthday dinner at Stasia's house was terrific. Squash soup and super duper fancy grilled cheese...delicious...apple pie and cheddar for dessert.

The wine is no longer in the cellar or All of the wine we drink needs to be 10 years or older.

2007-10-19T15:36:00.000-04:00

Kimberly offered to cook dinner for Allison, Steve and myself. It turned out to be quite an amazing dinner party with great food, great conversation and a lot of wine. I finally decided to open up a bottle of wine that had been sitting around for the last nine or so years. How did this happen you ask?

I had received said bottle of wine as a gift in 1998 or thereabouts. It was that same year, I must have moved and packed it into a box. The wine (in the box) had found a place in my parents basement for a good portion of it's unaccounted for life. It was stored properly on accident. I believe that my dad happened upon this bottle of wine while going through some boxes in the basement. The box the wine was found in also contained expired condoms. My dad still jokes about it. I truly am a cassanova.

It wasn't a very expensive bottle of wine so we were a bit skeptical on how well it had aged. The wine was made by the Napa Wine Co. It was titled "Marilyn Merlot" and I am betting that the pun was intended. Would it taste like vinegar or would it be the smooth and robust?

The results:
Magnificent. It was full bodied, smooth and refined with a hint of oak.

I decided to try and find out a little more about the wine. You can check out the wine's specs by clicking here. If you actually click on that it means you should probably meet me for drinks.

Richard Scarry would want me to have this.

2007-10-13T14:38:00.000-04:00

I am certain there must be at least one person out there that would like to buy me this original Richard Scarry painting. It's 7"x7" and only $2400.00. I can't offer much in return, but I will promise to be your friend for a very very very long time. If you want to buy this for me, or even for yourself, you should point your browser here.

Chipito the 4 legged, weird-faced creature

2007-10-11T13:15:00.001-04:00

Kimberly brought me back this ridiculously awesome stuffed creature from Mexico. It definitely resembles something that I would draw. It's little, but really heavy. I kinda want to rip it open to see what it's filled with.

100% Recyclable

2007-10-06T15:34:00.000-04:00

Here's the one sheet film positive for the "doodleprints" that I am having screenprinted. They're going to be printed on two different and completely obnoxious paper colors. Everything you see as black will be printed in white onto 'razzleberry' and 'blue raspberry' cover stock. They should come out alright. Tick Tick is printing them. They are releasing a line of clothing soon and from what I've seen it looks great. Go and buy some of their goods....go on...git!

I seem to have been slacking a bit. I am bad and you are good.

2007-10-05T17:20:00.000-04:00

Last Saturday night I took the ferry across Lake Champlain to Plattsburgh, NY with Morgan, Nikki, Steve and Colin. Colin and Steve played at a coffee shop that resembled a grown up romper room. I kicked back with a coffee drink, lemon square and the sometimes smooth sounds of Colin Clary and a Magog. I also tried my hand a snapping a few spy pictures of a girl that I am fairly certain would make an amazing girlfriend*. This was by far Colin and Steve's best show as a duo. Kudos where kudos are due.

*This based purely on physical features, as I wasn't able to muster up the courage to talk to her. Thus, making me somewhat shallow, but I am betting that she is a sweetheart....or not....I have absolutely no clue.

real quick like...

2007-09-24T16:02:00.000-04:00

a couple things I learned this weekend:

1) I have THE best friends in the whole wide world

2) I have become an old man and I can't keep up like I used to.

My wii nemesis...Taylor.

2007-09-20T01:48:00.000-04:00

I am addicted to the wii. Carnival Games won't leave me alone. I can't stop playing virtual skee-ball. I'm obsessed with trying to get the perfect score. I have seen Taylor
do it twice. Since he's moved to White Plains, NY to work on some big shot movie for the next three months, I'll have plenty of time to bone up on my skills. Here is proof that Taylor is the king of all things wii skee-ball:

Six Balls, six hundred points. Look at my score. Embarrassing.

The flip book

2007-09-20T01:33:00.001-04:00

I have a weird fascination with flip books. What's not to love about them? They're like mini movies that give your thumbs a work out. I started working on one of my own in January of this year, thinking that it would take me about a week to finish. I was wrong. I'm still working on it and it's finally starting to shape up into something that I'll be happy with. I still need to experiment with different binding techniques. I'm going to attempt the perfect bound method, but if that fails I might just go the easier route and use binding tape. Here's one of the more boring panels from my flip book (I don't want to give away what happens at the end of it, as it's only like 5 seconds of animation)

The plan is to get these finished in the next month. I'm also planning on adding a *bonus* tiny 1 color signed/numbered(?) screen print to each book that you can pull out and frame (in what will probably have to be the tiniest frame ever) It's all about added value.

Beatles Cartoon - Tomorrow Never Knows

2007-09-15T11:27:00.001-04:00

This is one of my favorite Beatles songs from my favorite Beatles record. The sound is a little bit quiet, but still great none-the-less.

Art Hop 2007

2007-09-12T00:03:00.000-04:00

I finally got around to stealing pics from Steve and Soe's Blogs. I made what is probably the worst collage ever, but it gives you a good idea of how crowded and well received the box studio was on Friday night. So much work, yet so much fun. I hope everyone had a great time.

Here is the print I designed for the Art Hop...devil with target.

Michael Heeney took this photo of Anastasia right after she paintballed* the devil.

I had two versions pulled. Both are 18"x24". One version on white tag board (50) and the other on oak tag board (30). I think the oak color came out better, but we sold more of the white. These were pulled super quickly so the registration is off a bit, but it's a screen print and these things aren't always perfect. Besides, some people have their stuff off register on purpose...Niagara does it. I wish I liked her stuff. Anyway, I have some of these left (non paintballed*) so if anyone would like one, please let me know. They're $10 or you can offer me something nice.

*I am fairly certain paintballed is not a real verb.

Hal Mayforth

2007-09-11T14:34:00.001-04:00

I didn't get a chance to walk around a lot at Art Hop this past weekend, as I was a bit too busy wiping paintball goo off just about everything in the studio. I did however make it priority to check out Hal Mayforth's showing at the Soda Plant. Here are a couple of his paintings that I really liked:

This one is called 'Red Scare' and it reminds me (a little bit) of Tim Biskup's older stuff.

The title for this next one is obvious. It's by far my favorite. I had seen this painting a few months ago in Stowe at the Helen Day gallery. It was part of a group show called "Fine Tooning"

I was glad to see that it's still for sale. If I find some extra cash, this will surely end up on my wall.

You can read Hal Mayforth's blog here. It's filled with a lot of his commercial illustrations, but also features a good amount of paintings.

'Kimberly made yesterday fun' or 'Why are Doritos so delicious, yet so gross?'

2007-09-11T11:48:00.000-04:00

After searching a little over three hours for a hi-res image of the moon, I decided to leave work early and head to Charlotte to partake in some Chinese checkers with Kimberly. I'm still a work in progress, as I'd never really played Chinese checkers as a kid. So far the games have been friendly, but I can see Kim and I duking it out over misplayed marbles and faulty turns.

Kimberly's employer has inspired a couple ideas.

I am so tired I could sleep for a hundred years

2007-09-09T16:24:00.001-04:00

Art Hop was a lot of fun this year. Steve should be in retail. He could sell ice cubes to an eskimo. Is that how the saying goes? Here are a couple pics of the finished sign. (thanks Soe!)

I'll have some more images from Art Hop as soon as I can steal them from other peoples accounts. My only camera is my phone...pathetic, I know.

FRACTURED FAIRY TALES - Tom Thumb

2007-09-09T12:03:00.001-04:00

Rocky and Bullwinkle is my all time favorite Saturday morning cartoon. It's smart and funny in a way that seems lost on a lot of modern animated shows. Here's an episode of Fractured Fairy Tales.

'Building on a theme' or 'Why can't people stick to appointments?'

2007-09-06T10:49:00.000-04:00

While sitting here waiting for a client that seems to have stood me up, I happened upon this little beauty. It's a Hires ad from 1954. I like the Cowboy and Indian theme. It probably wouldn't fly so well these days, but it's a gem none-the-less.

...and yes, orange and brown.

'My eyes are dried out like raisins' or 'Why can't I get a lobster roll in this town?'

2007-09-05T22:56:00.000-04:00

Steve and I worked on the monster sign some more tonight. It's almost finished and not looking too bad. It has been brought to my attention that everything I draw seems to be well suited for either the backpack wearing drink box sipping preschooler or the pants too tight wearing pitchfork reading Giant Robot crowd. Neither scene is better than the other. They both have their perks. I prefer Capri Sun, but I would never turn down a drink box as I wouldn't turn down a pair of too tight pants. We all know how much I love my pants tight. Picture me in tight pants sipping on a drink box. What's the word I am looking for? Delicious. Indeed.

I could never be a fine artist. I have neither the talent nor the patience for it and I enjoy buying exterior premixed latex paint from Ace Hardware way too much. That said, I bought a quart of brown paint tonight. I'm not sure why I love it so much, but I have a huge thing for brown and orange. There is something about that combination that makes me think "The 70's". Orange counter tops and brown cupboards baby! As I recall, it was also the color combination used on many a root beer logo. A&W and Hires come to mind. A&W is still kicking, but what happened to Hires? I think it might still exist in Canada, but I need more sources to support this claim before I go bragging about how great Canada is with their Mounties and their Hires Root Beer. I need a drink.

'Something is swarming in my brain' or 'It's late. When can I sleep?'

2007-09-05T03:21:00.001-04:00

It's a bit too early in the a.m. for anything smart to actually come out of this brain. I have a bunch of great ideas as of late, which might be adding to my ongoing lack of sleep. The 2007 Burlington Art Hop starts Friday. I spent most of the night helping the guys in the studio build a wall for the shooting gallery. My print still hasn't been pulled yet, but I have faith in the machine that is tick tick screenprinting organization. The monster sign is coming together nicely and should (better be) finished by tomorrow night. Here is the progress thus far:

The missing photo's would have included Steve sawing wood...lots and lots of wood. He has health insurance, which means that he can get his fingers sewn back on and if you ask me, that is a pretty great thing.