Custom Table Top

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Custom Table Top

Spray Paint Stencil'd on Wood
24" X 48"
March 2011

We've had this perfectly good table in our living room for a while now and my girlfriend has been bugging me to get a new one to replace it. I've refused multiple times based on the fact that I don't think it's a good idea to spend hard earned money on stuff that isn't needed. After some back and forth, she gave in to my reasoning but it wasn't without a counter offer: Paint it!


To further entice me she took 2 days to strip it and reveal the great wood grain that had been suffocated under brown paint for who knows how long and from then... while she was at work I put on some movies and started the taping, cutting & spraying...

Before I knew it, I had watched Trainspotting, Watchmen, V for Vendetta and The Losers [instead of music sometimes, I like to put on movies I've seen before and listen to them while I work] and we now have a brand n'used table just waiting to be re-varnished... but that's not my department! Gift ideas much?

Take care folks!
Things could be worse...
All my positive energy goes out to the good people of Japan in their time of need...

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Elephants & Thank You's

Elephants & Thank You's

The dust is beginning to settle from last Friday's show and I'm only now starting come down...

I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone who helped me out with the event's preparation as well as the event itself. A big, heartfelt thanks also goes out to each and everyone who came out to show love and share the good vibe. Of course, I couldn't live with myself without giving a huge shout out to the musicians who were there to provide the soundtrack for the evening.

Now... on to the elephants!

This started the week before the show when it was suggested to me that I make a bunch of smaller prints for the smaller spenders [no offense, I'm a very small spender!] to be able to take something home. It was so genius I kicked myself for not thinking of it sooner.

My girlfriend is a huge fan of elephants and has been bugging me to make her one for a while now so I figured it was time for it to happen. One thing led to another and I made a limited series of 8 small similar yet different elephants on cardboard and one giant one on untreated canvas.

7/8 elephants are now gone which leaves the [now even more elusive] last one sitting at Sub V waiting for someone to come pick it up. Not to mention that the giant elephant was talked about a lot during the event but no one picked it up... So it's still up for grabs as well!

Before I forget, peace to Mark Gravel from Punchline Clothing who was the winner of the raffle and got to take home a portrait of Slug from Atmosphere. Yeah!

Finally,
Since last Thursday, there's been an article up on the Nightlife.ca website about me and I couldn't be more flattered. Thanks a lot to Brian Bentley for posting it and supporting the local scene.

I think I'm going to go snowboarding.

[...]

Beat & Cuts: Verissage & Beat Session @ Sub V

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Thank you!!

Beat & Cuts:
Verissage & Beat Session @ Sub V
March 4th, 7pm - 9pm

Oh what an emotional couple of weeks it's been... and it continues to be.

Family illness has made it so that I've been back at mom's house since early February and we now have a house full of relatives from far and wide, most of whom we haven't seen for more than 10-15 years. The circumstances are terrible but it's great to see everyone together from every corner of Canada.

Throughout all this emotional commotion I've tried my best to keep my head on since I have an expo coming up on March 4th at Sub V.

It's been almost 2 years since the last time I was there and I couldn't be more excited that they've invited me back. For the occasion, I'm gonna be showcasing my most recent work, some of which can be seen in previous posts.

As well, I've invited some good friends to come and make some good old instrumental hip-hop speaker busting noise: KenLo Craqnuques, V-Looper and Maxim Robin.

If that wasn't enough to get you interested... I will be raffling off a portrait of Slug from Atmosphere [see last post].

I look forward to seeing all of you on the 4th of March... it's from 7pm to 9pm so don't be too fashionably tardy or else you may miss out!!

Peace and crackers and see you all very soon!

[...]

Slug

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Slug
Spray Paint Stencil'd on Canvas
[Created 100% with one hand bandaged due to a broken finger]
18" X 24"
January 2011

Keeping in mind that I've previously made paintings of Buck 65, Aesop Rock, Eyedea, D-Sisive & Saul Williams in order for me to pay tribute to how much their way with words has impacted my life and growth as an artist and a person, you may be tempted to ask [if you know me and my favorites and/or if you think you know who else should be in this list]:

"Where are Sage & Slug? Why haven't you painted Sage & Slug?"

Well! My friends!

I initially started painting writers and singers who's work I particularly enjoyed for fun. At the time, I didn't think anything of it. But then the list of people I painted grew and I started to see a pattern. Of course, with any pattern comes expectations of the elements that will follow in this pattern. That being said, I thought it would be too cliche'd and groupie-ish to paint [probably] the 2 most famous artists of the underground hip-hop scene: Sage Francis and Slug from Atmosphere.

Recently, I realized I was being silly and WAY to self-involved to have created such expectations of my work [I mean, really...?] and made this painting of Slug from Atmosphere in between two contracts. The original picture, from what I've gathered, by way of cyber-sleuthing, was taken by someone by the name of Delarge during Atmosphere's passage through the UK in 2008. You can visit Delarge's Flickr account here. I'm still waiting for him to get back to me for more info about himself at which time I'll be more than happy to provide it to you guys.

I tried to push a little more into the out-of-focus-y abstract style [my DIY technical art vocab never ceases to amaze... I know!] on this one for fun and practice. Also, it should be mentioned that this piece was done with very little detail and realism in large part due to the fact that I've broken a finger on my left hand and it's heavily bandaged, thus preventing most of the meticulous detail work I like to use sometimes. I hope you enjoy this.

Now.
The more astute reader will be thinking: "When are you doing a Sage piece?"

The answer is: "Sometime between maybe someday and possibly never." No. Seriously, I don't know but have a hunch some time this year ol' Sage Francis will pop up in layered format on a blog near you. Stay tuned!

As a side note:
The record God Loves Ugly by Atmosphere changed what I thought hip-hop could be and I believe [it's just my opinion] that a large chunk of underground rap artists to this day try and fail to duplicate what it did. I suggest that record to anyone and everyone.

As a side-side-note: I wouldn't be surprised if a more elaborate Saul Williams came about this year also...

That's all the ramblings for today folks.
I spare you the unpleasant details of what the rest of my day consists of, but I leave you with this: Please take a minute to call your Mother and/or Father and tell them you love them. You have no idea how much it means to them.

[...]

Temple

"Temple"
Spray Paint on Canvas
24" X 48"
December 2010
SOLD

December has been my busiest month [I believe] ever, custom project wise [when it rains it pours!]. Here is a piece I've been asked to make by one of my childhood friends. His brother just bought a house last year and is in the midst of giving his basement a Buddhist influenced theme... that's where I came in.

He told me his brother's birthday was coming up at the end of the month and wanted to surprise him with a painting to put over the sofa on the far wall - which is the first thing that you would see when you enter the basement living room area. He wanted a temple in earth tones. I was glad to oblige.


The reaction was priceless. My friend's brother, expecting nothing at all [let alone a painting], provided me with my first ever "dropped jaw." No matter how hard I've worked on a piece and how proud/satisfied I may be with it, there's always a little bit of nervousness when it's delivery time and a reaction like that makes all the insecurities disappear instantly. I'm honored and proud to have been given the opportunity to make his home a little more "homey."

On to the next one!

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A day at the races

A day at the races
Spray paint and Acrylics on Canvas
36" X 18"
Summer 2009

I started this painting of myself a year and a half ago because I had nothing to do in between projects and wanted to keep my hands busy. I also used the opportunity to try a new background technique and a color scheme I wasn't comfortable with since I had no intention of doing anything with it after it was done. Something came up and I put it aside as an unfinished piece I planned on finishing later.

A year and a half later, it would seem that I'm not planning on getting back to it any time soon or I figure I would have already. Keeping this in mind, I've been convinced by my girlfriend to post it and to hang it in an expo, which I've done today. Maybe she's right. Maybe it's been done all along and I just didn't know it. Being someone who believes in things happening for a reason, maybe I stepped away from this because I was unknowingly done. So I've acquiesced to the idea and here it is!


The original picture is taken by Simon Lessard at the Montreal Roller Derby in the summer of 2009. I was still drinking back then [Pabst Blue Ribbon!]. These days, I don't even remember what a hangover feels like and honestly, I can't see it any other way.

[...]

Foufounes Breakers

Foufounes Breakers
Spray Paint Stencil'd on Canvas
30" X 60"
November 2010

Not so long ago, in the second half of this past summer, I went out to catch an afternoon movie in downtown Montreal. For the life of me, I can't remember which movie it was but i DO remember feeling very pensive after it was over and so I decided to go for a stroll under the gray skies and in the refreshing spittle in the air.

I ended up behind Foufounes Electriques to have a look at the graffiti born during the 2010 Under Pressure festival and stumbled across a crew of breakers that were unknown to me. I took a seat on the semi-dry pavement, reach for my camera and started snapping. After a few minutes I headed for home and more or less forgot about it.


This November, I filtered the breaker photos and found one which I wanted to use to make a painting. Also, there had been a blank 30" X 60" canvas taking up space in my studio for a long time and I figured: "What better time than the present to put it to good use?"

So here we are:
I asked one of the breakers, Ben, for his email address to be able to send him a picture of the finished product, but besides that, I don't know who these guys are. I'll be more than happy to post more info about them if and when I have some.


Growing up, I've always been fascinated by break-dancers but then at one point in the 90's it seemed to become about who could spin the fastest and pull the craziest stunts but there was almost no rhythm in it. Lately, though, I must say that the crews I've had a chance to see in Montreal have brought back the funk and soul and mix the head spins very well with actual dancing and all is well with the universe once more.


That being said... enjoy this piece and keep breaking!

[...]

Ari Gold

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Thank you!!

Ari Gold
Spray Paint Stencil'd on Canvas
36" X 48"
December 2010
SOLD

One of my childhood friends contacted me out of the blue after almost 10 years because he'd heard I was keeping busy with stencil paintings. After checking out the work on my blog he immediately wanted a custom piece for his office.

Turns out he's a huge fan of Entourage and specifically of Ari Gold. I have never seen the show myself but it was my pleasure to make him this commission piece. Thanks Etienne!

[...]