Author: mightylark

I told you folks yesterday that I would give you a block update.  Apparently all kinds of folks wanted to hang out with me tonight, because several friends texted me to come out and hang out, so I obliged.  Even the hardest working man in the art world ( that was a James Brown reference, and not, I repeat not, me being cocky ) must take a break sometime, so you get an update at 2 am.  That is ok, because I get to listen to Ben Harper’s live album while I do so, and it is awesome if you haven’t listened to it.

I have been very busy putting together blocks, drawing pipes, painting the negative space.  It is taking a while.  I am getting quicker with the process, and the studio assistant has been a gigantic help.  She is awesome.  I can’t speak well enough for her.  Hopefully she is getting as much out of the process as I am.

It is amazing for me to think about this project.  It is so big in comparison to the things that I usually put together, and I am really grateful to have both the venue that will support this type of project, and the time to be able to put together something that is so thoroughly planned.  Usually my work does not get to this level.  And so, I am incredibly excited.

Here are a couple updates of the blocks.

I have gotten so the drawing itself does not take long all.  I want to do a video of me cross-hatching one of these blocks so you can get an idea of what it is like.  On the other hand, painting the negative space takes a bit.  I have a pretty steady hand, but not that steady.  I suppose it is a learning process and a honing of skills.  It is great fun either way.

I also put together the piece in the Vertical Pipes series for my chef this week.  I have to remember to mail this out tomorrow.  I am terrible at doing things on time.  I also have to pull together a Valentine tomorrow morning because apparently I have someone dropping by to purchase a couple.  Rad.

 This second piece was just for fun.  I was cleaning my studio today and found a floppy disc that I had originally found while out taking a walk with my friend Russ.  It seemed so random and I thought to myself that I had to make a piece out of it.  I love it.  It is rare that I get to do something off the cuff and intuitive as this these days. 

I hope you dig the new stuff.  I am very pleased with it on the whole.  Let me know what you think, and have an awesome day too!!  Until then.

Peace
-Mike

I have been working.  Recently most of the work seems to have been in sketchbooks, but I started to really get into my studio work again today.  I am getting very excited about all these multiple pipe drawings on blocks.  I think that this project in May is really going to be amazing.  I think that over the course of the next couple months that my hand skills are going to improve a bit as well.

Tomorrow when the sun is out, I will take an image of the accumulating blocks to share.  I want to see if I can’t at least finish 100 in the remainder of the week.  I think it’s definitely doable.  In the meantime I finished another piece in the Vertical Pipes series to mail to my Chef in New Hampshire.

I like this one a lot.  Pastel colors baby.

I’m going to be putting together issue #3 of the Pig n Pancake tomorrow or the next day, so please let me know if you are interested in getting a copy of the special Valentines Day issue.  There will be a fold out 8.5 X 11 inch V-Day image on the inside of the book, or of course you’ll be able to keep the book together. 

I hope all of you are doing well and are weathering this very strange winter well.  Much love.
Peace
-Mike

Those who know me well, know that they will be gifted art, a lot.  This Valentines season I have been trying to hook up my friends and people that make my life a little bit better with Valentines for their loved ones.  It makes me feel good to help other folks out, even though I think the only Valentine I will be purchasing this year will be kitty treats for my boys.

Today I thought I’d share the Valentines I put together for my favorite servers at the Dogfish Cafe.

Hope you like them.  I know that I do.  Catch y’all soon.  I gotta go drop these off and get some half priced appetizers.

Peace
-Mike

I was asked out for a drink last Wednesday night, which seemed fairly innocuous, however, this did not turn out to be the case at all.  I was asked that evening to fill in floor space for an opening on Friday night.  That worked out to roughly 36 hours to finish up an installation.  I was granted the space in the corner where the stereo had to stay for the yoga classes that this non profit holds.  Cool.

So I worked together another set of robots, a turntable, and a new write up and went to do an installation.  A hip hop show after part was to be held in the space the night of the opening, so I decided that it had to be music related thing.  Here’s what I did.

I ended up removing the chest plate of one of the “robots” to install the stereo, which I thought was pretty darn cool and I also included some of the Vertical Pipe Series of drawings, which was pretty excited.  This made me think that I would actually like to do an entire show of the vertical pipes that covers all four walls of a gallery.  I guess it is proposal time.

I also wrote for the second paragraph of my artist statement on this show, one of my favorite lines that I have written about my work.  “The Robots are Jamming” is an altar to the audiophile, a monument to hidden successes within obvious failures, and the very future of rock and roll”.  I like it.
Have a good one peeps.

Peace
-Mike

This month’s Thursday Night Throwdown poster was very exciting to me.  I have been wanting to push my typography skills a bit more and make them match whatever illustration I happen to be working upon at the time instead of just doing cool typography for in whatever style I please. 

I already knew that I wanted to make this months poster about ice fishing beavers.  My high school mascot was the Beavers, and I’ve been thinking about home a lot lately.  Along with that I kind of miss regular winter weather this year.  I mean, it would be nice to go snow shoeing again and at this rate it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen.

After I had drawn some ice fishing beavers I started to think about what would be appropriate to accompany them in terms of text.  I determined that it would be nice to riff of some old Fur Fish and Game or Field & Stream covers because of an old stack my buddy had of his grandfather’s the last time I went home.  Upon looking through a few covers online, I decided that my favorite was the old Field & Stream red and black covers.  They typography is fairly simple but really cool and if I used that I could line up TNT in red.  Awesome.  So that is what I did and it turned out pretty awesome if I say so myself.

Let me know what you think.

There you have it.  I’ve started thinking about next months and after talking to Brittany, my art director and favorite barista, I think I am going with a wild west set up, with a shoot out at high noon theme.  I should be able to get in some sweet type for that.

For now I’m going to go cheer for my home state for a couple hours.  Don’t yell at me all of you football hating internet people.  It’s just a sport after all. 

Peace
-Mike

I have been wanting to make zines forever, and thanks to my friend Pilar I can.  Late last week I posted the first issue of the Pig N Pancake.  Yesterday I finished up the second issue, which is double the fun and double the adorable.  The first zine wasn’t quite as cohesive as the second one turned out.  I am quite pleased with the way the zines are coming out.

Soon I will be sending out 10 copies of issue 1 and 2 to Drift Station Gallery in Lincoln, NE.  Great stuff.  That will be the 11th state that I’ve shown in.  I am very excited for that as well.  Oddly, I feel like these zines are closer to the integrity that I wish to transcend as an artist than most of my 3 dimensional and illustration work.

Be looking for more soon.

 This is true of all of you.  Thanks for being so cool and reading on a regular basis.  Meanwhile the next image is certainly true of me on a personal level all of the time. 

I posted a couple of these to my Etsy page.  I’m not charging very much.  It’ll run you 2 bucks for a zine and postage, basically just enough to cover my cost.  I’d really like as many people as possible to get this stuff as it is really like having a real piece of me.

Hope you folks are all doing well.
Peace
-Mike

My friend Pilar came over to my house this morning to shoot photographs in my studio.  Little did I know that she was going to end up showing me how to do a type of zine that I had never bothered to learn before.  I was stoked, and thought, “I’ve been wanting to do this forever, I’m going to make one today.”  So I did.

I’m really stoked to bring you the first issue of the Pig N Pancake, which is taken from a restaurant in Astoria, OR.  I had saved my coaster from my coffee when I went to breakfast after dropping off artwork for one of my shows at Lunar Boy.  Awesome place, cooler logo!

Check out the zine:

I made 50 copies, so if you’d like one, email your address my way and I’ll get one out to you!  Send your requests to mike @ lewisacrylics dot com.  I hope you all have had a great January.  Pretty soon and it will be February, which means my favorite holiday.  No, not Valentines day, Groundhog Day.  I think I’m going to do something special for our favorite varmint from Punxatawney this year, so be on the look out.  Til then.

Peace
-Mike

I’m seeing blocks in my sleep.  Even after a little break outside last week, I am still going a bit stir crazy, but that said I am remaining fairly well focused.  I am working my way step by step through this thesis project.  I think even my last year’s adviser would be pleased with the progress that I have made thus far.  I realize now how little work I was willing to do for him.  No wonder we didn’t get along absolutely swimmingly.

Last week my friend Ed called me and invited me for a snow shoe trip.  Looking outside today, it seems crazy that that was a possibility as it has been 50 degrees the past two days and we are missing all of the snow that we got over the weekend.  However, last week there was just enough snow to go snow shoe in so I worked up quick Occupy the Woods sign and grabbed a trusty squirrel companion to head to the woods.

I love working outside with my artwork.  The work is almost never left where I plant it, because my father the forest ranger had the take in take out policy pretty much drilled into my head by the time I was 4.  That said, even if these artworks only exist as photographs and stories, I still enjoy them a great bit.  Notice too, my friend Ed doing his best Jaque Cousteau.

 

 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I have been slowly putting together this thesis.  So slowly, but I am starting to see it materialize already.  But then when you are spending 10 hour plus workdays in studio, one would hope that you would see some results.  I am not down on it though.  I still really like the project and it seems to be gaining some more interest as I move from sketches to physical work.

Here is the status of the blocks thus far.  They’re getting there.  I only need about 20 times that and then I will be golden.  Can do, can do.  More photos of this beast will be coming up soon.  I have pieces of the project all over the studio. 

On another note entirely, I received a photo from a friend of mine today.  She has the badger that I carved in her garden and it would appear that New Jersey has actually maintained its snow cover better than Maine.

That’s it for tonight.  I have to get some reading done, and I need to figure out what on earth I am doing with this paper.  It is interesting, but not palatable yet.  I’ll post things soon.

Peace
-Mike

I didn’t have a very good weekend.  I was taking some personal things way too seriously and then something that actually was serious came falling down like a bomb.  It was not particularly fun, but then a good portion of life doesn’t fall in the fun category.  I am dealing, as is the case with so many other people with far more complicated or dire circumstances that they must deal with.

I did, however, take a few moments to feel angsty and sorry for myself.  I’m over it now, but I thought that the drawings were actually quite fun, so I’ve decided to share those.

 

 

 

 Each of these small pieces is 5 dollars.  Let me know if there is something in particular that you would like for your significant other.  I’ve had local commissions of a bowling themed piece and of a Metal themed piece. 

Hope you dig this stuff.  I’m pretty stoked with it.

Peace
-Mike

This is the first year in a while that I do not actually have to worry about purchasing anything for Valentines day.  Usually by about now I am already making my order for roses by now, just so that I don’t have to worry about it when it gets near time.  As I said though, I don’t have to worry about it this year.  It feels weird though.  I had to spread some love.  So here is what I came up with.  I am making small 4 by 6 inch pieces with archival clear plastic envelopes.  The front is adorned with a Valentine related image and the back is formatted with the Valentine to and from and a small drawing and signature in the corner to mark the piece as authentic.  Here is where the giving part comes though.  I am charging regular card price, five dollars, for each of these. 

This is a little cheaper than I usually charge for a 4 by 6 drawing, but I thought I would give to you instead of to a significant other this year.  Check them out and see what you think!

 I’m not putting these on Etsy or anything.  It’s not that I don’t like Etsy, but I’m doing this for people that have been customers in the past, people that follow the blog, and friends on Facebook.  I appreciate that you people pay attention to what I do.  It makes a big difference to be making something for other people verses just sitting in an empty room trying to make things to amuse myself.  So thank you.  Drop me an email or a comment if you would like a valentine, and if you would like something in particular in the way of subject matter, I am totally into that too.  Just let me know.

Peace
-Mike