Facebook 3X5 Artists challenge images all in one place

Here is a roundup of all of the 3X5 Facebook Artist challenge images all in one place. It has been really great for me, because it got a chance to see where I have been and where I am going...  Of course, you can always look at them (and everything else) on my website, artbyjared.com

Day One: Old School

Day Two: Theater Designs

Day Three: Paintings on Velvet

Day Four: MONKEYS!

Day 5: Recent Developments

Bonus Day: Spooktacular Giveaways

My T-shirt design was on the show COMMUNITY!

I am a big fan of the tv show Community. I have seen every episode on Hulu plus (because I prefer to watch things whenever I want, I dont have cable and the HD signal is kinda iffy in my neighborhood). I appreciate the detail that is put into every episode. I was looking at the details in the background this morning while I was eating my chex, and then BAM! right in the foreground was a familiar T-shirt. I paused the playback, and there, plain as day, was my T-shirt design on the chest of the character Abed Nadir!

SEASON 5, EPISODE 4 of Community...featuring my T-Shirt!

The design is actually based on a large velvet painting that I created for Spooktacular VII (2006)...it was the Vegas themed year and Roy (of Zeigfried and Roy) had recently been mauled by one of his white tigers...so, I thought it was an appropriate Halloween painting to give away as a prize. We usually have a game that we make up and play at the Spookatcular, and I create prizes to give away. We put a very high price on the painting (we had lots of gaming chips as the unit of exchange) figuring that no one would actually earn enough to "buy" it...but Yancy Davis (formerly of the Sweettravelblog.com) rounded up all the chips from people leaving at the end of the night...well, a deal was a deal, and I found myself, a week later, delivering a giant velvet painting to his house. Ain't she a beauty?

So, fast forward to 2010 where I get an email from the T-Shirt company Sub_Urban Riot asking if they can use my painting as a design for one of their T-Shirts...I negotiated a deal with them and they printed up some tees, and sent me one which Kate currently wears.

I had forgotten about the whole thing until this morning, eating chex and watching one of my favorite shows. I am honored and humbled because I have great respect for everyone involved in the show...and in a way, I am part of the show now too....if you want one of your very own, you can buy one HERE.

SPOOKTACULAR XII

Happy Merry X-MASWEEN! Okay, show's over! Mr and Mrs. Claus need to get some rest!

Just a refresher on the design of the Nutcracker....

That's right, I'm such a badass that I am able to make it snow for our Spooky Christmas Halloween party! The nutcracker doesn't seem to mind...

 Here is a video of the nutcracker in action!

The rest of these photos are just a very small sampling of the party...

The Design for Karaoke Hell...

 One of the traditions that we have is to offer paintings as prizes for our guests (this year they won them by playing putt putt into the Nutcrackers mouth...if they got a hole in one, a ping pong ball would fire at them, and they could turn the red balls in for a velvet painting: (Velvet is really hard to photograph...honestly, these looked much cooler in person...I think its got something to do with digital camera's inability to register black correctly, as well as the camera trying to capture the nap of the velvet....)

KRAMPUS 9"x12" Acrylic on Red Velvet

LEG LAMP 6"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

SAD TREE 12"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

ZOMBIE REINDEER 12"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

ZOMBIE PINUP 9"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

So, that's most of the Spooktacular craziness...Thanks to everyone who made it out, you guys are truly the life of the party!....during the blackout of the past few weeks I have also been working on several other projects like:

A Concept sketch for a Mayan themed Pop-up

Six Flags Coaster Decor

 

Six Flags Coaster decor

...And things don't show any sign of slowing down in November!

The Villainous Velvet Villains of Villainy, Part 2

Okay kids, so I am uncharacteristically posting a day early because I will not have the time to post anything (or make any art, really) for the next two weeks. Why you ask? Well, I am one of the core staff that will be outfitting the brand new Artisphere with all of the audio, lighting, video, risers and stage management in the big push to get it open (once we have our certificate of occupancy *fingers crossed*eyes rolling*) by the numerologically significant date of 10-10-10...(not to mention the fact that we will have two full galas, a press conference and an advisory board meeting all before 10/10...but who's counting?)

Anyway, long story short, I will be busy. In the meantime you can take a gander at the 5 new Velvet Villains that I have made for the Spooktacular giveaways...(BTW, big shout outs to Kirstra, Jei, Brian and KT for being my sweatshop monkeys over this past weekend...they did an excellent job preparing all 48 (!) velvets for painting...thanks guys!)

The Playboy
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

Helmut Von Chaos
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

The Cannibal
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

Faux Destro
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

Darth
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

So, yes I succumbed to the dark side and did a Darth...but I am only doing 4 (the rest get 5) so that he is a special gift for the particularly geeky...

The Villainous Velvet Villains of Villainy

Its been an exciting couple of weeks since I last posted to the blog. We have started to hone in on what the Halloween party will look like, and I have honed in on what Evil Dead the Musical at the FCAC will look like as well.

Every Spooktacular has had certain elements that have become...traditional...For example we introduced the idea of a theme in 2006 (Haunted Vegas) and every year since we have had a theme (2007 El Ocho, Mexican Day of the Dead...2008 Heart of Darkness, jungle theme...2009 X-marks the spot, Pirate theme...Ya know, to be fair, 2005 was the the first themed year, our wedding, haunted mansion) And some other elements have become traditional too...Karaoke Hell, Backyard Photo Op, Margarita Machines, a Game and Prizes/Giveaways....well this year we have decided to make the giveaways a bit more fancy than in previous years...

In keeping with the theme (Villains) I have endeavored to make a "Rouges Gallery" of small (8"x10") velvet paintings of different villains. What I will be doing is painting multiples of the same painting, in the hope that I will have 25-48 of them done by October 30...check out some of my progress so far:

The Egyptian
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

Hubris Von Whothathrot
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

The Kingfish
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"
Doctor Bubble Skull
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

The Dragon Lady
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

I think I have five more designs to go...which means I will be doing five of each of these (am I crazy?!?) Perhaps we should make the game really hard this year...

Okay, here's a question for you loyal BTT readers...Should I include Darth Vader? He is perhaps the most recognizable super villain in the last 100 years (other than Time magazine's runner up for man of the century, You-know-who, of course)...and Darth would look wicked cool on velvet...But, thus far, I have been making these villains as amalgamations of villain tropes, and not very specific, which is kinda cool too...also, I would be avoiding the whole copyright thing seeing as I am giving them away...So, what do you think? To Darth or not to Darth?

Also I have been plugging away at getting the FCAC version of Landless' Evil Dead the Musical designed and ready to go...here's the first draft of the paint elevation: