HOT DONUTS

"HOT DONUTS" is a collaborative piece between Travis Winters and I for the group show "Character and Narrative" which is currently on display at the Foothills Art Center in Golden, CO. We had originally planned to have this done a couple years back for our show "Bathhouse" but we ran out of time with all the other pieces we were working on. We managed to get it all wrapped up this time around though and I'm pretty pleased with the outcome. Seeing it all now with the backing, I honestly don't think we would have executed the piece as well if we had rushed it for the first show. 

Some process pics below detailing most of the backboard progress. You can catch this piece along with a ton of other work from Tom Sarmo, John Van Horn, Travis Winters and myself until October 20th at Foothills Art Center. 

Soul Clap & Dance-off with The Detroit Cobras

After the dust settled from teaching out at Touchstone and wrapping up work for the opening of "Character and Narrative" out in Golden, CO. I've finally gotten back into the Soul Clap & Dance-Off poster making groove. I decided to stretch this one out into a more psychedelic realm rather than echo the soul revue posters like I usually do. It was probably the drive through a pretty wild storm in Kansas and Colorado that inspired this. Skim down below to see the photos of the storm that I am referring to. 

Tickets for the show right HERE.

Yaki Tiki A-Frames

Just whipped up a batch of a-frames for the new restaurant, YAKI TIKI in the Greepoint neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY. The restaurant kicked off on Saturday, June 1st and we had limited time to get all the signs completed so I spent an entire afternoon churning these out as I was fed ice cream, beer, coffee and some pizza as I wrapped up the menu. I was psyched when they mentioned they enjoyed my neon work and wanted to shoot for something along those lines. Combining that with the kitsch of vintage tiki bar illustrations was right up my alley. Thanks again to George for asking me to contribute. Be sure to check Yaki Tiki out this summer in the backyard of the A/D/O building. Saturday and Sunday 12-8PM. 

Sunday Soul Scream!

Recently whipped up some stuff for Jonathan Toubin's Sunday Soul Scream party that takes place every Sunday from May 26th - September 1st at Our Wicked Lady in Brooklyn. First up here we've got the illustrations for the first ever t-shirt I've had the chance to create for Jonathan and then a colorized version of the calendar graphic that will be the poster. 

There's a couple pics below of the shirts. They're available in a variety of sizes at Our Wicked Lady for $20 and they are super soft, super comfy and the perfect weight for those warm summer days. Hopefully everyone will wear them til they're covered in holes and tearing apart at the seams, then donate them to their local Salvation Army and in 30 years some kid in middle America will find one and wonder what this weird, cool thing is and wear it with no idea as to what the Sunday Soul Scream is. But, they'll be stoked they've found this bizarre shirt that no one has any clue about. 

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Ikebe Shakedown Record Release Poster

I recently completed this illustration for the Brooklyn-based band, IKEBE SHAKEDOWN, who is having a record release show in JUNE at ROUGH TRADE NYC. This piece was one of those freak times where everything just moves so smooth from sketch to finish, maybe a little too smooth? The gang gave me a few pics for reference and a song for a sample of the album's sound and I just immediately went for these sketches of this skeleton cowboy in a neon desert. I know it doesn't seem hard to translate your sketches into a finished piece that completely mimics the look of the sketch but I guarantee almost every artist you talk to will say something is lost in the process and they almost always love their sketches more. This was one of those really rare times where I feel like I got as close as possible to getting the piece right where I wanted it from sketch to finish. I will enjoy that feeling for a second and acknowledge this may not happen again for a very long time. Thanks again to Vince and the band. Process pics below.

American Illustration 38

Happy to announce that my Kool Keith/Soul Clap & Dance-Off poster has been selected to appear in the American Illustration 38 book. Big THANK YOU to all the judges! And Jonathan Toubin! 

PRINTS AVAILABLE HERE! 

Soul Clap & Dance-Off with Sheer Mag

Painting it black this month for thee Soul Clap & Dance-Off at Brooklyn Bazaar featuring Sheer Mag. Sometimes coloring can become so daunting to me that it's nice when something like this comes along. Back in my early RISD days I was so apprehensive about coloring my work because I felt like I was just going to ruin the piece and I still somewhat feel like that, even though I try to just charge ahead in an attempt to keep learning. But, pieces like this can be a nice reminder that I can pump the brakes a little and don't need to force myself to color every piece.

Soul Clap & Dance-Off 12 Year Anniversary/Kid Congo Powers Birthday Bash!

Another March means another year that Jonathan Toubin's Soul Clap & Dance-Off party keeps chugging along! This is the 12th year and this baby keeps getting better and better. It's also music icon Kid Congo Powers' 60th Birthday bash so it's going to be a night of maximum celebrations. Link to tickets are HERE.

This anniversary party also marks the 5th year that Jonathan and I have been working on these posters together. I've included the first ever poster I did for him below. There was definitely a lack of Jonathan's aesthetic in the piece but I think it still managed to capture the fun spirit of the party.