A Massive catch up!

2011 has been a crazy year already just 4 month in tomorrow! I know I'm usually better about updates on here, but I haven't found a minute to catch my breath from working and being a dad to make the time. Allow me a chance to play catch up in review since the beginning of the year.

Helping out my fellow Club brother Frank, I put together a design for his old 1959 Ford Pick-up doors. Designing was easy, but the application of painting two exact matching doors was a different feat.

The mock up:

The lettering was transferred to some over head projecter clear transfers then projected on the truck doors:

The end results after a quick scrub to age the one shot paintjob which took a few weekends to do it up:

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Also for Autorama, the "artist alley" many of us put together a piece with the single topic of a model A FED called "Little Honker"

This is a quick shot of the finished product taken with the cell phone on a test print. There were 100 pieces made of this 12"x18" two color silkscreened poster. #1 was framed and custom painted by Little Mark of Sled Alley.

This is a quick shot of #1, matted and framed, ready for auction. It pulled in $185 for the leader dogs for the blind. I'm happy to help out.

There are some left over from the show so don't feel like you missed out by not hitting Autorama!

GRAB YOURS HERE

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Quickly there after I put together Half Fast Chicago commissioned me to do an event poster for Burning Love #4, their anti valentines party.

It's single silver color ink on black french paper. It's currently on French's website in the sample room which to me is a honor to be listed there!

Also, you've got a chance to GRAB YOURS HERE

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Motor Age Clothing Co. hit me up early in the year as well for some new shirt designs.

and #2

You can grab yours up at the MOTOR AGE website

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Finishing up in 2011 for Vintage Torque Fest, I did this three poster collection for this years show:

This series is online and all signed. The original print series is only 50 pieces! You can grab yours up before the show

Also now online is last years 4 poster set. VERY LIMITED NUMBERS HERE!!!

GRAB UP HERE

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Back in 2008 I worked on this little indy film called Deadheads which is finally blowing up. The trailer alone has 70,000 hits! It recently got into the Newport Beach film fest where I wish it much luck! I worked a lot with the promotions people on photography for this poster:

Much of my set photography has ended up around the net for the film as well including Fangoria's website article on Deadheads

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In the midst of this time period of work, I also had a major set back in later January. If you are on my facebook fan page you probably caught me bitch'n about my Apple Monitor fail. Let me tell you it was the worst thing to happen to me in some time. But when the smoke cleared and all was said/done/installed/replaced/updated I got quite a nice replacement.

Right over my shoulder… it made me and my dog bomber here happy!

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Lovepedal custom effects commissioned me to do some handcrafted box art for their product line up for retail.

the fun part about this has been all the positive feedback on facebook from the lovepedal fans. Some even just wanted to buy the boxes alone!

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Rod & Custom Fabrication loved the Torquefest posters so much they wanted me to do a cross over / old timey logo brand for themselves.

This was the proof work and there are also business cards and a t-shirt design to boot.

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Pit Bull Racing contacted me about putting together some long sleeve designs. We kicked around a few ideas and came up with these race inspired versions of their sponsored riders leathers:

They don't seem to be up online just yet, but I'm sure they will be soon!

Also work for Pit Bull I've done includes

Pit Bull Metal Sign - Vintage

T-shirt, 3-color, bike on front

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Newlands Brewing Systems contacted me just before Autorama to put together an ad for a magazine on their brewing systems being made right here in Detroit! I was pumped to be part of their team and being able to bring my own art to their company look. I was also able to create some custom graphic for their display at the Craft Brewers Conference this last weekend in San Francisco

Ad:

Banners:

Coaster:

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At Autorama I got a chance to meet a bunch of good folks both exhibiting and attending! I was happy to unveil some exclusive products to them which should follow up on the website in April:

flexfit ball cap with pinstripe devil

Devil pinstripe patches:

black

Car-N-Art spark plug patches:

and stealth:

As well over the weekend I had John Jackson from Not Stock Photography keeping my dogs and couch company. He shot this of me sunday morning. Man, everything looks really yellow

under those COBO lights!

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Quickly coming out of Detroit Autorama I had a bunch of work to get back to! There is still elements of my display floating around in my truck.

Trophy Queen contacted me about doing an Americana/Evel Knievel design for a t-shirt:

I love her bags probably as much as the ladies do. I think I could pull off the diaper bag before getting suspect! :)

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Not too long after I found myself helping out my pal Lauren from Street Rod Visions with a sticker /t-shirt design for a show (I think this weekend)

She asked me something stock and I just don't have any "stock" designs. I really only can do one off's for people. She wanted a 32 3-window and that's what she got!

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Half Fast came back with their Spring/Summer/Fall bike night posters at the Orbit Room

A tiki inspired poster to polynesian perfection!

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Finding myself now at the end of March and taxes creeping up my back, I also had to get back to Torque fest art for the registration card.

This is a great little 11x7 inch mini poster give away to all who are registering a bike or car for the show. Something to hang in the garage to remind you what a kick ass time you will have in 2012!

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Lastly, on to my own stuff. Car-N-Art will have some new products shortly with a brand new poster series that will be highly collectable called "Arsenal of Design" 6 Poster series all sold as one (like the old Drive Wrench Repeat)

I can't show you all of it just yet, but it's brewing and you should see something for sale in Iowa at torque fest!

I can show you the shirt though:

Stay tuned to the FACEBOOK fan page for faster updates!

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Well crap! that's about it for now. Hopefully I can update more than once a quarter with work on here!!! Really sad overall. New stuff in the works for future shows, a new website within the year, and hopefully some national ink on the art. Thanks for reading if you made it this far!

~keven

Chrysler Eminem Super Bowl Commercial - Imported From Detroit

The Internet: A double edged sword for designers

I got an email from the good folks of the ACME Speed Shop asking me if I knew about a person selling stickers of my design for them on eBay. I had to see it for myself: item #220685777210

You've probably heard the old saying "Imitation is the highest form of flattery", but honestly, it's not; it's a down right violation of intellectual property and against the law.

Here's the hard part: I'm by no means well off. They don't call us starving artists for nothing. I need to show work I've done in the past to draw new clients to continue to work. But anything I put up on line is subject to being stolen, aped, ripped off, hacked, etc. So what can I do!? Watermarks only do so much good. The fact of the matter is anyone who can retouch a photo can make a watermark disappear (for the most part) and you also need to make an image large enough to show a client but at the same time not so large that someone can nab it, reproduce it, and sell it on eBay.

The fact of the matter is, I was paid to do this design (outside of a change in typeface of "speed shop" that the person who is trying to pass this off as their own work did) So really it's hurting the good folks who paid me to design for them, but at the same time this person is not afraid to place their own watermark on the design!

Man Cave Accessories? You didn't do this work, you are a hack. Your balls are mighty big to go ahead and watermark hacked work!

Vintage? It's only 3 years old buddy! Oh, looky here! You're from Westland. You are in bitch-slap distance!

Please everyone, don't buy from mancaveaccessories1 on ebay. This person is bad for the automotive collective.

My work was "copied" among about 200+ other rip off pieces that this person is selling illegally. If you are a designer, you may wish to check and see if your work is up there among his own too.

Fuckin' Ugh!

Tis. the season I suppose! The Zombie Factor

A friend and colleague gave me a call about putting together an identity for his Comedy Zombie Pilot series called "The Zombie Factor". It's a tongue and cheek idea that after the zombie apocalypse happens, how would we return to life in the USA with zombies? Of course! Make them our new form of entertainment with their own reality show.

Anyway, I don't want to give too much away. I'm still waiting to see a pilot all edited down. But, if it pops up, I'll post it up here. Enjoy!

Manifolds on Main

I was approached to do a more "classic" design (by classic I mean an approach you've seen before) There are a lot of old water slide decals out there of "powered by plymouth, ford, chevy, mopar, etc." This was my own skew on the same old wheel and tire for Manifolds on Main in Irving Texas. The coolest part about this is, not only was it used on an event shirt, but also as the participant award.

(not the best photo in the world of it here)

The design was given to a jeweler to create a 1.75" wheel with a bronze base for all who participated in the event. I don't have to often think in 3D any more with my work, but this one I did again (funny how out of practice I've become!) Here is the breakdown of how the layers worked out that was sent along to be machined out.

At any rate, I'm stoked! I love to see this stuff jump off the screen and become a physical object. My work takes on a whole new meaning when it becomes a product to me. I love to see designs pan out.

Huff-A-Palooza

I saw the call out come down the pipe on the Road Devils C.C. forum about a guy who needed some help. I wish I could always help out with charities, but if I did, I'd quickly become one myself!

Bo Huff is a custom car builder who specializes in shoeboxes and Mercs, among other cars as well. I remember first reading about "The Bad Boy merc some time back with an article from Max Grundy.

At any rate, I came across this post with the cries for art submissions for the cause:

"

Dear Friends of Bo Huff:

Bo Huff has currently been diagnosed with Stage 3 Mutliple Myeloma and is in treatment at Hunstmen Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah.

He needs to undergo 2 rounds of chemo and radiation therapy immediately at a cost of $25,000 per cycle. Our goal is to raiseas close as possible to $50,000 (2 cycles + medication) as he is on Medi-Cal and they only potentially pay for one cycle of treatment.

Our objective is to have an art/artist supported raffle to help raise funds for his therapy. We will feature this event in Car Kulture Deluxe magazine and I will additionally scout feature artists fromthe submissions. We have only 30 days until Oct. 31, 2010 to get submissions into me. WIll you help me put the word out to the art & hot rod builder community?

Note: In the spirt of positive thinking, we are affectionately calling the art show the "Glo Huff Chemo and Radiation Cancer Fighting Fundraiser. " He starts aggressive therapy this Monday.

Submissions can be anything/ format thats hot rod/biker/lowbrow art related but must be signed and preferrably original worksPaintings must be already framed and ready to display or hang with sawtooth or wire backing as I dont have time toassemble any framing prior to the event.Drop Dead delivery deadline is Monday Nov. 1, 2010.All items will be raffled off at the event by an MC and the funds will go into a charity fund to pay the hospital bills.

Artwork will be sent to me for staging and I will get it to the fundraiser. Please mail items to:Anna Marco PO BOX 1895 Beverly Hills CA 90213ph. 310 925 6966email: anna.osr@gmail.com

Additionally we are working on making event shirts and will have a Deadsleds (and others) car club sponsered music and car show in the Inland Empirelocation, date , and time TBD.

Your assistance will be deeply appreciated, please put the the word out to our usual suspects as will I. Bo has now agreed to let folks know he needs our help.

Much LoveAnna "saves fabricators" Marco"

My heart goes out and hopefully my submission can help raise some dough in a time of need.

Take a peek

It's a 24" x 36" framed, one of one print for the man in need. I urge you too if you have some sort of artistic talent to submit something.

KKOA DVD?!

The 'Kustom Kemps of America' is perhaps one of the oldest running custom car and truck association in America. For a lot of the young guys into hot rods and custom cars, they often turn their noses up at high dollar cars and trucks but at a certain point, we'll all be the old guy with the car with a lifetime of $$'s put into it. You just can't deny the beauty and craftsman ship that goes into these cars and trucks.

I got an opportunity to put together a DVD cover and an ad for Ol Skool Rodz recently for the KKOA DVD which will be released by Vintage Torque around Thanksgiving (pssst, a good time to purchase this for that special gearhead for the holidays) Here's a sneak peek!