Urban Vinyl: 'For The Love Of Vinyl' show

I just finished my custom Symbiote for the "For The Love Of Vinyl" group show at Dragatomi in Sacramento, CA. The show runs from March 12th to April 2nd, and features the work of 25 artists.



I named him 'Let Go', which is inspired by my upcoming relocation from Vancouver, Canada to London, UK. I will be moving next month, and although I am SO excited to experience life in London and looking forward to the new adventures that await, I am also sad about (temporarily) leaving behind all the amazing friends I've made during my year here in Vancouver. Sometimes we have to let go of things deep in our hearts to make way for the new love that will grow there.

"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."
— Marilyn Monroe

Here's a couple shots of him in progress:



The Symbiote has such a huge head, so I wanted to paint the majority of the design there. I wanted a huge heart as the focal point, as if he's solely thinking with his heart. I wanted the heart to be bold and the rest of the colours to be very soft and feminine. I drew the sketch directly on the toy instead of drawing it out on paper first.

Art Show: TOMS Shoes for Seven @ Ayden Gallery

I finished my custom TOMS shoes! As I mentioned in a previous post, Ayden Gallery is hosting a show called 'Seven' in celebration of their 7th anniversary! Over 50 artists will add their personal touch to TOMS shoes. The shoes will be on display at the show opening at Ayden Gallery (Vancouver, BC) on Friday, February 18th, 7:00pm - 11:00pm. The shoes will be for sale and all proceeds go to charity. Find out more at the Facebook event page here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=198895993457931



When I was thinking about what I wanted to paint it was important for me to create a design that I would actually wear. I also wanted to paint something with a typography theme choosing names of characters from the story Alice In Wonderland. I wanted to feature the main lettering 'White Rabbit' as bright and bold. Then I added some 'supporting text' as subtle design-y looking shapes instead of being recognizable as text. The light blue text says 'Jabberwocky'. (You can see the in progress pics here and here.)

In Progress: TOMS Shoes customs

Previously we saw my custom shoes here. Since then I've completed the lettering. I still have a ways to go, but I thought it would be fun to show some in progress shots.

Urban Vinyl: Tuttz customs, Vici is unveiled!

The 3rd and last of my Tuttz customs is finally finished! I’ve named him “Vici” after the famous phrase by Julius Caesar: “Veni, Vidi, Vici.” (“I came, I saw, I conquered.”). Vici will be for sale in my Etsy shop this Thursday at 12:00 noon PST, and will be priced at $150. He is completely hand painted by me with acrylic paints and sealed. He was sculpted and cast by END of Argonaut Resins. He measures 6.5 inches high, he’s one-of-a-kind and signed on the bottom. You can see my other two Tuttz customs here: Veni and Vidi.



Vici's Story ("I conquered")
Vici has come a long way to be where he is now. He's been through very difficult times but he's survived. The bloody heart he bares on his shield shows others of his past... he's faced his demons and come out on top. This heart has strength. "You've got to find the strength inside to lead you out of here. One steps guides another till the way becomes clear." ~Down On Love by Sarah Blasko

In Progress: 3rd Tuttz Custom Vici

Here's a sneak peek at my 3rd Tuttz custom; Vici. I'm so happy that he's... FINISHED! I promise pics this weekend. :D I had to put him on hold for a while because I fractured my hand and was unable to use it for a few months. But now I can draw and use a paint brush, so it's about time I got him done! This pic was taken while I was painting the lettering on his toes. He will be for sale soon. Stay tuned...



Check out my 2nd Tuttz custom Vidi and my 1st Tuttz custom Veni. Both are sculpted by Argonaut Resins.

In progress: Tuttz customs, Part 4

Vici is my 3rd and final Tuttz custom. Here's a pic of him in progress. He still has a few more layers of paint + some details left to go. To be continued...

Urban Vinyl: Tuttz customs, Vidi is unveiled!

The second of my 3 Tuttz customs is finished! I've named him "Vidi" after the famous phrase by Julius Caesar: "Veni, Vidi, Vici." ("I came, I saw, I conquered."). Vidi will be available at Dragatomi's booth (#3848) at the San Diego Comic Con 2010. He is completely hand painted with acrylic paints and sealed. He measures 6.5 inches high, he's one-of-a-kind and signed on the bottom. I have 1 other Tuttz custom coming up with the same design in a different colorway. The last Tuttz will have "Vici" on his paws to make the trio a cohesive set. He will be revealed over the next few weeks.





This Tuttz was hand painted by me and sculpted by END of Argonaut Resins. END is releasing limited edition tint colorways of Tuttz with exclusive chase figures, so keep an eye on his blog! My Tuttz customs will be the only fully custom painted figures for sale.

Urban Vinyl: Ganmetall Celcius Custom Show OPENS TONIGHT!

If you're in LA tonight, go check out the Ganmetall Celcius Custom Show @ Toy Art Gallery, 8-11pm. My custom Till Death will be on display + for sale, along with some amazing customs from over 60 other artists! If you can't make it to the opening the show will be streamed live at www.aoptv.com.

Urban Vinyl: Ganmetall Celcius Custom Show, Part 2

This is my Celcius custom for the Ganmetall Celsius Show @ Toy Art Gallery in Los Angeles, opening on July 10th, 2010. The show is sponsored by Kuso Vinyl, Rotobox Vinyl and Spanky Stokes.



Inspired by love, Till Death is a dark angel who is like the Anti-Cupid. He swoops down when he is called upon to end beautiful unions. "All good things must come to an end", said Chaucer in 1374, and those are the words Till Death lives by. But Till Death knows that regardless of what happens the heart speaks the truth, for: “Love is not written on paper, for paper can be erased. Nor is it etched on stone, for stone can be broken. But it is inscribed on a heart and there it shall remain forever.”

Urban Vinyl: Ganmetall Celcius Custom Show, Part 1

Here's an in progress shot of my custom for the Ganmetall Celcius Custom Show held at TAG in LA this July. The base is Kuso Vinyl's DIY Celcius figure. I decided to paint the base coats first, then sketch what I wanted overtop of that. Can't wait to finish this guy!

Urban Vinyl: Tuttz customs, Veni is available!

Veni is now available in my Etsy shop.



Veni's Story
Armed with a strong shield over his heart, Veni ventures out into the unknown. Unsure of what his future will bring, he carries with him an open mind, a free spirit and an open heart. Veni looks forward to each and every adventure that crosses his path, whether it is good or bad. Although he believes that each experience teaches us something about ourselves and about the world around us, he holds onto the shield over his heart tight. He's a quote collector and his favourite is by the German writer Goethe: "Just trust yourself, then you will know how to live.".

Click here for more pics.

In progress: Tuttz customs, Veni is unveiled!

Tease no more! The first of my 3 Tuttz customs is finished! I've named him "Veni" after the famous phrase by Julius Caesar: "Veni, Vidi, Vici." ("I came, I saw, I conquered."). Veni drops in my Etsy shop this Wednesday at 12:00 noon PST, and will be priced at $125. He is completely hand painted with acrylic paints and sealed. He measures 6.5 inches high, he's one-of-a-kind and signed on the bottom. I have 2 other Tuttz customs coming up soon and they will have the same design but come in different colorways. The other two Tuttz will have "Vidi" and "Vici" on their paws to make the trio a cohesive set. Those two will be revealed over the next few weeks.



Veni's Story
Armed with a strong shield over his heart, Veni ventures out into the unknown. Unsure of what his future will bring, he carries with him an open mind, a free spirit and an open heart. Veni looks forward to each and every adventure that crosses his path, whether it is good or bad. Although he believes that each experience teaches us something about ourselves and about the world around us, he holds onto the shield over his heart tight. He's a quote collector and his favourite is by the German writer Goethe: "Just trust yourself, then you will know how to live.".



This Tuttz was hand painted by me and sculpted by END of Argonaut Resins. END is releasing limited edition tint colorways of Tuttz with exclusive chase figures, so keep an eye on his blog! My Tuttz customs will be the only fully custom painted figures for sale.

In progress: Tuttz customs, Part 3

Here's a couple sneak peeks of one of my Tuttz customs for Argonaut Resins. Still got a ways to go...



Oh, some people have been asking when/where they will be available.
When = Soon! There are 3 of them, and they will be released one at a time.
Where = They will be sold in my Etsy shop.

In progress: Tuttz customs, Part 2

I've sketched out some designs on one of my Tuttz customs. Next pics will be adding paint!

In progress: Tuttz customs, Part 1

Argonaut Resins has revealed its latest resin figure... Tuttz! Argo has asked me to be a guest artist on this project and hand paint 3 blank custom Tuttz. I painted a Kalua Moola and Destroyer custom for Argo a few months ago, so I am stoked to be painting these figures and can't wait to lay down the first drop of paint on these guys! In progress pics to come soon...



For the collector, Argonaut Resins plans on releasing Tuttz in waves; available exclusively through selected online shops. The Jade versions (+ 1 painted variant) will only be available via Plastic & Plush (www.plasticandplush.com), and the Ash versions (+ 1 painted variant) will only be available via Spanky Stokes (www.spankystokes.com). Keep an eye on the Argonaut Resins blog ( http://argonautsresin.blogspot.com) for more updates on the release of Tuttz, as I hear there will be more coloured editions coming soon...

Urban Vinyl: Destroyer Custom

A few months ago I mentioned that I was customizing a Destroyer figure for Argonaut Resins, but could not reveal it until it was time. After the long wait, it's finally time to reveal my custom! The Destroyer was designed by O_Negative, sculpted by Eric Nocella Diaz and hand painted by me. This custom and many others are now available in the Argonaut Resins shop. A proceed of the sales will go to the Operation Smile charity (which provides free surgeries to repair cleft lip, cleft palate and other facial deformities for children around the globe).



When I was thinking about how to approach his paint job, I looked to his design for inspiration. His huge bugged out eyes, clenched teeth and crazy hair made me think of electrocution, so I tried to incorporate that into my paint job -- with the jagged electricity styled shapes of ice blue, lime green and grape. This custom is by far my most intricate piece I've painted to date. I spent many long hours bent over him with my tiny brush painting precise clean lines. I hope you like him! :)