Art Wortd Coop

One last post before the 2009 dawn sets in.

I want to wish you the best in 2009... Let's make something big happen together!

And speaking of big... Wired named the conceptships blog write up #5 on their 2008 top ten list of gallery articles. WHOA!!!! Congrats to all of the artists featured on the mag site & on this blog and a huge thanks to WIRED magazine. It's an honor to be represented by the biggest computer science magazine in the world. HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!




Keywords: last post for the 2008 year on conceptships.blogspot.com wired magazine article number five # 5 on top ten of 2008 gallery articles conde nast

It is that time of year again where we all start thinking about those extra 10 pounds, business goals, and so on. This year I want to go back to school so to speak and focus on continuing my art education. I am still thinking about how exactly I can do that without actually going back to school full time since that is sort of hard to do when you run your own art business. I don't really care about getting another piece of paper and so I am not as interested in pursuing a Masters degree as I am about pursuing a more intimate relationship with amazon.com, local galleries, museums, and yea, my part time mosaic classes for sure.

This year I had a great Christmas and Dan and I both exchanged art books with each other. We do this a lot. I usually buy him pretty books on Japanese printmaking and he often gets me something by some independent artist like Jeff Soto. This year I received Jeff's latest book and a stunning little number by Ray Cesar. I bought Dan a nice book on old Chinese propaganda posters and a biography on Chagall. It is the thick Chagall "reader" that I was most excited about giving. I am thinking we might even share this one out loud the way we did with the Harry Potter series. Yep, I think if I am going to improve my knowledge of art it will have to come down to reading, ha and something a tad meatier than wizarding stories. Wish me luck .... I will let you know how it goes.

Memorial project for sweet Cocker Spaniel named Jazzy.

Everything runs away, beginning with who you are, and at some indefinable point you come to half understand that the ruthless antagonist is yourself.

Philip Roth, qtd. James Wood


A couple weeks ago, I watched a documentary called "Bigger, Stronger, Faster." This movie struck a nerve inside of me like no other movie has for the last six months. I identified with the director's quest for answers about thorny and controversial issues surrounding self-enhancement drugs. The synopsis for the movie states, "Metaphorically we are a nation on steroids. Is it any wonder that so many of our heroes are on performance enhancing drugs?"

Director Christopher Bell gives a portrait of America as a nation striving to be the best in every sector, especially sports. And then he asks: at what point does our need to be the best clash with doing the right thing? There is an underlying hypocrisy to being the best in America. Oftentimes, winning means lying, cheating, or tweaking the rules.

Which makes one think that steroids are bad; end of story. But the movie challenges our assumptions. In fact, I learned that anabolic steroids are neither as dangerous nor as life-threatening as the government and the media will have us think. It is only with excessive use that these drugs become detrimental, and even then the damage to the body is reversible. However, anabolic steroids and street drugs have long been grouped into the same category. Nobody is denying that there are undesirable side effects to steroids, but the leading scientists confess to a genuine lack of evidence about long-term dangers.

So then steroids and other self-enhancing drugs are okay? Right? The documentary is adept at dismantling each new assumption. Midway through the movie I began to see another side. There seemed to be some problems with using steroids that went beyond the drug itself.

The director interviews his own family to uncover these nuances. Mad Dog, his oldest brother, refuses to grow up. He cannot handle working with his father in the office, and we watch him prepare to leave for L.A. with his girlfriend, where he'll try to become a professional wrestler. He swears by his use of steroids; without them he would be nothing. There is a moment when the oldest brother talks about his dream to become a professional wrestler. Sadness and desperation eke out of his voice, and his monomaniacal conviction to follow his dream sounds slightly ridiculous. Strangely, Mad Dog was the brother I identified with the most. He's chasing something called "greatness".

The director's youngest brother, Smelly, coaches a high school wrestling team. He thinks it's alright to use steroids as long as you are "old enough". But during the movie he decides that he's going to stop taking steroids. His wife has recently had a child and the family has become important to him. He promises his wife he'll quit but later in the documentary he tells the camera he might go back.

I have a confession to make; I'm a recovering drug addict. I took Ritalin and Adderall without a prescription for three years while I was in college. And . . . after watching the documentary I began to justify self-enhancing drugs. The movie had some salient points. What's wrong with taking a drug to perform better? We all do it. Some of us have our coffee in the morning; others need a cigarette; others take their cholesterol medicine. And if Ritalin or Adderall are used in moderation--just like anabolic steroids--there are no real dangers.

Compound these rationalizations with the chance encounter I had with a short article in the New York Times entitled "A Case for Pills to Boost your Brain."

"So then I'm not the only one who thinks it's okay to take Ritalin!"

It wasn't long before I was looking up prices for Ritalin and Adderall on the Internet. Of course I didn't have a prescription, so I would have to order through some shady Mexican pharmacy.



For those who are consumed by the need to be the best, a drug that promises an edge can mean the world. When your ability is your identity, the notion of a magic pill seduces. A couple days ago my best friend told me about a drug called Provigil, which was originally invented to treat narcolepsy. Since its inception in 1998, the drug has found countless uses not only for narcoleptics but for anyone who wants to stay awake and pay attention. Part of this drug's appeal is the surprising absence of side effects. Because it is stimulant-like, and not an actual stimulant, the drug does not cause addiction.

Dr. Joyce Walsleben, director of the New York University Sleep Disorder Center, writes, "Should people just use it because they'll feel better and stay awake? That's a question for society to answer. Is Provigil better than drinking six cups of coffee and getting an ulcer? Is it better to fall asleep and drive into a tree?" (Salon)

Ever since childhood I've dreamed of becoming someone different, someone greater than myself. Even in adulthood I am swayed by a fantasy of sudden transformation. I want to be the best at what I do--not a mediocre nobody. I want to be someone. This urge is intrinsic in humans although we express it in different ways. All of us want to be special, admired, loved, known.

I flirted with the idea of going back on cognitive-enhancing drugs. I sat in front of the computer at 2 a.m. debating whether I should begin taking drugs again. What for?

Well, for one thing, I would like to be more productive. I'm not satisfied with my level of output. To become a great writer, which is my goal, you have to write a lot. You have to write every day, say, five to ten pages, or you'll never improve. I'm simply not writing enough in order to meet this goal of mine. (I tell myself this over and over again. I even feel guilty.) And I'm almost convinced that Ritalin or Adderall or Provigil is the only thing that will transform me.

The next morning, I'm standing by the kitchen counter, preparing a bowl of cereal for breakfast. I hear my girlfriend yell from upstairs, "Mad Dog is dead."

"Who?"

"Mad Dog. From the movie. He died in a rehab center this morning."

It has been nearly three weeks since I saw the documentary, but the characters come back to me in an instant. The searching, conflicted director, the determined, monomaniacal brothers, the broken, defeated parents.

"What happened?" I ask my girlfriend.

"He took too many painkillers."

"Oh--"

Maybe I should reconsider my desire to be the best.

Stumble this article!

Update: I recently found a relevant blog post by Malcolm Gladwell, author of Blink and the Tipping Point.

Yesterday I posted some quick pencil sketches and it just made me want to try some wacom sketches. So today I am posting Celtie & Pixel in a piece I titled "The Art Of War". Celtie is an adorable little Scottie that we baby sat for a few weeks back along with her brother Rufus. They both own a great human by the name of Cheryl. Cheryl is an artist and Scottie rescue gal.

My Pixel & Celtie love to play tug of war, and boy do they get after it. I created a quick & loose sketch from a photo and then elaborated on it to create the larger work. I really like the toy guts spreading into the border area that contains some quotes from a Chinese military treatise that was written during the 6th century BC by Sun Tzu. I plan to let Celtie's Mom choose between the small loose sketch and the larger piece as a late holiday gift.

VW Beetle Series, Part 3
This is an odd cartoonish papercraft of Disney's Herbie the Love Bug. I am not sure of the origin of this model. I assume it was originally produced in the 60's or 70's as a publicity item for one of the series of Herbie movies that were released at the time. The instructions included with the template seem to indicate that it was intended for children and that it was probably printed on the back of a box of some kind. The 3D decoupage-like design of the fenders causes the Beetle to look somewhat strange when seen directly from the front or rear. A free download of the Beetle is available here.

Free vector resource from sexualtyranosaurus. The pack contains five anatomic skull and one spine illustrations. The file is editable with Adobe Illustrator.

To use the resource first, you need to expand the *.ZIP archive and then load the *.AI file. Download.

In case this is not kind of skull illustrations are looking for, you can have a look at another vector skulls set here.

When the phone is not ringing off the wall, in the quite of a long weekend, I like to sketch. Sleepy dogs stretch and yawn. Waking from soft puppy dreams they shift, turn and scratch about the wooden floors, as my pencil hurries across the page scratching out their forms. My intense study of them has no doubt broken their peace, my gaze an irritant that interrupts their sleep.

Artist quotes on Sketching:
"There is a great appetite to work, and then my sketchbook serves me as a cookbook when I am hungry. I open it and the least of my sketches can offer me material for work." — Georges Braque 1882-1963

"Sketch quickly with light strokes on your pad ( which you should always have with you), and when it is full, start another, never rubbing out but keeping all carefully, because the forms and motions of the bodies are so infinitely various that they cannot possibly be retained in the memory. Therefore preserve your sketches, for they are your assistants and your masters." — Leonardo Da Vinci 1452-1519

A digital drecoration resource for Adobe Illustrator from grunii. You can use the paisley ornaments to decorate your design composition or to design a seamless pattern...

If you wish to customize the color scheme, you can do so by ungrouping the object (Select All , Object>Ungroup) and change the fill and stroke colors. Download

A detailed vector illustration of a satellite dish from J-05. Free for personal and commercial use...

To use / customize the illustration open the PDF file with Adobe Illustrator. Download

Many miniature gaming fans are turning to papercraft as a way to enhance their game play. These are two fan produced papercraft props for the Star Wars Miniatures game produced by Wizards of the Coast. The turret and cannon orginally appeared in the 1980 movie, The Empire Strikes Back. The templates for these pieces are available for download with registration at www.swminiatures.com and were designed by Eli Kurtz, Germany, 2005.

Hope everyone has a relaxing holiday! I will be away from desk until next Tuesday.

"what we have enjoyed, we can never lose ... all that we love deeply becomes a part of us." — Helen Keller

This stunning pup is Kaleigh. The pressure was on here to do a really great job. Not only was this an important memorial project, the original photo was supplied by one of my photographer pals Jill Beninato, of sitstaysmile.com. Jill is not only a talented dog photographer she is also a very talented digital artist. I am very pleased with Kaleigh's final artwork. I could not miss on this one... I had a beautiful subject and a first rate photograph to work with. Special thanks to Jill for this project referral, and to Sheri for all of her helpful input.


Merry Christmas to everyone! Art Paw is officially closed for the holidays, which means the phone is not getting picked up, and e-mail might just be neglected for a few days. I will be blogging this week and that is about it.

Oh ... and last but never least ... Happy Anniversary to my sweet guy, Dan. Thanks for the best decade of my entire life.

A collection of nine funky drip and circle symbols for Adobe Illustrator from LukeAvery.

Those symbols might be useful if you are working on a project that conveys pop-art or disco styles.

To use, load the .AI file with Illustrator and open the symbols palette (Window>Symbols). Download

Thanks to you... The conceptships readers and all of the artists that make this crazy blog possible.

A little Christmas gift I've made for you. Send it to friends and family!

I will take the next few days off. New weekly header Friday...January 2nd, 2009! Have a happy new year and I will see you on the other side!


Merry Christmas conceptships weekly header #40 December 23rd - January 2nd, 2008 - 2009

Keywords: end of the 2008 year merry christmas animated flash loop header santa in sleigh flying with reindeer adobe aftereffects composite holiday animated greeting card

Sparth.com









Keywords: industrial wind powered tower on beach with spacecraft ship art from nicolas bouvier sparth.com art dallas texas id sosftware

A vector illustration of Christian Dior's "Bar Suite' from MissMatzenBatzen.

This concept is part of Dior's first fashion design collection "New Look" (1947). More

VW Beetle Series, Part 2
This papercraft Beetle is unusual in a couple of ways. First, it is a hand drawn template, something that has become relatively rare in our computer age. Second, even though the Beetle is known for its rounded profile, the designer chose to use a boxy shape for the model. The template for this model is available from the Antique Automobile Club of America on their website.

NuMioH's concept robots page and Deviant art account.






Keywords: industrial concept illustration art from numioh razeroth numio tham hoi mun concept hover bikes animated flash flip book anime

I am always very heartbroken when I hear about our old clients passing over to the rainbow bridge, and during a holiday season it is even sadder somehow. Please light a candle for Ohnie or send warm thoughts to her Mom. She said goodbye to her sweet girl on Thursday.

VW Beetle Series, Part 1
This is the first in a seven part series of my builds of various VW Beetle papercraft. I hope to have all seven builds posted in the next several weeks but there are likely to be some other posts that will interrupt the series from time to time. :) This Beetle is by Mitsuaki Ohashi, Japan, 1999 and can be downloaded here. For a template with only two parts it achieves a good three dimensional shape. One quirk I noticed with the template is that one of the backup lights on the rear of the Beetle is white and the other is red.

A free Adobe Illustrator texture resource from peacefreak99. The textures in the pack can be used for creating grungy backgrounds, applying a grunge effect to vector elements in your composition or vector masking.

You can try exploring possibilities with different Pathfinders and Shape Modes in Adobe Illustrator (Window>Pathfinder).

Note: To use, open the PDF file with Adobe Illustrator (File>Open>Choose File; Do not use click and drag). Download

I don't remember how I found the video below. It popped up, and I watched, curious, then mesmerized, then disturbed, then - disgusted.
I decided not to post it on New Art. So as not to encourage something I find incorrect, or rather - wrong.
After a while I came back to see it, and watched the whole thing again. And I thought: who am I to judge this? After all, didn't I watch it with curiosity, and watch the whole thing, twice? Why can't I show what's disturbing me, bringing it forward to this public forum, so everyone can make her own mind?
But first, let me warn you: in my opinion, animals were being hurt in the making of this work. If you want to be absolutely sure you don't participate in any way in the popularity of this work, do not see the film below.



I would not resist if I were you. Maybe I would do it for the sake of something (it's a scary skill, thinking up good reasons). But I would be there, peeking in. Maybe not until the end. But then, it doesn't matter, does it? Does it?
The question of the onlooker, his power and his role in the process of creation, might often be used in contemporary art - but very seldom is it addressed in-depth. What is our responsibility? Can shutting our eyes be a good way of "appreciating" and yet disliking the work? Can I refuse something without knowing what it is? What do we know about the work we see above? About the conditions of its creation? Should I even be posting this without that knowledge?
See this strange video, also directed by Körner (Koerner) Union. (Be patient.)

Now, the astonishing part with the hen makes me question my own assumptions. Was my judgement too simplistic, also in the other case? Maybe this is just a short moment, or maybe it's all a trick, maybe the birds are not bumping against the mirror, shocking against it violently, thinking there is space where a solid mirror remains? Maybe it was all digitally manipulated or they were trained, or something? Or maybe I'm being hypersensitive?

Relax, now.

Here are a few untortured animals, in a wonderful picture by Isabella Rozendaal.
No, this is no antidote to these moral dilemmas. But it's an appeasement: the gentle distance. Rozendaal is someone who appreciates " the remarkable and humorous things she encounters in real life". And a way of approaching reality which plays with the idea of "amateur" photography, so we feel like this is almost too easy, and yet, remarkably appealing.


Yet, after all this, let's make a circle, and go back to Korner Union, with a video that somehow makes one think of the pictures above, with simple stories that are just slightly off (and a great song by Don Cavalli)...

But my favorite thing by Korner Union is quite minimalistic I suppose and maybe it's just this mood, tonight, with all the snow melted away, thawed and relaxed and, well, it's a page I found on their soon-to-be-active site. It also takes part in the game of hide-and-seek between the onlookers and the people-who-show-as-things-we-like. And it's simple.

Some of you guys may remember Bear the Golden Retriever. I have done several portraits of this photogenic pup. His Mom & Dad are talented wildlife photographers and we have become cyber pals over the years. I was delighted to get a great gift last week from Bear ... his first book! It is called "Bark Softly and carry a Big Stick. A dog's guide to the good life". Bear is an expert on living the good life, and this fun coffee table book is a great gift for any dog lover in your life. It is packed with stunning photography by Lisa Husar and words of wisdom she has gleaned from her years with Bear. It is a beautiful celebration of the canine human bond. You can order it on-line at their website teamhusar.com. Check it out! Thanks to Lisa & Bear for sending us this great book.

I wasn't going to make a new weekly header because the holidays are keeping us so busy here at the shop but I got inspired watching the Video Game Awards last night on Spike. So nice to see some of the premiere cinematic trailers in HD!

I posted this work earlier but bumped Anthony Wolff's post to the top here for the header.

Anthony's art portfolio.


















Anthony Wolff conceptships weekly header #39 December 19th - December 23rd, 2008

Keywords: spaceship art from by anthony wolff a.k.a. jOuey concept artist at kylotonn entertainment paris helicopter chopper gunship digital concept renderings

I just saw this over at IMDB. Happy birthday from conceptships!

Nice work from the realtime:uk team... Check the flick.















Keywords: concept airplane rocket ship animated concept art film movie from realtime uk experts in the production of highly creative game cinematics and concept movies for the games industry and animated 3D sequences for online content