I was hoping to have this piece done by the early hours of the morning – a wood carving and painting. About 52 inches by 48 inches – mahogany, walnut, and pecan stain on carved birch panel.
I still need to build a box out of it, fill the box with foil and LEDs and wire, drill holes where I want lights, varnish it, line the holes with gold leaf, and put several coats of wax on it… probably about another 8 hours or so…
But I thought you might appreciate a progress pic (bottom)
Artprize has been several months of crazy for us – everything falling through one thing after another, and being given the run around from so many different directions. Artprize opened today, and we only got access to our venue yesterday, where we are working on a huge painting, the slimmed down version of our big circus, architecture, and art extravaganza.
If you are coming out for that – don’t worry, we found new homes for all of our acts (most are at the BOB at their scheduled times), found a place to host our artwork (One Girls Treasure on Lyon Street), and put together many picnics throughout the Artprize grounds and throughout the 19 days of Artprize.
Our art installation at One Girls Treasure is amazing BTW – much thanks to Bethany Grenier, Kate Jauw, and of course Bethalynne Bajema.
We are still recovering financially from all the AAAAAAAAAAAAGHHH! – and still have a bit of fundraising we can stand to do… especially Bethalynne and I who have pretty much gone sleepless and foodless and put aside all other work through this whole endeavor. I don’t want to get any more behind on shipping, so I introduced theSUPER SPOOKY STEAMPUNK GRAB BAG of AWESOME – which will ship just in time for Halloween. What is it??? I have no idea!!! But they are $15 and I will load them with more than $15 worth of incredible things from this project and something unique to these grab bags.
Proceeds of course go to building supplies and some spaghetti maybe. These are available for a very limited time, and until they run out.
A quick snapshot of the work in progress - Gadreel over Machinac Bridge
Our beautiful shirts from Extreme Screen Printing have arrived. They are printed in 2 colors on an all-cotton heavyweight desert sand colored t-shirt – with art by Bethalynne Bajema, an incredible logo design by Ted Jauw, layout/pre-press by Myke Amend, modeled for by Cassie Truskowski, and loved by everyone who sees them.
Our last gathering (an artist’s and performers fundraiser for CirqueACirca & The 121st Retronauticon) was a great time for all, and we are doing it again. Come out and meet the crew, have some amazing curry and a spot of tea (vegetarian options available), and meet and mix with many other artists and arts supporters. Details below:
1537 Fulton St. E. Grand Rapids – Saturday, September 11th, 2010 – 7PM to 11PM
*Indonesian RijsTaffel (Rice Table)
*Meet the Crewe (Strong & Able)
*Post Fashion Night Out! (Stytche And Bytche!)
*See the Model (Hear our Pitch)
*Steampunk Chocolate Fountain (you’ll never leave)
*Get a “Love” Tattoo (Roll up you sleeve)
*Join the Circus (Sign the list)
*Buy the T-Shirt (Don’t be missed…)
Cirque A Circa (A Circus Out of Time) is coming up fast, and with it our 121st Annual RetroNauticon – which is much like a convention, but without registration fees and admission fees.
In a work of art nearly the size of two football fields, we will have many performers throughout the ArtPrize competition. Performers include airial, fire-spinning, fire-eating, and other sideshow performances by Cassie Truskowski, Author Bethany Grenier, Local Artist Ted Jauw, and many others – as well as fashion shows, and of course music: Such as acts by Zoe Boekbinder of Vermillion Lies, and also by The Gypsy Nomads – a great band last seen (by us) at the World Steam Expo.
You may, or may not be able to make it – but this promotional art featuring the Art of Bethalynne Bajema, and Ted Jauw’s Cirque A Circa logo and the Love ambigram is well worth-grabbing while it is still available. Not only do you have the chance to snag some wonderful and rare art for a low price, but you get to take a part of this event by supporting the artists behind it… thereby supporting the event (not having to find and earn money to eat on allows us more time to put towards this monumental effort).
Special Prints for Cirque A Circa by Bethalynne Bajema
Some of you may already be aware of this, but this year I am participating in Grand Rapids’ Artprize competition along with Bethalynne Bajema, Ted Jauw, Kate Jauw, Bethany Greenier, John Hyatt, and Cassie Truskowski, with our combined work CirqueACirca.
We are putting together a work of art nearly the size of two football fields (a very ambitious project for a couple of artists with less than two nickles to rub together). This work will be a huge undertaking to say the least, and will include circus and sideshow performance art, among many many other things.
We hope that it will become a gathering point for steampunks and other like-minded individuals during the competition, in a joint effort with the SteamPig display and several other steampunk exhibits through the vast art competition (over 200,000 visitors last year). Our space will have a lot of room to rest your feet and hang out, and costumed up visitors add the the feel of the piece.
We hope that you will help out by being there September 25th (the main gathering date), or any date between September 22nd through October 10th.
If you would like to more actively participate and help out, there are *MANY* ways to do so – from helping us starving artists to starve a bit less, to easing the strain of gathering materials for this huge project (we hope to use as much recycled material as possible), to lending a physical hand on the build, or just getting the word out for us (because every person you know may know someone interested, or the people they know might know someone interested).
Please link to us in your blogs, facebook accounts, myspace, twitter, or otherwise… because popular makes popular these days, and the more people our message reaches, the greater we can make this event.
Artists: Those of you with a creative touch to help with painting and set up. It could be anything from plain flat painting to helping with the mural.
Roustabouts: Help during the event. Answer visitors questions, help with merchants/artists needs, etc.
Carnies: Merchants who share our vibe and intent may rent tents to sell wares.
Players: We need people to dress up in a steampunk or circus fashion and just walk around while adding to the vibe!
Buskers: Do you have a fun talent to share? Juggler, stilt-walker, etc.? We have a place for you in Buskers Alley.
Oddities: Do you have a very unusual art to share? We have a place for you to create and show off your talent.
Stowaways: The price for your passage is to help keep our ship clean! We will need people to keep an eye out for loose ties or malfunctions, pick up trash, make sure signage is still in place, etc.
Acts: Looking for acts willing to work with us to develop great shows and have an opportunity to show off your stuff.
And the rest: Did we fail to mention something? Let us know! There is a place for you in our circus!
He came to the surface world, wondering where all the food had gone, but there were no fish to be found on land.
There was however an abundance of two legged meat-things… they tasted somewhat like seals; Perhaps even enough to save his kindred, and maybe enough to last till next season.
All he knew, was that he had to return to tell the others, but maybe after just one more meal or two…
All pieces were sculpted, hand-painted, silver-leafed (cans of tuna), and hand-varnished by Myke Amend and come as a set. The wood barrels and scrapbooking paper aren’t included, but could be if you really want them.
One of several layouts fo rthis sculpture
One of several possible layouts or poses for his sculpture; I envisioned it with Charlie on top of the crate looking up pitifully, with a few old cans of tuna laying about the scene (as above), but I really have a hard time choosing just one. There are more images, including closeups on the Etsy Page at ettadiem.etsy.com.
The set includes Charlie the sea monster, 3 tuna cans, “wooden” (polymer clay) crate, and crate lid:
“Charlie” is about 3.5 x 2 x 2 inches. His eyes are made out of brass, and all scales, shading, and countershading are hand-painted on.
The Polymer Clay crate is roughly 4.5 x 3.5 x 3.5 inches.
Tuna cans are tiny… really tiny.
This is a fine art sculpture, and is *not* a toy. It is *not* intended or recommended for anyone under the age of 18.
I put a lot more work into this than I expected to. My first thought was to make something quick I could sell for $40 or so, but then I decided to use brass for eyes, then to hand-brush and shade scales onto him, then to make the crate out of clay instead of weed, then silver leafing the tuna cans for a more realistic look… I’d sell it for $300 for all the work that went into it, and its uniqueness (only one of its kind), but right now it is up for $145 on Etsy.
We are putting a lot of time and resources into our Artprize bid… a $5,000 estimated expense, between 5 people who can barely scrape together a handful of change (i.e. artists, post-July,2008). So, if you want to make good of our situation, this sculpture is available online until we have the fundraiser/teaser for the event – in which case it will be on sale there.
Undeath from Above detail 1Undeath from Above detail 2Undeath from Above
The original was drawn in pen and ink on 11×14 inch Bristol Board, I did the coloring with my 4-year old Adesso drawing tablet so as to preserve the pen and ink original.
The Black and White version is the Cover for Gatehouse Gazette #14, my third cover for them.
I am making only 20 of these full-sized giclees. Total size with 1? border is about 13×16 inches. They are printed on cotton-weave fine art rag paper in archival pigment inks for the sort of superior clarity and color quality expected from a giclee print.
The giclees are available at a reduced price of $55, HERE
8×10 inch metallic prints are also available, and also at a reduced price ($15), HERE.
The box/dual frame: I labored hard for over a week on the box, which is a very sturdy hand-built, hand-stained, hand-varnished, hand-waxed chunk of quality hardwood (heartwood select pine base and birch sides). It not only serves as a box (if you would want to use it as such a thing), but as a self-contained double frame which requires no wall hanging. It is perfect for a coffee table, end table, mantle, dining table or most any flat surface you would like to display it on… and it is so sturdy in construction that you won’t be freaking out if people get near it.
Red Hand Assemblage Showing Both
The box has two decorative hinges with a decorative patina on the spine edge if it; The latching mechanism is self-made from another smaller version of these hinges, combined with three solid brass model cannons from a model ship. The latch holds the piece securely shut, but opens easily when you want it to with a slight squeeze of the box and an easy flip of the thumb.
Latching Mechanism detail
I spent hours and hours and hours buffing and buffing this piece. You may not see the glossiness of it in the picture, but it is pretty shiny.
Red hand Assemblage Box Frame closed (standing, latch side)Red Hand Assemblage Open, spider side showingRed Hand Assemblage Box Frame closed
Sometimes antiquing involves making something look beaten and ratty, sometimes it is a matter of making something look like something of quality kept new by an archivist or generations of enthusiastic caretakers – quality and new as the day it was made. For this particular look, I went with making it look like somewhat well-maintained antique… something once very expensive, polished periodically by its owners – well protected, but also well-used.
This sort of antiquing makes it much more involved than the other two. When I do this sort of antiquing on fresh and new untreated wood, making it look fashionably old is essentially a process of finishing and refinishing it to duplicate what time would do: Creating many stages of maintenance and multiple areas of color to create the look of something old… dark areas near crevices and hard to reach spaces, lighter areas where regular wear might occur.
Open Assemblage Box Frame on its side
The Art: To make these illustrations mesh well with the box, I made them in this dark-carnival, old Victorian occult ephemera style, with a lot of metaphysical flavor and a touch of campy horror propmaking. It not only made them work well with the box I envisioned, but made them fun for me and strikingly bold… a primitive and stark contrast to my normal reserved and detailed works and my muted color palettes.
Red Right Hand
Painting One: “Red Right Hand” this is one of two pieces done for a collaborative collection of China Miéville inspired illustrations and artworks, an effort assembled and coordinated by John Straun of SuperPunch. The Handlingers are mind-controlling creatures which look much like a human hand with a snake’s body. I decided on red for my colors because I wanted the hand to be red, and I might it a right hand just so I could name the piece “Red Right Hand”, because I am a huge Nick Cave fan.
Limited Edition Giclees (limited edition of 20) are available in my store
Red Right Hand detailWeaving Spiders Come Not Here
Painting Two: “Weaving Spiders Come Not Here”: I often name images for all of the phrases that swim around in my head. I don’t know what it is about soliloquy, sayings, proverbs, historical quotes and other such things that causes them to remain so well-embedded. I start working on a piece, and once he concept is in place, I immediately think of some string of words that fits, though usually a twist thereof. Rarely does the phrase inspire the piece, but the piece typically inspires the title, and the title sometimes shapes the work… this title coming from Shakespeare, or the once-curious reliefs seen outside of Bohemian Clubs. “The Weaver” is a large sentient spider with hands on its forelimbs (I also put them on its Pedipalps), with a love for scissors. The Spider with scissors brought this phrase to mind, so rather than repeating the more circular designs from the previous painting, I made them weave like webs, being cut by the spider.
Limited Edition Giclees (limited edition of 20) are available in my store
I sat up tonight making this first wave of free skins for the iphone.. why? I don’t know… I don’t even have one. They do however seem to be popular, and hopefully even people without that specific phone can use these.
These images are free to use for your own personal non-commercial use on your own phone.
There is no rule that says you specifically *have* to use them on an iphone though, if you are able to use them for any other cell phone or smart phone, please feel free. You also have my permission to change them to bitmap, gif, png, or whatever format your phone takes.
Does your summer shelter need windows to elsewhere, but without that annoying heat caused by sunlight? Tired of the warmth radiated by television, computers, and other electronic devices? Would you like the have images to liven up your place, without the annoyance of sound, and without the pesky associated energy costs of batteries and outlets?
You should try “Art”!
Art is 100% energy efficient, requires no outlets, and will continue to work day or night, even during power outages and Zombie Apocalypse (natural light source required for optimal enjoyment). Unlike money, which depends on a reliable system of government, art can be traded for gold, tools, women, men, chickens, or circus bears in post-apocalyptic settings, save for those dominated by troglodites and C.H.U.D.s, and it even serves as highly-prized contraband in every dystopian oligarchal collectivist society.
Concerned about your safety? Well, with the wonder of art, most any dangerous beast or precarious situation can be safely contained within a handy frame (not included)!!! Art has, in many tests, been proven to contain everything from ravenous krakens to the Civil War; Even ancient gods have a significant amount of difficulty escaping the confines of a well-crafted image: Play your records backwards day or night next to art, and if your soul is devoured, or sanity eaten, refunds will be the last of your concerns, guaranteed!
Need a friend? You can talk to art. Art will never interrupt or recommend you get professional help. Art will never, ever eat the snacks that were obviously yours because you wrote your name all over it in red marker; Art will never go to a party without you and then say it was studying all night.
Need a better view? Dread the expense of moving? Is it illegal in your area to asplode that ugly neighboring house or apartment building? Replace that ugly view with an always-pleasant view of another world, no more wondering “What are they doing over there?”; With art you can overwrite their existence safely, and without the fuss of jail time or mental wards. You can even place Art in areas without windows for an easy-to-install added viewing space(“easy-to-install” requires some working understanding of hammer physics and wall technology)!!!
But wait! Art is now available with your choice of discounts!! Read below !!!
Both discounts are valid at https://mykeamend.com/products-page/ and are simple to claim (just key in the coupon codes below at checkout).
1) Free Shipping (USA on all standard items. Basically, $5 off – since my flat rate, site-wide price for shipping in the US is $5. For original artworks and overseas shipping, this coupon simply takes $5 off of shipping.
Just enter “freeship” (without the quotation marks) at checkout.
2) 10% off. Yep, 10% off your entire order, including original artworks and other one of a kind items. The 10% off even applies to already sale-priced items.
Just enter “10p” (without the quotation marks) at checkout.
Offers are valid now, through whenever, which will likely be a week from now… though you should jump on it now so you don’t forget later, miss out on this incredible deal, and spend eternity in regret as a whino or one of those people who scream threatening words at trash bins. Websites are standing by.
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We are still recovering financially from all the AAAAAAAAAAAAGHHH! – and still have a bit of fundraising we can stand to do… especially Bethalynne and I who have pretty much gone sleepless and foodless and put aside all other work through this whole endeavor. I don’t want to get any more behind on shipping, so I introduced the SUPER SPOOKY STEAMPUNK GRAB BAG of AWESOME – which will ship just in time for Halloween. What is it??? I have no idea!!! But they are $15 and I will load them with more than $15 worth of incredible things from this project and something unique to these grab bags.
Our last gathering (an artist’s and performers fundraiser for 
