Flying Fish & Falling Birds

A typical fall day in Pittsburgh. 65º, chance of rain...

2009-10-02T10:25:00.004-04:00

and a baby boy...

So, last night as we were about to go to bed it happened. Shannon's water broke and we were on our way to the hospital. At the time we were unsure if it was time, things were a little less climactic than we were led to believe, but upon examination it was declared this was it. The baby was coming today.

Unfortunately there were a few things I'd left to do. Being that he was due on the 12th & nothing seemed to be happening yet I thought we had more time, at least a few more days. I should know by now that those are the moments that life happens though. The time when you planned to make arrangements at work tomorrow and install the baby seat in the car this weekend. Instead I was up at 3am typing an endless stream of emails to co-workers and I have no idea when that baby seat is going in. Heck, I don't even have cigars to hand out. What was I thinking?

Now, I'm going to do something and I promise this will be the LAST time I do this here. I'm going to get crazy sappy. You'll have to forgive me, I'm going on all of about no sleep & I just about cried the first time I heard his heartbeat months ago. I deserve just this one, so bear with me.

I am ready with one thing, and that's the excitement of being mere hours away from meeting the little guy that's already managed to change my whole life. In 9 months I've already re-evaluated everything that means anything, I've found new value in things I never understood before. I understand my parents in ways I never realized and wouldn't of had this not come to being. I've found the pieces of myself that make me who I am and that I want to pass on to him. I've found a reset button for my own youth by looking at his life from it's start, even though I've never felt more adult in my entire life.

Shannon and I know the challenges and difficulties that lie ahead, and that's fine, we'll getthrough it just like we always do. We're so excited to bring this little guy into our world, to show him the things we love and to find out what he loves, to find the world that will make him happy.

and dear god, I hope it's art, cuz I look really silly trying to catch a ball....

Out of hibernation

2008-05-12T15:46:00.002-04:00

It's finally, slowly and sporadically, becoming nice outside! (although today is leaving a little to be desired...) so what better time to post an update!

The big news is my new job. I recently began working full time at ModCloth.com, a small company I'd been freelancing with for a little over a year. It's about the most exciting opportunity I could hope for as a designer! If you're not familiar with the company, you should stroll on over to www.ModCloth.com and check it out!! The best part is I get to do stuff like this during the day

Now, what can be better than that?

I have some exciting upcoming show news, but until all is confirmed I'm going to keep that little bit to myself.

For now, I'll just leave you with some buttons.

Things are getting weird.....

2008-03-05T21:10:00.002-05:00

...and oh so busy. New stuff added to my website gallery, and I opened up a shop where I have 2 prints for sale! T-shirts coming soon, along with lots more art! Keep checking back!

Fun-A-Day Pgh!!

2007-12-27T16:41:00.000-05:00

Hello! Hope everyone had a great holiday. We had a nice (but hectic) time visiting family & eating constantly. I'm sure I gained a few pounds, but that's what New Year's resolutions are for, I guess (I started 2007 at 261 lbs and ended it under 220, so I think I'll be OK on that front).

Onto upcoming events! This January I'll be undertaking an ambitious task and taking part in "Fun-A-Day Pittsburgh". You come up with a project you can work on everyday for a month, then in February there will be a show to present all the work (in whatever way it can be presented!) It can be anything at all, as long as it keeps you motivated to accomplish something all month. I've decided to choose an animal, bird or insect & do a drawing a day of it through it's life, so at the end of the month I'll have a series of drawings from life to death of whatever I choose to do. I won't give any more details on my project or show any images until the end of the month though, gotta keep some surprises, right? I encourage everyone everywhere to take on similar commitments. Do something you find fulfilling everyday, because otherwise what's the point.

In other news, the work I had showing in the window on Penn has been a smashing success & I've gotten a ton of great feedback and inquiries on it. If you're not familiar with my work, these pieces mark a significant change in my style & approach that I'm really excited about, and a lot of other people seem to be as well. I have a lot more stuff on the way, so it looks like I'll be busy for awhile. 2008 is looking to be a great year.

And with that I'll wish you all a happy new year and see you in 08!!

Winter Weekendland

2007-12-16T19:47:00.000-05:00

The holiday season means a lot of things, and apparently one of them is parties. We had 3 to go to this past Friday night. We had a great time and saw sooooo many friends, tho it would of been nice to have them spread out so we could of spent a little more time with everyone.

One of the parties was our friends Emma & Q's annual mixtape swap potluck. (Q does a podcast which is a great primer for local music here. I didn't get a chance to contribute a mixtape this year (usual excuse of "too busy", but I think I'll begin planing early for next year's). I did, however, do a piece of artwork for the party, which was the prize for the "people's choice" among the mixtapes. It's about records, here's what it looked like!

More holiday parties this week. More friends to see. If I don't update for a week or so, you know why!

Pictures as promised!

2007-12-07T22:38:00.000-05:00

Tonight's "unblurred" event was great!
First, here's some pics from the windows at 5013 Penn where I had 4 pieces.

Thanks to Jeff for letting me putting some stuff up!!

check me out

Then, at ModernFormations was the opening for Jairan Sadeghi, the winner of the annual spring salon show. The show was absolutely beautiful! I recommend you check out her site.

Now to sit back, drink some whiskey and relax on the couch for a bit.

Make Art vs. Make Blog

2007-12-07T11:42:00.000-05:00

Sorry, but the art will always win!

Tonight is the "Unblurred" gallery crawl on Penn Avenue. If you plan to be out, you may notice some of my art in the window of a storefront a few doors down from ModernFormations and Garfield Artworks. Here's a sneak at a couple things that will be there!

If you're out & happen to see them, let me know what you think. I'll post some images of the windows after we take some tonight.

Busy weekend ahead. Tomorrow is the toy drive at the Creative Treehouse from 10-8 to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters (info in my previous post), then Modcloth is hosting a fashion show/Dance party at the Brillobox to benefit the Women's Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh, here's the flyer I did for that:

Also, lotsa great gift ideas at Modcloth, so check them out and say hi to Winston while you're there!

Creative Treehouse Toy Drive

2007-11-23T14:24:00.000-05:00

Here's the illustration I did for the Creative Treehouse's Toy Drive, and here's the other relevant info for that same toy drive:

On Saturday, December 8th, the members of the Creative TreeHouse in Bellevue will put their talents to good use and hold a benefit for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh. Professional holiday portraits will be taken at the Creative Treehouse, located at 517 Lincoln Ave (2nd Floor) Pittsburgh, PA 15202 from 10:00AM to 8:00PM for those who bring a toy donation for Big Brothers Big Sisters. Suggested donations are toys for boys and girls up to age thirteen and around the price range of $10. Family portraits are available for a donation of two gifts, one for a boy and one for a girl. Single portraits will be available for a donation of one gift. A holiday backdrop designed by Creative TreeHouse members will be available as will a normal studio backdrop for single and family portraits. The whole family is invited to spend time at the Creative TreeHouse while portraits are being taken. Portraits will be available to download online with a special code provided to each guest at the event.
Please visit www.creativetreehousepgh.com for more information.

If you can make it out to the event, then I'll see you there! If you can't, then I encourage you to donate toys, food, cash or time to a local charity, there's always someone out there that can use a hand.

Happy Holidays!

Weekly Sketchbook

2007-11-16T22:08:00.000-05:00

It's been a slow couple of weeks, on the art front at least. Not that I haven't been busy, just not much to talk about. I have, however decided this will be the first week of something new I plan to do here. Every week, I will post some random happenings from my sketch book. Partly to show what I'm working on, and partly because there's nothing like deadlines (even those arbitrarily imposed by me) to keep you on your toes.

and here it is....

These are from little dudes that are part of a much bigger concept I've been working on. There wil be more to see in time, let me know what you think in the meantime!

Happy Halloween!

2007-10-31T12:52:00.000-04:00

Here I sit at work, dressed as a 19 yr. old version of myself horrified at what my life has become. (seriously, that's what I'm telling everyone here.) In 40 minutes we'll have our halloween party, then we'll get to leave a little early to get home for trick or treaters (OK, that IS kinda nice of them).

But ya, the 19 yr. old version of me would be a little horrified at the 9-5 existence I have. It's not all bad, but it's not all great.

Anyways, here's some fun stuff. Tonight is trick or treat, which means I'm looking forward to a tradition Shannon and I started a few years back. In our neighborhood, we get tons and tons of trick-or-treaters. We'd seriously need to spend a fortune on candy to take care of them all. So, instead of taking out a small loan for bite sized hershey bars, we get a few bags to hand out. Once it runs out, the fun begins. We walk the neighborhood for the remainder of trick-or-treat hunting for dropped candy. Whoever finds the most wins, and we share everything we find. Try it, you'll realize just how clumsy kids can be!

So, I guess that's all for this Halloween. I'll leave you with another holiday--appropriate painting I've done. Enjoy!

Splitting ways with Unicorn Mountain

2007-10-22T11:11:00.000-04:00

That's right, after being involved with the Unicorn Mountain anthology as art director for nearly 3 years, I've decided it's time for me to part with the project.

It was a difficult decision to split with something I've put so much time, energy, work, effort and everything else into, but in the end it's time to move on and focus those resources onto other ambitions, ideas and projects I want to work on.

I wish Unicorn Mountain nothing but the best moving forward and hope it's mission continues well into the future!

It's been a crazy trip up the mountain!

24 hours later

2007-10-21T11:18:00.000-04:00

Well, the 24 Hour Comic Marathon is history. I had a fantastic time, thanks to Jesse at the Creative Treehouse for hosting a wonderful event as always. I'm tired so I won't go into too many details, but I do want to share what I accomplished.

While I fell very short of our goal, a 24 pg. comic in 24 hrs., what I did finish has me very excited and I look forward to finishing it. Once it's done I plan to publish it as a mini comic that I'll make available here for anyone interested.

Here's the (drum roll, please..) FIVE PAGES I got done (no regrets, I had such a fun time procrastinating with my friends!)

page 1

page 2

page 3

page 4

page 5

And there you have it, 24 hrs. worth of work. I'm excited to finish it & find out what happens to our little friend. The concept is one I've had since I did my gallery show, "Fields & Forests", last November. Let me know what you think so far!

I'm gonna get some sleep now.

14 hours in.....

2007-10-20T22:59:00.000-04:00

...10 more to go. I've managed to drink 4 Burn energy drinks (16 oz. each) talk about G.I. Joe, Star Wars, buy 2 records (Jim Croce & the original Star Wars soundtrack on 2 records, so technically I bought 3) play a vampire for a halloween episode of a web show, explain how sex with your clone would technically be masturbation, twitter a whole bunch, and (oh yeah) finish 5 pages of my book. Yes, 5 whole pages. 6 is in the works.

But hey, I'm having a lot of fun here tonight, and if you're not here you're not so blah to you!!!

I'll scan and post some pages tomorrow regardless of whether the book is finished. I'm really happy with what I have so far, progress be damned!

24 Hr. Comic Marathon time!

2007-10-20T10:30:00.000-04:00

The day is here, and I'm at the Creative Treehouse procrastinating.
Watch us on Ustream!

Stop by & say hi!

500 miles round trip, a sick whiskey hangover and some incredible books too

2007-10-15T10:54:00.000-04:00

That would be the short description of my time at the Small Press Expo in Bethesda, MD this weekend.

This would be the long one.....

We opted to go for only one of the 2 days this year since Unicorn Mountain wasn't tabling at the event & it seemed wise to save some money. Curt (Editor in Chief of Unicorn Mountain) Jeremy (friend of UM & design assistant/intern/whatsit for vol. 3) and myself (me, this dude, art director of UM) hit the road about 7:30am, way earlier than I like to be up & functioning on a Saturday. The long ride there consisted of a good deal of discussion about star wars and the internet.

We get to the Bethesda Marriott around noon, and after a quick scan of the floor, we hit a panel discussion/interview with C.F. who just released the book "Powr Mastrs" (yes, that is the correct spelling) with picturebox.

While the talk started out slow, it picked up and was really interesting & entertaining. He talked about Paper Radio, which eventually became PaperRad, told us about a band who's idea of a show was prank calling about 30 random people in a row and playing them songs over the phone (this concept is still blowing my mind) and wrapped the talk up with this tidbit; "nature wants variety because it doesn't know what's going to happen next". That got me ready to get back to the sales floor and see what people had to offer this year!

As usual, I could never have enough cash to get everything I would like at this show. One of my favorites this year were the folks at closed caption comics. It turned out Jeremy knew one of the guys in this group from some shows he'd played while on tour. The offerings at their table were really impressive. Beautiful screen printed items, handmade books and more. I picked up a collected anthology and really enjoyed it. I recommend checking them out if you get the chance! Drawn & Quarterly had their usual impressive spread of books, Jeremy picked up an insanely beautiful novel that tells a story thru woodcuts called "Southern Cross: A Novel of the South Seas". It is a facsimile of the original, which was originally published in 1951. I picked up a few items & added a book called "White Rapids" by Pascal Blanchett to my wish list. I think I'll be making a trip to Copacetic Comics in Squirrel Hill to pick it up soon.

After wandering the floor for a few hours, spending too much cash, talking to friends new & old (including JULIACKS, UM contributor that joined us for the ride home Sunday) and feeling charged up from a complete sensory overload we took a little dinner break & walked to the liquor store in preparation for the Ignatz Awards (complete list of this year's recipients here). It was a great show, the highlight being Nicholas Gurewitch of the Perry Bible Fellowship Comics interpret the acceptance speech of a guy in a gorilla suit. I'll just say you had to be there. After that we hit the reception, drinks in hand. (whiskey really goes down easy, I might add) a few hours of drinking, talking, and the chocolate fountain & Jeremy and I were almost ready to call it a night, but not before getting some food & drunkenly debating some nerdy issues I'll spare you the details of.

Sunday, wake up, hungover, drive home, bed by 10.

What can I say, good weekend. And, the perfect lead in to next weekend's 24 Hour Comic Marathon at the Creative Treehouse

24 Hour Comic Marathon next weekend!

2007-10-11T14:08:00.000-04:00

Next weekend the Creative Treehouse will be hosting a 24 Hour Comic Marathon from 9am Saturday, October 20th til 9am Sunday, October 21st. You'd think I'd of learned my lesson from the 24 Hour Creative Marathon a few weeks ago but nope, how quickly I forget pain.

If you're interested in trying your hand at comics, I encourage you to come out! If you're interested in seeing some artists in action, then I also encourage you to come out.

I'll post my results after the event.

SPX

2007-10-10T23:57:00.000-04:00

We'll be leaving for Bethesda early Saturday morning for the Small Press Expo (SPX). This will be the third year we make the journey, nad while it's a great opportunity to network & let people know about Unicorn Mountain, I think I look forward to the parties a little more.

I'll post the happenings from the convention. Once we get back, I plan to spend some time talking about what goes into putting together a volume of Unicorn Mountain, and since we're working on one what better time!

On a completely unrelated note, I think it became Fall in a mater of hours today. Seriously, it was that fast.

More babies....

2007-10-04T22:05:00.000-04:00

Today we spent the day at the hospital while our friend Melissa had this little dude

Oliver Michael! 9lbs 3 oz. Welcome to the world!

What a weekend!

2007-10-02T10:15:00.000-04:00

So, the 2nd 24 Hour Creative Marathon took place Friday night & Saturday. While I didn't post any updates from the event, I did webcast it on Ustream along with the treehouse's streams on Ustream & justin.tv. There was also a plethora of photos taken over the course of the event that can be found on flickr if you search the tag "24hcm2"

A couple favorites are:

"Lost is Found", my piece, ink & acrylic on paper

Me at the gallery show saturday night, so tired I couldn't produce coherent sentences.

Overall it was a great time spent with friends, friends I haven't seen in awhile, and new friends I made at the event! 6 months til the next one, so be sure to make it out!

I'll be back at the treeouse for another all nighter the weekend of the 20th for the 24 Hr. Comic Marathon. 'cuz who wants a reasonable amount of time to accomplish anything? NOT ME! And who wants to sleep on the weekends? Again, NOT ME!

Less than 2 weeks til SPX! This is gonna be a good month.

2nd 24 Hr. Creative Marathon Tonight!

2007-09-28T15:50:00.000-04:00

Yep! In approximately 4 hrs. I, along with at least 50 other artists will begin a 24 hr. trek to complete a piece of artwork for the theme "Lost & Found"! I'm super stoked for this event, the challenge, and all the friends I'll get to see there! I'll update throughout the evening & tomorrow!

Sorry for the delay, I was out saving the world.

2007-09-21T10:31:00.000-04:00

....and that's all I have to say about that!

Anywho, so much going on right now. Let's start with being only one week away from the 2nd 24 Hour Creative Marathon!

September 28th and 29th. I, for one, am ultra-stoked. The first one was a blast. Something about painting at 4a.m. while drunk and hopped up on energy drinks that always makes for a good time. Also, Unicorn Mountain is proudly sponsoring the event by providing soda.

Speaking of Unicorn Mountain, here's a quick update on all the fun we have going on there....
• Curt, myself and I believe Tim will be attending SPX (Small Press Expo) in Bethesda, MD on October 12th & 13th. While the tables went in record time this year and we didn't get one, I'm still looking forward to a great time. This show always has a great variety of art, small press and handmade books to make you wish you had a larger disposable income. I always meet a ton of great people at this show, and searching the hotel for parties at night is a usually a highlight. I'll update from the show (and maybe webcast the Ignatz awards ceremony if I can swing it?)

• We're putting together a bunch of great NEW stuff for Handmade Arcade Nov. 10th & 11th.

T-shirts, buttons and some new minis are all in the works. For anyone that doesn't know, HA is an annual arts & crafts fair at Construction Junction here in Pittsburgh. It gets bigger every year, and this year we'll be sharing a table with our friends from Encyclopedia Destructica. We've reprinted some of the very popular "Wolfman's Got Nards" book that was a collaboration between both groups, and there will (hopefully) be another collaboration ready for that show. Be sure to say "hi" if you're there!

• And, of course, the biggest part of Unicorn Mountain, we are ass-deep in Volume 3 right now. With as big as the book's gotten, we've received a lot of attention from people all over the place wanting to contribute in some way. The next book will be the best yet, and that's saying a lot since the first two have been such amazing publications already. Look for that early '08!

Awhile back I'd said I was doing some work for a clothing site, Modcloth.com. Well, since then we've done a bunch of exciting designs and have even more on the way! Get to Modcloth and check out the Paisley owl top and the escher scarf among other things! Next should be a sea life wallet I illustrated being produced at poketo.com!

I'm probably forgetting something BUT I also should be working. So, I'll leave it at this!
It's off to save the world!

Spring Art Shows

2007-02-28T09:52:00.001-05:00

Hello!
Thought I’d give a little newsflash about upcoming events I’ll be showing some work in!

The first is ModernFormations annual spring salon. This is a big show that’s open to anyone in or from Pittsburgh who would like to show their work. In their words:

For all of those artists familiar (or unfamiliar) with Mofo's annual Spring Salon...we're putting a call out for YOU! The First Friday of April is fast approaching and you may need a little time to prepare...any local artist can enter...email us at modernformations@hotmail.com for the guidelines.

There are cash prizes for 2nd and 3rd place and First Place gets to exhibit their work in December. Visitors that come into the gallery throughout the month of April will be voting!

The show opens Friday April 6th. I had 2 pieces in last year’s show and came in 3rd (for the horned black cat painting in my pics section). I encourage anyone interested to participate!!

The other show I want to tell you about is going to be a group show on April 28th at the Creative Treehouse space in Bellevue. Details are still being worked out, but this is going to be about 10 artists showing 5-8 pieces each. I’ll post more info once I get it.

There will probably be more & I’ll post more details when I get them. Busy spring ahead! Hope it’s a good one.

-Joe

continuing from the last post.....

2007-02-21T21:01:00.000-05:00

I took Monday off work, and when I returned on Tuesday I found my boss had CLEANED MY DESK WHILE I WAS GONE!!!!!!

Aside from being oh so rude, how the hell am I supposed to find anything?
If someone has the time to always keep their desk clean AND clean someeone else's, they obviously need more to do.

I need a new job.

neatness....

2007-02-16T21:47:00.000-05:00

...and the realization that it is something I will never attain.

I was sitting here in my studio preparing to get some work done when suddenly I realized a stack of papers was growing on the stepstool that somehow found it's way into the room. I looked around to find that every surface, no matter what it is, has accumulated a pile of things. paper, books, sketches, works in progress, everywhere!

On the one hand, I'm disappointed in my apparent lack of ability to keep things in tidy order. On the other hand, the stacks represent things, things I'm doing and thinking and making, so it can't be all bad, can it?

I love this workspace dearly, in the nearly 18 months I've occupied it I have re-emerged creatively. It's a snapshot of the things in my brain, maybe a little more cluttered than my thoughts, but it's all there. Maybe I'll stop worrying about making it tidy & get back to what I was supposed to be working on!!

a New Little Person

2007-02-07T14:02:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I became an Uncle for the fifth time!!

Mys younger siser & her husband had their secong child, Ryan Michael at 1:07pm. He was 23" & 7lb. 15oz.

Polar greetings

2007-02-05T09:03:00.000-05:00

It's insanely cold out. Zero degrees without wind chill!!

Keep warm!!

groovin'

2007-02-04T20:59:00.000-05:00

So, I started using a website this week that I think is pretty rad, www.groovr.com
Basically, you set up a profile then whenever you go somewhere you check in from your cell phone. Right now I'm just enjoying setting up all the places I'm at and sending pictures. Eventually, maybe more of my friends will start using it, (hint hint) it's a slick way to keep track of people!

Enough advertising.

My little sister will be giving birth to her second child sometime between now & Tuesday. I know this because she tells us her doctor will induce labor Tuesday morning if the little guy doen't decide to make the journey out by then. Of my brother, sister & myself, I'm the only one with no kids. At this moment I have no problem with that, I'm thoroughly satisfied being the goofy Uncle to my 2 nieces and 2 (soon to be 3) nephews. And, yes, I have been confirmed as the goofy uncle, many times.

Groundhog Day

2007-02-02T12:11:00.000-05:00

The rodent saw no shadow, so I guess it's gonna get warm soon.
If a groundhog knows so much about weather, why can't the weather guy get it right?

Anyways, upcoming event!

a 24-hour creative marathon at the creative treehouse space in Bellevue! I personally look forwad to seeing how many pieces I can get done, hanging out & working alongside a bunch of other artists, and drinking whisky til the sun comes up! It also looks like I'll get to collaborate with another artist friend of mine, Jen Birch. Jen's a fantastic figure painter & we're going to do a piece with a girl by her & a bug by me! Ah, the warm touch of an exoskeleton against the skin, the soft kiss of mandibles....

See you there!

Blogging is hard work

2007-01-31T16:01:00.000-05:00

or at least that's what I want you to believe, since I haven't updated in a week and a half or so.
Not that there's much to say at the moment anyways.

BUT, I have updated, so yay me.

I've been insanely busy. Work has been a clusterscrew. I've begun freelancing as well, and it's going wonderfully! I'm doing some work for an online clothing store, www.modcloth.com, which will be done soon, so I'll let you know when you can buy things I've done there!

Oh ya, I'm terribly ill today. A cure for the common cold would be wonderful. Not even Google can find that one, though.

Creative Treehouse tonite for a meeting. Creative marathon event coming up in a few weeks, I'll post details soon. Somewhere along the line, life becomes more meetings than activities. Why is that.

Enough sentence fragment sporadic rambling. Time to finish up here & go home.

I have a blog

2007-01-19T13:24:00.000-05:00

I'm finally caught up to four years ago. At this rate, I'll be nearly complete 2 years after I die.
I'll get all my work done 6 months after that.

Chicago this weekend! Shannon & I are visiting our friend Kevin & his girlfriend Berenice. I also have to (finally) deliver the painting Kevin bought from my "Fields & Forests" show back in November. I've never been to Chicago, but I love going to new cities so this will be great. I'll post about it when I get back.