Doom Lover’s Vaudevillian Spectacular
As summer 2016 drew to a close, I had the pleasure of painting a paneled custom piece for one Carl Harkness of Boston rockers “Doom Lover”. Carl contacted me while searching for fresh artistic influence to color his “Vaudevillian Spectacular” at the famous Brighton Music Hall in Boston, MA. The show featured a theme-period Roaring 20’s vibe with table-games, old-tyme photo-booth, and custom hand-crafted artwork by Tom Chamberlain and myself. The bill included openers “Aloud” and “Eternals”, both solid Boston-area acts. Doom Lover have a thick yet soaring sound that includes guitar, synthesizer, and Theremin blended with a fuzzy, thrashing rhythm-section led by Harkness on the drum-kit. Nikki Dessingue formerly of “Where the Land Meets the Sea” is the front-woman of Doom Lover, she floats her hypnotic, pleading vocals over the surface of the band’s deep sound. I was a big fan of “Where the Land…” whom I once saw open for Cursive at the Middle East in Cambridge; I was very pleased to meet her.
It was an honor to display my artwork at Brighton Music Hall, a venue that has been of steadfast importance in Boston Rock&Roll culture since the 1960’s. Their bookings this year alone include Helmet, Queens of the Stone Age, Napalm Death, and The Black Dahlia Murder.
My new “Doom” panel-piece, which features a semi-wild letter-style and burner color-scheme, was sold to a benefactor and given to Doom Lover themselves as a gift and a celebration of their success. Give them a listen at http://www.doomlover.com
This painting was executed with 100% freehand aerosol paints; no stencils, no tricks. It measures 8’x12′ and was painted on 1/4 luon plywood sheets. Belton Molotow low-pressure spray-cans were the primary medium involved. Custom murals and panel-pieces are available by request, please refer to the contact information at the top of the page.
Backyard Growers’ Mystery Machine
Every so often I get a project that I’m stoked on from the word “go”. This magical mystery-machine for Backyard Growers of Gloucester, MA was one such gig. In the dead-dog heat and humidity of August 2016 I was contacted by Lara Lepionka, leader of this local non-profit that cultivates quality organics at the local level. Lara wanted something bold and fun to grab attention for her project as she flosses the Fishtown streets. After some charcoal black-book sketchings, we settled on an anime-esque rendering of fantastic vegetables and vines, coupled with a B-girl gardener set against the windmill-dappled skyline of our fair city.
I set to work on what must have been a couple of the hottest days of the year, working with an intern from UMass Amherst whom I’d taught years earlier while painting theatrical sets in an extra-curricular program for the local high school. As per usual, the entire project was completely freehanded, without template, stencil, etc. (except for the pre-existing “Backyard Growers” decals). A variety of paints were used, from Rustoleum high-pressures to Belton low-pressures and Plutonium professional cans. After a solid week of curing in the record-setting heat, the whole thing was ready for a final gloss-clear-coat to preserve and protect the matte colors from abrasion and UV damage. For this step I used an undercoat of Duplicolor ClearGloss followed by a top-coat of top-secret automotive-grade canned-epoxy high-gloss clear-finish. The resulting aesthetic is so smooth and delicious, you might just want to take a bite out of it:
In true Massachusetts fashion, this van has subsumed the folklore of the “Mystery Machine”, which was Scooby’s ride in the famous Hanna-Barbera cartoon of the late ’60’s/early ’70’s. Legend has it that Scooby Doo’s characters were based on archetypical students from five prominent colleges in western Mass. (including UMass Amherst!) Are you an entrepreneurial graduate in the bay state with a business of your own to promote? Then click the contact info above and schedule your own Mystery-Machine-make-over today. Otherwise, give Lara a wave and shout “Hey Scoob!!!” if you see her tooling around town in this bad-boy, and don’t forget to check out her amazing project at http://www.backyardgrowers.org
Cheers y’all.
SKRIBBLEFISH 