ART BY JARED BLOG

My boombox is in the WP, yo.

2012-01-27T11:18:00.001-05:00

My boombox backdrop for Imagination Stage's P-Nokio was featured prominently in the Washington Post today...word.

Some Photos from Elvis Birthday Fight Club 2012

2012-01-19T21:13:00.000-05:00

Elvis Birthday Fight Club 2012 is in the history books. We had three sell out shows in DC and one kick ass sell out show in Baltimore at the creative alliance. We had so many great photos! Stereo Vision Photography did a fantastic job of documenting the shows, and I hope to upload them in the near future. But in the meantime, please enjoy some of our favorites taken from BYT's coverage ( many photos taken by Chris Chen and Rachel Eisley) and some other sources (I'll be coy about the sources, keeping in line with the #1 rule of Fight Club...)

Creative Alliance in Baltimore needs a tiny bit of spellchecker...

ELVIS BIRTHDAY FIGHT CLUB IS THIS SATURDAY (in DC)

2012-01-05T11:37:00.002-05:00

First, you should totally check out this Hitler Downfall video about EBFC:

http://vimeo.com/34593261

Still not convinced? Then you should check out the press coverage:

Brightest Young Things

In the Distract

The Washington Post

Going Out Gurus

I'll try to post some more as they roll in...but I might be a tad busy loading the set in today...

UPDATE: We just sold out the 8pm show...but we have started selling tickets to the 9:30! (The late show is only half sold) Get your tickets at www.elvisbirthdayfightclub.com

ELVIS BIRTHDAY FIGHT CLUB TICKETS GO ON SALE AND CHECK OUT OUR PREVIEW VIDEO!

2011-12-08T18:03:00.001-05:00

Yep, that's right, Elvis Birthday Fight Club tickets went on sale yesterday...so get yours HERE today!

Also, you should check out our spiffy preview video:

Of course, there is a lot going on behind the scenes with EBFC that I cant share because it would spoil the surprise for you (it hurts me more than it hurts you, trust me) so, you will just have to be content with the preview video for now...

In other news, I am sending the modified Nutcracker from Halloween to the Naughty Snowball 3 this Saturday...so put on your naughty balls...oh, never mind...

Turkey Day Cannibalism, and EBFC Photo Shoot

2011-12-02T16:08:00.001-05:00

Landless Theatre Company's latest production of Cannibal! The Musical opened the day after Thanksgiving (opening on Thanksgiving itself would have been way too tacky...) and it is Landless doing what it does best: Cannibalism jokes! Anyway, you should get your tickets today because the show has had a lot of buzz riding on the coattails of Book of Mormon...What, you didn't know that the Tony award winning musical Book of Mormon was also written by the guys who wrote Cannibal! The Musical? Well, now you do....and seeing as Book of Mormon will be sold out from now until "the end times", you best settle for an easily available ticket right here in DC!

Anyway, here's a few photos of the backdrop and some of those pesky actors to whet your appetite (the photos, not the actors, you cannibal!)

CANNIBAL! THE MUSICAL BACKDROP 10'x10' Acrylic on Muslin

Just before thanksgiving we had a chance to take some promo photos (and shoot some video) for the upcoming ELVIS BIRTHDAY FIGHT CLUB (opening Jan 7 in DC and Jan 14 in Baltimore...tickets on sale soon) The good folks at Stereovision photography were gracious enough to take some flattering photos of the King...he looks good for being dead for 34 years....More photos will be leaked as we get closer to the opening....

GET YOUR LANDLESS SEASON SUBSCRIPTIONS...AND "Quickies"

2011-11-17T15:01:00.001-05:00

Its that time of year again...time to check out what Landless Theater Company has in store for its upcoming season, and buy a season subscription!

With a Subscription you get three shows for $40! (it would normally cost you $75 for all three!...hell, you would only have to see two of the three shows and you would still be 5 bucks ahead!)

Check out this interview with Artistic Director Andy Baughman about the upcoming season: HERE

Now, on to personal Art By Jared business...The Isuzu Hombre is dead. After 11 years of faithful service (it was a 98 and I got it used in 2001) it has entered the "nickel and dime" phase...(I have already put about 2 grand into it this year...and a $850 fuel pump repair was the last straw). Anyway, the death of the Hombre has caused a veritable work stoppage artistically, seeing as I am frantically trying to find a new (used) truck that will not put me in debtors prison...

However, I do have some things to show. Ever since the Halloween party, I have been setting quick assignments for myself. That is, I have been taking 5"x7" pieces of board (canvasboard, luan, plywood, etc) that have been lying around the studio, and then painting from magazines and whatnot. I have set a rule that each one is declared done in no more than an hour. So, these are not intended as saleable art, but more a way to get me loosened up and thinking through some of the issues that a larger (and longer) painting produce. So, check out these sketches (I've been calling them "quickies") I'd be interested to know which ones are interesting to you...

SPOOKTACULAR XII

2011-11-03T20:01:00.000-05:00

Happy Merry X-MASWEEN! Okay, show's over! Mr and Mrs. Claus need to get some rest!

Just a refresher on the design of the Nutcracker....

That's right, I'm such a badass that I am able to make it snow for our Spooky Christmas Halloween party! The nutcracker doesn't seem to mind...

Here is a video of the nutcracker in action!

The rest of these photos are just a very small sampling of the party...

The Design for Karaoke Hell...

One of the traditions that we have is to offer paintings as prizes for our guests (this year they won them by playing putt putt into the Nutcrackers mouth...if they got a hole in one, a ping pong ball would fire at them, and they could turn the red balls in for a velvet painting: (Velvet is really hard to photograph...honestly, these looked much cooler in person...I think its got something to do with digital camera's inability to register black correctly, as well as the camera trying to capture the nap of the velvet....)

KRAMPUS 9"x12" Acrylic on Red Velvet

LEG LAMP 6"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

SAD TREE 12"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

ZOMBIE REINDEER 12"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

ZOMBIE PINUP 9"x12" Acrylic on Black Velvet

So, that's most of the Spooktacular craziness...Thanks to everyone who made it out, you guys are truly the life of the party!....during the blackout of the past few weeks I have also been working on several other projects like:

A Concept sketch for a Mayan themed Pop-up

Six Flags Coaster Decor

Six Flags Coaster decor

...And things don't show any sign of slowing down in November!

Ballroom Boxing is finished

2011-10-06T19:37:00.002-05:00

Here you go, I have put the final touches and a coat of varnish on Ballroom Boxing.

Ballroom Boxing 48"x24" Acrylic on Canvas

Now that this painting is finished, I can start on the real heavy lifting of the Halloween Party!

I would also like to share that we made some real progress this week on picking fighters for Elvis' Birthday Fight Club...its gonna be one helluva rumble!

Big Fence & Ballroom boxing progress

2011-09-30T19:41:00.000-05:00

Turns out that Six Flags really liked the "broken fence" I designed (see photo of partially completed fence below) So much so that they wanted another one...

Hole in Fence for backwoods bloodshed...without the final paint job...

However, the second one they wanted needed to be 20 feet tall...So, I came up with this design, with two options...let me know which one you like better...

I like the really large "painted-in-blood" sign...


...But I could also see the need for some modesty....

Also this week I was able to move forward a good bit on the Ballroom Boxing painting....

Ballroom Boxing shot on the easel from my camera phone...

Same painting with a bit of color (and glare) correction...

I feel that I am within striking distance for this painting...I didn't anticipate the complexity of a crowd scene, but I think that I can make it work if I just keep making the center of the picture the main light source, and silhouetting the crowd is with the glow of the ring...

Next week I should start getting more progress shots of the designs for Halloween (seeing as we will officially be in October by then!)

Broken Fences & Giant Nutcracking

2011-09-22T18:29:00.000-05:00

I have been making lots of progress on Ballroom Boxing (I had hopes that I would finish it this week, but that seems unlikely now, considering how slow the going has been) but I forgot to take pictures of it...so, I promise progress photos next week!

Six Flags has been a bit of a slog, but they finally decided on a final (less interesting IMHO) design this past Monday.

In the end they "just wanted a broken fence" and "can you please add lighting to the rendering"...Okay, done. "that's too much lighting"...

So, here is the final version, with toned down lighting, and all of the props removed...

On the plus side, they were all very impressed with the other renderings, and would like to work with me on other projects that are more...scripted... Stay tuned, I'll send photos of the final product once it gets built (which should be in short order, because Fright Fest starts October 1!)

Speaking of Halloween, I have started to begin to design the backyard scenery for SPOOKTACULAR XII "the Spooktacular that stole X-Mass and punched it in the face"...what better to get into the evil Christmas spirit than a giant nutcracker head for the back yard?!

My thought is that "Mr. Chompers" (provisional name...what do you call a guy who only wants nuts in his mouth all day? I'll be taking nominations in the comments...) will also be the "game" for the backyard...I was originally thinking of a skee-ball type game, where you roll balls into his mouth...but the more I think about it, the more I like a putt-putt game (the balls are smaller, of a predictable weight and readily available) So this is not the final incarnation of the giant nutcracker head, just the start of the journey (which ends in 37 days!)

Slightly farther down the pike, but also approaching just as fast is Elvis' Birthday Fight Club...we are starting to have meetings and we are likely to pick the fighters in the next few weeks. I've created a sample "fight card" in order to get the writers excited about the prospect of some juicy gladiatorial combat!

Imagination Stage Open House and Backwoods Bloodshed

2011-09-15T18:35:00.002-05:00

For those of you keeping score, I did not post last week. I was in super crunch time for the Imagination Stage Open House, and did not have time to devote to telling you all about how I didn't have enough time to...tell you...about how...never mind...

So, here's some photographic highlights of the set from the highly successful Open House:

The P-Nokio boombox still stapled to the easel (8'h x12'w)

Blurry Photo of the boombox in the dance studio

A "frozen" P-Nokio actor (the white witch froze everyone) and some of the kids sent to save him

Kids getting instructions on how to find the white witch

The Imagination Land Map still stapled to the easel (8'h x 12'w)

Imagination Land Map setup in the lobby

Aladdin rides his magic carpet

Rapunzel's Tower

Rapunzel's Tower with alligator filled moat

Closeup of the Wardrobe

Folks going through the wardrobe into Narnia...

The White Witch tries to freeze all of the kids!

As you can see, a good time was had by all...I am looking forward to next year's Open House already!

The other design work I had started this weekend was developing some scenery for the Six Flags "Backwoods Bloodshed" (the haunted trail behind the amusement park) Here, presented without comment are some of the designs I have submitted (lord only knows which ones they will like...)

Ballroom Boxing progress and Imagination Stage Open House Carpentry

2011-09-01T16:41:00.000-05:00

Ive spent this past week building scenery for the Imagination Stage Open House on September 10th. I am at the carpentry stage right now, which is always a bit of a slog for me...I've often said that "I hate carpentry, but its what holds up the paint"...


Rapunzel's Castle

I have tried to build the entire open house out of recycled/repurposed materials. For example, the door in the center of Rapunzel's Castle was salvaged from the Wind in the Willows set strike. I've cut a door in the top left panel of the door for the Rapunzel puppet to be operated from.

Narnia Wardrobe

The Wind in the Willows door has yielded two re-purposings...the back of the door became the split doors of the wardrobe for the Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe. I will be building the rest of the show this week, so you should have a full accounting of the show by the next blog post (two shows down, three to go!)

The week, of course, was punctuated by the arrival of hurricane Irene on Saturday. Fortunately we got through it with minimal damage. In fact, the only thing that really seemed to be damaged was our BBQ grill, which fell off of our new backyard deck.

During the Hurricane I was able to make some more progress on Ballroom Boxing...

The background changed a good bit...I decided that I wanted to go with a softer, looser background in order to keep the focus on the ring at center. A couple of days after Irene, I started to block in the main characters again, and started making some decisions about lighting....

I've started adding some of the audience members (particularly the Robot) My intent has been to populate the audience with a rouges gallery of characters, but KT is particularly adamant that they all remain monkeys...I'd be interested in hearing what you think...on the one hand I can see the value of making it consistent parallel monkey universe (a "planet of the apes" if you will) but on the other hand, there is something so awesome about this fight night that I don't want anyone to feel left out...

Lastly, I am designing a small set piece for this Fall's Hope Operas Of course, its a pile of poop. Ah, showbiz!

Ballroom Boxing...with Monkeys!

2011-08-25T15:24:00.000-05:00

"Wrath of Han" got rained out on Friday...but we were able to still show side one of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope Laser disc, and Star Trek II: Wrath of Kahn on Blu Ray on the indoors TV...the evening's viewing wound up being a very good inspiration for the Yuri's Night 2012 writers...

This week I started a painting that is slightly larger, in scope and size, that I am used to painting. I have been working on it in a similar vein as Monkey Moonshot. That is, I started with a very rough sketch, and I am letting the composition and details resolve themselves on the canvas. This means that I will be going over the painting many more times than I would if I had everything planned out, but this method also prevents me from feeling that I am simply coloring in a good drawing.

Early process shot of "Ballroom boxing" (Tentative title) in the studio

Anyway, the inspiration for this is obviously Elvis' Birthday Fight Club. I am hoping to imagine the boxing match in a much nicer space than the intentionally seedy aesthetic that we incorporate in the live event. I have imagined it as a "fight night" at a theater like the State Theater in Detroit (now called the Fillmore). The center of the orchestra seating has been removed and the boxing ring has been installed. I am hoping to create a sense of space and placement within the theater by using the "knights in a niche" (that flank the proscenium of the theater) as a framing device. You can see the full Knight on the right of the painting, and just his foot, spear and pedestal on the foreground right. I need to work on the balcony some more (perhaps lowering it?) to create a sense of enclosure. I realize that this arrangement may not make sense to someone who hasn't been to the State (which is often also a dance club, where the "audience" can go on the stage) but it has a certain logic, and I am willing to trade that logic for the ambiance of the theater space... I intend to populate the audience and the action in the ring with lots of different characters, but primarily monkeys. As you can see, I have already started doing this with the ring girl and the boxing kangaroo.Of course, this may wind up being an overly ambitious painting (I tend to abandon paintings that take too long to produce) but I have a good feeling about it so far...Below is a closer look at the beginnings of the painting with the studio cropped out:


Ballroom Boxing early stages, 48"x 24" Acrylic on Canvas

Blog Facelift, GLEEAM recieved well in NYC, and Monkey sketching...

2011-08-18T15:21:00.001-05:00

I've spruced up the place a bit since we last talked...I even got a new URL for the blog: www.artbyjaredblog.com (don't worry, the old www.betweenthetines.blogspot.com will still work, so you probably don't need to update your RSS feeds)...turns out that someone else had taken "www.betweenthetines.com" so, I decided that it was time to make the switch! I also changed the fonts and layout to give it a more "sketchbook" feel...

So, it looks like GLEEAM was well received during the NYC FRINGE FESTIVAL...They got a reviews from Backstage.com, Newyork.nearsay.com, and Redbull.com, and THE FREAKING NEW YORK TIMES!...they have one more performance as of this writing...so if you are in NYC tonight, check them out!

Incredulous Monkey Sketch

Pencil on Sketchbook paper

So, I have been working on some new monkey paintings, but I don't quite want to crush the creative process too early by posting the sketches here...so instead I will leave you with this incredulous monkey....

GLEEAM Backdrop finished, and polar bear cuteness

2011-08-04T17:51:00.003-05:00

GLEEAM Backdrop
12'x10' Acrylic on Muslin

This week I put the nose to the grindstone and finished the GLEEAM backdrop...for those who need reminding, GLEEAM is Landless Theatre Company's offering for the NYC Fringe Festival in August...its a mash-up of the Musical TV show Glee, and the 90's horror movie Scream. Anyway, I was able to knock out the drop in pretty short order, mostly due to my sweet new shop easel...Below is the drop about halfway done...with artist Rob Lindsay for scale...
Also this week, in order to celebrate the imminent birth of "Taco" Dobbs, I contributed this small painting. I was told that they were going for a polar bear theme for the baby's room, so I decided to capitalize on that idea, while leaving a few "sub-text" clues for the kid, for when he gets older (you know, like: where did those polar bears get that drum? What's up with the bi-plane? is this a picture that takes place in the past or present? what happened to the drummer? etc...)

Polar Bears with Drum
10"x8" Acrylic on board

Jared profiled in Examiner and "Hey Look, I built a monster easel!"

2011-07-28T16:29:00.007-05:00

The big news this week is that I was profiled by the Examiner. Its a very well written piece of journalism (deftly executed by Stephen Mack) because he was able to take a 45 minute rambling conversation and distill it down into "just who the hell does Jared think he is?"

I have added the full text of the article below, but if you would like to read it natively, here is your link.

Jared Davis: Artist profile

Stephen Mack, DC Local Artists Examiner

July 25, 2011 -

For many artists in the area, hanging a painting next to works by local heavyweights like Scott G. Brooks, Matt Sesow and Dana Ellyn would be a humbling experience. But at the exhibition opening for the space-themed Countdown to Yuri’s Night at Artisphere in March, Monkey Moonshot, painted by the show’s curator Jared Davis, didn’t seem at all out of place. Davis’ work popped up again two months later at the G40 Art Summit, with four Inferno-themed paintings distinguished by the physical brushwork that has become his style. If the quality of his canvas painting is surprising, it’s because, with all the other hats Davis wears, it’s easy to miss the fact that painting is his first love.

“I actually cannot remember a time when I didn’t want to be an artist,” Davis says. “I was a little art nerd as a kid. I was way into abstract expressionism when I was 12 or 13.” It’s doubtful if that child would have anticipated the grinning monkeys and other comically grotesque characters, usually up to no good, that Davis paints today.

But where his passions all come together is in the annual events he coordinates. The Yuri’s Night exhibition was a precursor to a one-night celebration featuring a dance party, burlesque revue, and a film screening with commentary in the style of Mystery Science Theater 3000. Davis and his wife Kate throw a themed Halloween party at their house every year—they were married at the 2005 edition—and in January they launched the first annual Elvis’ Birthday Fight Club, which Davis emceed as the King himself, at Warehouse Theatre. In addition to creating the shows, building the sets, and performing, Davis is always searching for inventive ways for the audience to interact with the production. One Halloween party featured a death ray, which visitors could operate themselves using a jury-rigged laser tag system and make a quick getaway using the slides on either side.

During the day, Davis manages the scene shop at Arlington County’s Gunston Arts Center. The large workshop gives him the opportunity to do what he does best: “paint really big.” He has designed sets there for theater companies such as Landless Theatre, Dominion Stage, and The Arlington Players, as well as for his own events. “I actually feel kind of obligated to make things that utilize the space that I’m given,” he says. “I would feel really weird if I went back home and started painting miniatures on nutshells.”

When Davis came to Washington in 1999, he was immediately attracted to the vibrant theater scene, eventually designing sets for the bawdy Lobster Boy Revue. This led to an association with the local burlesque scene that continues to this day. Nearly all of his events feature a burlesque performance, or at least contain a burlesque theme. “There’s a certain irreverence that’s inherent in burlesque,” Davis says, “And that translates into the artwork; that translates into the type of events that we put on. We’re not going to take ourselves too seriously.”

Citing critic Dave Hickey, Davis says his first priority as an artist is to get his friends excited in what he’s doing, and he plans to keep the party going as long as they keep responding to it. Recalling when Lobster Boy performer Lucas Zarwell put away the lobster costume and retired to a more staid life, Davis says he has no intention of letting maturity get the better of him. “I can't quit,” he says. “There’s no quitting.”

Trying to add a fourth yearly event to fill the open slot in the summer, Davis grimaces when he thinks about the roadblocks in the way, from finding a venue to figuring out how to fit enough visitors in to cover expenses. Still, the logistical headaches are not enough to quell his enthusiasm as he imagines possibilities for new performances, new contrivances, new ways to get his friends excited. And if the general public enjoys interactive capsule rides and life-sized Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em dinosaurs too, “That’s gravy.”

Jared Davis’ scenic work can currently be seen in the Landless Theatre production Rock Bottom, showing at D.C. Arts Center through Aug. 6.

Continue reading on Examiner.com Jared Davis: Artist profile - Washington DC local artists | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/local-artists-in-washington-dc/jared-davis-artist-profile#ixzz1TRE7Q2CT

The other news is simply that I built a giant easel in the shop. Really, its just a 12 foot high and 20 foot wide....
Stud Wall...then that gets skinned with...
Homasote (a compressed newspaper sheet that is used for dampening sound in flooring) so that you have a solid surface to staple stuff to. It is a great improvement over the last easel we had in the shop, which was the Spooktacular IX King Kong photo op recycled...look forward to seeing stuff stapled to this bad-boy soon!

Hunting Tigers With a Color Pencil

2011-07-21T13:47:00.005-05:00

Another week of big changes behind the scenes at Art by Jared...another week where I don't want to talk too much about those changes...But this time I actually have some art to show. Well, really, its just a copy of an old master painting. You see, I have gotten into one of those "reinvent the wheel" moods where I try to reinvent my entire working method as a painter. These moods come and go, and sometimes they produce some amazing breakthroughs for me. When this happens I find it instructive to make copies of artwork that I feel is dealing with similar issues that I want to tackle in my own work. So, this past week I have been working on a color pencil sketch of Peter Paul Rubens The Tiger Hunt.

After Rubens' the Tiger Hunt (c. 1616)
Color Pencil on ink washed paper, 12"x10"

I would like to be able to create just such an energetic and roiling composition while maintaining such precision pertaining to color, composition and theme. Rubens is truly one of the great painters because everything he does has a level of control that works on multiple levels. It was a bit frustrating using color pencil to create this drawing because as a painter I can see where paint would allow me to easily do some of the things that Rubens does instead of the relatively clunky limitations of color pencil. For example, I wasn't using any black, as is my normal method, but it is very difficult to get rich dark tones by combining indigo blue and burnt umber color pencils because either the waxiness of the pencil would clog up the paper, or the hardness of the pencil would dig into (and rip away) the first layer of paper...this would not be an issue in paint.
I feel that this drawing will be a good one to have kicking around the studio for the rest of the summer because it illustrates the need for good composition, and that there are a few tricks that the old masters knew that I could be using more effectively (once I get back to painting monkeys!)

Possessed animals, but little paint on canvas...

2011-07-16T12:24:00.004-05:00

Warning: Pet photo for no reason!

Sookie and Empeno both demonically possessed...

Sometimes things just move in slow motion...that is, you are working and getting stuff done, but you have little that is physical to show for it. Well, these last few weeks have been a bit like that. For example, this week a writers meeting was called for a project that I was working on that I was reluctant to share on this blog because I didn't want to jinx it. Well, the result of that meeting has dictated the direction of several of the big projects that ArtbyJared has brewing throughout the year...in fact, it has given birth to the (potential) fourth event of the year...lots of work, and big decisions, but not much paint on canvas...anyway, I am hoping to remedy that in the next few weeks now that some of the big decisions have been made. (we even moved forward with Yuri's Night 2012 this week!)

This week was the Opening for Rock Bottom at Landless...unfortunately, the set photos I have are totally lame because I was not able to stick around while they rehearsed, so what you see is the set literally plopped down after being taken off the truck.

The cool part about this set was that I got to look up graffiti from Amsterdam, which is a lot more calligraphic (and in English) than you would think...go see the show, and see how many dutch sayings you can pick out! Proost!

It's a Landless Summer...

2011-07-07T18:13:00.004-05:00

So, I totally threw out my back on Sunday. Which really puts a damper on my general artistic well being...so this is as good a time as any to let you know about some of the shows I am working on this summer for Landless Theatre Company...

First Up is part of the NYC FRINGE FESTIVAL. It was part of this winter's mashup fest...its a mashup of Glee and Scream...Because its a fringe show the set will simply consist of a backdrop (which I ordered from Rosebrand today...why Rosebrand you ask? Well, one of the joys of NYC Fringe is that everything has to have a NYC fireproofing certificate...one of the only places that sews drops and has the NYC Cert is Rosebrand...sheesh!) So, I prepared some backdrop ideas for the director:
As you can see, I didn't notice at the time that the show was called "Gleeam" and not "Gleem"....anyway, here is the directors final decision:

I should start working on this drop later on this month...so clear your schedule to go to NYC in early August!

The other two Landless offerings this summer are Captain Freedom (which I have minimal involvement in) and Rock Bottom (which I will be recycling/repurposing most of the B-team set for) Here is the info for both shows:

Landless ROCKS the month of July! Check out our two great shows below.

Captain Freedom
Presented as part of the Capital Fringe Festival

Fort Fringe - Redrum

Saturday, July 9 at 7 pm
Sunday, July 10 at 6:15 pm
Tuesday, July 12 at 7 pm
Thursday, July 14 at 8 pm
Friday, July 22 at 10:45 pm

Captain Freedom has saved the world countless time and looked fantastic doing it, but not even a superhero is recession-proof. A super-heroic comedy from Landless Theatre (Diamond Dead, Carrie Potter) and humorist G. Xavier Robillard (alldaycoffee.net).

For tickets and information visit the Landless website at: www.landlesstheatrecompany.org!

Rock Bottom

DC Arts Center, 2438 18th Street, NW
(in the heart of Adams Morgan)
July 15 - August 6
Tickets $25

For tickets and information visit the Rock Bottom website at: rockbottommusical.com!

The first production of the new rock musical based on the novel by Michael Shilling that Houston Press calls "the greatest rock'n'roll novel ever written!" A darkly comic journey through the last day in the life of a rock band as it crashes and burns. From the team that created DIAMOND DEAD (winner of the 2008 Best Musical Pick of the Capital Fringe) and PRESIDENT HARDING IS A ROCK STAR (Washington Post Editor's Pick).

****EXPLICIT LANGUAGE AND GRAPHIC SEXUAL SITUATIONS, NOT RECOMMENDED FOR AUDIENCES UNDER 18 ****

...Plans within plans...

2011-06-30T18:07:00.003-05:00

This has been a week of getting my thoughts down onto paper (or digital format...) so unfortunately, all I have to show for it is some sketches....which would spoil your enjoyment of the final product, so I simply leave you with this:

No art this week, just another funeral...

2011-06-25T11:39:00.002-05:00

Sorry about not posting during my usual schedule this week. I was in Manlius, New York (near Syracuse) attending the funeral of my Grandmother, Eileen Bird. You local DC area folks might be interested to know that she was originally from Takoma Park Maryland, and courted my grandfather during WWII in the DC area (Gramps was at Annapolis) The obituary follows:

Eileen W. Bird June 19, 2011 Eileen W. Bird, 86, of Manlius, passed away Sunday. Born in Washington, DC, she was a graduate of Montgomery Blair High School. She was a volunteer with numerous organizations, including Francis House, where she was well known for cooking weekly meals for the staff, residents and their families; Manlius Historical Society and a founding member of its Herb Club; Literacy Volunteers and DoCorp Literacy Program in Syracuse; and FISH (Friends in Service Here). She enjoyed sewing, painting watercolors, and planting and nurturing flowers and plants. After years of traveling while her husband was serving in the Navy, she loved her home in the Central New York area and will be remembered as a loving and outstanding wife and mother. She was predeceased by her daughter, Robin, and her two brothers, Edward and Joseph Wilson. She is survived by her husband of 68 years, Robert "Dick" Bird; five daughters, Carolyn (Clark) Davis, Barbara (Michael) Luxenberg, Roberta Cagle, Lynn Thomas and Wendy (Tom) Beames; one brother, Henry Wilson; nine grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren. Funeral Services: 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Ann's Church, 104 Academy St., Manlius. Burial will follow in Manlius Village Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Francis House, 108 Michaels Ave., Syracuse NY 13208.

First Sketches for Imagination Stage's Open House

2011-06-16T20:41:00.005-05:00

This week I was able to get some first sketches done for the Imagination Stage Open House in September. They are really intended to start the conversation about the theme and function of the open house, but they do a good job of being a representation of what I hope the final product will be too...

The idea is that the kids will start in the lobby and get instructions about how to find Doctor Doolittle, who is lost...Each room will then correspond to an activity themed on the next seasons show...
A flying carpet for Aladdin...
Rapunzel (as puppet theater)They will learn to dance in the P-Nokio room (P-Nokio is a retelling of Pinocchio in a hip hop style...hence the boombox)

Their final stop will be the Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe room, where the ice queen has been keeping Dr. Doolittle...

Some greatest hits from the hiatus

2011-06-09T18:31:00.008-05:00

As promised, here are some of the greatest hits from the hiatus of the last three months...

Sookie in the CONE OF SHAME (post spaying)

The set for Yuri's Night in the Dome, with Capt. Ballcrusher, #2 and Drinkbot...a full accounting of the Countdown To Yuri's Night experience can be had at www.outofthisworldparty.com

The Dome lit up during the Atomic Mosquitos preshow set.

the Photo Op for Yuri's Night...Oddly, there are few photos of this...

The Artisphere Ballroom with Eastern Standard Time skankin' it up!

The Set Design for B-Team...such as it is...

The Set Design for Psycho Beach Party (BTW, Scenery Appreciation Nites for both B-Team and Psycho Beach party are June 17 and 18th respectively)

Production photo of Psycho Beach Party

My wall at the G40...Its part of the stencil show...I did my best to do very thick stencils on the paintings of the flames and stalactites, which isn't really what the other kids were doing...you only have one week left to see this fantastic show...info HERE

Mr. Toad car Photo Op for Imagination Stage (repurposed from the Spookydog Clue Caravan!)

A very tired Sookie at the Marcatus festival at Yards Park...

...An End to the Hiatus...

2011-06-07T17:31:00.004-05:00

So, I know that a couple of you loyal BTT readers have been asking why I haven't posted any new stuff on the blog since March 10th...Well, I guess you could say I was in mourning. You see, on March 15th my wife Kate's Father, Hal Taylor, passed away from pancreatic cancer. It was sudden (he was fine at Christmas) and it came as a real shock to us all. The weeks following his death were filled with funeral stuff, but the more pressing issue was the impending Countdown to Yuri's Night at the Artisphere. So, I got busy, and started to let the blog slip away...after Yuri's Night other projects started to become more and more pressing (Spaying Sookie, the Yuri's Night thank you BBQ, Touring the Dupont Underground, Production meetings and design of Psycho Beach Party, C2YN Artists talkback, Deinstallation of C2YN, Painting for the G4o, Installing G40, Build B-Team, Load B-Team in, Open B-Team, Final Build for Psycho Beach Party, Load in Psycho Beach Party, Building a 12'x24' deck in the back yard, Deck Christening BBQ, Opening of Psycho Beach Party, Building and Painting the Imagination Stage Mr. Toad Car and Marcatus at Yards Park...) All in all, I really think that I stopped logging all of my artistic activity because, in some sort of way I was avoiding talking about Hal's Death...making a record of the trivia of my life seemed less important at the time. But now that things are somewhat calmer, I think that may have been the wrong approach. Perhaps our lives are made of such mundane stuff, and the act of sharing it is one of the only ways we have to comfort each other...a way of letting people know, "hey, I'm still here"...So, loyal readers, I'm still here. Makin' stuff, painting things and trying my darnedest to get you to come see those things I made. Hal was a passionate musician (saxophone) so he would probably agree that sharing your passion for the art you make is one of the greatest contributions you can make to this world...So as a tribute to his memory, you can expect to see more of this blog in the future!

ONE WEEK UNTIL C2YN ART EXHIBIT OPENS!

2011-03-10T16:58:00.005-05:00

I know I posted this video last week, but I think its cool enough to show again, especially since we are only one week away from the opening of the C2YN art exhibit at the Artisphere on Thursday March 17th (also known as St. Patty's Day)

Jared Davis (Countdown to Yuri's Night) from Artisphere on Vimeo.

And since we are very close to the opening of the show, I can show you this screenshot of the www.outofthisworldparty.com website which shows thumbnails of 20 of the 36 artworks in the show!
Also, BYT has picked C2YN up on their calendar

Really, this is really just a round about way of saying that the Countdown Clock has started...

T-MINUS 31 DAYS UNTIL YURI'S NIGHT!

This week, we helped try to get the word out about Yuri's Night by participating in the Clarendon Mardi Gras. Check out our float!

Yeah, that's how Yuri rolls...in a gold caddy towing a rocket!

Dr. Horrible Shuts Down Washington, DC (Landless Theatre)

2011-03-03T19:41:00.001-05:00

Propaganda Arm of ArtbyJared Goes AWOL During Month of February...Few Notice...

2011-03-03T14:26:00.014-05:00

Yeah, I took a month off from the blog...lots happened....I might tell you about it, but because so much is happening right now, I think we should just stick to the Headlines:

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog opens at the DCAC! Scenery Appreciation Night will be Saturday March 12th, Get your tickets HERE

DC Premiere! Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog

"Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" name, literary material and characters and musical compositions used by permission from
Time Science Blood Club, LLC. (c) 2008 Time Science Blood Club, LLC

March 3 - 27
7:30 pm

DC Arts Center, 2438 18th Street, NW
(in the heart of Adams Morgan)

The internet sensation comes to Washington, DC.

Don't miss it!

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, the hit made-for-the-web musical miniseries of 2008, comes to the stage in a production by the Landless Theatre Company. Co-created by writer-producer Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly), it follows the tongue-in-cheek adventures of aspiring arch-villain Dr. Horrible; his nemesis, the hunky Captain Hammer; and love interest, Penny. The show, directed by Andrew Lloyd Baughman, kicks off Landless Theatre's 2011 "Season of Horrible Taste."

For tickets and information visit the Landless website at: www.landlesstheatrecompany.org!

Of Course, for you loyal BTT readers, I can share with you the design of the the set:

The show is going to be awesome, and not just for you Whedonheads...So buy your tickets today!

The next Headline on the agenda is: What are you doing for Fat Tuesday (NEXT TUESDAY 3/8)? Well, if you are like me, you will be going to the Claendon Mardi Gras parade. Once there you will be able to vie with the throngs in order to receive beads from...THE YURI'S NIGHT FLOAT!!! Below is the super top secret plans for the float...don't tell anyone!

And just in case you thought I was kidding...here's the poster for the event (designed by Richard Thompson!)

Speaking of Mardi Gras...I just wanted to share a Mardi Gras project from a few weeks back...it was for the DC Mardi Gras in the Dupont Hilton...I just painted the seafood, but I think it turned out pretty good (despite the crappy cell phone camera photo)

On Sunday I will be attending the WATCH (Washington Area Theater Community Honors) Awards...Seems I am nominated for two awards...both for Outstanding Set Painting in a Musical...Reefer Madness (Dominion Stage) and The Producers (Arlington Players)...this will be my 8th nomination with no wins...Wish me luck!

I did sell a painting this week...He's a collector of my work, and kinda a monkey enthusiast. Anyway, he surprised me when he showed me a tattoo of a piece of mine that he bought:

That shady looking monkey is "the spy" from 2006...I like how the nipple looks like the sun rising over the "near east" skyline...

And Speaking of Monkeys...I have been working on a monkey painting for Yuri's Night....I can share some progress shots with you, so you can play the "I remember it when" game...

This is the very first stage of the painting. Its a larger painting that I am used to (in fact, the table top easel is not working for me because I cant reach the top of the painting!) but at 30" x 36" its child's play compared to what I do for theater!

Here's the painting after I've blocked in the color. Its going to be called "Monkey Moonshot"...so it is only natural that the monkeys would try to go at night when the moon is out...I am having a lot of fun playing with the light from the moon, spotlight and match...Hopefully I will be able to get it done by the drop off date for C2YN in less than two weeks!

Just in case you haven't heard, here's the scoop on C2YN (and check out the video below!):

C2YN (COUNTDOWN TO YURI’S NIGHT)

TUE MAR 15 –SAT APR 30, 2011/FREE/MEZZ GALLERY

OPENING RECEPTION: THUR, MAR 17, 5:30-7:30PM/FREE/MEZZ GALLERY

18 artists exhibit work centered on the theme of Man’s journey into space. Exploring both science-fact and science-fiction, these artists deliver unique perspectives on the cosmos. C2YN (Countdown to Yuri’s Night) launches the 50th anniversary of Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s first human spaceflight, which will be celebrated at the Artisphere on April 9th 2011. Some of the exhibiting artists include: Chris Bishop, Stephen Blickenstaff , Scott Brooks, Jared Davis, Alan Defibaugh, Dana Ellyn, Elstabo, Todd Gardner, Linas Garsys, Sherill Anne Gross, Rob Hornung, Emily Greene Liddle, Rob Lindsay, Dave Savage, Matt Sesow, Michael Enn Sirvet, Steve Strawn, Andrew Wodzianski.

www.outofthisworldparty.com

Jared Davis (Countdown to Yuri's Night) from Artisphere on Vimeo.

Mashup Fest and Landless Kickstarter

2011-01-22T14:12:00.004-05:00

There must have been a typhoid Mary backstage at Elvis Birthday Fight Club, because most everyone involved backstage in the show wound up sick with the flu afterwards...including yours truly. So, that means that not much of the ole art has been accomplished in these two weeks post fight club. However, things march on without us...namely, Landless Theater Company. They are gearing up to open the first show in their season: the Mashup Fest!

The Mash Up Festival - four irreverent mash-ups written by four talented local playwrights.

Four shows in one night!
February 4 - 26
Friday and Saturday nights
DC Arts Center, 2438 18th Street, Washington, DC
(in the heart of Adams Morgan)

The early shows:
Pee-Wee's Big Poseidon Adventure
&
All That Jaws
Tickets for the early shows: https://www.vendini.com/ticket-software.html?t=tix&e=daa28ee1f5ba8f6462fb8222ddb78ddd

The late shows (18+):
Gleeam
& Tarxxxanadu
Tickets for the late shows: https://www.vendini.com/ticket-software.html?t=tix&e=0440324d65ca6d2c48fd8884730c4486

Or make a night of it and get all for shows for a savings of $10!: https://www.vendini.com/ticket-software.html?t=membership&ms=7c6f0791237fd842b4d5582ff4c630d6&m=cfeb319e127499ea02e78045f9bd36a7

For more information visit the Landless website at: www.landlesstheatrecompany.org!

Yours truly has not contributed much to the shows...other than the occasional prop and this bush for Tarxxxanadu (I apologize for the crappy cell phone photo):

The other thing that Landless has announced in the past week is their Kickstarter campaign which actually provides a good deal on many of the ticket prices and subscriptions (as well as quirky incentives like "Chinese food with the artistic team of China the Whole Enchilada"...

Landless Theatre Company Kickstarter Project-

Please support our 2011 Season at District of Columbia Arts Center in Adams Morgan! Your donation will help us to front production expenses... and, of course, support all the gifted artists who work so hard to create FUN theatre in an INTIMATE venue with AFFORDABLE ticket prices for all patrons.

We're planning several exciting and quirky regional premieres to Washington, DC:

a MASH UP PLAY FESTIVAL featuring original works by four local playwrights;
the DC Premiere of the internet sensation DR. HORRIBLE'S SING-ALONG BLOG from Joss Whedon and friends;
CHINA:THE WHOLE ENCHILADA, winner of the 2008 Outstanding Musical at NY Fringe;
THE B TEAM by Dave Holstein, writer for Showtime's hit series WEEDS;
and two new plays based on G. Xavier Robillard's novel CAPTAIN FREEDOM - A SUPERHERO'S QUEST FOR TRUTH, JUSTICE AND THE CELEBRITY HE SO RICHLY DESERVES and Michael Shilling's novel ROCK BOTTOM.

landlesstheatrecompany.org

Link - https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1028936854/bring-theatre-to-the-theatre-challenged

ELVIS BIRTHDAY FIGHT CLUB MEMORIES....

2011-01-13T19:45:00.011-05:00

Wow, what a night! We had two sold out shows, added a third in between (which also sold out) and still had to turn people away! And for those who stood out in the cold to get in, it was soooo worth it! Below I have compiled a "best of" photo gallery of the show, provided by our good friends at Stereo Vision photography. (there were other sources of photography, and commentary...Here at BYT, Here at MetroMix and Here on the blog of the woman who did trivia in the third show...but Stereo Vision had the most comprehensive photo coverage...)

The Elvis Backdrop for the evening (painted by yours truly)

Andrew W. puppeteering Commodious the king's "throne"

Elvis knows how to make an entrance!

Elvis needs a hot side kick...Kittie Glitter

Rev Valentine lets us know what round it is...

In fight cage #1, our first gladiator: THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT!

ABE LINCOLN looks like he has the upper hand on the Monument...

LI'L DUTCH adds some glitter (and Ta-Tahs) to the nights proceedings...

LUCRETIA BLOZIA is fixin' for a fight...

This ain't no reality TV SARA PALIN!

You just got knocked out by the Teabag Express!

REV VALENTINE and CANDY DEL RIO get ready for some Jailhouse Rock!

This ROBOT was programmed to DESTROY!

Not since the Nagano Olympics has there been a bigger upset than the fight between the MONUMENT and the ROBOT!

No KITTIE, you cant hoop and use a mic at the same time!

ELVIS didn't have to fight (because it was his birthday) but he was ready!

OUI OUI NON NON shared an intimate moment at the drive-in...

COL SANDERS Calls out the chicken!

SANDERS gets it in the "eggs"

Blinded by his own bucket! oh the irony!

OH NO, its the Karate Kid "Crane Kick"!

LUCRETIA states the obvious while DUTCH and VALENTINE squabble...

Well, someone has to be the adult around here!

STELLA SWEET and CANDY DEL RIO try to remove the fallen queen...

Little known fact: Robots and Eggs DO NOT MIX!

Defeated ROBOT

Egg Aftermath

CHICKEN is victorious!

EVERYONE TAKE A BOW!

Thanks again to everyone for such an amazing night! You can relive more EBFC moments at www.outofthisworldparty.com and also get info about the next event: COUNTDOWN TO YURI'S NIGHT on April 9th 2011 at Arlington's Artisphere!

Happy New Year! (and Puppy)

2010-12-30T22:01:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year! With the new year comes a new puppy...the yet unnamed puppy was a gift from Ellen and Hal and is currently the apple of KT's eye (like the cat, I have had my reservations, but will eventually weaken...)

What's my name?

And as long as I have you here...BUY YOUR TICKETS TO NEXT WEEK'S ELVIS' BIRTHDAY FIGHT CLUB TODAY (SAVE $5!) GO TO WWW.FIGHTCLUBSHOW.COM

Landless Season Subscriptions and Elvis Birthday Fight Club Advance Sales ANNOUNCED!

2010-12-23T20:19:00.005-05:00

Jeez, I haven't posted anything in a month! Well, better late than never! I guess it has been the cruise ship mentality that has made me so lackadaisical in my posting regime...Anyway, just wanted to hip y'all to the two big events coming up...

First, you should take advantage of Landless Theatre Company's season subscription offer (Subscribe and save $25!). They are starting their season a tad late this year, but are really packing a punch with back to back shows! Jared will be designing the scenery for Dr. Horribles Sing-along Blog (DC Premiere!) as well as B-Team (written by one of the writers of Showtime's Weeds)...

Sitting home with no gifts for your family and friends? Passed the Amazon.com shipping deadline?

Never fear - Landless is here! More specifically, Landless is here with a fabulous deal on their 2011 Season Tickets.

The Landless 2011 Season "In Horrible Taste" features the DC Premiere of Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog, the Internet sensation now finally graces the stage.
"Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" name, literary material and characters and musical compositions used by permission from
Time Science Blood Club, LLC. (c) 2008 Time Science Blood Club, LLC"

In addition, the season also includes:

The Mash Up Festival - four irreverent mash-ups written by four locally talented playwrights.
China: The Whole Enchilada - learn 4,000 years of Chinese history through songs, dancing, and lots of weird marching.
The B Team - what's worse than terrorists that don't know what they are doing? Not much.

GET ALL FOUR SHOWS FOR $65 - A SAVINGS OF OVER $25.

Click here to buy tickets and for more information.

Happy holidays from everyone at Landless and we'll see you on the stage!

The other big news, (which you will be hearing lots more of once we get past all of these pesky holidays...) is the advance ticket sales for Elvis' Birthday Fight Club:

In Two Weeks!
ELVIS' BIRTHDAY FIGHT CLUB ...
What DC's Never Seen ... until Now!

TICKETS NOW ON SALE!! Visit www.fightclubshow.com

SATURDAY, 1/08

Elvis' Birthday Fight Club (Yeah, FIGHT CLUB)

The Warehouse Theater
1021 7th St., NW, WDC (Entrance at 645 New York Ave.)
$15 advance/$20 door - 2 Shows @ 8 p.m. & 10:30 p.m.

On Saturday, January 8, 2011 - what would have been the King of Rock n' Roll's 76th birthday -- ABJ and L'il Dutch Burlesque thrown down with a raucous show: Elvis' Birthday Fight Club.

Elvis' Birthday Fight Club, a 21-and-over performance, takes place Saturday, January 8, with two shows: 8 pm and 10:30 pm at The Warehouse Theatre (1021 7th Street NW). Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door.

Visit www.fightclubshow.com for tickets and event announcements.

Hosted by "Elvis" and DC's newest femme-cee Kittie Glitter, the event pits old school heroes and subversive villains against each other in FIVE blistering rounds, Elvis' Birthday Fight Club will make good on the King's request for "a little less conversation...a little more action." Between bouts, DC's burlesque entertainers L'il Dutch, Reverend Valentine and Ouioui Nonnon will keep the crowd all shook up. Audience members will also have the chance to flex their muscles with an Elvis tria contest over-seen by the King, himself.

Preliminary match-ups include light and middle-weight fighters from DC's neo-vaudeville, burlesque and alternative art scenes, including Swami Yomahmi, Lucrezia Blozia and introducing David Tasselhoff. Watch as they duke it out in ridiculous home-grown costumes as characters ranging from fantasy (box robot anyone?), to animals (yes, we mean cock fight) to historic figures (Four Score and...).

About ABJ Productions ABJ productions is a subsidiary of Art By Jared and Jared himself. Jared is an artist and set designer who loves to party. He and Kate Taylor Davis produce off-beat, memorable art events around the DC-area. Most notably, they hold Countdown to Yuri's Night each April to celebrate the first human space flight. Learn more about Jared and upcoming events at www.artbyjared.com.

About L'il Dutch Burlesque L'il Dutch Burlesque, founded by DC's own L'il Dutch, provides alternative, high-energy "salty sweet" burlesque and variety entertainment to the Nation's Capital and beyond - including the acclaimed Dutch Oven and Capital Tassels & Tease burlesque shows. L'il Dutch is a noted burlesque performer and producer, responsible for the Obama Wonderama Inauguration spectacular and is also co-organizer of The Hukilau, the East Coast's largest tiki event. Along with ABJ, she too loves to party. Learn more about L'il Dutch and upcoming events at www.lildutch.com

DING DING DING!

2010-11-18T20:03:00.002-05:00

I wrote most of the first draft of the "script" for the Elvis' Birthday Fight Club this week, so I dont have much art to show you...other than this 13 sec video of one of the best props I have ever bought on Ebay!

Elvis' Birthday Fight Club and LTC Announce!

2010-11-13T11:53:00.008-05:00

We cant keep it under our hats any longer...Although the website is not finished, and the set design is only a rough draft, and we haven't gotten all of the luchadors signed yet, I would like to give you loyal readers of BTT the first opportunity to clear your calendars for January 8th 2011...this year we celebrate the birthday of the King with our very special presentation of ELVIS' BIRTHDAY FIGHT CLUB!!!

Watch this space for updates concerning the show...in the next day or so, you should also be able to visit www.fightclubshow.com and get up to the minute updates on the fighters, burlesque card girls and odds...

In a BTT exclusive, we have secured the first sketches of the set design for the show:

Landless Theatre Company is also making a big announcement this week. They are announcing their 2011 season IN HORRIBLE TASTE. You can get the official scoop this coming Saturday November 20th at the DCAC during their season announcement event and benefit for the DCAC. (info here)

LTC has a really great season ahead of it, and I would encourage all of the theater going publick to SUBSCRIBE! You get 4 shows for $65 (a $90 value!) and you get priority seating at the famously intimate DCAC theater...Season Subscription info here!

As a representative of the quality show you can expect from LTC, I will share with you the set photo from this past October's Evil Dead the Musical at the FCAC...

That sucker got drenched with roughly 50,000 gallons of blood each and every performance! (no lie!)

SPOOKTACULAR XI PHOTOS!

2010-11-05T12:46:00.014-05:00

Thanks to everyone who made this year's Spooktacular such a villainous occasion! Below is a "best of" photo lineup of the festivities...Please email me if you have some favorites to add (perhaps we will make a Facebook group or something...)

Chicken and the Wolf

Dr. Venture, Poison Ivy, Elastagirl and Medusa

Villainous Velvet Villain Prizes

Hit List Game Card in order to win prizes

Someone Call Homeland Security...

Alec from Clockwork Orange guards the "Hero" Sandwiches...

Dance Party went til 4am!

This Mac Brought to you by Mickey's Grenades...

Inside the Karaoke Shark Tank

Tony the Tiger and that guy from the shampoo commercial...

Oprah & Gaga

WTF?!?!

Margarita Machine (Mr. Freeze's Truth Serum)

Death Ray from Upper Porch with LazerTag "Over Load" engaged

Death Ray from Upper Porch with too much Truth Serum

Family Reunion between Robot and Death RayUFC Champ Rocks out "Here I go Again on My Own"...

Richard Simmons dressed as Will Ferrell in Semi-Pro

A Traffic Cone...or Snooky...

Wicked cool Tron/Daft Punk costume...

Flying Squirrel Hijacking Death Ray

Moose and Squirrel barely escape clutches of Boris and Natasha

Mr. Bates and Guest

He's on a Boat

Mime's doing rendition of Elvis' "A little less conversation" (picked at random...no lie!)

Kick Ass and Elastagirl

Duct Tape Girl, Gem and a Cyberman (who has become human again!)

The Devil and LazerTag...does it get better?

"Some of my best work!"

Shot of Death Ray voted "most arty"

Tron/Daft Punk still cool with the flash on...

Boris finally uses Ray Gun to kill Moose and Squirrel!

Birds of a Feather...

Arch Enemies, Batman and the Penguin

Karaoke Shark Tank (puppet sharks actually had frickin' lazerbeams!)

Back porches from Death Ray

The Firing Mecanism (careful the safeties are off!)

Spaceghost and Lady Gaga rock out in the Karaoke Shark Tank...

SPOOKTACULAR XI IS NIGH!

2010-10-28T15:00:00.002-05:00

Yes...all of the pieces are starting to fall into place...

Being an Evil Genius is Hard Work...

2010-10-25T12:03:00.005-05:00

Yes, being an evil genius is hard work. In fact, it keeps you from blogging. (its hard to hold a plasma cutter in one hand and blog about it with the other...) Fortunately, I had the help of some part time minions this past weekend, and was able to complete the final phase of my diabolical plan...

Since it is an evil plan that will be unveiled during Spooktacular XI, I can only leave you with this enigmatic photo:

Minion J adjusting sensitive equipment in the semi-secret lair

Artisphere opens this weekend!

2010-10-08T16:13:00.004-05:00

Hey, I haven't been near a computer for the better part of the last week, so I am sneaking out during a break in the action to get this weeks post out. We are only a few hours away from opening the Artisphere...Tonight's gala is for the black tie crowd...like $150 a plate... Saturday is "Burst", and Sunday & Monday are the grand opening galas for the general public. You should come on out, there's lots to see and do!

To give you a very tiny glimpse of the size of the Artisphere, you can check out this photo I took on Monday of the Ballroom (it is much more complete now)

The Ballroom of the Artisphere under construction...note the stage in the middle of the room that folds up into the wall...

With all of the Artisphere craziness I have had little time for any other artmaking, but I was able to squeeze out some time on Sunday to put the first coat of paint on the Evil Dead (Frederick edition) scenery. (opens October 15, tickets here) Big ups to Amanda, Melissa & Mimi and Mark for helping get er dun!

Painting progress for Evil Dead the Musical (Frederick Edition)

The Villainous Velvet Villains of Villainy, Part 2

2010-09-29T17:34:00.004-05:00

Okay kids, so I am uncharacteristically posting a day early because I will not have the time to post anything (or make any art, really) for the next two weeks. Why you ask? Well, I am one of the core staff that will be outfitting the brand new Artisphere with all of the audio, lighting, video, risers and stage management in the big push to get it open (once we have our certificate of occupancy *fingers crossed*eyes rolling*) by the numerologically significant date of 10-10-10...(not to mention the fact that we will have two full galas, a press conference and an advisory board meeting all before 10/10...but who's counting?)

Anyway, long story short, I will be busy. In the meantime you can take a gander at the 5 new Velvet Villains that I have made for the Spooktacular giveaways...(BTW, big shout outs to Kirstra, Jei, Brian and KT for being my sweatshop monkeys over this past weekend...they did an excellent job preparing all 48 (!) velvets for painting...thanks guys!)

The Playboy
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

Helmut Von Chaos
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

The Cannibal
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

Faux Destro
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

Darth
Acrylic on Velvet, 8"x10"

So, yes I succumbed to the dark side and did a Darth...but I am only doing 4 (the rest get 5) so that he is a special gift for the particularly geeky...

The Villainous Velvet Villains of Villainy

2010-09-24T17:49:00.007-05:00

Its been an exciting couple of weeks since I last posted to the blog. We have started to hone in on what the Halloween party will look like, and I have honed in on what Evil Dead the Musical at the FCAC will look like as well.

Every Spooktacular has had certain elements that have become...traditional...For example we introduced the idea of a theme in 2006 (Haunted Vegas) and every year since we have had a theme (2007 El Ocho, Mexican Day of the Dead...2008 Heart of Darkness, jungle theme...2009 X-marks the spot, Pirate theme...Ya know, to be fair, 2005 was the the first themed year, our wedding, haunted mansion) And some other elements have become traditional too...Karaoke Hell, Backyard Photo Op, Margarita Machines, a Game and Prizes/Giveaways....well this year we have decided to make the giveaways a bit more fancy than in previous years...

In keeping with the theme (Villains) I have endeavored to make a "Rouges Gallery" of small (8"x10") velvet paintings of different villains. What I will be doing is painting multiples of the same painting, in the hope that I will have 25-48 of them done by October 30...check out some of my progress so far:

The Egyptian
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

Hubris Von Whothathrot
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

The Kingfish
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"
Doctor Bubble Skull
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

The Dragon Lady
Acrylic on Velvet 8"x10"

I think I have five more designs to go...which means I will be doing five of each of these (am I crazy?!?) Perhaps we should make the game really hard this year...

Okay, here's a question for you loyal BTT readers...Should I include Darth Vader? He is perhaps the most recognizable super villain in the last 100 years (other than Time magazine's runner up for man of the century, You-know-who, of course)...and Darth would look wicked cool on velvet...But, thus far, I have been making these villains as amalgamations of villain tropes, and not very specific, which is kinda cool too...also, I would be avoiding the whole copyright thing seeing as I am giving them away...So, what do you think? To Darth or not to Darth?

Also I have been plugging away at getting the FCAC version of Landless' Evil Dead the Musical designed and ready to go...here's the first draft of the paint elevation:

BEAUTIFUL MINDS THIS WEEKEND with DIY MINIONS

2010-09-09T16:26:00.005-05:00

I was able to finish the DIY Minions painting just in time for the Beautiful Minds exhibit opening this weekend (Beautiful Minds is part of a larger festival opening the SE Waterfront, near Nats Stadium...click on the link here for more info) I hope you all can come out on Friday or Saturday to see the painting in the flesh...In case you cant make it, I will give you a sneak peek below:

DIY Minions
Acrylic on Board, 20"x16"

I really like the way it turned out, and I think that this painting really pushed me into some new territory technically....still trying to find that balance between "loose" painting style and "tight" draftsmanship...

The 4 other pieces in the show are a mixture of things I have shown before, like the Devil and the Broken Man, and the Birdman and the Magic Cow...but I polished up some newer pieces that seemed ready to be shown, like Revenger Monkey:

Revenger Monkey
Acrylic on Canvas, 20"x16"

Revenger Monkey was part of my villainous monkeys series...I guess I see him as an evil Avenger...so Revenger seemed like the proper title...he also owes a good deal to the Penguin, I suppose.

Kung Fu Monkey
Acrylic on Canvas 16"x20"

I don't know why this painting has been so hard to photograph...it's not particularly glossy in real life...anyway, what more explanation do you need? Its a Kung Fu Monkey...KUNG FU-CHOP!

Aside from the prep for Beautiful Minds this week, I have moved a bit closer to a final redesign for Evil Dead:

If you can read a floorplan, you will recognize that I have flipped the location of the kitchen and the trap door from the DCAC version...also, due to sight line issues, I am putting the kitchen on the "ground floor"...much like a cabin that has a sunken living area...I suppose you see that in larger "lodges" (rather than smaller cabins) and also you would likely see it on cabins built on the sides of steep hills...Anyway, its going to be somewhat different than the 2009 DCAC version, but that's okay, right?

EVIL DEAD AGAIN, LOGOS AND MINIONS

2010-09-02T18:15:00.005-05:00

Well, the Fall season has, er, fallen like the leaves off of a diseased crabapple tree...(I never really was that good with similes) that is to say that I have hit the ground running (despite this incessant "summer cold/sore-throat-for-three-months" thing!) and I have made some strides toward making it through to Christmas with my sanity intact.First, Landless. I meet with the Evil Dead production team tomorrow to hash out the details of the remount...I even provided this example "optimum blood spray pattern" drafting showing where we will need to place the blood sprinklers in the FCAC.
Also for Landless, I started sketching logos for some of the shows they are considering doing this season...

they haven't made the official announcements yet, so I am just showing you the most promising sketches...

I have been working on getting my mind wrapped around the theme for this years Spooktacular...Villains (preferably the super kind) So in order to double up on my "research" I have started working on a painting that deals with the theme of Super Villainy...If one is to become a Super Villain, how is one to recruit henchmen? In this case, you simply order them and assemble them yourself! I've converted my sketchbook sketch into a blueprint in honor of the theme:

Blueprint sketch for "DIY Minions" (working title)
Pencil and Photoshop

I will be showing more sketches and progress on this painting in the coming weeks...(And they said I was MAD! BWHahahahaaaa!)

Oh, and I may finish DIY Minions just in the nick of time to show it at the BEAUTIFUL MINDS Art Exhibit at The YARDS PARK in SE DC (near the ballpark) Next Friday and Saturday September 10 & 11...you can get more info from ArtWhino Here

NYC and the Calm Before the Storm

2010-08-19T20:56:00.004-05:00

Hey there, I just got a second...I've been traveling with KT to NYC this past week, and I don't really have much to show for it except for this drawing I made while visiting the MET:

I had a few hours to kill while KT went to a gift shop convention...so, I found some early modernist sculpture adjacent to the cafe to draw...

This time of year always feels like the calm before the storm...I am excited that it will be fall soon, and terrified of the deluge of work that fall entails...Stock up on sandbags and I'll see you next week!

True Love and Villainous Monkeys

2010-08-12T18:16:00.005-05:00

Its not often that my art becomes an arrow in Cupid's quiver...but last week I found out that it was exactly that. I got this email from a schoolteacher in Michigan, and she explained to me that she was looking for an anniversary gift for her husband. Turns out that they met on a blind date and sat in a booth at the tapas restaurant Sangria in Royal Oak, Michigan. Back in the Spring of 1999 I painted about 7 paintings for Sangria. Four of which were cubist(esque) still lives representing the four seasons. Well, as it turns out, the schoolteachers first date with her future husband was underneath "Winter" painted by yours truly.So, she contacted me and asked if I would be able to paint her a reproduction of the painting as a gift to her husband for their anniversary. (Awwwww) So I obliged her with a 1:16 sized replica (the original was 4'x4'...so this one was 12"x12")

Sangria "Winter" 2010
12"x12" Acrylic on Canvas

Needless to say I have grown a bit as a painter since 1999, so it was weird "forging" myself...

August is the calm before the storm of September/October...but the calm got just a tiny bit more quiet this past week. I found out that I cannot attend (and sell my wares from a tent) the Adams Morgan Day festival! Which means that I don't have any "kick-in-the-pants" deadline to work towards (which is how I work best). Because of this minor setback, I have decided to start working on a short series of "Villainous Monkeys". I want to start injecting my work with some more expressive brushwork, and a generally looser style. So, I have set out to create a rouges gallery of monkeys. Below are all unfinished (but close) paintings started early this week (I apologize for the really bad glare on these...they are progress shots, so they aren't intended to be high quality anyway)

Kung-Food Monkey (working title)
20"x24" Acrylic on Canvas

X-ray Monkey (Working Title)
20"x24" Acrylic on Canvas

Revenger Monkey (Working Title)
24"x20" Acrylic on Canvas

Let me know what you think about these guys. I don't know how far I will take them, since the tug of Daredevil Monkeys is strong...but I'd be interested in hearing what form you think monkey villainy should take....

Merry Christmas to All, and to All a Good Night!

2010-07-29T13:42:00.004-05:00

Thanks to everyone for such a great Sketching with Santa at the Palace of Wonders! The jokes were bad, the trivia hard, the models hot and the sketching plentiful! Devonshire Cream not only did us the honor of performing, but she is a top notch photographer to boot...Check out some of her photos from last nights event:

Santa, of course...

Gigi Holliday making all of the other Christmas trees green with envy...

And Devonshire Cream backstage (she cant really take photos of herself onstage, can she?)

If you have any more photos to pass along, please don't hesitate to get in touch! Come to think of it, if you sketched last night, and have a scan of a sketch you are particularly proud of, send that along too!

SKETCHING WITH SANTA NEXT WEDNESDAY! and willful ignorance...

2010-07-22T12:20:00.005-05:00

NEXT WEDNESDAY!
Sketching with Santa at the Palace of Wonders! How could you miss the opportunity to:

A) Sketch beautiful women WHILST drinking beer
B) Have a private audience with SANTA six months before anyone else!
C) SAVE CHRISTMAS!

ARTISTS! SANTA NEEDS YOUR HELP! Snickelfritz, the "naughty" gift designing elf has taken ill, and Santa needs some fresh sexy designs for this holiday season. For inspiration, Santa has brought you two fresh burlesque performers to sketch. Bring your sketchpad, your sick little mind...and COME SAVE CHRISTMAS!
Christmas in July drink specials all night long! Hey, no artists materials that are too wet or messy. Leave the dirty stuff to us!

If you really need a FB invite, you can go here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=136698756364178

To be honest, this Sketching with Santa gig has been a major component of my fever dreams during my recent bout of swine flu (turns out it was strep)...I would lay in bed, sweating through the sheets, imagining that I was stuck in a chimney, and that the gremlins were coming to get me!!!
Needless to say, I haven't been working on very much while I was sick. But what meager offerings I have are worthy of a bit of discussion. First, I started working on a new drawing that was going to be a preparatory drawing for a larger piece.

Bat out of Hell study
Pastel on Prepared Paper 14"x11"

I had the idea of making a real chaotic hell scene (the fever dreams again) where there were devils flying biplanes inside a cavern coated with suffering souls. So, I thought that one way of getting some movement into the piece was to have the planes follow a "flight path" through the cavern, with the foreground plane as a framing device for the rest of the scene. Unfortunately, the pastels are far too clunky for me to get the level of detail on such a small piece of paper. So this remains a study for a larger picture...

The other piece is really an experiment. I had been getting the notion that perhaps my work was losing some of its spontaneity and life. So, I decided to go back to some of my roots. That is, when I started making "art" with a purpose, in late high school, I would make things with a certain wonkyness. Really it was an attempt to convey a sense of aggression and expression to the mark making because I was riding high on all of the abstract expressionist art history I was absorbing...plus it felt good to stab at the canvas, and make bold marks. In the intervening years I dropped this method of mark making in favor of a tighter style (which is probably a consequence of feeling that I needed to prove that I could draw and paint more than I needed to prove that I could, er, emote) So, recently, I got the notion in my head that I should take a whack at trying to recapture that same feeling in my work now. I began working on a full sheet of 24"x36" BFK in pastel, directly from a still life I hastily set up (the skull with the fez is my "go to" still life setup...its cliche, even for me, but it dispenses with the "meaning" of the objects in the still life so I can get right down to business) and I began to attack the paper in the old way, without regard for proportion or draftsmanship.

Still Life with Kraken
Pastel on Paper 36"x 24"

In the end, I don't really know what to make of these results. I enjoy the directness of the process (I knocked this out in an hour and a half) and I even like the "willful ignorance" of the application of pigment...but there is, something about its lack of sincerity despite the fact that I was trying to be very sincere! I particularly like the passage with the bottle...its just enough to give you the idea that it is a clear bottle, while letting the viewer fill in the blanks...Expressionists and impressionists had results like these, but they were supposedly working from a framework of theory that gave their work a reason to look the way it did. I don't have any theory to fall back on (well, conscious theory) and yet wouldn't this somehow be a more "pure" expression of my mental state? Seeing as I freed my mind completely and went solely with "what feels right"?

Anyway, I'd be interested in what you think...does this mode of "expressionism" say something to you? Should I embrace the wonkyness? Am I barking up the wrong tree entirely?

I had swine flu...and lived!

2010-07-16T16:51:00.003-05:00

That's right, I had a mean ole case of the swine flu* that laid me up for the better part of the week. So, sadly all I have to report on is the film project that was using my backdrop...I was able to visit the set of the finale sequence. You can see my work in the middle of the photo (I'm told that it will look much larger on camera)

The other thing I should remind everyone about is going to see Carrie Potter at the New Moon Prom during the fringe festival. It got some good press from the Going Out Gurus...you can get tickets here!

*Jared did not actually get a diagnosis of swine flu, it was just so horrible, that he assumes it was...

THRILLIST DC PROFILES ARTBYJARED

2010-07-08T19:25:00.003-05:00

Wow, I really didn't see this coming...I did a phone interview in March, and promptly forgot about it (I was a bit busy with Yuri's Night at the time, you know...)

I've taken the liberty to cut and paste the article below, but if you would like to visit the source (Thrillist DC) you can find it HERE.

Jared Davis Art

Former highbrow artist monkeys around

Critical acclaim is great, but at some point, you want your art to be admired by people on your own level -- sure, the Emmys, Oscars, and Grammys were great for Jeff Foxworthy, but eventually he just needed to touch those 5th graders. Now making art his friends can actually understand, sort of: Jared Davis.

Formerly a contemplative abstract expressionist, Davis started cranking out playfully lowbrow acrylics -- generally centered on daredevil monkeys, tiki culture, and sci-fi -- after realizing that he wanted to paint for his friends and not "some Swedish guy in a black-turtle neck", prompting a mid-career style shift, and a lifetime ban from Ikea. For no particular reason, many recent works focus on primate daredevil "Fearless" and his goading counterpart "Floyd", including the latter shooting the former out of a circus cannon, a rollerskating Fearless strapped to a rocket, Jackass-style, as well as about to engage a naked woman in a boxing ring in "Sweet Science", although there's no homage to the sweetest science, i.e., the chemical engineering responsible for Fun Dip. Similarly unexplainable randomness includes sci-fi inspired joints like his newest, "Genius and a Dandy", with a well-dressed computer-monitor robot taking tea with an 8-track player, and tiki-tributes like a dancing Polynesian statue, and a depiction of a stern-faced, blue-glowing drink mug painted on black velvet, guaranteed to give you that ~~little boy smile~~ aesthetically approving grin.
Because much like a sci-fi primate, his creativity won't be bound, Jared's also got a slew of uncategorizable pieces, with the standout being a massive oil of a pouncing cat titled "White Tiger Attacking Roy", proving that he may be crazy, but not like a Fox.

Aside from that amazing piece of investigative journalism, I also finished a commission for a film that is shooting in this area. I cant really tell you more than it involves cheerleading and features one of the main actors in three men and a baby...below you can see the backdrop they commissioned...

SKETCHING WITH SANTA ANNOUNCED! LOTERIA ON THE 7th!

2010-07-01T19:27:00.006-05:00

Last week I showed you the flyer for Sketching with Santa at the Palace of Wonders (July 28th) with some incorrect information...but this week I can show you the flyer with the correct, new and improved information! I realize that you will be bombarded with different requests to come to this event, from Facebook, Twitter, Yelp, CNN...so, I am giving you loyal readers of BTT the exclusive "first glimpse"...so MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

ARTISTS! SANTA NEEDS YOUR HELP! Snickelfritz, the "naughty" gift designing elf has taken ill, and Santa needs some fresh sexy designs for this holiday season. For inspiration, Santa has brought you two fresh burlesque performers to sketch. Bring your sketchpad, your sick little mind...and COME SAVE CHRISTMAS!
Christmas in July drink specials all night long! Hey, no artists materials that are too wet or messy. Leave the dirty stuff to us!

The other show that you should be looking at for the Palace of Wonders is Loteria De Amor (July 7th)...I have submitted the design for the Diablito Card, and will be represented alongside 53 of DC's best artists!

Loteria is the Mexican version of bingo and instead of being played with letters and numbers it’s played with pictures. For Loteria de Amor we’ve asked 54 celbutantes from the DC/Baltimore art world to either do their take on a traditional Loteria image or to come up with an image of their own invention. Among the local artists contributing images are: Tim Tate (el Corazon), Victoria F. Gaitán (la Sirena) and Philippa Hughes (la Surfista).

In between games, the Metro area’s biggest burlesque and vaudeville stars will perform acts based on the Loteria images. Loteria de Amor Numero Uno will feature Malibu, Mistress of Fire, Baltimore’s Boylesque sensation, Paco Fish (www.pacofish.net), and the star of DC’s Gurly Show, Coco Monroe (www.myspace.com/misscocomonroe).

New Directions, New Drawings

2010-06-24T17:42:00.005-05:00

First off, I'd like to apologize for not getting a blog posting out last week. KT was in Chicago, and I was having a rough time getting work done because of missing her (ouch! I think I just caused a bit of tooth decay, due to extreme sweetness) Anyhoo, I had some time to think about my working practice, and actually do some experimentation, and I think I may be on to something...
I started to think about what bogs me down as an artist. There are two major things, Time management and presentation. My issue with time management is normally due to the fact that I am working on several shows at once and I find it hard to set aside time to make 2-d art (paintings and such)....well, I have started to realize that I need to start gearing my work towards the three hour window of time between when I get up in the morning and when I need to leave for work. If I cannot complete a major part of the artwork (if not the whole thing) in that three hour window, the project will probably not get done (that is, it will linger unfinished in the studio) So, I need to start thinking about artwork that can be completed in short bursts...

...which has led me to the idea of drawing. It works for me in short bursts and it doesn't require the kind of set up that painting does. I have made a few over the past week as a "proof of concept" and I am really liking the results. They may not be fully formed pieces of artwork just yet, but they are doing wonders for helping me organize my thoughts...and may eventually become paintings...

El Diablito (for the Loteria D'Amor at the Palace of Wonders)
Pastel and Color Pencil on paper 8"x10"

The first drawing I made was for the Loteria D'Amor at the Palace of Wonders starting on July 7th. Its going to be a game-show-come-Mexican-bingo-burlesque-event where local artists have created the images that are traditionally on the cards...I chose El Diablito (the Little Devil). I think he works on a number of levels, and was really fun to make. I should say a word about the technique here, I am kinda using a recipe that Scott Brooks hipped me to...I am using Fabriano paper, which is the same stuff my screenprints are made on, but I am preparing the ground with burnt umber watercolor. (Scott takes the extra step of adding stiffeners to the paper...I am still experimenting with that) and then I try to use that watercolor wash as the midtone in the drawing (between the dark of the black pastel pencil and the light of the white charcoal)

Untitled Tiki
Pastel on Paper 8"x10"

Here's an example of the midtone being the watercolor...whenever I start to experiment with a new process (or when I try to rediscover an old one) I can always turn to tiki....

Diablito with Grinder
Pastel and Color Pencil on Paper 8"x10"

Here I am experimenting with a much darker application of the ground. With obviously darker results. I kinda wanted to make a very old Europe looking drawing...kinda like an old Red Skelton painting...but intentionally creepy...

Draft of the flyer for Sketching with Santa at the Palace of Wonders

I also figured that I would try using this new technique for the flyer design for my upcoming show at the Palace of Wonders on July 28th...THIS IS NOT THE FINAL DESIGN...that is, the information on this picture is not the final, correct text (for example, I think it will be $10 at the door) Anyway, I think it sends the correct message about Sketching with Santa...it will be Christmas in July, and you will get to sketch burlesque beauties! Also, the "sketchy" look of the drawing gives artists (the ones for whom this event is targeted) an inspirational sketch...kinda like the drawing that is printed on the cover of a sketchbook...

So, lets see if I can keep running with this recent epiphany...Hopefully, I will have more to share with you next week!

Life's a beach...when you're a pirate

2010-06-11T15:53:00.004-05:00

During my first week back from staycation I have been largely absorbed with KT's pirate project. That is, she is organizing a Pirate themed open house for Imagination Stage, and she has asked me to help provide decor (as well as be a "grumpy pirate") So, I have obliged her with this groundrow that will be a photo op in the lobby during their show How I became a pirate.

Progress shot on the pirate beach photo op
Acrylic on Luan, aprox 13'x4'

I am also working on a Kraken for their wishing well...but I haven't started it yet...I best be leaving, so I can get kraken on it! (I am so sorry...)

Staycation Part Deux---new and improved, with MONKEYS!

2010-06-04T12:47:00.008-05:00

Week two of the staycation and I have actually got some painting done. I was able to knuckle down and create two more watercolor sketches for my continuing series of Daredevil Monkeys!

40,000 Pounds of Bananas
Watercolor on Paper, 5x7

This is a tiny bit of a departure from the Daredevil Monkey formula, because I am using a gorilla instead of the familiar monkey/chimp for Fearless. A gorilla feels more appropriate for an eating contest... Floyd is himself, keeping tally of the number of bananas that Fearless has consumed (or is he counting the money they are going to earn from this latest stunt?)

Barrel Monkey
Watercolor on Paper 5x7

In this painting Floyd is the ambiguous one. We cant tell how he is going to profit from Fearless' act of daring-do...He's actually inspired by some research into the subject of people going over Niagara falls in a barrel. From the Niagara Falls Live web page:

October 22nd 2003 Kirk Jones from Canton Michigan becomes first stunter in the history of Niagara Falls to survive the plunge wearing only the clothes on his back. Kirk's idea had been in the works for a number of years. While here on a visit with a friend, Kirk made the decision. They purchased a used video camera to record this historical event and went to the Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side of the river. Kirk entered the water about one hundred yards upstream and began swimming out into the swift current. Eight seconds later Kirk made the 175 foot (53.3m) drop and swam to shore while passing up a free ride with the "maid of the mist" tour boat. Kirk was treated for minor bumps and bruises at local a hospital and released only after promising to return for court. For his stunt Kirk was fined a total of $2,300.00 dollars and banned from entering Canada for life. Unfortunately Kirk and his friend had been imbibing in alcohol before the stunt and Kirks friend couldn't figure out how to work the camcorder and the entire stunt went unrecorded!

So, I thought that it would be funny to have Floyd fumbling around for change to put into the viewfinder, just like Kirk's friend with the camcorder...

Hey Kid's, its Yard Sale Time again!...come on out this Sunday, 8 am - 2 pm at
3210 38th St NW Check out our Craigslisting here.

Staycation...

2010-05-29T14:37:00.004-05:00

I have been on staycation for the past week...so there is not much to show. KT believes in these semi-annual "purge" events that spruce up the house, knock things off of the honeydew list, and assemble things to sell at the yard sale (Sunday June 6th!). We did, however, knock out a proposal for Conner Contemporary's *gogo program...Its a total shot in the dark, but I have had this wacky idea for a while now, but I have never attempted it before because I haven't had a place to display it...here's a "visualization" of the project in their space:

I don't want to go into detail about the project, because I am afraid it may jinx it...but lets just say that it involves a giant oil painting and burlesque performers...stay tuned!

MORE MONKEYS! S.A.N. and PEREZ REVIEWED

2010-05-20T15:00:00.004-05:00

This week I will start with the Monkeys. Below is the next (number 2 of a proposed series of 12) Daredevil monkey painting watercolor sketch:

Watercolor Sketch of "Highwire Hi-jinx" (working title)
Watercolor on paper, 5"x7"

I am hoping to make twelve of these kinds of paintings. Mostly in order to stock up for Arts on Belmont (Adams Morgan Day) in September. Unfortunately I am the type of person that needs a deadline, so without a "show" to work towards, I just don't get anything done. So, hopefully I will be able to make 12 of these types of Daredevil monkey paintings by the 4th of July!

I have been starting with watercolor sketches in order to work out both composition and color scheme. I think that the major issue with this piece is that I needed to demonstrate that the monkeys were really high up...so I thought the inside of a tent, punctuated by tiny flags on the lowest register would help create a sense of height...and at the same time, be pretty neutral so that the background doesn't detract from the monkeys...Unfortunately, Watercolor is kinda unforgiving, so I wasn't able to tweak the background as much as I'd like. But it helps me get the problems identified, so I can work them out in paint...

Did you know that Scenery Appreciation Night (SAN) for PEREZ was this Saturday May, 22nd? Well, you should if you are a loyal reader of BTT...and you already have your tickets, right? If not, here's the address one more time: WWW.LANDLESSTHEATRECOMPANY.COM

We also have been getting some good reviews...particularly from DCTHEATRESCENE.COM

..From here, saving the universe doesn’t sound so far-fetched after all. It doesn’t hurt that the set by Jared Davis – a scenic little panorama of Los Angeles and its iconic landmarks – only comes up to waist-level, endowing the actors with Godzilla-sized stature. Talk about looking down on high society.

And also some praise from the actual writers of the show:

In terms of the physical production, we really loved the brilliant light-up Christmas village version of LA and the fun theatre tricks they were able to pull off in that small space! My favorite type of theatre is done for $100 on a stage the size of a postage stamp, so this was right up my alley.

Hope to see you on Saturday! And remember, we are going to the Girls Gone Gutter show at the Palace after PEREZ for the traditional "post show discussion with set designer Jared Davis"...

PEREZ OPENS, KNOEBELS and MORE MONKEYS!

2010-05-13T18:29:00.005-05:00

I got a chance to watch the final dress rehearsal for Perez Hilton Saves the Universe or at least the greater Los Angeles area last night (while taking some photos) and I have to say that this will be a fun show to watch. Mostly if you are fan of the tabloids, like TMZ...or cant stand the cult of celebrity...It should be entertaining for both ends of the spectrum...

Here's a photo of the set at the DCAC (complete with Lady Ga Ga photo):

Perez Hilton...Production Photo
DCAC, Landless Theatre Company

So, just to hammer it home one more time, Scenery Appreciation Night is going to be Saturday May 22nd! And as a bonus, we are having the "post show discussion" at the Palace of Wonders, during the 11:30pm "Girls Gone Gutter" show! Hope to see you all there!

The rest of the week was dominated by last weekends mini-vacation to Knoebels...never heard of it? Check out their website or you can see all of the awesomeness they have to offer from their park map:And you can see that KT and I were having fun on the Ferris Wheel......despite the ubiquitous rusty bolts and whatnot, we managed to survive!

Now that I don't have any impending shows to design, or build, or paint...the first time in more than a year(!) I have started to think about making paintings again! In order to get back on the horse, I have decided to continue right where I left off with my Daredevil Monkey paintings!

Monkey Moonshot Watercolor Sketch
Watercolor on Paper 7"x5"

I have started to take KT's suggestion that Floyd (the monkey in charge of Fearless' exploits) be a tiny monkey. It changes the dynamic between the two characters a bit...More like the small dog and the big lug of a dog in the old Warner Bros cartoons. But, I'm okay with that...The two monkeys haven't really ever been the exact same two monkeys from painting to painting anyway. I like the idea that they are mailable, and can look different in each painting...It keeps these paintings from becoming too repetitious or cartoon-strip-like...

PEREZ Scenery Finished...Scenery Appreciation Night Announced!

2010-05-06T19:25:00.007-05:00

As promised last week, the fruits of this week's labor is the second half of the PEREZ set, laid out below:

This is roughly how the flats will be laid out during the show (you can compare them with the rendering from last week here) You cant really tell from this photo, but the larger buildings are going to be rigged with Xmas lights, so that they light up when that location comes around in the story.
Here are closeups of each flat:
The Capitol Records building, Griffith Observatory and The Motel Valencia...(the motel is where the terrorists will be staying in the show)LAX, Randy's Donuts, the 405 and the Hollywood Bowl...Kathy Griffin's Lair, Beverly Hills sign and the Hollywood sign...The Church of Scientology, Olive Garden, In-n-out Burger, Grauman's Chinese Theater (and downtown, perhaps with the police HQ...)

The idea was to create Los Angeles in the DCAC...so I was going for that "tourist map" kinda look...Its a bit weird because living here in DC, there are lots of places that I could point to in order to make a tourist map...you cant swing a dead cat and not hit a monument to something around DC...but LA is a bit different...there's no "Statue of Liberty" or "Capitol Building" or "Eiffel tower"...so this set proved to be a bit of a challenge in that respect...

The Show opens next Friday May 14th! You can get your tickets HERE.

I would also like to announce the PEREZ Scenery Appreciation Night (SAN)! You will get a chance to see that show and have a post show discussion with the set designer himself on Saturday May 22nd! Email me for the special code for SAN attendee discounts!

On a personal note, this week I became an uncle. My brother's wife, Wendy gave birth to a 6lb baby boy named Thaddeus...in China! So, I wont be seeing the lil' bugger for another year or so, which is fine by me because I am not too big on the infant thing anyway....bring 'em to me when they are talkin' and walkin'...

Perez marks the last scheduled show I have until the fall, so I am looking forward to a very productive painting agenda this summer...More about that next week!

PEREZ Preview in Frederick and set design

2010-04-30T14:51:00.006-05:00

The preview for Perez Hilton goes up in Frederick tonight. I spent most of this week building the first half of the set. I spent the remaining time designing the rest of the set...which I will spend all of next week building...Anyway, below is the perspective rendering of the set, as it will be seen at the DCAC when Perez opens on May 14.

Perez Hilton... Set Design
Pencil, Watercolor and Photoshop

Perez was also picked as a "best bet" for May...check out the link below...it even mentions my name!

A Theatre Lover's Guide to DC/Capital Area Theatres – May 2010 Offerings 2010/04/30:

PEREZ HILTON REBOOT

2010-04-22T14:55:00.004-05:00

The weeks after Yuri's night always tend to be an emotional roller coaster. While it was a great party, you start to dissect what went right and what went wrong in order to not make those mistakes next year...Next year, you ask? Yep, we have already started talking with venues about next year. So mark your calendars for April 9th 2011!
In these post Yuri's Night days I have also started to take a hard look at what other events we are going to be doing this year, and how my calendar will be shaped by those decisions...for example, do we start thinking about a New Years Eve party right now? Tiki Party in the Summer? People have already started asking about the theme for this years Spooktacular!

Needless to say all of this introspection has not produced very much artwork for me to share with you...except for the impending Frederick preview of Perez Hilton Saves the Universe or at Least the Greater Los Angeles Area...The design for Perez has been taking a back seat to Yuri's Night (and Producers...which strikes this Saturday!) lately, but no longer! The deadline rolls forward on this production and I need to meet it head-on! Unfortunately, all I can offer right now is the floorplan...which might seem a bit cryptic (since hardly anything is labeled), but I know that you loyal readers of BTT actually crave suspense...So, I will simply leave you with the floorplan:

YURI'S NIGHT AFTER...

2010-04-15T16:31:00.006-05:00

Countdown to Yuri's Night 2010 is in the history books now...THANK YOU FOR COMING!...you can relive the memories by going to our Party Photo Gallery at www.outofthisworldparty.com and of course we are always looking for more photos, so if you attended and have awesome pics, send them our way!
Here's the set for this years show...complete with the "Tardis"...which was actually a darkroom revolving door...

The set for Countdown To Yuri's Night 2010
(note that the ceiling tile had to be popped out to accommodate it...turns out that the ballroom is 6" lower on one side)

I haven't been able to post anything in the last few weeks because of the zaniness of the buildup for Yuri's Night at for The Producers (at the same time!) so, you will have to forgive the lack of posts and the lack of pictures...I simply have been too crazed to do anything as mundane as a blog posting!

For example, here is a photo of the set before it was painted (the day after "homie help day")

But Producers (you know, that other show that took up my whole life) is in full swing right now, so I think its safe to release some of the photos of the designs and artwork from the show...

Set designs for Max Bialystock's office and Springtime for Hitler...

Backdrop for "Bavaria" (the scene just before Springtime for Hitler, which masks the set change)

I'll be showing more photos of Producers once the company photographer sends them to me...

The other big news this week was that I was profiled, along with several other DC area set designers in the Hill Rag...check out the article here!

I am going to be thrown headlong into Perez Hilton Saves the Universe soon, so please watch this space for updates! You can always get your tickets at Landless Theater's Website...

WIRED.COM PROFILES COUNTDOWN TO YURI"S NIGHT ARTISTS!

2010-03-20T16:38:00.004-05:00

Check out WIRED.COM's Coverage of COUNTDOWN TO YURI'S NIGHT 2010! Click HERE or the screenshot below to be taken to the article directly

Big shout outs to all of the artists profiled! They even quoted me!

...The show brings together Pop-Surrealism, Post-Pop and Lowbrow stylists who “frequently and freely embrace the imagery of science fiction and mid-century tropes,” according to Countdown lead organizer Jared Davis. “Countdown to Yuri’s Night is an excellent excuse to feature their more sci-fi inspired work.

“Whether it’s Scott Brooks’ nightmare vision of a future where Cupie-doll robots battle for Thorazine, Steve Strawn’s photo journalism from the great robot wars or Sherill Anne Gross’ green pinup girls, they all create a vision of the future of humankind in space. Whether it’s an accurate prediction is beside the point — what matters is that they are having the conversation and leaving room for any one of a million possible futures.”

Like I have said before, this show will sell out, get your tickets now at www.outofthisworldparty.com

IT'S ELECTRIC FINALLY OPENS TONIGHT!

2010-03-18T21:18:00.006-05:00

That's right, IT'S ELECTRIC finally opens tonight. After being snowed out, and numerous other snags and barbs we are finally getting our robots out of the lab and on to the dance floor of the Electric Maid! Come on by 7pm-11pm TONIGHT!

This week has seen lots of great progress for Yuri's Night...I finished a floor plan of the Capitol Skyline Hotel (yes, we can fit 200 people into the Hall of States, thank you) and we spend last weekend shooting a promotional YouTube video...Which will hopefully premiere tomorrow night when I, and perennial Miss Universe contestant, Southern Hemisphere, will be interviewed on the Larz from Marz show...

Yet another year goes by without a clear Lucite trophy from the WATCH Awards (that's 7 nominations and no wins for those of you counting)... We'll get 'em next year!

Oh, did I mention that High Fidelity will be extending their run....at the Warehouse?! Its true, check out the screenshot from their website:

So, if you wanted a second chance to see this great, Helen Hayes Recommended show, here it is!

I also spent my day off this week driving to and from Lyndhurst NJ in order to get a great deal on Gridwall. What is gridwall you may ask? You've seen it before, its a steel grid mesh that comes in 2 foot wide and 7 foot tall sections used by craft fair artists everywhere to hold up their art for display...so now, the artists of Yuri's Night can be secure in the idea that their work will not be sitting on the ground during the show!

And of course, last but not least, I finished painting the drop for Illuminopolis:

Illuminopolis backdrop
Acrylic on Black Velour, 12'x10'

YURI"S NIGHT FLYERS ARE HERE! 30 DAYS TO LIFTOFF!

2010-03-11T12:51:00.005-05:00

The flyers from Yuri's Night have arrived! Thanks to the stellar effort of Alan Defibaugh, or designer, for getting all that text into one slick package! We do have lots of stuff going on at this party, just check out the back of the flyer:

So, look for these around town....and buy your tickets today!

Countdown to Yuri's Night
T-Minus 30 days(!)

The other big news this week was the announcement of the rescheduled IT'S ELECTRIC show at the Electric Maid in Takoma Park. Since we were snowed out the first time, we have had to reschedule for Saturday March 20th. In anticipation of the re-opening, I have started to create some new black velvet robot paintings...

Black Velvet Robot, Red
Acrylic on Black Velvet, 8"x10"

Also, this week I will start working on the backdrop for Illuminopolis, the light inspired burlesque extravaganza presented by Yuri's Night performers Miss Joule and Malibu. You can get tickets and info here.

Illuminopolis backdrop sketch
Pencil and photoshop

See you next week when I will have more robot paintings for IT'S ELECTRIC, as well as photos of the finished Illuminopolis drop...

CAPTION CONTEST for Yuri's Night Painting

2010-03-04T21:39:00.006-05:00

Yuri's Night Countdown: T-Minus 37 days

I think I need your help with a caption for the painting I am planning for Yuri's Night. Well, to be fair it is not really a "caption contest" per se...What I need is something snappy to be put on a sign in the painting. Here, check out the watercolor sketch first:

The Skeleton and the Visitors Watercolor Sketch
Watercolor on Paper 5"x7"

Okay, so the gist of the painting is that we are on a planet in the future, and that the robot in the smokey bear hat is showing some younger robots an ancient archaeological site with the skeletonized remains of an American astronaut, while the wreckage of his rocket looms in the background. So, the help I need from you is: what should go on the sign in the lower right? I have toyed with these answers, perhaps they will inspire you:

Ancient Archaeological Site
National Park, Mars
00101001010001
Extinct Meat Based Life Form

I don't really have a prize to offer, its more of a cry for help...I look forward to your answers in the comments...

The other thing that has taken up most of this week has been the painting (and completion!) of the "Springtime for Hitler" drop. Unfortunately, I cannot show you the whole thing because the producers wont let me...but here is a small element to whet your whistle:

This weekend is the G40 Summit in Crystal City...you should really try to make it out to what can only be called a "mini artomatic" (I'll have four pieces hanging on the 8th floor)....the opening is this Saturday...Check out this Link for more info

I'll see you next week, where we will celebrate the "less than a month" Countdown to Yuri's Night...

44 Days left in the Yuri's Night Countdown...

2010-02-25T12:21:00.007-05:00

T-Minus 44 Days Until Yuri's Night

We have had another breakneck week with Yuri's Night...but I wont bore you with details...I'll wait until March 10th for that (one month to go by then)...The only thing I will say is that you better get your tickets now because we are likely to sell out (plus you will save $ if you don't try to buy them at the door...) Click on the Yuri Logo above to get linked to the party website

High Fidelity has been open for a week, and the reviews are good! Check out DC Theatre Scene's review of High Fidelity or the fact that Metro Weekly Calls my set "...Incredibly Clever..." Scenery Appreciation Night is still set for this Saturday 2/27...but I think that the show might be sold out!

We completed the Producer's "Little Old Lady Land" drop this week...here are some tease shots from the completed drop (the producer said that I shouldn't post the finished product on my blog...so by giving you a peek I am being naughty)

Roosevelt smiles down on the old ladies...

...And it looks like Estelle McSherry is in for $50,000.00!

HIGH FIDELITY OPENS, YURI'S NIGHT and LITTLE OLD LADY LAND

2010-02-18T16:43:00.004-05:00

Landless Theater Company opens their second show in the SEASON OF THE DAMNED, High Fidelity. If you are a frequent reader of BTT, you know that we like to present scenery appreciation nights for landless shows during the second week of the run...so, without further adieu, I would like to announce that:

Scenery Appreciation Night for High Fidelity will be on Saturday February 27th! (Type "Jared" in the vendini discount code box for your SAN discount!)

And, here is just a tease of the set design, for those of you who cant wait until next Saturday!
I guess its about time to institute the Countdown to Yuri's Night Clock again:

T-Minus 51 days until YURI'S NIGHT!

Tickets are now officially on sale at WWW.OUTOFTHISWORLDPARTY.COM

The other development this week was that I solidified the design for Producers "Little Old Lady Land" Drop:

Little Old Lady Land Drop Painters Elevation
Photoshop and Pencil

In fact we have started painting it already...we are painting over the "jukebox" from Bye Bye Birdie, which is causing some slight complications. The jukebox was a purple arch that went around the cut opening of the drop. Purple is a notorious color for bleeding through whatever you paint over it (and it is doing exactly that right now) so, my workaround is to make a "cheque rainbow"...The concept, for those of you who are not familiar with the show, is that Max Bialystock is sleeping with all of the little old ladies in NYC in order to get them to become investors in his show. So, naturally, the backdrop for the scene is of springtime in central park, except everything, much like the fabled tootsie roll disorder, looks like money!

Question of the week: should I post progress shots of the backdrops for the "Springtime for Hitler" scene, despite having large swastikas on them?

SNOWBOTIC APOCALYPSE!

2010-02-12T09:40:00.005-05:00

Only historic snows could have stopped IT'S ELECTRIC! from happening...So, we have decided to take another swing at opening the show in early March. Details will be passed along as they come into the newsroom here at BTT HQ. (of course the snows couldn't stop Matt and Dana from getting married...congrats!)

But, it occurs to me that you haven't seen the other two paintings in the show yet...so, here they are (photographed poorly to incentivize you into coming to see them in the flesh)

The Birdman and the Magic Cow
Acrylic on Canvas, 24"x20"

The Genius and the Dandy
Acrylic on Canvas, 24"x20"

One of the good things to come out of the snowpocolypse is that KT and I made huge strides on Yuri's Night. We are planning to have the official announcement of all artists and performers (and some surprises...psst, don't tell anyone...moonbounce!) in the next two weeks! I guess I will start the official Yuri's Night countdown clock next week!

IT'S ELECTRIC! and REEFER SCENERY APPRECIATION NIGHT

2010-01-26T13:07:00.008-05:00

I'm as excited as the jerk in the photo above that tonight is Scenery Appreciation Night for REEFER MADNESS! So, if you know what's good for ya, you'll come on down to tonight's closing weekend shows! You can get tickets at the door or from the Dominion Stage Website.

This weekend I will be gearing up to finalize the last two paintings I am creating for It's Electric. What's It's Electric, you ask? Here's the flyer:

Chris Griffin curates a Robo-Art Show featuring the works of local artists Michael Auger, Jared Davis, Todd Gardner and Steve Strawn. The opening reception is Saturday, February 6th from 7:00 - 11:00 PM. There will be 'botting poppers Gwo and Frequency and DJ Anne Dreud (yep, rhymes with Freud) will be spinning! Please come and boost your "arti"ificial intelligence!

The deets:
It's Electric! Opening Reception
Saturday, Feb. 6th 7:00 - 11:00 PM
The Electric Maid
268 Carroll St., N.W. (a short block from Takoma Metro)

I will give you loyal BTT readers a sneak preview of one of the three pieces in the show:

The Devil and the Broken Man
Acrylic on Canvas, 24"x20"

I don't know why blogger seems to make this image much darker than any other program does...so, you will just have to come see it with your naked eyes in order to get the full impact!

The build for High Fidelity has just started, and I have progress on a major piece of the scenery to share...Its a counter for the record store "Championship Vinyl" that figures prominently in the show.One of the good things about High Fidelity is that it is getting a lot of good buzz. We already have been getting previews from the likes of DCBroadwayWorld.com DC Broadway World previews High Fidelity

REEFER REVIEWED, HIGH FIDELITY AND PRODUCERS BEGIN

2010-01-18T15:28:00.007-05:00

Its been a busy week, which has been made even more frantic due to the illness. I speak of the illness that gripped the cast and crew of Reefer Madness...which eventually caught up with yours truly (and currently running its course through KT!) and knocked him out for the better part of the three day weekend. But I'm all better now, and I have good reviews of Reefer to share with you. First you might check out this favorable review in the Gazette from Monday. But really, you should read the one in the Washington Post because it specifically mentions the scenery:

Jared Davis's scenic design makes economical use of the Lee Center (sic) stage with vertical flats festooned with comic book graphics and inventive, movable set pieces allowing rapid scene changes.

While it's not gushing, its an honor to be mentioned...even if they did get some of the facts wrong (its the Gunston Theater 1, not Lee Center...and I don't usually make my last name plural by adding a second "S" after the apostrophe...)

Anyhoo, you should start making your plans for next week's SCENERY APPRECIATION NIGHT for Reefer Madness on Friday January 29th. Get your tickets Here

We are leaps and bounds closer to announcing a venue for Yuri's Night...Fingers crossed!!! I will announce it as soon as we have confirmation (perhaps as early as Monday!)

The illness this week was not just me, KT and the cast of Reefer...it was also the Isuzu. I spent precious time getting the darn thing fixed (the headlights were not coming on at night and it was badly in need of new rotors) And the worst part about the whole thing is that they never really did anything to fix the lights...they started poking around and they magically started working!

I whipped up a logo for the upcoming Landless Show HIGH FIDELITY:

Yeah, its a bit cheesy and old school...but hey, so is the show! You can see the graphic in action on the Landless Website. I also made major headway on the set design for High Fidelity:It may not look like much right now, but trust me, this is going to be one rockin' show! I'll start building sometime next week, so you can expect more pictures soon.

The other leap forward this week was for Arlington Players production of Producers (which opens the week before Yuri's Night!) I started trying to unscramble the crazy set changes in that are called for in the script, and I began to make initial sketches...Here's a sketch of the office of Max Bialystok:

As you can see, this sketch represents only about a eighth of the show...in any other production this would be THE set...Anyway, expect way more of this show to pop up on BTT between now and April!

I almost forgot...this week the WATCH award nominations were announced and I was nominated TWICE! Overall The Arlington Players Follies was nominated for twelve WATCH awards:

Outstanding Set Design in a Musical: Jared Davis

Outstanding Set Painting in a Musical: Jared Davis

Outstanding Set Construction in a Musical: Bill Wisniewski

Outstanding Set Decoration and Set Dressing in a Musical:

Outstanding Costume Design in a Musical: Grant Kevin Lane

Outstanding Makeup Design in a Musical: Avery Burns

Outstanding Hair Design in a Musical: Bette Williams

Outstanding cameo in a musical: Kathleen McCormick as "Buddy's Blues Margie"

Outstanding Choreography: Christopher Dykton

Outstanding Music Direction: John-Michael d'Haviland

Outstanding Direction of a Musical: Christopher Dykton

Outstanding Musical: Follies - Arlington Players

REEFER MADNESS OPENS FRIDAY & More Epic Science Fiction Watercolors

2010-01-11T13:17:00.011-05:00

In honor of Reefer Madness opening on Friday, I am going to announce Scenery Appreciation Night, three weeks ahead of Schedule. Friday the 29th of January will be Scenery Appreciation Night for Reefer Madness! I haven't completely ironed out the details on the SAN discount yet, but if you are interested in coming (and getting the discount) just drop me an email. If you are willing to pay full freight (which you tightwads should anyway!) You can go to the Dominion Stage Website for tickets.

When I wasn't engaged in the final push to get Reefer Madness on stage this week, I was plugging along on my Epic Science Fiction watercolor sketches. I completed three more this week, and I think I am nearing the end of the "watercolor sketch" phase of the process. So, perhaps one or two more, and then I will pick the best 4 to turn into full fledged paintings that will be exhibited in It's Electric on February 6th!

Genius and the Dandy
Watercolor on paper 10"x8"

When I made the Genius and the Dandy I stepped back and realized that I had unintentionally made something eerily similar to the "Androids" of Andrew Wodzianski...But, I must confess, it is my favorite so far...Its not going to be very much fun to paint, because it will require me to have lots of precision in order to keep the clean, late 60's British talk show look...(I also chuckle when I see the punch cards!)

Prophet of Doom and the Visitors
Watercolor on paper 10"x8"

This is perhaps the most heavy handed...or, really I should say its going a long way for a joke. But when I was presented with the Prophet of Doom and the Visitors, it was hard to find someone or something that was as "prophet of doomy" than Al Gore...I also get a kick out of robot dolphins (there is some spooky stuff out there if you google "robot dolphin", trust me)

Minotaur and the Old Man
Watercolor on paper 8"x10"

I was kinda stuck on this one for a while, and while I think that the resolution isn't perfect, its pretty close. I didn't want the "old man" to be a steampunk robot, because that seems too obvious...so, I started thinking about what would be "old" to a robot. Well, it wasn't too long before I started thinking of video games, and what game would fit a minotaur really well? Perhaps one with a maze? So, a 3-d Pacman world was a good fit. I have been trying to make these paintings about the environment that they are in just as much as the characters. So, a "Tron"-like setting was a good fit...The technical problem with this watercolor (remember these are just sketches!) is that there are a lot of straight lines in the electronic world. So, if I am to render this as a painting, I will probably need to find some mechanical way of reproducing the background.

The thought has crossed my mind to take these sketches out of the sketchbook and frame them individually for the show (instead of choosing 3-4 to make into paintings) What do you think? Should I choose 3-4 and paint them larger? Or should I spend the rest of the time I have making a bunch more watercolors?I have about 30 pairings of epic archetypes total, so far, so I could add quite a few more...but realistically, I could churn out about 3 more per week...getting about 8 or nine more...I'd be interested to hear your opinions on the matter in the comments or email...

EPIC SCIENCE FICTION WATERCOLORS!

2010-01-07T12:17:00.008-05:00

Chris Griffin, (no, not the Family Guy character, you cretins) who is ever the busy bee, has seen fit to include me in a small group show at the Electric Maid in Takoma Park. Its going to be a robot-themed show called "It's Electric". I will have some paintings there hanging next to the work of Todd Gardner, and Steve Strawn. The opening will be on Saturday February 6th, 8-11pm.

Unfortunately, I don't have any robot paintings on hand (they sell like hotcakes, and the last ones I made went for stocking stuffers) but I have decided to take up the challenge to make more Robots! Its actually kinda fortunate, because I was already gearing up to make some Science Fiction paintings for Yuri's Night. You see, I came to the realization that Science Fiction is best when it is telling an epic story. Star Wars is a prime example. It is well known that George Lucas was highly influenced by Joseph Campbell's "Power of Myth" Books. The epic story, with its archetypal characters and universal themes is what made the backbone of Star Wars so strong. Not long ago, I decided that I wanted to incorporate this idea into my Science Fiction paintings. So, with this Robot show coming up, I began to implement the plan. First I decided on some of the archetypal characters (e.g. the hero, wise man, sea monster, etc) and then I started pairing them off in order to see what sort of pictures were inspired by the combinations...I did some quick sketches, and then started a watercolor sketch in my sketchbook as a study for what might become a final painting. The first of these pairings was The Birdman and the Magic Cow:

The Birdman and the Magic Cow Watercolor sketch
Watercolor on Paper, 10"x8"

Since I am working towards making paintings for the Robot show, I have been doing my best to make all of the roles robot-oriented. I don't know why this was the image I saw when I put these two characters together, but somehow a winged cereal eating robot on a craggy planet, getting his milk from a giant flying robot cow just seem right...

The Devil and the Broken Man Watercolor Sketch
Watercolor on Paper, 10"x8"

This paring seemed to me like an obvious one, because you can always link the Devil to temptation, and temptation is how most people become "broken". In epic terms the "broken man" is the private detective who is too drunk to take the case, but sobers up just in time to solve the crime...perhaps someone like Han Solo, who has lost (perhaps never had) his idealism...but in this interpretation, the robot in the sidecar is more like CP-3O in Empire Strikes Back, being toted around, literally in pieces, by Chewbacca. I allude to the sin/drunkenness by having the robot arm in the basket holding a liquor bottle, but that might be too heavy handed. The Devil as "trash picker" is appealing for the obvious reasons, but I particularly like the glee (and style) with which he is willing to facilitate the removal of the broken man...

We have been doing a full court press on the space search for Yuri's Night...we might wind up with a very swanky event this year...stay tuned...

This week has been crunch week for Reefer Madness. You can get all sorts of cool insights on the show from Dominion Stage's Reefer Madness blog. Be sure to check out the videos of work in the shop...there are some really cool time lapse videos of the scenery being painted. I'll announce when Scenery Appreciation Night will be next week!

Stocking Stuffers and Reefer Progress (good riddance 2009!)

2009-12-30T19:07:00.004-05:00

Wow, its only been two weeks and yet it seems like much longer since I posted. Its kinda funny reading the last post because it feels so "pre-blizzard 2009"...Ah, those were more innocent times...

The snowpocolypse did not diminish the amount of work to be done, just the number of days that said work would be done in the scene shop. So, I was able to plow ahead on the preliminary designs for Producers...it is all in the very early stages right now, so there is not much to share, but at least we have weighed anchor and are sailing in a direction...

A few days before Christmas Haze called me and asked if I would make some "stocking stuffer sized" paintings for Trish. So, naturally, I obliged. He gave me carte blanche...so I hope that she likes Robots, monkeys and the occasional dinosaur.

Stocking stuffer paintings for Christmas 2009
0110010!, Fire Breathing Robot, Aviator Monkey
4"x5" each, Acrylic on Board

After Christmas I hosted Scenery Appreciation Nite for Carrie Potter and Christmas Twist. Thank you all for coming out. I know that many folks were away for the holidays, so hopefully there will be a few more attendees for High Fidelity in February...

KT's parents were in town for the better part of this past week...its always a good thing to see them around the holidays, and I think that they really like it here in DC

In an effort to make up for the shop being closed, we have started to hit the Reefer scenery hard this week. Tonight, we finished the "propaganda panels" that are the "legs" for the show...

Reefer Madness the Musical, "propaganda panels"

This show loads in a week from Friday, so I should have some decent photos for you next week (and perhaps a Scenery Appreciation Night date) so, Stay tuned!

All in all, I don't think I have the energy or brainpower left to analyse the past year...lets just say that I am extremely hopeful for 2010! Happy New Year!

Scenery Appreciation Night Announced!

2009-12-15T11:41:00.008-05:00

I dont normally wait until Friday to do my weekly blog entry, and the fact that I am writing just a few hours away from the SNOWPOCALYPSE has given me a weird sense of impending doom...lets just hope that is not my final entry...

Its true, I've officially announced the Scenery Appreciation Night for both Carrie Potter and the New Moon Prom and Christmas Twist. I will be hosting a double feature (seeing both shows) on Saturday December 26th. So, please email me if you wish to attend (I will hook you up with a special "SAN" discount!)

I have some lovely pics from last weekend's Santarchy I'd like to share:

Yours truly, moments before the Santas stormed the Washington monument...

KT as Rude-olf

Apparently we need longer arms for shots like these...

Santa rocks a man-purse in front of the Department of energy...

Unfortunately, I was only able to finish one painting for the Dirty Show application on Tuesday. So, I sent Sweet Science through the interwebz to be exposed to a jury of sickos in Detroit...I hope that they find the dirtiness that I originally intended...

Sweet Science
Acrylic on board, 16" x 20"

lastly, I've been in discussions with some of the tilted torch folks about a show that they are putting on in late March called Illuminopolis...its going to be an all "lights, fire and glow-in-the-dark" themed show. They asked me to work on a backdrop for them...here are my initial thoughts in sketchbook form:

CARRIE POTTER and CHRISTMAS TWIST OPEN!

2009-12-10T14:27:00.005-05:00

You are the type of kid that wanted to open his Christmas presents the second they appeared beneath the tree, aren't you? If you are one of those kids, then you are positively going to be tortured by the gift ArtbyJared is going to be giving you this year. Cant wait, you say? You wanna know right now? Okay, but it will spoil the surprise if I tell you...Okay then, here you go:

December 26th.

That's right, December 26th is going to be an extra special X-Mass-ey DOUBLE FEATURE heapin' helping of Scenery Appreciation Night! Landless has cooked up two lovin' spoonfuls of Holiday goodness, Christmas Twist and Carrie Potter at the New Moon Prom...and I am hosting almost FOUR HOURS of wall to wall Christmas frakin' cheer! So, get your tickets here before they sell out!

I like how the 26 is right below "Naughty"...

Dont take my word for it, check out Christmas twist in the Express!

What can you expect to see when you come to Scenery Appreciation Nite? Well, you've seen the design for Carrie Potter...but I don't want to give too much away about Twist, so I will only share with you the design for the backdrop:

"London" Backdrop for Christmas Twist
12'x12' Painted Muslin

I wanted this backdrop to double as part of Carrie Potter (you know, that part of town in the potter universe that is in that magic alley?...) but they get to Hogwarts pretty fast in the script, so it will just have to serve as a Dickensian backdrop of olde London Towne....and no, you cretins, that is not the US capitol building...its St. Paul's...you know, Christopher Wren...but it is good to know that could double for a particularly quaint part of Southwest DC in a pinch...

Slowly but surely progress is being made on Reefer Madness...This week has been largely about creating the "anti-marijuana propaganda poster" style flats. Here are some examples of the designs thus far:

DS Right Color Sketch US right Color Sketch

These babys are 14' high and 4' wide...so hopefully they will make the right statement...

And Finally, I have a progress report on the Dirty Show entries. I started to work in earnest on the Sweet Science painting...Its translating relatively directly, but I have been trying to concentrate on making it sorta "ashcan school" because of the boxing theme (and, for that matter, the horror theme of a re-animated "bride of Frankenstein" zombie) So, what you see here is a "knocked back" version...i.e. I painted the whole thing and then did a transparent burnt umber glaze to make everything darker and unify the whole painting...so this should be the darkest it will ever be...all that's left is doing all of the highlights!

Progress on "Sweet Science"
16"x20" Acrylic on Pannel

One of the joys of being in a time crunch is that I seem to make some of my best work when I am procrastinating (or watching paint dry). While I was waiting for the first coats of paint to dry on Sweet Science, I knocked out this little guy with the leftover paint in my palette. I kinda like him, and is certainly a good start for another (non Dirty Show) daredevil monkey painting...

Rocket Monkey
10"x8" Acrylic on pannel

Dirty Show? I'm not Dirty, am I?

2009-11-30T19:02:00.007-05:00

I've decided that, yes, indeed I am dirty. Well, dirty enough to submit some new work the the Detroit Dirty Show. So, I spent the turkey day weekend musing about what sort of work I would enter into a Dirty Show. As you may have surmised from the shows title, its intended to be a bit blue...but my work has never really been that, sexual, per se...and I imagine that the sort of thing that would get into the dirty show is really dirty. So I will have some competition with some real sickos out there...

I thought it over and decided that it would be best if I continued on with the Daredevil Monkeys theme, this time putting the little brutes into dangerous situations involving women. What sort of situation would a daredevil monkey be in? Well, of course Fearless (the monkey with the Stars and Stripes helmet) should be demonstrating that he is indeed fearless in the face of danger. He needs to wrestle women. Preferably naked women. and for good measure, lets make them reanimated zombie type women. Check out the resulting watercolor from my sketchbook below:

Watercolor sketch for Detroit Dirty Show submission #1
(Working Title: The Sweet Science)
Watercolor on paper, 4"x6"

I know, its kinda bizarre...but it feels kinda right too...I am not entirely happy with the composition so far, so I made a few tweaks in photoshop that should carry over to the final painting:
After Compositional tweaking...I made Fearless smaller in relation to the woman to make her more menacing...and I also put them toe to toe, so that he looks like he is looking at her more...

I made another sketch that is less realized than the previous one, but I think it will be a funnier painting in the end. I thought that the next contender on the fight card could be a truly zaftig beauty...How is Fearless going to get out of this one?

Watercolor sketch for Detroit Dirty Show submission #2
(working title: hide the monkey)
Watercolor on paper, 4"x6"

I would be able to show you more progress on these if it were not for the fact that I have spent the last few days finishing the Carrie Potter and Christmas Twist scenery! So, I will have photos for you next week, as well as the schedule for the next "Scenery Appreciation Night"!