"Heavy Metal Flower Power" by Rob Pongi

Here is an abstract 3D scene entitled "Heavy Metal Flower Power." Modeled, textured, rendered in Cinema 4D and composite edited in Photoshop by Rob Pongi:




To see a larger version of this piece click here.


See also: "King Ray" by Rob Pongi

"King Ray" by Rob Pongi

This composite 3D image is a tribute, token birthday gift and a long overdue "thank you" to Mr. Rex Ray for all of his tremendous inspiration and very kind support:



"King Ray" was entirely modeled, textured and rendered in Cinema 4D and composite edited in Photoshop by Rob Pongi (2011). This newest offering is based on the "Collide" tutorial written by Barton Damer at Pushing Photoshop to the Limit: 13 Most Advanced tutorials.

To see a larger image of "King Ray" click here.


Related:

'Pongi' Graffiti Tag Test #3

Art Review: Rex Ray Clowns

Art Review: "Rex Ray Clowns"

One day a couple years ago, I was clowning around on Bowienet, and as usual, I got a little carried away and then, literally, BLOWN AWAY when I received the below collage as a response from the well-known artist Rex Ray:

And I don't know what it all means "FU", "ForU", "FapU" or whatever, but to be so noted by one of the world's greatest contemporary fine artists, is indeed, quite an honor. Nevertheless, I plan on creating some kind of artistic response soon. So stay tuned!

Anyway, just a couple of days ago, Mr. Ray unveiled a truly stunning new series of paintings entitled "Rex Ray Clowns":



Up until now, this highly acclaimed artist has mostly been known for his prolific fine art work in collage, graphic design, interior design, commercial art and popular entertainment media.

However, this new series marks a significant development in Ray's stellar career and presents a whole new remarkable side of the artist's true talent and incredible vision. What makes this recent launch so appealing is Ray's photorealistic style of painting or Trompe-l'œil which, essentially, brings these cartoon character portraits to life in a kind of surreal "Disneyesque" manner.

At first look, with all of the clowns clustered together on his new Ha Ha Said The Clowns site, some early reviews have said that this new set is "scary" or "evil" in a positive way of course. And, obviously, some of the paintings do depict such human emotions and personifications.

However looking closer at each individual portrait, it is clearly seen that these oils encapsulate many other human expressions of sadness, happiness, silliness, and love. In a very clever style that is not unlike life itself, Ray presents all of these emotions through the use of prominent smiling faces in these caricatures, thus giving us an even higher level of perspective into his true artistic genius.

To read more news about Rex Ray, please visit his official website.

Cleaning up

Swiss artist Ursus Wehrli is releasing a new book called The Art of Clean Up, which features photographs of everyday scenes rearranged into organized rows. The sunbathers made me laugh--look at their perpendicular feet! Very neat, indeed. :)

(Via Swissmiss)

China: The Great Wall of Graffiti

These days in China the graffiti/street art scene is booming and becoming quite popular both domestically and throughout the world. In fact, The Great Wall of China itself is being heavily tagged by many of the four million visitors it sees each year. And while many people believe that this is all a relatively new art evolution, the truth is that graffiti in China has had a very significant and colorful history that started long ago before this recent boom.



According to Wikipedia's Graffiti in Asia:



"In China, graffiti began with Mao Zedong in the 1920s who used revolutionary slogans and paintings in public places to galvanise the country's communist revolution. Mao holds the record for the longest piece of graffiti, which contains 4000 characters criticizing his teachers and the state of Chinese society."



And an article from 2003 in the China Daily claims that:



"During the Cultural Revolution, pesky neighbors could be eliminated through accusations posted on a community wall. When Deng Xiaoping made his move for opening and reform, he designated a wall in Beijing where people could freely write their thoughts."



Currently, there are many very talented artists and groups that work together like Beijing's ABS-Crew and Shanghai's Oops Graffiti Crew who are generally designers and illustrators that work for advertising agencies. And the majority of their street art includes cool intricate designs and graphic tags rather than political protests. However, recently the ABS-Crew created a huge stunning mural entitled "Inflation" which clearly is a powerful statement against capitalists:









In December of 2010, many Graffiti Artists Bombed Beijing during an international event called "Meeting the Neighborhood Graffiti Week" in "The More Than + Pop Art Festival." Here is an English news video on that:







See also: King Robbo vs Banksy: "Graffiti Wars"

Amazing Pencil Drawings

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Incredible Pencil Drawings

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Lego Godzilla Attacks Lego Japanese in Tokyo!

Recently a Godzilla-like creature was spotted off the coast near Fukushima. Well now Sad Old Biker has released proof that a Lego Godzilla is attacking Tokyo:







RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!



«(°__°)»

Five best graphic novels

Have you guys ever read graphic novels? They're full-length comic strips for grown-ups that often tell hilarious and touching stories. They're entertaining and compelling--it's almost like reading a movie. And you'll notice clever little things in the pictures that add to the story (like a flirty sideways glance or a suspicious bead of sweat). Here are my five favorites...

1. Ghost World, above, follows the adventures of two moody teenage girls, Enid and Becky, after high-school graduation, as they grow up and drift apart. (Did you see the film?) I find it mindblowing how a middle-aged male cartoonist--the hilarious Dan Clowes--managed to portray two listless young women so realistically. (He nailed it.) Ghost World won approximately one million awards for being the best graphic novel ever.
2. French Milk is a funny memoir of a 22-year-old's six-week stay in Paris with her mother--complete with drawings of croissants, striped shirts, the Eiffel Towel and some crankiness (which just makes her more charming). Really sweet to see the mother-daughter relationship.
3. Persepolis tells the story of the author's childhood under the Islamic Revolution. Her neighbors' homes are bombed, and her once-wealthy parents now struggle to educate her. Her father considers fleeing to America, but then asks to his wife, "I can become a taxi driver and you a cleaning lady?" As she grows up, the girl's rebellious streak puts her in danger. Touching that the story is told through a child's eyes.
4. Shortcomings follows Ben, a cynical Japanese-American guy in his twenties, on his search for contentment--and the perfect girl. He's kind of a jerk but you grow to love him, or, at least, understand him. Fascinating insight into a certain type of male mind. (The genius author Adrian Tomine also illustrates for the New Yorker; I once spotted him in a record store! I creepily trailed him around but was too shy to say hello.)
5. Cancer Vixen has a scary cover, but I promise you, this book is a-maz-ing. (Even my manly brother-in-law was obsessed with it.) Written by a New Yorker and Glamour cartoonist, the novel tells Marisa's true story of finding a lump in her breast right after meeting the love of her life. This book made me laugh out loud and shed tears, and I couldn't put it town.

Have you ever read graphic novels? Do you have any favorites?

P.S. Ten best documentaries and my favorite book of all time.

Dancing

Isn't this photo of a dancing couple lovely? The print would look beautiful framed (or wrapped up with a red bow as a wedding present).

Japanese Bikini Girls Playing in Shit

Just when you thought that you have seen it all before in Japan, along comes yet another WTF image of some Japanese Bikini Girls playing in shit:



Actually the above is some artwork by the well-known contemporary artist Makoto Aida and is entitled "Shit by Jomon-type Monster (2003)":

An ephemeral outdoor ceramic piece made with art students and volunteers, Shit by Jomon-type Monster (2003), consisted of mounds of coiled, brown clay that simultaneously resembled gigantic feces and the pots left by Japan’s pre-historic Jomon civilization. Intentionally crude, the work was an embrace of failure...

Here is a recent interview with Makoto Aida "Bye-bye Kitty!!!":



See also:

Young Eye Popping Japanese Bikini Girl!

Poop steak, from Japan of course

Swedish optical illusion

Swedish artist Erik Johansson created this incredible optical illusion in a Stockholm city square. The ravine looks so real, it gives me goosebumps!

(Via the brilliant NYMag)

Embroidered portraits

Daniel Kornrumpf's embroidered portraits blow my mind. Can you imagine how long they would take? I love the incredible detail, like wayward mustache hairs and hungover eyes.

P.S. Motherhood Monday post coming up!

(Via Illusion)

lapas art

Parisian potholes

Artist Juliana Santacruz Herrera walks around Paris and patches up cracks in the street with braids of colorful yarn. Aren't they lovely? See more here.

P.S. Remember these pothole gardens?

(Via Honestly...WTF)

The invisible man

Chinese photographer Liu Bolin is meticulously covered in paint so that he disappears into his surroundings. Apparently, it can take up to 10 hours to prepare for a single shot. Aren't his photographs mind-blowing?! You can barely see him!

P.S. Remember these painted people?

(Photos by Liu Bolin. Via Honestly...WTF. Thanks, Leigh)

Embroidered book covers

How breathtakingly gorgeous are these embroidered book covers by Jillian Tamaki? She made them for Penguin Books, and rumor has it that they'll be available this fall. SO beautiful. (I'm sure Jane Austen would have wholeheartedly approved. I love Emma's little freckles!)

P.S. More + amazing + book covers.

(By Jillian Tamaki, via Black Eiffel)

Do-it-yourself cloud artwork

Since Alex and I are giving our bedroom a makeover, we've been thinking about new artwork. Well, this is genius: Amber took her a snapshot of clouds and then blew it up on glossy poster paper for $30. Then she framed it in an IKEA Ribba frame. The whole project cost less than $60, and it's gorgeous! Double thumbs up! I'm super inspired.

(Photos by Amber Interiors, via Little Green Notebook)

Ocean print

Alex and I are giving our bedroom a little makeover, and we've been looking for artwork to go over our bed. How calming and lovely is this ocean photograph? Laura Bell took it while on a ferry in Scotland, and the circular shape makes it feel like she's peeking out a porthole window. Beautiful, don't you think?

Explore Florida's Art Without Leaving Miami

Dance of the Whooping Cranes by N. C. Wyeth. Just one of many paintings on exhibit at History Miami through May 15.

I've been taking a Florida history class once a week since January with Dr. Paul George at Miami-Dade College. Only this week did we begin to get into the 19th century, when Spain sold Florida to the United States for a cool $5 million in 1819. (Compare that to today's luxury real estate prices.)

Coincidentally, History Miami launched an art exhibit about two weeks ago highlighting the periods we're going to be studying for the rest of the course.

Reflections: Paintings of Florida 1865-1965 displays 69 paintings from the collection of Cici and Hyatt Brown, collectors who are passionate about Florida art. The collection focuses on Florida's natural beauty and rural life before the post-World War II construction booms and is the largest private collection of its kind in the world today.

My favorite paintings were the one depicting natural landscapes -- the kind you might see today if you go off the beaten path into the forests, swamps, lakes and rivers of the state -- any place untouched by development. St. Augustine was also well represented with street and maritime scenes. Portraits of native Floridians and pioneering African-Americans hung among the depictions of the land.

What's important about this collection is that it captures the Florida School of Art and features many renown painters who lived in the state and were inspired by its culture and beauty. Today, it's so easy to get caught up in everything that's wrong about Florida and find no inspiration here. Exhibits like this put things into perspective, keeping track of the rich cultural history of the state.

The exhibit was organized by the Museum of Arts and Sciences, Daytona Beach and is on display until May 15. For more information, visit History Miami.

NOT A STUFFY MUSEUM

History Miami is one of my favorite local institutions and now they've made it even more cool and groovy with Wine Down Wednesday, which take place the first Wednesday of every month, 5 to 8 PM. So if you happen to go to Reflections on April 6 or May 4 from 5 to 8 PM, you'll get free admission, free parking, live music, $15 open wine bar with light snacks or $5 by the glass. Members and county employees get a complimentary glass. Surely, this has to be one of, if not the best, Miami cultural happy hours.

For more details and to rsvp, call 305-375-1614.