life is art

New Dunlap Studios.

2008-11-26T16:23:00.001-07:00

For those of you wondering where I've been, I've switched to Wordpress and now my blog is located at www.DunlapStudios.com. Check out my new site and subscribe to my RSS!

Featured at Freelance Pulse.

2008-10-07T10:40:00.004-07:00

Yesterday I was featured on Freelance Pulse, which was a really great surprise. I sent them a little bio on Sunday night and found myself on the site the next day. I appreciate all the promotion I get so thanks Freelance Pulse, especially Steve!

If you're a freelancer and not familiar with the site, you should be. The site has only been up a couple of weeks, but is already a huge hit. It organizes freelance work by job every day, which makes job hunting so much easier. Whenever I have some down time I like to surf through the projects and see if I can find anything interesting. Not only does it hand you freelance jobs, but it also has great advice, like the "How Much Do You Charge?" article that was posted today.

If you're a freelancer or even just a designer, illustrator, programmer or writer... just check out the site, you will surely find some value in it.

Design By Humans.

2008-10-02T10:30:00.004-07:00

A couple new, er.... kind of new designs over at DBH. Go check them out and vote.

Power to the poster.

2008-10-02T09:20:00.005-07:00

I found Power to the poster last week and decided to submit my health-care project. To my surprise they accepted it! Not only that, but my artwork will be displayed in an exhibit this coming week in Lincoln, Nebraska.

I think that the idea of free graphic design for a good cause is great, especially because you get to choose your cause and people all over the nation can print out and post up your artwork. I don't really agree with all of the views on the site, but that's also why I like it. It shows the differences in opinions and beliefs, though we are still united by graphic design. I'm extremely happy to be a part of this project. So head over and download some great art and post them up!

So..... GROSS!

2008-09-28T23:06:00.005-07:00

EDIT: The design is now up, so please everyone go vote for it. I want to wear this gross shirt!

So, I've been working on a pretty gross illustration today. It was all drawn in Illustrator and then colored in Photoshop. If I had more time I'd throw up a tutorial on how I colored it. I'm hoping that it will be used for a possible magazine cover for a certain art/design magazine... but we'll see how it goes, I'll keep you guys updated. As of right now I have a couple of big ideas and so far I've only finished this gross evil pumpkin.

I was going to call it a night and then I remembered that Design By Humans was having a Halloween contest. I threw it on a shirt template and submitted it to the site. I'll post up the link once it's accepted and then hound you guys to vote for it. Here is the illustration, and below it is how I want it on the shirt.

All over! (kind of...)

2008-09-28T11:50:00.005-07:00

I just wanted to thank everyone that took the time to vote for me. I placed 11th out of 112 with 100 finished votes, so I am pretty happy. I am now a finalist along with 19 other artists. I do not think I have any chances of winning considering my competition, but I am extremely happy with where I'm at. I'm slowly building up my achievements on my resume, and I'm really happy to add "Don't Panic Finalist" on to it. It's a big deal for me, because several of my favorite artists and biggest inspirations have competed in Don't Panic competitions. My favorite artist of all time, Banksy, released a poster through Don't Panic two years ago. The fact that I'm even being considered by them is a huge deal for me.

I wanted to post up a couple of pieces that I think should win the contest. I'm not sure if that's weird considering I'm still in it. I just honestly think that they did a better job and I want to show that. Here are some great pieces, if you'd like to see more visit this link.

So, I'm still freaking awake!

2008-09-26T01:55:00.005-07:00

For the past two weeks I haven't been able to sleep. I'm super tired all day long and by the time I get to bed it seems like my tiredness has faded. Anyone that knows me knows that I can't stay still for too long... so after I try counting myself to sleep and it fails, I go back to the Mac.

Here is what I worked on tonight (part of the night). I've been considering sending in a couple pieces to Semi-Permanent, which is a very prestigious art magazine that is released once a year. Getting it on your resume is just about as cool as it gets for painters, designers and illustrators. So, I've been trying to think of what to do that would make me stand out. I decided to do a little comic about all of the things I've been complaining about.

Now, I'm going to try and go to bed. If I can't sleep expect another post with another comic, I'm sure they'll only get stupider as the night goes on.

New OPEX proof.

2008-09-25T21:23:00.003-07:00

I finally got around to doing another proof for OPEX. I want to thank them for being so patient. I went back and deleted a lot of the old layers and tried a different attack on the shading of their faces. I'm very happy with the way it turned out, it seems like an old comic book style, yet very unique.

On Design By Humans.

2008-09-23T10:34:00.007-07:00

I'm still in crazy contest mode for some reason. I've just set up a couple t-shirts for a design by humans. Please go there and vote for me. Click on the images of the shirts to go to their site.

Changes on the horizon.

2008-09-22T21:52:00.004-07:00

So my good friend Stephen at Sonata Creative set up a new site and got me stoked on setting up my own. I'm designing it in Photoshop with a focus on my illustration and design capabilities. I really want to get more work as an illustrator, so I want my site to show that.

The new site will be through wordpress.... (please don't delete this blogspot!)... I love the layout and customization of it. I've steered clear of wordpress so far, because every design site is in wordpress. But I realize it's the easiest way to go and I think I'll like it much more. The new site will have three sections: the blog (my home page), my portfolio and then a contact form all following the same theme. Above is an idea of how I want it to look, I'm going to work on it a little bit more and then send it off to a company to slice it up for the web. I don't know much about web design, so I definitely don't know the do's and dont's. There is a big possibility that the company will say... "you want that on a website" and laugh at me... but, I guess that's how you learn.

It's On!

2008-09-22T12:07:00.003-07:00

Voting is on for the 3 competition. Please everyone go vote for my submission here... and sorry, you'll have to create a log on to do it. You can vote once a day, so feel free to help me out!!!! Thanks to everyone that will vote!

Missing Skin.

2008-09-20T14:03:00.004-07:00

I thought I'd better put these up before I forget. Here is the second vehicle wrap that I was talking about last week. I'm extremely happy with the way it turned out, not only the design but the install. I was apart of the installation and I learned a lot, not only about installing but also designing for vehicles (not to trust bad wrap).

The wrap isn't actually finished in these photos, it's missing the back window perf... and you can also see it says "naval rings" instead of "navel rings"...... that was just one of the headaches that day. But it paid off.

Project #4

2008-09-20T13:47:00.003-07:00

Poster: Government Public Health Policy. Depicting problems of the health system: many un-insured, fees too high, quality of life vs. longevity, red tape, mal-practice suits. Title: "Is Quality Healthcare an American Right?"

I rushed this project and I'm too happy with the outcome. I wanted really simple sketches over a vibrant background, but now I feel they're too simple and I should have maybe chosen different perspectives. I'm too burnt out and busy to start over.

Contest #2

2008-09-17T21:51:00.004-07:00

Here is my submission for the InkFruit Rock and Roll contest. I'm really excited about this contest because of the topic and the design freedom. I'm thinking about doing a couple more, but here is this one for now. I'm pretty sure you can vote for it here, if not I'll post the correct link up later. Please everyone go vote for it!

Project #3

2008-09-16T22:55:00.007-07:00

Project Guidelines : Poster to help Americans adapt to the metric system. Could show the importance and benefits of adapting, could depict it as easy to adjust to. Title : "American Goes Metric".

I wanted this drawing to show how easy the metric system is and I also wanted to do a funny piece. At first I was going to do an upset Uncle Sam with 12 fingers and the Queen saying "... Oh, that's why". Instead I decided to do one of the president having the metric system explained to him. I was going to have the Queen explain it to him, but this style took so long that I just gave up on her.

Here are just the sketches, only a partial one of the Queen. The flowers on her hat were going to require so much coloring that I decided that it wasn't worth the trouble. I think the piece is still a strong piece without her... hopefully my teacher will as well.
Also, I wanted to post my original sketch. When I first started the project I was at school so I was having to sketch with the mouse. I was really happy with the way it turned out because I did it only using a mouse. But, because I'm so anal and I knew it would look better with the tablet I started from scratch when I got home using my first sketch as a template. I'm happy I did because there is a pretty big difference in quality..... I love that sweet Wacom quality.

Vehicle Wrap Update.

2008-09-16T22:45:00.003-07:00

The customer dropped by today to show off the install, and it's incredible! If I knew the detail shop that installed it I'd give them a plug because they definitely deserve it. There isn't a wrinkle or air bubble in any of the graphics, and I only printed and weeded one of each so there wasn't any room for mistakes. The customer loves it and wants some more "paint" thrown on there, he's getting me a couple more logos to set up in the splatter style. I'm really happy with the way this turned out, between the pre-press, printing, cutting, weeding and installation there were a lot of areas that this project could of screwed up.... I'm so happy it didn't.

Done with contest #1

2008-09-16T00:09:00.003-07:00

Here is my submission to the Don't Panic / 3 Dongle competition. I took a look at the gallery and the competition is really good for the most part. I like my finished design and that's all that matters I suppose. Voting isn't allowed until the 22nd, I'll create a post to notify everyone, I'm hoping I can get voted into the semi-finals.

Right Away Great Update!

2008-09-15T20:19:00.005-07:00

I emailed my first set of proofs to RAGC, and I'm waiting to hear back. I've had a terrible time coming up with ideas, or following through with them. I've been way nervous because I'm designing for one of my favorite bands, so I've just been drawing and designing crap. I'm nervous because if this project does bring in other "larger" bands, I'm worried that I'll constantly be stressing about impressing them. After relaxing and thinking some things over I came up with three proofs that are pretty different from each other. One is a dirty sketch done by me, one is an old illustration that I found and the other is a typical logo design, which I do think is good, but I'm not sure it fits the band. As of right now I like the first one the best, I'm excited to hear what he thinks.

On another note, the van wrap is complete and looks great. I'll get the photos up as soon as I can, but for right now I really need to study.

High hopes.

2008-09-14T23:02:00.006-07:00

So, I worked on the install of the vehicle wrap yesterday and we not only did not finish, but we didn't even finish the back end. It seems that the Bad Wrap templates aren't as accurate as they say and I should not have trusted them as much as I did. Either way the part of the van we did complete looks great, my wrapping skills have improved dirasticly. As for the Corvette, I'm not sure the install even happened on that. I drove down to the church today to see if it was out and I didn't have any luck. I'll get photos of the completed wraps up as soon I have them, until then here are some photos of the artwork.

Big Weekend!

2008-09-13T00:16:00.003-07:00

So, I have a huge amount of things to share about this weekend. I'm actually going to do it in a couple posts.

I have two vehicle wraps that are getting installed this weekend, one on a Corvette which will be done by someone else and one on a Dodge Caravan which I will be helping with. The Corvette is for Central Christian Church and the Dodge Caravan is for a body piercing shop... and no I didn't get those switched around. I will post up the completed images as soon as I have them.

My illustrator teacher asked me yesterday if he could exhibit my illustrations from last semester in the art building windows. The prints were framed and put on easels today along with a small framed sheet that included my information. I will post up images of the little exhibit and the original photos as soon as I get the chance.

Last but definitely not least I contacted RAGC through myspace about doing design for him and to my surprise Andy from RAGC and Manchester Orchestra wrote me back. He complimented my artwork and told me to run with it. I'm starting with some RAGC artwork for his myspace, I'm hoping that it will lead to some Manchester Orchestra Myspace work or possibly t-shirt designs for either band. I'm really hoping to corner the market for indie artists, and I think a band like MO or RAGC will really help me do that. Either way I'm honored to be doing work for one or both of my favorite bands. Above is a preview of something I'm working on, I'll probably throw together a couple others before sending him any proofs. I worked two hours tonight on a detailed illustration that I ended up trashing.... I think I'm being a little more critical with my designs for this project.

Another Try.

2008-09-11T09:24:00.003-07:00

So, I'm taking another try at design competitions. I'm not looking to win, I just want to at least get acknowledged for my resume. I'm also sending in a couple personal art pieces to some art compilation magazines. I think it would be awesome to be featured in something that is seen all over.

I'll post up the whole piece when it's finished.

Project 2.

2008-09-11T08:36:00.009-07:00

Here is my project for this week. The assignment was a magazine article on dog disobedience. The illustration should illustrate the "disobedient dog". The title of the article must be "Rover Make-Over".

I'm happy how it turned out, I'm glad too because it took several hours of drawing. There are a lot of art competitions coming up, so I'm thinking about using the drawings to create something more abstract and creative.

Back in school.

2008-09-09T09:48:00.005-07:00

I'm back in school finishing out my last semester. I'm in an advanced illustrator course that requires a bunch of drawing! My teacher gave me a list of assignments on the first day and I'm just expected to turn one in once a week with a page of thumbnail ideas.

This week's assignment: Advertisement for "Planters" salted nuts. Setting must be in a nice restaurant, the image must contain a squirrel posing as a waiter offering the nuts as a nice bottle of wine. Quote must be "May we suggest our extra fancy nuts?".

I searched Planters old print material all the way back to the early 1900's and finally came up with a style. I decided to do it in a cartoon style, but I really wanted it to look like their old print material. So after the illustration was finished I brought it into Photoshop and then made it look really old with stains and paper texture. I wanted it to look like you just found it in a 1960's magazine. I think it worked out.

Music.

2008-09-09T08:54:00.006-07:00

So my entire taste in music changed this past year. I've always been a fan of indie/folk music but as of right now it's all I listen to. Here are my 10 favorite albums for the time being.

10. Desaparecidos - Read Music. Speak Spanish.

9. Ian Love - Ian Love

8. Margot & The Nuclear So and So's - The Dust Of Retreat

7. The Appleseed Cast - Peregrine (always on my lists)

6. Neutral Milk Hotel - The Aeroplane Over The Sea

5. Iron And Wine - The Shepard's Dog (always on my lists)

4. Okkervil River - The Stage Names

3. Right Away, Great Captain! - The Bitter End

2. Arrah And The Ferns - Evan Is A Vegan

1. Anything by Pedro The Lion, though I'm rekindling an old flame for Achilles Heel

Thanks Matt!

2008-09-09T08:43:00.004-07:00

I recently started doing some marketing material for The Path CC located in Rosemount Minnesota. The cool thing about this church is that it is completely out of a movie theater, so the artwork has been pretty fun. So far I've set up postcards, invite cards, an HTML email and a cool movie poster that actually hangs in the theater with the other movie posters.

Matt recently posted on his personal/church blog about Dunlap Studios and the recent marketing campaign they've been doing. I really appreciate the acknowledgment, especially because I've recently been doing a terrible job managing my time and he has been very patient with me. The best compliment you can give a designer is a referral, so it is much appreciated!

So in case you didn't know,

2008-09-05T22:52:00.004-07:00

I'm super lucky.

Old Artwork.

2008-09-04T10:10:00.006-07:00

I found these photos of some old paintings I did so I decided to post them. I really don't know how original these are, at the time I was copying every style trying to find my own. I had these hanging in my house for a while, but my wife didn't care for them. They're all on stretched canvas, painted with india ink and some acrylic. I still have them if anyone wants them.

I'm Alive!

2008-08-28T10:29:00.011-07:00

So, I've been really terrible at keeping up my blog. I am going to try harder. I promise. Here are a couple of my recent favorite projects from Dunlap Studios. Hope you like them.

Foreknown Apostolic Apparel Design

The Path CC - Postcard Design

Second Nature - Logo Design

Bare Apparel - Tradeshow/Postcard/PriceSheet/BusinessCard

Foreknown Flyers

OPEX Logo Design (Only in the beginning stages)

Early stages of a T-Shirt Illustration. The customer flaked, so I never finished it. If anyone likes the idea or wants it, I'll finish it out for you.

Finally!

2008-05-15T00:14:00.004-07:00

I thought I'd show you what I'm looking at right now. Mac Pro 2.8ghz Quadcore Xeon processor, 320gb hard drive and 2gb of RAM. I have another 750gb hard drive on it's way for my customer files and two 40gb hard drives coming for my scratch disks coming from New Egg. I have another 4gb of RAM coming from 4 all memory. I am, as the French would say, le' stoked. None of you will ever see me again.

Almost....

2008-05-10T01:14:00.004-07:00

I'm days away from revealing my secret.... trust me, you can't handle it. I'm giving you these days of suspense to prepare you for what is to come. Until then, I have some items for you.

Item number 1: I will be recording and releasing an EP this summer under the name Analagous. I have 8-10 songs written, but I only want to record a couple. The EP will probably only have 4 songs on it, and maybe a cover. I'm not sure how I'm going to record it yet, a couple of options have arose, but I'm not sure which path I'll be taking. I do know that I am going to create a Myspace for the project, and the EP will be available for download for free along with a .pdf booklet including art and lyrics. I will keep you updated.

Item number 2: Some of the coolest photography I've seen, I honestly don't know how he does it.Item number 3: The coolest website I've seen in a long time. If you love fonts like I do, check it out.As for the news, you'll just have to wait. Any day now... any day...

Hello.

2008-05-08T18:42:00.005-07:00

I haven't posted for a little while, I've been as the French say, le' busy. I just wanted to post that, there is something big going in the world of Dunlap Studios... or in the world of Drew Dunlap... or in your world, because it's all really the same world. I can't tell you anything as of yet... but when it happens you will know. For now I'll leave you with a couple new illustrations. I'm trying for a more realistic feel with this series... kind of wish I turned these into Adobe. Well, there's always next year. Anyways, these are for sale if you want them.

One Last Plea......

2008-04-30T23:17:00.006-07:00

All of my submissions are in for the ADAA. The number of submissions have rose drastically, the number now is 967 but I think it's still growing. The number of print submissions have more than doubled in the past week. And the submissions aren't pieces, they are series of pieces. You're allowed 9 pieces per submission. I can't even guess the amount of actual pieces of artwork that have been submitted. So how will I stand out? Maybe a personal note from me, to red hot lady adobe.

Hold Onto Your Lug Nuts...

2008-04-29T00:13:00.004-07:00

...It's time for an overhaul. So, after a long time of trying to get my website template to look less and less like a template, I realized there was no hope without getting into the actual CSS. So (for some reason) I thought tonight would be a perfect night, it's not like I should be studying or sleeping. I completely changed my website and as you can see my blog, so now they match, same style, same artwork. The brushes I used can be found at Brusheezy and the font... I love this font. Now I just need to get to work on my Myspace. I want to do something different for it, I just don't know what yet... I just know I hate the way I have it.

Spotlight Designer.

2008-04-27T20:28:00.005-07:00

Some cool news. I just got an e-mail saying my design for the Dunlap Studios flyer was approved as a Spotlight Design for istockphoto.com. I'm pretty happy about it, considering I do look through the spotlight designs from time to time looking for ideas, and now I'm included in them. On top of being listed in the Designer Spotlight, they also awarded me with some free credits which I am REALLY happy about. I was considering selling one of my kidneys or donating plasma to try and fund my stock photo habit, now my kidney can sleep peacefully one more night but not you plasma.... NOT YOU!!!

Free Splatter Brush Set!

2008-04-27T10:43:00.006-07:00

I guess I'm just in the giving mood. This set contains 9 brushes that I created using images from CGTextures.com. This is my first brush set I've made, so please excuse the fact that some are a little messy, but the fact that they're HUGE should make up for it.

If you need help installing the brushes, click here.

Free Ocean Vector Set.

2008-04-25T23:31:00.007-07:00

Here is the first Dunlap Studios vector set. The vectors are from a children's book that I am working on, and I wanted to share them with you. The children's book is very minimalistic, so I only used the outlines of the vectors. The detail is a little grungy because I actually went in and added it afterwards and didn't spend to much time on it, but it's better than nothing. I am planning on posting up other vector and brush sets in the future, I've just been so busy that it's hard to. So please enjoy them, let me know what you use them on and please pay attention to the licensing.

Productivity sucks....

2008-04-21T23:13:00.003-07:00

... the life out of you. I found out today that I can't just upload whatever I want onto ADAA. I have to have 3 entries, and that's it. The entires however can be a series, in which you can upload several designs for. So to make sure my stuff gets looked at, I added onto my original submission. I started on the book, and then created a promotional flyer (which might become the back cover), all in the past couple of hours. I'm going to go broke thanks to these stock photo sites, I've got to start making money on this crap or I'm gonna quit and head back to the farm.

A little bit of venting.

2008-04-19T21:11:00.005-07:00

I don't know how many of you loyal readers (mom) use Media Fire, but I am an avid user. By avid I mean that I sit and watch my uploads fail all the time, have problems with customer's not being able to download, and get really pissed off. I've been trying to upload Foreknown's album artwork for over an hour and it's not working at all, I'm guessing he'll probably have trouble getting it off as well. I love the idea of it, free hosting, unlimited space, 100mb uploads, and they never delete my files... only it never works! All the ratings from many respected magazines give it 5 out of 5 stars... well here is the official Dunlap Studios rating for Media Fire: 1 out of 5 stars, for every one out of five times it works for me. Can someone please tip me off on another free (RELIABLE) ftp host?

Cool Trick! Roughing up edges.

2008-04-19T20:12:00.009-07:00

So yesterday I found a tutorial on how to create "roughed up" edges. If you're like me and don't yet have the luxury of CS3 (it will come with time), you'll just have to do without the smart filters. You can just apply the filter directly to the layer, but you won't be able to edit it afterwards (which is a pain). Either way, this little tip has saved me time, I used to manually texture all of the edges on my artwork (seriously) and it would never look this good. Every time I think I have Photoshop figured out I realize that there is so much more to learn. The images are examples of how I used the tutorial, they are from a design I did today for a friend who had heart problems earlier this year.

FINALLY!

2008-04-17T20:28:00.004-07:00

My piece for ADAA is finally finished! I've spent almost two weeks adding little by little until now, it's finally finished! I'm positive that it won't even get a second look compared to the other entries I've seen from last year, but I'm glad to say that I tried. I'm going to send it into a bunch of other competitions as well, hoping to get some kind of recognition for my resume.

Along with the book cover I'm also sending in Foreknown's cd layout, and a couple of other pieces for other categories. Now that the book cover is finished I just need to start on the book (backwards much?).

I don't get it.

2008-04-17T13:41:00.006-07:00

Everyone that knows me knows that I love zombies. Everyone that knows me also knows that I love Macs. Can someone please explain to me why zombies love Macs? Am I stuck in some kind of crazy zombie-Mac love triangle?

Some Sketches.

2008-04-17T11:51:00.011-07:00

Here are three completed sketches from Painter. Two are new, I drew them freehand in Painter, the other is the angel from my previous post, I just set it up for print and added some text. Here is a breakdown of what you are looking at.

The first is called "Nimis". The name Nimis was chosen because, it is one of the five types of gluttony. I thought it was fitting for this sketch, as well as the quote, which is from Seneca.

The second is called "Walden", which I thought was fitting because of the woodgrain background. The quote is from Thoreau's "Walden; Life in the Woods".

And last but not least is the angel from my previous post. I named him "Enoch" because of the Book of Enoch, which is also partly why he was created. The scripture is from Jude 1:6. My favorite part about this fallen angel is his tattoo, the typical "mom" tattoo but it says Abba instead. I love it!

I'm thinking about getting some nice quality prints done for First Friday, but I'm worried no one will buy them. I always get anxiety when it comes to selling my artwork or releasing my music, I'm always worried that I'm my biggest fan (when I happen to be my worst critic).

Sneak Peek.

2008-04-16T18:06:00.005-07:00

So... long story short. I'm creating a hardcover book for my portfolio rather than the usual. I'm creating it through Blurb (most likely, unless I find a better source). I want my cover to be really rad, and stand out from everything else so I'm spending A LOT of time on it. Also, because I'm wanting to have at least one awesome piece to enter into ADAA this year since it will be my last year as a student. I'm sending in Foreknown's cd layout, a vehicle wrap and a couple other posters and banners I've done, but I want to have a piece that really tops it all.

After getting so stoked for this competition I decided to look around and see what else is out there, and there are A LOT of competitions! Holy crap! So when it's finally finished I'm going to be sending it into several competitions. I'm not expecting to win anything, I would just like to get in the runnings or something that I can put in my resume.

So here's a sneak peek. I'll post up the final piece when it's finished.

New Sketches.

2008-04-15T10:09:00.004-07:00

Here are some sketches I made in Painter. The characters are from my sketchbook, and I just recreated the drawings in painter. The characters are from a comic book idea that I'm never going to follow through with, I just have fun drawing them (and there are a lot of them!).

Weapons of?

2008-04-15T08:13:00.003-07:00

Ok, thanks to the trip to New York I have another book under my belt. I just finished Jeff Ott's "Weapons of Mass Destruction and the Real War On Terror". Finished would be a slight exaggeration considering the amount of times that I skipped paragraphs and pages.

Here is my view of the book. I think that Jeff Ott isn't a very good writer, but he does have some decent points. The basis of the book is that the meaning of "Terrorism" can be applied to anything that induces violence on something else. He focuses on terrorism in our own community such as domestic violence and even cigarettes. His main point is that we are so scared of the middle east when realistically, in the year that 9/11 happened terrorism took one third of the amount of lives suicide did (which was less than 1/10 of what cigarettes did).

Because I have different views on MANY of the subjects Jeff Ott wrote about, I skipped over several rants. My number one problem with the book is that Jeff Ott is so concerned with the amount of death in our nation, but he is unbelievably pro-choice. What? In the chart that he made himself, the biggest killer in our nation is heart disease which took over 440,000 lives in 2001. The chart didn't include abortion which, according to abort73, took 1.21 million lives in 2002. That doesn't really make sense to me.

One small note, I didn't put a link to abort73 because although their information is accurate and I appreciate what they do. I think the shock value that they use is very unnecessary.

New York, New York

2008-04-10T08:47:00.005-07:00

I'm going to New York tonight, and I'm purposely not taking my laptop and probably won't be answering my phone. I'm more than aware of the amount of myspaces, logos, posters and other artwork that I'm leaving unfinished, but it's time for a little vacation. Call or text me if anyone needs something ASAP, but more than likely it'll have to wait until Monday.

I'm bringing my camera along with hopes of filling up two 2gb sticks. I want to get as many photos of buildings and people as possible so I can stop buying stock photos.

Stay classy San Diego.

Painter Class, Round 2

2008-04-10T08:39:00.004-07:00

Here is my first finished piece from my Corel class. The background was done in Photoshop, it was a couple of photos of flames that I changed the hue on and then motion blurred. The blue sparks are a Photoshop brush that I found at Brusheezy. The hockey player was done in Painter. Who wants to buy it?

Right Clicking on your Mac

2008-04-08T12:39:00.003-07:00

Ever since I got my heart set on getting a Mac I've been trying to learn everything possible about them. I've been watching every tutorial Apple has to offer and reading every Mac forum I can find trying to learn about all the common problems. The most common problem I see is when PC users take the blind leap into the world of Mac, and are furious about the loss of their beloved "Right-Click".

For Mac users, this information is extremely elementary, but for long time PC users this seems to be a saving grace. Most have learned that if you are using a Mac and have not found a way around needing the precious right click, you can hold the "control" key on your keyboard and then click. If you're set in your ways, then carry on, but if you want the good old PC "Right Click" then follow these instructions.

Go to your Apple tab in the top left of your screen. Go to your system preferences and then click on the keyboard and mouse icon. Select the mouse tab, and then you can customize the buttons on your mouse to do whatever you want.

Simple right... now go tell the world what you've seen here. Go to every Mac based forum you can find and you will see this problem posted hundreds of times, with knowledge comes responsibility. Don't let me down.

Now, if you're anything like me. I won't be using the Mac mouse, not because I don't like the right click options, but because I don't think the mighty mouse is all that mighty. Logitech makes the mighty mice.

Plunder, Beg and Curse

2008-04-08T12:05:00.003-07:00

For those who don't know who Colour Revolt is, learn, and then read on. I picked up their debut album a little while back and was absolutely amazed by it. The mixture of folk, to a dark heavy style of indie was incredible. I've yet to find any band that can blend two such opposite genre's and still come out sounding entirely put together. Last week their full length came out, and as I was just thinking that I had them figured out, they've entirely changed.

The full length "Plunder, Beg and Curse" almost sounds like an entirely different band. A new band that has completely devoured what Colour Revolt used to be and just grew from it. Their musical style is similar, but it's so much more. There are so many different aspects to their style now, there is no way you can categorize this into a genre. So I will do all of you a favor, I'm going to create a genre for them.

For here on out whenever I am asked "what style are they" in regards to the Colour Revolt. I'm just going to reply "the best style". (Don't even try to steal that Rolling Stone)

Mountains Beyond Mountains

2008-04-08T11:40:00.003-07:00

My Mom just went on missions trip to Haiti two weeks ago, and gave me this book to read while she's there. Mountains Beyond Mountains, is written about Dr. Paul Farmer, an incredible man that has worked his entire adult life (20+ years) helping people in Haiti, and receiving nothing in return.

Farmer worked in Haiti, as a doctor for those who could never have doctors. He started his own medical facility, where he treated everyone for anything. He made sure that one of the poorest nations in the world would get some of the greatest health care. He funded this facility through grants, private donors, and himself.

He worked at a highly respected Boston medical facility and at a US university making very good money. He hired an accountant that would handle all the expenses of the facility. She took all of his paychecks and (after paying his mother's monthly mortgage) sent the rest down to Haiti to pay the employees and purchase more medical supplies. He made sure that everyone was getting the treatment they deserved, regardless if they had the money to pay for it or not.

If you're looking for a book to read right now you should check out this one. I love stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

"So I can't show you how, exactly, health care is a basic human right. But what I can argue is that no one should have to die of a disease that is treatable." - Dr. Paul Farmer

Corel Painter

2008-04-03T08:37:00.008-07:00

So I'm in a Painter class right now. I'm not liking the program at all! I don't know if I'm just used to Adobe products or what, but it seems like Corel just likes to make people do things the hard way. Regardless I thought I'd put up some of my pieces from this semester.

Manchester, Seriously.....

2008-04-02T23:21:00.005-07:00

Just talking about Manchester Orchestra in the Anathallo post 20 minutes ago spawned an urge to lurk every myspace page and you tube page that has anything to do with the band. In the process I found two awesome videos.

The first one is from Manchester's regular video blog, this video is from their tour with Anathallo. It features a clip in the studio, with Andy playing a new acoustic song that is incredible. Check it out.

The second is (I'm guessing) from a fan. It's a live video of Manchestor on stage with two other bands. That's my favorite part about Manchestor touring, they're pretty much promised to get on stage and do a song with all the other musicians on the tour. This show looks like it would have been awesome, I wish the person taking the video would have recorded the whole song.

Anathallo "Floating World"

2008-04-02T22:21:00.007-07:00

I'm going to start doing reviews on movies, music, and books; what better band to start with than Anathallo? This band is unbelievable! The only problem is any comparison I can give for Anathallo would be short-handing them. I just recently picked up my first Anathallo album "Floating World". Every song is, no joke, a masterpiece. There is a huge array of insturments, vocals, and music theory. Through what sounds, at times, like complete chaos, there remains a sense of beauty and simplicity. I would compare different aspects of this band to others such as Sufjan Stevens, Annuals and during their darker, heavier side to Mewithoutyou and Manchester Orchestra (whom I love). But at the same time, none of those comparisons really do the band justice.

This is such a terrible review, I'm really off to a great start. I saw a review on itunes when I purchased the album that made me want to get it immediately. I'll leave you with these last words, and then, don't ask any questions just download the cd.

"If Sufjan Stevens was seven different people, each with an I.Q. of 500,000... he'd be Anathallo"

Roadrunners + Best man = Good night

2008-04-01T23:55:00.014-07:00

So Nathaniel and I got the best seats in the entire arena tonight. The guy at the roadrunners gave us some ok seats in the "attack" zone (like row 19), and he threw in some free passes to the Verve Energy Zone. He told me the passes were right next to the ice, I guess I didn't really know what that meant until we got there. We we're asking the lady that worked there where the Verve Energy Zone was and she pointed to a lounge area below. It's literally a bar, with bar stools that sits right along the actual glass. We we're getting players checked two feet away from our faces. Although the dreams of going to the playoffs were shattered tonight, the seats made it the best game of the season. Check out these photos.

On top of all that excitement tonight, Nathaniel also asked me to be his best man at his wedding this October. It would really be hard to beat a night like tonight.

New Dunlap Studios Sponsored Artist!

2008-03-30T12:09:00.006-07:00

I'm super happy to announce that Dunlap Studios has signed another sponsored artist. The band is "Cry Havoc", a punk/hardcore band out of Los Angeles California. They've had three releases (that sound like label quality), and they're currently writing a full length.
I'm really happy to do artwork for them, because their taste varies so much from the usual stuff I've been doing lately. I'm currently working on my first project for them using a couple vector packs from Ben Blogged (pictured above), for a new Myspace layout. I'm only in the rough stages right now, as they are making some changes, but I'm happy with the way it's all turning out. So make sure to check out their music, add them on Myspace, and keep your eye out for new artwork coming soon!

International Justice Mission

2008-03-19T21:05:00.006-07:00

I am not a crazy reader, although I would like to be. With how crazy life is right now I'm averaging a book a month when I wish I was averaging a book a week.

Last week I was given a copy of Gary A. Haugen's "Terrify No More". Haugen is not an author, he is the founder and president of the International Justice Mission. An organization founded to free individuals from the slave trade in poverty stricken countries. Which in our little world may seem like a minuscule need, but there are more slaves in the world today than during the 400 hundred years of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade.

The organization was created to stop sex-trafficking by simply (not that simple) getting the countries to enforce their own laws. I've just begun the book, so I have only read several (I'm sure there's many more) accounts of child rape and prostitution. But unlike other organizations IJM doesn't just investigate and then try and spread the word of the need of these girls. They actually do something about it. So far every case that they've stated, every girl has not only been freed from the brothel; they are taken to an IJM recovery facility for medical treatment, schooling and preparation for life after these tragedies.

Even more interesting, IJM in iteslf is an incredible organization. I know from reading through their employment information, that every day is started with 30 minutes of silence and prayer to focus on their purpose. Even more impressive, you can go on IJM's website and view all of their tax documents, so you know exactly where you're donations are going. The website openly displays, the president and founder, Gary Haugen's salary. How many other organizations can you say that about?

I've already told Foreknown that he gets my copy after I'm finished. But because it was given to me, and it will be given to him, contact him and he'll give it to you when he's finished (as long as you promise to read it and pass it on).

Gary Haugen says it best, "...in the moral universe engineered by a holy God, knowledge carries responsibility."

Dunlap Studios Sponsored Artists.

2008-03-18T18:28:00.002-07:00

For those who know me know that I am madly in love with music. Anything from metal to folk to hip hop, I love every style. And, because of my experience in many many music projects that never went anywhere, I have a huge heart for independent artists.
When I recently started Dunlap Studios I decided that I wanted to focus the majority of my attention on underground/independent music. There is a huge market in Arizona alone, it seems that everyone is now picking up a guitar and taking a stab at it. Because of this overflow of artists, it seems that the true talented artists aren't being taken seriously, or never get the chance of being heard. That is why I decided to create the "Dunlap Studios Sponsored Artists".

I right now have two signed artists:

Foreknown is an incredible hip hop artist, who (in my opinion) stands apart from the typical hip hop crowd. His lyrics are not only glorifying to God, but they're incredible. I know from experience (one of the many projects that never went anywhere) that Foreknown takes his writing very seriously. Every line has a purpose, and every song in it's entirety is a masterpiece.
Whether it's "Theories of Relativity" where he raps about the trials and issues involved with being a Christian in todays world. Or "Nakamura" where he raps about the trials and issues of having super powers in todays world. All of the songs he's released so far are all equally impressive, and I'm proud to say that I not only do artwork for him, but have the privilege of knowing him.

The second sponsored artist is I Hope You Suffer. I Hope You Suffer is an instrumental band that consists of only one member, Joseph Munoz. Joseph is extremely talented, and his style not only stands out from local Arizona acts, but instrumental groups all together. His music has a simplistic feel, that also conveys a sense of passion and emotion (which is hard to do without a vocalist). I am really happy to not only be doing the art for Joseph, but loving the art that I'm doing. We have similar tastes in art, so I've been having fun with everything that I've created for him.

I hope you check out these artists, because they deserve it. If you are an musician that wants to be sponsored or know someone who is, fill out the sponsored artist application. I'd love to hear what you have going.

Like this will ever last!

2008-03-18T18:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I've thought that this whole blogging thing was just a passing phase. Just another crazy scheme put on by the "man" to keep all of us monkeys dancing. Just like I was suckered into the whole "internet" and "cell phone" trend (which we know are on the way out), I'm now subjecting myself to the world of blog. Well world here I am. I am blog, hear me roar!