Art

I came across this website put together by one Bradley Lewis, who is not only a video game developer but also builds these replica lightsabers using various found objects and parts that he either alters or machines himself.  I have not had a chance to view all of his pieces but the most stunning so far is the Luke Skywalker lightsaber that can be disassembled to reveal a lit crystal chamber assembly and also houses a working soundboard + speaker system that is significantly louder than anything else out there.

I have to say I am extremely jealous on many fronts, particularly of his workshop and spare miscellaneous parts collection.  He's also lucky enough to have a wife who encourages him in his endeavors (now if only I'd listen to my wife for this sort of thing - preemptive self-nag - hehehe).

The interior was even signed by Mark Hamill during a Star Wars convention before it was entirely finished.  Completely awesome - I highly recommend visiting the website:  http://www.slothfurnace.com

Last weekend the Hell City Tattoo festival came to Columbus.  Our very good friends Tim and Cathy were nice enough to let me come visit and spend the night, giving me the opportunity to visit the festival both Friday night and Saturday.  

This proved to be a good thing, because I was able to secure an appointment with an excellent tattoo artist, Ant from Ascension Tattoo, Friday night for the next day.  The full color piece of the Jedi Knight from Star Wars episodes II & III, the Clone Wars animated series and also The Force Unleashed - Shaak Ti - is what he completed.  

Please bear in mind the photos above are of the tattoo while it is still in the process of before and after healing (yes, I know, it's been over a week and it's only just now reaching the itching phase it took over 3 weeks to heal fully).  

While I was there I also had the great honor of having my photo taken by the lovely Suicide Girls after they were kind enough to sign my copy of their photo book that was rescued out of apartment in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.  A big thank you to all of you!

The next piece - which is so far just the outline - is of a valkyrie; I've been meaning to get a valkyrie tattoo for a while now for several reasons.  For now I'll say that I've got a bit of a fascination with mythological beings that are involved in death, and not to seem too grim on the subject but there's a part of me that would like to go out of this world like a viking.  A small part, but it's there. This piece is going to be the largest one I've acquired yet.  Coloring is scheduled in a few weeks from today, partly to give it time to fully heal and partly because my local artist has a busy schedule, and for good reason.

Update - here's how the valkyrie looks now that she's pretty much finished:

 Professional Touch Tattoo is in my opinion the best studio in my area, but you better book your appointment in advance.  Good artists in the tattoo trade can be hard to find.

So why am I getting all of these tattoos at my age?  I've been wanting to for several years now, but there's always been something else that needs my attention.  If it wasn't for Brigitte I probably still wouldn't be getting them, but she knows how much I've been wanting to get these permanent pieces of portable art and since she herself has been unable to get her own tattoos since we have been together (she's either been pregnant or breastfeeding pretty much the entire past decade) it only makes sense that I get this work done while we are able to do so.

Tattoos are a great method of self expression.  They are no longer just examples of deviant behavior (although it is still very possible to get bad tattoos in this day and age).  There are several different styles of tattoo art, ranging from traditional, to semi-realistic, to photo-realistic, and they cover any subject matter you can think of.

If you are thinking of getting a tattoo yourself, the first step is to visualize precisely what it is you want permanently attached to your skin for the rest of your life.  If you have never had a tattoo before I strongly recommend waiting at least one full year before getting one, just to be certain that it is in fact what you want to do.  It's extremely painful to get a tattoo removed after the fact, and not every tattoo can be covered up - although there are a number of artists out there who are excellent at doing so.

Your next step is to pick an artist.  Don't just go with the first person you meet.  Look online at their website, go through the pictures in their portfolio.  Visit the studio, and make sure it is clean.  Ask to see their in-shop portfolios (usually there will be several more pieces that haven't made it to the website yet).  It's also a good idea to meet the artist, talk with him/her, and decide whether you would be comfortable letting them stick an ink-laden needle repeatedly into your skin over the course of a few hours.

If any of the above makes you uncomfortable, you would probably be best at holding off until you find a place that does make you comfortable.  If there doesn't seem to be a tattoo parlor close by that you would want to get inked at, it might be worth your while to visit a convention - just bear in mind it can be a less comfortable environment than it would be in the artists own studio.

One other point to bring up is that where you get your tattoo could potentially affect your career path.  Even though the situation isn't quite the same as it was 20 years ago, people in general still frown on tattoos.  Therefore getting your hand, neck, face or other visible body parts tattooed is probably not a good idea, unless you have no intention of ever having a regular day-job where appearance is an important part of the interview process.  Some businesses are more open than others, and it may be worth contacting your employer to learn what the company policies are regarding body-art.

The Blender Foundation is an organization involved in furthering the open source Blender3d project through development in film.  Blender3d is (as its name implies) a software package supporting 3d animation for use in film, video games and other media.

Today is the first time I've run across this project and the trailer pretty much got the goosebumps to raise up on my arms, which isn't very common with animated films backed by massive budget production companies. Goosebumps on arms is pretty much how I measure the quality of any form of multimedia, including music - if it causes goosebumps I declare it to be something of rare quality.  

Therefore this is definitely something I would highly recommend paying attention to. Since this particular film does not have a traditional producer covering the financing, but instead operates on sponsorship, it is already shaping up to be an amazing production.  What's also cool about it is the fact that through their development of this movie they are helping the Blender3d software improve, which in theory should continue to yield further gorgeously animated media. Here's a link to the website:  http://durian.blender.org/

I had a bit of an adventure last night - went to my 6pm appointment at Professional Touch in Lima, OH with Yo-Yo.  Great guy, great artist - I highly recommend him if you are in the area and looking for an awesome tattoo.  I've checked out other artists and studios in the area and never felt entirely comfortable until I checked this place out.  Everyone who works there is very cool and laid back.

This tattoo was started in 2005 at a studio in Ada by Nick.  Also a cool guy, but I think he bit off more than he could chew with this piece and I was not entirely satisfied with the result after three sessions - plus the owner of the studio was not my cup of tea - interrupting my 3rd session to demand payment.  Needless to say I didn't go back, but I was stuck with a half-finished tattoo that had some minor issues that needed correcting.

Yo-Yo spent a little over 3 hours redoing the linework and then adding a new set of wings covering up the original ones that didn't really jive quite right (the last photo at the top is what it looked like before he got started).  The end result is an amazing improvement - the photos above were taken a little less than a day later.

On the way to Meijer to pick up some Bacitracin ointment for the new tattoo, my front passenger tire blew out.  At first I thought it might have just gone soft and needed some air, but when I pulled over to check it the tire was coming part of the way off the rim.  Because it was after 10pm on a Saturday I got permission from the really awesome ladies working at the Meijer gas station to leave my car parked there overnight until I could get it towed over to Firestone today (Firestone being one of the only places open on a Sunday for service & repair).  The ladies there also were kind enough to lend me a cell phone to try calling home and ultimately to catch a cab back home.

Got the van in at Firestone today, took care of a way overdue oil change, got a chance to check out breakfast at Subway (not bad, but not as good as McDonald's breakfast - probably healthier thought).  Did some window shopping at the mall while waiting and was satisfied with the final charge.  All in all, not a bad weekend.

Willow, only 8 years old, has a severe phobia of zombies.  This is particularly strange to me - one would think growing up with your dad as a tour guide for the Haunted History Tours company would make you a little more resistant than the average kid to ghouls, ghosts and in particular, the undead creatures for which the shop where your father met your mother is named (Reverend Zombie's House of Voodoo).

The above pic is apparently concept art or fan art for the soon to be released already released for PC and X-Box 360 Zombie game, Left4Dead.  Looking at a bunch of kids forced to really "defend the fort" at the playground just sort of struck a chord, for some reason.  I rather like this picture.  Just don't show Willow.