www.thebeezkneezdelivery.com
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Avast ye website!
It's here, and I'll let it speak for itself. I made this website where in one fell swoop you can both order a shirt I designed, and some raw unprocessed honey straight from the source of the Mississippi in Itasca Minnesota.
www.thebeezkneezdelivery.com
www.thebeezkneezdelivery.com
Feast of Fools @ In the Heart of the Beast
Every year new years is a let down.. So, Here's a show I'm putting on with a few friends!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 11, 2011
PRESS CONTACT:
Guy Wagner
In the Heart of the Beast Theater Teams With Smoked Trout Productions to Create NYE Masquerade Art Ball
Minneapolis, MN
–Smoked Trout Productions is proud to be teaming with In the Heart of
the Beast Theater to offer a truly unique New Year’s Eve experience, the
Feast of Fools. Set against the backdrop of HoBT’s latest production
Winter Dreams, the Feast of Fools promises to be an immersive experience
fueled by the collective ambition of our city’s most creative
partygoers.
Physical
performances will be offered by Renee Starr. The concert portion of
the evening features the experimental jazz of Bad Vibes, horn infused
strut of Sorry Ok, synth rockers Aaron and the Sea, and the face
exploding funk of Dance Band. The crescendo builds with late night
tunes spun by On the Corner.
The
Feast of Fools is proud to be sponsored by some of Minneapolis’ most
conscientious and ethical businesses, including Common Roots Cafe,
Dangerous Man Brewing, and Beez Kneez Honey.
Tickets
are $10 with your own mask, or $15 to make your own mask. Doors open at
8pm. Heart of the Beast Theatre is located at 1500 East Lake Street in
south Minneapolis.
***
and presale tickets at feastnye.blogspot.com.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Smoltification art opening at Moto-i
taken while in process
and another in process
To and from New Orleans con postcard
Had a week long trip to Nawlins in August for which I pre made a couple hundred touristic postcards to hock, give away, and leave in shops. To prep I read a lot about the city's history relating to France, Haitians, slavery growing size as a port town, and of course recurring hurricane run ins. In the end I ended up going a lighter route portraying a sort of jazz funeral parade featuring nutria rats, and drunk bourbonites. For color reference I downloaded a handful of house and Mardi Gras images sort of in the range of.. this.
Here's the sketches
and the finished piece. The big easy refers to how easy it is to get work as a musician.
and here's a swoon piece on the fence around a music house being built in conjunction with project air lift (www.neworleansairlift.org/noa-events/ & http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1132047121/swoons-musical-architecture-for-new-orleans). Suffice it to say I can join the throngs extolling New Orleans virtue.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Boston->New York Land of Opportunity
Boston, land of entitlement and colleges. Boston Commons & the Freedom Trail winding through Beacon Hill. What once used to stand at the height of the acorn atop the capital building was stripped with oxen and cart to flatten the North End and make residential land. Wavy Brick walkways, hazy gas lamps that might as well be using whale blubber to keep their smolder in the daylight. Accosting by the blaring PA systems of duck tours and like zooming on by the Granary cemetery with a split second to see a grave that may be Samuel Adams or Paul Revere. A Frenchman given to patience and austerity now a "where's waldo" headstone to be photographed. Visored women with fanny packs reading off names on the tombstones with a dramatic tone to kids reverently as if they knew them all. Walking tours guided by period thespians herding children who notice that most the dates end at 30 years of age. This is a peaceful place in the land without public bathrooms and history to spare. Catch the bus to New York and dance with drink till the plane comes take me away.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
In depth review of Yita Music violin made in China LiuXi workshop
A few months ago I was looking for a violin to buy as a present on a budget. Originally my hope was to find a used but cheap and functional antique European made violin. I played bass in high school orchestra for a few years, but this served me little in grading instruments with often contradictory descriptions. Spring was calling through cheap blinds, and my eyes were beginning to hurt so it was settled to go for something new, preferably with a reliable warranty.
Talk to anyone young or old. If they have an opinion on violins, they will tell you a good violin can't be purchased for less than 500$- that you're just wasting your money on anything that costs less. Some examples can be found here.
"No to the $100 dollar violin. Seriously. Just send me the C-note and let me blow it on vodka for all the good it will do either of us. You have to spend more. Period."
Some divergent ..rebels suggested Saga Cremona, a Chinese made violin, as one of the few produced in a range of 200-400$ that were reasonable to use; but just that, only reasonable.
Through searching word variations on ebay and google products I happened upon another Chinese company called Yita Music. They made violins, violas, and cellos shipped directly from China. The violins were gorgeous and priced in a 70-300$ range with shipping oddly shifting from 50-100$ depending on which currency you paid with (pounds being the most). The seller has thousands of reviews that are glowing and thankful, and really only a handful of detractors that are bound to come with that volume of sale. A quick search revealed a lowfi website www.yitamusic.com, and some more positive chatter on violin forums. Good enough for me I started making bids on their advanced T19+ series violins and ended up with this particular 4/4 Stradivari Copy.
162 + 59 shipping = 221$ 2 weeks of shipping total in my hands.
As I had read, the pegs were somewhat cheap. The bridge shipped down and would have to be setup. The rosin had shattered into something only partially usable, and the scroll had a strange nick in it as if it had hit a belt sander right before being shipped out. Though these things were minor, and otherwise the violin 'lulu' was beautiful. But what do I know, so I took her to be looked over by Bob of Dahl Violins on a sunny afternoon in downtown Minneapolis. At his studio just blocks from orchestra hall I took notes on his thoughts, and lost said notes in the ocean that is my room.
But, I remember most of what about Bob had to say. A pleasant fellow who apprenticed under the original owner Dahl, he hummed about his business.
Here's his pros and cons.
cons
As I had read the strings are cheap Chinese strings that will never produce good sound, and as such it was hard to determine the sound of the violin with them on. He suggested a good set to replace them (lost that name..), and even that I get them online.
The tailpiece was a similar story, which he suggested be replaced with a Wittner? that has fine tuners on all the strings.
The high e string hadn't been given enough allowance to pass around the peg, and he had to dig a hole out of the scroll for it to fit.
The nut had to be lowered
He said the bridge should also be lowered whenever the new strings were purchased.
Pros
Bob was impressed with the spruce flaming of the violin, the German oil varnish job, craftsmanship in the scroll and other joined portions. The fingerboard was of good quality and well straight. Agreed as I had read that the violin was very loud, but again couldn't be sure on the sound with existing strings. He considered the bow of a reasonable 100$ quality, but did not think it was made of Brazil wood as advertised. And considering a relatively cheap case like the one it was shipped in would run another 50$, that's the cost of the violin right there. His most telling observation was that this violin was by far better than a 500$+ violin someone had brought in earlier that day.
Twenty dollars cash in Bobs hands and this fiddle hits the road.
---
an addendum to this will be posted when the violin has been broken in. I have read that Yita Music is very responsive to any problems and will send replacement parts or entire instruments if there is a problem.
Talk to anyone young or old. If they have an opinion on violins, they will tell you a good violin can't be purchased for less than 500$- that you're just wasting your money on anything that costs less. Some examples can be found here.
"No to the $100 dollar violin. Seriously. Just send me the C-note and let me blow it on vodka for all the good it will do either of us. You have to spend more. Period."
Some divergent ..rebels suggested Saga Cremona, a Chinese made violin, as one of the few produced in a range of 200-400$ that were reasonable to use; but just that, only reasonable.
Through searching word variations on ebay and google products I happened upon another Chinese company called Yita Music. They made violins, violas, and cellos shipped directly from China. The violins were gorgeous and priced in a 70-300$ range with shipping oddly shifting from 50-100$ depending on which currency you paid with (pounds being the most). The seller has thousands of reviews that are glowing and thankful, and really only a handful of detractors that are bound to come with that volume of sale. A quick search revealed a lowfi website www.yitamusic.com, and some more positive chatter on violin forums. Good enough for me I started making bids on their advanced T19+ series violins and ended up with this particular 4/4 Stradivari Copy.
162 + 59 shipping = 221$ 2 weeks of shipping total in my hands.
As I had read, the pegs were somewhat cheap. The bridge shipped down and would have to be setup. The rosin had shattered into something only partially usable, and the scroll had a strange nick in it as if it had hit a belt sander right before being shipped out. Though these things were minor, and otherwise the violin 'lulu' was beautiful. But what do I know, so I took her to be looked over by Bob of Dahl Violins on a sunny afternoon in downtown Minneapolis. At his studio just blocks from orchestra hall I took notes on his thoughts, and lost said notes in the ocean that is my room.
But, I remember most of what about Bob had to say. A pleasant fellow who apprenticed under the original owner Dahl, he hummed about his business.
Here's his pros and cons.
cons
As I had read the strings are cheap Chinese strings that will never produce good sound, and as such it was hard to determine the sound of the violin with them on. He suggested a good set to replace them (lost that name..), and even that I get them online.
The tailpiece was a similar story, which he suggested be replaced with a Wittner? that has fine tuners on all the strings.
The high e string hadn't been given enough allowance to pass around the peg, and he had to dig a hole out of the scroll for it to fit.
The nut had to be lowered
He said the bridge should also be lowered whenever the new strings were purchased.
Pros
Bob was impressed with the spruce flaming of the violin, the German oil varnish job, craftsmanship in the scroll and other joined portions. The fingerboard was of good quality and well straight. Agreed as I had read that the violin was very loud, but again couldn't be sure on the sound with existing strings. He considered the bow of a reasonable 100$ quality, but did not think it was made of Brazil wood as advertised. And considering a relatively cheap case like the one it was shipped in would run another 50$, that's the cost of the violin right there. His most telling observation was that this violin was by far better than a 500$+ violin someone had brought in earlier that day.
Twenty dollars cash in Bobs hands and this fiddle hits the road.
---
an addendum to this will be posted when the violin has been broken in. I have read that Yita Music is very responsive to any problems and will send replacement parts or entire instruments if there is a problem.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Updated Beez Knees shirt design
and the printed piece..
The colors got a bit saturated, but overall it turned out pretty well. Shirts are being sold from 13-15$ (I think) in a variety of colors and sizes, and can be found at www.thebeezkneezdelivery.com . Just email Kristy!
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
The fine fine.. fine work of Olly Moss
After watching (part of) the movie 'Rubber' purely based on the poster, and running into Olly's updated version of the Star Wars series I finally put them together and found the name of this genius who makes killer designs and elegant illustrations look easy. A blend of sharply cut symbols and silhouettes, more work can be found here.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Ariella Schreck
If you're in the mood for some raw, sexual, and embroidered handmade books check out The Made at Mcad show which runs till april 15th. Lots of great work there, but more specifically Ariella's 'Little red book'. There's no picture to entice you, so you're just going to have to trust me. Ariella can be found here.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
New Wake Magazine Illo
It was between this image and one of a KKK member smoking a cigarette with his bedsheet pulled up, and the smoke forming an afro on him. This is a cover for an issue investigating both the good and bad of smoking.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Egyptian Protests
Firstly, I express solidarity and empathy with all those who have experienced tyranny from the Mubarak regime over the last thirty years. The Ballet that now ensues is complicated by layers of political intent and history. Supposedly 'pro Mubarak' demonstrators are being bused in from suburbs with the promise of permanent jobs and payoffs. Fighting as proxy for police they have ridden through the square on horses and camels wielding sticks and whips- all in a sea of obelisk like tanks standing watch. In this chaos there are reports of petrol bombs, snipers picking people off from long distances, and police id's discovered on pro Mubarak demonstrators. Yet the protesters hold ground. To start there was an impressive cross section of class and cultural backgrounds in the street, and I wonder if only the most maligned and afflicted are left for this portion of the drama to play out. In my opinion this can best be watched on aljazeera or democracy now.
What does this mean for Israel if Jordan is next? If a revolution can be sparked in Tunisia by a poor vegetable vendor setting himself ablaze, what were the surrounding circumstances and information circulating at the time? What do these revolutions gain? Does Ben Ali & wife make off with a gdps worth of gold only to be replaced with another tyrant? 'Inside Egypt' by John Bradley predicted these events because something similar has happened here every thirty years; more recently being the bread revolt, and Sadat's deposing. All these instances ended with more of the same. Is there corollary that can be drawn to the United States, or does our relative comfort placate all but those most passionate? Would you give everything up for a very very slim shot at change? What other examples are there of a working reform? Haiti, the first to end imperialism in their country? Ethiopia? Iran? The United States? If you set aside Native Americans, slavery, and a Santa's bag of other contradictions, then yes! Even in its chipped and worn state, we have a constitution that offers opportunity and equal protection. So, the last question is, where is your energy and time best used?
What does this mean for Israel if Jordan is next? If a revolution can be sparked in Tunisia by a poor vegetable vendor setting himself ablaze, what were the surrounding circumstances and information circulating at the time? What do these revolutions gain? Does Ben Ali & wife make off with a gdps worth of gold only to be replaced with another tyrant? 'Inside Egypt' by John Bradley predicted these events because something similar has happened here every thirty years; more recently being the bread revolt, and Sadat's deposing. All these instances ended with more of the same. Is there corollary that can be drawn to the United States, or does our relative comfort placate all but those most passionate? Would you give everything up for a very very slim shot at change? What other examples are there of a working reform? Haiti, the first to end imperialism in their country? Ethiopia? Iran? The United States? If you set aside Native Americans, slavery, and a Santa's bag of other contradictions, then yes! Even in its chipped and worn state, we have a constitution that offers opportunity and equal protection. So, the last question is, where is your energy and time best used?
Friday, January 21, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
Wake Illo quickie
A spot piece for Wake magazine vaguely about the experience of international students going to the University of Minnesota. They are symbolized by the regional foods, and the subject is flipped to suggest a maybe tough experience to be picked over and eaten by Goldy the gopher (The U's mascot).
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Death to the Drone Variety show, or (getting dirty with the future)
A quick ink and digital color for a show featuring just massive amounts of talent. A good friend of mine, Jackie O is organizing this 20+ act, 6 hour bonanza. She also has a group called soundheads, which is a mix between 90's rap, portishead, straight soul and groove. Check it out! http://www.myspace.com/thesoundheads If you don't feel like looking on the poster, the show is at Acadia Cafe on Saturday January 22nd 8pm.
The Semi *hah finished Viagra piece
Still working out whether or not to include the name of the game, "Rx Whack It, your prescription for fun." Add some highlights etc. I watched 30 minutes of 'Love and other drugs' with Jake Gyllenhaal to ..inspire me, but it ended up being a bunch of canned lines and painfully one dimensional characters.
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