Where the hell have i been?

by jbyron

Trying to raise my 2 boys and putting up with all manner of family drama that’s where. All those sans kids, beware – they are time-eaters. You know how many paintings i’ve done in the last 6 months? That would be a big zero. You know how old my youngest is? 6 months. My math skills fall somewhere between 2nd and 3rd grade but i’m fairly certain there’s a connection there. He’s good people though, that kid. My oldest is beginning to show some interest in drawing so that’s cool. Anyway, the time-eaters can get their own blog if they want, this blog is about me… moving on.

I did find some time to do a few freelance gigs. Nothing overly exciting but i needed an excuse to dust off the blog so here we go. This first one is a logo done for a local bar here in Monroe. I designed a few options for them. The one they chose may not be my absolute favorite but it’s definitely in my top 2. And it goes a little something like this:

It doesn’t resemble it so much now but my inspiration was the famous CBGB logo. Simple. One color. On a curve. Had a rock ‘n roll vibe i felt i needed to capture. I hope they make t-shirts.

Alright, next is a logo i did for a website called USA Farm Stars. I don’t think it’s live yet otherwise i would link you there. So this was a rush job. The lovely lady who was requesting my services (i like the way that sounded) needed it on the quick tip. So quick is what she got. I think i turned it around in just a couple of days. But don’t confuse fast with rushed – i work well under pressure i think… I don’t know. What i do know is that within 36 hours i had a logo i was happy with so i submitted it. And wouldn’t you know it – she loved it. And i loved that she loved it. All clients should be so easy to please. Thanks to Brad for the hookup.

And here’s an illustration to go with it. There’s a version of this logo where the tractor illustration and the type treatment are one but i prefer it separated and as this is my blog, that’s the way i’m gonna show it.

I like the driver. He’s got that gangsta lean. I know it would help if i inserted a bit of context by explaining what usa farm stars is, but the fact is, i’m not sure how. I think i have a grasp of what the website is and what she’s trying to accomplish but i’m not sure how to simplify it in just a few sentences. For now, let’s just say it’s a social site for hard-workin’, salt of the earth types, with a bit of sex appeal.

And finally. Some of you may be familiar with a design of mine called STAY. It’s always been one of my favorites. It’s sort of a sister design to Flowers In The Attic.

I’ve submitted it to a couple t-shirt companies in the past and although reaction was good, it failed to get the green light. I sell paintings (on demand) of the design off my gutterpark site. It’s a stencil-based design so i’m able to recreate it fairly easy. I may sell one or two a year to those with impeccable taste.

Anyway, Captain Kyso (salute) contacted me a couple months ago about printing it on shirts. They’re an Indian company but they ship globally. They had me change the colors more than once for reasons i won’t go into. I was skeptical it was ever going to see the light of day. Alas, it did. And you can find it here.

One thing i must mention is the story that was written to accompany the design. Story? That’s what i said. I don’t know if it’s a cultural thing or just some whacky idea – whatever it is, i think it’s genius. Every shirt Captain Kyso sells features a short story that seems to be specifically written for the design printed on the shirt. It’s a weird way to promote a design i think but i’m thrilled someone took the time to look at STAY and find a narrative within it.

And regarding the color change thing. When i originally designed it, i saw it as an autumn piece. The colors i used in my earlier submissions and on the paintings are autumn colors – all the leaves are brown – But Kyso had me change it to shades of blue on white. So now it has a wintery feel. Again, i was skeptical. But it turned out really well i think. I wish they would have kept the figures at the bottom of the shirt but that’s not a complaint.

Go buy one or five. Christmas is around the corner. Makes a great gift. All that. At least go read the story. It’s lovely.

Okay, i’m not promising there won’t be another huge gap in posts but rest assured i do have something already prepared for next week. Why i consider my blog a weekly thing like the sunday paper is beyond me. Let’s not overthink it. What was i saying? Oh, so next week i’m going to feature some street art i’ve been noticing around town. A bunch of hooligans that go by the name, Ghetto Blaster Hunting Club.

Alright. I’m tired. Going to bed. Not even going to proof this thing for typos and grammatical errors before posting, so forgive me if you found some. Daddy’s sleepy.