Art Wurk

Hey, it's time to update the blog again with some of my newest artworks. [Because I do like to remind people that I can do things outside of MS Paint sometimes]

Because I had so much fun repainting the Caravaggio, I decided to try to create another old-school style portrait. Here it is:

I'm trying to get away from simply copying famous artists' works and create original content from now on. This portrait is a composite of a profile portrait done by Botticelli, as well as a few other stock photos I found on the interwebs:

So my second work is from my computer graphic design class. The assignment was to make a concert poster for a band. I chose to create a poster for The Format. Because, let's be honest, we'd all like to see them go on a reunion tour. 

Even though it's a computer graphic design class, I'm allowed to use any medium I choose. Since I don't have Photoshop, or even know how to use it that well, I decided to just paint the whole poster the old fashioned way. I scanned it in at school and then did some quick touch-ups on the computer.

Sorry for the crappy image! I'll replace it when I get a better one.

I wanted this poster to have a childlike nostalgia quality to it. I noticed that all of The Format's music videos tend to involve something kind of playful (a school play, performing hands, moving paper cutouts), so I thought that maybe a puppet show would be a good subject for a poster. It was suggested that the poster told the abstract story of what happens in a typical song by The Format, so that's what's going on there.

The poster is currently on display in the Harris Fine Arts Center on BYU's campus (fourth floor). You should go check it out if you have the chance.

As you can see, the rest of the class used their awesome Adobe software skills.

It's a pretty cool exhibit, if I do say so myself.

Finally, I wanted to show off a piece I did recently as a commission for a friend. She really likes princesses, so she asked me to paint Belle from Beauty and the Beast. I was a little sketchy of doing the project at first, since Disney princesses aren't really my repertoire. But, the project turned out to be a lot funner than I thought it would, and I'm very pleased with the results:

On that note, I'd like to put in a plug for myself: I am always looking for extra money and I would love to paint something for YOU, as long as you're willing to pay me for it. I charge a relatively good rate and am willing to negotiate. Just let me know either through Facebook, Twitter, or the comments here on Shared Musings.

This wasn't on the Travel Itinerary.

So the Memorial Day weekend was coming to a close and it was about time to finish the road trip and start heading back to Provo for school and such.

The drive over was easy enough.  We loaded my friend's car with snacks and a cooler filled with Dr. Pepper, and I brought a giant list of 'what if' questions I found on the internet in case the conversation got boring, so we were well-prepared.  Best of all, the route we took was fairly easy.  It looked something like this:

"Drive for 800 miles, arrive at destination on left." -Google Maps

However, on the way back, we had to pick up my friend's little sister in Las Vegas, which severely complicated things.  See, unlike Provo to San Jose, there isn't a good interstate that has been built from San Jose to Vegas, so our route looked a little more like this:

"Betcha wished you had a smartphone now, sucka."

Yes, neither of us had smart phones with GPS's, so we were forced to navigate the great American West the same way our forefathers did: with Google Maps.

My laptop was acting up, so I couldn't get it to print off a map at the hotel, so we copied down the directions on a sheet of paper. The trip was going well, but Google Maps was taking us on some sketchy roads.  We were on one two lane road in the middle of nowhere followed by another two lane road going through a village of six people and then we turned at the shotgunned sign and headed west thirty furlongs. . .yeah, it was like that for two plus hours.

By the way, I should mention that I have an irrational fear of getting lost, and that I get very nervous when giving or taking directions.

Anyway, we eventually got to the point in the directions where it said "drive for 127 miles (2 hours and 15 minutes),"  the step after that was to take the exit for I-15 Northbound to Las Vegas.  I-15 is close to the only interstate I've ever driven on, so I knew that if we made it there, we'd be in the clear.  I was finally resting easy.

Two Hours and Thirty Minutes Later:

Yeah, I was flustered enough to say Mormon cuss words.

• There are 259 miles between Disneyland and Las Vegas, Nevada.  
• Google Maps estimates the trip should take 4 hours and 15 minutes.  
• Buying the gas needed to get to Vegas in Orange County costs approximately $12.49 per gallon.  
• The car still needs to make it back to Provo after that.
• And Jake does not have the time or the money to go to Disneyland. 

This was Jake's reaction to this turn of events:

And that is why you should never give directions to, or take them from me.

Endnotes: Our car did eventually make it back to Provo.  It was 2:15 AM when we rolled into the parking garage. It's a good thing I packed extra crackers and easy cheese for the trip.