My Buddy Uki, A Tribute Tattoo and His Rein-cat-nation

I wrote a memorial post about him, but he deserves a better tribute than a few words and pictures on the internet, so my first ever tattoo will honor his memory. I designed it using his front paw prints by sitting him on a photo copier and scanning them into Photoshop. I then incorporated the dark spots on his pads into his nickname in a font that matched his unique personality. My Uki tribute tattoo was inked on 05/19/15 at Royalty Tattoo in Durand, MI.

I don't say anything when people try to offer comfort by telling me that they understand how I feel because they went through something similar with their dead pet, whatever. Uki was not my pet, he was my best friend. Uki was more like a little furry person than a cat, he was highly inquisitive and unusually intelligent, one look into his wide open eyes let you know that he was different. Having said that, I don't pretend to have any idea how he did it, but he was also smart enough to figure out how to make his way back.

My First Paranoiac Critical Dual Image and a Poem, Both Circa 1993

GLUTTON

Artist Statement:

I'd rather create things I love, when money's tight push comes to shove.

I'll draw a milkshake with your fries, if that's better than drawing flies.

For artist rendered apathy, in shades of mediocrity...

I'd charge you but a modest fee to churn out anything you please.

I've also done artwork for free, just ask real nice to pass the cheese.

Fame or fortune hope they buy, in art fame comes after you die.

I butcher meat to make my bread, an artist starves, the art scenes dead.

"No works over twelve ninety-five, the fairgrounds this weekend only!"

If that's what keeps the dream alive let me die broke and lonely,

Keep fame and fortune if that's it, spit out your cheese and eat my shit.

Carcharhinus Louganis Showing at DeVos Place Convention Center for ArtPrize 2014

I am honored to once again be displaying dual image artwork inside the DeVos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan from September 24th - October 12th during ArtPrize 2014, my ArtPrize entry is vote number: 57401

In 1988 Olympic diver Greg Louganis injured his head on the springboard and bled into the pool, that same year I began a career as a butcher. In the image the shark is swimming toward a blood droplet hitting water, the red ring it forms is detached from the other four Olympic rings which are floating away forming the number eighty eight.

My original shark and diver sketches were done in 1992, in this work the paranoiac critical shark is the diver mirrored with both images CNC carved into lithophanes from an actual butcher block that I've spent many years cutting meat on. The piece is subtly animated by programmable dual LED strip lighting to simulate rippling water and outline the frame.

Creation of Carcharhinus Louganis (ArtPrize 2014 Entry) The Completed Project Log

Designed using free 3D software and fabricated over the course of six months by hand entirely from scratch in my small 10'x12' home work shop. With a build cost over $3000, measuring 5'x5' and weighing in at over two hundred pounds it is my largest, heaviest and most expensive work to date.

The piece is built from a back painted 5'x5'x1/4" sheet of clear polycarbonate acrylic, two 50" 4K Ultra High Definition TV's, dual row SMD LED programmable 16' strip lights, black rubberized 1/8" aluminum angle, high density polyethylene butcher blocks and black oxide carriage bolts.

From the initial design sketches to finished work, this detailed project log provides a step by step break down of everything that went into building my most recent paranoiac critical creation. Read about it here.

Creation of Gluttony (ArtPrize 2013 Entry) The Completed Project Log

I have finished my entry for this years ArtPrize competition. With a design inspired by previous builds, this art project mixes old school with new style by showcasing my first ever dual image work with some cool LED lighting and other techniques used to build insane modified computers.

My ArtPrize entry was hosted at the DeVos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan September 18th - October 6th. This work is also featured as image 14 of 18 in this online article.

The piece is built from a hand carved and black vinyl painted 4'x4'sheet of 1/8" polycarbonate acrylic atop three color hand cut sign vinyl laid onto a back frosted 4'x4' sheet of 1/4" polycarbonate acrylic that is backlit by hundreds of LED's and held together by black spray rubberized aluminum angle and black oxide carriage bolts. Read about it here.

Previous Award Winning Works of Tech-Art on CaseModGod.com

CaseModGod was created in 2002 and is my website dedicated to instructing how to modify computers into original works of art. Twelve years is a long time to devote to any hobby, let alone documenting everything as how-to guides and step by step work build logs as you go.

Even without reading every guide or build log, skimming the site will show proper project planning and how to achieve professional results using ordinary tools when scratch building at home. From early initial design sketches and computer renders all the way up through build fabrication to final completion, or maybe just for a little inspiration to try something new.

There is also a plethora of information that any artist might find useful, like a sculpting compound article, or cutting and applying vinyl decals, guides on back painting or oven forming sheet acrylic, but if you need to light up a project there are guides for EL wire, Lumin disks and LED's, LED's, LED's freaking everywhere.