Post #252568 by little lost tiki on Tue, Sep 5, 2006 11:08 PM

Mahaloz Tiki-Kate(and Al-li as well!)
I was glad I got to meet you at the House of Tiki gig! Thanks so much for visiting the exhibition! I wish I could have been there when you were! It's always fun to hear what fellow tiki people think of the paintings, as well as talk story about the pieces. I see you chose the Rarotongan/Cook island Fishermen's God mug.Excellent! I hope you can find some time to sip a few Mai-Tais and enjoy your books! I just hope they bring you as much pleasure as I had drawing them! Many Mahaloz for encouraging TC Ohana to go see the gallery.The building is so full of history, charm, and character! And the backyard is a sanctuary away from the worries of the world,something us tiki people understand and appreciate!
Aloha Brad!
Thanks for looking and thinking! That painting you dig "the Ancient One" sold about half an hour before the Opening Reception opened! It really was a crowd favorite (I don't know,but whenever I show at the Caged Chameleon-and hang a piece over their fireplace-it either sells or becomes the crowd favorite-or both-trippy!) He's one of the characters in "the little lost tiki" a children's book I've been slowly writing (actually, I've been illustrating it more than writing it) He lives on an island, far from anything. The island does kinda resemble some lava tube that shot straight out of the ocean, then later, the wind and waves created the hole,which created the arch. Anyways....here's his home....

if you'd like to read more about him,check out my website!
Only hit Hawaii once,and that was for half an hour-stuck on the plane,awaiting my trip home from Okinawa in '83. I have lots of reference books and files ,so..... Plus, I decided to use the black (it looks like purple-but it's not) gouache from the dried pots as opposed to from the tubes-that way it became a bit more runny and transparent and dried fast so I applied layers over layers.Then I outlined it all in gold metallic ink. That Black really captured the ground texture perfect!
The Ancient One's shape began as a bit insectoid/Grey alien/mantis-like, but also with attachments and ornaments to give him an old sage/shaman feel. The strings and beads hanging from him were to give him a gentle sound as well as tie his form back to a totem with gifts and trinkets hanging from them. Haven't been to Burning Man,you're not the first to ask that...Where do i get the ideas? reading, learning, drawing, dreaming, and a huge reference library at my studio-home-and work-also having a brain that won't shut-up definitely helps! I always have the next few paintings or even entire shows in my head.I hope you can squeeze out some time and attend the show. Besides the art, I have a Powerpoint presentation in the back that shows sketches and developments of some of the characters! Like sooooo....



It's kinda fun to see all the different feels and looks of this fellow! Hope to meet you soon! Have fun at Action Sports! I had to do the Project and Magic show in Vegas last week-fashion freakin overload! You get a lot more pretty ladies at ASR! If you miss the show PM me and we can make arrangements for you to visit the studio in Orange! Then ,instead of seeing only about 50 paintings, you can see around 250!
That studio visit applies to any and all you TC-ers, just PM me and we'll make it happen! Mahaloz!