Post #502577 by mp on Wed, Jan 6, 2010 2:49 AM

Happy New Year everyone! Thanks everyone for your recent visits.
Ive been peeping in but just couldnt muster a up a response. Lame, I know.
Surviving, Xmas and a recent family illness has kept me and my family on the ropes,
but all is well and has settled back into place.

First, back to the raku post.

BigToe and MadDog - thanks for coming by again you kick ass artists.

Pdrake - thanks for the props. It means a lot that you would want to trade with me.
Your work is killer. I went for the sales because we need the cash, Bad.

Atomic Tiki Punk, Leleliz, Grog and LLT - Thanks for coming by and boosting my tiki spirit.

Vantiki, Babalu and OceaOtica - Kind words from 3 mudslinging masters. I am humbled again!

El Buho, Iokona and liz again - Thanks so much!!!!!!!!. I am overwhelmed.

and Tobunga, thank you. I cant wait to see you and Manuel at the Lei over.

I want to thank everyone for saying hello on my thread and for
those who picked up an mp art piece this year. It all kinda started joining TC
and asking grog to be in the handbuilt show. Ive known about TC for along time but
really didnt dive in because I thought it was probably a bunch of boring blogging or
something (and because there weren't any pictures on the homepage). Damn, I was
so wrong. Just plain Dumb. Joining TC and sharing my art with all of you & meeting a bunch
of you this year has made 2009 a blast. I hope to meet more of you in 2010!

OK, enough mush.

Heres what Ive been up to lately.

The first batch of stuff is a group of black velveteen experiment swatches.
I still havent mastered the black art but I have decided the Leeteg technique just
requires to much time for me so I want to attack it Tijuana style where you just jam
the paint into a short nap velveteen. I have known about Leeteg for a long time and have
collected black velvet paintings most of my life, but it was seeing Heather watts and
Robb Hamels work somewhere in 2008 (here on TC)that made me want to do my own. Ive done
a handful of velvets, but besides the S.Bastard and the Frank velvets they arent really tiki
and there not that good so I will spare you.

I did this batch around christmas. I was making ornaments with my son
and thought glitter would look sweet on velvet, like rhinestones do.
It pops big time. Also take the end of your brush and jam strokes in the
paint for some cool textures.

Im hoping to get a couple of tiki velvets done for the
Tikiyaki Lei over this month

Next is a little painting for a friend who came by the studio looking for
some new things.

I call this guy "The under sea grump". He was just sitting around
for a couple of years unfinished and uninspired and my friend ask
me to finish him up for her.

Still more tweeking to do.

Next is sort of a hot rod painting with one mp moai in it called
"Beat it grommies". The classic situation with the older cool kids
telling the youngsters to beat it!

Here it is the way it sat around most of 2009.

Here I have added another color layer just recently.

Fill in the outlines again.

A close up

Feels like I just wrote a book report.
Stay tuned for more.
Thanks for looking and I hope you have an awesome 2010.