Little lost Tiki's Art Chronicles and Stuffs! Page 70!A brief Return,BUT! Some new pieces to Delight YOU!!!

FlatBlack-Hot Damn! that's the Shout-Out that Phil Shane,my absolute favorite entertainer/lounge crooner says before he takes a nightly shot! :lol: You're from Chi-town, so may i recommend Populele for your late night entertainment cravings? He's a madman on the uke and plays in your area! He does everything from Hapa Haole,Folk, and out-of-control Rock stuff on there...The boy can JAM! Mahalo!

I just looked him up on youtube and he jams away on the uke, good stuff. Seems like it would be a good time slammin' a couple back and jammin'. I might have to find time to check it out. Thanks.

I like how the guys by the top porthole look like they're going "Uh oh, the volcano's erupting" and the guys by the middle porthole look they're mad 'cause they can't go out there and surf and the guys by the water fall are going "oohhh, pretty!!".

wow that is so good keep up the good work my friend

That board quite simply boggles the eye. Beautastic!

Catch up with you soon LLT!

A story board.
How cool is that?

Nice job!

Guardians of the POT-hole?

Hey Ken-

There ya go again... Over and above the call of duty! Check that volcano and waterfall. You always seem to kick it up 10 notches when everyone's expecting it to be just plain old mesmerizing. Beautiful stuff, Ken...

Oh my Lands! thats Crazy Good! :D

Sheesh!
what a response!
guess I'm doing something right...
Here's that Size Comparison shot courtesy of Big Toe! Thank you Sir!
I'm 5 feet 10 inches....

Like my tikiRay facial hair? :)
Looks like i'm on the set of Land of the Giants!
it's gonna make Clysdalle's board look like a skimboard! :lol:
Okay, onto answering all your sweet posts!
So i don't get writer's cramp, i'm gonna put a big THANK YOU SOOOOOOOO MUCH! right here for all of y'all......
Meheadhunter-i think the contrasting of lighter and darker palettes is what gives it that depth...plus putting highlights and shadows in certain spots,as well as different colored outlines....All cheap little painting tricks,but they seem to work!
hewey-sorry to disappoint...seeing as i have more disdain for my own government than yours,i'll probably just keep it here to pollute the Homeland..thanks for the kind offer tho! i hope you are kind enough to accept my crappy drawing for your artswap.....
"piddly detail"! cracked me up! :D
Clarita! Thanks for visiting!! Love it when you smile!
Babs!Glad to hear we'll have at least one person at this show! :lol:
Monkeyman! Hey Derek!
you should buy the surfboard,man....guaranteed to increase in value or not! :lol:
Since this is your favorite,now i gotta try and top that!
FlatBlack-if you go to hear Rob-give him a big hug and tell him LLT sent ya! he plays requests too!
Surf tiki-I think you nailed it on that observation! I always strive to give them each an individual personality (even when they work as a unit) and i'm stoked when that shines thru!
Marcus Thorn-YOU keep up your awesome as well! This community is so full of inspiration it amazes me!
Chongo! missin you my bruthah!
Unga Bunga-storyboard! Perfect description! The problem with narratives is that,more often than not, the artist either gives too much or too little story to the viewer...Sometimes these approaches work,sometimes they don't...This one appears to have succeeded! Glad it could fill your beautiful mind!
Ben-.....
next!
Sam-Always aim to please! Judging from all the work spilling from your brush,it just seems that there's a lot of creativity in the air...as well as unbounded enthusiasm! Hope this year brings us HUNDREDS of new canvases!
Hiphipahula-kisses! you make me smile! :)
Now onto some lil things i just kicked out on a lark .....
First thing is an ink/sharpie/gouache piece i did for hewey's ArtSwap...the theme was
New Zealand Tiki,so i had a little fun and did "High Tiki/Maori Wrowee" piece for it!

Next,my wife bought me a 5x5 LINEN canvas,cause our friend Marla, who works at the Art Supply Warehouse recommended it ....and she knows her stuff! WOW! The gouache went down soooo
easily onto it! So much better than gessoed canvas...but mo' $$$$$ unfortunately....
No title yet....

Here's some details....
it's inspired by a middle Sepik Ancestor pole...


love how the texture looks so good plain! All warm and inviting!
Next, i kicked out a Tiki Modern style fun piece for the Surfbeat show coming up....
I call it "Surf Moderne" with the "e" at the end to make it all fancy!
this style goes back to when i was doing a lot of boardshort and woven prints
for Rusty and Hawaiian island Creations...

Here's some close-ups...



just a fun one,but sometimes art doesn't have to be all deep and meaningful!
Sometimes if it just make someone happy,that's it! Mission Accomplished!
Thanks for all your kindness and love,and especially for helping to keep this little lost artist stoked!

Visit http://www.kenruzic.com
and attain a Longer Life, Fuller Hair,and Kooky Dreams!

[ Edited by: little lost tiki 2008-03-01 15:58 ]

$^#%$^%&^(&_^)&*R^ED%TRYYJUI&UYHOIUJYDF%&IE(%)^(OYTIGVRCDFR(LOUT

was my initial reaction when I saw the comparison height shot....dude! How are you moving this?!
That looks freakin EPIC!!! EPIC!!!
Wow, that's just gonna be pretty intimidating to look @ in person....

"High Tiki/Maori Wrowee" is the coolest, i love that little guy!
And the one behind him with the big O_O eyes looks so bugged out!

The linen canvas yer wifey got you looks pretty stellar too!
Maybe "linen canvases" should be a hint for a Birfday gift or Xmas gift? huh? :lol:

I also love the last piece "Surf Moderne"
especially this little guy

but overall it's really pretty, they could be great character designs! :D

Keep pumpin out that magic art man!
:D

That board is friggin HUGE I hadn't realised quite how big it was - nice work mate :D How far does it spread around the sides, and what did you do with the back of it? The tiki swap piece is awesome too, a more than worty addition to the swap :D

That board is just about the right size for Teakey.

Hewey put me on to this post. That's a very cool surfboard.

Couple of questions...

How does it look when it's covered in wax?

What does it surf like?

:wink:

That's some amazing art. Would be very distracting if you were surfing though, you'd be too busy checking out all the details and miss all the waves!

Alo-HAW Kiddies!
ravers-yeah...I think I'm gonna have to chain it to the wall so it don't intimidate the smaller boards! :lol:
i hope the high tiki goes out to some stoked artist for Hewey's tikiSwap! I like those disembodied heads floating around all spooky-like! And I'm gonna be saving my shekels for some more linen canvases!Thanks fer visitin!
hewey-most people don't realize how big it is til it stands up! working on it flat ,it wasn't until Big Toe made me stand outside with it that i realized.....Holy moley! That's BIG! It goes almost all the way around the sides with the wood grain lines...and as for the back....scroll down and you will have your answer!Very pleased that you are pleased with the Maori Wrowee! I hope a fellow pothead gets that one!
GROG-I was thinking teaKEY and Swampfire could take turns riding it....and creating tsunamis! :lol:
Hey Brootal! Welcome to TikiCentral! Thanks for diggin it!
How does it look when it's covered in wax? it looked pretty awful before i scraped it all off and wiped it clean with Bestine...I've coated it in about 10 layers of Ceramcoat indoor/outdoor matte sealant and wouldn't recommend putting any wax on this puppy! This is more for a wall than the ocean...if some crazy patron decides to buy it and takes it out,then I'll get a pic of it covered in wax for ya!
According to my landlord,who gave me this awesome board, it surfed pretty good,like steering a big boat! :lol:
Alrighty......now some art!
First off....the sketchbook study for the Surf moderne piece...just cause i likes it!

some details changed,but that's the way a work evolves.....
Now for the back of the board!
Please don't be disappointed...

Here's a shot of the signature and title and the hanging...the back has more blue mixed with the brown.just swatches of color,nothing fancy like the other 2-sided boards......
here's a closeup of the title "Guardians of the portal" all GRAF/TRIBAL stylee!

and here's how i hung it! Thanks to all of y'all that gave me advice on this! I measured it out and put three holes in a triangular formation....i poured some of this hard plastic resin stuff i got a while back into the holes and screwed in the screws,leaving about 1/4" for the wire to wrap around...After it dried, i poured some more resin on it, let it dry,then wired it-taped up the ends,and pured some more resin on it....the baby's stable now!
here's a diagram if you ever need to hang a surfboard from a wall!

Besides tedious stupid stuff like hanging, i also got a few drawings done...some from scratch, others half done and discarded for months.....
"the War Dance"
,after the initial ink, i applied colored tissue paper on top and wetted it , letting the color seep into the picture ,then went over that with a sharpie blackline....

here's a non Tiki one... but pretty, so I thought I'd share....
"the River of Life" ditto with the colored tissue paper technique on this one too!

i like how the texture evokes the shadows of the trees on the grass.....
Then i did 2 studies for the second canvas of my 4 canvas epic....the Journey
this canvas deals with middle age and has a warrior theme and warm vibrant colors...

My patron wanted flaming arrows and spears,a battle scene of sorts....
Playing around yesterday, i popped this one out as a concept study/finished piece...

That's all i got for now...might start on this canvas soon....gotta go swig some ZIPFIZZ and get crackin!
Bye Folks and Thanks for all your kindness!

Wow Kin! That looks purdy sturdy! I can't wait for the show!!!
I'll be sure to take a ton of great pics!

I love those first two, but like the way "River of Life" turned out; I should experiment with the colored tissue paper technique, it looks like so much fun!

The studies look great too, but that last study looks so freakin cute with the NOMNOM guys!
You choice of colors for it is fab too!

ZIPFIZZ ZOOOOOM!!!

RAWK'ON! :D

Thanks for the pics of the back mate :D

Wow...that board is just breath-taking and thanks for the size shot...it's a monster. Love the colors and your usual visual intensity. :)

geez mate - can't you keep still for a second??? :D

the board turned out awesome as did the surf moderne piece (and all the others as well!).

Wow! That's some mad skillz!!! :)

I should learn to paint one day... and play guitar... and dance... no wait, I can dance! LOL

I can also surf (not very well, but I call it surfing).

I'm also pretty handy at soccer and dabbled in Ju-Jitsu for a while (must get back into that).

There... I don't feel quite so inferior now.

I have had a couple of lame attempts at pinstriping as well, so I guess there is a very small artistic bone in my body... just gotta find it. MRI maybe?

If you kind of squint... well close your eyes... it looks just like a Tiki!

If you kind of squint... well close your eyes... it looks just like a Tiki!

I can see it!

LLT, that board really turned out nice, and your odds and ends are awesome too. I love the little dude that looks like he's laughing.

Like my tikiRay facial hair?
Oh really I see the resemblance! Is not only the facial hair, What happen to you, That you turned in to a Ray?! What happen to your blondness?!
I am smiling, how did you knew that :D !

Hey Ken- That board is simply awesome! I didn't really comprehend the actual size of the board until I saw that pic of the dark-haired guy with the glasses and mustache standing next to it! :wink: That's some beautiful work on it....Man! what can I say????

On 2008-03-04 23:28, Sam Gambino wrote:
I didn't really comprehend the actual size of the board until I saw that pic of the dark-haired guy with the glasses and mustache standing next to it! :wink: That's some beautiful work on it....Man! what can I say????

maybe that you like my mustachio?
:lol:

UNCOMFORTABLE SILENCE.....
two weeks worth! :lol:
Well, the mustachio is gone-clashed with the bleached hair....
Anyways, decided to get back onto the Journey commission and wrap it up
as there's yet another two commissions looming over the horizon that I'll share in the future.....
Prepare yourselves for LOTS of new work and some old faves at the Tiki Farm Parking lot Sale
so check in from time to time because beginning this Friday I WILL BE GOING OFF!
Thanks you all for the Excitement and Motivation you've brought here,Folks!
Keeps me going on those "OFF" days......
Mahalos to ravenne (great seeing ya at the SURFBEAT! you RAWK!)-glad you could space-out on those
NOM-NOM guys up-close!
hewey-no worries! ArtSwap looming over the Horizon! :)
VampiressRN-It IS big! Looked HUGE on the wall at the show!
Like an OFFICIAL work of art,or somethin!
pics from the show here!
http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=27346&forum=17&start=135&159
harro-thanks man! and yes,i can keep still and not produce art when I'm napping,sleeping,reading,and on the toliette.
All the rest of the time is ART ART ART!
Brootal!
Lucky Duck! You can dance! I took Disco Lessons at the Danville YMCA back in 76-77 and a few years back took lessons with the wife and came to the conclusion that my lifelong dream of being a famous Ballroom Dancer would never happen as I was born with two left feet (the right one also has some Learning Difficulties,but we're working on that!).I totally can see the Tiki in your striping! Great Job! Steady Hand!
and remember, it's just as much about your eye and insight ,as it is about painting....
Let your hand's natural movements dictate your style,that will result in more truth and less thinking about
compensation and stuff like that...And never get disappointed! that Masterpiece may be one painting away!
Can you teach me some Ju-Jitsu? :lol:
Flat Black-good eye! That Laughing guy makes me giggle too! Thanks!
Clarita! I was possessed by TikiRay for awhile, but now it's gone! You can come out now!
and you're always smiling Clarita! That's how i knew! :)
and thank you Sam! You're raising the bar this year for all of us! The theme/execution/and mood of these new pieces are getting stronger and stronger! EL MACHINE is what you are!
Well Kiddies, since you've been waiting almost 2 weeks, i feel I should post the BRAND NEW stuff first, then share my progress on the BIRTH painting of the Journey commission with y'all...
So first, i did a study of the second canvas,which pictures our subject in Middle Age-facing the many challenges and battles that we all face as our newly adult bodies are beset with new opportunitiesand confrontations-both inside and outside.......This canvas will be HOT-warm colors-to generate the vitality of youth and POWER!
BLAHBLAHBLAH! Here it is.....
ink/tissue paper pigment and sharpie and gouache on hot-press watercolor paper (around 17x22-or so...)

Next study i did is for the last canvas...DEATH
My patron sent me a collage of all different studies i had done for this and ,talk about coincidences....
I've always loved Marc Chagall's work-the dreaminess and floating in and out of the physical and spiritual in his work,
as well as his color choices have always fascinated my brain...A week into studying his gouache studies for tapestries and his 12 tribes stained glass windows in Jerusalem,i got this collage in an e-mail and BAM! it reminded me of a Chagall!-so I used that as a starting point and added my own stuff in there (wings-slowly extinguishing helemt,etc.) and came up with a pretty good idea of how the last canvas in this series will work...
You can see the dead sojourner in his new body up near the upper right hiking up the cloud to his new Heavenly destination...(this canvas will mirror the heaven on the first-so you can display them together....
ink/tissue paper pigment and sharpie and gouache on hot-press watercolor paper (around 18x16-or so...)

Also been working on a Volcano Waterfall drawing with ink/tissue paper pigment and
sharpie on hot-press watercolor paper....Not finished yet,but you can see where it's headed....

And here's my ALMOST FINISHED Birth canvas......
I brought out different elements, made them richer,and brought out the background boatsman
and finished up the Heaven area....



Here's some of the boatsman enhancements....


that's it for now! TikiFarm Parking Lot Sale stuff next week!

The birth and death pieces are Dreamy...... I like that peaceful "slipping away" feel to them..... you certainly cartured that to a tee. Great pieces, Ken!

http://www.samgambino.com

[ Edited by: Sam Gambino 2008-03-18 23:15 ]

On 2008-03-18 23:08, Sam Gambino wrote:
The birth and death pieces are Dreamy...... I like that peaceful "slipping away" feel to them..... you certainly cartured that to a tee. Great pieces, Ken!

Ditto. Just looking at the death piece, I got all dreamy and sleepy and content :D

Nice new stuff!! love the water fall one!!

Clarita! I was possessed by TikiRay for awhile, but now it's gone! You can come out now!

Are you sure is safe? you are not going to turn back into possessed LLT? ok I'll stay and play around then :)

Remarkable!

very very nice, Ken! loving the balance between the busier and open/graceful areas.

Well, happy Belated Easter!
Got to go to 4WD Tiki's home for a CHOP on Saturday!
Very Inspiring!
Friggin talent for DAYS!
Sam-Thank you buddy! I feel the drawings help establish a mood without risking a whole canvas...
and they turn out into little art pieces in their own right.......
Glad i could communicate that "slipping away" feel...The death and birth canvases will actually be able to flow into each other when the canvases are done......kind of a full circle thing....
hewey! Tanks! Now wake-up and get more people in on that Art Swap!
Clarita-Gracias my dear! i'll try and finish up the waterfall soon!
and no more TikiRay facial hair......for now! :lol:
Hank!
thanks man! told Erik to send you and the missus a Hug on Saturday at the CHOP!
Hope he didn't steal them!
Pat-thanks Sir! my brain goes from full to empty ,from Busy to Calm in 4.5 seconds....
hard to hide that on a canvas!
Well, as i promised...some quickie parking lot Sale pieces...I may add a bit to a few of em,but here's what i got so far.....
"the Smiling Fellow"

"Smiler"

and "Tiki with Flowers"

I found a bunch of old abstracted tiki designs and concepts i had drawn about 10 years ago for HIC for some embroideries on wovens...not sure if more than one or any of em made the cut,,,
but i just took those sketches and developed them and decided to kick out a little series of these for the parking lot Sale..I'll scan the drawings when i get some time....
Also,got invited to be in the m modern 5 year anniversary Tiki exhibition,so that was quite a thrill
and a challenge! Parking lot Sale/Conspiracy Show/Commissions piling up, and now a new piece for this very important show!
In typical ken fashion, I started the m modern piece on Friday,after getting the call on Thursday!
First i did a study-attempting another in the Tiki mandala/porthole series...

here's what i got started on the canvas between Friday at the studio and Saturday at the CHOP...
3 by 3 feet-paintpen over acrylic washes.....

details! details!


that's it for today! thanks for visiting!

Kiiin! the abstract tikis are real cute! I love "Tiki with Flowers", especially the colors!

The new Mandala piece is real pretty, I love the orongo birdies! Especially that last pic, bottom right, looks almost realistic, trippy!

I can't wait to see it finished!
And congrats on the M Modern show, yaay! :D

It was fun to kick it with you Lost Tiki Man...you is one major crowd pleaser fo sure!!

There goes that Crazy Ruzic Detail already taking shape! A badass piece in the making already..... Hey, where's that dark-haired guy with the mustache at?

In the last photo you can actually see the tikis exploding out of Ken's head!

On 2008-03-29 10:54, Tiki Shark Art wrote:
In the last photo you can actually see the tikis exploding out of Ken's head!

:lol: ya know, I thought the same thing! :lol:

Wow, That didn't hurt when all those tikis came out did it?

What can I say LLT but your stuff is great.
Sherry has decided that I am going to win your Swap Piece so you might as well ship it on over :lol:
HappyHappyHappy

ART DUMP!
BUT FIRST SOME THANKIES!
ravers!-thank ye! I did some more abstract/tiki modernism work (see below!)
it's really been prickling the DESIGN side of my brain!
BABS!-great seeing YOU last week! It was great to watch you work and observe your thought process!
Makes me wanna attend the next CHOP! :)
Sam-Mahalos! Thought all my artist friends would like to see a half-finished piece....YOU understand the time and thought that goes into each piece....Would love to see a step-by-step or even some progress shots of a Gambino painting being produced! I imagine you're so fast that the shutter just captures it finished! :lol:
the mustache guy went on a hiatus ....
last i heard he was heading to Easter Island! :lol:(see below)
Brad! That's how the Tikis are born!
they explode in a haze of sawdust dandruff and latch onto the canvas!
Weirdest thing.....
raves....just talked to you! I gotta make this awful photo disappear!
I need a more flattering one.....
Benz! it DOES hurt when they explode out! Turned my hair blond! :lol:
I hope they pick ya for the SWAP piece...
then again,,I'm hoping for a Benz pendant...
Good Luck!
Fingers crossed!
Thank you!
And thank all of y'all who come by to visit!
Well....here's some new goodies i busted out Thursday thru Sunday...
A bunch of different projects/exhibits going on at once!
Some Top Secret..others Open to the Public....
First....some Tiki Moderne inspired pieces.....
First off, i found this sheet and some other Modernist studies i had drawn during my days working for Hawaiian Island Creations mid-to-late 90's....We used some of em for embroideries on retro printed woven shirts and knits.....

Here's some more i doodled in my sketchbook....

Here's a study for a commission/Tiki Moderne piece
I've been rolling around in the noggin....

here's a tissue paper dye/ink /gouache piece on Watercolor paper
that was born during all this playful examination...
"Morning Dance" I looooooove the colors and bouncy happy feeling in this one!

here's a paddle i painted for the Parking Lot Sale....
no title yet....but i really dig it!

Here's a study for a Platter i may tackle next week...

and in response to Sam's question about the mustached missing man......

here's a Moai drawing on ink/tissue paper dyed watercolor paper with ink on top of dat....
"Waiting" it's got a nice misty transparent vibe......

PARKING LOT SALE PIECES!!!!!
I've been laggin so busted out a bunch!
"Faces" this one you can hang either direction!


"Guardian Head"

"Leaf"

"the messenger"

All of those are gouache and ink on gessoed wood...
and will be available to adopt on the 19th.....
Also kicked out this Happy Mandala for the Sale
Here's the study for it....

it's 14x14 on canvas and acrylic and paintpen
"the Sun Greeters"

Closeups!

NOMNOM!


Also, got a little window of time on the Porthole mandala for the m Modern show.....

details...slowly....slowly....


and last but not least...
This is not Tiki-but has tribal elements....
refuse to be pigeon-holed people!
I was committed to do 6 paintings for a show
with a native American theme......
tell me about it....
Well, Here's 2 out of 6 that i need to kick out and be done with it...
When it rains it pours....
"Hawk Dance"

and in progress.... "Eagle Man"

Kinda made it into a fun/research/play challenge
and i guess they're turning out okay...
Well, gotta get back to work!
Thanks folks!

:D Howzit Kemosabe! :D

Your a tiki stud!

This one is a screamer!

Those are great, Ken! The Porthole Mandala is looking cool! The Native American themes are also very effective. What fun stuff! :) I don't think it's possible to look at your work and not smile.

Hope to see you at the Parking Lot!

DRIVE-BY ART POSTING!
ZZZZZZZZZZZOOOOOOM!
fresh out de oven!





VROOM! VROOM!

:o DUUUDE! you're on FIIIIIIRE!!! :o

I'm really diggin the Morning Dance piece, the colors are gorgeous! and that paddle below it looks great! It's not like any piece I've seen you do before, the colors are brilliant! ZIPFIZZZZ!!
Your studies are fab too!

ooOooo parkinglot sale items, rawkin! I hope I have left-over b-day money to buy a piece!
The nomnom guys in that SunGreeter is cuuute!

That new mandala piece is looking amazing! I love the detail in that last photo.

And I like the native america pieces too! post the last 4 for sure, I'd like to see how they turned out!

in regards to your DRIVE-BY post!

:lol: i love them!
I like that little guy's face in that last one!

And the middle kinda reminds me of that little guy from your story Crying Ku, except happier!

It's like a Koala crapped a RAINBOW in your brain!!! GORGEOUS COLORS OVERALL! and Brilliant deets on that Manadala!

Keep on RAWKIN it hard and pumpin out AWESOME art pieces!!!

BLINGBLANGBLONG!!! :lol:

:D

These are all great Ken! I love the pieces you did for embroidery in the nineties.... See?? You were ahead of the times! The mustachioed Moai are so cool too, and full of character! Of course the new paintings are fine.... I wish I could see them in person.....

For blasting out art in no time at all, buy the RONCO RUZIMATIC. Only $19.95 with shipping and handling. Order in the next 24 hours and we'll throw in a case of Zippfizz free with your purchase. Supplies are limited, so call now!!

Ernie,
should i post your phone number
so people can call you
and order this fine product?
ZIPFIZZ! :lol:

I want one!

Me likey the retro-ish doodles.

Maybe we collab on cut out wood and paint in future?

The negatives make me feel so positive!!

Aloha little lost tiki!
You are one most talented artist! I love the way it all works together in each piece you create and that surfboard is unreal keep up the aweasome Art my friend, Aloha Mooney