a(u)ction

Shortly after we moved to southern California I got to help VH1 Save The Music Foundation by displaying the work which had been at their NY corporate gallery at the Billabong Design For Humanity event at Paramount Studios.

At that event the lovely people from VH1 told me about the Songwriter Music Series presented by Starburst coming up in Los Angeles with an accompanying online auction. I was delighted to contribute a couple pieces. The auction is now live!


The Dylan above is one of my favorite pieces I've ever done. Its listing is here. As of this posting, it's a good deal at well below what I usually ask for pieces. Please help it doGOOD, as charitybuzz says, who is running the auction.

The Colbie Caillat below is special because she is going to be the performer at the live event and will be signing the piece! It's part of a package for people who'd like to attend the event, travel and accomodations included, listed for auction here. The bidding for this ends tomorrow! It's also currently at well below what they've valued it. Go to this cool performance and liveWELL, also as charitybuzz says.

Please check out the auction listings, bid if you're so inclined, and share them with those you think might be interested. As with the DLF Music pieces, I want these to do as much good as they can for the charity. I know that if someone who enjoys my work were to win a piece this way, the story of the art would just be that much better. Thanks so much!

Peace.

In(significant)

Here's another beautiful post from Zane Ewton. Having just watched "I'm Not There", this captures Dylan perfectly. Better than the movie I think.

------

In a famous 1965 press conference, a young man asked Bob Dylan about the significance of a t-shirt he wore on an album cover. The young man was visibly dismayed to learn the t-shirt was just a t-shirt.

This is the same press conference where Dylan joked about using a song to sell ladies undergarments – about 40 years before his starring role in a Victoria’s Secret commercial.

As remarkable as Bob Dylan’s music is, it has never been enough for his most ardent fans. Every inch of his being must be embroiled in some deeper significance – even his t-shirt.

The folkies described him as a prophet. At least until he went electric. His early monumental works gave him free rein to do whatever he wanted for the next 30 years – whether it was good or not.

Dylan lives outside the realm of popular music culture. Due in part to his musical output as well as his iconoclastic image. It would be unfair to lump him in with rock stars. He isn’t a rock star; he is an artist. More in tune with the creative impulses of Picasso than top 40 radio. Yet he is ingrained into music at a level few people can claim. It’s impossible to pin down Bob Dylan.

Everything about Bob Dylan means something. Nothing about Bob Dylan means anything. It’s all in how you, the listener, take it.

------

Peace.

Do Not Create Anything

It will never change.

So said Bob Dylan. This line, which I just heard watching "I'm Not There", reminded me of why I care about music so much. And why I love vinyl.

Music always is new. Every time a record is played, it is the only time it will sound that way.

The Dead Weather highlighted this by premiering their new album live online, playing it on vinyl repeatedly for 24 hours, showing the record playing. It would click as it reached the inner groove, and they would have to place the needle somewhat near the beginning of each side, each time.

Music is brought to life when it is played, each time. A concert performance, a music video, a cover version, a movie soundtrack, on through to a tween listening to an iTunes download on her iPod.

And vinyl is alive as well as an artefact of that music. The grooves of a record change ever so slightly with each passing through of a needle, and playback is always unique.

Such is every moment in life.

Peace.

On The Wing

So I'm shooting for at least one blog post a week, instead of once a day. Clearly my priorities and time have shifted. Which is a challenge in the sense that I can't promote my business as I did. I'm having to figure out what will be more efficient and effective, and before doing it.

The way I promoted my art before was rather haphazard. I've got fun stories about specific commissions and projects, like the one about these 5 pieces going to a guy in New Jersey for his new place who emailed me not only knowing who he wanted, but sending me the images he wanted as well. Yet selling pieces was hardly predictable or consistent. I'm hoping it can be. It feels like new territory for art though. Artists typically don't look at their work as a business in the typical sense, I don't think. Maybe I'm wrong. So I don't quite know what I'm doing, basically. It's a little scary.

I mean I want to be able to support a wife, a daughter, and 4 dogs with Vinyl Art. But I don't want to go the traditional gallery representation route. Nor is my art traditional in the first place. I've felt that way a lot in my life, in no man's land a bit. Not as grandiose as charting new territory or anything. Just not normal. But then what's normal?

I can't just wing it anymore though. Fumbling is unacceptable now.

I need to fly. I'm learning how, on the wing.

Peace.

Poetry: Rhythm Or Rhyme?

Yesterday I realized the significance of the development and functioning of our ears before our eyes in the womb.

Today, does what words mean really matter? For a long time I'd been hung up on words, their individual meanings in and out of context. For awhile I didn't want to talk at all because I couldn't resolve meanings and their reality.

Words don't have reality. They are language, as money and art are. Everything we learn in school is language, how to communicate humanity to other humans. It's the rhythm of humanity that matters, not its rhyme. Certainly not its reason.

Poetry, not just of words, for me is the flow of Life, the river that is always moving and always there. Individual notes, words, whatever matter not in and of themselves. It's how they connect with those around them.

Rhyme is internal, selfish, controlled. Rhythm is free, shared, felt. From the heartbeat we hear first as we enter the river of Life, we listen to that rhythm, constantly seeking to be included in it and differentiated from it. It is rhythm that grounds us, makes us human.

Peace.

Blues For Thee, Vanilla

Value = you. You'll see
where I'm going, eventually.

Last year I participated in Vinyl Killers 5, a show of artwork using vinyl records as canvas in Portland, Oregon. I sold a James Brown and Bob Dylan. I've got a link to the show's website in my linkroll off to your right. This year I'm sending Afrika Bambaataa, Miles Davis, John Lennon, Bob Dylan, and this one of Tom Waits.

I first found out about Tom Waits when I watched him in Jim Jarmusch's Down By Law, a great movie that also stars John Lurie and Robert Benigni. All 4 of these people are brilliantly creative. If you aren't familiar with their work, I'd urge you to explore.

I'm noticing that all the creative types mentioned in this post are distinctive, strongly individual, unique, and defiant. Types that live on the edge of creativity and culture. Remarkable.

But you are remarkable too. Even if you don't have a page on Wikipedia or a cult following, you are perfectly valuable as a human being. Think about the people killed back in 2001 on this day, each with a story, each with value.

Anything that you do or create, any ripples you send off, any effect you have on those around you, is your value, is part of "you". I was sitting listening to this Tom Waits album while my iRecord turned it into a reasonably accurate digital version and started thinking about everybody involved in creating the piece of art I was going to create using the record.

I end up thinking about that a lot, as I realize how we share our value. The people who have a part, any part, in your story have value to you. I mean the people who made the steel that became the machine that pressed the record that got released by the record company, bought, listened to, and sold to the store where I bought it are important to me. And so are all the people along that path. Get it?

So be remarkable as you are. Be you, the best, the most authentic you that you can, even if you are vanilla instead of homemade pumpkin caramel with whipped topping.

And thank you for being part of my journey, for as you read this, you exchange your attention for my creation, mutually sharing value, neither seeking gain.

Peace.

SOLD - Tom Waits 09/11/08

Keeping It Fresh

They're hardly old hat. Yes, I've painted both of these a bunch of times. They aren't getting old or boring, or easier. Robert Plant is dang hard to paint. I'm not sure why, but I think I keep missing capturing him by a hair. Hey, maybe it's his hair. Blond curly backlit hair certainly is a challenge.

But I did switch it up for fun: putting Dylan on the left of the record and swapping Page and Plant. Oh so exciting!

I do love painting the iconic musicians because they're the ones that when people see them in the store the subject matter gets recognized right away and then the people can more quickly get to "Now what the heck is that?"

So Dylan is going to Raw Style in Santa Monica, CA and Zeppelin is going to Wild About Music in Austin, TX.

Peace.

ON CONSIGNMENT - Bob Dylan 06/25/08

3, 2, 1... How Can There *Be* Zero Of Something, If There *Aren't* Any?

3 C's - This is Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes painted on side C of "Cassadaga". It was happenstance that the 'C' on the label fit in the eye of 'C'onor on 'C'assadaga. Kinda cool.

2 sold - This piece is a commission for the organizer of the Florida Music Festival 2008 Rock Walk. She sent me back my unsold pieces as well. Two out the seven I sent sold: Bob Dylan and Jim Morrison. Pretty good for an art show at a music festival, I think.

1 to give - I've got one more piece to do for the Alabama Blues Project. I'll show that to you later on today, hopefully. It'll be of Elmore James (hard to find records by the early bluesmen, that's for sure).

Peace.

SOLD - Conor Oberst 06/24/08

FMF2008 Rock Walk: Music-Inspired Passion

So, these are the 7 I'm sending off to Florida. You can click on the photo to see it bigger. They laid out pretty nicely for this photo, I thought. Took it out on the pool deck.

I've gotten a couple commissions that I get to work on: Peter Frampton and Melanie Safka. Both are for people passionate about music that touched them growing up. The people I want to reach the most. Whomever your favorite is, I want to know. I want to create something for you to show off what that music means to you. Make people stop and think, "I know that face... isn't that...?" and then get to talk about why you love them so much. Connect.

Peace.

The Art Of Vinyl Art

Choosing the image and creating the composition is the hardest and most important part of what I do. The first painting above is the first image of Dylan that I've used, the second is the second. I used the second primarily because it is very similar to the Lennon image I use. I figured the pair would look good together. However, the difference between these Dylans demonstrates how important the step of choosing the image is to my process. The first is a much softer photo, more sculptural. It shows the volume, the curve of his face more. The second is much harsher, higher contrast. It relies on shape and edges more delicately to create shading and depth. Both are beautiful photos. I'm not placing judgement on either in comparing the two, just pointing out the impact on the final piece of the choice. The first ends up being a more subtle, but perhaps more realistic portrait, while the second is certainly more dramatic and bold, with the expression captured in details of shape rather than tone.

I thought I'd share this comparison because I just painted both, one for the Florida Music Festival and one for Wild About Music. They reveal different sides of the man: the contemplative songwriter and the forceful poet.

Thoughts?

Peace.

12 Inch 3 Is Catalogued, 4's Date TBD!

Rodrigo has been putting a lot of work into this. I'm glad he sold a bunch of his pieces. He's going to keep mine until the next show, date TBD. I've made a connection with a guy in London who uses stencils to create portraits of musicians on vinyl. Though he doesn't use albums by the subject, the compositions are cool and the color layering pretty nice. We hopefully will be able to team up for exhibitions in London at some point. It is still where we'd eventually like to move.

I did get one done today, Dylan for the Florida Music Festival. I like the new photo I'm using. I'll post a pic tomorrow.

Peace.

Reluctant Enthusiasm

More paradoxicalness. I don't think that's a word, but in any case, another pair of opposite feelings acting simultaneously. I'm getting great feedback on Flickr about my pieces for Art on Vinyl 3 and I am excited about the show in New York, but at the same time I'm still struggling with the demons brought on by Jason's death. So it's hard to really focus on my artwork while trying to find acceptance.

Maybe I can look to Dylan and Lennon. Both resisted being iconic figures in New York, but both continued doing what they did, figuring out a way to accept the unwanted role. I liked finding the new photo of Bob from a promo poster for his book, "Tarantula". Made for a nice pairing with the one of John. Maybe somebody'll buy both together at the P/Art Show. Like pretty much all the paintings you can see in this blog, they're also available on commission.

Speaking of commissions, I already got the New York Dolls album from Canada to paint for the guy I connected with in The Vinyl Engine Forum. Now I've got to find a good picture of the pre-punk rockers. I also found the Grateful Dead album to use for my contest winner's piece on eBay for cheap and it's on its way. So those are next.

Jimi Hendrix Backed By Dylan On YouTube!

Well, I used the "Are You Experienced?" I found. Hope I did a good enough job for such an amazing album. It'd be like using "Revolver" or "Pepper". I created a YouTube video for it as well. I used "All Along the Watchtower" behind it and it turned out pretty nice. So maybe if it gets enough exposure, more people will get hip to what I'm doing and why. I know, just know, I'll have to explain again that I use albums a phonograph needle would run and hide from and that, yes, they are handpainted directly on the record, and no, you can't play them anymore. It's fun though, kind of an ice-breaker to a discussion about vinyl, music, recycling and so forth. That's why I'm creating these, to give people something positive and creative to talk about that adds to and celebrates our pop culture.

First Fridays attendees who visit Red Dog Gallery will see 8 pieces to talk about, compare and share. Who's your favorite? Dylan, Cash, or Hendrix? Nah, Ozzy! Sweetness.

I can still get commissions done for the holidays, so:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT: WWW.VINYLART.INFO

and let me know who the music-lover in your family would want!

The Man In Black On His Ring Of Fire

Dylan worked out alright, 40 some odd views so far. So here's Johnny!

Let me know what you think and if you like it, share the link from YouTube!

Heading out to SoCal on Saturday, but I'm tryin' to get two more done that they already sold. Anybody got a Hendrix record they don't want? Hehe, yea. So you can still see the ones for the show in San Diego if you:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT: WWW.VINYLART.INFO

and help me blow away the smoke and ash!

Dylan On YouTube

This is making me nervous. I haven't done one before and I don't know how well it worked. I made a time-lapse movie of my painting of Dylan. There are some 20 slides as the painting develops. I'm not sure if it's too dark. On one computer it might be, but on another it looks the way I want it to be seen. I've also done one of Johnny Cash that I need to tweak and add music.

We're still planning on being at the Newport Nights show on Saturday. Hopefully the San Diego fires will be contained enough to allow traffic through. We don't know how many people'll show up, but maybe it'll be a nice welcome home for some locals if they had evacuated. Four pieces have already sold, but they're keeping them for the show. Pretty exciting.

I also am in contact with Roger Steffens who is interested in possibly adding one of my paintings of Bob Marley to what will be the founding collection of the National Museum of Jamaican Music in Jamaica! Whoa! I've got a pic of what it'll look like in my gallery online, so:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT: WWW.VINYLART.INFO

and please let me know what you think about the YouTube video here, by email, or on YouTube.

Concerts, Concerts, Concerts!

Today starts a string of concerts my wife and I get to see. First is the Kings of Leon in Tempe, AZ. We saw them in New Orleans at the House of Blues and were excited they were going to come to the Phoenix area. Then the White Stripes in Albuquerque and in San Diego. Yes, we're seeing both concerts! They put on such great live performances we couldn't resist. "Anywhere within a 6 hour drive," my wife said. Then the Arctic Monkeys back in Tempe.

This won't be cutting down on my painting much, though. I've got commissions to work on and several I want to do because I know they'll make great pieces. I'll keep posting pics as I get them done too. Oh, that Dylan wasn't at Raw Style, it was at Wild About Music in Austin, TX. I had done 2 Dylans and didn't remember which was where. But now my brother-in-law has it!

I'm trying to decide who to show at Rockzone Records. So far I've got Jim Morrison, Ozzy Osbourne, Bob Marley and Lou Reed. I'm thinking for the DJ crowd to throw up Rick James "Street Songs" with Superfreak and Isaac Hayes "Shaft" dance mixes to make'em chuckle and think. Or Queen and Kiss. What do you think? I'll post the pics after I get them framed and hung, so who do you want to see? If you need examples:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT: WWW.VINYLART.INFO

and take a look at the gallery.

Holy Jibbitz, I've Been Blogged!

Josh Spear saw fit to blurb me in his blog! David Vo wrote the concise, well-composed post:

http://www.joshspear.com/item/daniel-edlen

He used the Bob Dylan painting with the text, one of my favorites that I almost wish I hadn't sent off to hang at Raw Style in Santa Monica, CA. I've sent off the five blues greats, Howlin' Wolf, Billie Holiday, B.B. King, John Lee Hooker, and Ray Charles, to Primitive Kool in San Diego, CA as well. A fan who bought a Johnny Cash at Gasoline Gallery in El Segundo, CA is interested in Silverchair as well, and I actually found an album they pressed on vinyl! I've got a local record store interested in consigning some pieces as well, so I get to paint more! Off to decide who to do... oh, first, in case you'd like to see others like the one above:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT: http://www.vinylart.info/

and scroll through the jukebox!