Haven't Posted in A While

what better way to make people give even less of a shit about your work than to not post anything for three months? It's been a busy time. Just getting over a painful injury that's kept me out of the game. Here's some new stuff... a new logo for That's Entertainment:















and an idea for a print i want to do when i get my press up and running. have a couple thoughts on where to push it. took a step closer to printmaking, looked at some studio space this week. don't know if i'll be able to afford space. haven't been making much dough lately, but whatever. big bills are looming up i need to get some paying work done. fuck it.
























could i possibly have two more divergent pieces?

Tick Tock, Buddy.

Dead

Every once in a while a project falls apart, here's this week's entry.

Pop Zombie

Once I get that press going, this'll probably be my first shirt.

Boo Berry

The art for the Monster cereals has been in a downward spiral for the last few years. Seriously. The boxes of dried marshmallow shapes that nourished a generation of hyperactive nerd idiots like me deserves better. I might make shirts of this when I get a chance. I wanted it to be mine, but still look like something you might see on the shelf...it was a fun little excercise.

www

I
So I'm having some jackets printed this week. The design is pretty cool, the green one with the eyeball I posted a little while ago. There's a front to the design also. I haven't seen the jackets. The client picked the style, and I have a good idea of the cut and fit. So I send the designs with my usual control-freak sheet of notes, arrow, circles and directions for them to follow. I once had a t-shirt printer throw this sheet away as I handed it to him. They fucked up the entire order. "Yeah, we don't take these."

On my current notes sheet, I am very specific about how I need the design to sit, but because I have no actual measurements on the garment, I need the printer to advise me on the actual size. Based, of course, on my notes. I've just recently realized why they don't want these sheets. It's liability. If you just fill out their standard forms, which have no options besides CENTERED, and SHIRT-POCKET, it limits their liability, and their potential need to reprint when their part-time inksniffers fuck up 500 shirts. I don't give a shit, I keep sending them and I'm rabid about making sure the printer understands what the fuck's going on.

This week, the kid that I talked to at this place in California sounded pretty competent. He'd looked over the notes and understood what I was saying. We both had agreed that the problem was that the jackets were in California, and the designer was in Massachusetts. On Monday, he calls looking for the size again. I wasn't mean to him, I understand how unanswered questions plus a busy shop can be confusing.

"I told you, I'd need you to advise me on the size, based on my notes. Remember?"
"Oh well, we can't do that, we need the numbers from you."
"Well, how about you make a suggestion," I reply. "And I'll look at it over here, and if it looks OK, I'll just say that number back to you."
"Well...um let me put you on with my supervisor."
"OK." So he attempts to put me on the telephone with a screaming beast hag bitchmonster. I'm not 100% sure, but I assume it's the supervisor. And this is what I hear:
"I'm not talking to him!"
"But he just needs--"
"NO!"
"B-But--"

At which point, I say to the kid, because I suspect he still can hear me, "Hey, tell her I can hear her." He inadvertently laughs, which I'm sure doesn't help the situation.
I hear her say, "Tell him to go to dub-dub-dub dot american apparel dot-net." I type that in to my computer. The kid comes back on the phone.

"Hey man, they have sizes on the american apparel site. American apparel dot net."
"OK. Cool--"
"Hey!" she screams at him. "Double-you, double-you, double-you!"

II
He calls me today with new, slightly smaller sizes. Turns out the sizes I sent will incur an extra cost. The print will now be about 90% the size I asked for. I tell him that's AOK with me, he says thanks and we hang up.

I need to just start printing my own shirts.

Watch Me Draw Frankenstein in 20 Seconds

Finished! OK, here's the "final" of the illustration build.
Enjoy.

illustration animation

or illustranimation. i'm about 1/2 finished with this illo and i've been taking pics of it every once in a while. it'll take a while to load.

click here to watch it.

Dear Boston Politicians, Cops and Media:

You're ridiculous.

I just wasted half my day talking to people and reading insipid news articles because of this Cartoon Network ad campaign. Advertisers hung 10 lite-brite units around the city with a mischevious 2-d cartoon character flipping an 8-bit bird. On January 14th. Today is the 31st.

You and all your vigilance and homeland security missed the fact that the 'suspicious devices' were hanging in your city for that whole time. When someone DID make a call, you pissed all over yourselves. Then you shit all over yourselves. Then you blame others for your shitty, pissy mess. Newscopters, bombsquads, mis-information, and finally buckle up for the dis-information.

Stop by your wonderful Harvard Book Store and grab a fucking Roget's. This was not a hoax. Stop saying hoax. A hoax is intended to deceive. Maybe if you were fooled into thinking that maybe a cartoon character had come to life and visited earth, you could say hoax. Maybe if the lite-brite said the word "Bomb" across it, you could maybe call it a hoax. This was an image of a cartoon character designed to look like a cartoon character, no deception. It is what it is. If someone was fooled, it's because they are a fool.

Authorities, embarassed by their delay, their alarmism and their cowardice are seeking the harshest and most ridiculous penalty possible. This is an ad, not a hoax. Stop Roving up the language just because you're embarassed. Show some grace. You weren't in on the joke. Don't become the joke.

And don't scapegoat Turner, their artists, advertisers, college kids and whoever else you feel comfortable to blame here. Boston is so concerned about losing population, don't punish the kind of people you need to attract.

Sincerely,
Derek Ring
Worcester, MA

PS I don't want to hear SHIT about Boston being better than Worcester. You are now the laughing stock of the WORLD.

Section 102A1/2. (a) Whoever possesses, transports, uses or places or causes another to knowingly or unknowingly possess, transport, use or place any hoax device or hoax substance with the intent to cause anxiety, unrest, fear or personal discomfort to any person or group of persons shall be punished by imprisonment in a house of correction for not more than two and one-half years or by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than five years or by a fine of not more than $5,000, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Holy Crap!

I should be posting lots of new work soon. Got lots of new ideas.